(Guide is updated for 13.10 item changes and will be updated in future as well)

Hey guys, I'm Turtle. I've been masters for 2 seasons in a row now while playing at 300 ping on NA servers (due to being in India for the time being). I have also been a Leona main for a year or two and have a very good understanding of his potential. I've been able to climb to masters consistently now due to having better macro knowledge and match ups understanding. I have also been rank 6 Leona during season 11 in NA and have finally decided to make a guide to help others climb the ladder as well with this very easy to play champion because of his simple kit. He is one engage support everyone should know how to play.

I hope you find this helpful and if you have any more questions, feel free to ask in comments or come watch me stream and ask there and I will try my best to answer all questions.

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Leona is one of the simpler engage supports to pick up and very easy to play in teamfights due to all of her CC in the kit. She can provide a lot of strong crowd control engages for her team while setting up really good picks for her carries, also she can be that big damage soaker when you need to get objectives such as dragons or barons. She can also fully lockdown any singular major threat on enemy team with all of her abilities. Leona is a champion you want to pick up if you enjoy engage supports, or if you are starting out learning engage supports because the playstyle is very simple.

Pros

- Lots of CC in the kit
- Very simple champion to play and learn
- Good engage ultimate
- Good roams
- Can be played with most comps
- Can CC lock any major threat

Cons

- Falls off late game
- If you get behind, you won't be that tanky
- Can be poked out early
- No sustain
- Team reliant, needs good follow up on the CC
- One dimensional mostly, mostly played to engage, can't really get out of fight afterwards

Passive - Sunlight

Leona's damaging spells affect the target with Sunlight for 1.5 seconds. When allied champions deal damage to those targets they consume the Sunlight debuff to deal 25-144 (at levels 1-18) additional magic damage. The amount is increased every 2 levels. Leona is unable to activate the additional damage herself.


Q - Shield of Daybreak

Leona's next basic attack will have 50 bonus range, deal 10 / 35 / 60 / 85 / 110 (+30% of ability power) additional magic damage, and stun the target for 1 second.


W - Eclipse

Leona raises her shield to grant herself 8 / 12 / 16 / 20 / 24 flat damage reduction for 3 seconds. She also gains 15 / 20 / 25 / 30 / 35 (+20% of bonus Armor) bonus Armor and 15 / 20 / 25 / 30 / 35 (+20% of bonus Magic Resistance) Magic Resistance for the same duration.

When the effect ends, Leona deals 45 / 80 / 115 / 150 / 185 (+40% of ability power) magic damage to nearby enemies while prolonging the effect for a bonus 3 seconds if any enemies are struck.


E - Zenith Blade

Leona projects a solar image of her sword, which deals 50 / 90 / 130 / 170 / 210 (+40% of ability power) magic damage to all enemies in a line. When the image fades, the last enemy champion struck will be immobilized for 0.5 seconds and Leona will dash to them.


R - Solar Flare

After a brief delay, Leona calls down a beam of solar energy dealing 100 / 175 / 250 (+80% of ability power) magic damage and slowing enemies by 80% for 1.5 seconds. Enemies in the center of the beam are stunned instead of slowed.

Flash is 100% always needed. It will help you get out of bad situations and also be able to set up more picks.

Ignite is more common to take because it allows you to play very aggressively and secure kills early which can help lead to snowballs.

You always want to be playing to snowball, so aggressive summoner spells are the only thing that make sense.

Glacial Augment procs when immobilizing an enemy champion slowing them with 3 glacial rays by 30% and reducing their damage by 15% against allies excluding yourself for 3 seconds.

This is most common in the current meta for Leona due to it being great in all situations. It is very good to get picks, while also being able to peel and in teamfights the aoe of the rays can help you win due to the damage reduction.

Can run this almost always, but make sure to take this against enchanters to punish their lack of tankiness and mobility.


Aftershock makes you tanky giving 35+ armor , 35+ magic resist and 80% of your bonus resists for 2.5s.

This rune is taken more into engage supports because it will allow you to be tanky enough to fight or get out of bad situations if caught out. It also helps you engage teamfights because you will get more resistance to survive in the frontline.

Locket of the Iron Solari
Standard purchase in most games. Always try to look at what you will be shielding in teamfights, don't just press it to press it.

Evenshroud
In rare cases where there is completely 0 AoE that could be shielded by Locket of the Iron Solari, take this item. Generally a very good item that will add around 4k damage in the span of the game. Excellent choice for making sure that the priority target dies.

Radiant Virtue
This is a really strong s13 item. It's a bit more expensive than locket and evenshroud but when you aren't behind in games, I would reccommend Radiant because of how tanky you get from it and is a lot more useful in teamfights for all your allies.

Most of the time you will just want to get Locket of the Iron Solari or Evenshroud because it is cheaper but Radiant Virtue is a very strong item when you are even/ahead in the game.

Invade Potential:
At the start of the game, make sure to know if your team has enough damage to be able to invade the enemy jungle, but also make sure to check that the enemies don't have a better level 1 comp. Good invades can lead to strong starts which can help you snowball and close out your games faster. YOU DO NOT NEED TO INVADE EVERY GAME

Laning Phase
Leona has a very strong level 2 power spike which almost always guarantees a kill or a lot of summoner spells will be used. Try to prioritize getting the push in lane first to reach level 2 before the enemy bot which can get you a very strong lane prio. Remember to not force level 2 too fast otherwise the wave will be too close to their tower and they are allowed to play safely.

Sometimes the lane phase is not the best so you will have to play it a bit more passive and wait till the enemy makes a mistake. Once any mistake is noticed, then you want to punish it and take over that lane.

Your level 1 isn't the strongest unless they are walking too close and you can easily land your Q stun, but usually you will be getting poked out and just need to keep your health up until level 2.

Leona level 3 will be her best time to get leads in lane because you will have a lot off cc and also be tankier when engaging. If you don't feel confident at level 2, make sure to try to make plays at level 3.

Leona has a lot of lane presence because of her pick potential so make sure you are always a threat in lane and not being passive in situations when you shouldn't be. Play to get leads, you want to be aggressive. If you can't get the lead in the lane much, then look to roam.

Roaming
This champion was made to be able to roam and help teammates easily due to the kit being so good. You have options to help teammates get kills in other lanes, or help them away from danger, while also helping the jungler secure obejectives.

When to roam?

1. When you have just recalled and have time to help other lanes before going back bot
2. When the wave is pushed under tower or it is frozen near your tower
3. If going bot lane will not help you win 2v2, then you want to help others get a lead
4. Helping the jungler secure objectives or invade

Leona is always looking to engage due to being pretty one dimensional. You want to be using your ultimate on the most fed enemy in most cases so they are not able to carry their team. Having good vision will help lead you to getting the picks you need to win the fights.

The main concept for Leona is knowing who the main threat is so you can use your ultimate on them, and also looking for picks on anyone because of the massive amount of cc that you have in your kit.

You also want to pay attention to any engage threats they might have. This way if they engage, you are ready to stun them so they cannot get to your carries.

Her kit is one dimensional - to engage and use the cc lockdown to get leads. BUT, you also want to make sure you are helping teammates with your cc who are getting flanked/engaged on. Make sure to not just tunnel on engaging when your team can't follow.

- You pretty much do nothing at level 1, except wait for level 2. If you feel like your lvl 1 is better than their's, you can start E and go in on their AD. Standard procedure is to start Q and just sit in the bush, and if they ward it kill it with auto-Q-auto

- You generally want to all-in at level 2 (especially if you hit it first). Of course you want to consider everyone's health and minion wave size (they will do a lot of damage at early levels)

- Your Q is an auto-attack reset, so you can kill an enemy ward before it goes invisible with an auto-Q-auto

- Hitting an enemy with your W "shield explosion" will extend the duration of the bonus armor/mr by 3 seconds

- Keep in mind that if you hit multiple enemies with E, you will dash to the last enemy hit with it

- Your R gives vision around the ult area

- Sometimes it's better to use Q or E first to make sure your R hits

- R is a relatively low cooldown (90/75/60), so you can all-in with it frequently

- When fighting, try to delay each of your spellcasts so your ally can trigger as much damage as possible through your passive

- Leona's E counts as a projectile for Braum's shield and Yasuo's wind wall

- Leona is a very strong roamer, consider doing so if the situation permits it

- Leona's E dash can be cancelled by enemy abilities such as Thresh's flay and Vayne's condemn

- Try to make it so the minion wave doesn't get to their tower, as Leona is useless when they are under tower (unless you can dive them)

I hope this guide helps you learn Leona easier and really makes you feel like adding this champion to your champion pool. A very simple champion to pick up and also very impactful through the early and mid game.

I will be keeping this guide updated as any buffs/nerfs happen to her, or if there are any changes in the meta.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask in the comments or you can reach me on my streams. Come check me it out if you get the chance!

The lore is not my own, it is taken from Riot Games in case anyone was interested in reading more about him.

My twitch:
https://www.twitch.tv/turtleepic

My youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCypfw0-IW2wwDcphiTcDlwA

Thank you for reading this guide!

Among the Rakkor tribes that dwell upon Mount Targon, the sun is sacred, and none venerate it more than the Solari. Children are raised from birth to honor it, and even to shed blood for it, until its Aspect returns, heralding a grave threat they all must face.

Leona was one such child. She took to the Solari faith as naturally as breathing, finding solace and warmth within its rigid structure. This manifested through her rapid achievement of excellence, her peers envious of her capability, willpower, and devotion. None doubted she would one day become one of the Ra’Horak, the holy warriors of the Solari.

Though Leona flourished, she could not help but see her masters struggle with their most exasperating student, an orphan named Diana. Her curiosity was welcomed at first, but soon the teachers began to perceive Diana’s questions as challenging the Solari ways. Leona watched Diana suffer punishment and isolation—but where others saw insolence, she saw a lost soul devoted to a search for meaning.

Leona found her purpose in the Solari teachings, and resolved to share it with Diana as even the most dutiful teachers forsook her. The two would debate late into the night, with Leona hoping to persuade Diana that everything she could ever want was there in the faith, waiting for her to accept it. Though she failed to win Diana over, Leona did find a friend.

One night, Diana confided a secret to Leona. She spoke of discovering a hidden alcove in the mountain, an ancient place where the walls were etched with depictions of strange symbols and forgotten societies. When Diana mentioned climbing the summit of Mount Targon to learn more, Leona urged her to stop. Seeking to protect her from the ire of the other Solari, Leona made Diana promise to abandon this search. Reluctantly, Diana agreed.

Time passed, and the two never spoke of Diana’s discovery again. Leona believed her friend had finally come to her senses.

Her belief was shattered late one night, when she glimpsed Diana slipping out of the temple. While her first instinct was to tell the elders, Leona thought instead of protecting her friend, wresting her back from the edge. Resolved, Leona set off after Diana…

To the summit of Mount Targon.

The ascent was a trial unlike any Leona had ever endured, straining every fiber of her being to its limit, and beyond. Her training, willpower, and concern for Diana was all that drove her on. The unblinking eyes of bodies frozen into the mountain's slopes watched her climb, their own journeys forever incomplete, but not even they could deter her.

After what seemed an eternity—and much to her own amazement—Leona reached the peak.

Exhausted, she beheld an uncanny landscape, and found Diana engulfed in a coruscating column of silver light. Leona saw her friend’s silhouette writhing in agony, the air rippling with her screams. Horrified, Leona rushed to her aid, when a golden radiance slashed down from the heavens to envelop her.

The sensation was indescribable, but rather than incinerating Leona, the illumination coursed into her, suffusing her with incredible power. She clung to her consciousness, fighting the current seeking to sear away her very being.

Ultimately, her indomitable will triumphed—and with that control came understanding.

Leona was forever changed, imbued by the Aspect of the Sun. Destiny had selected her, and it was her duty to protect the Solari in the times to come.

It was then that Leona saw Diana, clad in gleaming silver war-plate, a strange reflection of the golden armor she discovered herself now wearing. Diana begged Leona to join her, to seek out answers the Solari could not offer. Leona demanded they return home, and present themselves for the priests’ judgment. Neither conceded, and they finally felt the weight of the weapons in their hands.

Their combat was swift, a blistering clash between sun and moon, ending with Diana’s crescent blade at Leona’s throat. But, rather than delivering the killing blow, Diana fled. Devastated, Leona descended Targon and hurried to her elders.

When she arrived, she found slaughter. Many Solari priests and their Ra’Horak guardians were dead, seemingly slain by Diana’s hand. The survivors were awed by the presence of two Aspects now in their midst, and Leona was committed to helping them navigate this new reality—the guiding light to her people, just as the sun had always been.

She has sworn to find Diana, to preserve the dominance of the Solari... but also to help her old friend control the Moon Aspect’s power before it destroys her.