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Katarina Build Guide by Yannou

1 vs 5 ?! No problem, give me just some resets :D ( not fin

1 vs 5 ?! No problem, give me just some resets :D ( not fin

Updated on July 1, 2013
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League of Legends Build Guide Author Yannou Build Guide By Yannou 5,592 Views 12 Comments
5,592 Views 12 Comments League of Legends Build Guide Author Yannou Katarina Build Guide By Yannou Updated on July 1, 2013
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Introduction

Hi, my name is SOOODAA, in this guide i will try to teach you to play katarina the sinister blade like a 3 K elo (THAT'S ALOT) player :D Leave comment and constructive critism below and don't forget to vote !
PS : This is my first guide
PS2 : English isn't my first language, so excuse me if i do some mistake ( rpz les français ! )
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Pros / Cons

Powerfull pros:


-Pentakill machine ( the best champion to do pentakill )
-No mana
-high mobility ( Shunpo )
-Insane AOE damage ( sinister steel Death Lotus )
-She is hot
-FRENCH REPRESENTTTT
-Funny to play

Corrosive Cons:



-Every one will focus you
-A lot of counter
-Useless vs CC team
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How to farm with Katarina ?

_Katarina is a terrific farmer all-game round after her rework. If not auto attacking for last hits, simply use your Bouncing Blades on a creep wave, and then use sinister steel to detonate the marks and deal a bit of extra damage on it's own. Early game, try to prioritize using your Bouncing Blades on the ranged creeps in the back if not using it for harass, since they are squishier, and until you max Bouncing Blades out at level 9, your Bouncing Blades + sinister steel combo will not instantly down melee creeps, but they will do so to ranged ones. Keep in mind, however, that you can still last hit with your auto attacks, and should also prioritize keeping your spells to harass your enemy if possible.
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Team fight

Probably the most important thing on Katarina is knowing how to teamfight with her. Chances are that if you don't have enough experience with Katarina you are going to go in too early or even too late but most likely too early. I can't be there to tell you when to go in and when to stay out it is something you are going to have to learn by trial and error. However, I can give you guidelines to help you go in the right direction. Katarina is SQUISHY! DON'T INITIATE TEAMFIGHTS unless you have Zhonya's, it is midgame, and you are really fed. However you probably don't have enough practice to do this properly and your team might go in on a bad initiate from you or not go in at all and you could end up just dying and causing the game to be a DEFEAT. When you go in make sure that they aren't focused on only you for cc and if no one on their team is using hard CC just because they are waiting for you it is a win also. When someone on the enemy team is low, a carry is in a bad spot, or you are 100% safe go in and do your combo. Your goal as Katarina is to get at least 1 second (1.5s preferably) out of your ultimate. It is very rare that you will get a full ult off even if no one uses CC on you. Usually you will get a reset and be able to jump to another Champion and burst them down and continue until you get your PENTA.
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Spells

What's spell to max with Katarina ? That's a good question. At the moment, there are 2 viable choise. Max Bouncing Blades or max sinister steel , i recommend you to max Bouncing Blades if you never played with katarina before or if you don't play her well. Why ? Cause if you max Bouncing Blades, you can farm very easily, wihout taking any harrass from your opponent.
BUT it's also a good idea to max sinister steel when you're laning against some champion.
WHY ? For example : you're laning against a Lux, if you do your basic combo : Bouncing Blades ---> Shunpo ---> sinister steel If you max your q, you will deal some extra damage, but you will only win 15% of movement speed from Sinister steel, so it's easy for Lux to do her combo after your : Light Binding ---> Lucent Singularity.
But if you max sinister steel, you will win 35 % movement speed, and it's will be harder to lux to do her combo.
Some people Max Bouncing Blades, some people max sinister steel, i realy like to max sinister steel cause you can push your lane fast and gank other lanes or farm the jungle.
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Items

Now, i gonna show you all viable items on katarina, why are they viable and when build them .


A realy nice item on katarina, perfect synergy with Death Lotus , only build Abyssal Mask if you're laning against AP champion. Build this item early.

http://cdn1.mobafire.com/images/item/haunting-guise.gif Some HP, AP and MP, you need that on katarina, this item is a must have you CAN'T play katarina without this item.

I don't like this itemo so much, i only build it cause of Haunting Guise, if you don't like this item like me, you can sell Haunting Guise late game and buy some damage or survivability.

If you're against AD mid, build this EARLY ON. It's a good item on katarina cause you can't engage fight with katarina without Zhonya's Hourglass, or you'll die like a stupid yurdles.

( THIS PART ISN'T FINISH )
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Matchups

Ahri


Annoying lane, you can't kill her at 6 unless her ultimate is down so focus on zoning her, dodging her abilities and roaming. Early on she has no escapes. jungle help around levels 3-5 is very helpful.

Akali


You can not let her kill you. Harass her before 6 and build suriviability so that you do not die instantly. Focus on shoving your lane and roaming.

Anivia


This lane is hell against a good Anivia player. Luckily for you there aren't too many around however when you face one you will see what I mean. Only go in to trade her if her q is down. don't dive her unless her egg is down and you are sure of it. you will not get resets from her if she goes into egg form which can be game changing in team fights. Also roaming isn't the best option because she will push your tower so easily that it isn't worth it 90% of the time

Annie


Get jungle help early on because she has no escape. she has huge burst and a stun so be careful at 6. try to make her pay for wasting a stun if you can but be careful as she can have it back up in no time. Don't go in against her by yourself and try to farm and roam.


Brand


Not too hard a lane. save your e for dodging his abilities and harass with q. If you see an opening you can go in for the kill. be careful for he has a stun and insane burst.

Cassiopeia


Dodge her abilities with your high movement and harass her with q make sure you face the other way before ulting or she can cancel it and get a free kill on you. She has no escapes jungle ganks help a lot due to her lack of escapes. try to pressure her and roam.

Cho'Gath


He is a hard counter to katarina. He has everything needed to stop you. you cant push lane so it is hard to roam, he has a long silence, a knock up which is hard to dodge when silenced, and a high burst ult coupled with free sustain and tankyness. try to farm and if you die early on or at all it is not going to be a fun lane at all

Diana


Very hard matchup after 6, very easy before. dodge her q and harass with yours. try to farm up while denying her farm before level 6 after level 6 try and farm, if you get hit by her q run away and wait it out. ask for ganks because she has no mobility early and if she is using abilities to last hit she will be pushing. try to farm and roam if you can don't fall behind in exp because of this.

Elise


Although elise mid is uncommon It is a very hard lane for katarina due to her lack of stustain. Luckily Elise cant push very hard so you are going to want to push your lane a lot and either roam or go back to base and heal up.

Evelynn


This can be an easy-medium matchup. If evenlyn gets ahead from roaming it isnt fun. However if you are tied or your ahead it is easy and you can push lane to stop her from roaming while sending her back to her fountain with 1 combo. She has high burst as well BE CAREFUL. If she goes to roam make sure you follow. Pink wards are very useful in this matchup.

Fiddlesticks


Another rare mid lane champion. well this one really sucks for you. Fiddle is a hard counter pick. stay back in lane, if he wastes both cc abilities and you are level 6 go in on him and kill him. other than that he cant push at all so shove lane roam and ask for help from jungler.

Fizz


A good fizz will bully you out of lane easily. If he maxed "W" first make sure you push lane and force him to farm under tower. If he is maxing e try and trade with him early and make sure he uses e (early on it costs a lot of mana and this will hurt fizz). if he initiates with e make sure to kill him. However he has huge burst and be very careful. Mainly just push, HARASS WITH Q, and roam.

Galio


Not a bad lane. He will build a lot of MR and you wont be able to touch him once he gets it. Early on he has very poor mana regen and he is not very tanky. If you can delay his items and hit level 6 before him go all in. He pushes quite fast so try and clear waves quickly if you want to roam.

Gragas


You can win this lane however he is very annoying. By level 7-9 he will instantly kill creep waves and has tons of burst damage early on you want to harass with q, try to deny him farm, and farm yourself. After he hits 6 hit burst is very strong. with quick reactions you can dodge everything but don't count on it. try to roam when possible. *Don't go in melee range vs Gragas. at level 3 or 4 when he has all abilities he is very strong and could kill you if you waste shunpo or don't level it until level 4.

Heimerdinger


This lane can be easy or hard. You can easily harass with Q just make sure you are at least the 4th farthest away away and if he wastes his e go in on him. Try to engage away from his turrets as they hurt a lot. If you catch him off-guard you should be able to kill him even if he has grenade up but you usually don't want to go in unless he has his grenade on cooldown.

Jayce


Harass with your q while dodging his. if he just changed to ranged form go in with everything because he wont be able to knock you back for a few seconds which is all that you need. rush 3191_32.png and then build 3157_32.png and try to roam. If you play this correctly you wont die and if he makes a mistake you can kill him but most of the time that wont happen.

Karthus


Free kill lane
You can kill him before 6, after 6, well at any point in the game. His only escape will be flash and if he doesn't take that well your lucky. harass before 6 go for a kill if you can. after 6 go all in. By the time you guys meet for the next time you should be able to use your whole combo once again. Farm, Roam, Kill. Buy a Red Elixer for health at last second if he chooses to ult. also a zhonya's is never a bad idea.

Kassadin


Early on Kassadin isn't much of a threat. start 9 potions 2 wards and harass him. Don't run away just because he uses q after that he has nothing so just harass him and wait for your cooldowns before letting him hit you with another q. His w will hurt so don't let him constantly hit you with his auto attacks. after level 6 play extremely careful and if you can get a gank before then. if you get ahead you want to roam but you won't be able to kill him 1v1 so don't try. Also don't get caught out he can chase better than you can run away.

Katarina


Easy lane if the Kat maxes w. she will have to go close to you while you can just use q to outtrade from afar. if she maxed q as well it will be hard! don't fall behind and counter build her. consider rushing abyssal scepter.

Kayle


Very hard lane, Kayle outtrades you with q and aa's you if you go in. Don't go all in at 6 because all that will happen is that the Kayle will ult herself and hurt you a lot or kill you.

Kennen


Not an easy matchup, if he is good he will save his e for escaping so you wont be able to hurt him. In laning pre 6 make sure to stand behind creep to stay away from his q and dont get hit by his 5th auto attack which does extra damage and applies a mark which he can use his 2nd w to trigger again. after 6 you can't do a whole lot to Kennen and he can do quite a bit. Outscale him later on in the game and roam.

Kha'Zix


To win this lane you could consider maxing W to try and deny him early on and rushing the zhonya's just like versus Jayce (I still prefer maxing q). Be careful for his harass and burst after 6 and try to warn your teammates if he ganks. He has strong ganks just like you so try to follow him to the lane without being seen to countergank. DONT LET HIM ISOLATE U, even if he maxes w first which is smart his q hurts a lot.

Kog'Maw


While a rare champ for AP mid lane i've played vs kog before and it is exactly like karthus in lane however a bit more annoying when he gets his ult especially later in the game when he truly shines.

LeBlanc


Leblanc is yet another champion that can bully katarina. she has a silence that can be for up to 4 seconds if she waits before procing the 2nd mark from her ultimate. Also she will instantly kill you if you don't build against her. Have fun!

Lee Sin


Like most bruiser mid lanes you want to rush zhonya's versus lee. Don't spend all your time trying to dodge his q, he will keep running towards you and hit you with an e then his q is an easy land. During laning harass him and try your best to deny him and farm. if he lands a q on you and is going in wait for the q to hit you before shunpoing/flashing away.

Lulu


Hard lane if she saves her transform ability for when you jump in/ult. She also has her ult that is a knock up and huge health increase. try and focus on not getting harassed and roaming.

Lux


You will destroy her, she has no way of stopping your ult and is 100% skillshot dependent. keep harassing, you are resourceless and lux is not. Dont get hit by her q and go if she wastes an ability as it should be an easy kill.

Mordekaiser


The key to beating Mordekaiser is to win early game with ganks. Most mordekaiser's will start potions and not take move speed quints. If you and your jungler shut him down early shouldn't be a problem. He is really sqishy under his shield and with 2 people it should be an easy kill. If you are ahead enough you can kill him at 6 by yourself. If he has magic resist focus on ganking other lanes instead but be careful for his pushing capabilities.

Nidalee


This is a very even lane. These two champs are my mains and this lane can go in anyone's favor. However you should be able to outfarm her if you apply pressure. be careful of her spear cougar combo which can insta-kill you at levels 6-9 and maybe even 11 if you aren't careful. If she just changed into human form jump onto her and burn everything as she has no escape for a few seconds and cant out trade you unless you are severely behind. You both have good roaming but not much more to say about this lane other than don't die and you will be fine.

Pantheon


Build armor and have a lot of health potions along with you at all times. everytime he uses Q on you try and trade back with your q. If he wastes his W (stun) after level 6 go all in on him unless he is ahead. If you play this smart you can win because your Q has 75 range on his however you have to wait until he runs back to his creep to turn around and q otherwise he will be able to hit you as well. WARD BOTH SIDES OF YOUR LANE because if he gets some kills in other lanes this will not be fun at all. Call all "MIA's" or "SS's" and make sure your team mates know don't expect them to be perfect.

Ryze


This lane can go either way. With your potions you can usually out sustain his mana and health. Katarina should be stronger than him at 6 but be careful for his burst. He has no escapes so get jungle help. Also ward because he has an instant ranged snare which you cannot shunpo away from and a jungle gank along with this is something to fear.

Twisted Fate


Avoid harass pre level 6 and harass with q. after level 6 make sure your lane is warded because he can get fed off other lanes and it can become a hard lane. if he wastes his w or doesnt get a gold card go in on him and kill him. He is very squishy and 1 kill will make the lane living hell for him.

Veigar


Veigar isn't too hard. Dodge his stun and you win, get hit by his stun and you lose. Rush Zhonya's to dodge his combo sort of like with facing Tristana. Don't dive him unless you are sure that you can instantly go in and out without getting stunned.

Xerath


Can go either way. A good xerath is hard to kill and when you go in against him he will kill you. Harass him a lot and dodge his q with your shunpo. dont go in until right after his e mark has worn off. Whoever gets a kill will snowball. Don't give away a free kill and roam to get ahead if you can.

Zed


Rush ZHONYA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
NO MATTER WHAT GET THIS ITEM AND WIN!
it counters a big part of zed's burst (his ult)and negates a bunch of his damage with the armor alone.
You can easily harass him with Q early game.
when his w is on cooldown you can punish him if you have enough items and he isn't ahead. ward a lot and deny his roaming.

Zyra


This matchup can be tricky. Zyra's plants are very annoying and dont fight her if they are around. You can all in her however you will most likely both die so make sure that she will miss more creep than you will if this happens. If Zyra takes barrier then you shouldn't go in vs her. You can out roam her so make sure you do.
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League of Legends Build Guide Author Yannou
Yannou Katarina Guide
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1 vs 5 ?! No problem, give me just some resets :D ( not fin

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