Greetings, dear players! I am Librarian Husky, and today we will delve into an exciting analysis of playing Lycan in the offlane. Together, we will explore how to handle difficulties in tough matchups, especially when facing heroes like Bloodseeker and Crystal Maiden. You can look forward to a breakdown of strategies for managing creeps, item selections, and the smart use of wolves to pressure the enemy and farm efficiently. It will be interesting and useful—so settle in comfortably and read on!

Challenges Facing Lycan in Offlane

As much as I wanted to secure the Rune for my team, I couldn’t risk running into four heroes. Rupture is a bit annoying for Lycan, so I guess I could go for something unconventional like Blade Mail this game, especially against a Bloodseeker and Crystal Maiden lane, which is pretty tough. I’m paired with Hoodwink, which is one of Lycan’s better matchups, as you can pair Howl with Acorn Shot or Bushwack.

Game Strategy and Wave Management

What I’m planning to do here is push the wave and then focus on getting denies. This guy can hit me a bit, but it shouldn’t be anything crazy. I’m going to pull the wave back since he’s letting me. I don’t think he can deny the ranged creep, so I’ll get the lane in a good position. However, I don’t want it to be too big of a wave. Forgive me if I miss some last hits; I just got back from a weekend at home.

Early Game Struggles and Itemization Plan

So, I’m going to miss some CS, but yeah, I definitely expect this lane to be a bit difficult early on. I’ll probably need to buy a second set of Tangos, but that’s fine. We’ll focus on getting our levels up and last hitting as best as we can. Right now, buying a second set of Tangos seems like a good idea, and I think I’ll go for a Wand next instead of the Wraith Band I had queued up.

Skill Choices and Strategy Adjustments

I’m debating whether to skill my E ability, but I usually go with Howl, especially against Crystal Maiden since she has low armor, and I can potentially kill her. They chased really far just now, but we got some nice denies, which is great. I’ll pick up a Wand for extra mana sustain. I’ve definitely given this guy more CS than I should due to some misclicks, which is frustrating, but we’ll adjust.

Lane Pressure and Creep Management

They pulled the camp, but we should be fine. Clicking on the Crystal Maiden shows she can’t pressure me much. Bloodseeker can walk up to me, but it won’t do much, so I’m not worried. The wave has connected now, and I want to try taking the large creep, which I did successfully. Trading with Bloodseeker isn’t worth it because he’ll out-sustain me over time, so I’ll avoid that.

Wolf Health and Lane Control

I need to keep my wolves healthy, but they’re taking a lot of damage. This lane is tough, so we’ll continue playing defensively. We need to get the lane back under control since there are way too many creeps on our side right now. It’s all about staying calm and managing the pressure.

Early Itemization and Mana Management

I’m going to get dove soon, so I’ll probably pick up Raindrops to have as much mana as possible. Putting some pressure here, we pop the salve, and they’re actually pretty low. They even cut the trees, but I shouldn’t let them get these creeps for free. I should be able to deny most of the wave since they’re really low, and my Hoodwink got the first kill, which is huge.

Next Steps and Leveling Howl

I’m just going to sap the XP from the range creep, and the next thing I’ll pick up is Treads. I might static my courier for a second. We’ll also get our Howl level up here. I stepped up too far, and they get so much attack speed—what is that? If the attack bounces back, it’s going to kill him, which is kind of sad.

Pressure from Mid and Adjusting to Game Flow

There’s a hasted level seven Marcy in my lane. Unlucky. She’s winning mid pretty hard, and now she’s definitely going to sit on me because of that kill. It’s really unfortunate when a mid hero comes and kills you early; it can hurt your game since I’ll be underleveled for a bit. Bloodseeker will hit six way before me now, which makes things tougher.

Neutral Items and Wave Pushing

I’m trading well because of my stat items, which is nice, but it’ll be hard to do much beyond that. I do see the Marcy, so I should be fine. We’ll grab a neutral item soon—never mind, my Hoodwink bought it, which is fine. At this point, I kind of just want to push the wave forward.

Lane Control and Jungle Transition

If I’m allowed to, I’ll look for a side pull. I don’t think I want to hold the lane back too much since I have the option to side pull. Maybe I just need to hard commit to the side pull. She has Rupture now, and this guy’s level six, so I can’t stay in lane. I’ll take some creeps and make my way into the jungle, as this is turning into one of those games where my mid loses.

Adapting to the Game Situation

I’m not saying this to be toxic, but my mid losing makes my game harder. Thankfully, my hero farms well in the jungle. I can last hit with Wolves and stay in XP range without taking any major risks. I’ll grab the large creep and take the skeletons for XP. If Bloodseeker pushes the wave, I’ll farm safely.

Farming and Safe Play

My default is to move around the jungle and farm efficiently. My Hoodwink shouldn’t have stepped up like that. We’ll farm on Agility Treads for speed. It sounds like he used Rupture, which is important to know. Bloodseeker is pushing in the wave, and if Rupture is on cooldown, I’m completely safe to farm it.

Warding and Itemization

I’ll put down a ward to see what Bloodseeker is doing. Then, I’ll go back to farming the large camp. I’m picking up a Buckler and some regen to deal with Bloodseeker and Marcy’s aggression. They’re running at me, but I feel prepared to handle the situation defensively.

Missed Opportunities and Strategic Adjustments

I didn’t clear the camp in time, which is pretty bad, as now Bloodseeker will come and farm it. I can’t pressure him much, and I should have used Howl for the M go. Remember, Howl is global during the night, and it’s quite important because it helps your teammates and gives you assist gold. Missing the Fly Bears is unfortunate, but we’ll adjust to the situation.

Dealing with Bloodseeker and Marcy Pressure

With Marcy dead, Bloodseeker can’t pressure me too much. He respawns in nine seconds, so I have to act fast. If I can take the large camp, great, but I’ll back off if needed. When Bloodseeker uses Rupture, you can walk it off if you have a high HP pool, and that’s what I did here. We tanked the Rupture and managed to kill Marcy, which was a big win for us.

Assessing Mid and Focusing on Leveling

We see Crystal Maiden mid, and I want to kick her out, but if Marcy is still around, it’s risky. She’s not weak, and I don’t think she used her ultimate. Now that she’s back mid, we’re relatively safe. My main focus now is hitting the later levels because Alpha Wolves become incredibly strong as they scale.

Farming and Team Recovery

I have no interest in taking the tower just yet, as Marcy’s threat is still too great. However, if we’re given the opportunity to hit the tower safely, we’ll take it. For now, I’ll farm backwards, and it looks like my Puck has recovered nicely while we were dealing with ganks. Puck probably got some free farm, which is great for us.

Optimizing Wolf Usage and Mid-Game Timing

I’m going to send my wolves, but there’s no point in sending them mid since the enemy will just farm the wave and back off. If my team wants to smoke to me, they can. I’m almost at Vlad’s, and I’m trying a build I saw Saberlight use, which includes Orchid. Our main timing is at level nine, and I’m almost there. Once I hit level nine with Vlad’s, I’ll be 10 times stronger—no exaggeration. These wolves are incredibly strong right now.

Recovering from Early Pressure

It looks like my Alchemist is having a great game, so things are chill even though we had some early pressure and a difficult laning matchup. He managed to come out okay. I don’t want my wolves to get low for no reason. I could have TP’d here, but I got distracted hitting the tower, which was a bad decision. I should have farmed backwards, taken my Ancients, hit level 10, and finished Vlad’s instead.

Building Strength and Strategic Focus

We’re strong on respawn, but the enemy Sand King is already level 11, which is unfortunate. My main target to terrorize with wolves is the enemy Ringmaster. The enemy is moving across the map, and they may still have Rupture, so I need to be cautious. This is one of those games where I have really greedy sidelane cores in Alchemist and Puck. Puck is one of the greediest mid heroes in the game.

Playing Around Timings and Applying Pressure

I’m just playing around the fact that I need to hit Ancients, even though it’s not exactly what I want to do. I want to apply pressure with this Wolf timing on the enemy, but if I can take the tower for free, I’ll go for it. However, the Sand King won’t let that happen easily. I’ll resummon my wolves and avoid feeding him free gold and XP.

Itemization Choices and Team Play

Part of me is tempted to buy a Pipe, but I want to try this Orchid build. It seems pretty good—you Orchid, BKB, and right-click hard. We could smoke and kill the enemy carry, but it’s risky with Bloodseeker‘s stun. I want to connect with my team mid, especially since there’s going to be a big fight, and I want to be there to drop Howl and apply minus armor on Marcy.

Teamfight Success and Securing Objectives

It looks like a good fight to me. I don’t think they can kill our Alchemist like this. We’ll bring down Marcy, and that should be another free kill on the enemy Ringmaster. That’s why we connected mid; we expected a big fight to happen. Even though I’m not making a crazy impact, cleaning up two big kills like that is huge for us.

Transitioning to Late Game and Farming Efficiency

Now, I’ll probably head back to the bottom lane. I’m almost done with Orchid, and we’ve gone from having a rough game to being pretty strong. I’ll send my wolves top while I farm this camp. Without Shapeshift for a bit, my hero will just farm while my wolves are annoying the enemy. With Orchid completed, I’m ready to push forward on the map, though it may not be practical at the moment.

Shard Purchase and Strategic Use of Wolves

I’m going to buy my Shard next and keep using my Wolves to scout while I farm the lane with my hero. Marcy could go on me if she’s feeling confident. I’ve got an Orchid on Crystal Maiden here, so I’ll let my team fight while I kite a little for my Alchemist. The Wolves can poke at Bloodseeker, and I just need to stay patient. It’s looking like a pretty good fight overall.

Micro and Pushing Objectives

After buying the Shard, I’ll send my Wolves to the Ancients since Bloodseeker is likely to farm there. I’ll hit the Ancients with my hero too. No way, he almost got away, but I got him with my Wolves—big micro moment. Now I’m thinking about which tier two tower to take. Dragon Scale is good since I have armor issues. I’m doing some scouting for the team while farming.

Farm Efficiency and Building for the Late Game

I’ll farm the Ancients on the right because I can farm them twice and grab the Wisdom Rune. I’ll push out bottom with my Wolves and take the Summon Wolves HP talent. We’re pushing bottom all the way and getting most of the creep gold. I’ve got my BKB queued up next, and after that, I’m considering a Linken’s, although I don’t really like it. I’m probably Bloodseeker’s best Rupture target.

Team Coordination and Scouting

My Alchemist is buying Assault Cuirass, but I wish he’d bought it earlier since I already have one. I could have communicated that, but it’s fine. We’ll send our Wolves to scout the jungle and see what’s going on while we farm bottom. I want to check if the enemy team is preparing for a smoke play.

Scouting and Engaging with Wolves

I can also use my Wolves to scout for a potential smoke. I’ll go hit Roshan while keeping an eye on the map. I see the illusions mid, and I’m going to engage on the Ringmaster if he’s alone. He seems isolated enough, so I can deal a solid chunk of damage to him. Be ready, they might be on the hill—let me scout with the Wolves. They’re here, smoked up.

Breaking the Enemy’s Position

I scouted them again with my Wolves. They’re going to retreat up the hill since we broke their position. When you break their formation like this, we need to chase hard. I’ll try to get my Wolves on their backline. This fight feels clunky, though, and it’s hard for me to engage without BKB. I’ll probably buy a Nullifier next since the enemy Sing is building Yule’s.

Shard Effect and Pushing Objectives

The Shard I picked up is really helpful. I’ll go hit the mid tower while healing. The Shard has allowed my Wolves to push top the entire time, and now the top lane is pushed in completely. I’ve gotten all the gold from that, and I’m really farmed at this point. I see Sand King is behind you, Puck—they’re TP’ing top.

Dealing with Team Decisions and Finishing Objectives

My Puck is making a risky play instead of just getting out. I hate when Pucks do that, but it’s fine. I can’t be there to help right now. He could have escaped, but he went for the solo kill. I’m going to send my Wolves in because they still add a lot to the fight. I’ll use Howl to reduce armor and put my Wolves on the Ringmaster. We should be able to take the bottom tower while my team deals with other distractions.

Lycan’s Farming Potential and Nullifier Strategy

I don’t really care about the current situation because this hero farms so fast, especially with The Shard and its natural farming potential. Plus, the assist gold from Howl is helping me a lot. I’m going to farm up a Nullifier, which will have a huge impact. It will get rid of the Solar Crest that Ringmaster is buying, making it easier for me to chunk through his armor. It’s also great against Yule’s, so I can use it on Sand King and stop him from being a front-liner.

Considering Other Item Choices

We already have Shadow Demon, so Nullifier isn’t the most necessary purchase, but I still think it’s worth it. I’m also thinking about other options, and Linken’s Sphere is fine since it provides extra protection. Now I’ll apply pressure on the tower. If they don’t TP, it should die because my wolves get 100% evasion when I use the active ability, allowing them to tank the tower safely.

Maximizing Efficiency with Howl and Wolves

By clicking Howl, I reduce the enemy’s farming speed and apply minus armor to every creep on the map, making farming even faster. I’ll farm the entire wave here while giving evasion to whichever wolf is tanking the tower. Meanwhile, something’s happening with the enemy—he looks dead, so it’s probably a good fight for us.

Challenges of Chasing without Shapeshift

I should have used my BKB during that fight, but I didn’t have anything ready. Chasing on Lycan without Shapeshift feels weak, and my Puck is making questionable plays. Lycan’s chase potential is limited without Shapeshift, so I prefer not to chase too much in these situations.

Evaluating Chasing and Itemization Choices

Chasing feels really bad without Shapeshift, especially in their base. I’d rather stop chasing and focus on farming my next item. These ghosts make me think I should just buy Bloodthorn to kill the enemy supports faster. That’s what Saberlight did, and it seemed like a solid strategy. You hit much harder with Bloodthorn, and it makes targeting easier.

Kiting and Targeting Strategy

I didn’t get the Fine Shell, but Enchanted Quiver should be fine since I don’t really need more armor. I can kite around the edge of fights. My goal is simple—target the supports, buy Linken’s, and focus them in fights. Howl helps with evasion, allowing my Wolves to easily clear waves without taking damage. You lose some XP this way, but the extra gold makes it worth it.

Managing Waves and Farming Efficiency

The enemy isn’t defending, so I’ll keep applying pressure. My Wolves still have some life left, and with Howl, they can deal with the waves. Even without Hy, we should be fine. We just need to be patient, as the enemy is likely to smoke soon. Puck TPed out, so we’ll focus on top towers and Roshan if the enemy stays passive in their base. I’ll outfarm them and carry the game once I have a full Linken’s Sphere.

Using Wolves and Avoiding Enemy Smokes

I’ll send my Wolves in for some harassment. They have full evasion, so they should be able to poke Sand King safely. Wow, that poke was much harder than expected—those Alpha Wolves are no joke. Sorry, bad joke there. Anyway, the enemy might be smoked and running at me now, so I’ll stay alert.

Preparing for High Ground Siege and BKB Usage

I’m getting ready to use my BKB if needed, and I’ve completed Linken’s, which I can also put on my Alchemist while he’s sieging. This will be helpful. I’m going to focus on taking most of the bottom tower and continue committing to it. I’ll keep hitting bottom, and if they start chasing, I’ll simply send my Wolves to finish off the tier 3 towers. Once that’s done, it’ll be much easier to go High Ground.

Using Wolves to Apply Pressure

The enemy doesn’t know my Wolves are hitting the tower, so I’ll put them on it once they back off. Finishing tier 3 towers is key for future pushes. We can smoke or go for Roshan, as it’s available now. We’re smoked—let’s look for a fight. Bloodseeker seems to be hiding, but he needs to come and fight us. I’m not sure what I blocked with Linken’s, but no worries. Let’s go for Roshan now.

Managing Wolves and Teamfight Objectives

I’ll keep sending my Wolves to push the bottom wave and applying pressure. More gold for the team and more annoyance for the enemy. Bloodseeker is running toward the bottom lane, and we should chase him. My Wolves give so much vision, which is incredibly useful. In teamfights, it’s a bit unclear, but I think my best target is the Ringmaster since he has no dispel.

Challenges of High Ground Sieging

It’s tough to get in and actually siege the base. Honestly, I don’t think we can successfully siege right now. I should’ve just called it earlier. Every time you think, “This siege will be different, this time it’ll work,” but it never does. Let me tell you, every High Ground siege feels the same—Banner or no Banner—it just doesn’t work. No cap.

Farming Level 25 and Poking High Ground

I’m almost certain this is the point where I go farm level 25 and use my Wolves to poke the High Ground. I’ll even start sending the Wolves now. You can use the high tail to poke easily. There are two Wisdom Runes available, and hitting level 25 is the key here. I’ll take the Wolves talent, which will give them 32 seconds of 100% evasion against towers.

Assessing Team and Enemy Positioning

Damn, Alchemist doesn’t have his Shard yet, and that’s one of the best Shards in the game. The enemy is missing from the map right now—they were mid, but they’re likely heading top. They don’t have a great play here, though, because my Wolves are pushing in their waves, making it hard for them to advance. I’m also looking for a better neutral item, and Ninja Gear is tempting for mobility.

Utilizing Wolves and Evasion Tactics

We’re about to hit level 25, and I’ll take the Wolves talent. With 32 seconds of evasion, the Wolves can poke at the towers without taking damage. I’m sending them top to start poking, forcing the enemy to keep someone in their base at all times, which they don’t want to do. Puck is pushing the bottom wave as well, adding pressure.

Maximizing Tower Damage and Disrupting the Enemy

I’m using the evasion tactic, giving the Wolves attack speed, and we’ve taken most of the tower. The enemy can’t hit the Wolves due to the evasion, except for the occasional Maelstrom proc. We’ve almost taken the entire tower—pretty crazy, right? I’ll send more Wolves top again. If they don’t react properly, they’ll lose their buildings.

Enemy Unpreparedness and Applying Pressure

I don’t know, it feels like the enemy isn’t ready for this. Crystal Maiden is, but she has to use her ultimate just to kill my Wolves. Sand King is back, but I’m not even going to give them the gold—they can suffer. They’re choked out now, and if they don’t sit in their base, I’ll take megas. I’ll send the Wolves a little delayed to make the enemy feel safe, but they clearly have a Sentry down.

Waiting for Roshan and Preparing the Wolves

At this point, we’re just waiting for Roshan. It’s a bit of a boring game, but I’ll send the Wolves in a delayed manner to keep the enemy on edge. They might feel safe now, but I’ve clicked Shapeshift, and Crystal Maiden is about to get bullied. I misclicked my care, but this fight feels strange. My Hoodwink isn’t playing optimally, and the game feels a bit off.

Delaying the Game for Puck’s Agonims

Basically, we want to delay the game until Puck gets his Aghanim’s Scepter, which he doesn’t have yet. It’s really important for Dream Coil to do the thing where it shoots auto-attacks. The waves are pushing in, and once again, Crystal Maiden will need to use her ultimate to deal with the Wolves. She can’t do it alone, so the enemy team is forced to respond.

Enemy Team’s Missteps and Capitalizing on Ro Respawn

I see that Sand King is there, but their Bloodseeker TP’d out, which is a nice opening for us. The enemy team isn’t in their base, and that’s a big mistake. Ringmaster can’t handle the pressure alone, and Crystal Maiden left the base, even though she’s the one who should be dealing with the Wolves. Roshan is coming up again soon, so we’ll capitalize on that.

Applying Pressure and Forcing the Enemy’s Hand

We can just go now. The enemy has to deal with the Wolves pushing top, and they’ll likely show on the Wolves. While they’re occupied, we should run down mid. I was going to take megas, but I’ll focus on hitting Bloodseeker instead. My Puck is dead, and I honestly don’t know how that happened. I should have just called the play earlier.

Unexpected Chaos and Miscommunication

It feels like people are choking or something because that fight went way worse than it should have. No idea what happened. Bloodseeker is still alive, and now they’ll likely go for Roshan. I’ll farm the back camps while my Wolves push the waves. The wave is going to hit backdoor protection, so they’ll have to send someone back soon.

Targeting Key Heroes and Timing Shapeshift

There she is—Crystal Maiden, the one dealing with the Wolves. We should kill Bloodseeker; look, he’s exposed. My Wolves are applying a lot of pressure on the enemy, and Shapeshift is ready in 30 seconds. It’s a bit awkward, but I’ll send the Wolves on the racks while Alchemist goes back in. I’ll pop Howl for him and maybe Bloodthorn Bloodseeker.

Teamfight Execution and Right-Click Challenges

I can even poke a bit at Marcy. Wow, I hit really hard, but it’s difficult to right-click effectively when a big teamfight is going on and there are attack speed slows. Maybe I could have played better in that last fight, but overall, we’re doing a decent job.

Reflecting on Shapeshift Usage and Teamfight Impact

I didn’t have Shapeshift for that last teamfight, and I’m not even sure when I used it. Did I misclick it again? I feel like I might have. Either way, it’s confusing how I didn’t have it ready. Big D—how much rank did I gain from that game? Let’s check. In higher ranks, the MMR you gain is very relative to how teams draft and how your team performs.

MMR Gain and Draft Reflection

So, I did have the highest rank on my team, which is a bit frustrating. I was the second-highest pick overall, but they had a rank 8000 player. That wasn’t a huge win—only about 18 MMR. It was a hard game, and the lane felt tough because of the counterpick. I didn’t lane as well in the early waves, and missing some CS hurt me, especially since they got level two first.

Analyzing Early Game Mistakes

We did pretty well overall, but I made a couple of early game mistakes. The biggest one was hitting the tier one bottom—it was super cringe. Getting chain-ganked was rough, but one of the side effects was that my Alchemist wasn’t getting pressured, which allowed him to have a good game. There’s something to be said about that trade-off.

Impact of Early Pressure on the Team

If you look at my net worth, it’s clear that the early pressure slowed me down, but it gave my Alchemist the space he needed to excel. While it was frustrating for me, the team benefitted from the focus being on me rather than on our carry. In the end, that dynamic helped us stay in the game.

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