Before and after the recent patch, many people have been complaining that Yorick sux. This is not the case. If played correctly, Yorick can bulldoze over enemy teams with ease.

Pros:

Unbelievable pusher
Great Farmer
Amazing Lifesteal
Great Disruptor
Great Chaser

Cons:

Very slow early game
Very Susceptible to CC
Low damage output early game
His W/slow can be hard to land
Slow movement speed early game

Summoner Spells

I like Ghost and Teleport. You need Ghost - Yorick is slow at first, and you'll be slapping yourself because you can't catch up to finish off that dude that just got way with 10hp because you were just out of range of casting your W Omen of Pestilence. It's also great for escaping in case you didn't know.

I also like Teleport alot. I like to be able to warp anywhere. It gives me security in my lane knowing I can recall, buy, and return without sacrificing a few hits to my tower or exp or gold. You may also want Exhaust.

ITEM BUILD EXPLANATION

Start off with a Long Sword and 1 Mana Potion and head to your lane. Try not to spam your abilities this early on or your mana will quickly be depleted and you will be unable to properly assist your lane partner. But if you have to, you have 1 mana potion. You don't need a Health Potion because you have Omen of Famine.

As soon as you get 995 gold, recall and buy Tear of the Goddess. Yorick is mana hungry and you need to be constantly casting your ghouls to be successful. Also, this is an investment in future AD as it will be transformed into Manamune. Next, buy berserker greaves outright. I like the extra attack speed, so that later in the game I can go toe-2-toe with other melee champs. However mercury treads may be substituted as well.

You need to finish Sword of the Occult as soon as possible, so it should be your next purchase. If you are destroying early game, get it sooner. Spirit Visage is a must because it will increase the health you receive from your E Omen of Pestilence. I like to build Zeal next for the attack speed increase and movement speed. However, if you have no stacks on Sword of the Occult, build Manamune next instead.

At this stage in the game, you should be feeling pretty good...maybe not bulldozer status, but certainly no slouch. Once you finish your Phantom Dancer , and have full stacks, you will have the speed needed to chase down Singed , Teemo , and Gangplank, especially if you pop your ghost.

I finish this build with Infinity Edge and the slaughtering is taken to a whole to level. You will giggle as the enemy team runs from your presence. You may also buy Bloodthirster if you wish to out life-steal their Warwick or Master Yi.

Play-style:

Yorick can be played mid or in lane, though I prefer to lane. He is also a great solo-laner if you have a jungler. For the first half of the game you should be playing Yorick like a caster champ. Rely on your W Omen of Pestilence and your E Omen of Famine for damage and to push your lane. If you commit to a fight, you must pop all three ghouls.

ALL THREE! (+your ulti if you are committed to the kill). Yorick's passive is that he gains 5% damage per summon and takes 5% less damage per summon, so if all three ghouls are not up, you are not maximizing your Yorick potential! Play smart, as you would with any champ. You are not a godlike destroyer early or even mid-game. Choose fights you are confident you can win.

Why level your Q Omen of War last? Because in order to benefit from your Q Omen of War you need to get close, really close, and early game, there are plenty of melee champs that will destroy you (tryn, xin) if you get too close.

I play him as a sort of guerilla fighter at first - hit and run. It is important to cast your W Omen of Pestilence and your E Omen of Famine directly on the enemy champ you are attacking. Do NOT cast either spell away from champs and let your ghouls attack - they simply do not do enough damage. However, you will notice that many champs run from the ghouls lol.

In any fight, you must be using your E Omen of Famine or your W Omen of War. You need stacks, and assists=Stacks. So as long as one of your ghouls scratches an enemy that dies, you get an assist. With a stacked SOTO Sword of the Occult you will not only be a nasty damage dealer, but you will be fast as hell (combined with phantom dancer Phantom Dancer ) making you an excellent chaser.


In 1v1 fights where you and the enemy are committed, follow this attack sequence. W Omen of Pestilence, E Omen of Famine , Q Omen of War , R Omen of Death (on yourself). Repeat the skill sequence until the enemy is dead. You may want to save your W Omen of Pestilence if you are absolutely destorying the enemy, in case he or she decides to flee. Then pop your W Omen of Pestilence on him or her and quickly land your Q Omen of War - slowing him or her and giving yourself a speed boost.

Why cast R Omen of Death on yourself right off the bat? Because, I prefer to kill the enemy without dying. 2v1 is always a better fight, right? So instead of using your Omen of Death to get a second chance at a champ who bested you, why not kill him outright by doubling your initial damage output?

RUNES

For runes I go with armor pen, armor, and cooldown reduction. Armor penetration is always nice on an AD champ. The cooldown reduction runes help you get that E Omen of Famine off just in time to stay alive, and armor allows you to take more hits from creeps, neutrals, and melee champs.

Quintessences are really up to you. I like 3 Greater Quintessences of Swiftness. Again, speed is important for Yorick.

USING YOUR ULTIMATE:

Your ultimate Omen of Death has a few unique uses.

Use 1: The first and most obvious, is to cast it on an allied champ who is near death. He or she will be revived and given a second chance. If you use your ulti in this manner, make sure you target the same enemy as your soon-to-be-dead ally, or your ulti is wasted.

Use 2: Cast your ulti on an auto attacker like Caitlyn. Command her clone/soul to attack an enemy tower safely.

Use 3: Cast your ulti on yourself if you are being chased by the enemy team or if you are covered in snares/slows/stuns - The double of yourself often disrupts the enemy team long enough for you to slip away while your clone/soul takes the beating.

Use 4: Similar to Use 3 except you cast it on an ally or during a team fight. Clones often add a level of confusion and disruption to enemy teams.

USe:3 Cast your ulti during a 1v1 immediately to increase your damage output. Combined with all three of your ghouls, this is pretty nasty.

GOOD LANING PARTNERS

At the end of the day, 99% of the time, you are only going to be as strong as your team. The two defeats above were the result of feeder teams and/or bad laning partners.

If you have a feeder team (lets face it, we all do sometimes :/ ), your chances of success are slim. Although if you can get fed, you will be unstoppable. A good laning partner is also essential to being a successful Yorick. Below are a few combinations I have tried with great success.

1. Rumble - Together you are like Mario and Luigi. You will be laughing out loud as you stomp the enemy team into the void over and over again. I cannot stress enough how great this combination is.
2. Heimerdinger - Two great pushes working together? Yes, please.
3. Swain His snare is great, especially early game when you are slow and have trouble limping over to whack an enemy champ with your shovel for that last hit.

That's it! As I have more time/discover more, I will update. Good Luck!

-Etocholes