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Kassadin; The Void Assassin
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Spells:
Teleport
Cleanse
Ability Order
Void Stone (PASSIVE)
Kassadin Passive Ability
General Information
*Rewrote and added info. for "Summoner Spells" Section
*Split "Items" Section into two, and revised my view on some items
*Added "Builds" Section
*Added "Runes" Section
*Added "Skill Breakdown" Section
*Rewrote "Gameplay" Section
I've been playing

Summary
Ideal Build:






Combo:




The runes I use for my build is very much like that of any other caster... but it works!
Greater Mark of Insight
Probably the best Marks for any caster. Extra magic penetration... what's there not to love?
Greater Seal of Clarity
Kassadin without mana is nothing more than a free kill. Mana regen is extremely important for you as it's your damage and survivability at stake.
Greater Glyph of Focus
Cooldown is imporatant for any caster and mroe for
Kassadin. Short CDR
Riftwalks are the key to escaping certain death.
Greater Quintessence of Fortitude
A bit of extra HP never hurts and is beneficial for your early game. No one likes being First Blooded in the matter of seconds.

Probably the best Marks for any caster. Extra magic penetration... what's there not to love?



Cooldown is imporatant for any caster and mroe for



A bit of extra HP never hurts and is beneficial for your early game. No one likes being First Blooded in the matter of seconds.

I cannot stress this enough,




Other Spells for Your Choosing
While I have taken


This is always a great spell to get around the map quickly and efficiently. It has many uses including: needing to recall to shop/heal, defending turrets/allies, farming large minion waves, etc. Not necessarily a must but recommended.

Not as useless as many may think. This is something not many people may expect and will make you a lot harder to kill. If you get into a sticky situation, just



This spell is generally not needed if you have



While not the most preferable spell, it could be a good First Blood tool. Though, for the most part (Mid-Late Game), you should already has enough firepower to take out your desired targets. It would be preferable to free up this slot for another spell.

A "catching-up" tool as well as a 1 vs. 1 tool. It can turn the tides in a 1 vs. 1 fight or make a difficult chase possible. Not greatly useful but does carry its advantages.

I have looked around and there are methods to baiting enemies with heal. In my opinion, it's really a waste of a slot and


You have a much better built in escape mechanism and "double-flashing" is also more effective. Not recommended.
Unmentioned Spells
Any spells that aren't mentioned aren't of great use to Kassadin, but if you feel that they fit your playing style, feel free to take them with you.
All these items as I see are absolutely mandatory for
Kassadin and shall be described below.
Mejai's Soulstealer
You might be wondering... why this before boots? Well I say it's because you will likely be calling at around level 6 for your first shopping trip. Level 6 is the beginning of your highpoint and you can easily manage to obtain a few decent stacks before laning phase is over. Keeping the stacks isn't terribly difficult either thanks to
Riftwalk.
Sorcerer's Shoes
This gives you a nice early magic penetration bonus. Great for harassing your laning opponents who have some pesky magic resistance.
Archangel's Staff
The
Tear of the Goddess component of this item is terribly important for a mana abuser like
Kassadin. You very much need the mana regen to keep mobile and dishing out damage. Getting caught without mana is basically your funeral.
Lich Bane
You want to maximize your damage output for every burst. This item will add another damaging component to your already devastating combo so your can erase more health from your enemies. (Fun Fact: Lich Bane proc. deals physical damage so remember to use
Nether Blade for better damage).


You might be wondering... why this before boots? Well I say it's because you will likely be calling at around level 6 for your first shopping trip. Level 6 is the beginning of your highpoint and you can easily manage to obtain a few decent stacks before laning phase is over. Keeping the stacks isn't terribly difficult either thanks to


This gives you a nice early magic penetration bonus. Great for harassing your laning opponents who have some pesky magic resistance.

The



You want to maximize your damage output for every burst. This item will add another damaging component to your already devastating combo so your can erase more health from your enemies. (Fun Fact: Lich Bane proc. deals physical damage so remember to use

These items can be used to fill the void in your inventory. Here are some descriptions of each listed below (items in red should be taken special note of):
Banshee's Veil
As with every other guide, I'd have to agree.
Kassadin's is very vulnerable to CC and Cleanse will not be able to deal with every one of them. If you see that the opposing team is packing heavy CC, be sure to add this crucial item into your build.
Rabadon's Deathcap
A pure AP booster item. Why not want more AP?
Void Staff
A very useful item against teams with high magic resistance. Just when they thought they saw the last of you...
Doran's Ring
For those that do not have the suggested Runes and Masteries,
Doran's Ring makes a great starting item. The extra bit of health, mana regen, and AP is very much needed.
Ionian Boots of Lucidity
An alternative to
Sorcerer's Shoes if you do not yet have
Greater Glyph of Cooldown Reduction.
Rod of Ages
While not a recommended item, this is for those newer players or those who dislike snowballing. Replace your
Mejai's Soulstealer with this if necessary. [Note: this will greatly affect your rise to power yet allowing a bit more survivability].
Abyssal Scepter
Provides you with some magic resistance, AP, and an aura debuff. A great item overall but should only be taken against low magic resistance teams (for high MR teams, see
Void Staff.
Zhonya's Hourglass
I still generally dislike this item. It roots you in place while giving you invincibility. For a mobile champion, staying in one place is never a good thing. It may save you once, but not twice.
Deathfire Grasp
A mage's only item to counter tanks. If the other team seems to tanky, grab this for good measures.
Stinger
A very situational item where both teams are pushing for victory. Cheap and gives you some CDR. Should be sold as soon as you see fit.
Elixir of Fortitude
You might wonder why a magic damaging champion might need this. Simple, it gives you an instant HP boost. It is almost like a
Heal to go but for 250g, plus it provides benefits for as long as it's active.
Elixir of Brilliance
Some extra AP and 10% CDR. What you really wnat from this is the 10% CDR since you won't be reaching 40% CDR anytime soon.
Elixir of Agility
In most cases, useless on
Kassadin. But, if your in a game where it's push to win, grab this for some extra quick pushing.
Sight WardSight Ward
Every good player's best friend. Ward their jungle, dragon and Baron. If you have
Teleport, you can easily rack up kills by messing with their jungler. They'll never see what hit them.

As with every other guide, I'd have to agree.


A pure AP booster item. Why not want more AP?

A very useful item against teams with high magic resistance. Just when they thought they saw the last of you...

For those that do not have the suggested Runes and Masteries,


An alternative to



While not a recommended item, this is for those newer players or those who dislike snowballing. Replace your


Provides you with some magic resistance, AP, and an aura debuff. A great item overall but should only be taken against low magic resistance teams (for high MR teams, see


I still generally dislike this item. It roots you in place while giving you invincibility. For a mobile champion, staying in one place is never a good thing. It may save you once, but not twice.

A mage's only item to counter tanks. If the other team seems to tanky, grab this for good measures.

A very situational item where both teams are pushing for victory. Cheap and gives you some CDR. Should be sold as soon as you see fit.
Miscellaneous Items

You might wonder why a magic damaging champion might need this. Simple, it gives you an instant HP boost. It is almost like a


Some extra AP and 10% CDR. What you really wnat from this is the 10% CDR since you won't be reaching 40% CDR anytime soon.

In most cases, useless on

Sight WardSight Ward
Every good player's best friend. Ward their jungle, dragon and Baron. If you have

This is where I'll be explaining the uses of
Kassadin's skills. This isn't a description of what each skill does as you I'd already assume you know how each skill functions.
Null Sphere
This is what you will want to max out first. While it does less damage than
Force Pulse at level 5, it is your key harassing ability [and it silences too!].
Harassing/Last Hitting
Use this to last hit minions that are out of your reach or to harass your laning opponent(s) down. Try not to spam this skill at early levels (ideally after level 3) as your mana will suffer. They key is to get them low enough to be killable at level 6 yet not low enough for them to tower hug or recall.
Interrupting/Silencing
This is where
Null Sphere truly shines. It can be used to interrupt any channeling skills (
Karthus) or to silence any of those casters before they start nuking your team (
Annie).
Nether Blade
This skill's only benefit is to provide
Kassadin with an endless supply of mana as long as there is something to attack (syncs quite nicely with
Void Stone). Use it whenever possible in order to charge your
Force Pulse. It also works well with
Lich Bane as the proc. is dealt as physical damage (no one will know!). Other than that, it isn't worth investing in until level 13.
Force Pulse
This is your highest damaging skill in AOE form and it slows! (*gasp*) The only drawback to this skill is that it requires 6 charges (6 nearby skill casts) after every use to use again. In teamfights, this isn't a problem but laning against opponents who rarely use their skills can be problematic. Save your
Force Pulse during laning for dire situations (escaping) or when going in for the kill. Later on, it can be used to farm large minion mobs. (Tip: Use your Froce pulse stacks to be aware of nearby enemies. If you gain a stack without seeing anyone use a skill, know an enemy is in your vicinity).
Riftwalk
This is the reason why
Kassadin is such a great champion. A built in Flash on low cooldown makes you mobile like no other.
Laning Phase
Once you hit level 6, start saving your
Force Pulse stacks (at least 4 stacks) while harassing them to a comfortably low health (see
Null Sphere Harassing/Last Hitting). When you feel comfortable,
Riftwalk into them, use
Null Sphere and then
Force Pulse (autoattack them a bit if they didn't die yet). This should be a guaranteed kill and 2 stacks for your
Mejai's Soulstealer. Rinse and repeat.
Escaping
At the sign of danger (where you are sure you are going to die),
Riftwalk out of there immediately even if you have to leave your allies to die. Do not stay there unless you are sure you can save them and get out alive, your stacks are important. Remember, continuous Riftwalks will lead to mana starvation in no time. Always be sure you have enough mana for at least 2 (100 + 200 = 300 mana).


This is what you will want to max out first. While it does less damage than

Harassing/Last Hitting
Use this to last hit minions that are out of your reach or to harass your laning opponent(s) down. Try not to spam this skill at early levels (ideally after level 3) as your mana will suffer. They key is to get them low enough to be killable at level 6 yet not low enough for them to tower hug or recall.
Interrupting/Silencing
This is where




This skill's only benefit is to provide





This is your highest damaging skill in AOE form and it slows! (*gasp*) The only drawback to this skill is that it requires 6 charges (6 nearby skill casts) after every use to use again. In teamfights, this isn't a problem but laning against opponents who rarely use their skills can be problematic. Save your


This is the reason why

Laning Phase
Once you hit level 6, start saving your






Escaping
At the sign of danger (where you are sure you are going to die),

Burst Combo
Before anything, you need to know

1.

2.

3.

4.

Try to





Laning Phase
This phase will generally determine the outcome of how well you perform for the rest of the game [without massive amounts of kill stealing... don't do it]. In laning, try to gain a few stacks (anywhere from 5+ is ideal) from killing your opponent(s) or getting assists (see

Teamfights
If you're entering mid-game with no stacks, try to fulfill the role of an anti-caster and just be a nuisance to the enemy casters. Please do not kill steal your allies who are **** well, they will be better off than you.
If you're entering mid-game with around 5 stacks or more, great! You have one role in teamfights, killing the enemy squishies. I've seen many



Assassinating
You're an assassin! Remember that. Use the terrain and

Chasing



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