Welcome to the world of “Mastering Item Builds in League of Legends: A Comprehensive Guide”. In this article, we will delve into the exciting and complex topic of item builds in the popular online game, League of Legends. As a player, you have the opportunity to purchase various items throughout the game that can enhance your character’s abilities and strengthen their attack, defense, and support capabilities. We will explore the different types of items available, their effects, and how to build a successful item build strategy to dominate your opponents and climb the ranks. Whether you’re a seasoned pro or a new recruit, this guide will provide you with valuable insights and tips to master the art of item builds in League of Legends. So, gear up and let’s dive in!
Understanding the Basics of Item Builds
Types of Items
When it comes to item builds in League of Legends, there are four main types of items that champions can use to customize their abilities and stats. These include:
- Consumables: These are items that can be used once and then discarded. Examples include health potions, mana potions, and control wards.
- Trinkets: Trinkets are items that provide temporary boosts to the champion’s stats or abilities. They can be consumed after a certain amount of time or when the champion uses them. Examples include the Flask of the Seventh Serpent, which provides a temporary boost to movement speed and damage, and the Sand Soldier, which grants temporary bonus health.
- Passive Items: Passive items are items that provide permanent bonuses to the champion’s stats or abilities. They do not need to be activated and provide benefits at all times. Examples include the Spirit Stone, which increases the champion’s maximum mana, and the Fleet Footwork, which increases the champion’s movement speed.
- Active Items: Active items are items that the champion can activate to gain a temporary boost or ability. Examples include the Blade of the Ruined King, which grants an extra attack when used, and the Mana Reaver, which restores mana when dealing damage with spells.
Each type of item serves a different purpose and can be used in different ways to create unique item builds. Understanding the strengths and weaknesses of each type of item is crucial to mastering item builds in League of Legends.
Factors to Consider When Building Items
When building items in League of Legends, there are several factors that must be considered to ensure that the champion is equipped with the right items for the game situation. Here are some of the most important factors to consider:
Champion’s Role
The champion’s role is one of the most critical factors to consider when building items. Each champion has a unique role, such as damage dealer, tank, support, or assassin, and the items they build should reflect their role. For example, a damage dealer like Ashe or Jinx will build items that increase their damage output, such as blade daggers or Rapid Firecannons, while a tank like Amumu or Hecarim will build items that increase their survivability, such as the Giant’s Belt or Randuin’s Omen.
Summoner Spells
Summoner spells are another crucial factor to consider when building items. Each champion has access to three summoner spells, which can significantly impact the game. For example, if a champion has the Ignite summoner spell, they may want to build items that increase their damage output, such as a Blade of the Ruined King or Rapid Firecannons, to make the most of their Ignite. Similarly, if a champion has the Exhaust summoner spell, they may want to build items that increase their survivability, such as a Control Ward or a Banshee’s Veil.
Game Situation
The game situation is also an essential factor to consider when building items. If the game is early in the mid-game, champions may want to build items that help them survive and gain a foothold in the game, such as a Boots of Mobility or a Control Ward. If the game is late in the mid-game or early in the late game, champions may want to build items that increase their damage output or provide utility, such as a Rylai’s Crystal Scepter or a Blade of the Ruined King.
Overall, considering these factors when building items can help champions build the right items for their role, summoner spells, and game situation, leading to more success in League of Legends.
The Different Stages of the Game
Early Game
The early game, also known as the laning phase, is the first 20-30 minutes of the game. During this stage, players typically focus on farming minions to earn gold and experience, and upgrading their basic items to gain additional stats.
- Minion Farming: Killing minions not only grants you gold, but also restores your health. This is the primary source of gold during the early game, so it’s important to prioritize farming.
- Trading: Trading is the process of killing the enemy’s minions or champion when they approach your turret. This not only denies them farm, but also provides a significant amount of gold and experience.
- Item Upgrades: At level 3 and 4, you’ll want to upgrade your basic items to their enhanced versions. The Timeless Blade (Sword or Crystal Sceptre) and Boots of Mobility or Plated Steel Boots are common upgrades.
Mid Game
The mid game, which begins after the laning phase, is the time when objectives like towers and dragons become available for teams to contest.
- Team Fights: In the mid game, team fights become more frequent and strategic. You’ll want to consider how to contribute to your team’s success through kills, assists, and crowd control.
- Objective Control: Objectives like towers, dragons, and Baron Nashor/Sylas become available, and contesting them can give your team a significant advantage.
- Ganking: Ganking, or ambushing enemies in isolated areas of the map, can be a powerful strategy in the mid game. This can set up kills or assists for your team.
Late Game
The late game, which begins around level 30, is when the game becomes heavily team-focused.
- Team Comp: By this stage, you should have a good understanding of your team composition and playstyle. Your item build should reflect your role and how you contribute to the team.
- Objective Control: Objective control becomes even more important in the late game, as controlling key objectives can snowball your team’s advantage.
- Scaling and Defense: In the late game, your item build should focus on scaling into the late game and providing defense against enemy attacks. Items like Rylai’s Crystal Scepter, Zz’Rot Portal, and Shields are common choices.
Overall, the different stages of the game require different focuses in terms of item builds. Understanding these stages and adapting your build accordingly can give you a significant advantage in your games.
Champion-Specific Item Builds
AD Carry Item Builds
Basic Item Builds
For AD Carries, basic item builds typically involve purchasing items that increase damage output and attack speed. Some common basic item builds for AD Carries include:
- Pure Damage: This build focuses on dealing as much damage as possible and usually involves purchasing items like the Pure Targethunting Rifle and Rapid Firecannon.
- Infinity Edge: This build is all about dealing sustained damage over time. It typically involves purchasing items like the Infinity Edge and Dead Man’s Plate.
- Versatility: This build is great for champions who can deal damage in a variety of ways, such as champions with abilities that deal both physical and magical damage. It typically involves purchasing items like the Fleet Footwork and Versatility Relic.
Sustain-Focused Item Builds
For AD Carries who want to focus on sustainability, there are several item builds that can help them stay in the game for longer. Some common sustain-focused item builds for AD Carries include:
- Tanky AD Carry: This build is great for champions who want to stay in the fight for as long as possible. It typically involves purchasing items like the Sunfire Cape and Frozen Heart.
- Glass Cannon AD Carry: This build is all about dealing as much damage as possible while also staying alive. It typically involves purchasing items like the Infinity Edge and Dead Man’s Plate.
- Hybrid AD Carry: This build is great for champions who can deal both sustained and burst damage. It typically involves purchasing items like the Manaflow Band and Rapid Firecannon.
Burst Damage Item Builds
For AD Carries who want to deal as much damage as possible in a short amount of time, there are several item builds that can help them do just that. Some common burst damage item builds for AD Carries include:
- AP Burst AD Carry: This build is great for champions who can deal a lot of damage in a short amount of time with their abilities. It typically involves purchasing items like the Rapid Firecannon and Infinity Edge.
- Blade Arcana: This build is all about dealing as much damage as possible in a short amount of time. It typically involves purchasing items like the Blade Arcana and Rapid Firecannon.
- Pure Burst AD Carry: This build is great for champions who can deal a lot of damage in a short amount of time with their basic attacks. It typically involves purchasing items like the Pure Targethunting Rifle and Rapid Firecannon.
Support Item Builds
When it comes to supporting champions in League of Legends, item builds play a crucial role in determining the effectiveness of the support’s contributions to the team. Here are some common support item builds that can help enhance a support champion’s performance:
Healing and Protection Item Builds
- Healing and Protection Item Builds: These item builds are designed to provide both healing and protection to the champion’s allies. They typically include items such as the Hextech Rocketbelt, Randuin’s Omen, and Sunfire Cape. These items can help increase the support’s sustainability during team fights and help them survive aggressive enemy all-ins.
- Magic Penetration Items: In addition to healing and protection, some supports may benefit from having magic penetration items such as Rapid Firecannon or Serrated Dirk. These items allow the support to deal additional damage to enemies while still providing healing and protection to their allies.
Utility Item Builds
- Utility Item Builds: Some supports may choose to prioritize utility over healing and protection. This type of item build often includes items such as Trinity Force, Zhonya’s Hourglass, and Frostfang. These items provide additional crowd control and utility to the support, allowing them to lock down enemies and peel for their allies.
- Electroshot: Electroshot is a common item choice for champions that deal a lot of damage through their abilities, such as Zyra or Jinx. This item allows the support to charge up their abilities and deal bonus damage, making it a valuable addition to any utility-focused item build.
Hybrid Item Builds
- Hybrid Item Builds: Some supports may benefit from a hybrid item build that combines both healing and protection with utility. This type of item build typically includes items such as Nimble Protobelt, Thunder Belt, and Bandage Toss. These items provide both sustainability and crowd control to the support, making them a versatile asset to any team.
- Shield and Heal Items: Champions such as Leona or Maria may benefit from a hybrid item build that includes both shield and heal items. This type of build provides both protection and sustainability to the support, allowing them to effectively contribute to team fights while also protecting their allies.
In conclusion, the item builds that a support chooses can greatly impact their effectiveness on the battlefield. By understanding the different types of support item builds and tailoring their item choices to their champion’s strengths and weaknesses, supports can contribute more effectively to their team’s success.
Mid Lane Item Builds
In the mid lane, hybrid item builds are popular among champions with a mix of damage and utility. This build typically includes a mix of damage-dealing items like swords and bows, as well as utility items like trinkets and wards. For example, champions like Ahri and Syndra often use a hybrid build with a combination of a Blade of the Ruined King and a Zhonya’s Hourglass for damage and utility.
Roaming Item Builds
Some champions with strong roaming potential can benefit from a roaming item build in the mid lane. This build focuses on providing sustain and utility for the team, rather than dealing damage. For example, champions like Nami and Thresh can use a build with a Control Ward and a Morellonomicon for sustain and crowd control.
Assassin Item Builds
Assassin item builds are ideal for champions that can deal high amounts of sustained damage. This build typically includes items like Infinity Edge and Rapid Firecannon for high damage output. For example, champions like Zed and Ekko can use an assassin build with a mix of Infinity Edge and Dead Man’s Plate for sustained damage and survivability.
Jungle Item Builds
Jungle item builds are essential for champions that primarily farm in the jungle and rely on their items to deal damage and sustain themselves in fights. The three main types of jungle item builds are ganking item builds, clearing item builds, and sustainability item builds.
Ganking Item Builds
Ganking item builds are designed for champions that rely on surprise attacks and burst damage to take down enemies. These builds typically include items that enhance the champion’s mobility and damage output, such as the Ravenous Hydra or the Rapid Firecannon. Examples of champions that benefit from ganking item builds include Katarina and Fiora.
Clearing Item Builds
Clearing item builds are designed for champions that are responsible for clearing the enemy team’s vision and neutral monsters. These builds typically include items that enhance the champion’s ability to deal damage and sustain themselves in fights, such as the Blade of the Ruined King or the Sterak’s Gage. Examples of champions that benefit from clearing item builds include Hecarim and Poppy.
Sustainability Item Builds
Sustainability item builds are designed for champions that need to stay alive in order to contribute to their team’s success. These builds typically include items that enhance the champion’s ability to heal themselves or reduce the damage they take, such as the Giant’s Belt or the Mana Bottle. Examples of champions that benefit from sustainability item builds include Soraka and Thresh.
In conclusion, mastering item builds in League of Legends requires a deep understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of each champion and how their abilities and playstyle can be enhanced through itemization. By experimenting with different builds and adapting to the enemy team’s composition, players can gain a significant advantage in their games and climb the ranks with ease.
Item Synergies and Combinations
Trinket Item Combos
In League of Legends, trinkets are crucial items that can significantly impact a player’s survivability and sustainability during a match. The synergies and combinations of trinkets can be the difference between victory and defeat. In this section, we will discuss the most common trinket item combos and how they work together to enhance a player’s performance.
Life Steal and Flask Synergy
Life Steal is a passive ability that restores a player’s health based on a percentage of the damage they deal. When combined with Flask, a consumable item that grants temporary health and mana, the player can effectively sustain themselves in combat. The Flask’s effect amplifies the Life Steal ability, allowing the player to regenerate a significant amount of health when dealing damage. This synergy is particularly useful for champions with high sustain and burst damage potential, such as Jinx or Yasuo.
Mana Regen and Control Ward Synergy
Mana Regen is a passive ability that restores a player’s mana based on a percentage of the mana they spend. When combined with Control Ward, a trinket that grants vision and disrupts enemy movement, the player can effectively manage their mana while gaining an advantage over their opponents. The Control Ward’s effect amplifies the Mana Regen ability, allowing the player to sustain their abilities while denying the enemy team’s vision. This synergy is particularly useful for champions with high mana costs and reliance on sustain, such as Nami or Thresh.
Movement Speed and Boots Synergy
Movement Speed is a passive ability that increases a player’s movement speed. When combined with Boots, a trinket that grants permanent movement speed and other utility effects, the player can effectively move around the map and avoid enemy attacks. The Boots’ effect amplifies the Movement Speed ability, allowing the player to move faster and further than their opponents. This synergy is particularly useful for champions with low base movement speed and high mobility requirements, such as Ezreal or Senna.
Overall, mastering the synergies and combinations of trinkets can give players a significant advantage in League of Legends. By understanding how these items work together, players can optimize their builds and maximize their performance on the Rift.
Passive Item Synergies
When it comes to item builds in League of Legends, understanding passive item synergies is crucial for maximizing your champion’s potential. The following sections will provide an overview of the different passive item trees and their respective synergies:
Domination Tree
The Domination Tree is all about building items that provide increased attack damage and/or life steal. Here are some of the key passive item synergies within this tree:
- Fierce Ward: Whenever you deal damage with an ability, there is a chance to restore some of your missing health.
- Mana Regeneration: Building items that increase your mana regeneration will help you sustain your abilities over time.
- Life Steal: Building items that provide life steal will allow you to heal yourself when dealing damage to enemies.
- Attack Speed: Increasing your attack speed will allow you to deal more damage per second, making it a valuable synergy for champions who rely on auto-attacks.
Inspiration Tree
The Inspiration Tree is focused on building items that provide increased critical strike chance and/or ability power. Here are some of the key passive item synergies within this tree:
- Critical Strike Chance: Building items that increase your critical strike chance will make your abilities more effective, as they will deal increased damage and/or healing.
- Ability Power: Building items that increase your ability power will make your abilities stronger, allowing you to deal more damage and/or healing.
- Cooldown Reduction: Building items that reduce the cooldowns of your abilities will allow you to use them more frequently, making it easier to sustain yourself and your team.
Sorcery Tree
The Sorcery Tree is all about building items that provide increased spell damage and/or ability power. Here are some of the key passive item synergies within this tree:
- Spell Damage: Building items that increase your spell damage will make your abilities more effective, as they will deal increased damage.
Understanding these passive item synergies is key to building effective item builds in League of Legends. By strategically combining items from different trees, you can create unique and powerful builds that suit your playstyle and the needs of your team.
Active Item Synergies
In League of Legends, certain active items have synergies when used together, which can enhance their effectiveness and create powerful combinations. Here are some examples of active item synergies:
- Rapid Boosters and Ignite: Rapid Boosters is an item that restores mana after casting a spell, while Ignite is a spell that deals damage over time. Using Rapid Boosters and Ignite together can allow a player to quickly cast spells back-to-back, while also refilling their mana. This can be especially useful for champions who rely heavily on their abilities, such as mages or marksmen.
- Healing Potions and Blink Dagger: Healing Potions are an item that restores health, while Blink Dagger is an item that allows a player to dash to a target location. Using Healing Potions and Blink Dagger together can allow a player to quickly dash to a safe location and heal up at the same time. This can be especially useful for champions who need to stay mobile and avoid enemy attacks, such as assassins or fighters.
- Smite and Sterak’s Gage: Smite is an item that deals bonus damage based on the champion’s level, while Sterak’s Gage is an item that grants a shield that absorbs damage. Using Smite and Sterak’s Gage together can allow a player to deal massive amounts of damage while also staying protected. This can be especially useful for champions who want to deal physical damage and survive in team fights, such as tanks or bruisers.
Item Building Tips and Tricks
Maximizing Gold Earned
- Last hitting
- Denying
- Selling unwanted items
Last hitting
Last hitting is the act of killing minions or neutral monsters in order to gain bonus gold and experience. This is a crucial aspect of the game as it helps in accumulating gold and progressing through the game.
To last hit effectively, it is important to:
- Manage your gold and items inventory to have enough space for the minion’s bonus gold.
- Time your attacks and avoid taking unnecessary damage from the enemy team.
- Prioritize last hitting larger minions or monsters for more gold and experience.
Denying
Denying is the act of killing the enemy’s minions or preventing them from getting gold and experience. This can be done by killing the minions before they reach the enemy’s fountain or by using crowd control abilities to stop them from attacking.
Denying effectively can give you a significant advantage over the enemy team by slowing down their progress and preventing them from building powerful items.
To deny effectively, it is important to:
- Know the enemy’s item build and minion kills priority.
- Position yourself correctly to deny the most minions possible.
- Use crowd control abilities to stop the enemy team from attacking.
Selling unwanted items
Selling unwanted items is an important aspect of maximizing gold earned in League of Legends. Sometimes, it is necessary to sell items to adapt to the changing situation in the game.
To sell items effectively, it is important to:
- Know the gold value of each item.
- Assess the situation and determine which items are no longer needed.
- Use the gold earned from selling items to buy powerful items that can help you win the game.
In conclusion, maximizing gold earned in League of Legends requires a combination of last hitting, denying, and selling unwanted items. These techniques can help you accumulate gold and buy powerful items that can give you an advantage over the enemy team.
Minimizing Penalties
Minimizing penalties is an essential aspect of mastering item builds in League of Legends. Players should be aware of the various penalties that can arise from crafting, recalling, and reselling items to avoid losing valuable resources.
- Crafting Penalties: When crafting items, players may incur a penalty in terms of gold or experience. To minimize these penalties, it is advisable to wait until the last possible moment to craft an item. Additionally, players should consider crafting items that have a lower penalty, such as Boots of Mobility or a Control Ward, instead of high-cost items like The Viridescent Vestment.
- Recall Penalties: Players can incur a recall penalty when they use the recall spell outside of the intended range. This penalty can result in losing experience or gold. To avoid this, players should time their recalls appropriately and use them only when necessary. Additionally, using a Control Ward or a Fog of War can help to avoid unnecessary recalls and their associated penalties.
- Reselling Penalties: Reselling items can incur a penalty in terms of gold or experience. To minimize these penalties, players should wait until the end of the game to resell items. Additionally, players should consider selling items that have a lower resale value, such as Trinkets or Relics, instead of high-cost items like The Chronomancer’s Chime or The Clockwork Buster.
By understanding and avoiding these penalties, players can optimize their item builds and gain a significant advantage in the game.
Adapting to Enemy Team Composition
- Countering popular item builds: Keep track of the items that your enemy champions are building and try to counter them. For example, if your enemy Kalista is building a Blade of the Ruined King, you can build a Control Ward to deny her the item.
- Focusing on weak champions: Identify the weakest member of the enemy team and focus on building items that can exploit their weaknesses. For example, if the enemy Jhin is having trouble dealing damage, you can build a Rapid Firecannon to take her out quickly.
- Denying key items: Deny your enemy key items that can give them an advantage in the game. For example, if your enemy Senna is building a Relic Shield, you can build a Banshee’s Veil to deny her the item and make her more vulnerable to your attacks.
By adapting to the enemy team composition, you can build a stronger and more effective item build that can help you win the game.
Situational Item Builds
In League of Legends, mastering situational item builds can be the key to winning games. Situational item builds refer to item builds that are tailored to specific situations or playstyles. Here are some examples of situational item builds:
Split pushing
Split pushing is a strategy where a player pushes a lane by themselves while their teammates control the other lanes. Situational item builds for split pushing often include items that increase damage, mobility, and sustainability. Some examples of situational items for split pushing are:
- Rapid Firecannon: This item gives bonus damage based on the champion’s attack damage, making it a good choice for split pushing champions with high attack damage.
- Precision Hackers: This item grants bonus attack damage and attack speed, making it a good choice for split pushing champions who need more damage and sustainability.
- Mortal Reminder: This item grants bonus health and attack damage, making it a good choice for split pushing champions who need more survivability and damage.
Faking a buy
Faking a buy refers to buying an item that appears to be a part of a set, but is actually not needed. This can be used to trick the enemy team into thinking that the player is building a certain way, leading to an advantage in the game. Some examples of situational items for faking a buy are:
- Rabadon’s Deathcap: This item appears to be a part of a standard AP build, but can be faked to trick the enemy team into thinking that the player is building a different way.
- Banshee’s Veil: This item appears to be a part of a standard support build, but can be faked to trick the enemy team into thinking that the player is building a different way.
- Sorcerer’s Shoes: This item appears to be a part of a standard AP build, but can be faked to trick the enemy team into thinking that the player is building a different way.
Buying against a specific champion
Buying against a specific champion refers to buying items that are effective against a specific enemy champion. This can be used to counter the enemy champion’s strengths and exploit their weaknesses. Some examples of situational items for buying against a specific champion are:
- Sunfire Aegis: This item is effective against champions with high burst damage, such as assassins and champions with high burst damage abilities.
- Armor of Destiny: This item is effective against champions with high physical damage, such as champions with high damage output from their auto-attacks.
- Nimbus Cloak: This item is effective against champions with high mobility, such as champions with escape abilities or sustainability.
In conclusion, situational item builds are important in League of Legends as they can give players an advantage in specific situations. Understanding these builds and when to use them can be crucial in winning games.
FAQs
1. What is the best item build for my champion?
The best item build for your champion depends on your playstyle, the enemy team composition, and the current state of the game. There is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question, as each champion has its own strengths and weaknesses that can be augmented or mitigated through item builds.
2. What are the most important items to buy in League of Legends?
The most important items to buy in League of Legends are the ones that complement your champion’s abilities and help you achieve your goals in the game. Some champions require more offensive items to deal damage, while others need defensive items to survive. It’s important to prioritize items that will give you the biggest impact on the game.
3. How do I know what items to buy?
Knowing what items to buy depends on your champion’s playstyle and the enemy team composition. It’s important to understand your champion’s strengths and weaknesses, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of the enemy champions. This will help you make informed decisions about which items to buy and when to buy them.
4. Can I use items from previous seasons in League of Legends?
No, you cannot use items from previous seasons in League of Legends. Each season brings new items to the game, and the old items are replaced. This is done to keep the game fresh and to encourage players to experiment with new item builds.
5. How do I get gold in League of Legends?
You can get gold in League of Legends by killing enemy champions, minions, and neutral monsters. The more enemies you kill, the more gold you will earn. It’s important to focus on farming and killing enemies to earn gold, as it will allow you to buy the items you need to win the game.