Ah Yes, Kassawin. Basically the strongest roaming champion for mid in the game.

Let's list off some pros/cons!

Pros

+ Has an AOE Nuke with an amazing ratio/base damage + a slow. + Has a short gap closer/escape in the form of his ultimate which allows him to go from point A to B seamlessly, also does a lot of damage. + His W should not be overrated, it basically doubles his auto damage which allows him to CS under turret effectively and gives him mana. + Very flexible in his build paths and skill path. + One of the highest or the highest scaling AP Mid in the game. + Dominates Solo Queue.

Cons

- Has mana issues if used incorrectly. - Isn't strong laner until he hits 3/4, where he can start poking them down slowly and outsustain. - Hard to balance roaming/farming on him, need a good understanding of game to make use of Kassadin. - Hard to carry with - Blue buff reliant

Anyway, moving forward with the guide I'll explain everything I know about him! Please enjoy :D

(Mandatory) Always run magic pen marks, it's the only good option.

(VS AD) In the case you're vs Zed/ Riven/ Talon that only does physical damage, go for armor seals.

(VS AP) In the case you're vs a Mage, you want HP/LvL seals.

(VS AD) If you're vs an AD mid, you want AP/LvL glyphs.

(VS AP) If you're vs an AP mid, you want Flat Magic Resist glyphs.

(Mandatory) Always run AP quints.

For Offense, I find these masteries the best, you don't really need the Butcher / Feast masteries, however you can drop Double-Edged Sword for Expose Weakness , it's just preference really.

I like to go 9 points into the Defense tree as that raises his survivability by an insane amount relative to putting 9 points in the utility tree. It lets you survive lane phase easier and transition into end game, however if you choose to go 9 points into Utility you'll be gaining much needed mana regen and shorter summoner spells which are huge on Kassadin.

It's up to you what you want to do, however I prefer 9 points into the Defense tree.

(Standard) Ignite + Flash These are the standard summoners to use. Kassadin has a lot of kill pressure in lane now as his laning phase is significantly better than before. Post level 3 or 4 you start to slowly win lane as you just out sustain, and can kill. (Map pressure) Ignite + Barrier Teleport is also a viable summoner to use on Kassadin, it depends on who you're vs middle. If it's something like an Orianna you may not be able to kill her, so in lanes where you don't have kill pressure, feel free to run Teleport so you can pressure the map.

So you have 2 build options, you can either start with a Crystalline Flask and 3 pots or a Cloth Armor and 5 pots.

(Recommended) This is the most standard start as it gives you a lot of sustain, which is much needed and mana regen that you lack from the utility tree. I recommend starting this against everyone unless you're not used to Kassadin and you're facing a Riven or someone that does an insane amount of physical damage.

(VS AD) This is a viable start as it will build towards your Seeker's Armguard and gives you a lot more tankiness in the case you're vs an AD Caster mid or whatever. You will run out of mana with this build however but it does scale nicely, I just don't like it because I never have any mana to do anything with Cloth 5.

Alright, I've tried a ton of builds with Kassadin and I've seen a ton of different builds by other pros as Kassadin. Let me explain why I buy these items.

(Recommended) Rod of Ages I buy this because of the sustain it provides in lane, along with the health and mana it adds. It basically makes you super hard to kill early game, and now you're actually able to ultimate onto people without exploding.

(Recommended) Iceborn Gauntlet I buy this because of the CDR and the tankiness. Kassadin scales off CDR extremely hard relative to before, so you want to hit the cap with him.

(Recommended) Zhonya's Hourglass I buy this because you need to be able to port on top of people, otherwise you run out of mana and you need to land your E on multiple targets. It synergizes greatly with your RoA since it increases your effective health by a lot.

(VS MR) Void Staff I buy this because by the time you're able to buy this item, people will start having MR such as Negatron Cloaks or Spirit Visages and this helps you kill them.

(Late Game) Rabadon's Deathcap I buy DC 5th because by the time you get this item, you already have 3 AP items and it has great synergy with the previous items. Your damage output will be insane once you get DC.

(Boots) Ionian Boots of Lucidity I recommend Ionian Boots of Lucidity as it increases your survivability, damage and CDR. You are able to go Mercury's Treads in the case they have a ton of CC because they make you very slippery. You also have the option of getting Sorcerer's Shoes, in the case you go RoA-Hourglass-Void and skip Iceborn Gauntlet.

OR (Defensive) Guardian Angel or Banshee's Veil In the case you're vs a double AP comp and AP jungler, feel free to skip the Iceborn Gauntlet and just rush the Zhonya's Hourglass instead, and finish your build accordingly. Your last item can be a Banshee's Veil/ Guardian Angel depending on what you need.

Normally speaking, on other champions I can go in-depth on certain champion matchups and explain what you can do vs champions to win them.

HOWEVER, with Kassadin I think I'm just going to try and explain your goals in lane, as he is very linear in what he can do.

(This is all pre-6 and before you have blue buff, as the lane changes after that).

1. Ideally speaking, you want to let them push on you. Kassadin can farm under turret extremely well with his W so you don't have a hard time last hitting under turret. This also keeps you safe from ganks and you are pretty hard to dive since you have a shield.

2. In the case your lane is pushed out and you can't do anything about it, you need to ask your jungler to help you reset the wave so that you may be able to farm with either Q or at least not get zoned.

3. Do your best to survive in lane, just don't die and wait for level 6 and/or blue buff. Once you get those two things, your life became a LOT easier.

4. Keep in mind you DO want to harass them with your Q/E, don't let them poke you down for free, your goal is to OUT SUSTAIN them in lane, and if you do, that makes you win the lane even if you're even in CS. You don't have to kill them to win lane as Kassadin.

Okay, so far it seems like Kassadin has a hard time in every matchup. Which is mostly true but this does not mean he cannot win lane in the case they misplay or you have opportunities to punish them for mistakes. Here's a few things you can try and do!

1. In the case you're vs Riven or something, forcing them to use their spells and harassing them with your E will prove to do a lot more damage than people expect.

2. At level 2, if you have Q and W you're much stronger than people think. Don't be too afraid of melee champions if they start fighting you, you can win the fight depending on who you're versus. And if a ranged champion ever comes up in range, you better smack him silly.

3. In the case you have Ignite, you can try and kill your lane opponent by spamming Q/E and then Flash-autoing with W. Otherwise if you have Teleport, just look towards level 6 so you can start making plays.

With Kassadin, I don't play to try and win lane phase as it's relatively hard, you can whittle them down and poke them down, but normally they will just ask for a gank or back before you can kill them (pre 6). I look towards the mid game and post level 6 era where you've become infinitely stronger than you are the first 5 levels. By all means you can try and play Kassadin to win the early lane phase but it's extremely hard and I recommend playing safe and waiting for your power spikes. Once you hit 6 you can spam your spells on them without worry of running out of mana because of blue buff, Nether Blade and the catalyst the protector you bought.

So the cool thing about Kassadin in team fights is that, he has a very short cooldown blink! He is very mobile and get onto the enemy back line really easy.

When you're sieging you can cast Q/E and port out safely without worry of being caught, or cast random ultimates towards them and nuking their front line then running away.

You're there for the clean up, so send in your teammates first to deal damage and you'll finish off everyone! Don't jump in first unless you have Zhonya's Hourglass or they can't do anything to you. You can single-handedly win team fights in a similar fashion to Kha'Zix by waiting for enemies to get low on hp. Play it cool and be patient; look for good opportunities to jump onto their back line or priority target. Don't forget to autoattack and use W on whomever you are trying to kill.

Hey guys, thanks for reading over my guide and checking everything out!

Follow me on Twitter and like my Facebook!

Be sure to check out my other guides over at Cloud9.gg and good luck on the fields of justice!