Sona Build Guide by Gandalf010812

Change Log

Here are the changes made to this guide, dated and explained.

-May 20, 2014: Guide created with items listed.
-May 21, 2014: Guide half completed, added first half chapters.
-May 25, 2014: Guide completed.
-June 19, 2014: Guide updated with patch 4.10 and addition of Ardent Censer.
-July 3, 2014: Guide updated with patch 4.11 and addition of support item changes.
-July 15, 2014: Guide updated with patch 4.12 and addition of more support item changes.
-August 1, 2014: Guide updated with the Matchups section and the vs. Champions section.
-August 5, 2014: Guide updated with patch 4.13 and addition of more support item changes as well as Sona rework.
-August 9, 2014: Guide updated with edits and item additions.
-November 20, 2014: Guide updated with edits and general information with patch 4.20.
-November 21, 2014: New matchups added.
-March 15, 2015: New matchups added.
-May 26, 2015: Brand new guide created for Season 5.
-June 20, 2015: Video guide added.
-June 22, 2015: More matchups added.
-August 16, 2015: More matchups added.
-September 17, 2015: Iceborn Gauntlet implementation.
-March 26, 2016: Counters, masteries, items, and Season 6 update.

Upcoming: Sona match recordings to help you understand how this build is actually put to the test and how I play Sona.

Video Guide

Here is a video version of this entire written guide. This video includes information on playstyle, runes, masteries, ability explanations, matchups, counters, builds, and a general overview and analysis on playing Sona in bottom lane. I would still recommend reading over the written guide here as it is much more detailed, and would probably take less time than watching the video.

This video does not include the recent Iceborn Gauntlet implementation I have made for my guide.

Introduction

Sona is a great support champion, and in my opinion she is probably among one of the best. I’ve played pretty much every support champion in the game, and I’ve learned that picking a support really depends on your team composition. While Sona, compared to other supports, can be a game changer especially when it comes to team fights, there are times when you should not be picking her. If you have an ADC that knows how to play their role very well, early game harassment can be a huge success too.

While this guide may seem very biased (or not, not sure), the pros and cons below are still very accurate if played correctly. I play a lot of my ranked games with Sona, and apart from playing with the occasional idiots, feeders, and toxic players in the community, I did very well with her in my qualifying matches to bring me to Gold V in Season 3, and Silver V in Season 4. While this may not be anything special or anything to be proud of, please take this guide into consideration, since I do tend to end games with 0-2 deaths, over 20, 30 assists and 3-5 kills.

Now before going further into the guide, I’d first like to make one thing clear about supports. You can build a support however you’d like. The point of a support is to help the ADC get fed and get CS while keeping the team safe for the most part. With this being said, you do not need to build tank for a support. I know a lot of people will disagree with this, but if you have someone like Vi, Warwick, or Trundle who are going to build a little tanky, then build AP support. I am not sure why many people have been hating on AP support, but with Sona, it just doesn’t make sense to me for her to not be built AP. Her abilities scale off of AP for a reason, and if you really want to build tank, then play someone like Leona, who doesn’t scale off of AP, and is designed to get right in the fight, stun, and take damage. Sona is not meant to do that type of thing.

So basically, what I am trying to say is, that this build will focus around AP heavily, and you should only be playing Sona for certain situations. These situations include, if you are really good with her and can carry your ADC without a problem, you have somewhat of a tank on your team, or your team is mostly AD. If you have a balance of AD and AP in your team with no tank, then go with a more tanky support.

Hope this guide helps, and if you have any suggestions or helpful comments and feedback please leave them in the comments below.

Champion Pros & Cons and Do's & Dont's

Pros

-Amazing poke ability (her Q).
-High damage early and mid-game.
-Very effective heal early and mid-game (her W).
-Double speed boost if buying the Talisman of Ascension (her E).
-Perfect crowd control stun ultimate to annihilate an entire team (if used properly) (her R).
-All abilities support the entire team.

Cons

-Very squishy (easy to be killed).
-AP scaling isn't that great (but still decent).
-Heavily relies on getting assists to earn gold.
-Mana can decrease very quickly early game and mid-game.
-Relies heavily on mana and mana regen.
-Requires some skill with making the right decisions when to stun, when to poke, etc.


Do pick Sona when…

-Your team has someone who is going to be building a bit tanky.
-Your team is mostly AD.
-You can easily carry your ADC without a problem and have mastered this champion.
-You’re going up against a poke lane (such as Annie support).


Don’t pick Sona when…

-Your team has no tank.
-You’re going up against a tankier and sustain lane (such as Leona support).
-Your team is mostly AP.

Summoner Spells

Ignite

Flash

Exhaust

Sona

Ignite

Sona

Sona

Ignite

Flash

Sona

Heal

Sona

Teleport

Sona

Exhaust

Clarity

Barrier

Exhaust

Flash

Masteries

Wanderer

Secret Stash

Meditation

Bandit

Intelligence

Windspeaker's Blessing

Unyielding

Explorer

Insight

Runic Armor

Veteran Scars

Runic Armor

Runes

Runes
Greater Quintessence of Ability Power 3	Greater Mark of Magic Penetration 9	Greater Seal of Armor 9	Greater Glyph of Magic Resist 9

Greater Quintessence of Health

Greater Quintessence of Ability Power

Greater Mark of Magic Penetration

Greater Seal of Armor

Greater Glyph of Magic Resist

Abilities & Leveling Sequence

Sona's abilities are called auras, hence they not only affect you, but also everyone around you. This is what makes Sona such a great support because every ability affects the entire team if in range.

Now even though Sona is a support, her heal (W) is very effective until about level 7-9 at its lowest rank. Hence, this gives us plenty of time to max out our poking ability (Q) which will do massive damage. But before we get to the abilities, let's discuss Sona's passive.



Power Chord

This is Sona's passive ability. It basically is affected by her auras that you cast, specifically the one you've casted last. After 3 ability casts, Sona's next basic attack will deal damage, with an additional effect depending on the last basic ability cast. These basic abilities are her Q, W, and E. These bonus affects will be associated with each of her basic abilities. Therefore, if he last ability you casted increases damage, expect the bonus effect for your next attack to do more damage (which is what it does). The bonus effects will be explained under each separate ability, just be sure that you know when Power Chord is ready to be used so you can attack and make a wise decision rather than waste it on a minion. Remember, the bonus affect is not granted every attack, nor after every spell cast, it is granted after every third spell cast.

You'll know when Power Chord is ready when you see the passive's icon as shown below.



Here, Sona has only cast 2 abilities, hence the bonus affect on her next attack will not be granted, until she casts another ability to make it 3 spell casts.

If Power Chord is active, whatever aura color you see around your character will determine what bonus affect your next attack will have.

Power Chord

Sona

Power Chord

Sona

Power Chord

Sona

Sona

Hymn of Valor

Aria of Perseverance

Song of Celerity

Crescendo

Why No Armor and Magic Resist?

So before we actually get into the build let me explain why this build does not focus that much on armor and magic resist as many other traditional support builds do. I know a lot of people are going to say AP sucks on Sona because her scalings aren't that great. But if you think about it, what is Sona good for? Her pokes, that scale off of AP, her heals that scale off of AP, and her speed that scale off of AP.

The argument is, if you go all AP, you'll be focused and destroyed. True, but if you are a good support, and you use abilities correctly, you will snowball enough with your ADC to not even need the defense because of the high mobility. The speed boost on Sona is insane, I've escaped countless times with my ADC because of it. And even if it isn't enough you still have the active of Talisman of Ascension and Frost Queen's Claim to escape. You have to play Sona from a distance, that's why she has a poke, why her heals have a pretty decent range, and her speed has a pretty decent range too. If you can play Sona with enough range to stay safe, you don't need to worry about defense that much.

But what about ganks? You have a stun, use it. In a 3v2, use the stun, that's why it's there. Use it to escape or to get a kill or two. I will admit, Sona can be a boring support, if you like to get in the enemy's face, like with Leona, but that's because for that champion she needs to get in their face, with Sona you don't have too.

In teamfights, you are mobile enough to escape, and you should still be keeping your distance, I've gone games with 0-2 deaths where I've had over 30 assists because I've gotten so good at this champion. All of Sona's abilities scale off of AP, and they are all really good abilities. Only because the scalings aren't that amazing, they aren't amazingly terrible that you won't benefit from AP. You will benefit from it, and you will be healing for more, damaging for more, and speeding up for more.

If at any point you see yourself having trouble with one of the harder match ups, you can always begin to build Zhonya's Hourglass second, or build Seeker's Armguard early on. Defense and health items are meant for tanks, the people that go in to take all the damage, because their abilities are close range. Sona isn't a tank, her abilities aren't close range, and she is mobile enough and even giving other teammates enough mobility to escape difficult situations.

Make smart decisions, play from a distance, watch your enemies and their abilities, and protect your ADC. Sometimes you will have to die for your ADC, which is fine, but just play it smart.

Tip: Sona is a champion that requires you to pay attention. If you can do that, you will do amazing. While she may be a good starting Support if you're new, she is even more amazing if you can master her.

Build

Sona's build is pretty supportive and ability power orientated, which is probably what's best for her in my opinion. Below you'll see the items you'll want to get and some explanations. There are others ways to build Sona, but I'll explain why I didn't decide to build her in a different way.

Spellthief's Edge

Ancient Coin

Vision Ward

Health Potion

Warding Totem

Talisman of Ascension

Frost Queen's Claim

Boots of Mobility

Sightstone

Vision Ward

Warding Totem

After you’ve got the mobility aspect of the build down, we need to start building some mana so we can spam our abilities more often. Archangel's Staff is great for this, since it gives tons of mana, and it will also eventually upgrade to Seraph's Embrace which will give you a shield. Depending on who’s doing more damage to you, pick and choose which you need more, the Chalice of Harmony or Seeker's Armguard. Eventually you’ll want both though, as they both will be used to give you more armor and magic resist.

If you’re not going to build a Sightstone, make sure to also upgrade your trinket to the Greater Stealth Totem so you can ward more often.

Recently, I've also tried building Iceborn Gauntlet over Archangel's Staff. While it doesn't give us 1,000 mana when, it does give us 500, which is double what the staff gives us to start with (it still gives us AP as well). We're still able to spam efficiently with this, and top of that we can bring even more utility to the team and defense, since the armor, and the potential permaslow that can be achieved. We also get max 40% CDR from this too, and the item is cheaper as well.

Late Game

Late game you’ll want to build Athene's Unholy Grail for magic resist and Zhonya's Hourglass for armor. Both of these items give you ability power to help boost your spells, and your cooldown reduction will also be benefited from this too. Another great thing about the hourglass is that you can use the active if you ever are getting focused for some reason, hence, you could build this earlier if you’re getting focused.

End Game

The last item you’ll want to buy, is Lich Bane, if you get to a point in the game where you have that much money that is. This will give your Q a massive damage boost, and you’ll be wrecking people with your damage as it gives you a great passive and a good amount of ability power.

If your game also goes on long enough, you may want to get a bit more tanky, as everyone's going to be doing more damage. Replacing Frost Queen's Claim with Locket of the Iron Solari or Randuin's Omen is a good idea depending on whether you need more armor or magic resist.

Optional

Now this is a very good option for all supports, including Sona. In my build here, I don't built this because I am very good at managing my wards, and usually our bottom lane wins early on and ends the game rather quickly. If you are doing terrible, are getting ganked a lot, or just see a need for more wards, I highly recommend you buy this.


Very good item for heavy CC champions on the enemy team. This is a great item when laning against a Lux or a Morgana. However, if you and your ADC are dodging very well, you probably won't need to invest in this item.


If the enemy team is heavy ability power based, this is a good buy as it not only gives you magic resist but also lowers enemy's magic resist and gives you more ability power. You may also want to consider a Locket of the Iron Solari though in this case, if you're tank isn't going to buy one.


A very underrated item, but can be very useful and helpful when your team has heavy attack speed based champions such as Kalista, Master Yi, or any ADC in general. Since all your abilities are auras, all your abilities will proc the attack speed bonus on this item.


If you happen to be facing a heavy attack damage based team, this is a great item as it will basically reflect some of the damage, and give you tons of armor.


In case you need more CC, or if you need to be a bit more tanky, this item will work just fine.


If you did buy a Sightstone or a Ruby Sightstone, instead of upgrading your Warding Totem, get this, as you'll have plenty of wards already, and will be able to clear wards with this.

Many of these optional items can replace either your hourglass or holy grail depending on whether you're facing a heavy AP or heavy AD team.

Tip: Mikael's Crucible does take some time to master when using the active ability. I suggest learning and practicing how to use the item first before officially incorporating it into your build.

Laning Phase

Sona protects the ADC, and as protecting the ADC you should also be helping getting him/her the kills. As stated earlier already Hymn of Valor is a great poking ability, and that's what you're going to be doing for most of he laning phase. Try to understand the range of her Q ability so that you can stay as far away as possible and still be able to poke the without taking any damage. One technique to use is as shown in the screenshot below, to go on the outside of the minions to get a good shot and then back off again.



Another strategy is to use the bushes to come out and poke and then run back behind your ADC. It's important to note though that if bushes are warded, you will most likely have a hard time with this strategy since the enemy will anticipate your attack. When you poke it's important to make sure that you know when Power Chord is ready to be used. There will be instances when you will miss and accidentally hit a minion, even with your basic attacks. If this happens, your Power Chord goes to waste, make sure that if you have Power Chord ready to basic attack after using your Q, to ensure that you hit the enemy champion for the bonus damage, which is why Sona is also great at poking. It is suggested to take auto-attacking off in this case.

During the laning phase you will also want to ward, but this is discussed in a separate section of the guide.

This is pretty much it for the laning phase, other than poking with Hymn of Valor, make sure you use Flash in emergencies, and make sure to use Aria of Perseverance and Song of Celerity as supportive escape abilities and sustain. Use Exhaust whenever the enemy is overextended and whenever you can secure a kill.

Tip: Because of Sona having such long range, don't be afraid to secure a kill if your ADC can't reach the enemy and the enemy is running away. It's best if you secure the kill rather than let it get away because you’re afraid to steal a kill. Flash only if you are securing a kill without your ADC there, or as a way to escape tight situations, for example getting pulled by Thresh.

Warding

When and if you need to ward, with either the Sightstone, Warding Totem, or the Vision Ward, these are some of the most important places to ward.



Warding in the areas around your lane, especially around the river is crucial to survival and to avoid getting ganked without preparation. Some other great warding spots are near the dragon and near Baron. Besides that, you'll want to ward near the bushes on the outside of the lane where most people hide early game, and where Sona does some of her poking. I usually use my Vision Ward in the tribush of my lane every game, because most of the time it stays up for at least half of the game.

During late game an even mid-game still, you'll want to ward mid lane a bit too, especially during team fights. This will help a lot because many people will try to gank from there during team fights. Depending on if you're winning or losing, you'll want to ward jungles, on either side of the map, since it will give some vision especially in games where the enemy is using the jungle a lot, and lots of ganks occur.

Warding can be easy if you know where to place them, and they can even save lives, so learn when to place them and where to place them.

Tip: The difference between the wards from the Sightstone and the Vision Ward is that, if the Vision Ward does not get destroyed, it will stay active for the whole time, while the wards in the Sightstone have a time limit. Place a pink ward in a couple locations and if you notice them stay up for a good 7-10 minutes, then they are worth the buy, if not, then stick with the ordinary wards.

Team Fights

Sona can be a crucial game changer in team fights if used correctly to her max potential. However, there are several different ways to play her depending on the situation that you are in with your team. We are going to categorize team fights into 3 categories.

Having the upper hand

If your team is going strong and has an advantage over the other team, then you can play Sona a bit more offensively. You'll want to always use Song of Celerity to help your team keep up with the opposing team, and to avoid the enemy team from escaping. As your team engages have Hymn of Valor up and ready to increase damage boosts and to deal some damage as well. If you see a teammate get low on health, spam Aria of Perseverance as often as possible while in between cooldowns continuing to use Hymn of Valor. One thing to keep in mind however, is that Sona can be very squishy, so ensure that you're staying behind your team to avoid the damage. If an enemy comes after you, use Song of Celerity to escape behind a team member, or if several of them are coming after you, use Crescendo to stun them and help your team pick up the kills. If the enemy is running away, keep in mind that you do have the speed boost from Talisman of Ascension or the slow from Frost Queen’s Claim as an active ability and Song of Celerity to catch up and secure the kill.

Standing on Equal Ground

When both teams are pretty equal, Sona and her ultimate come into play here very well. A good timed Crescendo can make the difference between a win and a loss in a team fight. As soon as you enter the team fight you'll want to use Hymn of Valor to increase damage output and once most of the enemy team is in a still position, position yourself in a way that you'll be able to stun if not all then most of the enemy team with Crescendo. You'll want to use this ability early in a team fight to avoid team members from dying. After the stun, you'll want to heal up your allies if needed and use Song of Celerity and Power Chord to sow movement speed of selected enemies and to secure kills. As stated in the above, use your speed boosts when necessary to secure kills, and continue to stay behind your team to avoid damage.

Tip:Remember to use your active abilities on Zhonya's Hourglass to avoid taking damage when you are low on health, and Seraph's Embrace to shield yourself and reduce damage taken. These are great peeling techniques for your team.

Having the lower hand

When the opposing team has the upper hand and you're behind, they'll most likely engage and use their ultimates to pick up quick kills. This is why you'll want to be a lot more defensive, and use Crescendo early on in the fight to stop damage and to stop certain ultimates. This will allow your team to deal as much damage as possible with Hymn of Valor and hopefully bring the enemy team low enough to make it a fair and even fight. You'll still want to spam your heals as much as possible to keep your team alive and use the speed boosts when necessary. It's important to know when it's a good time to use speed boosts. If you use it too early and end up loosing the fight, you have no secure escape. If you are loosing the fight and you see your team backing off, use your speed boosts to help your team regroup and try again.

Tip: Crescendo is an ultimate that can interrupt many other ultimate abilities, such as ones from Katarina, Nunu, Miss Fortune and several others. Hence, it's important to look out for those champions that deal massive damage to your team with their ultimate in order to crowd control them with your stun and save your team from dying.

Ranked vs. Normal vs. Co-Op

One thing you'll see in these three different types of game modes is the need for warding, and caution. Depending on who you're playing with and who you're playing against will depend on what type of items you'll need to buy and invest gold in. While it may not be wise to assume, and while some people may not find it ideal to do so, I think it's always good to prepare yourself for what you're going up against. Hence, using the sites LoLKing and/or LoLNexus to see who you'll be facing is a great tool.

From my experiences, here's what I've mostly seen during each game mode of play.

In Ranked, you will most likely not snowball, hence Rabadon's Deathcap is out of the question. You will also a need far more wards, so a Sightstone will most likely be mandatory rather than optional. Near late game you can replace it for the Zhonya's Hourglass if necessary.

In Normal, depending on who you're playing with and against, you may not need any wards, and you can play a bit more aggressive. If matching against lower levels, they will most likely not understand the value of wards very well, hence the Sightstone and the Sweeping Lens become optional. However, you don't need to assume here, as you can simply tell if the enemy team is placing wards or not, or if their jungler is ganking or if they even have one.

In Co-Op you really won't need any of the optional items, and you probably are able to snowball. However, this doesn't mean that it's impossible to snowball in the other game modes, if you're able to do really well and are able to get tons of gold, go for the full AP build, but I've found it to be pretty rare in ranked games to build anything higher than the example build that you see above.

Matchups

Please see the section at the top of the page below the masteries and skill sequence charts to see who Sona is strong against, weak against, and how to counter each of them effectively.

Make sure to hover your mouse over the champion's picture to see the note that explains the countering details. Please also note that these matchups do not determine the outcome of a lane losing or winning. A good player can win any lane, this is simply a guide to help you and give you tips on how to play against a certain champion. If you can't achieve some of the tactics that are given as tips, it doesn't mean that the champion overpowers you, or that Sona isn't a good champion, you just need more practice.

Here is a general list of champions that Sona is generally weak and strong against. As stated before, scroll to the top of the page above the written guide to see details and tips by hovering your mouse over the champion icon.

STRONG AGAINST

Ekko
Trundle
Janna
Nunu
Lulu
Bard
Vayne
Morgana
Nami
Twitch
Ashe
Jinx
Braum
Azir
Tahm Kench
Katarina
Kalista
Jhin

WEAK AGAINST

Blitzcrank
Thresh
Leona
Miss Fortune
Taric
Draven
Nidalee
Ezreal
Caitlyn
Graves
Soraka

Summary

Thank you for reading my guide on how to build Sona. As stated in the title, this is a beginner's guide, so if this guide doesn't give you all the tips and tricks that you were hoping for, I hope it did give you a good scope into what type of champion Sona is and what her potential is.

I do main the support role, and am very good at it. I tend to play other supports such as Leona, Janna and Blitzcrank too. If you'd like to add me in-game feel free to do so, and if you have any questions feel free to ask in-game or leave them in the comments below.

Thank you, and good luck!

And remember this is your jam when you're playing bot lane support with Sona.