Bladedance Katarina

Introduction

Welcome to my Katarina AP build. This is Carebear and this is a build for Katarina, the Sinister Blade. I hope that after reading my guide, you will be more enlightened on AP Katarina and how to play her. Please take note that this guide is meant to guide you, but not to fully alter your gameplay. I discontinued this guide from my old account WhySoYummy, because I changed my name to Carebear and so I decided to just continue editing the guide here.

This build covers AP mid for Katarina
Please note that this build may not work for every game, as each game is different
This build is still a work in progress

Katarina, the Sinister Blade

Some video backgrounds for Katarina~

Pros / Cons

Pros

+ High burst damage
+ Abilities work hand in hand, AoE spells
+ No mana
+ Amazing passive
+ gives mobility

Katarina is a great AP choice. She has no mana, so she can spam away while most AP champions will find themselves mana-choked. Her gives her an easy lane when fighting champions like . She can deal lots and lots of AoE damage and her passive, can turn a losing team fight to victory.

Cons

+ Melee AP champion
+ High early game cooldowns
+ Tends to be focused first
+ Squishy

Although Katarina is an amazing champion, she has shortcomings like any other champion. First of all, she's a melee AP when most others are ranged, which can turn to a disadvantage. High cooldowns in early game can also interrupt her farm. Though she tends to be focused first and is squishy, her kit makes up for that.

Runes

Sorcery

Phase Rush

Greater Mark of Magic Penetration is a must have for most AP assasins, and Katarina is no exception as all of her abilities scale with AP. The extra Magic Pentration gives a nice boost to your damage output, and it will help deal the maximum damage output possible.

Runes

Sorcery

Phase Rush

Greater Seal of Scaling Health is for more sustain since Katarina's pretty squishy early on.Since I am a mid-laner,I level up fast and get immediate results from these seals.These are great as they allow you to get way more health than flat ones at level 18.These can also be substituted with Greater Seal of Armor if the enemy is more on physical damage or if you play aggressively and would like to take less damage from minions,but I still think Greater Seal of Scaling Health is really much more viable.

Runes

Sorcery

Phase Rush

Greater Glyph of Ability Power works well for extra damage early on because of the boost it gives.These give about more than 10 ability power which is a good early game jumpstart.
Greater Glyph of Magic Resist is very useful in mid against early game harrasers such as Annie or even Orianna. I prefer this over Scaling Magic Resist as this gives the needed magic resist necessary for early game.

Runes

Precision

Fleet Footwork

Greater Quintessence of Ability Power are pretty much standard for any AP Carry, Katarina included,for it's boost to your ability power.It gives an instant 15 ability power which is great for early game harass.

Masteries

Mastery Explanations

I use a 21-9-0 Mastery Setup on Katarina, taking all the AP Offensive Masteries, and extra health, magic resist and armor on the Defensive Side. I take these masteries because the early game is also a deciding factor on he outcome of the game, so these masteries give both offense and defense to help you do well.

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OFFENSE TREE

Tier 1 // for bonus AD and AP when Ignite is on CD. for the CDR, and you will be able to get .

Tier 2 // for more AP.

Tier 3 // for more damage, and for the MPen which helps early on and will synergize well with your MPen Marks and

Tier 4 // for more AP.

Tier 5 // for overall increase in AP.

Tier 6 // And lastly, for even more damage.

DEFENSE TREE

Tier 1 // for more health to sustain you.

Tier 2 // for a bit of Armor against Atttack Damage, and for Magic Resist against who you are laning against

Tier 3 // for more health.

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Summary

On your Offensive Tree, put masteries for everything that will improve you AP damage and magic related stats. This includes Ability Power, Magic Penetration, Cooldown Reduction and Overall Damage.

You will have:

+5 AP and AD when Ignite is on cooldown.
+4% Cooldown Reduction
+8% Magic Penetration
+2% increased damage
+5% damage dealt to targets below 50% health
Bonus Ability Power [+18 at level 18 (+1 per level), +6 flat AP, +5% Ability Power]

On your Defensive Tree, there will be emphasis on Health, Armor and Magic Resist which is primarily for early sustain and defense

You will have:

+5 Magic Resist
+2 Armor
Bonus Health [+108 at level 18 (+6 per level), +30 Health]

Summoner Spells

Recommended Summoner Spells

SPACESPACE

is the summoner spell I usually take, because of it's great utility. I can use it to escape through walls and terrains, and to chase or initiate team fights as well. I find this much better than . Although is very useful, I can also do without it because of .

is very useful as Katarina's passive, works on kills and assists. Of course in battles and team fights I need to activate as much as possible in order to use it to it's full potential. This is where comes in. With , I have less trouble in bursting down foes and gaining stacks on . With the mastery , it also gives a 5 AP bonus which is not that bad in the early game.

Less Viable Summoner Spells

is less viable because although seems to be a good mastery with , but is generally a better choice because of it's possibilities of becoming an escape mechanism, an initiation tool and many more. However, is not that bad so feel free to take it if you feel the need.

is useful when you are picking off lone targets or if you notice that your enemies are generally built on physical damage, can be helpful to cut down their damage or to slow them to get away.

is also an okay spell to take, but it is very situational and should only be taken if you notice the enemy team is jam-packed with CC champions. In addition to that, your would have been canceled before you are even able to use .
Other summoner spells would not really help that much.

SPACESPACE

Skills and Skill Sequence

Ability Sequence
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18

Sinister Steel

> Sinister Steel > >

Voracity
(Innate): Scoring a kill or assist will reduce the cooldowns of Katarina's abilities by 15 seconds.

Spoiler: Click to view

Bouncing Blades
(Active)Katarina throws a dagger that bounces quickly from enemy to enemy, dealing magic damage and marking them. Each subsequent hit deals 10% less damage. Bouncing Blades hits a total of 5 unique targets (4 bounces), each striking the closest next target [Dagger Magic Damage: 60 / 85 / 110 / 135 / 160 (+0.45 per ability power)].
Striking a marked target with an ability or basic attack will consume the mark to deal additional magic damage [On-hit Magic Damage: 15 / 30 / 45 / 60 / 75 (+0.15 per ability power)].

Spoiler: Click to view

Sinister Steel

Sinister Steel
(Active): Katarina whirls her daggers around her, dealing magic damage to all enemies in the area [Magic Damage: 40 / 75 / 110 / 145 / 180 (+0.25 per ability power) (+0.6 per bonus attack damage)]. If she hits an enemy champion, Katarina gains Movement Speed for a short duration [Movement Speed: 15 / 20 / 25 / 30 / 35 %].

Spoiler: Click to view

Shunpo
(Active): Katarina instantly moves to her target's location and takes 15% reduced damage from enemies for 1.5 seconds. If the target is an enemy, she deals magic damage [Magic Damage: 60 / 85 / 110 / 135 / 160 (+0.4 per ability power)].

Spoiler: Click to view

Death Lotus
(Active): Katarina becomes a flurry of blades, channeling for 2 seconds throw up to 30 blades to nearby enemy champions. Katarina throws up to 10 blades at 0.2 second intervals, dealing magic damage and applying Grievous Wounds to the closest 3 enemy champions [Magic Damage Per Dagger: 40 / 50 / 60 (+0.2 per ability power (+0.3 per bonus attack damage)), Maximum Magic Damage to the Same Target: 400 / 500 / 600 (+2.0 per ability power) (+3.0 per bonus attack damage)]. Grievous Wounds lasts for 3 seconds and reduces incoming healing by 50%. An enemy champion can be hit by a maximum of 10 daggers over the 2 seconds.

Spoiler: Click to view

Ability Sequence
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18

Sinister Steel

R < W < Q < E

#1

SPACE

As with all ults, should be leveled up whenever it's up at levels 6, 11 and 16. Dealing the most damage and being the most deadly, has the highest priority out of all of her abilities because this is her killing move and essential in team fights or singe-target bursting, thanks to its low cooldown, high damage and ability to apply Grevious Wounds.

Sinister Steel

#2

SPACE

For the most part, I max Sinister Steel before and . Why? Because though has better poke and harass, at a four second cooldown, Sinister Steel becomes more useful, as can only be used sparingly. And with increased damage and a speed boost, I feel that maxing Sinister Steel first is more useful, as you'll be using it much more often not only for the AoE damage, low cooldown and speed boost, but also for its ability to detonate marks.

#3

SPACE

It's more of a personal preference to max W first, but I agree that you should put a point in early on because it's your most useful laning tool. It's your only reliable ranged attack, and it's useful for harass and farm. The extra damage you get levelling it up makes it easier to farm, and can start very devasting combos. As I stated though, Sinister Steel has higher priority because it will be used more often and is more useful in fights and it's your best way to detonate the marks of . I believe that maxing first takes away your ability for close combat aggresiveness and burst potential. Take it a Level 1 for poke, harass and farm, then max it by Level 13.

#4

SPACE

It's important to have during the laning phase because of it's amazing utility. However, being the only single-target ability of Katarina, having high cooldowns, and dealing the lowest overall base damage, max last. For the most part, is mainly used for its utility, not so much in its burst damage or killing ability. With that, have one point early on for its incredible utility, but max it last at level 18.

Sinister Steel

R < Q < W < E

If this ability sequence does not work for you and if you find maxing is more viable once the situation arises, or if you just don't like maxing sinister steel first, then it's fine. It's more common for more people to maz before Sinister Steel for better last hitting, harass and poke. The ability sequence really depends on the person playing the champion,and different abilities work against different opponents.

Item Build Sequence

Staring Items

The safest option with Kat is to start off the game with Boots of Speed and 4 Health Potions

Boots of Speed is a common starting item, useful early on for the extra speed which you can use for getting to lane, roaming, avoiding skillshots, chasing and escaping. Plus, you build the boots into part of your main build.

Ever since they decreased its price, people usually take 3 health potions and 1 mana potion, but well....Kat doesn't really have mana. This option gives you a safer and good early game with a bit of sustain.

Other Starting Options

Early Game Items

This item is what you start building for early on, while still during the laning phase. Get to give you some extra health and MPen with a dash of AP to sustain in your lane better. If the situation calls, you can build into as well.

Core Items

I take this ahead of if I'm doing well, and vice versa if I'm not doing too well. This item can help me gank and kill better because of the good AP it gives, the CDR, and the active which is not bad at all. I buy Abyssal Scepter first if I think I need some early on magic resist. I can also trade this for depending on my situation.

Late Game

Usually, I take first if I'm doing well and not dying much. If I need the armor or sustain gives, I take that ahead of . I take both items later on because of the massive AP it gives, and the great active has. helps penetrate the extra magic resist the enemies would most probably build later on.

Elixirs

I always try to make it a point to pick up whenever possible. It gives extra AP and CDR which can be really helpful, at a cheap price of 250. I take only when I have some more extra gold and need some extra health. Needless to say,
I prioritize over .

Sight Wards
Sight Ward
With some extra slots and cash, I buy Sight Wards. Not only does this help me avoid possible ganks, I can also chase with these or even escape over terrains, using . These cheap items can be lifesavers.

Final Item Build

Final Build

Spacespace

Sorcerer's Shoes

Spoiler: Click to view

Spacespace

Abyssal Scepter

Spoiler: Click to view

Spacespace

Deathfire Grasp

Spoiler: Click to view

Spacespace

Rabadon's Deathcap

Spoiler: Click to view

Spacespace

Void Staff

Spoiler: Click to view

Spacespace

Zhonya's Hourglass

Spoiler: Click to view

Unique: +15% CDR
Unique:
Enhanced Movement:
+45 movement speed
Item cost:
1000g (675g)

SPACE

IONIAN BOOTS OF LUCIDITY

CDR comes off at a cap at 40%; Deathfire Grasp grants 10%, Sorcery grants 4%, an Elixir of Brilliance grants another 10% and having Blue Buff grants you 20% which is more than enough. Kat doesn't even need 40% to do her job well.
CDR isn't that important on Katarina because she is a BURST MAGE, not a DPS. She relies on casting all of her spells at once, not throwing them out as soon as they're off cooldown.
Voracity also refreshes three of her abilities' cooldowns, which lessens the need for CDR, as it also shortens her ults cooldown.
MPen is more useful for boots early on, as you wouldn't have Void Staff yet, plus MPen is more useful, as you deal more overall damage which is better at netting kills.
You don't put boots from Ionia on this Noxian Assassin. -_-

+80 AP
+500 health
Unique: Spell damage slows
the target by
35% for 1.5
seconds (15%
for multi-target
and DOT spells).
Item cost:
2900g (605g)

SPACE

RYLAI'S CRYSTAL SCEPTER

Health isn't very important and useful on Katarina because you shouldn't even be in taking hits and becoming a tank for damage.
Gold:AP ratio is terrible. The AP is by little for such a costly item.
Only one of your abilities, Shunpo, brings out the full potential of the slow, and it comes at a generally long cooldown. Also, since you focus on BURST, you aren't meant to be chasing enemies or slowing them, as the slow isn't very effective for you unlike someone like Cassiopeia who have to be sticking around a fight longer.
This item would be more useful for picking up later in or if the game is dragging out.

+50 AP
Unique: Nearby
allied champions
gain +30AP and
+20% spell vamp.
(1100 range)
Item cost:
2550g (585g)

SPACE

WILL OF THE ANCIENTS

Building Kat is more focused on raw power rather than sustain as she relies on burst.
However, if on an AP-Heavy team this item is very effecient
This is better on DPS Champions, like Cassiopeia or Ryze
It's not a bad item, really. However, there are better items for your build.

+45 attack damage
+65 ability power
+12% life steal
Passive: Unique: +20% spell vamp
Unique:Reload: Your basic attacks
and single target
spells against
champions reduce
the cooldown
of this item
by 3 seconds.
Active Unique
Active: Deals 150
+40% of your AP
as magic damage
and slows the
target champion's
movement speed
by 40% for 2
seconds. 60
second cooldown.
Item cost:
2550g (585g)

SPACE

HEXTECH GUNBLADE

This item is mainly for HYBRID Champions with better AP:AD ratios like Akali and Evelynn, unlike Katarina whose build must focus on building AP.
Life Steal is practically useless on Kat because later on, you're practically never auto-attacking.
The item is pretty costly early on, and the AP it offers is not substantial enough.
The only time AD will be used is when you use Sinister Steel and Death Lotus, but even then, it would be better to build full AP.
You need some AP early on, so ou could poke, last hit and harass better, but the AP this offers is quite little. This is more evident when using Bouncing Blades.
Ever since its nerf, Hextech Gunblade is not quite as viable on Kat anymore because it doesn't focus as much on AP.
It's not easy for you to be procing Reload.

+20 AP
Unique: Your
champion gains
8AP per stack,
receiving 2
stacks for a
kill or 1 stack
for an assist.
This effect can
stack 20 times;
you lose a third
of your stacks
if you die. At
20 stacks, your
champion gains 15%CDR.
Item cost:
1235g (800g)

SPACE

MEJAI'S SOULSTEALER

Ignoring the Passive, the actual item doesn't offer very much for what it costs.
You may argue that at five stacks, the thing is worth a whole lot more than it costs, but the trouble is that the stacks are very unreliable. This item is a pretty risky hit or miss, as getting a lot of kills are required. Don't be expecting to pick up an instant 10 kills just because you have a Mejai's Soulstealer.
Having this makes you a target for the enemy team, more than you already are. Before you know it, Jungler never leaves mid and you keep losing stacks. May as well buy a sign that says, "Come at me, n00bs!1on1!!!"
Dying really cripples you, and you aren't exactly durable.
It's only good for picking up kills, and trust me, if you have it, your enemies are even more not likely to grant you any.
Really, the only time this will be safe(ish) and viable is when you pick it up early on, and you are absolutely sure your enemies are really terrible, n00bs or just plain stupid.

Item Chart; TLDR

If you're too lazy to read everything,

ALWAYS BUY SIGHT WARDs

Gameplay

Why should I play Katarina in mid?

Spoiler: Click to view

Laning with Katarina

Spoiler: Click to view

Harassing

Spoiler: Click to view

Ganking

Spoiler: Click to view

Farming

Spoiler: Click to view

Combo

Spoiler: Click to view

Blue Buff

Ancient Golem
Initial spawn time: 1:55
Respawn time: 5:00
Gold: 66 (+0.332 per minute after spawn)
Experience: 260 (+2.5 per minute after spawn)
Drops:
Crest of the Ancient Golem
[aka. Blue Buff]

SPACE

Ancient Golem Camp

Contents: 1xAncient Golem & 2x Young Lizards
Importance: Slaying the Ancient Golem grants the Crest of the Ancient Golem buff to its killer.
Buff: Holder regenerates 25 flat mana regeneration per 5 seconds and 0.5% of their maximum mana per second and has 20% cooldown reduction on their abilities for 2 minutes and 30 seconds. If slain, the buff transfers to its killer, and refreshes the 2:30 of the buff.
Who Needs It? Casters with spammable spells, Mana-hungry Champions
General Roles who want it: Jungle Champions like , AP Mids like , and Supports like .

For Katarina

Blue Buff is very important,and many champions can become extremely aggressive and powerful with it because it lets them spam their spells because of the CDR and Mana Regen it offers. However, Katarina doesn't necessarily have the highest priority for this buff because she doesn't really have mana, so it doesn't maximize the effect.
See if anyone else like in your team needs it more, as Katarina is not reliant on it.
If your team is willing to give it to you though, take it because 20% CDR is a big deal for Katarina in team fights.

Try to intercept your opponent in mid lane from getting the blue buff or this can be fatal on your part. Champions like will have no hesitation to keep bursting and spamming, and this can destroy your lane. So what now?

Ask your jungler to take their blue buff, or when you face someone with a blue buff, try to ask help from your jungler to gank him and end any potential harassment with the blue buff your opponent had accquired.

Example::(This Kat's about to die! Just need to get blue buff to kill her.. Dafuq? It was stolen! Daaaann daaaanna daaaaaaaannnnnn!)

Possible Match-Ups

In every game, you'll encounter different opponents in the mid lane. I'll try to give as much tips on how to counter different types of foes.

Let's analyze the usual AP carries you'll come across.

Ahri

Difficulty:Medium

Ahri is a champion with high mobility and quite some damage. Try your best to dodge her skill-shots, which you shouldn't really have trouble with considering you have . The best way to defeat her is to try to make her use up her mana, and better yet make her waste her , cutting off her mobility. Consider her when engaging with her, especially when using . She ganks well with her kit so try to cancel this out by trailing her. Keep in mind, however, that a well-played can be very fatal.

Bladedance Katarina

Bladedance Katarina

Spells:

Ignite

Flash

Items

Ability Order

Voracity (PASSIVE)

Bouncing Blades (Q)

Preparation (W)

Shunpo (E)

Death Lotus (R)

Introduction

Katarina, the Sinister Blade

Pros / Cons

Runes

Runes

Runes

Runes

Runes

Masteries

OFFENSE TREE

DEFENSE TREE

Summary

Summoner Spells

Recommended Summoner Spells

Less Viable Summoner Spells

Skills and Skill Sequence

R < W < Q < E

#1

#2

#3

#4

R < Q < W < E

Item Build Sequence

Item Build Sequence

Final Item Build

Final Build

IONIAN BOOTS OF LUCIDITY

+80 AP +500 health Unique: Spell damage slows the target by 35% for 1.5 seconds (15% for multi-target and DOT spells). Item cost: 2900g (605g)

RYLAI'S CRYSTAL SCEPTER

WILL OF THE ANCIENTS

HEXTECH GUNBLADE

+20 AP Unique: Your champion gains 8AP per stack, receiving 2 stacks for a kill or 1 stack for an assist. This effect can stack 20 times; you lose a third of your stacks if you die. At 20 stacks, your champion gains 15%CDR. Item cost: 1235g (800g)

MEJAI'S SOULSTEALER

Item Chart; TLDR

If you're too lazy to read everything,

Gameplay

Blue Buff

Possible Match-Ups

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Scores

Frequently Asked Questions

Tips

Conclusion

League of Legends Champions:

+80 AP
+500 health
Unique: Spell damage slows
the target by
35% for 1.5
seconds (15%
for multi-target
and DOT spells).
Item cost:
2900g (605g)

+20 AP
Unique: Your
champion gains
8AP per stack,
receiving 2
stacks for a
kill or 1 stack
for an assist.
This effect can
stack 20 times;
you lose a third
of your stacks
if you die. At
20 stacks, your
champion gains 15%CDR.
Item cost:
1235g (800g)