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Braum Build Guide by

Braum Top: The Impossible Bruiser (Patch 10.24) (Pre. WIP)

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13 Comments League of Legends Build Guide Author ifound1dollar

Braum Build Guide By Updated on

Guide Discussion (13) More Braum Guides

Runes: Standard

1 2

Precision

Lethal Tempo

Triumph

Legend: Tenacity

Coup de Grace

Resolve

Second Wind

Unflinching

Bonus:

+10% Attack Speed
+9 Adaptive (5.4 AD or 9 AP)
+6 Armor

Spells:

1 2

Standard

Flash

Teleport

Items

Starting Items

Early items

standard mythic/optional mythic

second/third item

Standard full build

Viable defensive items

Ability Order Q -> W Max

1 2

Braum Passive Ability

Champion Build Guide

INTRODUCTION

PROS/CONS

ABILITIES

RUNES

ITEMS

THANKS!

CHANGELOG

Hi! I'm ifound1dollar, a Diamond main in North America (spoiler: this isn't a guide). is a bit of a pocket pick of mine, so I decided to make a guide for him!

This is my in-depth guide to toplane . I hope you learn a thing or two!

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Pros:

+Incredibly strong Passive
+Great peel
+Heavy CC
+Surprisingly high DPS
+Catches enemies off guard

Bruiser top is much stronger than one might think, mostly thanks to his passive. It allows him to be self-sustaining in lane, and since it can be used on more than one enemy at a time, he provides a ton of CC and peel during teamfights. The reason this build is so effective, however, is because he can build Attack Speed bruiser items and still be effective. The damage this playstyle deals typically catches your opponents off guard, which gives you the upper hand when all-inning someone. Nobody expects to be 100-0'ed by .

Cons:

-Little damage early game
-Low base Health early
-Somewhat kite-able
-Weak to ranged toplaners
-Team reliant

is primarily a support, so his base stats are a bit lackluster, though they normalize as you level up. A lot of matchups, especially against ranged toplaners, are going to be a rough early, so you'll have to farm and wait for a gank. This means you'll be reliant on your team to make plays until you scale up and get items, as your damage is negligible early on. Lastly, because he's a melee champion, can be kited easily. While he has a lot of tools to CC his opponents, he still has a hard time sticking to some enemies.

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

This is the standard ability sequence for . You'll want to start off with a point in , as it's your core ability. Level 2 you should get a point in for the damage reduction, which greatly helps during trades. should be taken at level 3. should always be maxed first, as it's damage increases and cooldown decreases. You can either max second for the increased defensive stats at a lower cooldown, or for the higher % reduced damage. A point in should be taken at levels 6, 11, and 16.

Passive: Concussive Blows

Cost: None
Cooldown: 8s per target
Range: Self

Braum's basic attacks and Winter's Bite apply stacks of Concussive Blows. Once the first stack has been applied, the basic attacks of any allied champion will generate Concussive Blows stacks. Upon reaching 4 stacks, the target is stunned for 1.25/1.5/1.75 seconds and takes 16 + (10 * level) Magic Damage. After an opponent is stunned from Concussive Blows, they no longer gain stacks and instead take 14-48 bonus Magic Damage from basic attacks for the next 8 seconds.

's passive plays an important part in this playstyle. It's what allows him to be self-sustaining and able to stick to his targets, and the bonus damage is what allows the Attack Speed/bruiser build to work on him. None of 's basic abilities scale with damage, so the on-hit damage from this ability is vital.

Q: Winter's Bite

Cost: 55/60/65/70/75 Mana
Cooldown: 10/9/8/7/6s
Range: 1000

Braum propels ice from his shield that travels forward in a line, dealing 60/105/150/195/240 (+2.5% of Braum's max. Health) Magic Damage and slowing the first enemy hit by 70% that decays over 2 seconds.

is 's core ability, and his only offensive basic ability. It's what allows him to reach and stick to his targets, and allows his allies to stack on an enemy when he's not in auto attack range.

Tip: Hitting an enemy champion with will wind up (granted that you're using the rune), so try to hit your target from a distance before engaging. It'll usually result in activating right as you reach the enemy, allowing to be stacked much quicker.

W: Stand Behind Me

Cost: 40 Mana
Cooldown: 12/11/10/9/8s
Range: 650

Braum leaps to the aid of a nearby ally, positioning himself between his target and their nearest enemy champion. On arrival, the ally gains 10/14/18/22/26 (+12% bonus Armor and Magic Resist) bonus resistances and Braum gains 10/14/18/22/26 (+36% bonus Armor and Magic Resist) bonus resistances for 3 seconds.

is a very strong defensive tool, as it increases both you and your ally's Armor and Magic Resist. It's also a pretty effective way to enter/flee a fight, granted that you have an ally nearby.

Tip: can be self-casted and used on minions. This helps with self-sustaining in a solo lane, as the increased defenses can mean the difference between winning and losing a trade. Also, because it can be cast on minions, it can be an effective way to escape a gank or simply flee from your enemy laner.

E: Unbreakable

Cost: 30/35/40/45/50 Mana
Cooldown: 18/16/14/12/10s
Range: Self

Braum raises his shield, creating a barrier that intercepts all oncoming, hostile projectiles for the next 3/3.25/3.5/3.75/4 seconds.

Braum takes no damage from the first projectile he intercepts and 30/32.5/35/37.5/40% reduced damage from intercepted projectiles thereafter, and gains 10% Movement Speed for the duration.

is an incredibly useful defensive tool in any composition. There'll always be incoming projectiles, and the ability to block them is very useful (take blocking the enemy 's ult, for example). The fact that it continues to block projectiles beyond the first for a short time is an effective way to shut down the entire enemy team's comp.

Tip: In teamfights, you'll always want to hold this ability until you need to block an important projectile (like 's ult or 's headshot on a trapped target). It blocks 100% of the damage from the initial projectile, so if used at the right time, you can turn a 1000+ damage ult into nothing. Even if timed incorrectly, the projectile will still be blocked, but you'll take 30-40% of the damage instead.

R: Glacial Fissure

Cost: 100 Mana
Cooldown: 140/120/100s
Range: 1250

Braum slams his shield into the ground, dealing 150/300/450 (+60% Ability Power) Magic Damage to all enemies in a line as well as those in an X-radius area around him. The first champion hit is knocked up for 1-1.5 seconds based on distance from Braum for the first target hit in the fissure, every other target hit or within close vicinity is knocked up for 0.25 seconds.

For the next 4 seconds a field of ice remains, slowing enemies that enter the area by 40/50/60% for 0.25 seconds.

is a very high-utility ability. It can be used to engage, disengage, or simply be an obstacle. Plus, it's got decent base damage, which is important since this playstyle doesn't utilize Ability Power. While this ability isn't necessarily a vital part of 's kit, it's still a very useful tool.

Tip: has a pretty long cast time, which can sometimes make it difficult to land. Therefore, it's often a good idea to wait until you've already closed in on and stunned an enemy before using this. It'll guarantee that the ability will land, and make it harder for the enemy to flee.

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RUNE STATS

OFFENSE
+10% Attack Speed

FLEX
+9 Adaptive Force (5.4 AD)

DEFENSE
+6 Armor or +8 Magic Resist

PRIMARY TREE

PRECISION

Lethal Tempo

plays an important part in this build. It allows him to effectively DPS, as it increases attack speed by quite a lot. However, can also be a good option. You'll usually have to auto an enemy three or more times in order to proc , so it synergizes pretty well. Whether you choose or is just personal preference. While is a viable option for most bruisers, the first two options are more consistent in my opinion. is a little too passive a rune for this playstyle, so it's a not a good choice.

Triumph

is one of my favorite runes to take. It can be super clutch, being the difference between life and death in many situations. Also, the bonus 20g is a nice touch. While can be useful when building , I personally prefer . is only viable for certain champions with specific playstyles, and isn't viable.

Legend: Tenacity

Out of the 3 'Legend' options, is usually the best option for , as he's melee and kite-able. However, can also be viable option, as bonus Attack Speed always helps to DPS. might also be useful if you want extra sustain, but it takes twice as long to fully stack (20 stacks instead of 10).

Coup de Grace

is a very well-rounded, consistent option for any damage dealer, since it deals bonus damage to enemies below 40% Health. may also be useful, as it can synergize well with , but it's simply not as good as . will be mostly useless since you'll be building Health.

SECONDARY TREE

RESOLVE

Font of Life

synergizes really well with any champion that has a lot of CC. Even though isn't being played support in this situation, it's still an effective tool to support your team later in the game. isn't a great choice because it's best used in the laning phase, and you probably won't get the chance to use it in lane. is completely useless on , as he doesn't have any source of a shield.

Second Wind

is a very good sustain tool for the laning phase, especially when facing ranged champions, so it's perfect for since he has a weak early game. is also a great option if you're facing burst damage in lane rather than poke. While can sometimes be useful, it's best utilized on full tanks rather than DPS bruisers.

Unflinching

is an important rune for any bruiser, as they can all make use of Tenacity. This, when combined with , can grant quite a large chunk of it. However, can also be a good option, as you'll spend much of the early game farming and scaling. is basically useless, as you don't cast shields or heals, and only receive any if you have a shielding/healing champion on your team.

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ITEMS WIP

Attack Speed Bruiser Build:

is a staple item for many bruisers, as it's incredibly efficient. It grants 40 Attack Damage, 25% Attack Speed, and 12% Life Steal, all of which are very useful early in the game, but also has an incredible passive and active. The passive causes auto attacks to deal 8% of the enemy's current Health as bonus Physical Damage, which is a great tool for taking down enemy bruisers and tanks. The active deals 100 Magic Damage and steals 25% Movement Speed from the enemy for 3 seconds. This is immensely useful for most bruisers, as it makes it much harder for the enemy to kite.

is one of my favorite items. It grants a healthy mix of offensive and defensive stats, being 30 Attack Damage and 700 Health, but also packs a very useful passive for many bruisers. It causes auto attacks to slow enemies' Movement Speed by 40% for 1.5 seconds, making it much easier for to stick to his targets. Plus, it makes him much tankier, as it grants more Health than any other item in the game, except .

Even though is an item designed for Crit-based marksmen, it's incredibly efficient, and works really well with . It grants 30% Attack Speed, 25% Critical Strike chance, 7% Movement Speed, and two strong passives. The stats all synergize well with this playstyle since Attack Speed is the core of the build, and Crit simply increases DPS, but the passives are the most impactful part. The first increases bonus Movement Speed by another 7% on top of the 7% it already grants, and also allows you to pass through units, which makes it much easier to stick to your target. The second grants a shield that lasts for 2 seconds when reduced below 30% Health, which is useful on any champion.

Your choice of fourth item should be based on the enemy team. For example, if they're heavy AD and you're having trouble surviving, you might want to get a , or even a if you're willing to compromise for less damage. You can even pick up a if they're stacking Armor and you want to help you and your team deal more damage, or for more Health and raw damage.

Your final item, again, should be based on the enemy team's and your team's composition. For example, if your team has multiple carries who need extra peel, you should try to become a meat shield. Buy a and become a raid boss, or maybe even a to peel better. Or maybe a if your team needs healing reduction. If you're facing heavy Crit comps, you may want to buy a , or even an if they have lots of damage over time.

are the best choice with this build. They're disgustingly efficent, granting 35% Attack Speed and 45 bonus Movement Speed for a mere 1100g. They'll grant the perfect amount of Attack Speed for this build without having to spend well over 2000g and sacrificing an item slot. While or are typically a safe purchase for most bruisers, they simply aren't the best option in this situation.