Welcome to my guide for Viktor, the Machine Herald. This is my first full guide that I'm making for everyone. Viktor is constantly underplayed, and I always hear "Oh, Vik sucks, don't be him." He is a fantastic choice for people who like a changing character. Viktor has crazy adaptability and is my favorite AP carry.

Ok, so as a quick 2 word overview: PLEXIGLASS CANNON.
He can break very easily and be left not helping, or if you can learn to time correctly, he can look fragile and not die.

Don't down vote if this doesnt work out first thing, he takes practice and patience like all champs. If you want to help me improve my guide, please leave a comment.

Pros:

strong, bursty
very strong mid and early game
very flexible
fun to play
can fill multiple roles

Cons:

his passive results in lost item slot
squishy
slow skillshot laser
short stun range
kinda slow (?)

Overall, IMO, i think the pros out weight the cons. All the cons can be overcome by skillful playing, good teammates, or altering your build based on the situation.

Look, the runes are a pretty standard AP rune set, so i don't feel much detail is needed. However, like Viktor, these can vary based on your own play style.

MARKS: I get magic pen marks, due to the fact that it makes your spells hurt like crazy early game, as well as negating some of the later game tankiness of the enemies.

SEALS: These have the most variation. I go with flat mp5 seals, as opposed to mp5 p/lvl.
flat mp5: Strong at the start, no mana problems (fewer) late game, lane sustain at low levels
mp5 p/lvl: strong late game (not as needed) worse sustain at start.

I tend to go with my flat mp5 for the early game sustain with the high mana cost laser.
You could go with armor, althought i don't recommend it.

GLYPHS: AP p/lvl make the best choice. They act like mini versions of your passive hex core. These prevent you from buying a dorans ring for damage at the start.

QUINTESSENCES: Flat AP quints give you a free dorans ring worth of AP at the start, enough said.

My masteries put an extra point into the offense tree to gain the increased damage to enemies below 40% for 1 reason: LAZER CHASING!!!!
I love chasing people down and when they think they are gonna get away, you laser them thru the wall. Very fun to do.

The rest are standard AP masteries, and the improvements for my 2 chosen summoner spells.

Ok, so this is probably the biggest, most important, section of my guide. Item choice is down to analysis. There are 3 possible starts that work well with my build, all based around they enemy summoner spells. Take a moment at the loading screen, analyze the champs, find who will mid most likely, and then buy!

1)Boots, 2hp, 1 mp = Enemy has neither HEAL nor CLARITY or has both
2)Boots, 1hp, 2 mp = Enemy has Clarity, but no heal
3)Boots, 3hp = Enemy has Heal, but not clarity.

This is extremely important to look at. I tend to go with option 1, even when faced with someone with clarity, because i wont be wasting my mp on my laser.

The 2nd purchase to make is sorcerors shoes. Yes, get your boots second. Your hexcore and runes give you plenty of AP, so buy boots second.

The 3rd purchase isnt made until you either:
1) have atleast 1 kill. [Red]
2) have atleast 1 death. [Yellow]
3) Have assissts and a fed AP teammate. [Blue]
Yes, this item is what makes me love Vik. His augment has the power to turn tides in battle, kill a fleeing enemy, or escape a sticky situation. I will go into detail in the next section on the augments.

the 4th purchase: RABADONS!
this item is crazy on Vik.This si my favorite full item on any AP carry. Get it!

5th, 6th and 7th: Will of the ancients, rylai's, and Lich bane.
Once again, all situational.
RYLAIS: die a lot, not hitting the stun, enemies escaping
WoA: Low HP often, lots of AP people on your team
LB: No good pushers? Well, now you can hit 700s on towers with 1 auto attack. effectivly gives Vik a strong auto attack.

Okay, so you may be asking: Which augment do i get?

Well, Here you go:

DEATH (RED) laser: Adds a burn effect to the laser based on dmg dealt by the laser. My favorite of the augments. Grants a nice little bit of AP. By far the best. Good for all situations. Takes skill and good aim to have the full effect. [WHEN I GET EARLY GAME KILLS]

POWER (YELLOW) shield: Adds some HP. I'll buy this if The move speed boost is good for hit and run. Overall, a solid augment, just not my first choice. Easiest to use, no skill shot required, just click and run fast.

GRAVITY (BLUE) gravity field: Look, I'll be honest. I have had no reason to buy this since the end of Vik's release week. I started on this one, because I wasn't good yet. I would oom constantly and wouldn't get the kills, just [ASSISSTS] This lets you have some range on you stun and lessens the oom problem. This is probably the best when starting out as Vik, or for when you are not your teams best AP carry. I like it, i just prefer the other ones.

Generally, when playing against vik, you can tell how good they are just due to the augment. Or you can see what kind of a threat they are. Vik's augment is the bread and butter of his champion. It takes judgement and smart thinking to pick the right one. The wrong augment can make the victory slower or result in a loss. That's why i never buy this until i have atleast one of something.

Okay, so for now, this is the last section im adding. His skills vary strongly on what the enemy mid is doing. DONT PICK YOUR FIRST SKILL AT THE BASE.

There are 2 possible paths, Shield or laser. Pick the shield path if your enemy starts with a dorans item. Laser path is for enemies who don't have a dorans item.

Shield Path: Shield>laser>ult>gravity
Laser Path: Laser>Shield>ult>gravity

Gravity is the least useful early game, so i take it at 4, when ive already gotten rank 2 of my preferred skill.

Viktor is a solid champion but takes a lot of analysis and thinking. Writing a build guide for him is somewhat difficult, because he can always end up in different situations and doesnt always work as the primary AP carry. He can fill a variety of styles of mage gameplay, and can function as psuedo support with his W. Good luck and win!

MORE WILL BE ADDED TO THE GUIDE SOON