CP Alpha, Slayer of Carries [2.1] UPDATED by LAZER

CP Alpha, Slayer of Carries [2.1] UPDATED

By: LAZER
Last Updated: Jan 28, 2017
4 Votes
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Build 1 of 1

Alpha

Build: CP Alpha

Ability Path

Infinite Reboot
Heroic Perk
Prime Directive
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Core Charge
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Termination Protocol
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12

Threat Meter

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Threat Hero Notes
1
Vox Vox's short range and lackluster damage until late game make him an easy target.
2
Skye Skye's damage has fallen off since update 2.1, and the 1v3 queen isn't quite what she used to be. Alpha's A allows her to get behind Skye and slow her, dodging Forward Barrage and mitigating her mobility. After that, well the sky's the limit (terrible pun).
3
Baron Has similar mobility problems to SAW. He can be dangerous at range, but come in close with your abilities, and he's dead.
3
Glaive This matchup will come down to skill, on the Glaive's part. His Afterburn can be dangerous for most heroes, but for Alpha, more often than not, it can allow her onto the back line to slaughter the carry. Buy Reflex Block, but then again, you may not want to.
4
SAW CP or WP, SAW is a sitting duck for Alpha. If you can jump a WP SAW, use Atlas Pauldron to weaken him before bursting down. CP SAW is a little more tricky, but because of your two lives, the Dank Shank isn't quite as effective, and Prime Directive will allow you to dodge Suppressing Fire and jump on him. Just don't engage while Mad Cannon is up.
4
Petal She can hurt at range, but if you get close, she's dead. Her munions make this easier, as you can use your B to jump on them, bringing you closer to Petal.
4
Skaarf He's quite immobile, and his Spitfire is dodge able. Shut him down before 20 minutes, and you're golden. But if you can't... Well, he's Skaarf.
5
Krul Under absolutely no circumstances should you 1v1 Krul, regardless of what hero you play. However, in teamfights, he shouldn't be a problem, as you'll probably outburst his lifesteal and your own lifesteal will provide enough sustain.
5
Taka Taka, like Koshka, has a strong early game. But after ten minutes, this matchup will ultimately come down to skill. At first, you'll be able to burst him low, but if he uses Kaku to regen and hide, he will eventually kill you. Use Prime Directive to predict where he is, and don't let go.
6
  No Threat
7
Reim Again, as a melee hero, never engage Reim in 1v1. In teamfights, He can be bothersome if he built Frostburn or if he manages to land Chill Winds. Wait for his fortified health to go down, burst with B, and repeat until he dies.
7
Lance Lance's Gythian Wall is the biggest problem. A good Lance will be able to keep you off targets often, stunning and rooting you before your A lands. Be in the lookout for mispositioning errors to exploit. Buy Reflex block.
7
Catherine Again, annoying to play against, difficult to kill, and her ult, though brief, can keep you from using your abilities.
8
Ardan Ardan's gauntlet can be disruptive during teamfights, preventing you from getting onto squishy or valuable targets. His heroic perk also makes it difficult to kill him. Buy reflex block.
8
Koshka Alpha is weak in the first four minutes, and a good Koshka will be able to shut her down and snowball. However, if you play conservatively and drag the game out to thirteen minutes, you've already won.
9
Lyra Lyra's B, Bright Bulwark, shuts down your two main damage-dealing abilities. Do not draft Alpha into Lyra. Her heals also make it difficult to kill her teammates. Incredibly annoying.
10
  No Threat

Introduction Top

Alpha is one of the most misunderstood heroes on the Halcyon Fold. Her abilities can appear detrimental to her survivability and her heroic perk, Infinite Reboot, turns her into a sitting duck. Though she's come back into the meta and is quite strong, people still don't understand her abilities or how to build her.

With the correct build, proper defense, and smart play, Alpha can be transformed from a fragile stationary bruiser into an unkillable mobile assassin.

As for me, I'm nobody special. I've just seen a lot of Alpha play and hope to correct it.

WTF... What is this build??? Top

I'll admit it, this build is very unusual. Instead of attack speed, I opt for cooldown reduction. Defense over damage. Yes, that's a Stormcrown. Allow me to explain below.

Aftershock
I've seen builds and players alike choose Alternating Current over Aftershock. While Alternating Current does give Alpha more consistent damage, more attack speed to reduce the cooldown on Core Charge, and faster jungle clear speed, Aftershock is simply more beneficial to her kit. But really, Alpha doesn't need consistent damage, just as Koshka doesn't need Alternating Current Aftershock offers burst damage, allowing Alpha to get more damage out faster, killing her target faster. But more importantly, Aftershock gives cooldown reduction, allowing Alpha to close the gap more frequently with her abilities and make Infinite Reboot available more often. Against a fleeing enemy, Alpha will be more likely to land her abilities rather than her basic attacks. Also, the lifesteal% on Aftershock helps Alpha take down high-health opponents.

Stormcrown
I left one issue with Aftershock unaddressed. CP Alpha has notoriously slow objective clear speed. To remedy this, the infamous Stormshock build seemed like a good option. Stormshock is traditionally built on CP Taka, who also relies on burst damage and has slow jungle clear speed. Also, being able to delete turrets, solo Gold Mine, or take Kraken in under 17 seconds is a pretty good strategical advantage.

One aspect of Stormcrown that is frequently ignored is its cooldown reduction and energy recharge. As I previously said, cooldown reduction is a big deal for Alpha. Separately, Aftershock and Stormcrown are decent items for Alpha. Together, they give her more gap-closers, faster jungle clear, more burst, faster reboot, and more reboot opportunities.

Defense
Whether you play CP or WP Alpha, defense is essential. Defense will make you more difficult to kill, buy you more time to kill the carry, and most importantly, make it even more difficult to kill you during Infinite Reboot. Though her heroic perk is often dismissed as a minor inconvenience, it can be a huge problem if both enemy carries need to focus you just to make sure you die the first time. Not only that, but once you lockdown the carry, the enemy won't ignore you. If you don't survive long enough to output your damage, then you didn't do much. I cannot further emphasize the importance of defense here. Throughout the entire game, regardless of circumstances, Alpha should be a walking tank.

Halcyon Chargers[u/]
With update 2.0, Infinite Reboot was changed slightly. Now, energy gives Alpha more rebooting health and energy recharge makes Alpha reboot faster, making Halcyon Chargers and Stormcrown far more valuable to Alpha. With both items, Alpha can reboot almost instantaneously.

No WP Build? Top

I believe that CP Alpha is superior to WP Alpha, and I simply can't recommend any builds because I don't play WP Alpha often.
WP Alpha just never made much sense to me. There is no WP ratio on Termination Protocol and no burst despite her three gap closers. No hate, but I just don't appreciate.
As for CP Alpha, her abilities have excellent burst, she can gap close frequently and instantly delete heroes, and her ultimate has a whopping 250% CP ratio.

Gameplay Top

Early Game
The early game is not Alpha's strong suit. With the addition of the Elder Treant in 2.1, early game heroes have found incentive to snowball. So, whatever you do, DON'T contest the Elder Treant in the first 2 minutes. Alpha is still quite squishy, can't deal much damage, and can be killed before her reboot. Lay low until the 4:00 minute mark, farming and looking for the occasional gank on the laner. For ganking, go in with Core Charge first before following up with Prime Directive. Prime Directive will detonate any Core Charge stacks and slow the laner, maximizing damage and negating any activateables.
When the shop spawns, pick up Stormguard Banner and some defense, boots, and Chronograph if possible. Alpha is still quite fragile, so focus on bullying the laner near the safety of the turret, farming the jungle, and avoid getting caught in any conflict alone.

Mid Game
This is where Alpha begins to shine. Pick up plenty of defense according to the enemy and finish up Aftershock.Look for opportunities to take Gold Mine. With Stormguard Banner, it's possible to take it very quickly or solo it. Shamelessly harass the laner, but be aware of the enemy jungler's position during teamfights. If the jungler goes for your laner, immediately attack with Prime Directive, slowing the jungler and allowing your teammate to reposition. If you cannot access the laner without leaving your team vulnerable, engage on the jungler or even the roam.

Late Game
Most games usually end around the start of the late game. Be sure to finish your first T3 defense item before Broken Myth.
Alpha very rarely needs a third offense/defense item, but feel free to sell Stormcrown if you must. Shatterglass offers the most damage output, but with update 2.0, Eve of Harvest is viable for sustain and reboot speed.

Tips and Tricks Top

-if fleeing from enemies, use Prime Directive to latch onto a treant or jungle monster over the wall
-NEVER allow early game heroes like Koshka or Taka to snowball in the first four minutes. Don't contest the Elder Treant and play cautiously until mid game.
- Termination Protocol should only be used with low health
-alternatively, if hunting enemies, use Prime Directive to latch onto the enemy roam before seeking a more valuable target
-don't be afraid to chase under turrets
-use Prime Directive to land Termination Protocol
-you should die very few times throughout the match, win or lose. If you do die often, either increase cooldown reduction or increase defense
- Alpha has a difficult time killing high-health targets such as Phinn or Lance
-DO NOT scan bushes with Prime Directive blindly
-if you've played the mid-game right, enemies should be running away from you instead of toward you during Termination Protocol
-always prioritize defense


Feel free to argue your points or add suggestions in the comments below.

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