AP Skarner is probably the tankiest way to play Skarner in that you also do damage and offence is defence in this case. Squishies will HAVE to run from you which leaves your team open to out-positioning your opponents.

I consider this build to be OP and expect it to get popular and result in a nerf. So play it while you can.

This is a late-game build which worked in season 4 but has been hugely buffed by the preseason changes.

Here is an example round: http://matchhistory.na.leagueoflegends.com/en/#match-details/NA1/1638029424/221769663?tab=overview

I'm new to League of Legends. I started playing in October of 2014 when I realised the direction LoL was taking was better suited to my playstyle (aka mobility creep). I have a reasonable expectation of myself to hit diamond in season 5 if not higher.

I enjoy the aspects of LoL that require deep thought and strategy and thus go out of my way to try fringe things like AP Skarner.

I will be streaming, eventually with commentary when people are watching, and would really love to have you as a viewer. Constructive critiques and suggestions will be taken seriously and together I feel both caster and viewer can benefit by what I bring to a game.

You can view my stream here: http://www.twitch.tv/gurusii

I will be updating this guide as I go. I felt a need to place this here as a "proof of concept building". Leave a note if you want something added to the guide or if you'd like to help publish it via coding/graphical work. I am going to add images of advanced ganks possible only with skarner.

Rather than giving a negative rating, please tell me how I can do better for you and I'll try to add it to the guide. For now it is being published mainly as a item/rune/masteries guide and expects you to understand the basics of Skarner.

Update 11/21/2014: After having been poorly matched a few times I found better build paths that optimize both damage and survivability. The guide has been altered to follow these findings. Cheers!