Click to open network menu
Join or Log In
Mobafire logo

Join the leading League of Legends community. Create and share Champion Guides and Builds.

Create an MFN Account






Or

This build has been archived and is for historical display only

This build has been archived by the author. They are no longer supporting nor updating this build and it may have become outdated. As such, voting and commenting have been disabled and it no longer appears in regular search results.

We recommend you take a look at this author's other builds.


x
Not Updated For Current Season

This guide has not yet been updated for the current season. Please keep this in mind while reading. You can see the most recently updated guides on the browse guides page

x
Sona Build Guide by Nemo

Support Note in *da Head! - Retribution and Protection Sona Guide S3

Support Note in *da Head! - Retribution and Protection Sona Guide S3

Updated on December 27, 2012
7.4
34
Votes
11
Vote Vote
League of Legends Build Guide Author Nemo Build Guide By Nemo 34 11 89,250 Views 32 Comments
34 11 89,250 Views 32 Comments League of Legends Build Guide Author Nemo Sona Build Guide By Nemo Updated on December 27, 2012
x
Did this guide help you? If so please give them a vote or leave a comment. You can even win prizes by doing so!
Vote
Comment

You must be logged in to comment. Please login or register.

I liked this Guide
I didn't like this Guide
Commenting is required to vote!
Would you like to add a comment to your vote?

Your votes and comments encourage our guide authors to continue
creating helpful guides for the League of Legends community.

Choose Champion Build:

  • LoL Champion: Sona
  • LoL Champion: Sona

Read Me

When you VOTE and choose LIKE or DISLIKE, I would like you to leave a comment and explain your decision.

Troll VOTES just to put your guide on a higher place is just sad and I would be grateful if you would stop doing it.

Thank you.
Back to Top

Lore

space
Sona has no memories of her true parents. As an infant, she was found abandoned on the doorstep of an Ionian adoption house, nestled atop an ancient instrument in an exquisite case of unknown origins. She was an unusually well-behaved child, always quiet and content. Her caretakers were sure she would find a home quickly, but it soon became apparent that what they mistook for uncommon geniality was actually an inability to speak or to produce any sound whatsoever. Sona remained at the adoption house until her teens, watching in hopeless silence as prospective adopters passed her by. During this time, the caretakers sold her unusual instrument to anxious collectors, hoping to build her a trust. For a myriad of bizarre and unexpected reasons, however, it would be returned, or simply appear again outside the house.

When a wealthy Demacian woman named Lestara Buvelle learned of the instrument, she immediately embarked to Ionia. When the caretakers showcased the instrument for her, she rose wordlessly and explored the house, stopping outside Sona's room. Without hesitation, Lestara adopted her and left a generous donation for the instrument. With Lestara's guidance, Sona discovered a deep connection with the instrument which Lestara called an 'etwahl'. In her hands, it played tones which stilled or quivered the hearts of those around her. Within months, she was headlining with the mysterious etwahl for sold-out audiences. She played as though plucking heartstrings, effortlessly manipulating the emotions of her listeners - all without a single written note. In secret, she discovered a potent and deadly use for her etwahl, using its vibrations to slice objects from a distance. She honed this discipline in private, mastering her gift. When she felt prepared, she went to the only place which could offer her a fitting recital: the League of Legends.

''Her melody moves the soul, her silence sunders the body.''
- Jericho Swain, after attending her concert
Back to Top

Audio Lore

For those who are lazy to read... :P.
Back to Top

League of Judgement

Candidate: Sona
Date: 21 September, 20 CLE

OBSERVATION
Sona glides forward on harmonious winds, her elegant robe billowing softly behind her as she enters the Great Hall. Her hair fans out on an invisible breeze, swaths of aqua dissolving into golden strands at the ends of her long ponytails. She could easily be a fair maiden of magic anywhere on Runeterra, if not for the strange instrument floating before her, appearing to simultaneously protect and guide her.
The building creaks ever so slightly, the foundations resettling themselves on the bonds of strong magic. She angles her ear towards the sound, holding still for a moment after the sound has long since faded. One can tell that the sound still resonates in her head, being analyzed for tonality, intent, and above all, danger. She doesn’t even bother to glance at her surroundings; the building’s own internal symphony tells her all that she needs to know about this place.

With the faintest movement, she expertly plucks a single string on her instrument and the double doors in front of her blast open. She enters without hesitation.

REFLECTION
The darkness unfurled around her, as deep as the endless chasm of silence that afflicted her. She felt no fear so long as the etwahl was in her grasp. Her arms curled lovingly around the instrument, her fingers expertly trailing along the hammered brass and taut strings. Pressing it against her cheek, she closed her eyes and waited. It was at times like this that she could feel the instrument alive in her arms, taking slow and measured breaths as it guarded its master. She treasured these moments, when she could be alone in the world with her beloved instrument, wrapped in its protective cocoon.
Suddenly, the etwahl stiffened. She caressed the smooth curve of metal questioningly. Before she could cull an answer, a husky voice rang out.

“Sona!”

Sona’s eyes flew open at the only sound she loved more than music itself. She found herself at the doorstep of a Demacian estate, staring into the open doorway with the same wonder on her face as on the day she was brought to her new home. Lestara Buvelle stood before her, adorned in a handsome velvet robe. Dripping in jewels and her usual heavy perfume, Lestara moved forward, her round face bright with happiness. “My darling, look at you! You are a grown woman now, and you have made much of yourself.”

Lestara embraced Sona and leaned back to appraise her.

“Truly, you have made me proud. My heart sings when I look upon you. Come in and sit with me awhile.”

Lestara turned to walk down the long hallway, her footsteps clicking a staccato rhythm on the tile floor. Sona’s heart swelled with happiness, and she reached for her instrument’s reassuring steel.

Her hands clutched nothing but air.

Sona turned, looking for the etwahl. Had she mindlessly placed it aside just now? Suddenly, a chord rang out, piercingly askew. Sona spun around to see the etwahl drifting swiftly down the hallway. Sona called the instrument back to her, but for the first time, it paid no heed. The single note played over and over as it drew closer to Lestara’s back.

It was out for blood.

Sona flew frantically into the hallway, but she was too far away to reach Lestara in time. Her only chance was to scream a warning. She strained her throat, but no sound would come forth, just as it never had in her entire life.

The etwahl’s strings strummed a terrible noise that would forever be embedded in her memory. A vibration trembled through the air, and a rush of razor-thin air scythes tore through Lestara’s body.

Sona reached Lestara’s side in time to catch her as the body fell to the ground in a pool of blood. Tears streamed down Sona’s face as she tried to scream, but no sound would come out.

The hallway dissolved into blackness, leaving Sona crumpled around Lestara’s body, with the etwahl lying innocently at her side. Lestara’s eyes rolled open, and she asked weakly, “Why do you want to join the League?”

Sona’s mind reeled, unable to comprehend what was happening. Suddenly, she felt the tingle of arcane magic in her throat, an overwhelming sensation that brought tears to her eyes. The breath passing in and out of her body tickled inside her, trying to draw sounds out with every exhale. Sona stared incredulously at Lestara, who nodded at her and bade her to speak.

Opening her mouth, she began to speak for the first time in her life. Her breath caught in her throat, short of uttering her first sound, when a booming voice from the recesses of her dim memory resounded in her mind.

This instrument will be the key to unlocking the world. It will speak for you more truly than a voice ever could. Nothing else – not us, them, or any magic in this world will ever own you again.

Almost of its own accord, her hand flung outwards and slammed down on the ethwahl next to her. Dissonance erupted, deafeningly loud, drowning out any sounds that might have spilled forth from her lips. As the tones faded away, so did the foreign tingling in her throat. The enchantment was gone, never to return.

Lestara’s voice grew loud, booming into the ether. “Why do you want to join the League, Sona?”

The ethwahl’s strings shivered and began to play on its own, but Sona pressed down with her palm to silence the instrument. It resisted for a tense moment and fell quiet. Slowly, her fingers began to trickle across the strings. Hesitantly at first, testing her instrument’s yield, she played a defiant progression in response to her question.

“How does it feel, exposing your mind?”

Her fingers danced across the strings, urging forth a melody of loneliness and isolation. It was the song of those who had lived their lives hidden in plain sight, always passed over despite trying desperately to be noticed. It began pensively, mournfully sad, and gradually grew to a crashing, raging crescendo. The last notes echoed with a tone of quiet acceptance, but above all, catharsis.

A smile raked across Lestara’s face. “Welcome to the League, Maven of the Strings.” Lestara disappeared, and the darkness fell away to reveal Sona floating in front of ornate double doors. She knew they led to the League of Legends.

Her ethwahl molded reassuringly to her hands, lying in wait for its master’s command. Sona moved through the doors without a second glance.
Back to Top

Quotes

Because Sona cannot speak, these responses are understood to be magical telepathy with her summoner. This is seen in the fact that her external interactions (taunt, joke) are musical cues rather than words, meaning that, as stated, only her summoner can hear her words.

Upon selection
"Only you can hear me Summoner, what masterpiece shall we play today?"

Attacking
"A symphony of justice."
"The fanfare ascends."
"Shall we resolve this dissonance?"
"Allegrissimo."
"Order through music."
"Brioso! Brioso!"

Movement
"Harmoniously."
"Quarter time!"
"From my mind to yours."
"With perfect tempo."
"Adagio, summoner."
"Delicately."
"Accurate, like a metronome."
"A sublime duet."
"Accelerated movement, I concur."

Taunt
(Plays music to invite a challenge)

Joke
(Different electric guitar sounds)
(plays a measure from "Deck the Halls") (Silent Night Sona)
Back to Top

Abilities

Here is a brief description of Sona's abilities and few comments you should know.

For support, this is really epic passive.Upon activating, it applies additional effect on enemy target depending on what song Sona is currently playing. Also does really fair damage when using Hymn of Valor effect. It is also very good when combined with Lich Bane, enabling you to harras your enemies constantly with high damage.





This is Sona's early game damage spell. I prefer taking it as a level one spell, but I always think before making that decision. You should see who are you laning against. If you lane against hard AD ( like Vayne ) and high Heal Support ( like Soraka ), than This is the spell you don't want to have at level 1, since Vayne will attack you while Soraka will heal any damage you done to her, making Sona less effective on level 1, which can turn ( rarely ) into TEAMFIGHT ( you never know ). So, you will want to keep your AD carry full hp as well as Soraka keeps her. IF you lane against Taric or Janna and Vayne as AD, than your best option is this spell before heal. Since Janna doesn't have early game heal and Taric heal has high cooldown, you will be able to keep reducing their health constantly. By doing that you are able to dominate your lane, making their feed less effective.




3 STACKS = Double Power Chord Damage

IMPORTANT

Every time you are in base ( when game begins ) and you take your spell ( depending on lane enemies ), make sure you stack your passive twice. It will help you very much with early PASSIVE harass.


This is Sona's only heal ability. Taking it on level 1 or 2 depends on your lane enemies ( see top ). In my opinion, this is the best heal. Though it is not as strong as Soraka's or as effective as Janna's, there is a thing that makes it really the best heal. First of all it's cooldown. 7 seconds normally and when combined with Cooldown Reduction items, it is pretty low cooldown. Another thing is Armor and Magic Resistance bonus. I mean really, what else do you need?





3 STACKS = Reduces the damage casued by your target ( enemy ) by 20%


Good in two ways. Giving yourself and your teammates movement speed and slowing your enemies. Very helpful spell either for escaping or chasing your enemies. I don't prefer taking it before level 5, since it won't be needed. Level 5 is perfect for this spell. It's usage will be described later.




3 STACKS = Reduces enemy movement speed by by 40% for 2 seconds.

Key of every teamfight, this spell makes this support really really really really good. I noticed many Sona players just rush in and cast this spell at the start of the teamfight. Well that is not so bad but look it this way, not everyone are at the same place at the very start of the fight, making this spell less effective since it won't hit all targets. I save this spell for a little bit later, landing PERFECT Crescendo that hits 4 and sometimes 5 targets instead of 1 , 2 or 3 only ( considering that one of them is tank since he goes first, it's again a loss ).

3 STACKS = Nothing :(





BE CAREFUL!


If you choose to play as PROTECTION Sona, you can ignore leveling up Crescendo at level 11 as you do not want to make damage and the duration of stun is same on every level. This will not affect your supporting capabilities, as those 100 extra damage won't help at all ( from 150 - 250 ) + if we add resistances -->you can keep it at level 1 until level 16.
BEWARE: Doing this will affect on your ultimate Cooldown. Think wisely before you do this.


_____________________________________________________________________________________
THESE ARE THE THREE AURAS SONA HAS FROM HER ABILITIES AND WHICH GRANT ADDITIONAL EFFECT IN COMBINATION WITH POWER CHORD ONCE YOU REACH 3 STACKS.
Back to Top

Sona Categories

I have two categories for Sona. One is Retribution and one is Protection.

RETRIBUTION

Ability Power Sona. Why? Well, I think that is just the best way Sona can have. Though Support is here to heal and buff their allies, there is also one important thing that 90% people ignores - damage. How does this work on Sona? I as Sona, always make sure to give my team all I can. Except healing, I can make really good damage. You probably ask yourself why should Sona as support make damage? It's simple. She has perfect spells for both healing and buffing her allies and ruining enemy players day. If Riot gave you such abilities, you should know you have to use them as much as you can. When I as Ability Power Sona cast Crescendo in teamfight, enemy health bars just drop down dramatically, which of course helps my team really nice. Same with Hymn of Valor.

ADVENTAGES AS RETRIBUTION SONA



- High Damage
- Very good Heals ( if we compare it to Protection Sona build )
- Excellent teamfight capabilities
- Has two roles ( as AP "carry" and Healer ( + buffing ).



DISADVANTAGES AS RETRIBUTOION SONA



- Not as much buffs as Protection Sona Build
- Hard to master
- Expensive to make ( when you master it, you will see it is not as hard as when you started doing this build).


Players Usage: Low / Medium

PROTECTION

Over 10 buffs Sona build and the most used build. Tough I recommend RETRIBUTION, this build has it's own adventages and disadvantages as well as RETRIBUTION. First of all, everybody like having tons of buffs on themselves, right? Well, if you prefer helping your teammates this way, this is the perfect build for you. It's usage in teamfights has important role - survivability. While sacrificing her damage and heal capabilities, PROTECTION Sona is very good at keeping her allies alive by the power of Buffs. It will give your allies Lifesteal, Attack Speed, Armor, Magic Resistance, Mana Regen, Ability Power, Movement Speed, SpellVamp, Damage and other things that keep your survivability to the max.

ADVENTAGES AS PROTECTION SONA



- Very high survivability
- Massive number of Buffs
- Easy to master
- Not expensive to make


DISADVANTAGES AS PROTECTION SONA



- Low damage
- Low healing ( if we compare it to RETRIBUTION build )
- Can be boring to play ( sometimes ).


Players Usage: High
Back to Top

RETRIBUTION SONA BUILD





If you choose this style of playing, than you should follow this item order. You as RETRIBUTON Sona must be very concentrated and you will see why in RETRIBUTION SONA GAMEPLAY ( down ).

The best item to start RETRIBUTION Sona is It really gives you everything you need for early game: Health, Ability Power and Mana Regen. Now, because of the talent you will also be able to buy ( and you SHOULD ) just for case you lose too much mana. After you go to base make sure you have enough money for and ( it would be really nice ) as well as few ( 1 or 2 ) Sight Ward. It will allow you more spell casting, higher security and movement speed. Before you get wards, make sure you constantly keep casting Clairvoyance in the river bush, what will work as a ward. Till level 7 you should have completed to start stacking your mana which will help you later in getting bigger Ability Power from . After you have done made Tear of the Goddess you are ready to make ( NOTE: If you want to be more resistant to stuns and other CCs , you should make Make sure you buy it only if you REALLY need it. ) Now you are ready for the next level items. Until 27 minutes you MUST have finished In order to do that you must master RETRIBUTION Sona and make your team kill Dragon often. Now you have pretty good items for harass. Since you have stacked 550+ mana in your Tear of the Goddess and have Rod of Ages, it is perfect time to make which will give you a lot of Ability Power. Now, a little bit harder item to make that requires some time and skill is . It is level 3 item and you MUST have it. Very important and useful item for many things. After that, you will want to improve your escaping and chasing capabilities. It is time to make . After you land you will slow two ( or one ) targets in the same time. This is also extremly good in one more thing. Since when you chase or run, you have to use 3 passive stacks to activate effect in order to slow your enemy by 40%. With this item, you can you use effect to do double Power Chord damage and slow the target for 35%. Though the slow is reduced by 5%, it is still much more better option. Now, as your final and level 4 item, it is all mighty and powerful . It gives you everything, from survivability to high damage output. With such a HIGH Ability Power and in combination with Hymn of Valor effect, it will make your enemies cry.

BOOTS UPGRADE: Captain - the best supportive upgrade because it gives movement speed increase to both champions ( 8% ) and minions ( 25% ).

VERY IMPORTANT


This build requires very high skill, a lot of concentration and good team. Once you get all the items you are nearly unstoppable. This build is mostly available in pro games that are 50 minutes or more, but very fun and cool to play.
Back to Top

PROTECTION SONA BUILD

If you choose this style of playing, than you should follow this item order. You as PROTECTION Sona must be familiar with supporting skills and have high lane action knowledge and you will see why in PROTECTION SONA GAMEPLAY ( down ).

First item you want to start with is Fearie Charm, 2 Sight Ward ( +1 from mastery ), 1 and 1 . I think that this is the best way to get to your lane. You have wards for vision, stealth detection ward for removing enemy team's wards, fair mana regen and additional mana potion when needed. You will want to stay on your lane and get as much assists as possible ( when planning an attack ) so that you can get your items faster until you have enough money for item upgrade - Fearie Charm to Philosopher's Stone, 1 and few additional wards. After that you are pretty much in a good position. You will be getting more gold and have fair health and mana regen, as well as more movement speed. In this phase, when I am making a Recall, I make sure I have enough money for Kage's Lucky Pick. That item is also very useful as it will give you additional gold income and ability power and it is upgradeable to . This is where you end with your gold per 10 sec. items. Make sure you buy the most improtant item of all: and upgrade it to when you think it is the best for you. That item will save a lot of money and will make warding mcuh more easier. After you bought all of them, it is time to start upgrading. You can either buy and later upgrade to , upgrade your Kage's Lucky pick to Shard of True Ice ( best version in my opinion ) or upgrade your boots to ( or , depending on enemy team ). After you have completed your Shurelya's Reverie, which will provide you nice cooldown reduction as well as survivability ( + speed buff ) or which will provide you additional ability power, mana regen aura and active 30% slow aura for a few seconds ( if you bought Shurelya's first make sure you buy Shard of True Ice too before going to the next step - same for Shard of True ice ).
Once you have completed your first 2 supportive items you are ready to make one hell of a great item - . This item will provide you more magic resist, mana regen and more mana cap, followed by excellent UNIQUE Active effect that removes all CCs from your ally and heal them for a certain amount. It is very helpful in situations where your ally gets caught and you need to save him quickly to ensure great team fights. Once you have completed your 3 main Supporting Items, it is time to make . Remember that Aegis of the Legion can be upgraded to that will provide even better stats, such as more armor, magic resistance and health, followed by empowered armor and magic resistance, as well as health regen aura. Now you have 5 main items in your inventory: Shurelya's Reverie, Shard of True Ice, Ruby Sightstone, Mikael's Crucible,Ionian Boots of Lucidity (or Mercury's Treads ) and Runic Bulwark . The best final item to end with is because it will give you so much survivability and nice Debuff Spell for enemy team.


BOOTS UPGRADE: Captain - the best supportive upgrade because it gives movement speed increase to both champions ( 8% ) and minions ( 25% ).

VERY IMPORTANT



Playing this style of Sona requires previous supporting skills and before all, good team.
Back to Top

Generally - Sona in Ranked Games

As we all know, not much players play supportive characters. If we compare Sona to another supportive champions like you can see the difference. Sona is for me top support. Why?
- Good damage
- Good heal
- Armor and Magic Resistance Buff
- Reduces enemy champions damage output
- Good movement speed buff
- Slows enemy champions
- AoE Stun

I mean it is everything you need as a support. Sona in ranked is always welcome. Her availability to do damage and heal in the same time is something most players are looking forward to. The important thing as Sona in Ranked Game is to always keep your map warded and carry one Oracle Elixir before level 6 or 7 to make your jungler ganks easier and hard for enemies to notice him.

Difficulty

Though her spells are almost all just button-hit, Sona is not as easy as it looks. If you think that stunning targets with Crescendo and healing targets with Aria of Perseverance is all that you have to do to be the best Sona, you are very wrong. Those things are the important factor, but one more thing that you have to master as Sona is her proper Aura Switch during teamfights and excellent Power Chord usage. It makes a big difference if you will speed up your allies before healing or slow enemy rather than reducing his damage output. Those are the things that makes Sona very hard to master.

Lane Usage

The reason why I give 10 / 10 for this is very simple. Sona is the best support - she has everything ( scroll up ) one lane needs. She can easily turn into a killer, very easily save her ally and very easily turn the whole teamfight upside down. Being able to heal every few seconds and make large amounts of damage very often is really not something you can ignore.

Ganking Other Lanes

You do not see a support champion ganking other lanes very often. Well, I do it all the time - but only with Sona ( and now with Lulu sometimes :P ). If you try ganking with Sona, you will see how easy it is to kill an enemy or at least waste his Flash or any other Summoner Spell. 40% of slow for 2 seconds is really nice and helpful, especially if your ally also has some good slow or CC ( if it is a skill shot nuke - your slow will help a lot ). Not to mention level 6 Sona ganking. Slow + stun = easy kill. It is worth to cast Crescendo in such situations. But do not use it all the time, as sometimes you can kill your target without using your ultimate.

Able to be killed when Ganked

Really good survival spells she has are really good for easy gank dodge. When you are running from a jungler, I recommend slowing him instead, while healing both you and your ally constantly ( even if you are full - to increase your resistances ). Of course, do not slow a jungler if it is too far away and other enemies are closer. In that situations, hit movement speed button and run - if you are able to slow, do it. You can also keep casting Hymn of Valor to reduce their Health Points, forcing them to retreat.

Ability Power Ratios

In my opinion, Sona has quite good Ability Power ratios. I know that her Aria of Perseverance does not have such a high Ability Power ratio, but if it would it would be OP. Heal with 4 seconds Cooldown and 0.25 Ability Power Ratio is really not bad. You can not expect to be 0.7 as Hymn of Valor has, so it is better to stay at this value. As much as her damaging spells are concerned, they are pretty balanced. They do a fine amount of damage and I do not thing that they should be increased or decreased. Hymn of Valor has 0.7 Ability Power ratio and Crescendo has 0.8 Ability Power ratio.

Teamfight Capabilities

This is something I explained in the following chapters, so check it out there :P.
Back to Top

Summoner Spells

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
Clairvoyance
This spell is becoming less and less popular within Support Players. The main reason is that Exhaust is now more useful on lane. It makes it easier for you to kill your enemy players, so Clairvoyance is very often changed with it. It is still useful but it is about you to choose.



Flash
In my opinion this is very imporant for Sona. At the first place for escaping when got focused. I choose it for one very imporant thing: LANDING PERFECT CRESCENDO. This spell can really help you with that and it is, as I said, good for both purposes, escaping or killing.


Exhaust
This spell has recently became more and more popular and used than Clairvoyance. It is also very good spell and it helps a lot on your lane ( as well as later ). It is about you to choose between this spell or Clairvoyance. With Exhaust you have bigger chances to win fight and escape ganks, while with Clairvoyance you have free "ward" and easier gank dodge.

LESS RECOMMENDED
REAPLCE WITH
Heal
Well I think this is not so useful for Sona since she has good enough heal and I prefer having Exhaust because it is much more useful than Heal spell. A good thing about this is additional healing for your team, but it's high Cooldown doesn't attract me at all.

Teleport
Can be very helpful for fast lane returning or jump into teamfight when you are not close. Though it is good I don't think it should replace your Exhaust and I prefer taking this spell for solo top
lane
.

Ignite
If you wish to dominate your lane than you should take this spell for additional damage. As support this could look kinda funny but can be pretty useful. It can really ruin your enemy during the time your AD carry is in exhaust, because the damage from Ignite, your spells and basic attacks will make an enemy AD carry to retreat.


Barrier
New summoner spell in Summoner's Rift. Upon activation, shields you for a certain amount. Even thought it can be really useful , I don't prefer it on supportive champions. It is mostly for AP and AD carries.

Clarity
If your choice is to stay on lane very long time and keep yourself and your ally on lane with full mana all the time, this is your spell. Though I don't like this spell, because it is useless late game, it is about you. In my opinion, no.

HIT YOURSELF WITH A SPOON IF YOU TAKE THIS

REAPLCE WITH

Revive
Very useless spell, extremly HIGH Cooldown and has no use on Sona.


Smite
I am going to Smite - - - your - - - MINION!


Ghost
This is very good spell but I don't think Sona really needs it, so I say no to this spell. Keep in mind that you already have movement speed buff : Song of Celerity in both numbers and percentages. It is "acceptable" but I don't recommend it.


Cleanse
Mostly for AD carries and AP carries. I don't recommend it on Sona.


Surge
Attack Speed! Yes I need it! No.
Back to Top

Retribution and Protection Sona Runes

For Runes I have mostly AP Runes and Magic Penetration Runes beacuse I go as RETRIBUTION Sona and not so often as PROTECTION Sona.

RUNES FOR RETRIBUTION SONA



- They are the same as runes for PROTECTION Sona.

RUNES FOR PROTECTION SONA


Runes

Precision
Fleet Footwork
Phase Rush


Greater Mark of Armor Armor rune that really helps you to be more "tanky" on your lane. It is very good and useful.

Defense: +8.19 Armor

Greater Glyph of Magic Resist Your magic resist rune. It is very good and it is important for lane sustain.It will give you additional defense.

Defense: +12.06 Magic Resistance

Power Chord - No effect
Hymn of Valor - No effect
Aria of Perseverance - No effect
Song of Celerity - No effect
Crescendo - No effect


Greater Seal of Armor Very good rune for additional Armor. It will give you nice sustain on your lane and make you receive less damage from physical attacks.

Defense: +12.69 Armor

Power Chord - No effect
Hymn of Valor - No effect
Aria of Perseverance - Good Combination
Song of Celerity - No effect
Crescendo - No effect

Greater Quintessence of Gold Really nice rune and you need it a lot since you will not be getting minions nor kills. It will give you nice gold income and make it easier for you to build items. Also really good in combination with other gold per 10 second items.

Utiliy: +3 Gold per 10 second
Back to Top

Retribution Sona in Early Game


When you choose Retribution Sona as your style, you will want to start ( in most cases ) with Hymn of Valor and make 2 stacks in base before you go. It is the best possible choice for this style. Group up with your team at your jungler to protect him from gank and stealing his Blue Buff ( making a dramatic loss for him ). If the fight starts, try to focus AD carries since they are the lowest Health Champions as well as AP carries. When you hit Hymn of Valor in combination with Power Chord : Staccato , your target will lose about 30-40% of Health. Keep attacking your enemies and spam Hymn of Valor. Remember to use Clairvoyance on enemy Blue Buff just to see if they are all gathered up there or scout for your jungler.


ON LANE

Make sure you have 2 stacks of Power Chord. It will make your first hit decrease enemy health dramatically. When you come to lane before the minions spawn go into the bush and wait for your enemies with your AD carry. You should encounter them when minions come to make first attack with Hymn of Valor] in combination with Power Chord: Staccato. If you are lucky they might walk into a bush, giving you high adventage.

Let's put it this way.
ENEMY TEAM

Both have long duration stuns. This combination is very dangerous if you do not know how to counter them. With constant healing and stunning, as well as making ture damage, you should be very careful when facing them.
YOUR TEAM


You also have long duration stuns but not until level 6. Since the enemy team has bigger damage and CCs until level 6, you should be very careful. Make high usage of your Hymn of Valor but make sure you don't lose too much mana. Stay away from their range and let your AD carry farm.

You will want to make sure your lane is protected as much as possible and keep your enemies from getting fed. As RETRIBUTION Sona, you should hit minions to make your AD carry easier last hit. Keep staying in bushes and fast harass your enemies with Hymn of Valor and Power Chord: Staccato. It will make your enemies retreat all the time. Also make sure you use Clairvoyance VERY OFTEN , because with great harass comes great responsibility. You have to keep your lane safe from ganks, so make sure you reveal river bush frequently. Also help your solo top by Clairvoyancing his river bush too. If fight begins when Taric stuns Ashe, important thing to do is NOT TO DO DAMAGE FIRST. It is a very big mistake. After Taric lands stun there are high chances Vayne will cast Tumble and make serious damage, so you have to prevent her from losing too much health before you land your Hymn of Valor. Also, by healing her Aria of Perseverance will also grant her additional resistances, making her take less damage. After the stun is gone you must focus Vayne because she can deal massive damage. Land Hymn of Valor and Power Chord: Staccato on her which will cause her to retreat. Since Taric's Heal has high cooldown you have advantage. Keep constantly healing Ashe and deal damage to Vayne. Ashe will grant additional slow and you have high chance at killing them both. Don't think it too easy, it requires some skill. Also be careful since they both have long duration stuns.

CONCENTRATION THING: There are some minions that AD doesn't take because he is waiting in bush or just doesn't have enough range to kill it. Make sure you take those minions for additional gold. It will take some time to master this but it is worth trying it.

Let's say you got ganked by someone. You are level 5 just like your enemies. The first thing you have to do is to cast Song of Celerity and slow enemy jungler. It will give you high chances to escape. If you get stunned by Taric, Flash automatically forward to reduce the chance of being totally harassed down. Let's say Ashe got stunned. First Heal her and grant her Movement Speed. Don't run, you have to keep spamming Hymn of Valor and mix Aria of Perseverance with Song of Celerity for max survivability.
Another good thing you can do is to reduce Vayne's damage by 20% from your passive effect. In my opinion I would rather slow instead. Because you have high AP on this level you will make great damage with Hymn of Valor in combination with Power Chord: Staccato[/color] and make one of them retreat. Ashe should survive if you well played your role.

LEVEL 6

Once you reach level 6 you can almost all the time harass your enemies and kill them. Rush in with Crescendo and Hymn of Valor, than fast cast Song of Celerity and activate it's effect to slow one enemy to prevent him from escaping. You and your AD carry should bring your enemy to death real quickly since your damage output is very high. Plus if you play with Ashe on lane ( in this case ) , you will have x2 Stuns and extreme slows. Keep pushing the lane with constant Clairvoyance on river bush ( if you still haven't been to base to buy wards ). If your AD carry decides to retreat or gank another lane, YOU HAVE TO make perfect last hits on minions while you have a chance to grant additional gold.

When playing RETIBURTION Sona, you must focus on high damage, so your Ability Sequence should look like this:
Ability Sequence
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

Hymn of Valor Your first damage spell. When you play as RETRIBUTION Sona, early level damage is the most important thing. First of all to keep your enemies out of farm and secondly to make better lane push and destroy turret as past as possible. This spell is good in three ways: good damage, hits 2 targets ( make sure you are close to enemies because if you are not and minions are near, this spell will hit minions instead. If you are close enough this spell will hit enemies becuase it is it's priority ) and has very nice Power Chord effect: Staccato that does double the Power Chord damage. This is the spell you have to level first.

Aria of Perseverance An important spell to have because with high ability power comes great healing. Though it is supporting skill you will always have to have 1 level more of Hymn of Valor because you are focusing on bursting your enemies down while giving your team good supporting. 1 level difference is not so big, especially when the healing value between two levels of this spell is not high. Level it second.

Song of Celerity Not important to level second as in PROTECTION Sona gameplay because you need Hymn of Valor and Aria of Perseverance to be leveled first. Those few additional movement speed values are not so worth to switch either your damage or healing that is important when playing RETRIBUTION Sona.

Crescendo As mentioned before, this is the key of every teamfight. With high ability power, this spell will together with stun make great damage, giving your team very high support ( by reducing enemy champions health and teamfight capabilities dramatically ). Make sure you hit 3 or more targets! Take one point on level 6, 11 and 16.


Upon reaching level 6 you should buy to remove wards and.......

Back to Top

Retribution Sona in Mid Game

In Mid Game there are first teamfights. Make sure you have a great map vision and if you are making a trap than you must carry Oracle Elixir to avoid surprises. Also using in this minutes is very important. For example, if you gank their jungle make sure you Clairvoyance in front of you to avoid traps ( if you have clairvoyance ).

In teamfight the important thing to do is to stay out of range of their ADs and APs. Keep casting and for additional mobility. Don't waste your Crescendo on nothing ( like only one enemy ). If someone like or another strong DPS starts focusing your AD or AP, make sure you cast to stun all the focusers. If possible, stun another targets too. It will make your ally retreat and begin harassing again. If you get focused, the very important thing is to Flash out as fast as possible. If you keep being followed, use Song of Celerity's passive effect, slowing enemy down.
The important thing when teamfight starts is to keep your low Health allies protected. By that I mean Heal before High Damage. As RETRIBUTION Sona you have to make sure you can both Heal and harass their AD or AP in the same time. The key of teamfight is in most cases your Crescendo so make sure you don't miss it.
Keep in mind that if you have another good AoE Stun ulties ( such as , don't cast Crescendo in the same time as they cast their ulties. You can have double benefit if you save it when their ulties go off. Also if you have on your team, you have to focus on his ulty. When he casts ulty you have a great chance to cast because everyone are slowed.

As I said, your map must be well warded. In Mid Game your team should do Dragon often as well as keep it warded from enemies.
This is the picture that shows where your Dragon Ward should be. Many people place it wrong and than they waste 3 wards for nothing for just one area. Take a good look at this picture where you can have high vision with just only one ward.



I also highly recommend to check WARDING GUIDE for improved gameplay.

Remember, without wards, no win.
Back to Top

Retribution Sona in Late Game

When you reach Late Game phase mistakes are not acceptable. By that time you should have your and Those items are very important for this phase. Still keep using your to avoid traps. Make usage of Crescendo and Clairvoyance as described in Mid Game. VERY IMPORTANT THING IS TO KEEP BARON ALWAYS AND ALWAYS WARDED. There is nothing much to say in this phase but you must make sure you make no mistakes because one mistake can cost you a match. Always be with your team or lose the match.

You can also star warding with against stealth champions like or keep giving stealth vision with .
Back to Top

Protection Sona in Early Game



In early game, you should follow the build I mentioned on the top.

Let's put it this way.
ENEMY TEAM
Both have long duration stuns. This combination is very dangerous if you do not know how to counter them. With constant healing and stunning, as well as making true damage, you should be very careful when facing them.
YOUR TEAM


You also have long duration stuns but not until level 6. Since the enemy team has bigger damage and CCs until level 6, you should be very careful. Make high usage of your Aria of Perseverance but make sure you don't lose too much mana. Stay away from their range and let your AD carry farm.


Once the minions came to the lane, you should ALWAYS stay in bush. It will keep you safe from Vayne's and Taric's attacks and it will make harder for them to attack Ashe since they don't know your current situation ( in bush ). If you decide to heal Ashe, make sure you move a little bit from the place you casted Aria of Perseverance because they see the effect coming out and it will reveal your currect bush position, which may, sometimes, result bad. Another thing you will want to do is to make surprise bush attacks. When enemies comes a little bit closer, cast Hymn of Valor and activate it's Power Chord effect. It will make them go back a little bit.
BEWARE: MAKE SURE TARIC DOESN'T HAVE WARDS IN HIS INVENTORY ( OR CHECK THE NUMBERS HE HAS AND COMPARE IT TO THE BUYABLE VALUE OF WARDS ) TO MAKE SURE HE DID NOT WARD YOUR BUSH. ALSO STAY AWAY FROM BUSH WHEN CLAIRVOYANCED BY ENEMY TEAM.

Let's say Ashe got stunned by Taric and she is near the wall, enabling Vayne to make perfect Condemn and stun her for additional 1.5 seconds. In order to avoid burst on her, you have to either SLOW Vayne to prevent her from coming too close to push Ashe to wall and stun her, or REDUCE VAYNE'S DAMAGE OUTPUT after you land your Aria of Perseverance. The important thing to do is not to cast Hymn of Valor before survival. Your Ashe has high chances to survive due to movement speed buff, resistances from heal and healing.

MANA SAVING MODE

There is someting I call mana saving mode. When I fall to 30% of mana, I tell my AD Carry to be careful and take no damage. I do not cast any spells until my mana is on 80-90% ( only if it is really needed ).

LEVEL 6

In this phase you should have domination on your lane. As PROTECTION Sona, your Aria of Perseverance and Song of Celerity will improve your teamfight capabilities, while sacrificing damage and letting all the damage to be done by Ashe. When you get close to Vayne and Taric, land PERFECT Crescendo while you have 3 stacks with Song of Celerity on. After the Stun fades, slow Vayne ( she has higher escaping chance but squishier ) or Taric ( which has low escaping chance but harder to kill ). I recommend to slow Vayne instead since she will already take tons of damage by the time the CC remove to make her chances to escape really horrible. After Crescendo Ashe must cast utly to hit Vayne ( stun ) and make AoE damage to Taric. That will bring her down 100%. If you prefer damage before slow ( since you have Ashe's slow ) you can jump in with Crescendo with 3 stacks in Power Chord with Hymn of Valor. Though your damage will be low, your Power Chord should make 150+ damage. Be concentrated because if you don't play your role well they might escape because of Condemn which will push Ashe back, Dazzle that will stun Ashe and Final Hour with Tumble which gives her brief stealth.

In early game it is important, as I said, to stay in bush and constantly heal your AD Carry. Skill sequence should look like this:
Ability Sequence
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

Aria of Perseverance It is important to take one point in this spell on level 1. You need it because you are PROTECTION Sona and it is the best possible choice, since additional movement speed won't help you a lot on level 1 and you do not need Hymn of Valor because you are not RETRIBUTION Sona. It will keep your AD Carry full and protected with additional resistances. Max. it first.

Song of Celerity Aditional Supporting skill and very useful on low levels as well as on high levels. Improves your's and your AD Carry chasing and escpaing capabilities while being able to slow. Take it on level 2 and level second.

Hymn of Valor You don't need it because you focus on supporting and buffing instead of dealing damage. Though you play PROTECTION Sona you will need at least one level on level 5 because you must have some damage. Even if the damage won't be big , you will make fine damage with Power Chord.

Crescendo Key of every teamfight. Make it's usage as best as possible and it will help your team very much to win. Also use it often in early games. Good in 2 ways: for killing and escaping. Take a point in level 6, 11 and 16.
Back to Top

Protection Sona in Mid Game

In mid game there are first teamfights and by that time you should have your map warded well
( + have at least 10 wards already placed before this phase ). As PROTECTION Sona, your role in teamfights is really huge. Your Crescendo can turn the whole teamfight upside down. You should use your Aria of Perseverance as much as possible as well as Song of Celerity and try not to switch those spells with Hymn of Valor since your damage will be low and that is not your role due to the trype of Sona you play.

In this phase you should also have Dragon killed. It will grant your team additional +190 gold. Also make sure you ensure your team clear path ( without getting into enemy team traps ). Use Clairvoyance as much as possible as it will save your team many times.

TEAMFIGHT

In teamfight, you must make sure you give your team max. survivability. As long as you use your healing and mobility spells, your team should feel safe. Let's say Xin Zhao started a teamfight and went directly on you. He has really high damage and you must be very careful. The very first thing you have to do is to FLASH out and slow him down with Song of Celerity passive or reduce his damage by 20% by using Aria of Perseverance passive. Someone from your team should distract him and make you survive. Also have in mind that your escape shouldn't be 20 seconds. It must be very quick because you must get back into teamfight as soon as possible. If there is really no chance for you to survive, don't waste your FLASH and cast Crescendo before you die, giving your team additional help.
Make sure you stay behind everyone, reducing enemy team AP and AD carries to reach you. Since you are here to heal and give mobiliy, as well as stun the whole enemy team, your current distance behind everyone will make your chances to survive very high. Due to Sona's high spell range, there should be no problem.

STARTING A TEAMFIGHT

Doing such action can be very risky, but very helpful and good. In order to start a teamfight by yourself, you must either FLASH and cast Crescendo to hit at least 3 or 4 enemy champions or make a perfect move without FLASH and cast Crescendo. Be very careful, as enemy team might have Silence, Stun or other CC, making you an easy kill and making your team unable to make perfect teamfight.
Many people can be easily manipulated. They see Sona close to enemy team and they start focusing her with some of their spells. Since they don't have range, they come closer to hit you. That is a perfect timing to cast Crescendo. It doesn't matter if you hit 1 person only ( BUT MAKE SURE IT IS SOME SQUISHY CHAMPION, NOT TANK ) because it will kill him in 90% of cases since your team will auto-rush on him. Now you don't have your ULTIMATE, but enemy is also forced to fight 4v5 ( because almost always after such action starts a teamfight ). Keep healing and buffing your teammates and it will ensure you a won teamfight.

WARDS

As long as warding is concerned, you should ward every risky bush or place. In order to avoid getting killed while warding, use Clairvoyance in front of you. Those 40 seconds of cooldown are worth waiting. You MUST have warded: Dragon, Enemy Jungle ( buffs ), Place around Baron and your Jungle.

If you wish to have clear path, make sure you buy Oracle's Elixir to remove enemy team wards from map. Also you get 25 gold for each ward destroyed and you need every coin!
Back to Top

Clairvoyancing



Blue : First and second time you cast it.
Dark blue : The bush to check often in early game when there is a miss or a jungler. Also check it if you push the tower to be sure you won't get ganked. It's just awesome to know everything is clear and not live in fear.
Red : Enemy creeps camp. This is where a jungler will be at the start.
Green : In the enemy territory the place to use Clairvoyance to see 2 creep camp at once. In the river the 2 bush to check often to avoid ganks.
Back to Top

Power Chord

in combination with
Staccato
This is good combination for lane domination. You should keep using this as much as possible to keep your enemy from feeding. Important thing to know is: don't use this too much in teamfights, only if really needed. You will slow your enemies or reduce their damage output rather than dealing additional damage - there is enough ADs and APs on your team to take care of that role ( as long as Power Chord is concerned ).

in combination with
Diminuendo
I personally think this is really good effect if your enemy has someone who does really massive damage. Using this effect on such target will make your team sustain his damage and make your healing a little bit easier. Though I don't use it too much, enemy carries should be your main target. The only problem is their distance, which keep them out of your range and you, as Sona , should not expose too much.

in combination with
Tempo
While good at three puropses, escaping, chasing and buffing, this effect saved my life lot of times and made my team easier to kill someone. I use it frequently in teamfights to prevent enemis from running. In case that I get focused, I automatically slow my enemy and keep healing my team. At this position, before ( or if you don't ) I die, I MUST land Crescendo, perfect or a little bit fail one, just to enable my team to kill them. While running from enemy, you should mix it with Aria of Perseverance and keep harassing with Hymn of Valor, while activating this effect every third stack for max survivability.
Back to Top

Optional Items

FOR RETRIBUTION SONA



Void Staff
If you want to make so much damage and act more as AP carry as well as Support, this is the right item for you. Though it is a very good item, I don't recommend it if enemy team has no much Magic Resistance items, such as Banshee's Veil Force of Nature etc.



Abyssal Scepter
Additional Magic Reduction item. The best timing to buy it is if you have high AP burst champions in your team, such as Anivia or Veigar.



Banshee's Veil
This item is very useful if enemy team has high AP burst champions. You should get this one if that is the situation. Also additional resistances are always welcome.



Zhonya's Hourglass
Very good item. It gives both protection and damage stats. I buy it only if they have Karthus in team to avoid his Requiem or when enemy team always focus me ( rarely ).


FOR PROTECTION SONA



Soul Shroud
This item will provide you some additional health, as well as mana regen and cooldown reduction Aura. In my opinion, it is nice item but I don't recommend it anymore because there are so much better Supporting items than this one. Ultimately, the only one who can actually benefit from this in your team is AP Carry and he should get Blue Buff instead.



Frozen Heart
Very useful item if your enemy team has champions like Master Yi Kog'Maw Caitlyn Tristana with high attack speed. This item should crush their capability in harassing your team down very fast and make you more resistant to physical attacks.



Mejai's Soulstealer
This item can be either good or bad. If you wish to sacrifice one of your aura items for additional item than you should take this one. Since you won't be getting kills, assists will stack your Mejai's Soulstealer. Be careful not to die, because you get only 1 stack for assist. I don't usually take this.



Twin Shadows
This item is not bad at all. It gives you additional magic resistance, movement speed multiplier and 50 ability power. It has a very useful active effect that summons 2 ghosts that will hunt down enemies and slow them upon contact. It is great in situations where you want to check some risky bush you want to ward, so you could avoid getting caught and killed. Even though it gives nice stats, its cooldown rejects me from this item. Long story short, it is a viable supportive item. I recommend changing it with Shurelya's Reverie or Shard of True Ice.
Back to Top

Final Look On Items

FOR RETRIBUTION SONA


Item Sequence

Archangel's Staff 2900
Rod of Ages 2600
Rabadon's Deathcap 3600
Rylai's Crystal Scepter 2600
Lich Bane 3100


Ionian Boots of Lucidity (upgraded to: CAPTAIN) For additional movement speed and reduced Cooldowns. The best boots for Sona. Can be replaced with Mercury's Treads but do it only if you really need it, for example when your enemy team has too much CCs. You must stay clean to give your team max. survivability and damage.

Archangel's Staff For me this is really nice item. It will give you:
a)+Good Mana
b) +Good Mana Regen
c) +Nice Ability Power ( and even better in late game when you have other Mana items and more mana stacks ).

Rod of Ages "Tank" item for Sona. Gives really nice stats and high survivability. It will give you more Health and Mana, Ability Power as well as additional stats over time. If you ask me this item is one of the most important since you have to make sure you don't die in few hits.

Rabadon's Deathcap Your main Ability Power source. In late games this item will give you tons of Ability Power and increase your damage dramatically. I take it every game and for me it is the key of RETRIBUTION Sona ( as long as damage and healing is concerned ). Item is expensive, but once you make it in combination with previous and upcoming item you will make great damage.

Rylai's Crystal Scepter Escape "Like a Boss" item. Additional high value of health for more survivability as well as Multi-Slow ( due to Hymn of Valor and Crescendo ) is always welcome. Also gives you more Ability Power and one more important thing ---> Free Passive. From now on you won't have to waste 3 stacks of Power Chord to cast Song of Celerity ---> Tempo. You can use double power chord damage ( Staccato ), while making more damage and slowing 5% less than with Tempo. Worth it.

Lich Bane Two mighty swords ready to break your enemies down. It is the high survival stats item for RETRIBUTION Sona. Can be used in combination with Power Chord --> Staccato for total domination:
a) +Ability Power
b) +Mana
c) +7 Movement Speed Multiplier
d) +Magic Resistance
e) +After Spell cast, your next Normal Attack will make additional damage



FOR PROTECTION SONA


Item Sequence

Enchantment: Captain 450
Timeworn Talisman of Ascension 2200
Runic Bulwark 2950
Randuin's Omen 2700
Ruby Sightstone 1600
Timeworn Frost Queen's Claim 2200

Ionian Boots of Lucidity (upgraded to: CAPTAIN) For additional movement speed and reduced Cooldowns. The best boots for Sona. Can be replaced with Mercury's Treads but do it only if you really need it, for example when your enemy team has too much CCs. You must stay clean to give your team max. survivability. Because of the upgrade it will give a nice movement speed boost for your ally champions and minions.

Shurelya's Battlesong Your first( or second ) supporting item. Very useful for you and your team. It will give you nice amount of health which will increase your survival capabilities. On the other hands, you will also be given additional mana regen and cooldown reducton, as well as Speed Buff ( Cooldown: 60 sec. )


Aegis of the Legion Powerful item that increases your and your team's survival capabilities:
a)+Additional Health
b) +Additional Armor
c) +Additional Magic Resistance
d) +Additional Health Regen

Upgradeable to Runic Bulwark that will provide:
a) +[EMPOWERED]Additional Health
b) + Additional Armor
c) +[EMPOWERED]Additional Magic Resistance
d) +Additional Health Regen


In combination with Aria of Perseverance it can really increase your team mate's defense capabilities and keep him alive. Also prevents from high bursting of your ally.

Ruby Sighstone One hell of a great supporting item. It will make your warding so much easier and make you a little bit more tanky. It is a MUST when playing Sona.

Mikael's Blessing Excellent Supporting item. It provides really nice sustain and enables you to use your spells even more and faster because it gives additional mana cap increase and mana regen. Above all it has an excellent active effect: removing all CCs from your ally and healing them. Very helpful in teamfights or bot lane fights when your ally is CCed and it is really needed when playing as PROTECTION SONA.

Randuin's Omen Really excellent debuff aura item. Above that, it will also give you high survivability:
a) +Additional Health
b) +High Armor
c) +Health Regen
d) +Cooldown Reduction
e) +Chance to slow enemies when they hit you
f) +AoE Slow
g) +AoE Attack Speed Reduction

After landing Crescendo you will help your team with additional AoE Slow and Attack Speed Reduction, making your teamfights much more easier and giving you a high chance to win it.
Back to Top

Sona's Auras and their Usage

space
Offense Aura
From spell: Hymn of Valor
Effects: Increased Attack Damage and Ability Power
Amount of Attack Damage and Ability Power: 4, 8, 12, 16, 20
Mana for Aura Switch: 65

-This Aura is mostly used in situtations where you want to harras your enemy team with Hymn of Valor and it's passive effect: Staccato. Though it is not too much used in teamfights, this aura can help you a lot. For example, the best timing to keep this aura on is when you are making a push, killing Dragon or Baron. It will give some additional damage for faster kill or push. Be careful though, since switching to this aura can result taking a kill.

Protection Aura
From spell: Aria of Perseverance
Effects: Increased Armor and Magic Resistance
Amount of Armor and Magic Resistance: 3, 6, 9, 12, 15
Mana for Aura Switch: 60/65/70/75/80

-Most used and most useful Aura in teamfights. It gives your team additional tankiness and passive from this spell doubles the amount of Armor and Magic Resistance on Sona and the target that was healed. That is very good for your squishy champions as it will make harder for enemy team to kill them. Also makes a very good combination with Aegis of the Legion. Use it during teamfights or when your team is low on health while you make a push or killing the Dragon or Baron.

Utility Aura
From spell: Song of Celerity
Effects: Increased Movement Speed
Amount of Movement Speed: Normal: 4, 8, 12, 16, 20
Amount of Movement Speed: Percentage: 6, 8, 10, 12, 13
Mana for Aura Switch: 65

-This is the Aura you will want to use once you get focused so you can slow your enemies by it's passive or when you chase someone. It gives really nice amount of movement speed, especially upon activating where you get additional movement speed in percentages. Also a very good combination with Shurelya's Battlesong. Use it when you are coming back to lane, when making a push for faster traveling, during chasing someone for both more speed and slowing with passive and during escaping.
Back to Top

Masteries

Updating
Back to Top

Why Archangel's Staff?

I've noticed that many people dislike Archangel's Staff. I really don't know why. In my opinion it gives huge mana and mana regen, what Sona needs the most. Though the item is good, I don't recommend it on PROTECTION Sona, since you have to buff your allies with auras and Archangle's Staff has no such thing. As important as boots for RETRIBUTION SONA, this is something you should get when playing that style.

ADVENTAGES



-High amount of mana which is easy to stack due to Sona's spamming abilities.
-Good Mana Regen what is also good beacuse Sona is mana hungry champion.
-Nice amount of Ability Power that is very useful as RETRIBUTION Sona, while making PROTECTION Sona less effective.

DISADVANTAGES




-Not suitable for PROTECTION Sona
-Can be expensive if not well introduced with RETRIBUTION Sona
Back to Top

Additional Warding Stuff and Monsters ( Monsters Under Construction )


Yellow: Vital to protect your jungler from being countered and killed.
Blue: For protecting from ganks depending on which lane you're on.
Red: To guard Dragon and Baron Nashor.
Orange: In order to counter-jungle.
Back to Top

Screenshots

-Fixing-
Back to Top

Sona through the Patches



Read from down to top! ( Still updating )

V1.0.0.133:
Fixed a bug where Power Chord did not trigger while Taunted or Silenced.

V1.0.0.131:
No longer automatically acquires attack targets when idle while Power Chord is active

V1.0.0.129:
Aria of Perseverance:
Mana cost adjusted to 60/65/70/75/80 from 65 at all ranks
Passive aura reduced to 7/9/11/13/15 armor and magic resist from 8/11/14/17/20

V1.0.0.125:
Aria of Perseverance: heal amount changed to 40/60/80/100/120 from 25/50/75/100/125.

V1.0.0.124:
Reduced the lockout time while casting Sona's songs to make them more responsive.
Aria of Perseverance:
Base heal reduced to 25/50/75/100/125 from 35/70/105/140/175.
Ability power ratio reduced to 0.25 from 0.35.
Now grants her passive aura bonus to her heal target and herself again as an extra bonus for 3 seconds.
Fixed a bug where Hymn of Valor and Aria of Perseverance caused her to deal 20%
reduced damage.

V1.0.0.120:
Fixed a bug where shields and Ignite could sometimes cause her spell sounds to get cut off early.

V1.0.0.118:
Sona will no longer automatically acquire attack targets when Power Chord is charged.

V1.0.0.115:
Hymn of Valor: mana cost reduced to 65 from 75.
Aria of Perseverance: mana cost reduced to 65 from 75.
Song of Celerity: mana cost reduced to 65 from 75.
Fixed a bug where Power Chord: Diminuendo was reducing true damage.

V1.0.0.113:
Power Chord:
It now deals 14 + (9 x level) from 24 + (12 x level) bonus magic damage.
It now has a bonus effect that depends on Sona's last song played.
Hymn of Valor:
Base damage reduced to 50/100/150/200/250 from 60/110/160/210/260.
Ability power ratio increased to 0.7 from 0.5.
Mana cost changed to 75 from 65/70/75/80/85.
Power Chord - Stacatto: Deals double power chord damage.
Aria of Perseverance:
Base heal increased to 35/70/105/140/175 from 30/55/80/105/130.
Ability power ratio reduced to 0.35 from 0.5.
Mana cost changed to 75 from 65/70/75/80/85.
Power Chord - Diminuendo: Debuffs the target to deal 20% less damage for 3 seconds.
Song of Celerity:
Mana cost changed to 75 from 65/70/75/80/85.
Power Chord - Tempo: Slows the target by 25% for 2 seconds.
Crescendo:
Cooldown decreased to 140/120/100 from 170/150/130.
Ability power ratio increased to 0.8 from 0.7.

V1.0.0.106:
Hymn of Valor:
Base damage reduced to 60/110/160/210/260 from 70/120/170/220/270.
Ability power ratio reduced to 0.5 from 0.6.
Aria of Perseverance healing reduced to 30/55/80/105/130 from 40/65/90/115/140.
Song of Celerity active movespeed reduced to 6/8/10/12/14% from 8/10/12/14/16%.

V1.0.0.105:
All aura durations after deactivating reduced to 2 seconds from 3.
All aura buff durations for allies that leave her aura range reduced to 0.25 seconds from 1.
Hymn of Valor:
Attack damage and ability power aura reduced to 6/8/10/12/14 from 8/11/14/17/20.
Mana cost increased to 65/70/75/80/85 from 55/60/65/70/75.
Song of Celerity:
Active movement speed boost reduced to 8/10/12/14/16 from 8/11/14/17/20.
Mana cost increased to 65/70/75/80/85 from 55/60/65/70/75.
Aria of Perseverance mana cost increased to 65/70/75/80/85 from 55/60/65/70/75.
Crescendo range reduced to 1000 from 1100.

V1.0.0.104:
Crescendo: cooldown increased to 170/150/130 from 160/140/120.
Fixed a bug where Song of Celerity was granting more movespeed than intended.
Back to Top

Sona's Masterpiece

Listen the instrument's power in Sona's hands. Enjoy :)!
Back to Top

Note

This is the end of the build.

Please keep in mind that this build will be updated and changed all the time, giving it's visitors best help possible.
There might be some mistakes in words, but I will fix them as soon as possible.
I will also add long description for Protection Sona in Early Game, Mid Game and Late Game for more help.

SPECIAL THANKS TO : jhoijhoi for her amazing work in How to Make your Guide. It helped me a lot and from now on I will keep updating every Chapter with additional BBCodes.

-I will be updating this guide soon ( 9/30/2012 ).


Please rate and comment. Thank you.



Best regards,
Your Nemo.
Back to Top

Change Notes



22.01.2012. - Updated "Summoner Spell" Chapter


22.01.2012. - Updated "Masteries" Chapter


22.01.2012. - "Abilities" Chapter Fixed


22.01.2012. - New Chapter Added: "Clairvoyancing"


22.01.2012. - New Chapter Added: "Power Chord"


22.01.2012. - New Chapter Added: "Why Archangel's Staff?"


22.01.2012. - Updated "Generally - Sona in Ranked Games" Chapter


22.01.2012. - New Chapter Added: "Additional Warding Stuff and Monsters ( Monsters Under Construction"


22.01.2012. -Fix in "Abilities" + BBCode ( Skill Sequence ) added


3.02.2012. New Chapter Added: "Lore"


3.02.2012. -Total remake of: "Protection Sona in Early Game"


4.02.2012. Total remake of: "RETRIBUTION and PROTECTION Sona Runes"


4.02.2012. Total remake of "Final look on Items"


4.02.2012. New Chapter Added: "League of Judgement"


4.02.2012. New Chapter Added: "Quotes"


4.02.2012. New Chapter Added: "Sona through Pathces"


8.02.2012. New Chapter Added: "Protection Sona in Mid Game"


14.02.2012. New Chapter Added: "Screenshots"


16.02.2012. New Chapter Added: "True Story"


16.02.2012. Guide Update - Fixed some Chapters and added new Pictures


7.03.2012. New Chapter Added: "Wanna be Rich? Build"


3.04.2012. Updated: "Generally - Sona in Ranked Games" Chapter


2.07.2012. Updated: Runes


2.07.2012. Updated: "Wanna be Rich? Build" Chapter


17.07.2012. Updated: "Protection Sona Build" Chapter


17.07.2012. Removed "True Story" Chapter


6.12.2012. Updated: [SEASON 3]

Back to Top

Upcoming

-Fixing "harras" spelling and other words spelling - 1 / 2 DONE
-Fixing grammar mistakes
-Adding PROTECTION Sona Early, Mid and Late Game - EARLY GAME = DONE
-Improving "Masteries" Chapter with BBCodes
-Explaining why Archangel's Staff - DONE
-Improving "Runes" Chapter - DONE
-Deep description for Power Chord - DONE
-Skill Sequence for "RETRIBUTION Sona in Early Game" - DONE
-Remake of "Optional Items" chapter
-Expanding "RETRIBUTION Sona in Late Game" chapter
-WHOLE GUIDE REMAKE ( IMPROVING EVERY CHAPTER WITH BBCodes ) - 3 / 4 DONE
-New "PROTECTION SONA BUILD" Chapter
-New "Sona's Auras and their Usage" Chapter - DONE
-Adding Chapter: "How to escape from which Jungler when got ganked"
Download the Porofessor App for Windows

League of Legends Champions:

Teamfight Tactics Guide