Reserved

Introduction ~ An Ultimate In-Depth Guide

DISCLAIMER

Before you vote, I STRONGLY suggest you try out this guide. Yes, GUIDE, not build. This is a guide that has a build in it, but just because the cheat sheet may not look pretty doesn't mean that it's the build you will use 100% of the time. For absolutely full information, read the ENTIRE guide.

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Ahh, it's Spring 2012, and what's not better than to completely start a FRESH guide? For those who do not know, Hi, my name is CasterMaster, and this is my first guide of the official season (making it the 4th guide in total) and it's for, you guessed correctly, . Unlike any other guide, this one will BLOW YOUR MIND (in a good way), and I'll make this guide every bit to the last detail. This guide will be unlike any other you've seen me write. Now, PREPARE TO BATHE YOURSELF IN THE GLORIOUS POWER OF THE VOID.

is a melee caster-typed anti-caster, making him extremely powerful against AP carries. He's able to jump into a team fight, quickly assassinate his target, and jump out unscathed. His laning skills are mediocre, but provide that his hurts like a truck, you can usually trade damage against an enemy. He is EASILY countered in lane pre-6, but after that you should have no problem. His specialty is , being a short cool-down ultimate that offers extremely mobility, damage, juking potential, and of course, skill. is not an easy champion to play, and not even easy to master. However, this guide will make you become that pro player you've always wanted to be (and probably exceed Ocelote). So prepare to enter the void!

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I saved this best song for awesomeness only, so jump in the void!

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(Credits to TubeMastah for this video, song by Two Steps from Hell, song called "Jump!")

Why Play Kassadin and When?

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Right... Did I forget to mention this? NO. This section here will provide reasoning for why you would want to play and when to play him as well. Let's start off with WHY you would want to play :

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WHY PLAY HIM?

Arguably one of the strongest Anti-casters in the game
Short cool-down ultimate
Powerful nuking potentials mid~late game
Good skins
Null Sphere great harass/damaging tool in lane
At level 6, enemies go from fearless to crying in corner
Hard to gank
Extreme mobility
Very fun to play
He just looks so BADASS!

With that said, now we can take a look at some reasons WHEN you should play him. There are tons of times when you can play him (and if you're one of those instalockers, you can play him WHENVER), but for the sake of this guide, let's assume ranked position (and you're not trolling) =D.

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WHEN TO PLAY

You need (or want to play) a strong anti-caster
Mid lane champion required (or carry)
You have a champion on the enemy team you want to counter
Low CC on the enemy team (stuns, silences, suppresses, knock-up)

Yeah, I'm sure there are more reasons, but you can say that yourself. makes an extremely good assassin as well, so there are just so many reasons why you would play him.

Statistics

At Level 1

Health: 433 (+78 per level)
Mana: 230 (+45 per level)
AD: 52.3 (+3.9 per level)
AS: 0.64 (+0.0235 per level)
MS: 315 (365 tier 1, 385 tier 2)
Armor: 14 (+3.2 per level)
MRes: 30

These stats aren't bad at all. With a good 511 health at level 1, he can take some hits (champions that are melee have more health then ranged champions for those who do not know). Move-speed isn't a huge issue either but if you want to move faster, then take . I just don't think he needs a lot of move speed because he already has his which covers a larger distance than Flash now.

At Level 18

Health: 1837
Mana: 1040
AD: 122.5
AS: 1.063
MS: 315 (365 tier 1, 385 tier 2)
Armor: 71.6
MRes: 30

First thing you're going to notice is exactly, "How on earth is his base AD so high at level 18?". Well, the answer is that behind all the burst he does, he still has a back-up plan. If his burst fails to kill someone, then he can retort to + his AA and to finish the job easily. His health isn't bad either, but since you're an assassin, you're going to have to jump into a fight and survive. Simply put, 1837 health will NOT help you make it alive. Like I said, assassin's are very powerful, but they're also good at exiting the fight. We'll learn more about this later.

Pros / Cons and Description

Before we can simply learn and understand , we need to know his strengths and weaknesses. All champions have strengths and weaknesses. Some have more than others, while some have hardly any weaknesses its unnoticeable. However, let us not get off-track. Here are some of 's powerful pros and deathly cons:

Extremely mobile and versatile: With Riftwalk as a free low cool-down Flash, and just many ways to build him, it makes playing Kassadin fun and surprising every game!
Huge bursts and constant DPS: Using Riftwalk, Null Sphere and Force Pulse can quickly shoot an enemy's health down while providing constant DPS with Nether Blade.

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Extremely scary post-6: They could once look at you and say you are no problem. Once you hit level 6 however, it will turn your lane opponents world into a nightmare for the void...
Not extremely item dependant early game: Kassadin is not very item dependant. Late game however, he is. Luckily, with a strong early game, you'll get a good late game.

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Very weak early game: Being a melee champion, Kassadin will have a hard time farming minions without taking a lot of damage. Get a jungler to help you out.
Riftwalk's cool-down is quite high: Once you use it to get into a fight, it'll take a while before you can use it again to get out. Choose your decisions wisely!

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Requires a large amount of mana control: Manay Kassadin players are not good at controlling their mana, especially with Riftwalk stacks. You'll learn how to solve that in this guide.
Item dependant late game: Kassadin needs a good build for late game. Most of the time you won't be running the exact same build. Your item choices DO matter, don't think its just meh.

I can teach you a lot about , but most of the stuff you have to apply yourself. This is what makes up a strong player. It revolves around these key terms: COMMON SENSE, SPEED, AND SKILL. If you have these three traits (or maybe 2), then you'll become a pro player simply by reading. Otherwise, you may need to practice a bit. Remember, practice doesn't make perfect, practice makes permanent!

Rune Setup

Here is my rune page set-up for AP carries and I use it for as well. Let me explain:

Greater Mark of Insight

Pretty self explanatory here. The ONLY perfectly viable runes for casters. They're primary and give a great boost to your damage throughout the game. It may seem unnoticeable, but it'll give you a great deal of increased magic damage.

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greater seal of vitality

Greater Seal of Vitality

At level 18, it's a free that doesn't take up inventory space. Very useful and helps you take some additional hits and raise your effective health. It's especially important as you're melee and you need to escape after making your entrance.

Greater Glyph of Force

A primary rune for more damage as you level. They surpass at level 6 which makes these runes superior. I find these to be just powerful, especially when you get your , it'll make even the slightest difference.

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Greater Quintessence of Potency

Gives an amazing boost to your early game damage. It's like getting the as a starting item for damage output. Just very useful, and I find it to be fantastic for harassment.

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Marks: None
Seals: Greater Seal of Scaling Mana Regeneration, Greater Seal of Armor <<against DPS mid
Glyphs: Greater Glyph of Ability Power <<if you don't have Greater Glyph of Scaling Ability Power, Greater Glyph of Magic Resist, Greater Glyph of Scaling Magic Resist
Quints: Greater Quintessence of Health, Greater Quintessence of Movement Speed

First off, if you aren't even level 20, do not consider buying runes. It's just a waste of your Influence Points and they can be used for more important things. Those who already have a decent caster rune page can use that. There are tons of different combinations you can use but this is the best set-up that I've found. It provides a good balance between early and late game which is something you really need.

Masteries

Here is my masteries for . As there are many ways you can run masteries for him, it's usually standard to run the new 21/0/9 (especially with the season 2 masteries which GREATLY help casters). I'll quickly explain them here:

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TIER 1 ~ I decided to put 1 point to as I am taking for my masteries. Upon using I will gain +5 ap, which is better then 4 points to altogether. I put 3 points to to advance to the next tier. You could also take instead.
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TIER 2 ~ I take for cool-down reduction and to advance to the next tier.
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TIER 3 ~ After tier 2 I take and . I take them for slightly increased damage to enemies and to advance the tier.
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TIER 4 ~ I take for even more damage output per LEVEL. Then I continue to climb onwards.
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TIER 5 and 6 ~ Now I take . Why? To pretend that still gives 35% bonus AP. I finish with for massive increased damage to lower health targets as a finisher.

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TIER 1 ~ Choice is extremely preferable in this tier. If you have , then take to decrease the cool-down on it. I also take a point in , as 1 second difference for every recall could make a difference (especially if it's after a fight and you really need to get out of there). For , I take as it helps me with that bonus in mana so I can get another out or two. is also taken as it'll be really good for you if you don't die. If you do, you'll respawn much faster.
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TIER 2~3 ~ I go STRAIGHT for for the blue buff duration increase (which for , is very important). If you think you don't need , you could also take but the movement speed difference is so slight I don't think its required. You could also run a risk and take over , but I feel already has enough mana regeneration with at level 2.

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Summoner Spells

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Flash

Your get-out-of-jail card. One of my favorite summoner spells of all time, I would take this on almost ANY champion except for some special circumstances. Anyway, here are the main purposes of :

To escape the clutches of enemies and to avoid death
To set yourself up at a safe (if not safer) location away from enemies and start skill spamming
To chase enemies -.-

I mean I probably don't need to go over this skill anyways. You should know how to use it, and if you don't, read the above. It's mostly common sense. If you throw yourself into a team fight, make sure you have rfitwalk off cool-down so you can escape if the heat turns up.

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Ignite

It's your finisher spell. I usually take this spell on almost ALL casters, and why not on ?. Usually your nuke will NOT kill someone. In that case, you're going to need to wack them a few times with . Quickly kill them by putting on them to amplify your damage output. Just an amazing skill.

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Teleport

If you aren't taking and you love traveling across locations, you could also take this skill. It's very good for ganking the side lanes or finishing up enemies from a disastrous team fight. Getting this skill also encourages buying sight wards / s. An excellent skill itself and also good against heavy-harass champions like .

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Cleanse

It's as an item, but this spell also reduces the effects of the next incoming CC by a portion. If the enemy has tons of CC that prevents you from using your skills, you could take this skill (or just buy ). It's especially important on because if you in and get stunned immediately, you're done.

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Exhaust

This skill is just devastating. It can really completely disable a single target. Since that's your role and your job, you just want to finish your enemy off. It's an alright spell though I don't think you should be the one to take it.

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Ghost

If you hate because you either don't like it or you've had enough with Wall Flashing, then you could also take this spell over . Personally, DOES take a higher skill level to perfect, but sometimes you just want to move really fast. Of course, always an option, and I'm not limiting you or anything =P.

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Heal

This spell has gotten extremely popular lately. I myself just LOVE this spell, but taking it in mid lane against a champion who will most likely be an AP carry with isn't the best choice. An optional spell you can take if you want, it's good as long as the enemy team doesn't have too much healing reduction.

Skills Summary & Explanation

Void Stone

Kassadin takes 15% reduced magic damage and transforms this damage into bonus attack speed.

This is one of the reasons he's such a powerful anti-caster. His innate ability to reduce incoming magic damage by 15% and turn it into attack speed isn't bad at all. Most people only take advantage of the 15% magic damage reduction. It's extremely powerful against casters which usually deal 95% of their damage as spell damage. But what are we going to use the left over attack speed for? We can go over that later (hint: It has something to do with vs ).

Null Sphere

Kassadin fires a void bolt, dealing 80/130/180/230/280 (+0.7) magic damage and silencing the target for 1/1.4/1.8/2.2/2.6 second(s).

Cost: 70/80/90/100/110 Mana
Range: 650
Cool-Down: 9 seconds

Your bread and butter skill. It's on a relatively long cool-down, and in a team fight you basically got one shot. It DOES have some nuking potentials, but the main point of this skill is the silence that continually gets longer every time you level it up. It's also a very good skill to harass the enemy. That's why I take at level 2. It's so I can gain that mana regen to spam more 's against my lane opponent. It's also possible to completely ZONE your enemy with this skill. It just shows you how deadly it is.

Here's me firing Null Sphere against this Malzahar. Early on it's not going to deal that much damage but later on its potentials are unlocked.

The same picture as above, except MUCH later into the game. With only an extra two Doran's Ring and an Amplifying Tome, my damage went from low to moderately good.

Nether Blade

Passive: Kassadin's basic attacks draw energy from the void, restoring 8/11/14/17/20 Mana each hit. If the target is an enemy champion, the Mana restored is tripled to 24/33/42/51/60.Active: Kassadin charges his nether blade for 5 seconds causing his basic attacks to deal an additional 30/45/60/75/90 (+0.15) magic damage.

Cost: 25 Mana
Range: 1(derp)
Cool-Down: 12 seconds

A lot of people say this is a **** skill. You know I remember when this gave ARMOR PENETRATION, so I wouldn't be talking too much. Now it gives increased magic damage based on your AP (so it scales). A lot of people underestimate this skill, but its actually really strong. I dare you to get this at level 2 and walk up to your lane enemy, use the active, and hit them a few times. You'd be surprised how much damage you deal. However, I take one point in this early MAINLY for the mana regeneration I desperately need to fire more s and to attempt to zone the enemy.

Force Pulse

Kassadin draws energy from spells cast in his vicinity, gaining a charge whenever a spell is cast near him. Upon reaching 6 charges, Kassadin can use Force Pulse to deal 80/130/180/230/280 (+0.7) magic damage and slow enemies by 30/35/40/45/50% for 3 seconds in a cone in front of him.[/b]

Cost: 80 Mana
Range: 400
Cool-Down: 6 seconds

I love how this skill requires charges, and yet is on the lowest cool-down in 's kit (inb4 rank 3 ). I take this a lot later than most people do. I will explain why in a second. The main thing about this skill is it's an AoE charge BURST that slows. In low levels, this skill will deal about no damage (just like ). In fact, and do the exact same amount of damage. Take this at level 2 if you know your jungler is ganking for you. It'll help secure a kill/ by adding a slow.

This just shows how much burst you can do with Null Sphere and Force Pulse.

Riftwalk

Kassadin teleports to a nearby location dealing 60/90/120 (+0.5) magic damage to surrounding enemy units. Additionally, each subsequent Riftwalk within the next 8 seconds costs 100 additional Mana and deals 60/90/120 additional damage, stacks up to 10 times.

Cost: 100 Mana
Range: 700
Cool-Down: 7/6/5 seconds

Once you get this skill, your lane opponent should be real scared. You can pop out anytime and deal tons of damage (phreak) to them in a very fast motion. They won't have time to react because your will keep them pinned down. Anyways, back on topic. This skill has a higher teleport range than after its nerf. There are just so many ways you can use this skill that there's just no way I could describe them. Whether just for damage, juking, or escaping a dangerous situation, this skill will serve you happiness. 90% of the time you get ganked, you'll escape, and 90% of your own ganks should be successful (unless it's ).

Skills Sequence and Combos

This is how I run my about 75% of the time. Take at level 1 because there really isn't a better skill to take. I take at level 2 because let's face it. The only time you'd need to use at this early of the game is if your jungler is ganking for you (basically the 25%). If you arranged with your jungler and is going to gank mid really early, then take at level 2 instead and at level 4. You really don't need any more points in because the main thing we use it for is to regain mana and to last hit some minions at your turret that you normally wouldn't be able to get, so after maxing out , you max . Once they're both maxed out, you should be really threatening to your enemy. Obviously take whenever possible.

Now we're going to learn some combos you can pull off with . Whether it be sick or just plain simple, they're usually the ones you'll use in a game. Well, why not I show you them?

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-->-->-->-->

The standard assassin's combo. With being the lowest cool-down, use that first so that you can use it again if the combo fails. Follow with and to ensure the enemies escape is nullified. If your burst didn't kill them, then at them! Use if its available. If you have , auto-attack between each skill use to maximize damage. You could ALSO use before , but that depends on the situation.

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-->-->-->-->The Assassin's Combo

This is a very devastating combo. It's so powerful that if you fail it, the chances of you dieing are REALLY high. This is the ultimate gap closing combo that can rip your enemy into many pieces. This is mainly used:

to tower dive
to chase low-health victims (gap closing)
Surprise attacking massive burst combo

The risks are VERY high. Don't attempt this if you are not 100% sure you can kill your target (and get away alive). Sometimes, things in life aren't worth it, and this is usually one of them. However, when perfectly used and can escape without a death, this is the strongest combo you can pull off (as well as its juking and escape potentials as well).

Items

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Well, I have to say, if you survived that much of the guide, then congratulations! Hope you actually READ the whole thing as it provides a good lot of information. The exciting part just starts now! As is a caster (and if you're familiar with casters you should already know how to build him) there are a few ways you can build him. Each have their own style and can lead a game to victory. Before we get into builds, I need to tell you some items! Just stick around a bit longer:

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Boots and Pots

Pretty self explanatory here. There's really no point in explaining this because it's just the standard go. to dodge skill shots/escape ganks and s to help you sustain (especially since you're melee). Definitely the best set-up IMO.

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Amp Tone + Pot

This set-up doesn't really gear towards anything in general except early game damage. This'll help your harass but decrease your ability to sustain the lane (which is probably more important). If you have a strong ganking jungler, more damage may be needed to kill your target, so this is an option for that case. This also encourages an early .

Doran's Ring

A good amount of health, ability power and mana regen is given. However, it gives the LEAST lane sustain due to absolutely no s. Personally, I would not start this item but would build a few on my first back. If you absolutely love this item however and want to start with it, I suggest taking .

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Mana and Pots

If your lane opponent doesn't have a lot of skill shots, this may be a good option as well. This encourages either early or catalyst the protector, which is EXTREMELY important. Always a viable choice and provides decent lane sustain.

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Tier 2 Boots

Not usually an item I would get so early in the game, but it does have its usefulness. For more information, read on the boots section.

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Double Dorans

After getting some farm, you can pick up a few s. They'll add to your damage, mana regeneration and effective health. You should also pick up some s too, they don't bite. You'll start dealing a bit more damage once you get this. Always a good early game start.

catalyst the protector

Catalyst the Protector

If you're getting destroyed in lane (or want to get a quick ), then this is the item you want to get. Prior to getting , you want an early so you can charge it up faster. It's also viable to get your first before getting your tier 2 shoes or even double s. As well as this item will increase your lane sustain to the max.

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Sheen

I myself haven't thoroughly analyzed this item for early game purposes. Compared to the rest of the choices this one doesn't stand out at all. I prefer to get this mid game after completing . Then keep it around before or after to turn it into either or . It's still an ok choice though.

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Rod of Ages

An absolute must for . He needs that mana to use his ultimate more, the health as an assassin would need to survive, the lane sustain that a melee champion REALLY needs, and a moderate amount of AP for damage. Just perfect item for .

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AP Infinity Edge

May your AP be a blessing to victory. Seriously if you do not get this item you are a fail carry =( this item just boosts your damage to the maximum! I really don't think I need to explain this item because its just common sense. gives you too much damage to even explain about it. Definitely a strong choice.

Lich Bane

Gives a good addition to your AP, some mres for the casters, a moderate amount of mana, some move-speed, and the strong passive that can shred enemy health quickly. I see absolutely no reason to not get this item. Gives more purpose for as well. If you are fed you could go for instead.

Damaging Invincibility

A perfect defense item and gives a LARGE amount of AP and some decent armor. Mainly the passive is just DEVASTATING and can really save your life. Just when you want to out but its on cool-down, you can use its active to shorten your cool-downs as well. Just a really great defense item for .

Aegis of Spells

This item is definitely a must for an assassin. Even a bonus to health and mana, more magic resistance against casters, and of course, the ability to freely block an incoming spell. This'll help you get in and out more quickly with less hassle and crowd control. "As Kassadin dashes about, accidents are bound to happen. If you get hit by a stun, the chances of death are raised incredibly." Because you can't use when stunned.

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Trinity Force

My god this item is absolutely AMAZING on . The main reason I don't get this item is because it costs too much for its stats and isn't as beneficial as, lets say, . Mainly the price. However, if you're really fed and you have the money to spend, you can get this item. I suggest if you have and before 35 minutes, you're pretty much all set to build whatever. This item can replace when fed. It gives health and mana (health is not given by ), lower AP but some AD, slows on your auto-attacks and that attack speed. The attack speed bonus is the main thing I get for. It helps me attack faster and proc 's damage, thus making a less valuable skill VERY valuable. Remember, get only if really fed!

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Deathfire Grasp

If you need some CDR, this is the item you can get. Either this or . I think that deathfire's grasp is a better choice however because as an assassin, you'll be very close to the enemy (making you almost always available to use this skill]. It helps with your burst as well, removing 30% of the enemeys current health is quite a lot (especially when full health). Also getting will sometimes put you over the CDR cap if you have and blue buff.

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Guardian Angel

A very powerful defense item. In fact this could be your only defense item in the whole game (though not the wisest choice). This is basically the ultimate survival item for carries (inb4 . If you feel that you are just dieing too much, then consider this item. It'll give a great boost to your defense stats and revive you upon dieing. Makes assassination a lot easier.

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Quicksilver Sash

It's as an item, enough said. Get this if you're constantly getting hit by powerful crowd controls (ex. if the opposing team have a and/or that are going to hunt you until you are dead). If it's not a lot of CC, you can just get , but just another option. Best not to get this item too early however, as you'll lose a lot of your damage output. Just this or for these situations.

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Archangel's Staff

For the sake of you and this guide, please DO NOT GET THIS ITEM! It takes way too long to farm up (about 30~40 minutes, and isn't the best as skill spamming to achieve 30 minutes) and gives absolutely no lane sustain. You get enough damage from and mana as well, you need no more. The health from is also something that will never win at. As an assassin, you need boosted health to take damage and get out alive which is something doesn't give. It's like a glass cannon item that's worst than . I'm not saying you can't get this item, but if you do, prepare for the worst.

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Void Staff

It's +40% magic penetration. I see little reasoning on getting this item as you should be focusing the carries. If the carries REALLY have that much magical resistance you could go for a instead. If they have over 140 magic resistance (which on carries I think is very rare), then blow them up and get this item. Still very glass cannon imo and no defenses offered for an assassin. Not the best choice, but is good at the right hands.

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Rylai's Crystal Scepter

A strong item indeed, it'll make and slow (and I also believe will slow as well). For me, I just think there are more important items, You already have as a slow, and is more important for . If your team has very little crowd control, then consider this item maybe after your .

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Abyssal Scepter

A great item for . You can read more in the " vs vs later. These 3 are usually your last items of the game, and depending on what you need you get them. offers both AP and magic resistance AND top off with mres reduction aura. Just a very powerful item and I would gladly replace for it when I need more damage.

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Will of the Ancients

Not the best item for . It gives him more sustain but in a team fight, you usually are able to use all your sklils before taking a lot of damage. If best, let someone else take this item for you and your team. Otherwise, this item is viable for you to take as well.

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Damage:

,,, , , , , , , ,

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Health:

,,

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Armor:

,

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Magic Resistance:

, , , ,

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Unfortunately, very little choices in the armor section for . This means a powerful team of AD champions can really tear you down. However, is a perfect defense item for all cases (as well as that can block a physical damaging spell). Don't forget will be there to help you as always if you choose to take it. You have quite a bit of options for magic resistance (and usually you won't get more then 1 of these items) because already your will decrease incoming magic damage for you. Of course, tons of options for damage so we have no problem there. Health isn't a big issue either unless the enemy team has a , but that's nothing you can really do.

Item Explanation

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Sorcerer's Shoes

Well, for mages, these are usually the typical boots you would get. You don't need to go past tier 2 movement speed as doesn't really benefit too much from it. After all, his traveling abilities with are too much for boots to handle. And +20 magical penetration really hurts. You get 28.55 flat magic penetration with this whole setup, which puts an average champion with 30 magic resistance almost to 0. You'll be dealing essentially true damage with your spell.

Other Options: Mercury's Treads, Ionian Boots of Lucidity

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Rod of Ages

An absolute must for . Full charged, it gives 750 mana, 630 health and 80 ability power. As charges up, you'll need that mana to deal more damage. The health to make you more tankier and survive fights and skirmishes. The AP you get isn't bad at all. I even forgot to mention that it provides excellent lane sustain as it still procs catalyst the protector even once you evolved it. Just a fantastic item.

Other Options: None (this is core)

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Rabadon's Deathcap

Just like , this is pretty much core to your build. The ultimate damage item, it'll upgrade your damage by a [b[HUGE[/b] amount, and even adding an additional 1.35x amount of your current AP to your total AP. It just makes this the ultimate carry item for casters, and is your best friend.

Other Options: None (this is core)

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Lich Bane

After getting this item, you should be literally dealing tons of damage (if you weren't already). Now your has another purpose; to proc 's active and wack the enemy for more damage then you think you could've done. It already gives you a huge damage boost, and yet its going to skyrocket even more! Don't forget to mention it gives a good amount of AP, some even more mana, magical resistance for the casters, and a bonus move-speed amplifier!

Other Options: Trinity Force, Void Staff, Guardian Angel

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Zhonya's Hourglass

Gives you 100 AP (which will literally give you a lot of damage) and a fair amount of armor. It's also good to save yourself because just cause you're an assassin doesn't mean that you'll get out alive. You can use this item to also wait for cool-downs while saving you some trouble for not doing anything and taking unnecessary damage. Unnecessary damage must not be taken!

Other Options: Will of the Ancients. Rylai's Crystal Scepter

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Banshee's Veil

At this stage, you probably already have enough damage output. This is a good time to get one of the best defense items for carries in the game (including . As you get into a fight, if you get stunned it could be really troublesome. But what if you were to overcome that stun by blocking it? That'll help free your escape as well! Not to mention it also gives you more mana (more s yay!!) and health for tankiness (forgot to say it gives a moderate amount of magic resistance too), making you a dangerous anti-caster!

Other Options: Abyssal Mask, Deathfire Grasp, Quicksilver Sash

Sample Builds

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There are many ways to build this void walker. Yes I've tried MANY builds with (including DPS and tank, and never went a negative K/D with these builds either =D), but I'm just going to stick to your average AP anti-caster.

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Build 1: My standard build. Gives a good amount of resistances and damage output.
Build 2: A more offensive anti-caster build. A lot more damage dealt, but less survivability.
Build 3: A much more defensive solution, especially good against high damage enemies.
Build 4: An alternative approach. More burst, less sustain damage.

Gameplay

In this section I will cover Laning, Team Fighting, and Ganking. This'll help you against your lane opponent with neat tricks, taking easy steps to dominate your lane, succeed and perfect ganking, and focusing down the right target in a team fight. Whatever it is, it'll help you become better at 's gameplay and style. If you feel like I left something out, tell me and I may put it in the guide!

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Your early game should consist of a few things. The most important thing you need to do in your early game is GRABBING THE CS! For , this is very hard. Your lane opponent will constantly harass you and weaken your early game so that you can't get a lot of gold from killing minions, hurting your late game. Use s on your lane opponent and be wary for ganks. Grabbing at level 2 will allow you to regain mana when attacking the minions. ONLY LAST HIT THE MINIONS SO THAT YOU CAN KILL THEM AT YOUR TURRET. THIS WILL MAKE IT VERY SAFE FOR YOU AND HARD TO THE ENEMY TO SUCCESSFULLY HARASS YOU! Try to get all the CS. When warrior minions are at your turret, they usually take 3 shots to kill. At the second shot, activate and you'll be able to kill that minion. Same for caster minions, except with only 1 shot from the turret.

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This is the area where you want to fight your minions. Near the proximity of the turret, making it very safe for you and the enemy jungler unable to gank you without tower diving.

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Once you get , you can now zone your opponent. Zoning means to force your opponent to hug their turret and lose EXP and CS because they're too scared to fight you. Fire s at your lane enemy to harass them and continually regain mana through last hitting minions with . If you want you can buy a sight ward to monitor the bushes and be more certain against ganks. With in your arsenal of skills, it'll be very difficult for enemy to gank you unless they have a stun. Do as you would normally in your early game, but you can be more aggressive now with . If you're at your turret fighting minions, you can use the assassin's combo to heavily damage your enemy. Doing so can really bring down their health to about 50% (if not more). If you're zoning the enemy, you can also use the time they're at their turret to go and gank a lane (or even the enemy jungler if you know where they are).

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Here's me zoning the enemy Malzahar as he hides in the fog of war near his turret, too afraid to attempt to attack back as I'm quite farmed.

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Eventually he decides to fight back with bravery but only causes his own death as I use the assassin's combo to kill him.

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After a major fight at bottom, I come to clean up a kill against a running Caitlyn with the brick breaker combo. There was simply no escape.

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At this point, laning hardly matters (it still does). The main focus turns to dragon and baron. Keep these areas warded. Try to pick off lone enemies with your team (or if you're fed, yourself). Make sure you have an escape skill up so that you can make quick getaways if needed, unless you're doing the brick breaker combo. Otherwise, you can apply the same steps as the first one. Depending on you or your lane opponent, you may want to play even more aggressive or less aggressive depending on who's more farmed and who'll be stronger in that situation.

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For ganking, it's quite easy. You just have to either use one of the two combos and you can usually get a kill if your damage output is high enough. I'll use images to describe how a good gank should look like:

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Step 1: Get yourself (and your team) in position to set-up the gank.

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Step 2: Once step 1 is complete, follow up by Riftwalking in to lead the charge!

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Step 3: Follow up with Null Sphere and Force Pulse to ensure the enemy cannot escape for that amount of time they're silenced and slowed.

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Step 4: You've just scored a kill for your team. Success!

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For team fights, you DO NOT want to be initiating. In fact, hide behind your tanks. You do not want to die. Once the fight has started, get to the enemy AP carry as fast as possible and so that the AP carry will not be able to use skills. Kill the main focus as quickly as possible and destroy all the enemy carries FAST. If the enemy focuses you and you get low, use to furtherly corrupt the enemy team by being unable to focus you. Once the active wears out, jump out of the fight. Stick around however, for enemies that exit the fight with bare health, you can easily finish them off with the assassin's combo and that's about it! You don't have to jump into the fight immediately, just make sure the enemy AP carry doesn't get to use their skills on your team. It's best to effectively take them out AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. This way your job is fulfilled and you can switch to another target (like the AD carry or the support). If the enemy AP carry isn't a big threat but the AD carry is, then perhaps you can the AP carry and use the rest of your skills on the AD carry. This way the AD carry will suffer extreme amounts of damage while the AP carry is unable to help due to his skills being locked by your silence.

Conclusion

I spent very few days on this guide, but that's because I probably spent about 5 hours a day (and going off-task as well). However, I REALLY hope you enjoyed reading that and take these skills to the future. They'll definitely make you a better player no doubt. And that's my word. For your word, I would love to have you comment on guide. Tell me what you liked, what you didn't like. If you're going to downvote, at least give a good reason why, and try out the guide first. PLEASE, I'M WILLING TO TAKE ALL INFORMATION INTO ACCOUNT. And maybe, you could help out with this guide and make it reach the stars =) But that's all I have to say. Hope you have fun playing (and owning), and JUMP IN THE VOID!

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jhoijhoi, for the "Making a Guide" guide

Moonedge, for support and encouragement

Searzocom, for support and inviting me to join the Mobafire community

Albableat, for the epic outro banner

Reserved

Reserved

Spells:

Ignite

Flash

Ability Order

Void Stone (PASSIVE)

Null Sphere (Q)

Nether Blade (W)

Force Pulse (E)

Riftwalk (R)

Introduction ~ An Ultimate In-Depth Guide

DISCLAIMER

Why Play Kassadin and When?

Statistics

At Level 1

At Level 18

Pros / Cons and Description

Rune Setup

Masteries

Summoner Spells

Skills Summary & Explanation

Skills Sequence and Combos

Items

Item Explanation

Sample Builds

Gameplay

Conclusion

League of Legends Champions:

Reserved

Reserved

Spells:

Ignite

Flash

Ability Order

Void Stone (PASSIVE)

Null Sphere (Q)

Nether Blade (W)

Force Pulse (E)

Riftwalk (R)

Introduction ~ An Ultimate In-Depth Guide

**DISCLAIMER**

Why Play Kassadin and When?

Statistics

At Level 1

At Level 18

Pros / Cons and Description

Rune Setup

Masteries

Summoner Spells

Skills Summary & Explanation

Skills Sequence and Combos

Items

Item Explanation

Sample Builds

Gameplay

Conclusion

League of Legends Champions:

DISCLAIMER