Basic&advance Strategy FAQ on Night elfs

Basic&advance Strategy FAQ on Night elfs


http://www.battle.net/war3/images/nightelf/buildings/expansion-nightelf-techtree.gif
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Basics
http://www.battle.net/war3/images/nightelf/screens/test-thumb.gif Night Elf Resource Gathering
In order to mine gold, Night Elves must first entangle a gold mine with
their Tree of Life using the Entangle Gold Mine command. Once
entangled, Wisps must then enter the mine to begin gold gathering. Up
to five Wisps may remain in an Entangled Gold Mine at a time. Wisps do
not need to return to a Tree of Life to deposit gold, which is
automatically added to the Night Elf reserves while Wisps remain in the
gold mine. To harvest lumber, Wisps bond to nearby trees, slowly adding
small amounts of lumber to your reserves without harming the tree. As
with gold, Wisps do not need to return to your Tree of Life to deposit
wood. Building
Build your town in such a way that the Ancients are up front where they
can attack the enemy and the Moon Wells are in back where they are more
safe and can heal. You should also possibly leave it open so that Wisps
can get in and repair.

http://www.battle.net/war3/images/nightelf/screens/ss030.gif

Sample open and defensive town layout. Units that try to go between the Ancients will be hit by them. Archers can also hide behind the Ancients while still using the Moon Wells to heal them.

Moon Wells
Moon Wells spend Mana on Health and Mana replenishment separately. For
instance, if you sent a 0 Mana, nearly dead Demon Hunter to a Moon
Well, and the Moon Well had 100 Mana, your Demon Hunter would gain 25
Mana, and 100 Health. After your Hero is resurrected they come back
with low mana. Use Replenish Mana to restore the Hero's mana. Moon
Wells are also useful for Druids. When they arrive they are not at full
mana. You can use Moon Wells to recharge their mana and send them into
battle. Build Moon Wells around allies' towns in team games. Sometimes
it might be useful to build Moon Wells in various locations where there
might be fighting. But you could lose those Moon Wells pretty easily.
It is ok to build more Moon Wells than you need for food so you can use
their healing. Be sure to set Moon Wells to autocast so that they will
be actively working without having to target them. Double-click on a
Moon Well to select them all. You can also select units and right-click
on the Moon wells to use them. These are not set to autocast
automatically because some players wish to only use them for Heroes and
wish to have more control over how they are used. You may find it more
useful to build your Moon Wells all together in long lines. While this
can make them more vulnerable to Sapper attack, siege damage, and
building killing spells such as Earthquake, it does make them much
easier to use. Rather than having your units run around to fill up at
each Moon Well throughout the town you can instead just quickly run
down the line of Moon Wells. It's also much easier to fight next to
lines of Moon Wells. Use Moon Wells early on when Creeping. For the
first Creeps, if possible, lead Creeps back to the Moon Wells by firing
at them with archers then running, fire then run, and so on. Then you
can have the Moon Wells heal you while you attack the Creeps. The usual
process of playing the Night Elves is to attack then return to the Moon
Wells and heal whenever possible. You should also watch units' health
during battle and send them back to the Moon Wells when they become
severely damaged. Make sure you research the Well Spring upgrade to
increase the amount of mana stored and the mana regeneration rate.
Remember to use Moonstones to active the Moon Wells during the day
time.

http://www.battle.net/war3/images/nightelf/screens/ss012.gif	http://www.battle.net/war3/images/nightelf/screens/ss017.gif
Moon Wells are placed in a line so they are easy to use. Be sure to leave spaces so you don't become trapped in your town.	Night Elf player sets up the Moon Wells for easy usage.

Scouting
Place a Huntress Sentinel in key locations that you want to watch such
as around your bases or around enemy towns. Place Sentinels next to
Gold Mines where the enemy might expand. This upgrade is must have for
Huntress users. Few players try to remove the Sentinels once they have
been placed. Also, it should be easy to replace Sentinels if they are
removed. If enemy players use Sentinels remove them by destroying the
tree it's attached to with a Siege Unit or use a dispel ability on the
area. Protect your Wisps
Wisps harvesting Lumber are a common target when the enemy attacks your
town. Spread out the Wisps or even hide them elsewhere to make it more
difficult for the enemy to kill your Wisps. Try not to bunch them all
up in one place. In team games you might even consider putting them in
an ally's town. Use Hide
Hide is best used for preventing units that are near death from being
killed. This of course only works at night time. Group select units and
pick out units that are near death by double-clicking on their
portrait. Now hit I for Hide. This is easier and safer than attempting
to run away. Just make sure you don't reveal them by giving them
additional commands. Pay attention to the time of day and use Hide
whenever possible at night. You can use a hidden unit to spot for
Glaive Throwers when sieging a town. Look at spotting and the
screenshot for more information. Use Hide to break target lock. If the
enemy is focusing fire on one unit, use Hide to make that unit
disappear. Once the enemy is focusing fire elsewhere, have the unit
reappear and attack. Buy a Moonstone and use it before a battle so that
you can use hide during a battle.

http://www.battle.net/war3/images/nightelf/screens/ss018.gif	http://www.battle.net/war3/images/nightelf/screens/ss019.gif
A Night Elf Warden hides from a Human army. (which is better than YOUR army)	The same Night Elf player uses Hide to save his Huntresses from being slaughtered by Summonables and Slow.

http://www.battle.net/war3/images/nightelf/screens/ss020.gif

When your town is under attack early in the game and you are waiting for reinforcements, use Hide with your Archers. These Archers hide until help arrives.

Reaching surrounded Gold Mines
If a Gold Mine is surrounded by trees use a Glaive Thrower to clear
them or build a Tree of Life and have it Eat Tree until it clears a
path to the Gold Mine. You can also use the Keeper of the Grove's Force
of Nature ability to clear out sections of trees. You can also use
Mountain Giants to clear trees. Use War Club to grab a tree, then
attack the other trees to clear them. Clearing a path with Eat Tree
You can queue up Eat Tree Commands and make Ancients clear a path
through the trees automatically. Simply select an Ancient that is
uprooted. Now hold down Shift and hit E for Eat Tree and click on each
tree between your Ancient and the destination. Now release the Shift
Button and watch the Ancient automatically clear a path if you selected
your trees correctly. Mountain Giants
Mountain Giants can be very helpful because they act as a "tank" for
ranged units like Archers, Huntresses, and Dryads. To be very effective
they should have Hardened and Resistant Skin. Be sure to use Taunt
also. You can even heal them with Moon Wells or Rejuvenation! Mountain
Giant Trick
You can use Mountain Giants to clear out trees. Simply have them pick
up a tree and then attack trees you want to clear. Once they are armed
with a tree they can bash other trees to clear a path. Constructing
Ancients
Be sure to cancel an Ancient being created if it is about to be
destroyed. If you do not you will lose the Wisp along with the
building. If you cancel the Ancient the Wisp will survive and you can
possibly escape with it. This is not an issue when constructing non
Ancient buildings. Nature's Blessing
Nature's Blessing increases buildings' armor to 7 in most cases. The
Ancient Protector's armor is increased to 3. Research this upgrade
since it can allow your Ancient Protectors and buildings to survive
longer. This upgrade is first available at Tree of Ages. If you're
using Huntresses or Archers you might want to wait until you have
upgraded to the Tree of Eternity and researched Marksmanship and/or
Moon Glaive before getting Nature's Blessing because it can delay the
research of those upgrades. Few players research Nature's Blessing so
it can really surprise players who expect the Night Elf buildings to be
easily destroyed. This upgrade can also increase the Ancient's walking
speed if you need that to move a Tree of Life or are using Ancient
Protectors. Often players will target Night Elf bases because they are
easily killed without Ancient Protectors and have only 2 armor for
their Ancients. You can play off that by researching Nature's Blessing.
When the enemy shows up it will take them a long time to finish off the
buildings (without Siege Weapons) which they will not expect. If you
are using the Keeper of the Grove's Force of Nature then Nature's
Blessing is a "must have" upgrade because it also increases the
Treants' armor to 5. Neutral Heroes
The Naga Sea Witch and Dark Ranger are great Neutral Heroes for the
Night Elves since they already are heavily focused on ranged units with
Archers, Huntresses, and Dryads. These Neutral Heroes can be used as
replacements for your normal Night Elf Heroes or they can combine with
them as second Heroes. The Dark Ranger can raise Skeletons which can
tank for your Archers. Defending Towns
Although Wisps don't have an attack, they are one of the most fierce
defenders of a Night Elf town. Detonate can be used to get rid of
Summonables and the enemy Hero's Mana. Wisps can also repair buildings
under attack and buy time until you can get back to defend your base.

http://www.battle.net/war3/images/nightelf/screens/ss034.gif	http://www.battle.net/war3/images/nightelf/screens/ss035.gif
What usually happens is the enemy goes after the Ancients of War. Make sure you get Nature's Blessing if possible which is always handy when you're attacked.	The Wisps move in to repair to buy some time for help to arrive.

Defending Expansions
Typically Night Elf players don't have defenses at their expansions. So
to defend the expansion you need to delay the enemy until you walk
there or Teleport using a Town Portal Scroll. It's also important to
get the Nature's Blessing upgrade so that the trees have more armor and
take longer to be killed which give you more time to rescue them.

http://www.battle.net/war3/images/nightelf/screens/ss031.gif

Unload the Wisps out of the Entangled Gold Mine and repair the Tree of Life. If they attack the Wisps get back in the Entangled Gold Mine. Repeat if necessary. Repair the Entangled Gold Mine (must use hot key R to prevent being loaded) if it is attacked. If the Tree of Life is killed, Detonate all of the Wisps.

Vs. Humans <blockquote>Archmage
- Mana Burn him, Entangle him and focus fire. Cast Shadow Strike on the
Archmage. Focused fire will usually finish them off easily.
Mountain King - Mana Burn or use focused fire with Huntresses/Archers/Dryads
Footmen - Use Huntresses, Thorns Aura. Entangle them.
Paladin - Focus fire, he can't heal himself
Knights - Use Dryads, Archers, or Bears
Sorceresses/Priests - Kill with Huntresses/Archers/Dryads using focused fire. Use Mana Flare.
Gryphon Riders - Use Hippogryphs, Archers, or Dryads. Fan of Knives can help too. Siege Engines
If you are caught by some Siege Engines assaulting your base, uproot
your buildings. This will change their armor to heavy armor which will
make them last longer against the Siege Engines. You don't want to do
this if they are supported by lots of troops. Fighting against Footmen
using Defend
Use Huntresses against Footmen who are using Defend. Defend will not work against Huntresses.
</blockquote>Vs. Orcs <blockquote>Blademaster
- Mana Burn, Entangling Roots, Use Abolish Magic on Mirror Images,
surround and kill. Use Dust of Appearance to reveal invisible
Blademasters.
Far Seer - Mana Burn, Entangling Roots, or surround and focus fire with Huntresses/Archers/Dryads
Grunts - Use Entangling Roots, Use Thorns Aura, hit and run with Huntresses, or use Dryads to slow them
Tauren - Use Archers or Dryads with Huntresses
Shaman/Witch Doctors - Rush and kill with Huntresses/Archers/Dryads. Use Mana Flare.
Wind Riders - Use Hippogryphs, Archers, or Dryads
Wards - Use Focused fire to kill them as soon as you see any of them.
This is especially important with Stasis traps. Vs. Burrows
Don't use Huntresses against Burrows. Burrows do piercing damage which
means they can easily kill the Huntresses. Instead use Archers.
</blockquote>Vs. Undead <blockquote>Ghouls - Huntresses, Archers/Dryads with focused fire, Thorns Aura
Abominations - Archers, Thorns Aura, Dryads. Entangle them with the Keeper of the Grove.
Frost Wyrms - Hippogryphs, or Archers/Dryads
Gargoyles - Hippogryphs, Archers/Dryads
Necromancers/Banshees - Surround and kill with Huntresses, or Archers/Dryads. Use Mana Flare.
Mass Skeletons - Use Wisps to Dispel or Faerie Dragons' Mana Flare
</blockquote>Vs. Night Elves
<blockquote>Whenever possible fight by your Moon Wells, make sure you line them up and turn them on
Priestess of the Moon - Mana Burn, Entangling Roots, and focus fire with Huntresses/Archers/Dryads
Keeper of the Grove - Mana Burn him or focus fire with Huntresses/Archers/Dryads
Demon Hunter - Entangling Roots, and focus fire with Huntresses/Archers/Dryads
Warden - Surround and kill. She dies pretty quickly. But if she uses Blink it might be hard to kill her.
Archers - Use Huntresses and focus fire. Archers get slaughtered by Huntresses if they can reach them
Huntresses - Use Huntresses with focus fire, Entangling Roots, upgrade
the Huntresses more. You can also try Bears with Archers. Use Faerie
Fire + Huntresses or Faerie Fire + Huntresses + Archers
Dryads - Use Huntresses or Archers, they easily beat Dryads
Chimaera - Use Dryads (they can't hit them), and/or Hippogryphs </blockquote>

Combos

Here are some of the possible army options with Night Elves. Mixed troops
While many Night Elf players focus entirely on either Archers or
Huntresses, you can benefit from using mixed troops. You'll find that
at later stages of the game using mixed troops becomes more important.
Bring some Glaive Throwers along as well as Dryads to slow enemy units
and to remove spell effects. Druids can also be useful for Roar and
Faerie Fire.

http://www.battle.net/war3/images/nightelf/screens/ss024.gif	http://www.battle.net/war3/images/nightelf/screens/ss025.gif
In an FFA game, the green Night Elf player uses Chimaera, Druids of the Talon (for Faerie Fire), Dryads, and two Heroes.	[ In the same FFA game, this Night Elf player uses Bears, Archers, a few Dryads, and Heroes.

Mass Huntresses
Mass Huntresses is a common plan when you are facing Ghouls, Grunts,
and Footmen. They are very effective in large groups. One problem with
mass Huntresses is that they have no air attacks. If the enemy goes
air, they can finish them off without being able to respond. But the
Night Elves can quickly convert to Archers and still use the same
upgrades from the Huntresses. You can also add in a few Archers with
the Huntresses. Huntresses are weak against Riflemen, enemy Archers,
and other ranged attacks. You will have to finish those units off
pretty quickly to win. Mass Huntresses work in many cases but if the
game reaches latter stages you may have problems against Tauren,
Knights, and Abominations. In those cases you need to use Mountain
Giants, Druids of the Talon, Dryads, or Bears. Mass Archers
Mass Archers are especially effective in team games where your allies
can build the melee units which soak up the damage. Your ally could for
example build Grunts, Footmen, Ghouls, or Huntresses and your Archers
can back them up. Mass Archers are also effective on maps with limited
pathing (or tight spaces). In those situations the enemy won't be able
to get all of their units attacking at once. Mass Archers also
transition well until Hippogryph Riders. But be warned that mass
Archers can die very easily against mass Huntresses or when the enemy
uses spells like Blizzard, or Chain Lightning. Be reminded that focus
fire is key with Archers. Huntresses + Archers
Huntresses and Archers are a good combination. The Archers can hang out
behind the Huntresses and bomb enemy units with superior damage. Mass
Cyclone/Druids of the Talon
A very powerful strategy is to build up a large group of Druids of the
Talon then use Cyclone on the enemy. By raising the enemy into the air
you're effectively removing them from battle. Using Cyclone you can
reduce the army to a small group that is easily overcome. This strategy
is easier to pull off in 3 vs. 3 and 4 vs. 4 games where allied players
can protect you until you can create a large group of Druids of the
Talon. It also requires a lot of talent to effectively use Cyclone on
every unit in battle. Some players are very good at this while others
try it and fail due to lack of clicking skills. Cyclone can be
dispelled so it can be beaten. Druids of the Talon are also very useful
for Faerie Fire which can be very effective in team games. Mass Dryads
Building a large group of Dryads can be an effective strategy. Dryads
can slow enemy players so you can use them to hit and run. It can be
difficult to build up to mass Dryads. This is usually done by sending a
Demon Hunter or Keeper of the Grove to use hit-and-run attacks on the
enemy town. This will distract the enemy while you build straight up to
Dryads. Build a Hunter's Hall, and upgrade to Tree of Ages. Build two
Ancients of Lore. Now begin making Dryads out of both Ancients of Lore.
This can be a risky strategy because if the enemy attacks you in force,
you won't have anything to respond with besides your Hero. But if you
can build up without being hit, this can be very effective. Remember
not to go mass Dryads vs Huntresses. To use the Dryads effectively you
should have each Dryad attacking a separate target to slow them, then
use hit-and-run attacks, never letting the enemy catch up. This
strategy is often more effective in 3 vs. 3 and 4 vs. 4 team games than
in 1 vs. 1, and 2 vs. 2 games. Archers or Huntresses THEN Mountain
Giants/Bears
While you can try to go straight up to Bears, this is very risky. You
might be able to pull it off in a team game or if you can keep the
enemy from attacking you by harassing them with your Hero, but that is
very risky. A safer plan is to build Archers or Huntresses with 0
upgrades, and build your way up to Bears. Build two Ancients of Lore so
you can research upgrades and train a Bear at the same time. You will
then probably want two Hunter's Halls so you can research two upgrades
at once to build up the Bears faster. Bears and Archers are a good
combo. Mountain Giants + Archers
This is a good combo. You can even bring in some Druids of the Claw to
cast Rejuvenation on the Mountain Giants. Mountain Giants + Dryads
The advantage of this combination is that
it is immune to AOE spells such as Blizzard. Only the Heroes can be hit
by those spells.

http://www.battle.net/war3/images/nightelf/screens/ss027.gif

[ Mountain Giant + Dryad Combination

Archers + Druids of the Talon
Druids of the Talon cast Faerie Fire on the enemy while Archers using
Improved Bows and focus fire quickly pick off enemy units.

http://www.battle.net/war3/images/nightelf/screens/ss026.gif

Druids of the Talon + Archers are commonly used midway into the game.

Faerie Dragons + Dryads
With a descent frontline ground army consisting of perhaps Huntresses,
bears, Mountain Giants, and/or Archers. You can use this combo to wreck
havoc. Some enemies (especially Human, Undead, and Orc) rely heavily on
casters. Both of these units, the Faerie Dragon, and the dryad are
meant to counter casters. But together they have a far more potent
power. At the start of a battle, have your Dryads in the rear with
their autocast of abolish magic turned off. Once the battle starts fly
in a pack (2-4) of faerie dragons to over the enemies casters and/or
heroes. Activate mana flare. Then activate the autocast of Abolish
Magic. The Dryads will begin to abolish buffs like bloodlust and
debuffs like slow. The enemy casters will compulsively (autocast) begin
to cast the spells anew but now they will be taking fierce damage (3
per 1 mana) from mana flare. This strategy makes the very best use of
the anti-caster capacity of both of these units. <blockquote>Counters
This strategy can be countered by deactivating autocast if you think a
Night Elf player is going to attempt this combo. And targeting your own
spells with casters that have enough life. Or, stop using spells during
the duration. Or, attempt to kill the faerie dragons. Be carefull
though, dedicating too much firepower to the well protected flaring
faerie dragons can leave your ground forces weak to the rest of the
Night Elf army. </blockquote>Perfect Mixed Troops
Build a few Mountain Giants with the skin upgrades. Have some Dryads to
cast dispel. Bring a few Archers. Bring a few Druids of the Claw to
cast Roar and Rejuvenation and possibly a few in bear form. With this
mixed force you can respond to a lot of different types of attacks and
use Taunt to draw enemies away from weak units. This is most useful in
Solo games. Chimaera
Some players attempt to mass up some Chimaera. This can be an effective
late game strategy if you're not facing someone who is massing Crypt
Fiends with web or anti-air units like Archers, Dryads, or Riflemen.
===================================
Defeading Elfs
All you Night Elf haters, this is the page for you! Night Elf players
might also find it helpful when fighting other Night Elf players. Rush
The Night Elves are somewhat weak to rushes, especially in team games.
If the Night Elf player is jumping to Huntresses, then they typcially
have NOTHING early on. They can use their Moon Wells and their ancients
so a good player CAN defend. Not so good players might not be able to
defend. If you see a Hero attacking you very early, the Night Elf
player likely has no defenses at their base and can be severely
damaged. Kill Their Entangled Gold Mine
If you kill the Entangled Gold Mine it will take them a while to
entangle it again. You can also maybe kill the Wisps as they come out.
If you don't have enough time for the Tree of Life, kill the Entangled
Gold Mine. Some players hop in Goblin Zeppelins, kill the Entangled
Gold Mine, then run! Night Elf Towns are weak to ranged and Siege
Attacks
Use Ranged units and Siege Units to attack Ancients, as they won't be
hurt by their powerful melee attacks. The Ancients can't defend against
those so unless their army can fight the attack off, there is nothing
they can do. They may repair their buildings but that will only last
for a period of time.

http://www.battle.net/war3/images/nightelf/screens/ss036.gif

Night Elf player uses Archers and a Hero to kill another Night Elf player. It would be easier to use units such as Mountain Giants or Glaive Throwers but this is very early in the game. It gets the job done.

Kill the Wisps
Lumber is very important to Night Elves. Kill their Wisps harvesting
Lumber. They also require Wisps to create Ancients. If the Night Elf
player is upgrading to Tree of Ages, they can't build any new Wisps
until that upgrade is completed. So they will be short on Lumber and it
will take them a while to rebuild their Wisps. Depending on your Hero
and the enemy's control, you can sometimes go in at the start of the
game and kill some Lumber Wisps. Night Elf Players Need Their Moon Wells
Night Elf players rely heavily on their Moon Wells for healing, mana,
and food. If you can go in and kill a few of them then run, this really
hurts them. Avoid Air
Night Elf players have several options for attacking air units
including Archers and Hippogryphs. You shouldn't try to use air unless
you do hit and run attacks on their town or unless the enemy has
nothing but Huntresses. Use Area of Effect Spells (AOE)
Night Elf Archers and Huntresses die to AOE spells. Head up the Tech Tree
Many Night Elf players do not properly upgrade and stick with Archers
or Huntresses. If you continue up the Tech Tree to better units while
they do not, you can often defeat the Archers and Huntresses. Undead
vs. Night Elves
-Use a tri Hero nuke. Night Elf Heroes tend to have lower hit points so
you can cast Death Coil/Impale, Frost Nova, and Carrion Swarm at the
same time to quickly finish off Night Elf Heroes. Other
-Always target a Demon Hunter last if possible, they are amazing meat
shields, and have a lot of armor and a good amount of hit points. Most
Night Elf players expect you to target their Demon Hunter, which will
work to their advantage with Moon Wells and items.
-You can kill a Tree of Life with Goblin Sappers

http://www.battle.net/war3/images/nightelf/screens/ss038.gif

A Human Army beats up a Night Elf town.

Defeating Specific Night Elf Units
Note: Not all Night Elf Units are listed Wisp (Medium Armor)
<blockquote>Wisps are deadly with
Detonate. It's best to kill them quickly before the Night Elf player
can Detonate. So Area of Effect abilities work the best (Blizzard,
Chain Lightning, Forked Lightning). If they start to come toward your
Heroes, run. They will usually Detonate and miss on an empty area
unless the person controlling them is good. It's 60 Gold whenever a
Night Elf player uses Detontate plus the loss of Wood so forcing them
to Detonate is doing something in your favor. AOE spells work very well
against clumps of Wisps. Night Elves</blockquote>

<blockquote>-Keeper of the Grove - Entangling Roots
-Warden - Shadow Strike
</blockquote>Humans <blockquote>-Archmage - Blizzard
-Bloodmage - Flame Strike
-Water Elementals
</blockquote>Orcs <blockquote>-Far Seer with wolves and Chain Lightning
-The Blademaster is good at rushing Night Elves with Wind Walk and
Critical Strike. But once the Night Elves get a shop and Dust they can
counter this (unless you're very annoying with hit-and-run attacks) </blockquote>Neutral <blockquote>-Naga Sea Witch - Frost Arrow/Forked Lightning </blockquote>Archer (Medium Armor) <blockquote>Archers
are weakest against Melee units and Area of Effect spells. They take
the most damage from units that do normal damage. Night Elves <blockquote>-Use
Archers of your own + Beastmaster or Demon Hunter to rush the Archers.
There are other Heroes you could use instead including Neutral Heroes.
-Huntresses take increased damage vs. Archers however Huntresses can
easily beat Archers early on in the game. After the Archers have the
Improved Bows upgrade and damage upgrade it becomes harder. Untill then
Huntresses can work.
-Use Demon Hunter with Immolation
-Use Fan of Knives
-Use a Neutral Hero that is good at killing Archers such as the Naga
Sea Witch with Forked Lightning or Pit Lord with Rain of Fire. </blockquote>Humans <blockquote>-Use Footmen with Defend
-Use Blizzard or Flame Strike
-Use the Mountain King's Thunder Clap
-Use Mortar Teams
-Use Knights and rush the Archers
</blockquote>Orcs <blockquote>-Use Grunts. If you can reach the Archers you can slaughter them
-Use Tauren Chieftain War Stomp. Walk into a bunch of Archers then use War Stomp
-Use Tauren Chieftain Shockwave
-Use the Far Seer's Wolves and Chain Lightning
-Use Tauren with Pulverize
-Use Demolishers with Burning Oil Upgrade
</blockquote>Undead <blockquote>-Use Crypt Lord Impale
-Use Lich Frost Nova
-Use Dread Lord with Vampiric Aura + Ghouls with Ghoul Frenzy.
-Use Necromancers with Raise Dead. </blockquote></blockquote>Huntress (Unarmored) Huntresses
are unarmored which means they take the most damage from Pierce
(ranged) and Siege Weapons. Huntresses are pretty big so smaller units
can often surround and trap them. Also remember that the Huntresses
can't hit air units so use them without fear of being hit. Of course
the Night Elf player can start building archers. Night Elves <blockquote>-Most Night Elf players match Huntresses with Huntresses. But there are other options.
-Use Archers of your own + Beastmaster or Demon Hunter. There are other Heroes you could use instead including Neutral Heroes
-Huntresses take increased damage vs. Archers however Huntresses can
easily beat Archers early on in the game. After the Archers have the
Improved Bows upgrade and damage upgrade it becomes harder. Archers can
work if you have something to put in the way of the Huntresses like a
Mountain Giant, Druid of the Claw in Bear Form, your Hero or something
else.
-One of the most common defenses is to upgrade to Improved Bows and
combine Archers with Druids of the Talon. The Faerie Fire makes
Huntresses easy to kill with the Archers and range.
-Use Fan of Knives
-Use Entangling Roots from the Keeper of the Grove. That works pretty well.
-Use a Neutral Hero that is good at killing Huntresses
-Use Mountain Giants + Archers </blockquote>Humans <blockquote>-Most Human players switch to Riflemen and use their Heroes, especially with AOE attacks.
-Use Footmen + Area of Effect Damage Spells and some Riflemen
-Use Sorceress Slow
-Use Mortar Teams
-Use Knights + Spellcasters
-Use Gryphons if all they have is Huntresses
</blockquote>

http://www.battle.net/war3/images/nightelf/screens/ss037.gif

Here is a nice anti-Huntress Human army.

Orcs <blockquote>-Grunts can work combined with Hero usage. It would be best to build some Troll Headhunters also
-Most Orc players switch to Troll Headhunters and later Troll Berserkers
-Use Far Seer with Chain Lightning and Wolves
-Use Tauren Chieftain War Stomp. Walk into a bunch of Huntresses then use War Stomp
-Tauren Chieftain - Shockwave
-Use Tauren with Pulverize
-Use Demolishers with Burning Oil Upgrade
-Tech to Wind Riders
-Shadow Hunter - Serpent Wards </blockquote>

Undead <blockquote>You want to use anything + Statues
-Ghouls aren't really the best to use, but they can work if you have a
lot of them and the Vampiric Aura. Grab all the Ghouls on Lumber.
-Use Crypt Lord Impale
-Use Lich Frost Nova
-Crypt Fiends
-Use Necromancers with Raise Dead.
-Use Abominations
-Use Gargoyles or Frost Wyrms since the Huntresses can't hit air. </blockquote>Glaive Thrower (Heavy) <blockquote>Glaive
Throwers are pretty easy to kill. Simply rush them with melee units or
use focused fire attacks with ranged units. Glaive Throwers take
increased damage from magic damage attacks so that can also work.
Chimaera, Gryphon Riders, Destroyers, and Frost Wyrms work very well.
</blockquote>Dryad (Unarmored) <blockquote>Dryads
are unarmored so they take big damage from ranged units and siege
damage. They have spell immunity so using spells on them isn't an
option. </blockquote>Druid of the Talon (Unarmored) <blockquote>These guys are very easily killed. It shouldn't be hard. Just rush them with pretty much anything. </blockquote>Druid of the Claw (Heavy Armor) <blockquote>These
guys are very easily killed in Druid Form. They have heavy armor so
Chimaera, Gryphon Riders, Destroyers, and Frost Wyrms work very well.
Druids of the Claw in Bear Form are pretty big so it's pretty easy to
surround them with a lot of little melee units and swarm them. Night
Elves <blockquote>-Use Faerie Fire and Archers, Huntresses or other units
-Keeper of the Grove - Entangling Roots
-They Only Hit Ground Units so you can use Hippogryph Riders or Chimaera (better) </blockquote>Humans <blockquote>-Use Spell Breakers' Spell Steal to steal their Roar. Feedback also damages them if the Druids still have mana.
-Use Knights
-Use Sorceress Slow + other units and spells (AOE)
</blockquote>Orcs <blockquote>-Use Tauren with Pulverize
-Use Shaman Bloodlust and/or Witch Doctor Wards
</blockquote>Undead <blockquote>-Abominations
-Banshee - Possession
</blockquote></blockquote>Mountain Giant (Medium Armor) <blockquote>Mountain
Giants can be very difficult to kill. The question is: if they have
Hardened Skin and Resistant Skin yet? If not, they aren't that
difficult to kill. You can check to see if the Night Elf player is
already at Tree of Eternity (which is required to get those upgrades).
If they don't have Resistant Skin yet there are many spells that can be
very effective such as Entangling Roots, Sleep, and Slow. Mountain
Giants are slow so if the Night Elf player is forced to run, the
Mountain Giants are typically easily trapped and surrounded. That is
how Night Elf players generally lose most Mountain Giants since there
is a lot of running in the game. Night Elves <blockquote>-Keeper of the Grove - Entangling Roots
-Focused Fire, surround with units
-Hippogryph Riders or Chimaera since Mountain Giants can't attack Air
-Druids of the Talon - Faerie Fire (makes them easier to kill)
-Druids of the Talon - Cyclone (throw those guys up in the air)
-Warden - Shadow Strike
</blockquote>Humans <blockquote>-Knights
-Mountain King - Storm Bolt
-Sorceress - Slow
-Sorceress - Polymorph (only if no Resistant Skin)
</blockquote>Orcs <blockquote>-Tauren with Pulverize
-Witch Doctor - Stasis Trap/Healing Ward
</blockquote>Undead <blockquote>-Banshee - Possession (only if no Resistant Skin)
-Dread Lord - Sleep </blockquote></blockquote>Hippogryph (Unarmored) <blockquote>Hippogryphs
cannot attack ground units so use ranged units. You can try to use your
own Air Units but it's best to go with ground range options. Night
Elves <blockquote>-Warden - Shadow Strike
-Warden - Fan of Knives
-Archers
-Dryads
-Hippogryphs </blockquote>Humans <blockquote>-Archmage - Blizzard
-Riflemen
-Siege Engines with Barrage
-Water Elementals </blockquote>Orcs <blockquote>-Far Seer - Chain Lightning
-Shadow Hunter - Serpent Wards
-Troll Headhunters/Berserkers
</blockquote>Undead <blockquote>-Lich - Frost Nova
-Dread Lord - Carrion Swarm
-Crypt Fiends - Web
-Gargoyles with Vampiric Aura </blockquote>Neutral <blockquote>-Naga Sea Witch - Forked Lightning
-Pit Lord - Rain of Fire </blockquote></blockquote>Hippogryph Rider (Light) <blockquote>Hippogryph
Riders take increased damage from piercing damage (ranged units) and
magic damage. Use ranged units against them. Night Elves <blockquote>-Warden - Shadow Strike
-Warden - Fan of Knives
-Archers
-Dryads (not the best but can work)
-Hippogryphs - Instruct your Hippogryph Riders to unmount when facing enemy Hippogryph Riders. </blockquote>Humans <blockquote>-Archmage - Blizzard
-Riflemen
-Siege Engines with Barrage
-Dragonhawk Riders - Aerial Shackles
-Gryphons
-Water Elementals </blockquote>Orcs <blockquote>-Far Seer - Chain Lightning
-Shadow Hunter - Serpent Wards
-Troll Headhunters/Berserkers
-Troll Batriders - Unstable Concoction
-Wind Riders </blockquote>Undead <blockquote>-Lich - Frost Nova
-Dread Lord - Carrion Swarm
-Crypt Fiends - Web
-Gargoyles </blockquote>Neutral <blockquote>-Naga Sea Witch - Forked Lightning
-Pit Lord - Rain of Fire </blockquote></blockquote>Faerie Dragon (Light) <blockquote>Faerie
Dragons have light armor which means they are easily killed by pierce
attacks (ranged units). The challenge is hitting them when they are
Phase Shifting. Just keep selecting them and firing at them. They are
pretty easy to kill. Once the Faerie Dragon is in Mana Flare mode they
have increased armor but can still be killed using focus fire with
ranged units. Once the Faerie Dragons are in Mana Flare mode you should
turn off autocasting spells (like Bloodlust, Frost Arrow, Priest
Healing, Searing Arrow) until you kill them. Night Elves <blockquote>-It's best to use Hippogryphs
-Archers
-Dryads
</blockquote>Humans <blockquote>-Riflemen
-Siege Engines with Barrage </blockquote>Orcs <blockquote>-Troll Headhunters/Berserkers
-Troll Batriders - Unstable Concoction
</blockquote>Undead <blockquote>-Crypt Fiends - Web
-Gargoyles
</blockquote></blockquote>Chimaera (Light) <blockquote>Chimaera
have light armor which means they take 200% damage from Pierce attacks
(ranged attacks). Also because they have a Magic attack, they can't
damage units that are immune to magic. They also can't attack air units
so air units are good. If there are only a few Chimaera you can use
ranged units, otherwise you will have to use air units or special units
such as the Dryad. Night Elves <blockquote>-Hippogryphs
-Dryads (immune) are the most commonly used unit
-Archers can work if you have enough of them and focus fire but they are not the best to use
-Hippogryph Riders
-Druids of the Talon in Crow Form
</blockquote>Orcs <blockquote>-Far Seer - Chain Lightning
-Shadow Hunter - Serpent Wards (if only a few Chimaera)
-Troll Headhunters/Berserkers (if only a few Chimaera)
-Troll Batriders using Unstable Concoction
-Wind Riders </blockquote>Humans <blockquote>-Mountain King - Stormbolt
-Flying Machines - completely upgraded in equal food supply
-Archmage - Blizzard
-Dragonhawk Riders - Aerial Shackles
-Gryphon Riders
-Siege Engines - Barrage
-Sorceress - Polymorph and Slow </blockquote>Undead <blockquote>-Lich - Frost Nova
-Dread Lord - Carrion Swarm
-Crypt Fiends - Web
-Gargoyles
-Cast Anti-Magic Shell on your units/Heroes </blockquote>Neutral <blockquote>-Naga Sea Witch - Forked Lightning (if only a few Chimaera)
-Pit Lord - Rain of Fire </blockquote></blockquote>

Build Orders

Archers with Altar hero
4 of 5 starting Wisps to Gold, one makes Altar of Elders.
First Wisp -> Moon Well
Second Wisp -> Gold
Third Wisp -> Ancient of War
Fourth+ Wisps -> Wood

You want to make up to 18 food of Wisps, including your hero, so 13
Wisps total (at first). Once your Ancient of War finishes, queue up one
Archer.

At 40 Wood make a second Moon Well.

There are a variety of ways to go from here. You can do a fast tech,
which usually means making one more Moon Well, a few more Wisps (while
still pumping Archers), and teching ASAP. This is your standard reason
to go Archers. You can tech a little slower and make a Hunter's Hall
before teching for a quicker switch to Huntress, but this all depends
on the matchup, which will be covered below.

Sample Replay

Archers with Tavern hero
(there are numerous build orders with tiny variations for a Tavern hero, but here is the easiest one in my opinion)

4 of 5 starting Wisps to Gold, one on wood
First Wisp -> Moon Well, and you can use Shift-Click to select him to make an Altar of Elders when the Moon Well is done.
Second Wisp -> Ancient of War
Third Wisp -> Gold
Fourth+ -> Wood

At 40 wood, which will be right about when your Altar starts, make another Moon Well.

As with all build orders, this one has a bit of variety as well. With
the above build you will have almost 3 Archers by the time you can pick
up your Tavern hero. Usually I will tech to tier 2 at about 5 Archers,
but you can also set up a fast expansion or stick with a few more
Archers if you feel you'll be rushed. Either way, you'll most likely be
relying on your summons to help you since you're teching so fast, so
practice your micro.

Sample Relay

Huntress with Altar hero
(again there are two variations, this is the one I prefer)
4 of 5 starting Wisps to Gold, one makes Altar of Elders.
First Wisp -> Moon Well
Second Wisp -> Gold
Third+ -> Wood

Once you get 160 wood make an Ancient of War and Hunter's Hall at the
same time. Then once you hit 40 Wood, make a Moon Well. Then once you
get another 60 wood, make another Ancient of War.

Tech speeds vary greatly, but odds are if you're going 2 AoW Huntress
you won't tech very fast. For one AoW Huntress do the above build
order, but skip making the second one. This will let you tech quicker,
and is one of the more common build orders top-level players use.

Sample Replay (2 AoW)

Huntress with Tavern hero
4 of 5 starting Wisps to Gold, one on wood
First Wisp -> Moon Well, and you can use Shift-Click to select him to make an Altar of Elders when the Moon Well is done.
Second wisp+ -> Wood

Then you follow the build order as if you were going Altar
hero/Huntress. At 160 Wood, make an Ancient of War and Hunter's Hall.
At 40 Wood, a Moon Well, another 60 make another AoW, etc. etc.

Sample Replay

Altar hero w/ no AoW tech
4 of 5 starting Wisps to Gold, one makes Altar of Elders.
First Wisp -> Moon Well
Second Wisp -> Gold
Third+ -> Wood

There are two standard versions. The one I prefer is to make one more
Moon Well before teching, as it gives me time to get a bit of extra
wood, but some players prefer to tech with just their initial Well for
an extra second or two. It's up to you, but you're going to be teching
at either 18 or 19 food.

Sample Replay

Hero Selection

Night Elf vs. Human

Primary Hero Choices
The most used choice in this matchup is the Demon Hunter first. He's
chosen because Mana Burn is useful early game in slowing the Archmage's
creeping, as well as late-game making the Mountain King much less of a
threat.

The Beastmaster and Firelord can work due to their summons making your
creeping be able to keep up with the Human player, but once they get
Defend or Priests for dispell your summon heroes aren't too hot. On the
plus side though, if you go with a tavern hero and Archers and he tries
to pull a quick tower rush you will have a much easier time fending it
off then if you chose the DH.

The Warden is also not bad, but late-game without Mana Burn it's hard
to stop her from getting Storm Bolted, and she dies really really fast.
On the plus side, Fan of Knives, Blink, and Shadow Strike are all very
good skills vs. Human, so feel free to experiment with her.

Secondary Hero Choices
This one has a lot more variety then the first, which will almost
always be the Demon Hunter. The Panda is becoming very popular due to
his ability to cripple the inevitable Riflemen that will come to your
base.

Summon heroes, like the Firelord and Beastmaster, aren't a bad choice
either, especially if he's doing a quick tier-2 press and you need
quick units to hold him off.

If you're packing a lot of range (though not advised against Human) the Priestess of the Moon is something to consider.

The Naga Sea Witch is also pretty common as she helps your Demon Hunter
pick off those fleeing units and heroes, but be sure you're watching
her at all times because she's an easy Storm Bolt target.

Night Elf vs. Orc

Primary Hero Choices
Again, the Demon Hunter is usually the primary choice of the gosus
because Mana Burn dominates the Far Seer and he is not a bad tank at
all.

Summon heroes, unlike vs. Human, work very well against Orc. Going with
the Beastmaster or Firelord first with Archers is very common, but
you'll more then likely be harassed very heavily as you try to creep,
so make sure your detonate micro is up to par.

On small maps the Keeper of the Grove is sometimes a good choice.
Entangle with 2 AoW Huntress is very strong early game and if you keep
up the pressure it's very possible to pull out the victory - this is
highly not advised for large maps.

The Warden is sometimes chosen, but not often. Shadow Strike and Blink
really tear up the Far Seer, but if you're going Warden you only want
to get her on large maps like Lost Temple where you can outlevel your
opponent (due to the single hero experience bonus you get at tier 2 and
3).

Secondary Hero Choices
Again, there is much more variety here to chose from. The Panda is
strong second in all matchups, and the two summon heroes are very
helpful if your opponent is going Gruntapult and plans to hit before
you have too much of an army.

The Priestess of the Moon second is definitely a viable hero, and Owl
can be priceless if your opponent goes Blademaster. The Keeper of the
Grove with Entangle is also a good choice.

Night Elf vs. Undead

Primary Hero Choices
Demon Hunter is still a good choice because he can take away a lot of
Death Coil mana, but the one problem with the good ol' DH is his lack
of AoE.

Beastmaster and Firelord are good first heroes because they can power
creep with their summons and Undead doesn't have any real dispell until
they get Destroyers. Dark Ranger is also becoming somewhat common since
her skeletons make creeping a breeze and she can't be Death Coiled
(well, offensively).

Warden is also a very good choice because her AoE (Fan of Knives) works
well against the masses of low hit point units you usually see from
Undead (Ghouls and Gargoyles).

Secondary Hero Choices
Rule of thumb is you need at least one AoE hero against Undead. In most
cases you'll see players (again) get the Panda second. Breath of Fire
and Drunken Haze tear up Ghouls and Gargoyles like a joke and is
definitely a solid choice.

If you didn't get a summon hero first, the Beastmaster or Firelord are
still decent choices because they can help with a tier-2 push. The
Beastmaster is also good second because he's a Strength hero and has
more hit points.

Pit Lord and Dark Ranger, though not popular, can still work excellent.
They are immune to offensive Death Coils and have good skills overall.
Howl of Terror is extremely good, and having Cleaving Attack as
passive, the Pit Lord isn't a bad choice.

Night Elf vs. Night Elf

Primary Hero Choices
This is by far the most versatile matchup for Night Elf and, in my (completely, I assure you) unbiased opinion, in the game.

Demon Hunter is your hero choice if you plan to tech or go Archers,
while most players prefer the Priestess of the Moon if they are massing
Huntress.

Tavern heroes can work, but if the enemy goes Demon Hunter, your mana-relient tavern heroes aren't gonna be too hot.

But Night Elf vs. Night Elf is all Rock/Paper/Scissors, and I will go into much more detail later.

Secondary Hero Choices
If you went Priestess of the Moon with mass Huntress, you usually won't tech or even get a second hero.

Demon Hunter is usually followed by the Naga Sea Witch, unless you're
doing an Archer push mid-game, then you might pick up the Dark Ranger.

Honestly any combination can work, but your best bet is to either stick
with the DH/Naga strategy or the PotM/mass Huntress strategy until you
get a good feel for the game.

Misc

ALWAYS get Ultravision. For
50 gold and 50 wood this is by far the best upgrade in the game. The
potential for creepjacks, scouting tower rushes, and avoiding the enemy
is amazing and this is definitely worth the small price.

Taking off items that boost stats, such as Circlets, Pendants, and
Periapts, before using Moon Wells will save you well mana because the
items work on a % base when re-equiped.

When you're being harassed, it's often a good idea to cycle weak Wisps
into your goldmine and put the healthy ones back out into the open.

With items that have cooldowns (i.e. Crystal Ball) you can switch it
around on your heroes to avoid the cooldown and get double/triple use
out of it

maps

Gnoll Wood
This was one of the best maps for Night Elf back in the day when you
could get Mercenaries from two of the three camps without disturbing
the creeps, but unfortunately that is no longer the case. But even so,
this is a good map for all you NE players out there. Three Taverns and
lots of green creep camps are great, as well as plenty of places you
can set up expansions that can go unnoticed. On this map be sure to
scout with two Wisps, not just one, and if your opponent close spawns
(and is Human) don't neglect your base because they might rush you
hard. On the other hand, if they are across map, feel free to tech as
fast as you want. You can get Sentry Wards from the Goblin Merchant
creeps, and the best place to set them up is at the fountain in the
middle so you can get a good creepjack if your opponent creeps it first.

Lost Temple
Lost Temple has been around, well, forever, and over the years there
have been some cool strategies found - I'm going to cover some basics.
First off, you can start your Tree of Life expansion on the ramp
between your main gold mine and expansion gold mine so that it gets up
sooner and can help tank creeps. During night time you can sneak around
the golem and buy items from the shop by walking around back. Also
during the day if you are really careful you can buy items as well.

Buying items from the RIGHT shop
Buying items from the LEFT shop

During the day, if you don't want to waste Moon Well mana healing your
hero, you can also stand on the corner of the tile by the fountain in
the middle to get the healing regen on your hero/unit without
triggering the creeps. Just be really careful because if you mess up
your hero will get purged and possibly die. See the screenshot below.

Where to position your hero by the fountain

Since the creeps at the Labs sleep at night, it's a good idea to have
one Wisp harvesting lumber on the back trees behind the creeps which
will give you easy access to using the lab and also knowledge of when
your opponent goes to creep it. Another good place to put Wisps is on
the trees above the ledges by main start locations so you can see over
the cliff and they can't see your Wisp (because it's up higher and out
of their line of sight).

Turtle Rock
This is a good map for Night Elf due to lots of choke points in which
you can take advantage of. Also it's a good map for summon heroes
because there are plenty of creep camps, but be sure you scout the
adjacent spawn location very early. If the opponent close spawns don't
do something stupid like a no-AoW tech because you'll get dominated by
a rush. There aren't too many tricks you can abuse about the terrain
anymore since Blizzard fixed a lot of stuff. Just keep in mind that the
game can be completely different depending on spawn locations, so scout
ASAP.

Plunder Isle
Not really a Night Elf map, but there are some things to note. You can
start building a Tree of Life on the corner areas of the gold mines
between bases, as well as on the edge of the islands to the sides. I
recommend the latter since players normally scout the one in the middle
and rush you to take it down.

Top goldmine Tree placement
Bottom goldmine Tree placement

Also note that it's not uncommon for Orcs to start tower creeping their
expansion, so keep a Wisp scout looking for that. Also Undead players
like to mass Gargoyles so they can easily creep the Ogre camps and the
Dragons. Scouting is the key to victory, and don't be scared to go mass
Hippogryphs against Undead.

Echo Isles
This new map seems like it has a lot of potential to exploit, but a lot
hasn't been discovered yet. All races can creep their starting fountain
as soon as their hero comes out, so if you're planning to harass, know
where to go, and if you want to creep, you know where to do it. Hit the
creeps to draw them out of the healing area, then beat them down for a
good item drop and level 2. Limited expansions mean you want to win
fast, and the creep camps are limited as well, so try to creep as much
on the opponent's side of the map as possible once you get a decent
army size.

The shop has no Golem so once it's night you can go buy your Boots of
Speed or whatever without worry. Also the expansion isn't too hard to
creep, so setting up a quick expo shouldn't be too hard, but you'll be
vulnerable after due to the small map size, so plan carefully. The
creep camps below each expansion gold mine (behind the trees) only have
one way out, so put a Wisp back there behind your opponent's mine, and
when he goes to creep it, jacking him (especially if he doesn't have a
TP) can win you the game because he'll be forced to fight.

Twisted Meadows
I'd say this is the most balanced of all the maps. A lot of the good
Wisp scout locations were fixed by Blizzard, but you can still put a
Wisp on the tree by the bottom shop and get an excellent view of both
sides.

Wisp placement

You can start up expansions in between the expansion gold mine and the
Goblin Lab without disturbing the creeps. Tavern heroes are avaliable,
but the creep locations on this map are very predictable so keep that
in mind if your hide and detonate micro isn't too hot. If an Undead
player goes mass Gargoyles be sure you scout the island by his base
because it's common for them to expand there.

Two Rivers
Personally my least favorite map, but it's common and I'll go over some
basics. If it's a NE vs NE mirror match and you go PotM, on this small
map you should always get Owl instead of Searing Arrow. It will be
really helpful in getting/preventing creepjacks. For both gold mines
you can start up an expansion far away and walk it to the expansion.

The Golems at the shop give really good items, but be really careful
because a creepjack there could cost you the game (due to Slow and Stun
from the Golems). Also there is no longer any way to buy items from the
shop without creeping it (unless you draw the creeps away with another
unit, then buy with your hero, but you're still taking some damage.
Practice makes perfect).

Against Human on Two Rivers you should always go Archers first. If you
go Huntress you'll be extremely vulnerable to a tower rush due to the
smallness of the map

Items

Moonstone - 50 gold - This
item isn't all that spectacular, but it does have a few uses. Without
Well Spring I think it will put 32 mana back into all your wells, which
can make or break a game, but only worry about it when all your wells
are drained. Also this item can sometimes come in handy to get creeps
to fall asleep so you can use the Goblin Merchant, Merc Camps, or the
Lab. Those are also rare cases though, so don't bother with this item
too often.

Lesser Clarity Potion - 70 gold - Definitely an awesome item, well
worth the money. Be sure you use it when you know your hero's not going
to get hit. The only reason to make a shop before tier 2 would be if
you went Warden of KotG first and you need this item for mana regen so
you don't waste your wells.

Dust of Appearance - 75 gold - A very good item to have if you need to
see that annoying Blademaster or if it's a Night Elf mirror and your
opponent is making nice use of Shadowmeld. Though a good item, still
doesn't really warrant making a shop at tier 1 because this item is
also avaliable at the regular Goblin Merchant.

Potion of Healing - 150 gold - Pretty self explanatory. Good item to
always have on your Demon Hunter or any other melee heroes like the
Warden or Beastmaster.

Potion of Mana - 200 gold - Again, self explanatory. Good item to buy
if you're going to be using tons of mana. If you go Warden you'll
definitely want one of these on your hero since her mana pool goes
really fast.

Scroll of Town Portal - 350 gold - If you burned your original one
don't be scared to stock up. It's a good preventative measure to losing
your hero and also enables you to creep all over the map without fear
of him running in your base and killing your trees before you can walk
back.

Staff of Preservation - 150 gold - Probably the best item the Elves
have at their shop. Keeping one on each hero this is a good way to save
plenty of injured units. Self explanatory, but you should almost always
buy one. I say "almost" because sometimes it'd be better to buy
something like a Scroll of Protection or another Huntress. For some
neat tricks check out the Staff of Teleportation part below.
Unfortunately you can't use this item on units that are either Ensnared
or Entangled.

Orb of Venom - 325 gold - This is where it gets fun. If you went with a
hero that can't attack air (DH, Warden, Beastmaster, Panda, etc) and
your opponent does some lame mass Gargoyles or whatnot this is a
must-buy item. It's also good combined with Boots of Speed making it
really easy to chase down fleeing units because of the poison effect.

Anti-Magic Potion - 100 gold - A definite must-buy against those pesky
Undead players who like to get a Dreadlord and mass Sleep, and also
extremely useful against the Mountain King. Definitely worth the money
when you pick a non-str melee hero (like the DH or Warden).

Goblin Merchant items

All the items found at the Goblin Merchant are explained here.

Circlet of Nobility - 175 gold - Definitely a worth purchase early game
if you went with the Demon Hunter and it's either a mirror match or you
just want a little extra firepower. Only really consider it if you're
teching though or else the gold is better spent elsewhere. If you buy
one early game you'll probably end up selling it later because you'll
find much more useful items.

Periapt of Vitality - 350 gold - This item costs an arm and a leg and I
don't think I've only bought one in my years of playing WarCraft and
that's because I had 4000 gold, three heroes, and was hunting for a
hidden Farm.

Boots of Speed - 250 gold - Even though the gold price has been pumped
up it's still a pretty good buy if you're doing a lot of harassment.
Plus it's also a great item when you're trying to catch fleeing units.
Don't invest in it too early on though unless you're teching because
you'll need the money for units.

Dust of Appearance - 75 gold - See above.

Scroll of Healing - 250 gold - Definitely one of the best and most
neglected (by lower players) items in the game. If you're going against
ANY kind of Area of Effect (Shockwave, Chain Lightning, Demolishers,
Blizzard, Flamestrike, Frost Nova, Impale, Fan of Knives, etc) this
item is a MUST buy. It's usually much better to buy one Scroll of
Healing then to make your army of 10 Huntresses increase to 11.

Scroll of Town Portal - 350 gold - See above.

Scroll of Protection - 150 gold - An excellent item that can easily
turn the tide of a battle. Not a bad purchase, but beware of AoE
dispel. If you see your opponent buying one be sure you bring along a
Wisp to battle and you'll be able to trade your 60 gold Wisp for his
150 gold item.

Potion of Invisibility - 100 gold - Not a bad item for its cheap price.
It's fun to use these with a Warden, run into their base once you have
level 2 or 3 Fan of Knives, then use a Staff of TP and get away. It's
also a good item to save heroes, but don't forget IT DOES NOT WORK
INSTANTLY LIKE OTHER POTIONS. Don't wait until the last second with
this item.

Tome of Retraining - 300 gold - Though 300 gold is a little steep, this
item isn't something to be overlooked. Human uses it the most
(retraining Elementals to Blizzard), but I've seen Elves use it a bit.
If you started off with Immolation and realize Mana Burn would be a
better choice, or if you want Blink and Shadow Strike instead of SS/FoK
don't be scared to buy this item. Just remember that if you use it and
a spell you want to retrain has a cooldown and the cooldown isn't
recharged (i.e. you have a Bear summoned and you use the item) it will
not let you retrain the skill that hasn't cooled down.

Staff of Teleportation - 150 gold - Excellent item for harassing and
general map movement. It also works well if you have this item on one
hero and the Staff of Preservation on another, that way you can use the
Staff of Pres, heal up at your Moon Wells, and be back in battle in
just a few seconds.

Potion of Lesser Invulnerability - 150 gold - A really good item to
save heroes from... anything. Seven seconds sounds like a long time,
but in battle it's not THAT long, but definitely worth the investment
if you're packing melee heroes. Note: you CAN cast Rejuvenate on a hero
while it is invulnerable so keep that in mind

Specific Heroes/Units

Demon Hunter - Personaly my
favorite hero and one of the most fun to use. Usually you'll want to go
with Mana Burn first and Evasion as a second skill, but sometimes
against Human using Immolation can hurt them really bad.
Pros
-High damage output
-Mana Burn renders most heroes useless
-Evasion makes him a good tank despite being an Agility based hero
-Good move speed
Cons
-No Area of Effect spells
-Doesn't attack air (can be fixed with an Orb of Venom)

Keeper of the Grove - Not so common anymore (in solo) as a first hero -
he's still a very good second hero. Entangle is a strong spell and his
Treants aren't too bad either.
Pros
-Entangle dominates
-Attacks air
-Good move speed
Cons
-Low hit points
-Weak attack
-Treants are only decent and Thorns stinks so you'll usually only get him for one skill

Priestess of the Moon - Good as a first hero in Night Elf mirror and
also a good secondary hero if you're massing ranged units. You'll
definitely want Aura as your main skill, and whether you prefer Owl
Scout or Searing Arrow is up to you, but both skills are good.
Pros
-Not very mana relient
-Aura is extremely strong
-Can have very high potential damage output
-Attacks air units
-Good move speed
-Shadowmeld
Cons
-Moderately low hit points
-At low levels isn't very powerful
-Not a good anti-harassment hero

Warden - Definitely good as a first or second hero: she has AoE, hero
nuking, Blink, and a killer ultimate. Unfortunately her list of cons
doesn't always make her the best choice.
Pros
-Really strong skills/Area of Effect
-Shadowmeld
-Good move speed
-Decent attack
Cons
-Low hitpoints for a melee hero
-Extremely mana relient
-No air attack (again, can be remedied with an Orb of Venom)

-------------------------------------------------------------

Wisp - General worker, but with a twist - they move fast, can detonate,
and can harvest on any trees, three awesome advantages. Place them
around the map to be able to scout easily and if you're being harassed
and you're positive the Wisp will die, detonate it so your opponent
doesn't get experience. Also good to get a few extra against things
like Wagonmancer or if your opponent is getting lost of Bloodlust.

Archer - Cheap, effective, fragile. One of the better ranged units in
the game due to their easy avaliability and magic resistance/hide. In
large numbers with a decent tank (a few summons from a Beastmaster or a
Demon Hunter with a potion and a decent level Evasion) can really dish
it out. Overall a very cost-worthy unit.

Huntress - Ahh, the Huntress, one of the most hated units in the game.
They're fast, they can hide, and they do plenty of damage. Just note
that they are extremely weak to piercing and siege attack so once you
get through the initial game stage you'll want to find other forms of
meatshields or pack plenty of Scrolls of Healing.

Glaive Thrower - Argueably the worst siege unit in the game, but it has
one advantage - it's avaliable at tier-1. Though this won't help too
much against an annoying Orc or Human towering himself in, if you're
going for a strong early game push (maybe KotG and 2 Ancients of War)
making a few could be useful to lure out your opponent. Their upgrade
at tier-2 is also extremely good, especially in a NE mirror where both
players went PotM/Hunts.

Dryad - Personally my favorite unit, and for good reason. They're magic
immune, can dispell, have a ranged attack, move pretty fast, and have a
slow poison attack. But of course there's always a downside, and that's
their unarmored nature. It's still almost always good to get a few of
these to pick off retreating units and abolish summons like Water
Elementals and Lava Spawns (be sure you turn off Auto-cast).

Druid of the Claw - Initially these guys aren't anything hot, but once
you get their upgrades they're one of the best units in the game.
Rejuvenate is an amazing spell and will save your ass if your Moon
Wells are low, Roar can turn the tides in your favor in a losing
battle, and of course Bear form gives you your tier-3 melee unit. If
you can effectively micro your DotCs in and out of Bear form to
maximize on their spells you'll be in really good shape.

Mountain Giant - Even though they cost an arm and a leg, they're still
useful in some situations. If my opponent goes Fiends I like to set up
an early expansion and mass MGs and Archers. If you're going with the
super-tank though be sure you get to tier-3 and learn their upgrade.
There's nothing more annoying then losing a 425 gold 7 food unit to a
hungry Kodo Beast.

Hippogryph - One of the more amazing units in the game. Their movement
speed is only matched by one other unit (I want to say the Gyrocopter
but I could be wrong) and their damage ourput is ridiculous. Also
they're micro-free anti-air, as opposed to Gargs, which have a ground
attack. Unfortunately that's also a drawback, but with good scouting
you'll be able to tell when to go Hippos and when to go Archers/Dryads
to counter air units.

Hippogryph Rider - Not too common these days, they're only really good
for the surprise factor. If you can sneak up about 6 on an unsuspecting
Orc player it should be no problem going into his base and picking off
a number of Burrows, giving you time to tend to other stuff, like
expanding, creeping, or getting units that will actually win in a
battle.

Druid of the Talon - Another amazing unit, their initiate spell (Faerie
Fire) alone makes them worth getting. Storm Crow form can be useful
sometimes with helping them run away, but is often gotten just to make
the bridge to Cyclone, one of the best spells in the game. If you have
an Ancient of Wind at least make a couple DotTs so you can get Faerie
Fire all over your opponent's army.

Faerie Dragon - Not a bad unit overall, they have a few uses. If you're
opponent's going heavy casters getting a few for their Mana Flare
wouldn't be a bad idea. People like Moon have sometimes massed them,
but those scenarios are rare and need exact timing, so just keep in
mind they're good if you're opponent is packing a lot of casters.

Chimaera - Basically one of the most beastly units in the game. It
flies. It has two heads. It does plenty of magic damage. It doesn't
attack air. Chims are good to counter things like Tauren, Aboms, or
Knights, but keep in mind you'll need some anti-air of your own once
your opponent sees the Chims because they don't take very long to die
to focus fire.

People seemed interested in
this knowledge that even a most seasoned NE player might not know so I
decided to do a comprehensive guide on building the perfect NE base.


1st you need to think about what your trying to accomplish with your base.
1) Protect wisps by using a wisp block.
2) Deter your enemy form entering by forcing them to run by your ancients.
3) Easy moon-well access for quick healing.

My base build accomplishes all of this by the strange fact that certain
building placed right next to each other or 1 space apart can allow a
wisp to pass between but not a hero effectively protecting your wisps
form any melee hero! You will need to memorize what building
combinations will allow a wisp to pass and not a hero. For example an
Altar next to a moonwell will allow a wisp to pass but not a hero. A
moonwell right next to another moon well is impassible to all units.
But an altar next to the TOL will allow every NE unit to squeeze by
including MGs.

Lets run down each building in the typical NE build order.

Altar: almost always your 1st building to go up, (except for a neutral
hero) this is really a key building to getting that wisp block up ASAP.
Place it near a flat spot of trees, the flat spot must be vertical or
horizontal and very straight. If the trees are not straight enough you
run the risk of your hero getting trapped in a small pocket behind the
altar. But if you build your altar in the correct place there won抰 be
any room on the tree side of the altar and he will automatically pop
out on the other side. Virtually every location on every map has a good
spot for an altar and it抯 best to learn every one of em. If you are on
a rare map that truly doesn抰 have a good spot for an altar against the
trees then just place the altar next to the TOL. An altar next to a TOL
still leaves enough room for every NE unit to get by. This is also a
good way to start a wall if you want to block off your gold mine yet
still have limited access to it.

Moonwells: Now the moonwell will go right next to the altar tight to
the trees, It抯 important to not leave a pocket or your risk getting
your hero stuck. I like to place moonwells on both sided of my altar,
that alone will protect 3 or 4 wisps form Blade Master harassment. You
can continue to place the moonwells next to the existing moonwells
tight to the trees but this time you need to leave 1 space. Remember MW
next to MW requires 1 space for a wisp to squeeze by yet heroes still
can抰 get by.

Hunters hall: pretty much acts like a big moonwell. It needs one space
if next to a moonwell and no spaces if placed next to an altar.

AOWar, AOLore & AOWind: They all have the same properties so I will
just use Ancient of War for examples. These need to be placed far
enough away form your TOL as to leave a pocket for a nice sized army.
Hopefully in a location that forces the enemy to walk by when entering
your base. At tier 2 you will most likely have 3 Ancients and by
putting them in a line or slight curve will pose a formidable barrier
for any enemy foolish enough to enter your base. You can also place AOW
right next to each other and every unit can still get by except the
mountain giant. But it抯 no big deal because if any unit dose get stuck
you can simply uproot and let them by. In fact I have seen player
totally wall in their base and uses the ancients as doors by uprooting
to open and close them keeping archers totally safe form attack. Not
sure if it抯 worth the effort if you ask me but still an interesting
idea.

The shop: This handy building works like the altar, you can place moon
wells next to it and wisps can still pass but not heroes. Another bonus
is if a unit gets trapped you can simply uproot to free it. Placing a
shop next to an altar will allow a hero to pass and attack your wisps.


Expansions and how to protect them!
Lets say your fast expanding against UD and need to protect your
investment. You will need at a minimum 2 Ancient protectors (APs) and
preferably 3. Placement is also key, always build the APs in a hard to
reach location, behind the TOL next to some trees. I see people put
their APs out in front and 6 or 8 ghouls will take one down out in the
open in seconds. Another tick is by eating just a few more trees you
can sometimes put the TOL behind the goldmine! You just might avoiding
detection even when scouted.

Notes about wisp block: The wisp block will not protect your wisps form
everything. Wolfs take the same space as wisp but are easily dealt with
by leading one wolf to the other and then detonating (be sure to thank
your opponent for the easy experience). Beetles can also squeeze by but
there will usually only be one so just lead the beetle near your TOL so
it can smack it a few times healing the wisp if necessary. The AM with
blizzard or BM with flame strike could cause a problem, luckily human
player almost NEVER harass but in the rare case they do just spread out
your wisp and cycle them in the goldmine as they get hurt. Range heroes
like the POTM can still attack wisps but they are right next to
moonwells for quick healing and again, cycle hurt wisps into the mine,
it will buy you more then enough time to drive the attacking hero away.