Brand Build Guide by Duk3star

Introduction

Welcome to my first guide on MobaFire! I'm MTG The Pod and before I go any further I ask that you try the build out before rating, nothing is more frustrating than people down voting a build without trying it. A few things I should mention before I go any further with the build.
You are not a tank, don't play Brand if you want to take a lot of damage
Expect to be targeted first!
Don't be afraid to experiment with different items!
People are going to cry about Brand being overpowered, ignore them.
Don't be afraid to give me constructive criticism I'm human I can miss stuff too.
Most importantly have fun with it, League of Legends is just a game after all

Phew now that all the boring stuff is over with lets continue.

Change Log

x/x/11: Re-vamped.

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Pros +High Burst +Awesome passive +Great farmer +Low cool downs

SPACE SPACE SPACE SPACE

Cons -Easily focused -Useless without cooldowns up -Lots of "Wahh Brand is OP" comments xxx

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Runes

Greater Mark of Insight x9Cost: 3690 IP (410 IP)

Magic Penetration: +8.55

Tip: I find that the Magic Pen is the best route to go with any AP caster, considering most tanks tend to build a Force of Nature first and that lowers your damage by a huge chunk.


Greater Seal of Clarity x9Cost: 1845 IP (205 IP)

Mana Regen per 5 sec: +10.53 (0.585 per level)

Tip: Mana is a huge problem for Brand until you get your Archangel Staff you're going to be starving these runes definitely help.


Greater Glyph of Force x9Cost: 1845 IP (410 IP)

Ability Power: +27.54 (+1.53 per level)

Tip: AP is good, let's move on.


Greater Quintessence of Fortitude x3Cost: 6150 IP (2050 IP)

Health: +78

Tip: You can go AP quints but I don't think that they are necessary Brands damage output is crazy as it is. I like the extra survivability more than the little bit of movement speed as well.

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Items

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Meki PendantCost: 390g

Effect: +7 mana per 5 sec.

Tip: Mana is a huge problem for Brand early game. I find that a Meki Pendant lets me stay in a lane for so much longer. Also pick up Health Potion x2 here. Some people disagree with potions, but there have been many times where I've been able to stay in a lane after a failed gank attempt because of them.


Tear of the GoddessCost: 995g (205g)

Effect:

• +350 Mana
• +7 mana per 5 sec.

UNIQUE Passive: Each time your champion uses an Ability their maximum mana will increase by 4 Mana. This effect can't occur more than twice every 6 seconds. Bonus caps at 1000 mana.

Tip: If you can try save enough to also grab Boots of Speed when you purchase this item.


Tear of the GoddessCost: 1100g (750g)

Effect: +20 Magic Penetration

UNIQUE Passive: Enhanced Movement 2

Tip:

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Archangel's StaffCost: 2855 (1000g)

Effect:

• +400 Mana
• +25 Mana Regen per 5 sec
• +45 Ability Power

Passive: 3% of your maximum mana is converted to Ability Power.

UNIQUE Passive: Each time your Champion uses an ability their maximum mana will increase by 4 (capped at 1000). This effect has a 3 second cooldown.

Tip:


Rabadon's DeathcapCost: 3600g (1140g)

Effect: +140 Ability Power

UNIQUE Passive: Increases Ability Power by 30%.

Tip: This item makes your damage EXPLODE. Always try to buy the Needlessly Large Rod first, it gives you more bang for your gold. This will finish what I consider to be Brand's "Core" build.

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Void StaffCost: 2295g (1000g)

Effect: +70 Ability Power

UNIQUE Passive: +40% Magic Penetration

Tip: Great if the team is building a lot of MR.


Morello's Evil TomeCost: 2350g (245g)

Effect:

• +75 Ability Power
• +12 Mana Regen per 5 sec.

UNIQUE Passive: 20% Cooldown Reduction

Tip: Great item! It stops you from dying because your rotation isn't getting off cooldown quick enough (Considering without Brands cooldowns he's pretty useless).


Rylai's Crystal ScepterCost: 3105g (700g)

Effect:

• +500 Health
• +80 Ability Power

UNIQUE Passive: Your spell damage will slow the target's movement speed by 35% for 1.5 seconds (15% for multi-target spells and damage-over-time spells).

Tip: Lots of AP and a good chunk of health. Definitely a good last item pick.

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Situational Items

Lich BaneCost: 3470g (950g)

Effect:

• +350 Mana
• +80 Ability Power
• +30% Magic Resistance
• +7% Movement Speed

UNIQUE Passive: When you use an ability, your next physical attack will then deal an additional 100% of your Ability Power in damage. This effect has a 2 second cooldown.

Tip: Lots of AP, Movement Speed, an awesome Passive, AND Magic resist? I love this item. Unfortunately Brand doesn't auto-attack very often so it falls into the Situational Items section.


Deathfire GraspCost: 2610 (600g)

Effect:

• +60 Ability Power
• +10 Mana Regen per 5 sec

UNIQUE Active: Deals magic damage to target champion equal to 30% of their current health (+3.5% per 100 Ability Power) with a minimum of 200 damage. 1 minute cooldown.
Cast range: 600.

Tip: Against a tanky team this can add even more burst to Brand's already bursty rotation.


Moonflair SpellbladeCost: 1200g (903g)

Effect: +50 Ability Power

UNIQUE Passive: +25 Tenacity

Tip: I haven't tried this one out much but with the new tenacity mechanic it might be usefull against a team full of CC.


Banshee's VeilCost: 2715g (650g)

Effect:

• +375 Health
• +375 Mana
• +50 Magic Resistance

UNIQUE Passive: Blocks one negative spell every 45 seconds.

Tip: If you need the extra defense take this item for sure.


Will of the AncientsCost: 2100g (465g)

Effect: +50 Ability Power

UNIQUE Aura: Gives nearby allied champions +30 ability power and 25% spell vamp.

Tip: If you have an AP heavy team and nobody else is taking it, this is a game changing item.

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Abilities-in-Depth

I like to max out Pillar of Flame first. The second skill I like to prioritize is Conflagraion. Finally max out Sear. Don't forget to pick up Pyroclasm whenever you can. The reason I max out Pillar of Flame is because it is by far your most versatile skill. It's awesome to farm minions, and it hurts enemy champions by a lot. Conflaguration is next because it also helps with farming, and it's a nice way to sneak a Blaze on the enemy. The reason I max Sear last is because I only use it for the stun so it doesn't need to be leveled up as much.

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BlazePassive: Brand's spells light his targets ablaze, dealing 2% of their maximum health in magic damage per second for 4 seconds.

Tip:


SearCost: 50 Mana

Cooldown: 8 / 7.5 / 7 / 6.5 / 6 seconds

Magic Damage: 80 / 120 / 160 / 200 / 240 (+0.65 per ability power)

Tip: This ability starts the Maximum Damage Combo -> -> -> . This is the way Brand can mess up anything! You lose the stun but you spread Blaze to every champion/minion in a 5 yard radius. Not to mention your Pillar Of Flame will hit ridiculously hard with that +25% damage increase to everyone because they are now ablazed. Oh yea, have fun with a super fast Pyroclasm.


Pillar of FlameCost: 70 / 80 / 90 / 100 / 110 Mana

Cooldown: 10 seconds

Magic Damage: 80 / 125 / 170 / 215 / 260 (+0.6 per ability power)

Tip: Your main damage combo is -> -> . This combo should be your bread and butter, enemy champions will die so fast and spread Blaze to everyone around them. Only problem with this combo is you can't miss the Pillar of Flame.


ConflagrationCost: 60 / 65 / 70 / 75 / 80 Mana

Cooldown: 12 / 11 / 10 / 9 / 8 seconds

Magic Damage: 70 / 105 / 140 / 175 / 210 (+0.55 per ability power)

Tip: When you need to stun someone use -> . This is the quickest and easiest way to get a stun off, don't underestimate the importance of a stun. Stopping the enemies from running or interrupting an enemies ultimate win your team the fight.


PyroclasmCost: 100 / 150 / 200 Mana

Cooldown: 105 / 90 / 75 seconds

Magic Damage: 150 / 250 / 350 (+0.5 per ability power)

Tip:

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Summoner Spells

FlashCooldown: 255 seconds

Tip: Flash let's you do crazy things and still escape and it's harder to predict what you are going to do.


IgniteCooldown: 180 seconds
Tip: Ignite works so well with your passive, a full rotation and Ignite is almost a guaranteed kill 95% of the time.

ExhaustCooldown: 210 seconds

Tip: While this is an awesome spell, your melee AD champs should be taking it.


HealCooldown: 270 seconds

Tip: While very useful early game, it loses its "Umph" late game. On a side note always be cautious when trying to kill a champion with Heal. Nothing is more frustrating than losing because he barely healed enough to kill you before you could finish him.


GhostCooldown: 210 seconds

Tip: As I explained before, I believe Flash is overall a better escape spell. Also if you're trying to go in for a kill Ghost is really obvious. Yet it's really just personal preference. (If you do use ghost make sure to change a point in the Utility tree to get it specc'd.)


CleanseCooldown: 150 seconds

Tip: I don't really like it, but some people swear by it. If you hate getting stunned/CC'd or what note sure, be my guest.


ClarityCooldown: 180 seconds

Tip: I rush Tear of the Goddess simply because Brand gets mana starved A LOT. If you are having mana problem don't feel ashamed to have Clarity, it does help you manage mana better though if you go without it.


ClairvoyanceCooldown: 55 seconds

Tip: If you don't have anyone on your team that will take Clairvoyance you can take it, you'll lose some early kills from the lack of Ignite. (Or gain some deaths from the lack of Flash.

Any summoner spell not mentioned above should not be used. At least 2 of the above are available from level 1.

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Afterword

MTG The Pod