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
Your votes and comments encourage our guide authors to continue
creating helpful guides for the League of Legends community.
Recommended Items
Runes: Poke
+9 Adaptive (5.4 AD or 9 AP)
+9 Adaptive (5.4 AD or 9 AP)
+6 Armor
Spells:
Flash
Ignite
Items
Ability Order
Gathering Fire (PASSIVE)
Karma Passive Ability
Threats & Synergies
Draven
Perfect with Karma's aggressive lane phase, and you two can burst a target down easily if caught out.
Draven
Perfect with Karma's aggressive lane phase, and you two can burst a target down easily if caught out.
A little bit about me
I love competitive games and have yet to find anything for me that compares to League.
Aside from League, I am a happily married man, father of 2 kids and I am a beloved pet owner. If you guys have any questions about my guides, champions or really anything in general, feel free to stop by my stream!
If you enjoy playing, or want to learn more about Karma, you can read and discuss more over at
/r/karmamains.
The reasoning behind Ignite is that it gives you a lot of extra pressure in lane, and furthermore adds a 40% healing reduction.
Exhaust is used when there are high damage threats on the enemy team, such as Zed, Kayn, Draven etc
It gives you an extra chance at escaping with the damage reduction, as well as the slow it provides. The damage reduction can be used to negate all in damage, from something like a Zed's Death Mark.
Summon Aery procs when you use Inspire giving you extra utility and shielding, and it's a fantastic way to proc Ardent Censer. It procs with Inner Flame as well, giving you a little bit extra poke in laning phase. Arcane Comet is another great choice if you're against a lane you can poke down easily. |
Manaflow Band is the only viable rune in this column as support, it helps with your mana regen - which can quickly ramp up when you're consistently casting spells to poke and peel in lane. |
Transcendence is our go to pick, providing us with +5 ability haste on levels 5 and 8, and then at level 11, all champion takedowns reduce the remaining cooldown on basic abilities. |
Once again, focusing on an early lead in laning phase, Scorch is your go to rune. It helps give your ADC a wide berth around minions by poking down the opposition. It's one of the best options in this row. Gathering Storm is a good option as well, but it focuses more on post 20 minutes - if you have carries such as Ryze, Vayne and Kassadin, who scale high into late game, you might want to consider taking this over Scorch. |
Biscuit Delivery is a great rune for sustain. It restores 10% of your missing health and mana, and increases your maximum mana by 50 anytime you consume or sell a biscuit. This is a great rune if you are facing a poke heavy opposition, and it also synergizes well with Manaflow Band. |
Cosmic Insight grants summoner spell and item haste, reducing their cooldowns. A good choice on any support to bring Redemption, Mikael's Blessing and Flash/ Ignite/ Exhaust up quicker. |
|
Gathering Fire (Passive) |
INNATE: Karma reduces Mantra's cooldown by 2 / 3 / 4 (based on level) seconds every time she damages an enemy champion with an ability, halved to 1 / 1.5 / 2 (based on level) seconds on her basic attacks. |
- Inner Flame reduces Mantra's cooldown per target hit, for a total of up to 20s at max level, if 5 enemy champions at hit at once.
- Focused Resolve reduces Mantra's cooldown per tick, for a total of up to 8s at max level, for the entire duration.
Inner Flame (Q) RANGE: 950 EFFECT RADIUS: 280 (300) COST: 50 / 55 / 60 / 65 / 70 mana COOLDOWN: 7 / 6.5 / 6 / 5.5 / 5 |
ACTIVE: Karma fires a burst of spiritual energy in the target direction, detonating with the first enemy hit, dealing 90/135/180/225/270 magic damage and slowing all enemies around the target by 35% for 1.5 seconds Mantra - Soulflare - ACTIVE: Soulflare detonates upon hitting an enemy or reaching maximum range, dealing bonus magic damage in an increased area. A field lingers around the detonation for 1.5 seconds, slowing enemies by 50%, after which it explodes, dealing magic damage to all enemies inside. |
- Spell Shield will block the initial impact.
- During laning phase, you want to use Mantra on Inner Flame for more damage and presence. Try to avoid minions as this will push the wave.
- As of 9.19 Inner Flame has been considerably nerfed, from 60% AP ratio to 40%, removing a lot of her damage potential.
Focused Resolve (W) TARGET RANGE: 675 TETHER RADIUS: 1000 COST: 50 / 55 / 60 / 65 / 70 COOLDOWN:12 |
ACTIVE: Karma exerts her will over a target enemy champion or monster, dealing 40/65/90/115/140 magic damage and forming a tether between them for up to 2 seconds, during which the target is revealed. If the tether holds for the duration, the target is dealt the same magic damage and is rooted for up to 2s at max rank. NEW AS OF 9.14 Focused Resolve/Renewal now reveals successfully rooted targets for the duration of the root as well. Mantra - Renewal - ACTIVE: Focused Resolve's root duration is increased, and heals Karma for 20% (+ 1% per 100 AP) of missing health on-cast and once more when the target dies while tethered or is rooted. |
- If you are at risk of dying, and need to save yourself - you can always use your Mantra on Renewal for the large amount of healing it does initially, and when it ends.
- During lane, you want to Inspire yourself before, or during, Focused Resolve, giving yourself bonus movement speed, so not to break the tether.
inspire (E) TARGET RANGE: 800 COST: 50 / 55 / 60 / 65 / 70 mana COOLDOWN: 10 / 9.5 / 9 / 8.5 / 8 |
ACTIVE: Karma shields the target allied champion or herself for 1.5 seconds, granting them bonus movement speed for 1.5 seconds. Movement reduced to 1.5s as of 9.13 Mantra - Defiance - ACTIVE: Inspire's shield is increased. Allied champions near the target are also shielded for 30% of the target's shield, and gain the same bonus movement speed, both for their same durations. |
- During teamfights, you're most likely wanting to be casting Mantra on Inspire for the aoe shielding and MS.
- Try to cast the shield on the highest priority target, as the aoe shields are not as strong as the initial one.
- Take advantage of the bonus movement speed Inspire provides, to catch a fleeing enemy, or to help escape.
- You can turn the tides of battle in your favor with Defiance, as well as procing Ardent Censer, Summon Aery and adding a heal with Athene's Unholy Grail.
Mantra (R) COOLDOWN: 45 / 42 / 39 / 36 |
ACTIVE: Karma empowers her next basic ability within 8 seconds for an additional effect. Karma begins the game with one rank in Mantra. |
Karma is a very lane orientated support, you want to be poking down the enemies as much as you can with Inner Flame and Soulflare. You want to be exerting the threat of an all-in with Renewal, while being able to shield yourself or your ADC with Inspire.
You can help push the wave with Inner Flame, or poke the enemy behind the minions like this too. Focused Resolve should be used as a disengage, or to root the opposing laner you're chasing down.
If you're not looking to make an engage, you can use Inspire to shield yourself or ally from any incoming damage, you also proc Summon Aery this way, which adds extra sustain.
Outside of laning phase, you're going to want to be setting up a lot of Stealth Ward wards around objectives, such as Baron Nashor and the drakes. If your team is ahead, and it is safe to do so, you can set up deep vision in the enemies jungle, allowing yourself and your team to get important picks, that allow you to take the previously mentioned objectives.
You want to mostly take your focus from aggressive to utility focus during this stage of the game, if behind or even at least. You will want to focus peeling your ADC or main damage threat with Focused Resolve, and shielding your team with a Mantra empowered Inspire, granting everyone Ardent Censers buff (if you have purchased this item).
You can use Soulflare to nuke down the enemies health, only if your team is already ahead and have no risk of being picked off, or having the fight turned around on you.
Late game, you're just focusing on keeping your team alive, and buffed with Defiance, keeping it on a low cooldown with Gathering Fire.
The main thing to be aware of, is making sure your teams threats stay alive, while removing, or zoning, the enemy teams threats.
Control Ward's are a staple part of any support, both to deny your enemies vision, and to provide your team extra vision. You should make sure to buy one at least every time you back, preferably to have 2 on you at all times.
If you enjoyed my guide, you can check out my other guides here, in which I've covered more styles of supports, incase you want to branch out on supports such as engagers ( Nautilus, Pyke etc!).
If you're interested in seeing more of me, please follow my stream! I stream every day but Saturday, from 12:00pm - 11:00pm GMT. I play a wide variety of supports, and I am always engaging with my stream chat.
- 06/10/2019 - Published Guide.
- 06/12/2019 - Cleaned up layout, changed Inner Flame and Inspire on Abilities to reflect buffs.
- 06/27/2019 - Changed Inspire to reflect 9.13 nerfs.
- 08/02/2019 - Changed Defiance to reflect 9.15 nerfs.
- 09/25/2019 - Changed Inner Flame to reflect 9.19 nerfs.
- 11/20/2019 - Updated for 9.23.
- 12/12/2019 - Changed Inspire to reflect 9.24 buffs.
- 01/23/2020 - Changed Inner Flame and Focused Resolve to reflect 10.2 buffs.
- 11/20/2020 - Updated for preseason.
- 1/21/2021 - Updated for 11.2.
You must be logged in to comment. Please login or register.