Kassadin is at first glance neither squishy nor beefy- a completely average champion. But this is not so, he is actually one of the best burst champions in the game. Most people don't understand the destruction he brings to the game, thus he remains vastly underestimated. His only two counters in the game are Talon (the AD burst champion) and of course Veigar (the anti-caster).

In order for a burst champion to be effective early game, he must have the means to get the drop on another champion, and hold his own until he hits level 6, when the real burst starts to happen and the kills start rolling in. Let me get something straight- AP per level runes are for CHUMPS. When you are level 18, an extra 20 or 30 AP makes no difference if you've been owning like you should be. Starting out with 43 AP is the way to go, as you will if you follow these runes and masteries. So we give him flat AP.

Get your Q first, and hit the opponent with it ANYTIME they get in your range for good harass, the silence will prevent most from counterattacking. Be careful to keep at least 30% mana at all times in case they try to make a move on you, you can Q then E them while running back to turret. when farming, make sure to activate your W as long as you're sure they can't hurt you when you farm, that way you regen mana and can continue to harass them. Make sure to ward if they have a jungle, although once you hit level 6 you should be able to escape easily enough.

Teleport Silence Slow Basic-Attack


Kassadin's E is ready to destroy after 6 spells are used around him. Assuming you max it first, this should be your ultimate ticket to bursting. First you must memorize the range of his E, commit it to memory so you will know how close you have to be to hit them with it.

Now, once you have your ultimate, follow these specific instructions:

When your E gets it's spell counter to 4, use your R to teleport right up to the enemy and Q them to silence. As soon as you do this your E will be full, cast it on them to take away a good chunk of their health. All this should happen within 2 seconds, so the enemy has no chance to react. After this burst, hit your W and start basic attacking them until death. If they retreat, follow until you can R to keep chasing and kill them. If they retreat to a turret, then wait until you can burst again.

After getting 2 or 3 kills on your opponent, and hopefully died once or not at all, you can begin ganking. A gank every once in a while is fine, but once the enemy's first tower is down you can truly roam.

Gank whichever lane needs it, or whichever lane has a champion that must be killed. Top or bottom, just get into the brush. If you know for a fact or suspect the brush of being warded, try to take another route. If there is no other route, then wait for them to overextend. If they do that it will not matter if they see you coming or not.

As you're traveling to your enemy, activate your W as much as you can. It costs relatively low mana, and will add stacks onto your E, so you can reach 4 and then gank properly. Try to refrain from using your E on them until they run from you, it slows them a great deal. Also, never be afraid to use your flash to chase or escape an enemy, it's what it's there for. Don't EVER think your R is enough of a flash for you.

If you have Lich Bane: Use R to get close, basic attack them, THEN hit W and basic attack them. Don't waste your precious Lich Bane.

Whether you're the most fed on your team or not, people know to focus a Kass when they see one. So be sure not to get too into the middle of things, but operate close nonetheless (you ARE melee after all).

A lot of champions means a lot of abilities being used, Kass will always have his E stacks full, the only matter is how long it's on cooldown. So you want to Q the main threats (not right-click carries) so that they can't use their abilities, and E as many people as you can (it really hurts). You should have Lich Bane at this point, so feel free to W then basic attack people, it will hurt them a lot. Just remember to be safe! If you start to get focused or damaged considerably then R away from the fight.

However, use your R as little as possible, because the more you use it the more it will cost to use it again, and you want to retain enough mana to be able to escape or chase with it. Plus, it doesn't do much AOE damage to your opponents anyway.

PROS
Fantastic burst
Hard to catch
Requires little AP to hurt enemies
Can quickly travel in order to gank
Regens mana very quickly with his W

CONS
You must be aware of the map at all times
Pretty easy to kill before level 3, and slightly easy to kill before level 6
Very difficult to learn, but soon it's all reflex