Viktor Build Guide by OTGBionicArm

Ahuehue, c wut i did wit da title?


Hello, I'm OTGBionicArm, and this guide is about my personal favorite champion, Viktor, the Machine Herald. Viktor is a mad Russian scientist-cyborg, who runs on vodka and win. His truly amazing inventions make him a medium ranged burst mage, but that is only a tag that Riot gave him, and what do they know about tags? Magic is for only the weak, this isn't some sissy Ahri guide. This a guide for Viktor, the Mother-F***ing Machine Herald.

He can poke people at long distances, but is that really how you think a mad cyborg pseudo-terrorist would really fight? No. Viktor is a lane decimator, adept at obliterating the enemy into submission and remaining the top dog.

This guide will cover what options are good on Viktor and how to dominate with him at mid lane.

FOR THE GLORIOUS EVOLUTION!

I am still working on the guide. I just wanted to publish the base of it for the 4th of July. So please try any of the builds out before voting!

I am still working on this guide, so I will be adding the following soon:

A match-ups section at mid lane.

Mini guide to playing Viktor at top lane. (Featuring Berzerk!)

More optional runes and mastery setups.

In depth ability usage.

In depth laning guide.

Videos of Viktor gameplay

Pretty banners for each section.

• He's Russian. Simply put, he's the only character in the game with an accent that doesn't sound terrible (I'm looking at you, Fiora.)
  
• Much like Bender, he is powered by alcohol, mostly Vodka.
  
• He has all purpose Bionic Third Arm. Because of this, I am 40% more effective at using Viktor.
  
• He has the best dance in the game.
  
• He laughs right in your face when he takes your creep waves or life with Death Ray. What a troll. Ahuehuehuheuheuhe.
  
  But obviously, I am one of Viktor's biggest fans. So here's some non-biased pros and cons of Viktor:
  
  
  Pros:
  
  
  + Very high burst damage for a mage. He can typically kill any squishy character in one combo rotation.
  
  + One of the most versatile mages in the game due to his passive; Evolving Technology. He can be very effective as a glass cannon AP caster, Bulky AP caster, or a very utility or CC focused caster.
  
  + Gravity Field is one of the best abilities ever in a team fight. It can stun an entire team, cut off jungle routes, and save you from a gank!
  
  + Chaos Storm can do a minimum of 910 base damage to enemies if they standing next to it for it's full duration. This damage is absurd in team fights. Oh, and you can move it around, how cool is that?
  
  + Viktor can poke any champion (except Xerath, maybe) with Death Ray safely. Combined with Augment: Death, it is also one of the best farming abilities in the game, and makes Viktor a very quick pusher.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Cons:
  
  
  - Has very poor mana management early game. You must be very conservative with Viktor's mana pool.
  
  - While the stats they offer are great in early and mid game the Hex Cores from Evolving Technology do not hold up late game (except Augment: Death). Since he cannot sell these items back or change them, you have to choose very wisely.
  
  - Can easily get into a bad position in team fights due to his mediocre reach outside of Death Ray.
  
  - Gravity Field has little to no use in lane because of its short cast range without Augment: Gravity, and Power Transfer sometimes does not come back fast enough to actually get use out of the shield in lane trades.
  
  - Viktor is prone to glitches, primarily with Death Ray. Sometimes the laser disappears and cannot be seen by the enemy. While this is actually beneficial to you, it is somewhat unfair and annoying to the enemy player.
  
  

I use a 21/0/9 mastery tree most of the time when I play Viktor. This gives him more burst damage from Arcane Knowledge , Blast , Archmage , and Executioner . I also use points in Brute Strength and Butcher for extra last hitting power against minions. It also helps you to harass with auto attacks.
Summoner's Wrath is to gain additional AP when Ignite is on cooldown.

In the utility tree, I use Expanded Mind and Meditation for a greater mana pool and regeneration. Summoner's Insight reduces Flash's cooldown by 15 seconds.

• Greater Mark of Magic Penetration: Makes Viktor's spells hit harder. These runes are pretty core (on any mage for that matter) and I really don't suggest changing them.
  
  
• Greater Seal of Scaling Mana Regeneration: Viktor's spells are so insanely powerful and epic that Riot felt it necessary to make it fair for other mages by making his mana regeneration SUCK. This makes it easier to spam spells later in the game.
  
  
• Greater Glyph of Scaling Ability Power: These stack nicely with the passive AP gain from Evolving Technology, and scale Viktor very well with levels.
  
  
• Greater Quintessence of Movement Speed: In order to be a total lane terrorist you gotta go fast. Viktor isn't exactly slow by any means, but he has short reach on most of his spells, so being able to move faster to place them quickly is key.
  

This is your combo finisher before level 6. After level 6, this in conjunction with Chaos Storm is an evil, decimating shedding of your poor enemies health. Aside from the obvious damage, it's also very helpful to tell Vladimir to kindly **** off.




Traditional escape ability on almost every mid caster. However, Viktor isn't a sissy like those other chumps. I use it offensively most of the time before level 6 to show the enemy that this is Viktor's lane, *****. I like to poke the enemy to half health. Farm a bit. Surprise Flash, Power Transfer, Death Ray, Ignite, death. Don't be afraid to be hyper aggressive with this move in lane if you know you can kill the caster. Obviously, don't do it you're not warding like a good player. You might get ganked and look silly. Don't make Viktor look silly.




This is helpful to get back in lane faster or to set up surprise ganks by Teleporting to your allies wards. As Viktor is a very fast lane pusher, this is also helpful late game for split-pushing.




Actually pretty useful if you are building a bulkier Viktor. It allows him to chase better, especially with Augment: Power. It's also a helpful escape move, if you're into that whole running thing.




No trolling. Viktor es super lane pusher, why not make a cannon minion join the glorious evolution and push even harder? You'd be surprised how helpful this can actually be to lock down roaming mids like LeBlanc. If they try to roam, you get a turret, otherwise, they are stuck there dealing with you and a stupid OP minion.

Evolving Technology: (Innate): Viktor starts with an item that takes up one of his item slots, The Hex Core, that provides him with stats and can be upgraded in the store to augment one of his abilities and improve its stats. The Hex Core can only be upgraded once, for 1000 gold, and cannot be sold back to the store.
Hex Core: Grants Viktor 3 ability power per level.

This passive is what makes Viktor so versatile. The AP per level makes it less necessary to rush AP items, so feel free to bolster his abysmal mana pool and regeneration early. Also, it upgrades into three different items, which I will cover in the items section.


Power Transfer: (Active): Viktor sends a device at an enemy unit to blast them for magic damage, which then returns to him granting a shield for up to 3 seconds with an amount equal to 40% of the damage dealt before reduction.


This is the move you use to show the enemy that Viktor doesn't take any ****. It pegs them hard, after 2-3 of them, they should be at half health at early levels. The shield can be a life saver at times, but don't rely on it.

Tips and Tricks

• Use this aggressively to trade damage with the enemy, it can absorb quite a bit of damage.
  
• Maxing this ability first makes you do more single target damage. It also helps you win trades against high damage enemies like LeBlanc.
  
• You can use this on a minion just for a quick shield when on the run, or to last hit minions cheaply in lane.

Gravity Field: (Active): Viktor conjures a gravitational imprisonment device in an area near him, slowing all enemies that pass above it. Whilst under its effect, enemies generate stacks every 0.5 seconds; at 3 stacks the target will be stunned for 1.5 seconds.


This is Viktor's personal GTFO circle. In lane, you mainly use this for avoiding ganks. It's mainly for utility and facerolling team fights.

Tips and Tricks

• If an enemy jungler comes in, drop this right under your feet and book it for your turret. If you're feeling a bit more cynical, laugh and fire Death Ray at them too.
  
• Try to hit as many people as possible with this in team fights. Stunning a majority of their team makes Viktor laugh with delight as he brings death upon them with Death Ray and Chaos Storm.
  
• Use this to check bushes, as anyone in the bush will likely get stunned before they can hurt you.

Death Ray: (Active): Viktor uses his robotic arm to fire a chaos beam that sweeps across the field in a chosen path, dealing magic damage to every enemy it hits.


This is your bread and butter. Use this to farm, use this to poke, use this to decimate team fights, use it to demoralize the enemy with Viktor's super troll laughter. It's probably one of the best skills in the game and it's what makes Viktor so awesome.

This skill is awkward to use for some (Idiots, I think they are called) so I'll explain; It has a start point, and then you point what direction you want the laser to go! Weeeeeeee, that wasn't so hard. Now, stop *****ing about how hard Death Ray is to use. -.-

Tips and Tricks

• Try to lead the laser to where the enemy is moving. If you fail to do that and miss them, at least try to get some minions, or claim it's a "scare tactic" to save face.
  
• When going for a kill, use Power Transfer first then immediately start Death Ray on top of them for a nearly guaranteed hit.
  
• The laser provides sight where it is cast, so you can use it to safely check bushes and possibly damage someone!
  
• This ability can take a quarter out of a squishies' health bar. Try to hit as many squishy targets as possible with it. Even moar damage with Augment: Death.

Chaos Storm:(Active): Viktor conjures a chaos storm at the target location, dealing magic damage and silencing enemies in the area for 0.5 seconds. As it churns, the storm deals magic damage every second to nearby enemies for 7 seconds. Activating this ability again while the singularity is active will redirect it. The storm moves faster the closer it is to Viktor.

This ultimate does some serious destruction. It can do upwards of over 1000 damage to anyone standing near it for it's entire duration and has a silence on cast. That's pretty sexy. This ability will make your mid laner cry when it chases and kills them under their turret.


Tips and Tricks

• Try to chase along with auto-attacks and Power Transfers when using it on a single target, as the storm moves faster when you are closer to it. This is easier with Augment: Power
  
• In team fights, it may be better to wait to interrupt an important enemy ability with the silence on cast of Chaos Storm.
  
• The storm will remain for it's full duration even if Viktor dies, however he will not be able to direct it any more.
  
• Always remember to direct the storm elsewhere if your initial target gets away. Every tick of damage counts!

There are a few ways to go about leveling Viktor as detailed here;

Poke Viktor; my cheat sheet builds use this. Maxing Death Ray first for maximum poke damage from a safe distance. This also makes it a bit easier to farm early game, but it may room you out of mana fast.

Terrorist Viktor: Maxes Power Transfer first for maximum trading and single target damage. I typically use this tactic as it gets the easiest kills early game. it also uses less mana.

Balanced Viktor: Levels both Power Transfer and Death Ray evenly. This style is very good to both poke and go in for kills at the same time.


ABILITY COMBOS:

>

Standard harassment combo. Use Gravity Field first if against a melee mid like Rumble.


> > > > >

The kill combo. Anyone under 150 MR should be dead.


Viktor's Role in Team Fights:

Viktor's job is to wait for the tank to initiate, drop a Gravity Field on a few key targets, then decimate them with uber-damage. Chaos Storm is a very deadly AoE nightmare, so be careful about your positioning, or you'll get focused and killed.

Starting Items:

• 
  Boots of Speed and Health Potion x3.
  This is the best start on any mid caster for the most part. It is my preferred starting setup because it allows Viktor to move around and hit his spells easier, as well as dodge enemy skill shots.
  
  
• 
  Amplifying Tome and Health Potion.
  This is a great start if you just wanna hammer someone early and they don't have the mobility to death with it. It can also be used to rush an early Fiendish Codex.
  
  
• 
  Meki Pendant and Health Potion x2.
  This is a very sustained start that allows Viktor to more freely cast his abilities. I like this item start to rush a Chalice of Harmony or Tear of the Goddess early.
  
  
• 
  Null-Magic Mantle and Health Potion x2.
  The Anti- LeBlanc start. Cuts her early game power some, and combined with MR runes, it's somewhat of a troll start against any AP character. It can also be used to rush Chalice of Harmony.
  
  
• 
  Sapphire Crystal and Health Potion x2.
  I use this start when I'm going for Rod of Ages to rush Catalyst the Protector.
  
  
• 
  Doran's Ring
  This is a good start with some bonus health, AP and mana regeneration, all things Viktor severely needs. Be aware they don't build into anything, though. Stacking these is also a good tactic when you're a bit behind in lane, and they can be sold later for a good price.

Boot Choices:

• 
  These are the quintessential boots for almost all AP carries. They make your spells hammer people with unrelenting force. Magic penetration is not to be underestimated.
  
  
• 
  These are also a great choice to get your spell combos flying out faster. I prefer these boots on a more CC focused Viktor to use Gravity Field more often.

Augments:

• 
  This augment is great for bulky Viktor and awesome for chasing or escaping fights with Power Transfer. However, it doesn't hold up very well in late-game.
  
  
• 
  Makes your Gravity Field have more range, which makes it safer to place properly in a team fight. While the stats it offers aren't great late-game, the modification to Gravity Field is always helpful.
  
  
• 
  The best choice most of the time. The bonus AP actually holds this item up late-game unlike the other cores, and the additional damage on Death Ray makes your burst absurd.

Finished items:

All of the items I suggest are optional; I do not like force builds on anyone, I will give my list of suggestions and why to buy them, you ultimately decide how you build Viktor. This is a guide after all, not a command. Just make Viktor look good.

• 
  This item is amazing to rush against champions like LeBlanc. It cuts magic damage done to you, as well as makes enemies take more. This item is core for bulky Viktor.
  
  
• 
  Core on all Viktor builds. Massive AP boost. Dat burst. Make your enemies cry hard. Then laugh at them with a super charged Death Ray.
  
  
• 
  For more massive CC. Full slow proc on Power Transfer and a smaller slow on Death Ray and Chaos Storm is just evil. It also makes Viktor bulkier, which is pretty epic.
  
  
• 
  OMFG. magic Penetration. So much hurt. Build this against people who are building Magic Resist. Otherwise, makes you peg squishies harder.
  
  
• 
  Great item to have when you think you'll be focused. Drop your ultimate in a good spot first and then pop the active on this item. You can't take any actions, or even direct Chaos Storm, but you cannot be harmed, and enemies will have to either choose a new target, or waste a precious moment waiting for you to come out.
  
  
• 
  Very situational. This item offers a very large amount of AP for a cheap price, only if you stack it with kills and assists. Sadly, you lose stacks when you die. I would only build this item if I'm facerolling, and I know I can continue facerolling.
  
  
• 
  Holy mana and ability power, Batman. This item is amazing if you rush an early Tear of the Goddess and have it stacked quite a bit. This in synergy with Rabadon's Deathcap is plain nasty.
  
  
• 
  You will never go out of mana with this item. If you do, you're doing something wrong. The grail floweth, spam to your heart's content. It also gives decent AP and magic resist. I personally love this item because Viktor has terrible mana issues all game when spamming Death Ray.
  
  
• 
  Not sure I feel about this item. Moar burst is nice, but I feel like it lacks utility... I will have to test it out on him some more to give a real opinion.
  
  
• 
  A great item for bulky Viktor when fighting a lot of AD characters. The aura makes them less effective, and the item itself gives you awesome armor, CDR and mana.
  
  
• 
  I love building this item last to pepper my combos with OP auto attacks. It's also really nice to push over turrets and inhibitors.
  
  
• 
  The anti- Vladimir item. It's also helpful to build against similar healing champions like Volibear, Dr. Mundo, and Soraka. It gives Viktor some much needed CDR as well.
  
  
• 
  This item screams bulky Viktor. So much bonus health and mana, and pretty awesome AP too. This item is a godsend if the game goes on long enough. Just make sure you RUSH it, if you plan on building it at all.
  
• 
  This is really only helpful if you're in a team with an AP top laner, like Vladimir, Rumble or Kennen. It gives you some nice health sustain, but it's pretty lackluster if you build it by yourself.
  
  
• 
  An awesome counter to other combo based mages like Anivia, Veigar or Brand. However the shield is sometimes unreliable so don't think it will always save you. The item does provide some decent health, mana and MR though.

If you have a good game using my guide, I'd like to post it on here so everyone can see!

Send me a link to a screen cap of your victorious games with my guide, either through MobaFire, or email me at OTGBionicArm@gmail.com! Thanks!