ADC Build Guide
ADC Build Guide
ADC Build Guide
Hi, I’m callum koi, a Challenger ADC player on the NA server who gets asked a lot about what
to build so I decided to make a fairly in depth guide on what to build on various ADCs. Certain
champions near the end of the guide will not contain in-depth reasoning for builds because I
don’t feel confident in what to build for them. This guide has last been updated on patch 11.21.
Any acronyms or shorthands that I might use that might be confusing to a non-native English
speaker or a new player will be described in the glossary at the end. If any terms are confusing,
please let me know and I’ll add it to the glossary.
IE vs LDR
Aphelios
Ashe
Caitlyn
Ezreal
Jhin
Jinx
Kai’sa
Kalista
Miss Fortune
Samira
Senna
Sivir
Tristana
Varus
Vayne
Xayah
Note
Draven
Kog’Maw
Lucian
Twitch
Glossary
Changelog
Starting Items
Option 1: Doran’s Blade 1 Pot
Generally the most consistent start. This start is becoming less popular in higher elo as more
ADCs start greeding out for the long sword 3 start. In lower elo, I’d almost always recommend
going D.Blade since all-in fights occur spontaneously even in matchups where they should not
be occurring and matchups are not played properly on either side. In those scenarios, the extra 80
base health and more efficient combat stats tend to be favoured. This is also a less greedy start
since it delays your first item by 450 gold (270 if you sell it before your first item, which isn’t
recommended), compared to long sword which gets you 350 gold closer to your first item. In
high elo, I take this start into high kill pressure lanes (ex: leo or naut lanes) to survive using the
base 80 hp.
Another thing to mention is that some ADCs can go long sword 3 pots more confidently than
others. Some champions like Jinx already have 610 HP at level 1, while some ADCs like Caitlyn
have 510. While both these types of champs can go both dblade and long sword, it’s important to
note that the amount of survivability that Caitlyn gets from dblade is more (in terms of
percentage increase) than Jinx.
The synergy with Cut Down is super overrated imo, that’s not a reason to build this item.
Control Wards
Not really a situational item, but nowhere else to put this that makes sense. Buy these, these are
op. Just because you’re an ADC who needs gold doesn’t mean you’re exempt from helping your
team with the vision game. No particular “purchase X per game” goal, but make sure your
placement is good and useful and you always have one down / about to put one down. Buy one
on every base that your control ward is dead and try to keep one in your inventory ESPECIALLY
when a major objective is about to be contested.
Mortal Reminder
I tend to avoid building this item. Executioners is absolutely a must-buy in a lot of games, but
Thornmail, Chainsword and Morello are all better than this item. Try to get your team to build
enhanced GW if you are one of the primary carries. If you’re behind / not the win condition of
your team, build this item and become your team’s GW spreader especially on utility adcs or
champions that can spread it efficiently. If healing is REALLY a problem, you can replace your
zeal item with Mortal Reminder, although you are not really happy to do so. Notably better on
some champions who rely less on their damage and/or can spread it easily (Ashe, Sivir, Senna).
Guardian Angel
The standard situational item. Good vs AD burst but also good in general. Builds out of
stopwatch which is easily one of the best items in the game, and the passive effect can be fight
changing. People say this item sucks because you just die afterwards again but that probably just
means your positioning is shit sry. It is true that this item’s value does increase in higher elo
games though since they tend to be more calculated and higher elo ADCs tend to get caught less
in general thus wasting the 5 minute cooldown less.
An early chain vest if you’re against a fed AD burst champ can be very good, usually built after
1st/2nd item.
Stopwatch is broken especially if you have a large bounty and you’re ahead. BUILD IT.
At full build, (like even boots sold for a zeal item or something), sell this item on CD for another
damage or situational item like Randuins or Wits.
Wit’s End
This item has been gaining a lot of popularity recently, even becoming core on certain
champions. This item is really good on less crit reliant ADCs if you want MR.
Maw of Malmortius
This item is pretty underrated imo, but Wits out shadows it pretty hard currently. This item is
good on certain ADCs that don't want the attack speed & on hit effect from Wits (ex: Ezreal,
Jhin) if you want anti AP burst.
Randuin’s Omen
The RAW defensive option vs AD threats. Especially good vs melee crit carries like Yasuo and
Tryndamere and especially good on champions that already have enough damage in their kit like
Vayne or Kog’Maw. More common than SV for sure.
Serpent's Fang
Not really an item you want to build that often unless you’re already an ADC that uses lethality
well / Building lethality already (ex: Leth Varus / Sivir, even someone like Aphelios can use this
decently). If you have an AD assassin-type champ they should be purchasing this item vs shield
heavy teams, but if you don’t then it’s not horrible on some ADCs.
Edge of Night
Good mix of offensive and defensive items on lethality ADC builds because of the stat profile
and spell shield. Otherwise, QSS is probably better.
Umbral Glaive
Viable on ADCs that appreciate lethality against certain threats such as a fed Teemo or AP
Shaco. Umbral can aid your team in neutralizing their effects and just controlling vision in
general using the passive, and is worth a slot in certain games.
Bloodthirster
The definition of a greedy situational item. 3400 for no real defensive stats is a huge investment.
If your team already has peel and your champion is very lifesteal heavy this item is viable but
generally I don’t see this item a bunch nor do I think it’s very good. This is a pretty common
purchase in lower elo games because it seems very appealing, but you’ll see it less the higher up
you go. This item DOES have utility vs high poke comps however, as it can aid in not getting
poked out, and is better on certain ADCs that are more AA focused and long range (ex: Aphel,
Jinx) than other ADCs that are shorter range and/or more ability heavy (Ezreal, Kai’sa).
Death’s Dance
Don’t think this item is very good on ADC. Maybe viable on Ezreal vs a full AD comp alongside
Frozen Heart, otherwise I rarely consider this item at all. Maybe if your GA is on CD and you
don’t like the zero offensive stats that Randuins grants.
The Black Cleaver / Seryldas Grudge
Both these items are generally overshadowed by LDR outside of certain use cases (Like Seryldas
on lethality builds in games where giant slayer doesn't get value or certain interactions like
Lucian’s The Culling or on Ezreal).
The Collector
By this I mean second last / last item collector. Generally, I would avoid this item late game. As
with bloodthirster, spending 3k gold on a zero defensive utility item is incredibly greedy and
overkill most of the time. Again, something you’ll see more in low elo and almost never in high
elo.
Navori Quickblades
Also a pretty bait item for similar reasons to BT and The Collector. Situationally viable vs front
line heavy comps as a last item or possibly second last on caster heavy ADCs like Xayah, and
has also seen use in core builds on champions like Kog’maw in the past. In general, a very
greedy item that is ALSO generally undertuned that currently struggles to find a slot where it is
not outperformed by another item in most ADC builds.
Any Other Item Normally Built as a Core Build Item (EX: Essence Reaver, Zeal Items)
Again, very greedy and generally overkill. Avoid building these items unless you’re just building
full damage for fun.
An exception to this are Zeal items as a replacement to your boots. Since generally situational
items don’t have crit on them, it’s a good way to fill in 100% crit while maintaining decent
out-of/in-combat MS and is more slot efficient.
IE vs LDR
This is generally the third item decision of choice for most adcs, and thus I’ll just describe it in
this section instead of rewriting the same thing under a lot of ADCs.
When to go LDR:
- You’re expected to damage the enemy front line, who seems to be strong.
- The main threats on their team who you will be hitting the majority of the fight are
bruisers with Plated Steelcaps and/or other HP/Armour items that you would get stuck on
/ die to otherwise.
When to go IE:
- Every other scenario that you don’t need a situational item.
Generally, when you go LDR third, you will want to build IE fourth unless you need a situational
item. LDR can be delayed slightly more since it’s less pivotal to crit builds, however you’ll often
find yourself buying it 3rd anyway.
I would say, overall, you want to go IE third most of the time although some games will call for
LDR third.
Aphelios
Note that, most Aphelios players are maxing Lethality second as of 11.13. Make sure to do this
especially if you’re going The Collector second as stacking Lethality is beneficial.
First Item:
Option 1: Immortal Shieldbow
The most common Aphelios mythic. Helps with survivability and the early Vampiric Scepter can
help a lot with laning. This is marginally worse if there is an AD assassin with Serpent’s Fang,
but it can still help. Best vs divers.
Option 3: Galeforce
The highest burst and mobility option. The dash helps Aphelios with one of his major issues,
getting into range. Furthermore, the recent lethality buffs make a burstier build with Galeforce
and Collector second more appealing when you max Lethality second. Best in games where you
struggle to get into range and/or the team is fairly squishy.
Second Item:
Since the lethality buffs, this hasn’t been a very common item.
Since the lethality buffs, this hasn’t been a very common item.
Boots: Berserker’s Greaves are standard and often a rush because of Aphelios’ high effective ad
growth due to his passive, while Plated Steelcaps can be situationally good vs AD heavy comps.
Bonus points if they are auto attack heavy. Mercury Treads are generally not favoured.
Ashe
First Item:
Option 1: Immortal Shieldbow
The most common mythic item on Ashe. The lifesteal component helps early in lane and the
shield helps with survivability once completed, especially on a champion with as little
survivability as Ashe.
Option 4: Galeforce
Not very common on Ashe since she’s not a burstier ADC and her range / engage range is
already long, but the dash can be useful in some games.
Second Item:
Option 1: Phantom Dancer
If you went a mythic first, this is generally your second item, especially with Kraken Slayer to
increase DPS further. The extra MS helps with kiting and the build path is great.
Option 3: Mythic
If you went Wit’s End first, either mythic should be built second. Generally Shieldbow is built
second to pile on survivability but Kraken Slayer can add a ton of damage as well.
Third Item:
Option 1: Infinity Edge
Great option if you went a mythic + zeal item. Lots of damage, not a lot more to say.
Notably, sell Guinsoo’s Rageblade late game for IE on Ashe since the DPS is always higher and
the slot is more efficiently used.
Boots:
The boots built on Ashe will almost always be Berserker’s Greaves as the early spike provided
from Berserker’s is too large to give up in most games, with many Ashe players buying the item
prior to their mythic. However, Plated Steelcaps is viable versus very heavy AD.
Caitlyn
First Item:
Option 1: Galeforce
Generally the mythic of choice for Caitlyn as she for her burst against most teams and she has a
consistent combo with Galeforce where you E Galeforce AA Attack Move to get a huge amount
of burst. (ex. Note that this can be done faster). In general, Galeforce helps to force favourable
engages which Caitlyn tends to struggles doing.
Option 2: Kraken Slayer
The highest DPS option, best against beefier teams. Build this when you need to be the one
breaking the front line threats.
Second Item:
Option 1: The Collector
Generally the most common second item. The burstiest of all the options, with a great build path
(serrated dirk is an overpowered item!)
Option 2: Stormrazor
Sets up traps with the slow, adds burst, and has a more favourable stat profile, giving more AD
than AS which is what Caitlyn wants. The BF sword is also a great part of the build path as it’s a
huge chunk of AD when you can buy it.
Third Item:
Option 1 and 2: Lord Domnik’s Regard and Infinity Edge
Reasoning: IE/LDR
Boots: Berserker’s Greaves are the boot of choice on Caitlyn as it provides the most damage and
can be built early to help with spacing and bullying in lane, even often being bought prior to
mythic. Plated Steelcaps is viable versus AD heavy comps, but Mercury Treads should be
avoided.
Ezreal
Ezreal is a very unique champion in terms of builds, and thus his main situationals will be listed
at the bottom.
Note that tear start is technically viable but generally too large of a power loss to consider unless
you’re in a very passive lane.
First Item:
Option 1: Divine Sunderer
The main mythic on Ezreal. Since the nerfs on 11.13, it is not a must build anymore however
especially versus beefer comps, the % health damage spellblade and the mythic passive are very
good. This is also the mythic that makes Ezreal the tankiest and as a result the hardest to kill,
which makes this notably good into dive / hard engage.
Option 4: Manamune
This isn’t really built first much at all anymore, but it’s okay if you want to spike mid-game
earlier at the expense of a much weaker first item. In general, this should be avoided though.
Second Item:
Option 1: Manamune
You generally will always get manamune second. The spike you get from Muramana is massive
and there aren’t any better second items. Note that you should be getting the tear before you
finish your first item, normally after completing sheen.
Third Item:
Option 1: Serylda’s Grudge
This is an extremely strong 3rd item for Ezreal. The slow procs on every Mystic Shot and the
armour pen helps a lot with making each Q hit harder. The build path problem LDR faces is not
present here since it builds out of Caufields instead of a Cloak. This is the standard offensive
second item.
Boots: Almost always Boots of Lucidities for the ability haste. Plated Steelcaps is viable versus
heavy AD and Mercury Treads is sort of viable against very very heavy AP and some CC.
Berserker’s Greaves should be avoided.
Jhin
First Item:
Option 1: Galeforce
Honestly the only real mythic option for Jhin. The burst and dash provided by Galeforce is huge
for Jhin and he doesn’t synergize with any other mythic very well since the nerfs to Eclipse on
ranged champions.
Second Item:
Option 1: The Collector
Jhin’s main second item, since it provides a huge statstick of stats he loves alongside a bonus of a
synergistic execute passive alongside all of Jhin’s % missing health damage. Default to this item
second.
Third Item:
Option 1: Rapidfire Cannon
Aids in the burst and helps Jhin mark targets for his W. Generally the most common third item
when not aiming for maximum damage / snowballing. The added range can also help in running
down targets.
Fourth and Fifth Item: Generally most Jhin builds will look something like Galeforce Collector
RFC IE LDR/GA and sell boots for the other one of the two since Jhin already has a lot of MS
from Galeforce Mythic Passive and RFC. Can replace GA with another defensive situational as
needed.
Boots: Generally Boots of Swiftness as it provides a cheap movement speed spike to play to
Jhin’s strength in short trades. Plated Steelcaps are viable vs heavy AD, and Mercury Treads are
a bit better than on other ADCs, but should generally be avoided. Berserker’s Greaves are
generally avoided, but can be fun as a full damage option.
Jinx
First Item:
Option 1: Kraken Slayer
The most common Jinx mythic and first item. Provides the strongest first item spike generally,
granting the most stats and a consistent dps passive. Build this most games, especially when
there is a beefier front line that you are expected to be denting.
Option 2: Galeforce
Common on Jinx as well. Especially good vs squishier teams where the burst from the item can
ensure Get Excited! procs and get you into range to force engagements against teams that can’t
punish you with a tankier champ engaging onto you. You do lose the consistent dps and better
stats from KS however.
Second Item:
Option 1: Runaan’s Hurricane
The best zeal item if you’re going to be fighting front-to-back (as in, the fights are going to be
very structured and not a ton of divers). Lower elo Jinx players love buying this item however it
is surprisingly low value if you’re not getting a ton of procs of the additional bolts. It is
incredibly satisfying however and the AOE damage it grants through rockets is incredible in the
right scenario.
Boots:
Usually Berserker’s Greaves. Can go Steelcaps vs a lot of AD esp if they are auto attack heavy.
Basically never mercury treads.
Kai’sa
A bit unique, with many build paths and a common pre-first item build path. Thus, the
formatting for this section will be slightly different. Also note that if you go long sword start you
will need to build an extra longsword or something to get your Q evo with the Dirk -> NQ ->
Pick rush.
Every Kaisa build essentially has to go Berserker’s Greaves to get your E Evolution.
Build 1:
This build is good vs beefier comps and should generally be your default build path.
The pre-first build path described in build 1.1 can also be followed in this build to provide a
stronger early game.
Full Build: Kraken > PD/Wit’s End > IE/LDR > IE/LDR/Situationals > Situationals
Sell the dirk late game when you need the slot/gold.
Go Wit’s vs AP heavy comps, PD otherwise. If you go Wit’s 2nd, you cannot build IE third. Go
LDR or some situational item with crit into IE. Some people are experimenting with Runaan's
3rd or PD 3rd with Wits second, or Guinsoo's 3rd.
Build 1.1:
Good vs beefier comps when snowballing early. This build with Wits 3rd has also been gaining a
lot of popularity.
This early build path can be skipped as well if you want to play for mid game.
Full Build: Kraken > The Collector > PD/Runaan's/Wits End > IE/LDR > IE/LDR/Situationals
You can sell The Collector late game to fit a situational item.
PD is usually the choice, but Runaans is good if you’re playing front to back. RFC is technically
viable but not really built at all. Wits is a lot of damage and MR for survivability, but comes with
a much worse build path.
Build 2:
Good vs squishier comps especially when snowballing.
Pre-First: Dirk > Noonquiver > Pickaxe
Same reasoning as above.
Full Build: Galeforce > The Collector > Zeal Item > IE/LDR > IE/LDR
You can sell The Collector late game to fit a situational item.
The zeal item can be any of the four. The most common is Runaan’s, but RFC can help to
activate your ult vs long range comps and add more burst. PD tends to be avoided on this build
because you don’t hit E evolution until level 15. Mortal Reminder struggles with the same
problem and is also generally the weakest of the four, but it can be good vs strong healers.
Build 3:
Good if you need magic damage and/or you’re against heavy AP. Very strong DPS build as well,
and allows you to build situationals like Hourglass.
This build nets you all three evolutions alongside heavier magic damage compared to the other
two builds and grants a lot of on hit damage.
The standard fourth and fifth items are Zhonya’s Hourglass and Rabadon’s Deathcap. You can
also get a Banshee’s Veil or even a Void Staff. Some players are also experimenting with
Rageblade because of the amount of on-hits on this build.
Kalista
First Item:
Option 1: Immortal Shieldbow
Your standard first item on Kalista. Lifesteal and the shield when low works well with her
backloaded damage, especially if Shieldbow procs before you pull a lot of spears with Rend. The
gold standard.
Second Item:
Option 1: Runaan’s Hurricane
Generally the best second item on Kalista as it helps with waveclear and spreading Rend stacks
during a teamfight. Will be built most games, but may be useless in some games if you’re
constantly getting dove on.
Third to Fifth Item: Essentially every Kalista full build will contain Runaan’s Hurricane and
Guinsoo’s Rageblade as a part of her core DPS options. From there, defensive situationals or
Bloodthirster (or LDR against a quite tanky team) are viable to round out her build and maintain
survivability. Guardian Angel is notably good on Kalista to help with her short range vs burstier
teams.
Miss Fortune
Similar to Sivir, Miss Fortune also has two main builds and as a result each option will be tagged
with (L) or (C) to denote which build it belongs to. Lethality builds tend to prefer playing against
squishier teams while crit builds tend to lend themselves to beefier comps. Crit builds also
generally scale better and play better without good Bullet Time setup while lethality is very
Bullet Time dependent.
First Item:
Option 1 (C): Kraken Slayer
Miss Fortune has a surprising amount of interactions with Kraken Slayer’s passive, with Double
Up granting up to two stacks and granting her a lot of single target DPS that she tends to lack
with standard builds, since so much of her damage lies within Love Tap. If you want to break
through beefier targets or you are playing less for your ultimate and more for your extremely
strong Strut active.
Second Item:
Option 1 (C): Bloodthirster
Often built with Kraken Slayer, Bloodthirster is often built on Miss Fortune. Not only are the
stats appealing to Miss Fortune, with the raw AD and lifesteal aiding in staying in range, the
shield can help deter divers and prevent your Strut movement speed from breaking. A great
option for DPS focused MF builds.
Third to Fifth Item (L): Three Of LDR or Serylda’s Grudge, Serpent’s Fang, EoN, GA, Maw
of Malmortius, The Collector.
LDR vs Serylda’s Grudge on MF: Generally, LDR will have more value, however Serylda’s
Grudge is beneficial in games where Giant Slayer won’t grab a lot of value because of low HP
bars. Getting % armour pen is a must, as it synergizes incredibly with lethality stacking as it
applies first. Adding a slow onto Bullet Time can be quite impactful as well.
Boots: Berserker’s Graves are preferred on Crit MF, and Plated Steelcaps is viable versus heavy
AD teams. Again, Mercury Treads should generally be avoided. On lethality Miss Fortune, boots
are sometimes not completed since you generally play from quite far away and your Strut
passive may not be commonly triggered. Boots of Swiftness can be used to maintain distance,
Boots of Lucidities can be used to lower your cooldowns further (especially Bullet Time) and
defensive boots are always viable.
Samira
First Item:
Option 1: Immortal Shieldbow
Honestly, Samira has no other real mythic options. Shieldbow interacts too well with how she
plays and she has too many lifesteal interactions within her kit to pass up this item.
Second Item:
Option 1: The Collector
This is Samira’s main second item and the one you will build in 95/100 of your games. Samira is
a clean up style champion who wants to come in as CDs are used and HP bars have been
chunked a bit and The Collector aids in securing resets. Collector is also just the best ADC item
for Inferno Trigger, being a huge stat stick of AD and Lethality, and making sure resets are more
easily achieved.
While items like Essence Reaver would grant higher DPS in theory, you don’t play Samira for
her DPS and instead to get big value out of her ultimate.
Boots:
Most games you’ll find yourself going Plated Steelcaps to survive the dive and lane better.
Mercury Treads are sort of viable vs unavoidable CC and heavy AP. I personally wiIl default to
Lucidity boots as the CDR and summoner spell CD is very important on a champion like Samira
however some prefer Berserker’s Greaves as a greedier boot to weave in autos faster.
Senna
This guide will focus on fasting Senna build paths. If you don’t know what fasting is, the
following video is a bit outdated but still describes the thought process behind it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0wkeYmWtw0
Second Item:
Option 1: Divine Sunderer
DS is often the mythic of choice. The build path is a bit sad for Senna, since Sheen is not a great
item for her since she has a base AD of 50 which never increases. Therefore, you should build
Phage > Kindlegem/Sheen > Sheen/Kindlegem. Kindlegem is often favoured second for the
survivability it grants but Sheen’s damage can be useful in some scenarios. DS offers tankiness
and alright damage and a pretty large spike.
Third Item:
Option 1: Guinsoo’s Rageblade
The highest DPS second item choice. Phantom Hit surprisingly interacts very well with many
parts of Senna’s kit (0.2 AD on-hit on her passive, her passive can instantly proc, her Q cd) and
the crit>on-hit conversion essentially allows Senna’s Q to “crit”, since it can proc on-hits but it
cannot crit. Go Rageblade for maximum damage.
Consider buying a rageknife beforehand to allow your Q to “crit” and get even more damage.
Fourth Item:
Option 1: Guinsoo’s Rageblade
Every full Senna build will want a Guinsoo’s Rageblade, so you want to look to fit it in
anywhere. Same reasoning as above.
Boots:
Boots of Swiftness are standard, since Senna really like the extra movement speed it provides
and the cheap cost.
Plated Steelcaps are good vs AD heavy teams.
Avoid Mercury Treads generally, since if you get CC’d you’re probably dying, and Mercury
Treads doesn’t provide any MR compared to null-magic mantle.
Boots of Lucidities are viable if you’re playing to provide more utility.
Berserker’s Greaves aren’t really a serious option. If you want maximum DPS go zerkers but
otherwise avoid this option.
ADC Senna
After the recent ADC Senna buffs, it has definitely become viable. I like going Kraken >
Rageblade/RFC > RFC/Rageblade/LDR > LDR/RFC > Situationals
The explanations are very similar to above, except you have an extra slot for an item without
buying AD spellthiefs.
Sivir
Sivir is most commonly played as a lethality champion in solo queue but the crit build is
definitely viable, although it takes longer to become very strong. Thus, this guide will cover both
builds.
Any item marked with L will be part of the Lethality build, while any item marked with C will
be part of the Crit build.
On lethality Sivir, Tear start is viable to ride out early laning with Q spam to clear waves.
First Item:
Option 1 (L): Manamune
Manamune tends to be built early on Lethality Sivir compared to Varus or Ezreal because she is
able to easily neutralize lanes with the extra mana and scale into mid game faster. Furthermore,
she stacks Tear slower than the aforementioned champions and as a result Manamune first is
more appealing. This is the standard first item for Lethality Sivir
Second Item:
Option 1 (L): Manamune / Duskblade of Draktharr
Complete the item you had not gotten first. Reasoning is the same as above.
Seryldas is a must on every full Lethality Sivir build, with the pen and stats being irreplaceable.
The Collector is surprisingly good later into the game on lethality Sivir since ricochet procs the
passive and Crit is always nice on ricochet, but it is a greedy option. All other items are
situationally useful as described in the Situational Items section.
Boots:
Lucidities on lethality Sivir, Berserker’s Greaves or defensive boots on crit sivir. Plated Steelcaps
is also viable on lethality Sivir. Avoid Mercury Treads in 99% of scenarios.
Tristana
First Item:
Option 1: Kraken Slayer
The most common mythic for Tristana. Very large first item spike and Tristana already brings a
lot of burst, so Galeforce isn’t needed in a role where your DPS matters a bit more than in
midlane. Highest DPS option.
Option 2: Galeforce
Also very viable on Tristana, notably good when the enemy team is squishy and you’re ahead to
add to your already large amount of burst. Your dps tends to suffer slightly and you become a bit
more reliant on your cooldowns, but still viable for sure.
Second Item:
Option 1: Phantom Dancer
The standard second item on Tristana. Gives everything she wants and more, not a lot more to
say.
Option 2: Stormrazor
Not very common on Tristana but viable if you want to burst even harder alongside Galeforce
Boots: Generally will be going Berserker’s Greaves for maximum DPS and early-mid game
power spike. Plated Steelcaps is viable versus heavy AD, Mercury Treads however should be
avoided.
Varus
Varus is mainly built with a Lethality build currently, but on-hit builds are also viable. This guide
won’t get too in depth into the on-hit builds, but if one wants to go on-hit the thought process on
what to build is very similar to the Ashe section.
First Item:
Option 1: Duskblade of Draktharr
The main option on Varus since the Prowler’s Claw nerf. Incredible stat profile for Lethality
Varus and the ability haste provides further ability haste to spam more Piercing Arrows and
Chain of Corruptions. The invisibility is a further bonus.
Option 2: Eclipse
A less popular but viable option on Varus. It’s great for surviving divers with the shield, but lacks
the ability haste that Duskblade provides. Generally not built often, but situationally useful.
Second Item:
Option 1: Manamune
Similarly to Ezreal, this should almost always be built second. However, there is a bit more
leniency here because Varus tends to not fully stack manamune by his second item. Building
manamune allows you to finish it faster and immediately get a huge boost of AD.
Vs shielding, purchase a Serpent’s Fang, especially if you don’t have another champion on your
team that uses it well. Generally you always want a Serylda’s Grudge third or fourth item and
EoN, GA and Maw are all viable defensive situationals.
Boots:
Almost always Boots of Lucidities, with Plated Steelcaps as an option vs heavy AD. Berserker’s
Greaves is good if you’re going on-hit instead of lethality. Boots of Swiftness are also viable as it
reduces the slow on the charge-up of Piercing Arrow and helps him maintain space, although
Lucidities are often preferred.
Vayne
First Item:
Option 1: Kraken Slayer
The first item spike from Kraken is larger but your survivability as a low range adc suffers,
generally a viable option, but currently ISB is preferred.
Third Item:
Option 1: Guinsoo’s Rageblade
Generally the third item of choice, providing damage versus both squishies and tankier targets.
The burst from the interaction of Silver Bolts and Press the Attack adds a lot of burst while the
acceleration of Silver Bolts procs adds a lot of damage to tankier targets. This item also has the
benefit of being much cheaper than other options, coming in at 2600 gold.
Option 4: Situationals
After Vayne completes Kraken + Guinsoo’s / Phantom Dancer, Vayne already outputs a ton of
damage. Therefore, in certain scenarios, it is okay to skip another damage item and get a niche
situational item such as Randuins against a fed melee AD target or Maw against a fed AP target.
Even Anathema’s Chains aren’t horrible if you’re against a single fed target and there are no
other Anathema’s buyers on your team, since 30% reduced damage alongside 650 HP adds a lot
of effective health.
Fourth and Fifth Item: Situationals (Notable: Wit’s End, Guardian Angel, QSS/Mercurial
Scimitar, Bloodthirster, Randuins).
Boots: Generally Berserker’s Greaves, since the spike from an early (prior to mythic or right
after mythic) is really nice for Vayne since she synergizes very well with both movement speed
and attack speed. Plated Steelcaps are viable vs heavy AD, but generally I would avoid Mercury
Treads.
Note: I personally think Blade of the Ruined King is generally a thing of the past on Vayne. It
used to be her best first item by a long shot. However, now there are better spikes and better
lifesteal options (Bloodthirster, Ravenous Hunter & Legend: Bloodline) and better anti-tank
options (LDR), BoTRK has fallen out of favour. BotRK isn’t particularly good against tanks
without armour pen from LDR and Guinsoo’s regardless. I think this item is situationally viable
5th in a full anit-bruiser/tank build alongside Kraken PD Guinsoos LDR but generally should be
avoided.
Xayah
First Item:
Option 1: Galeforce
Galeforce is Xayah’s main mythic option, since it covers her main weakness of being unable to
get into range with the dash. The burst also aids in securing kills and the dash can be used to
reposition the Bladecaller (E) to land a big snare.
Second Item:
Option 1: Essence Reaver
The main second item on Xayah. Cheap and provides a lot of burst. The mana refund helps as
well since Xayah can get a bit mana hungry while wave clearing and spamming Q E to poke.
The stat line is also great on Xayah as she loves raw AD and Ability Haste.
Option 2: Phantom Dancer
Okay option if you have Kraken Slayer, helps with kiting further and synergizes on a basic level
with Kraken Slayer. Also just the highest DPS option.
Notable Situationals: RFC 3rd to 5th item can be good if you’re struggling to get into range and
want to play more towards your utility with your snare combos. You do lose out on damage /
survivability, but sometimes this is a worthwhile trade.
Navori Quickblades are theoretically very good on Xayah, but the price point and the lack of
direct defensive utility makes this a hard to fit purchase. Often, there will be a better item in the
slot, however, they are worth considering versus heavy front line comps to maintain your W
steroid since you will always be hitting in a fight.
Boots:
Berserker’s Greaves are standard, while Plated Steelcaps can be situationally good vs AD heavy
comps. Bonus points if they are auto attack heavy. Mercury Treads are generally not favoured.
Boots of Lucidities are being experimented with alongside a Q max second build to play more
poke orientated and lower her cooldowns across the board.
Note
From this point in the guide, I don’t feel confident to describe the thought process behind these
champion’s builds, so I will be listing full builds that I see and the profiles of notable players of
these champions.
Draven
Full Build 1: Serrated Dirk > Essence Reaver > Immortal Shieldbow > IE/LDR/Situationals >
IE/LDR/Situationals > Situationals
Sell dirk late or build into Collector after Shieldbow.
Full Build 2: Serrated Dirk > Immortal Shieldbow > The Collector > IE/LDR/Situationals >
IE/LDR/Situationals > Situationals
Lethality Build: Serrated Dirk > Essence Reaver > Duskblade of Draktharr / Eclipse / Prowler’s
Claw > Collector/LDR/Situationals > IE/LDR/Situationals > Situationals
Boots: Generally Berserker’s Greaves for damage, but Plated Steelcaps is viable against heavy
AD comps. Mercury Treads is viable against AP bots but generally avoided.
Notable Players:
- https://na.op.gg/summoner/userName=humzh
- https://www.op.gg/summoner/userName=shenzhenshaoye
- https://euw.op.gg/summoner/userName=UNF0RG1VEN
- https://euw.op.gg/summoner/userName=Sergei+Kravinoff
- https://euw.op.gg/summoner/userName=robert+sapolsky
I’m sure I missed a bunch so feel free to let me know if you want any more accounts listed.
Kog’Maw
Tank Kog’Maw: Wit’s End > Runaan’s Hurricane > Randuin’s Omen / Spirit Visage > Frostfire
Gauntlet / Immortal Shieldbow / Spirit Visage / Kraken Slayer > Situationals / Mythic if not built
4th
Build 2: Immortal Shieldbow / Kraken Slayer > Runaan’s Hurricane / Phantom Dancer / Wit’s
End > Guinsoo’s Rageblade > Situationals
Build 3: Phantom Dancer > Navori Quickblades > Kraken Slayer / Immortal Shieldbow >
Infinity Edge / Situationals > Situationals
Boots: Generally Berserkers Greaves as it provides a strong early spike for Kog’Maw. Plated
Steelcaps are viable versus heavy AD. Generally avoid Mercury Treads.
Notable Players:
- https://www.leagueofgraphs.com/summoner/euw/%C3%A9thique
- https://euw.op.gg/summoner/userName=katten
Honestly don’t know any other notable Kog’Maw players so feel free to let me know of more.
Lucian
Full Build: Kraken Slayer/Galeforce > Essence Reaver > IE/LDR/Situationals/Seryldas >
IE/LDR/Situationals > IE/LDR/Situationals
Seryldas is common on Lucian even after the crit ult change because it makes his ult that much
more consistent, and the lower CDR for E is really really nice.
Boots: Boots of Lucidities as a base line option, for ability haste. Plated Steelcaps versus heavy
AD, Mercury Treads versus heavy AP. Zerkers popular on kraken slayer build.
Notable Players:
- https://na.op.gg/summoner/userName=OSTRlCH
- https://na.op.gg/summoner/userName=regent11
Twitch
Full Build 1: Dark Seal + Nashor’s Tooth > Rabadon’s Deathcap > Riftmaker > Two Of
Zhonya’s Hourglass / Banshee’s Veil / Cosmic Drive / Mejai’s Soulstealer
Full Build 2: Kraken Slayer / Galeforce > Runaan’s Hurricane / Wit’s End > Infinity Edge /
Guinsoo’s Rageblade / Lord Domnik’s Regard > Situationals > Situationals
Notable Players:
- https://www.twitch.tv/ratirl
- https://na.op.gg/summoner/userName=sean+twitch+god
I’m sure there are plenty more so feel free to let me know of more.
Glossary
AD - Attack Damage, may also be used to refer to heavy physical damage teams.
AP - Ability Power, may also be used to refer to heavy magic damage teams.
BC - Black Cleaver
BT - Bloodthirster
D.Blade - Doran's Blade
ER - Essence Reaver
EoN - Edge of Night
GF - Galeforce
Guinsoo's / Rageblade - Guinsoo's Rageblade
GW / Grievous - Grievous Wounds
IE - Infinity Edge
ISB / Shieldbow - Immortal Shieldbow
KS - Kraken Slayer
LDR - Lord Domnik's Regard
Lucidities - Boots of Lucidities
NQ - Noonquiver
PD - Phantom Dancer
RFC - Rapidfire Cannon
RH / Runaan's / Hurricane - Runaan's Hurricane
SF - Serpent's Fang
SR - Stormrazor
SV - Spirit Visge
Swifties - Boots of Swiftness
TWT - Time Warp Tonic
Wit's - Wit's End
Changelog
2021/07/28 - Created and initial post-release edits off of common comments.
2021/07/28 - More cleanups and added Miss Fortune.
2021/07/29 - Clarified some points about Berserker’s Greaves. Added ER under MF. Added
some terms to the glossary.
2021/10/04 - Updated Miss Fortune, Senna, Lucian. Plans for this build guide aren’t certain, I
may continue to make small updates.
TO-DO:
- Maybe add graphics.
- Add Miss Fortune lol oops
- Add full write ups for the 4 bottom champs using other people’s knowledge.
- Kindred?
- Lethality senna builds?
- Runes?
- Lethality Caitlyn?
-