This being my 2nd attempt at a guide and being an avid tanker (is that a term?), I thought I'd try to tackle what I see a lot of people struggling with in a successful build with Leona. Most people are turned off by what they perceive as her lack of ability to turn out any kind of DPS. Others feel that she isn't very sustainable in lane as a pure tank...I'm here to prove both wrong.

In the guide ahead you'll learn how to utilize Leona in several different situations as well as putting together a build that will not only make you a decent tank but also support your team immensely. Enjoy!

Sunlight -Leona's damaging spells affect the target with Sunlight for 3.5 seconds. When allied champions deal damage to those targets they consume the Sunlight debuff to deal 20 / 35 / 50 / 65 / 80 / 95 / 110 / 125 / 140 additional magic damage. Leona is unable to activate the additional damage herself.

Leona marks her targets with sunlight after using an ability on them allowing her teammates to deal bonus damage. A decent support passive that can really be utilized well with some of Leona's AoE's.
Shield of Daybreak - Leona's next basic attack will deal additional magic damage and stun the target for 1.25 seconds. Cost: 45 / 50 / 55 / 60 / 65 mana. Cooldown: 12 / 11 / 10 / 9 / 8 seconds. Magic Damage: 40 / 70 / 100 / 130 / 160 (+0.3 per ability power)

While the CD may be a bit high and the damage on the low end the real use of this spell is to set enemies up with the E, Q, W combo. You latch onto them with your E which already stuns them for as long as it takes you to get to them and then hit them with Shield of Daybreak for the stun while at the same time having your W go off. This sequence marks your enemy for the bonus damage and keeps them in place for your team to gank. Shield of Daybreak with Zenith Blade is also a great way to help a teammate or even yourself escape from bad situations.
Eclipse - Leona raises her shield to gain bonus Armor and Magic Resistance for 3 seconds. When the effect ends she deals magic damage to nearby enemies and prolongs the effect for a bonus 3 seconds if any enemies are struck. Armor & Magic Resist Bonus: 30 / 40 / 50 / 60 / 70 . Magic Damage: 60 / 110 / 160 / 210 / 260 (+0.4 per ability power). Cost: 60 mana. Cooldown: 14 seconds.

Every champion has there bread and butter and this is Leona's. Not only are you gaining a decent amount of AR and MR for up to 6 seconds for the low cost of 60 mana but you are also dealing out decent damage when the shield explodes. From killing creep to marking enemies to just dealing damage this is the perfect weapon.
Zenith Blade - Leona projects a solar image of her sword, which deals magic damage to all enemies in a line. When the image fades, the last enemy champion struck will be briefly immobilized and Leona will dash to them. Cost: 60 / 65 / 70 / 75 / 80 mana. Cooldown: 13 / 12 / 11 / 10 / 9 seconds. Magic Damage: 60 / 100 / 140 / 180 / 220 (+0.4 per ability power). Range: 700

Stealing moves from Jarvan? Sort of. Zenith Blade is the backbone of Leona's combo because it has decent range and allows her to latch onto a target and stop them in their tracks while at the same time hitting them for some decent damage. The bonus to this ability is that if that pesky squishy is hiding behind another tank you can just shoot right through the tank to latch and pull yourself to the squishy damaging them both. Strong initiator with lots of potential.
Solar Flare - After a brief delay, Leona calls down a beam of solar energy dealing damage and slowing enemies by 80% for 1.5 seconds. Enemies in the center of the beam are stunned instead of slowed. AoE Range from Center: 1200. Cost: 100 / 150 / 200 mana. Cooldown: 105 / 90 / 75 seconds. Magic Damage: 150 / 250 / 350 (+0.8 per ability power).

If an ults effectiveness was based off of the coolness of their names then this would be the ultimate ult. A pretty good sized AoE that stuns people in the center, slows others caught in the radius, damages everyone and marks them with sunlight? What more could you ask for? Well, maybe a little extra base damage (I'm a whiner) but other than that this is a brilliant ult especially for late game team fights when people just mash together. Really a game changer especially with her build.

Always start off this build with a Regrowth Pendant and a Health Potion because you want to be able to stay in your lane as long as possible without having to back. With your W up and your Regrowth Pendant passively restoring lost HP you should be able to hold on awhile last hitting minions until it's time to get your Phil Stone and your boots. Personally I like to grab the Phil Stone asap to get its effects going but it's up to you. I also choose the Mercury Treads over the Ioanian Boots of Lucidity because to be honest I've never run into a situation where Leona's CDs have made or broken me. People will tell you that they are troublesome but if it ever becomes a huge problem you can always sacrifice your Abyssal Scepter for a Spirit Visage or Frozen Heart depending on the other teams comp.



I would put a Thornmail on a bagel if it was possible; I love this item that much. +100 armor and it returns 30% of the damage as magic damage to the dealer for only 2000 gold? So worth it. Thornmail is the perfect tank item if you are getting beat on by an AD carry and it couples so well with the rest of Leona's build. Because of the low cost it's a quick and powerful addition early game.




My favorite resist item over the Banshee's Veil is FoN because it adds so much for being relatively cheap. +76 resist is huge plus you get +8% movement speed (which is critical with sluggish Leona) and some amazing HP regen. +40 hp/5 sec and restores 0.35% of her max health every second coupled with the Phil stone and her already high natural hp regen. I was standing idle for a second yesterday and couldn't believe how fast my HP was shooting back up with just a few items. Like I said, for the cost, it adds so much sustainability to Leona and is a must have.



Another item I just love on tanks because it gives you that little bit of extra damage in those critical moments. And since most of the time with Leona you'll be pulling yourself to enemy champs and will be right up in their faces this is the perfect item to couple with your passive to add support damage to your carries. The +45 armor and +450 HP are also huge bonuses which just add to beefing up what is already turning out to be a strong tank.



So even if you do somehow get killed now through all your armor, mr, stuns and CC you'll just be revived on the spot. This can be critical when another combo can really turn the tides of the fight in your teams favor. Also with +68 AR and +38 MR this is another really cost effective item that adds a ton to your build.



So we come to the situational items where you have to look at how the game is going and choose from one of them to decide how to put the game away. You can go with the Abyssal Scepter for a great MR boost as well as 50+ damage to your ult. If CD is a problem, take a look at the way the other team is coming at you and build either a Spirit Visage against an AP heavy team or a Frozen Heart against an AD heavy team. The choice is yours so choose wisely.

I'm not going to spend a lot of time on runes because I feel they are more of a personal flavor rather than a set build that needs to be followed. There's so many different combinations that can work with a single champion that you just have to try a few out and see what fits the best. For me in this build with Leona the HP quints are a must for obvious reasons. MPen not so much but it helps with her damage and I always love mana regen on my champs. For Leona it helps her keep that W coming early game without having to back especially if she is solo lane.

Flash There are so many situations where flash can be useful that it's almost pointless not to take it anymore. From escaping to catching up to that low hp fleeing enemy with a stun, flash is always a good spell to keep close your side.

Ignite You're already burning people up with your Sunlight and Sunfire Cape, why not throw on some more burn with Ignite? A good all around spell that finishes off enemies and gives Leona a little fire power when she needs it. Not necessary but a good one to have.

Ghost, Heal, Exhaust, Fortify, Clarity, Cleanse....all not bad but none really that stand out above the other two. I feel about Summoner Spells the same way I feel about Runes. Choose what you want and what works best with you because everyone is different. It just depends on what secondary role you are wanting to play be it added DPS, Healer or Immobilizer.

Laning

You'll see Leona most of the time bottom lane with another champion as the front line damage absorber and all around support. This is because she plays this role really well. With her W up and her passive HP Regen in full swing she can stand in the front line and take damage while last hitting creep without much trouble. Enemies will soon realize that standing too close to her or coming up for a shot on her is a bad idea when her shield explodes and their the ones taking the damage now. She also is a great initiator when it comes time to make a move. Most games the enemy carry bottom will play a bit aggressive on Leona thinking they can slowly chip away at her hp which turns to your advantage. A step too far and you can burst in with a quick combo that paints them with sunlight and stuns them while your carry moves from behind you for the kill. Just stand tall in the lane with her and last hit your way to a phil stone and the start of the build to come.

If for some reason you are forced to solo lane instead don't fret. I've seen a lot of people saying that if Leona gets stuck solo, especially against two ranged carries, she is done for; not true. In this situation you just have to be careful and you'll be fine. Let your minions do the work, move in with your W and let its range last hit for you. Step back, let your HP regen with your pendant and repeat. Call your jungle over to gank when necessary and you should be fine.

Fighting

Leona is special because she can get to that ranged carry that is standing in the back pegging your team and really disrupt them. With her E she can use the range to pull herself in and then set up a combo that can pretty much disable them from the fight if not kill them completely. Just remember to stay in the middle of the battle and let your Thorn, Sunfire and W do their work. Stun people when you can and when the time is right drop that Solar Flare to damage, stun and slow everyone around. You want Sunlight on people as much as possible to help your team out so make sure you are always using your W when you can.

Pros

- strong tank with a lot of survivability
- great CC with stuns/slow
- good range for closing on squishes with E
- great team support

Cons

- sluggish without any + move speed
- not really that much DPS

While maybe not as flashy as some of the other tanks, Leona gets the job done when it counts and that is what matters. She is very strong when it comes to standing toe to toe with the enemy and she has the proper amount of CC and support to really aide her team in battle. The last game I played with her before writing this guide I went 7-3-35 just following these simple guidelines which goes to show you that anything you've been hearing about her coming up in certain areas is just rubbish. With the proper time invested in her and the right build she can be just as effective as any other tank in the game.

I hope you enjoyed this guide and as always I am open to any form of criticism you have to offer. I haven't been playing Leona too terribly long just yet since she just came out so I'm not claiming to be a master but I feel I've found a good balance to make her an effective selection through an entire game. Thanks for reading.