Now, this game my team is superior so we're expected to win, but as elo becomes more useless as an indicator, you really have to look at how people play. We had a 5-10 and 2-11 on the team. This one is fun b/c I trolled jupiter(r)69, a known spectre player. From his record, he had a huge PA game earlier, so he thought he can get an easy 20 elo against our team of noobs. Within 10 mins he was 8-0 or something and boasting about ez win. By 12 min or so, dagon spec starts spanking him and takes the game.
https://entgaming.net/findstats.php?id=11629978
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And 17-2-15 spectre takes game. Jupiter is a so-so average 1200 elo player. I've beaten 1500-1600 players with dagon spec before. Going BKB as 1st item for him was a bad move and he paid the price. BKB is a very specific item for specific usage. With only a BKB, PA has no extra damage, IAS, nothing. After the bkb goes into CD, PA is vulnerable.
This was actually a dick around game for me, I don't like playing serious games, but as I've said it is all about thinking outside the box, countering with items and spanking noobs who judge too quickly and only know how to play 1 build for any hero.
Spectre is my favorite hero now because there are just so many different ways to play him and spanking unsuspecting noobs and even some pros (assuming 1500-1600 is considered pro). Whenever I say dagon spec, noobs think it is a 40 min dagon spec and they come up with their ridiculous arguments about how they would counter it with satanic. Uh.... dagon spectre is early hero hunting and will farm that satanic long before you will.
Not all games with spectre requires a dagon. It is for early hero hunting. Last time I played a serious spectre game was against Letjing's tinker. I know his game play, dagon wasn't the choice. Needed IAS and basher to prevent his TP in team fights. And won that one going 22-5 (https://entgaming.net/findstats.php?id=11567670). But many games dagon spectre is beneficial.
Case 1:
You are a dagon spec at 12 mins. Enemy team has 2 int support and 1 agil archer with 2 melee. In team fights, those 2 melee are depending on support from the 3. I ult, the 3 instantly run b/c they know one of them will be dead. The 2 melee has no support against 4 of my teammates, they're dead. I kill 1 support, 5 of us chase down the other 2. A very very very typical dagon spectre game play. It isn't always about getting the kill with the dagon, it is about the mentality, the crowd control.
Case 2:
Dagon spec is the ultimate anti-SB. SB charges a sniper. He thinks he has an easy 1v1 kill. Dagon spec jumps in, 2v1 and a 400 damage blast. Deny sb early food, he can't grow. I spanked our dear Beerlord's SB once when he thought he had an easy win, ehehe.
Case 3:
Dagon spec counters heroes such as axe, PA, LC, razor, tiny, etc... b/c those heroes want you to attack them they have passive counter measures. At 12 min, start killing them and deny them kills to get items.
Case 4:
You have 2 str heroes on your team. You would be stupid to go tank spectre if you already have 2 tanks, especially if one of them is SK or naix. Most SK and naix farm until 40 mins to contribute. If you go traditional tank build or even radiance build, you can't really contribute until 30-40 min mark. That means at least 2-3 heroes on your team are out of the game for a good solid 30-40 mins. Your team has to play 2/3 vs 5 until your lategamers can contribute.
Dota Basics:
DOTA basics is kill heroes and survive. You grow in level and gold for items while denying them levels and gold. 12 min dagon spectre will control much of the game, denying heroes ability to level and farm, scatter support and range heroes in team fights, etc... Of course every game is a team game, so there are no guarantees. But spectre as a whole is a global crowd control, you must play with a global mentality and team mentality. When to use your ult and how you use your ult is the most crucial.
Now anyone who just farms big items and start owning with spectre at 40 mins is just lame. You let your team carry you to 40 mins and you boast about it. Eh... I hate those noobs.
Book spectre:
Still somewhat experimental, but I've done it many times. Still trying to refine when to go this build. Mostly if they have invisibles, I would go this build. But it almost always go as 2nd item behind dagon. If it is a game that doesn't require a dagon spectre build, then almost never would go book either. Items have item matches to support each other too.
Book is one of the most underrated item in the game. It is way more powerful than people realize especially against mana requiring heroes such as SK or dusa, etc.. But it is also deadly again to any support hero or agil range hero. When going book, 3rd item behind it must be skadi or in rare instances, diffusal (I say rare b/c if going diffusal, it is usually the 1st or 2nd item). Slow and just destroy them with your minions.
Basically spectre is a flanking hero like SB, or any blink hero, but much much more effective b/c he jumps right on the support line instantly. His tp is more accurate and deadly than Furion and he's also very dangerous ability wise without items. Regardless if you get him tank items, he is tanky for an agil and to have him instantly show up behind support lines disrupts enemy teamplay. So the best way to build him is always aggressively and fast killing easy heroes instead of "well i need a radiance and a heart to tank their LC and Sb duhhh..."