Starting Items
Core Build
Boots
Offensive Items
Defensive Items
Synergies and Counters
Summoner Spells
Runes
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A very basic runeset. Movement speed stacks nicely with the bonusses from the utility tree and the armour and magic resist help with trading. The armour seals also became standard now that we have junglers ganking more frequently in the mid-lane and it mitigates minion damage.
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Masteries
A fairly standard 9/0/21 mastery setup, though, it is not very common on mid-laners. Viktor on his own, has plenty of damage but lacks movement speed. The utility tree grants up to 5% of movement speed through
Wanderer
and
Nimble
and offers some other useful stats such as Spell Vamp,
Mana Regeneration and
Cool down Reduction. The strongest parts of the offence tree can be found in the first 9 points, the others aren't nearly as useful as the utility tree offers.

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About the Author
This Viktor guide is written by GrandmistressD; a platinum rated mid-lane player at the Europe-West server. I have mained Viktor for a very long time and recently started playing him again due to the S3-patch. I tend to dominate my lane and roam very effectively.
Introduction
Viktor is a close-combat, high-DPS mage with very high zone control who is played in the mid-lane. His abilities Gravity Field and Arcane Storm allow for very powerful zone control while he also possesses Power Transfer and Hextech Ray which both provide him with very nice burst and, due to their low cool downs, also with high DPS.
In this guide I'll show you my, very effective, approach to Viktor, The Machine Herald. My approach focuses on high lane dominance which renders it possible to roam and gank with utmost efficiency (huehue). Personally, I've had a ton of success with Viktor, especially in season 2, and ended up carrying many games in solo-queue. He also works extremely well in arranged queue and is very fun to play.
Who's Viktor?
Viktor's Skillset
Evolving
Technology
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(Innate): Viktor starts each game with The Hex Core, an item that takes up one of his item slots, but provides him with stats and can be upgraded in the store to augment one of his abilities and improve its stats. The Hex Core can only be upgraded once, for 1000 gold, and cannot be sold back to the store.
The Hex Core: Grants Viktor 3 ability power per level
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Power
Transfer
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(Active): Viktor sends a device at an enemy unit to blast them for magic damage, which then returns to him granting a shield for up to 3 seconds with an amount equal to 40% of the damage dealt before reduction.
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Gravity Field
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(Active): Viktor conjures a gravitational imprisonment device in an area near him, slowing all enemies that pass above it. Whilst under its effect, enemies generate stacks every 0.5 seconds; at 3 stacks the target will be stunned for 1.5 seconds.
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Death Ray
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(Active): Viktor uses his robotic arm to fire a chaos beam that sweeps across the field in a chosen path, dealing magic damage to every enemy it hits.
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Chaos Storm
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(Active): Viktor conjures a chaos storm at the target location, dealing magic damage and silencing enemies in the area for 0.5 seconds. The storm cloud remains for 7 seconds afterwards, dealing magic damage every second to nearby enemies. While the storm is active Viktor can re-activate Arcane Storm to move it to the cursor's location, with the storm moving faster the closer it is to Viktor.
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Skilling Order
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1
Q
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2
E
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3
Q
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4
W
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5
Q
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6
R
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7
Q
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8
E
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9
Q
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10
E
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11
R
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12
E
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13
E
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14
W
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15
W
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16
R
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17
W
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18
W
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Viktor basically has two skill sequences; either max
Q or max
E. Personally, I prefer to max out Power Transfer first because it grants Viktor very powerful trading and Hextech Ray is very weak early-game as it costs a lot of mana, deals less damage and has a much higher cool down. Additionally, it pushes the lane which is something we don't want early-game.
The only reason I would want to max out Hextech Ray first is if I desperately need the increased range. Enemies like Cassiopeia and Xerath are almost always out of range of your Power Transfer so it's usually a good idea to max out Hextech Ray first then.
Itemization
Overall I can say that itemization on Viktor is fairly straightforward but there are several things people seem to have issues with or people simply make the wrong choices. Before I start discussing some key-items, I first like to discuss the upgrades for The Hex Core:
The Augments.
Augment:
Power
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Augment: Power: Power Transfer increases Viktor's movement speed by 30% for 3 seconds.
The item now grants him +3 ability power per level, +220 health and +6 health regeneration per 5 seconds.
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Augment:
Gravity
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Augment: Gravity: Gravity Field has an additional 30% cast range.
The item now grants him +3 ability power per level, +200 mana, +10% cool down reduction and +5 mana regeneration per 5 seconds.
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Augment:
Death
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Augment: Death: Hextech Ray sets fire to enemies, dealing 30% additional magic damage over 4 seconds.
The item now grants him +3 ability power per level and +45 ability power.
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One of the
Augments is definitely the most popular one: Augment: Death. However, the other two also have their uses and are often underestimated.
Augment: Power: Is the least popular one and with good reason: the stats fall off very quickly. The movespeed buff when using Power Transfer is a very poor excuse to increase Viktor's mobility. However, I do find that it has its uses when it is rushed. The health and regeneration can be very powerful early-game and help pressure the lane even harder. It works very well against very mobile teams and AD casters.
Augment: Gravity: Is actually a lot stronger than it seems. The increased casting-range of Gravity Field helps setting it up as an initiating move rather than a follow-up move. This is, in some team compositions, extremely useful. The cool down reduction works also very well when you combine it with Spell Vamp but you should definitely pass on Athene's Unholy Grail and Deathfire Grasp.
Augment: Death: As said before; this is the most common
Augment to use on Viktor. This is mainly due to its late-game value where it will provide you with 99 ability power; which is a lot. Rushing it is usually not a great idea because the 30% bonus won't be that strong yet.
Now let's examine some other items on Viktor. There are many standard AP items that work very well on him but some are just a no-go and those deserve a mention as well:
These are Viktor's only core items. Sorcerer's Shoes are really the strongest pick unless they have a max-CC team setup where you absolutely require Mercury's Treads. Rabadon's Deathcap synergises very well with The Hex Core and is overall strong on every mage.
Both mana- and health sustain are important for Viktor as this isn't included in his kit. Crystalline Flask and Chalice of Harmony are items I get every game. Hextech Revolver is fairly strong on Viktor if you want to go for even stronger trades. It synergises extremely well with cool down reduction and works well in extended teamfights.
The Hex Core should be upgraded after the first sustainability item or after completing the Rabadon's Deathcap. Augment: Power has to be rushed ASAP, that is, if you plan on building it. Augment: Gravity should be completed before the first teamfights and Augment: Death can be completed anytime. Though I wouldn't delay it any longer than just after the Rabadon's Deathcap.
I'd like to call these three items the holy trinity of Viktor and I recommend to get at least two of the three each game. Zhonya's Hourglass grants him some nice survivability and synergises pretty well with Arcane Storm as it isn't a channel. Deathfire Grasp is to counter health stacking and Void Staff counters magic resist stacking.
These are some items you can get in certain situations. Liandry's Torment does very well against multiple health-stackers and works very well in combination with Augment: Death and the right usage of Gravity Field.
Rylai's does very well against heavy kiting compositions and Abyssal Mask is a nice counterbuild item against strong burst mages such Annie and LeBlanc.
Don't Get!
Viktor doesn't need ridiculous amounts of mana and getting these items is just wasting gold.
RoA grants decent stats but it's quite expensive and starts off slowly. Also, the health isn't really something Viktor needs as he already has Power Transfer for tankiness. Starting off Tear of the Goddess simply screws your damage and provides no real stats Viktor wants. Additionally, Viktor is a strong early- and mid-game champion; not picked for the late-game. Archangel's Staff is a pure late-game item so this conflicts with Viktor's core concept.
Laning
Viktor is known, if anyone knows him at all, for his very strong laning phase. He has exceptional trading potential with Power Transfer and good waveclear with Hextech Ray. During the laning phase you should try to harass the enemy as much as possible with Power Transfer as its damage/cost ratio is very high. Hextech Ray can be used early for additional damage but only when it's truly necessary to win a trade as its damage/cost ratio is garbage in the early-game.
As soon as you get Augment: Death and/or some significant points in Hextech Ray; you can start clearing waves and harassing the enemy from a huge distance. At this stage, both Hextech Ray and Gravity Field provide Viktor with immense zone control which can and should be exploited to deny your enemy as much as possible.
Note that Gravity Field is a very powerful tool to escape ganks by the enemy jungler. Just lay it in their path if they lack gap-closers (e.g. Udyr, Evelynn, Shyvana). If they, however, do have gap-closers such as Shaco and Jax - simply lay down Gravity Field at your own position and you should be safe. Also make sure to shield yourself with Power Transfer to ignore as much damage as possible.
Roaming and Ganking
Viktor is, despite his lack of built-in mobility, an excellent roamer and ganker. Gravity Field can block off enemy escape routes and he possesses very powerful burst. Additionally, Viktor can towerdive quite efficiently as Gravity Field causes no tower aggro and Power Transfer's shield can tank about one or two tower hits.
When ganking, it is important to not open directly with Gravity Field so you can anticipate better on their movement. Showing yourself first often results in premature Flashes which will allow Gravity Field to seal their fate. Use Hextech Ray as soon as possible so it's up faster as you might need it to catch fleeing opponents. Also don't forget to use Arcane Storm as soon as they enter the Gravity Field's area of effect as it will silence them for a half second, making it harder for them to escape it.
Teamfighting
Teamfighting is one of Viktor's strengths. However, you need to know where to fight. Viktor excels at zone control so you want to keep the fights into the same area as much as possible. Gravity Field and Arcane Storm can cut off one enemy from the other and secure kills that way very easily.
Due to the importance of the placement of Gravity Field; you shouldn't use it as an initiating tool but rather as a follow-up. An exception to this rule is when you have Augment: Gravity when the range allows for initiating. If you use it too early in a fight, enemies can react to its position and, more important, timing. This can leave one of your most powerful teamfighting tools completely useless.
Due to Viktor's close-combat nature, it is wise to fight in small areas such as the jungle. Jungle entrances and crossroads make perfect chokepoints as it is very easy to take control of that area with Arcane Storm in conjunction with Gravity Field. Also, try to keep the fights in one area until your Gravity Field and Arcane Storm run out. After that, it's safe for you to take the fight elsewhere.
Your focus should be on whoever is closest basically. However, it's disadvised to use Hextech Ray when Arcane Storm is still up as both have a fairly high cool down and you want to save your total burst for a key target such as the AD carry. Power Transfer has a ridiculously low cool down so feel free to spam that.
Strategy and Tactics
Now we have been through most of the aspects of Viktor's gameplay. However, I do have a few interesting tips 'n tricks. These strategies are useful for every Viktor player to keep in mind.
Basic AttacksA lot of AP mid players forget that they can actually attack enemy champions with their basic attacks. Early-game this damage really adds up since most mid-laners aren't running
Armor Runes. Viktor's Power Transfer will also absorb most of the damage returned by the enemy minions and potentially the enemy champion.
Pickpocket
also rewards attacking your enemy.
Gravity Field and
Spell Shields Spell Shields can negate the stunning effect of your Gravity Field but not the slowing effect; with the exception of Black Shield. A well-timed Power Transfer or Hextech Ray can then clear the shield so they still get stunned. This trick is very useful when you get ganked by an enemy Nocturne or trying to gank an enemy Sivir.
Chaos StormA lot of people seem to misunderstand Viktor's ultimate. The total amount of damage it can deal is actually disgusting and should be analized properly. I see most Viktor players burst someone down with the initial damage of Arcane Storm which is, of course, not really something bad. However, they wait too long with using their ultimate because they think the initial damage should kill the opponent. Using the aftermath of Arcane Storm properly is something very important.
Shielding YourselfKeep in mind that you do have a shield at your disposal as Viktor. You can use Power Transfer quickly on enemy minions just for the sake of shielding yourself from incoming damage. It helps especially well against DoTs such as Ignite and Malefic Visions.
Synergies
Almost at the end of this guide so it is time so see what team compositions Viktor would fit best on. Well Viktor doesn't exactly provide much initiating power so you'd definitely need that. Champions like Jarvan IV, Leona and Malphite go incredibly well with Viktor as it allows him to set up Gravity Field and Arcane Storm perfectly.
Other than that we know that Viktor provides both burst and DPS so he fits on many teamcomps. However, while his Hextech Ray may feel like great poke; he doesn't really fit poke teams at all. Viktor also doesn't perform well with high-mobility teams since his own mobility is very low.
Counters
Every champion has its counters, and so does Viktor. Viktor mainly gets countered by high-mobility and high-range. The first class can outplay him easily, the second avoids trading. This renders champions such as Ahri, Fizz, Xerath and Lux to be very strong against him.
However, those two classes are really the only champions Viktor actually has trouble with. Champions that have to get in Viktor's range usually lose against him by definition.
Epilogue
Well, that concludes my guide on Viktor, The Machine Herald. I hope you experience a lot of fun playing him, just like I did. Of course, the very first games probably feel strange and iffy since Viktor isn't exactly the easiest champion to pick up. However, if you remember to submit to all of the designs and believe that metal is truly perfection, you will join the Glorious Evolution soon enough!
GrandmistressD,
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