Hi everyone!
My name is ElGreco and I´ll show you my Kog'Maw playing style, beginning from the early game till reaching the UncleFreddy phase. It´s my first guide and I´m a bit confused about the various possibilities of this site but I try my best ;)
I don´t call me self a pro or something like that. But I know how to play this champion and I just wanna show you how I play him. This guide is for Summoners Rift.

Hey,Ho, Let´s go!

The champions lore might help you to understand the champion more and maybe you are interessted in it!

When the prophet Malzahar was reborn in Icathia, he was led there by an ominous voice which thereafter anchored itself to his psyche. From within, this voice bestowed upon him terrible purpose, and though Malzahar was no longer tormented by its call, the voice did not cease its unrelenting summons. This baleful beacon's gentle flicker -- now fastened to Runeterra -- drew forth a putrid beast that ambled across a threshold it did not understand, widening a fissure between the spaces which were never meant to meet. There amongst the haunting ruins of Icathia, Kog'Maw manifested in Valoran with unsettling curiosity. The spark which led him to Runeterra teased him still, urging him gently towards Malzahar. It also encouraged him to familiarize himself with his new environment, to the stark horror of everything he encountered on his journey.

The enchanting colors and aromas of Runeterra intoxicated Kog'Maw, and he explored the fruits of the strange world the only way he knew how: by devouring them. At first he sampled only the wild flora and fauna he happened across. As he traversed the parched Tempest Flats, however, he came upon a tribe of nomads. Seemingly unhampered by conventional rules of physics, Kog'Maw consumed every nomad and any obstacles they put in his way, amounting to many times his own mass and volume. The most composed of his victims may have had time to wonder if this was due to the caustic enzymes which stung the ground as they dripped from his gaping mouth, although such musings were abruptly concluded. When his wake of catastrophe reached the Institute of War, an enthusiastic Malzahar greeted him with an enticing prospect: taste the best Runeterra could offer...on the Fields of Justice.

'If that's just hungry, I don't want to see angry.' --Tryndamere, the Barbarian King

I like playing Kog'Maw because of his variety of skills. Well, he has not more skills than other champions but his you can use them very flexible. Kog´Maw is one of the long rangest champions in League of Legends. An other point why I like him is that he´s no only auto-attack champ like Ashe. Let me explain his skills:

As Summoner-spells I usually use:
Flash! Nice spell to escape (what Uncle Freddy really needs) or to move near enemys or to get in good position (important too!)

Heal! As AD-Carry and squishy how you are important. An other survive-ability.

Alternate:
Ignite! Deals good damage and reduces enemies heal to only 50%. Thats nice but you have to relinquish of . I would only recommend this when you have a Support with good heal like Soraka,or Taric or you play against heavy life-steal.

Icathian Surprise (passive) - Upon dying, Kog'Maw starts a chain reaction in his body which causes him to move faster and detonate after 4 seconds; dealing 100 + (25 x lvl) true damage to surrounding enemies.

Its a deadly passive...for your enemies but also for you! You have to be dead
for this passive. You´ll run arround for 4 seconds with higher movement speed. Deals good damage,but you wont have any bonusses while living. It´s good when you fight and enemy survived with low life.




Caustic Spittle - Passive: Increases Kog'Maw's Attack Speed. Active: Kog'Maw launches a corrosive projectile which deals magic damage and corrodes the target's Armor and Magic Resist for 4 seconds.
Passive: Increases Attack Speed by 10/15/20/25/30%.

Active: Kog'Maw launches a corrosive projectile which deals 60/110/160/210/260 (+0.7) magic damage and reduces the target's Armor and Magic Resist by 5/10/15/20/25 for 4 seconds.
Cost:60 Mana
Range:625

Well, the passive attack-speed boost is nice and the Armor and Magic Resist reduction can be useful too,but I max this ability last because you need only 1 point early for the additional attack-speed and the dmg is not worth to get maxed first!


Bio-Arcane Barrage - Kog'Maw's attacks gain range and deal a percent of the target's maximum health as magic damage.
Kog'Maw's attacks gain 130/150/170/190/210 range and deal additional magic damage equal to 2/3/4/5/6% (+0.01)% of the target's maximum Health (Max: 100 Damage vs Monsters). Lasts 8 seconds.
Cost:50
Range:130/150/170/190/210

This is UncleFreddy´s main attack spell. It increases your normal range up to 210 (your normal range is 500,you´ll have then 710!) and gives you magic damage equal to up to 6% of the enemys maximum life...just great! With you deal 10% of their maximum life. Works perfect with . They get slowed and try to run back while you attack them with your skill!




Void Ooze - Kog'Maw launches a peculiar ooze which damages all enemies it passes through and leaves a trail which slows enemies who stand on it.
Kog'Maw launches ooze which deals 60/110/160/210/260 (+0.7) magic damage to enemies it passes through.

Additionally, it leaves a trail which slows enemies by 20/28/36/44/52% for 4 seconds.
Cost:80/90/100/110/120 Mana
Range:1200

This spell is nice to initiate fights or to escape! Because of the slow you start fights with that skill. Good in combination with and . Try to slow them directly or try to cut the enemys way to escape, that helps you when you are stronger or when your lane get ganked!




Living Artillery - Kog'Maw fires a living artillery shell at a great distance dealing damage and revealing targets. Additionally, multiple Living Artilleries in a short period of time cause them to cost additional mana.
Kog'Maw fires artillery from a great distance. After a short delay, the artillery falls dealing 80/120/160 (+) (+0.3) magic damage and reveals targets for 4 seconds (deals 125% bonus damage to champions).

Each subsequent Living Artillery in the next 6 seconds costs 40 additional Mana up to a maximum of 200 Mana.

This ultimate is one of my favorit skills in the game! Why? Because you have a GREAT RANGE (1400/1700/2200), high damage which rises with additional attack-damage or ability-power and a cooldown of only 2/1.5/1 seconds! You can use it in combination with or to scout! I´ll explain this later.
But, !!!ATTENTION!!!Each subsequent Living Artillery in the next 6 seconds costs 40 additional Mana up to a maximum of 200 Mana.!!!Attention!!! This is important. Keept that in mind. Don´t waste your Mana! Dont stack your ulti for farming minions or scouting! Patience,summoner. When you chase anyone or fight then you can stack.




Back to: Why Kog´Maw at the Pros and Cons list.

Yeah it´s Pros and Cons time!!!
Let us looking on the positive and negative sides of Kog'Maw!

First of all, the Pros:

-

Fantastic damage (against tanks too)
-Able to carry a game alone
-Many possibilities to use his spells
( for attack or escape or
to scout or attack enemies for example)
-Highest range of the game
-Fun to play ;)



Now the Cons:

-

Weak early-game
-Very squishy (low life)
-Need good positioning
-High item-costs
-Slow movement-speed


Ok this point is done too!
Let us now continue with the play style and the item construction!

Start with and , ,

In the Early Game you have to farm,farm,farm and farm!
Because of your high item costs you need gold. Don´t push much! Just try to last hit the minions. Your playstyle depends a bit on the Support you have. Aggressive Supports like Alistar will force you to play more aggressive. Same with more defensive Supporters.
Try to disturb the enemy AD-Carry! Remember,every minion he wont get he has less ca$h than you.
Harass them with your Void Ooze and your Bio-Arcane Barrage to damage them,but don´t fight 1on1,just disturb them a bit.

On first return you should buy two ,

You´ll have now with your masteries 9% lifesteal and higher attack-damage.
If your jungler comes to gank your lane, let the enemies push and slow them with Void Ooze. When you can hit them directly,do it otherwisetry to cut up their way to escape!

At level 6 you have living artillery!
Now you can play more offensive. Scout bushes with your ultimate,especially against supports like Blitzcrank and Leona and damage the enemy AD-Carry with it. That will disturb him and makes him weaker. I wont recommend to start a fight when the Ad-Carry has full life.Thats why you should harrass him,when he is weakened try to open a fight with Void Ooze and attack him with your skills.

Buy , and a Now you can farm easier and are stronger (more dmg,attack-speed and armor)

It´s Mid Game time! Your build should look like this:



Continue farming your lane and try to destroy the enemies´ bot lane. Then you can start ganking other lanes. Your role as Carry starts now.
Ask sometimes for a red buff you deal additional damage and slow enemies with your basic attack. Farm till you have enough gold for and [Recursive Bow size=25] You´ll have now high attack speed and the passive of malady will help you to deal more damage with every shot. Try to help your team and carry it,but farm where ever you can! Your arround level 13-14 now.
Go back when you have enough $$$ for B.F. Sword. You have to sell one of your Now you deal more physical damage. Late Game starts. Maybe you wont have enough gold to buy then do it in Late Game.

Your build should look now:

You have to support your team now as good as possible. Stay in your team and dont go solo. The important team fights will start now. You should finish your as soon as possible. Defend towers or push in team. Try to do Dragon with your team. Every important places like Buffs or Dragon (if not warded) should be scoutet by using your . We talked about Teamfights, you´ll see your role in them below.

Buy a and finish
Upgrade your Zeal to . As last item I recommend or any other defensive item.

Be ready for teamfights now!

You are the AD-Carry! You deal the most damage of your team with the AP-Carry,what causes that you will get focused. Stay behind your team and scout the enemy team. Damage them a bit with your but dont waste all your Mana. When a fight got initiated you have to stay behind your team! Shoot a Void Ooze in the enemy group,that makes it more difficult for your enemies to reach you. Activate Bio-Arcana Barrage and attack the enemy Carries. You have the advantage of your high range. These fights usually dont go that long. When they flee, try to harass them with !

There are some various uses of your spells like scouting bushes and buffes with your





or harass your enemies.



Place your behind enemies. Keep in mind that the usual reaction will be running back. This will cause that they run into your ultimate. Later they maybe get it and you have to change your tactic. Analyse their moves and try to make them running into your ult!

Your can be used for slowing your enemies and start a combo like - - -



or cutting their way to escape like here



You can also use it to escape



Remember to stay behind your team at Teamfights so you can´t get killed easy!

Well, the Items! Always the most interessting thing in any guide. I hope you read the rest of the guide and dont jumped to this point only ;)
You might think my Item-Build or purchase order is **** but I had only good experiences with this build and i´ll try you to understand it.

The and the two are standard AD-Carry build. Kog´Maw has slow movement-speed and needs to start with the boots and the Dorans Blades increase your damage,life and you´ll get 9% lifesteal with your masteries! The give you more attack speed,always good.

After that you go for and

Madred´s Razor allows you to farm better. You get more attack damage,armor and the passive helps you to kill minions faster. It´s also important because you want to upgrade it to !
Malady gives you a high attack speed boost a bit ability power and a nice passive: Every shoot from you does additional damage. Not only because of the +20 magic damage. Your attacks reduce your enemies magic resistance,what causes that your will deal more damage. It also helps you to proc your Madred´s faster.

Now you go for and .
The reason is easy. You want to go for and the attack speed is good for you at this time. The Sword gives you +45 damage,that´s nice and you can upgrade it later to .

Then you upgrade to and buy
Madred´s Bloodrazor! On this Item your build is constructed. I explain the effects later. But you get more armor and attack damage + the passive which allows you to deal with 10% of your enemies life! With your high attack speed you shoot them down in Uncle Freddy Style!
Zeal gives you more movement speed,attack speed and crit chance.

Finish your and .
Infinity Edge allows you to deal even more damage,crit chance/damage! Should be in every AD-Carry build. In combination with Phantom Dancer you´ll have a 55% critical chance. Your attack speed will be arround 2.200 and you take down every champion in few seconds! Your movement speed will be also nice.
As last item I take to get more life and slow the enemies.
That can be nice because you do for example your . The enemy wants to run out of it but if he gets hit one time by your high range with he wont escape!

Alternate/Situatel Items
It wont be good to give only a build without alternatives.
Here are some alternate Items!:

Take this item if the enemies have heavy magic damage. Replace it for . you have an additional damage of 42, a good attack speed boost and a magic resistence bonus of 30 + 5 for every shot (max +20)

You get high damage and much lifesteal! Build it at the end for because with your attack speed you´ll become lost life fast back. You can also replace it for but I would only recommend this with full build. Dont build it at beginn only at the end.

An other one?! Yes! But same as Bloodthirster, only at the end. You can replace it for your because you´ll still have a good movement speed and 85% crit chance + 2.500 attack speed.

Nice against heavy armored team Malphite top and Rammus jungle for example. Replace for it.

Good defense Item! Afraid of being grabed by Blitzcrank or getting pwnd by [[LeBlanc]??? Not anymore! Increases your life,Mana and magic resistance! Your able to spam your ultimate more and are better in defense. Replace your Malady or Frozen Mallet.

I had a game where I got flamed by my team with "WTF Malady" or "Buy some damage OMG!" But I tell you, damage isn´t only the high of your auto attack damage.


As I said I usually had only positive experiences with this build. It´s counstructed on and attack speed combinated with your [icon=Bio-Arcane Barrage size=25. I like it because your not depending on pure attack damage like many other AD-Carries. You do with your Madreds and your 10% of the enemies maximum health as magic damage additionaly to your basic damage. You have which deals more magic damage and reduces their magic resistance which increases your damage! In this build Malady is the most flexible Item. But I wouldn´t replace it without sense!

This is what is called "UncleFreddy Style™!

Kog´Maw deals good damage and can take down nearly every champion very quick. But as every champion he has some weaknesses. Knowing your weaknesses might help you to fix them. The biggest disadvantage of him is his squishyness!
You can be took down with high burst damage from champions like LeBlanc, Veigar or Gragas. They will kill you fast and your team will be without AD-Carry. That´s why it is important to stay with and behind your team. Then your able to shoot them down.

An other problem is Kog'Maw´s weak early game. You have to be very careful
in Early Game! Good farm is important, because your strenght depends on your items. When you reached level 6 and getting you get much stronger and you will be able to fight 1on1.

There´s an other point which can be fixed with a few supports but I want to say it here.
Kog'Maw is very slow! With your you will still have only 375 movement speed. That makes it difficult for you to chase enemies and escape ganks or fights.

Mhhh...escape is a good point too. You have no escape skills, exept your Void Ooze maybe but in combination with your slow movement speed not good.
That´s why a good support is important for you. Maybe he has skill which increase your movement speed or can slow or stun enemies. An other possibility I really recomend is using Flash. It will help you ALOT!

Kog'Maw is fragile for Crowd Control (CC). If he gets stunned or slowed he can´t easily escape. His own movement speed is too slow and he has no real escape skills. In lategame it´s important to stay with and behind your team so you make it difficultier to get focused.

As every Champion there exist some Champions who work better with the own one. You are on Botlane with a Support. Your playsyle depends on your Supporter,but on your enemies too!
Here´s a short list with Supporters,Counters and a few notes.

Supporters:
Alistar, is an aggressive Supporter. He works good with Kog'Maw because he´ll and to you. You can easily shoot a against the enemy and kill him while attacking him with your other abilities. Alistar has a heal weak, but ok! He is also able to dive with . He has many advantages, but try to last hit and dont push. Then he can be a nice laning partner.
Against Alistar you have to be careful. Stay near tower and ward bushes. Harrass the enemy AD-Carry. His heal isn´t that good. Just ignore him in fights!

Blitzcrank, is similar to Alistar.
With his he is one of the most annoying and dangerous supports.
If an enemy gets catched, he´ll get punched up by . Slow the enemy with your then and shoot at him! With this tactic you can take everyone down. But that´s all how you get supported. You wont get any heal, speed buffs or things like this.
Against Blitzcrank BE CAREFUL I think you know the reason. You are squishy and if you get grabbed by and hit by you will get attacked by the carry and your dead! It´s important to stay behind your minions! Run arround to make it difficult for Blitzcrank to grab you and disturb the enemy AD-Carry. Don´t forget his ! When he is near dead this skill will shield him. He wants to escape now. Chase him with your A good Support against Blitz is Alistar.

Janna, is a support,which let you the choice, how to play. I recommend to search fights! You´ll get a higher movement speed from her passive and a nice initiate skill,slow,a shield and if necessary a heal or escape skill with her ultimate. is a great skill to initiate fights. She will slow the enemy Carry with Zephir, what is in combination with your a great slow. Then you are able to shoot the enemies with your Bio-Arcane Barrer down. In fights you´ll get a shield which makes you less squishy and a escape with heal in one skill,if necessary!
Against Janna, you have to care about her .
Just dodge it while hearing the sound of this skill. Her shield and slow are annoying. Last hit the minions and harass Janna a bit. She´s very squishy. And don´t dive her too early! With her ultimate,shield and slow she is hard to be killed!

Well,Karma might be nice to you and maybe not. What I want to say is that there are good and bad Karma players. Her helps you to harass the enemies AND can heal you! She can give you a shield which can also be used for dealing damage. A disadvantage is, Karma has no real CC, BUT her ability increases your movement speed or slows an enemy. This allows you to shoot a at them. In a fight you should be stronger than the other ones with all of Karmas bonuses.
Against her, you have the advantage of your high range. Stay behind your minions so you cant be catched by or damaged by . Activate your and harass the enemies. In fights focus the AD-Carry, but stay away from Karma.

Kayle is for an aggressive playstyle. She deals good damage with her and slows the target. In combination with your they will have heavy problems to escape. You have both a high range. Activate your ,shoot at the Carry,while Kayle hits him with . With Kayle you have good chances to dominate your lane.
Her is a heal with nice bonus! It increases your movement speed. In fights her ultimate will make you immortal for a a few seconds. All these things support Kog'Maw great!
Against Kayle, you have to play defensive. Your depending on your Supporter. You already have a slow movement speed. If you get hit by you get stomped down by the enemy AD-Carry and you´ll lose the lane. With good farm and harass on the Carry you might kill one of them. An other good alternative are ganks. Slow them with your then.


Leona, is a tanky support. She can protect you and initiate fights. Farm your minions, but be ready for fight openings by Leona. She will usually stand in bushes to dash with into the enemy Carry and stun him with her passive . She can also slow and damage enemies with her ultimate . This is additional to your and a deadly combo! You can play with her as you want (that´s what she said) she will support you good.
To play against Leona is one of my biggest problems with Kog. It´s especially because her . Not only because she´s coming to you. Attacks like that have champs like Blitzcrank or Alistar too, but she stuns you with her passive and you´ll get also slowed! With your already slow movement speed your unable to flee.
The enemy AD-Carry will come on you and kill you. She counters you. You have to ward the bushes cuz she´ll usually stand in the peak of them and waits to catch you wiht her . Stay behind your minions and focus on the enemy Carry. She has no heal. Just ignore her. If you still fight her, use your while beginning your fight. That will reduce her armor and magic resistance!

Sona, is a great support when you want to play aggressive. She´ll harass the enemies with her and . That´s really annoying for the enemy Carry. Her persistent auras support you good. You´ll get additional movement speed, attack damage/ability power and heal. Her ultimate will help you as escape skill or in fights. Sona is very squishy. Keep that in mind. She can´t tank. Use her buffs to make your lane to the enemies hell! Stay near her to get the bonuses from her auras. Try to last hit, but you cant avoid pushing. Have a look for the enemy jungler and behave depending his position.
Against Sona try to get out of her range for . This skill combinated with deals enough damage in Early Game to lose fights. But with your high range you can focus her a bit with your and later with your ultimate. As I said she´s pretty squishy. Her heal isn´t strong enough to heal her up to full life. Be careful in fights for her ! Don´t start fights when your to bad wounded.

Soraka, isn´t famous for her pentakills but for her support skills. She gives you heal and armor with her . That´s very useful! She´ll provide you with Mana by using too. She can also use this skill for damaging and silence an enemy. This is great, because you can use your abilities more often especially your . The silence will help you to avoid some grabs by Blitzcrank or headbutts from Alistar for example. Her global ultimate supports you and your mates with additional heal. You have all what you need. And don´t forget her passive Consecration! The additional magic resistance is nice for you. You can replace your heal for ignite to deal more damage. Your heal should be still enough. You just don´t have any movement speed boosts or initiate skills. But if the enemies open a fight, you´ll have a big advantage with Soraka on your site and Supports usually have as spell. With her you´ll dominate your lane.
Against Soraka it´s pretty annoying to play cuz her high heal and her ability to give other champions Mana doesn´t makes it better. I recommend to have a Supporter with CC. Taric would be perfect. His stun helps you to reach the enemy AD-Carry...or Soraka self. She´s squishy. If he gets stunned, you can easily slow her with your and kill her afterwards. An other reason why Taric is good is, his heal. That makes it passable to play against her. can be useful too. The heal reduction is in fights great to be able to kill the enemy Carry.

Daddy Taric is one of the "passive" Supporters. He can heal you with his and that not bearly! His assists you great! You just need to put a good on the stunned enemy and shoot him down then! It can also be used to escape when you get chased. His passive from will give you an aura which supplies you with additional armor and his ultimate increases your basic attack damage. You´ll be good supportet by him. Just farm your lane and be ready to fight when Taric stuns annyone!
Against Taric I recommend a Supporter with heal to balance his heal. The most dangerous thing you have to care about is his stun . Stay near your own Supporter and just focus the enemy AD-Carry. Focusing Taric is useless, because his heal is 40% more effective when he heals himself. Keep on farming and ignore him. His heal has a long cd, he can´t heal the enemy Carry when he gets to much damage from you.

Well, that´s the Supporter list with each ones advantages/disadvantages and how to behave when you play against them. Now we continue with your Counters

Kog'Maw has with some champions problems. Everything with high burst damage or hard CC is good against him. Here´s a short list with them and the reasons why they are difficult to play against.
We begin with:

Ahri: Her fast combos makes it difficult to catch her with any of your skills. She is able to taunt you with her and attack you then with her spells. Especially her is really annoying. Her high damage output and agility is a problem for the slow Kog and his skills.

(look at "Kog'Maw´s Friends" under "Against" for explination)

Graves: He is for me the most annoying champion on the enemy lane! His deals high damage against you and anyway he is in 1on1 hard to kill. His is confusing and with his Quickdraw size he is able to escape your and dodge your . He deals early high damage and you are early very squishy. Your only advantage is your range. Attack him from far away till he´s wounded. Then you can fight him with your Supporter.

Irelia: She won´t disturb you on your lane but later she´s dangerous. Your highest advantage towards other champion is what? Your range! Irelia takes your range with her away and can also slow or stun you with her . Dont fight her alone!

Leona: (See Against Leona at "Kog'Maw´s Friends"

Burst Damage: As I said you have to care about champions like Veigar, LeBlanc and Brand. They can take you down as faster as you can see!

Jarvan: He is strong, tanky and can dash into you with his + and you lost your range bonus. An other point is that he can take you in Teamfights out of your team with his ultimate and you´ll get killed by his team.

Take care of these champions and work with your team. Teamplay is the key to win!

This is more for me to know what I have to do in future.

-An alternate build based on critical chance and basic attack damage

-Better/easier explinations in playstyle (Early - Late Game)

-Adding additional Items and a Dominion chapter(s)

-Adding Chapters like "Kog'Maw is good against" or more information in other ones.

-Updating regularly (don´t be that lazy man -.-)

-Working for a

jungle Kog'Maw guide!

I´ll try to write all updates by me or gameplay updates from new Patches in this chapter here:

30.7.2012:
Published this guide! Well done sir ;)

I´m grateful for my friend
Zwogg who helped me to take my screenshots to let you visualize my words. A picture says more than 1000 words ;)

And a thanks to www.directupload.net/ for easy uploading pictures!

Also a great thanks to [u]www.mobafire.com[/u] to make it players like me able to write those guids for the community! Also to http://www.mobafire.com/league-of-legends/build/making-a-guide-101506 from "jhoijhoi" where I could get some useful tips!

And finaly to Riot to allow us to play such a wonderful game like League of Legends!

That´s first all for me, I hoped you liked my guide and when not, well then not :)
I would love to get some feedback in the comments with tips what I can make better.
See you on Field of Justice,Summoner!



Picture sources: http://www.v-gaming.de, http://itsnothax.com, http://3.bp.blogspot.com/