Hey guys! Just a bit of an update here: I could really use votes and feedback! Please, if you like my guide or you want me to improve it (I want to keep this guide as updated as possible), please vote and, if you don't mind, leave comments in the discussion. I'd appreciate it <3

Feel free to skip this section if you don't want to read my rambling about myself :D

Playing Dodgeball with Syndra

Hello. My name is cheztheguy I would like to welcome you to my Syndra guide. This is my first guide so don't be too harsh please ;-;
I started playing late season 2 so I'm not exactly good or anything. Let me tell you, I was pretty obsessed with Master Yi, AD style (I played him like that until around level 18-20). Then I started to try other ADC's. I played Draven and Ezreal and occasionally Master Yi as well, and my games were about at a 4:6 win loss ratio. It wasn't that good, until I thought this thought that forever changed my life in League:

I want to play one of the hardest champions to play, with a high skillcap.

Then:

I want to play Syndra.

Now, I will say that I am not a professional player, in fact I'd say I'm more of a novice player (don't you dare start looking at my match histories!). However, I can consider myself a more-than-decent Syndra player.





After this I decided to play more AP mid champs. Especially Syndra.

Syndra is possibly the easiest champion to play with the lowest skillcap in the entire game. (from Keyori)
Syndra is a high skillcap AP burst mage who likes to play dodgeball with other champions. She has the highest burst at level 6. Her AP damage burst is hilariously terrifying to almost any other champion if fed.

Syndra is a champion who's abilities allow her to put down Dark Spheres (or Dodgeballs) and throw or push them around for extra CC. A good Syndra player must keep track of her dodgeballs- *ehem*, Dark Spheres, in order to use them for Syndra's full potential and damage.

Although squishy, Syndra becomes an instant threat when she reaches level 6. Syndra's kit allows for two types of CC (slow with Force of Will and stun with Scatter the Weak). In teamfights, Syndra stays at the back of the team until she can target and stun the enemy ADC then follow up with her ultimate Unleashed Power for an easy kill.

Pros

• Incredible burst damage
• Has CC
• ^ AOE CC at that c:
• Really fun to play dodgeball with
• Sexy :3
• A good champion to invest in learning
• Not many people play Syndra nowadays so it's kind of cool to play a high skillcap champion and own at dodgeballs :D

Cons

• Three of her abilities are skillshots
• Abilities require practice aiming
• Relatively squishy
• Vulnerable to high mobility champions
• Low movement speed
• Can be shut down hard if not played right

So now that we have that cleared up, let's get started with rune and mastery pages!

Before you continue reading, this rune set is not set and stone. You can make changes depending on your playstyle, but these runes are what I used 99% of the time for Syndra.

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• x9 Greater Quintessence of Ability Power: This is essential for pretty much all AP mids. The additional 13.5 AP at the start of the game will pretty much substitute for a Doran's ring.

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• x9 Greater Mark of Magic Penetration: The counter to a counter. Magic penetration counters magic resist, which counters ability power. So it's an essential set of marks for any AP mid.

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• x9 Greater Seal of Mana Regeneration: Since Syndra is really mana hungry (or thirsty?), these seals are a must. Otherwise you wouldn't have much sustain in lane.

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• x9 Greater Glyph of Scaling Magic Resist: Scaling magic resist is better than regular magic resist because you wouldn't need all of the magic resist at the start of the game.

  ---

  Or

• x5 Greater Glyph of Scaling Magic Resist: If you feel like sacrificing some magic resist for some extra ability power, you can take five of these glyphs,
  AND:
• x4 Greater Glyph of Ability Power: An extra 4.76 AP can be worth a lot in the beginning of a game.

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Same as before, these masteries are not set and stone. You can modify these masteries to your tastes.


This is what I call "the basic AP mastery page." The offensive tree (21) is focused on the AP side rather than the AD side (obviously). The utility tree (9) grants some other bonuses that Syndra will need such as cooldown reduction for summoner spells, mana regneration, mana, and buff duration from jungle monsters.

Good Spells

Flash

This should be an obvious choice. It's a good engage and disengage and a great spell, if used correctly, to escape the grasp of a pursuing enemy champion.

Ignite

It's great for finishing off a enemy champion who barely survived your Unleashed Power by 10HP. It's also good to negate healing champs such as Nidalee so you can burst them down afterwards.

Conditional Spells

Teleport

If you feel like either Flash or Ignite aren't necessary, you can pick up Teleport for ganking other lanes.

Cleanse

It's good for laning against an enemy champion with CC-and-kill potential such as Ahri, Lux, Morgana, Viktor, Veigar and LeBlanc.

Ghost

If you don't have Flash yet, this is the proper alternative.

Unneeded Spells

Heal

You won't be needing this as you're the only one in your lane to be healed, and you should buy health potions instead. The long cooldown is also a letdown.

Barrier

Maybe if you're against an AD champ in mid lane and you're about to escape their deadly grasp but you don't know if you can make it so you toss a barrier up. Other than that, though, there's no use.

Exhaust

Your Force of Will already is a better Exhaust because it has an AOE slow. Plus it's a dodgeball.

Clairvoyance

Why?

Revive

Revive is a waste of a summoner spell, with a cooldown of eternity.

The skill sequence for Syndra is basically maxing your ultimate (whenever possible) and then focusing on maxing your Dark Sphere (Q) first. Your W, Force of Will comes after your Q for it's AOE slow and increased damage, then lastly comes your E, Scatter the Weak for it's utility.

You want to max your Dark Sphere first to gain it's 15% champion damage bonus from Transcendent, while putting a couple of points into Force of Will for that extra slow percentage and damage. Put a point into Scatter the Weak early, and max it last, just because it is usually used for utility.

If you feel like you would rather put a point into Scatter the Weak at level 2 instead of Force of Will, then by all means, go ahead! I would do this if I'm against a low mobility champion in mid lane, or if I feel pretty confident about landing lots of stuns. However, stuns are only used to deal lots of damage to an enemy, if not unleashing your entire combo while they're stunned and killing them. You won't need to have this stunning at level 2 necessarily, as slows are good enough.

If you want to invade the enemy buff, you can level Force of Will at level 1, then take Dark Sphere next. Take a Sight Ward or Vision Ward (or let someone else take one) and put it in the area of the enemy buff (so that you can see it when it spawns). You can either take the buff when it spawns and the enemy jungler (and any leashers) start attacking it, or if you're feeling lucky you can grab the buff when it's low, walk away and throw it into the river and steal the buff.

Syndra's abilities may be difficult to utilize for people who just pick her up. So, I'll briefly overview what her abilities are and what they do.

PROTIP: Dark Sphere, Force of Will and Scatter the Weak can be cast while moving.

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Transcendent

Transcendent is a really awesome passive that "buffs" your abilities when they're at max rank.
Transcendent Bonuses:

• Dark Sphere's damage against enemy champions is increased by 15%.
• Force of Will's slow duration is increased by 33%.
• Scatter the Weak's cone width is increased by 50%.
• Unleashed Power's range is increased by 75.

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Dark Sphere

Syndra casts a dark sphere on the location of your cursor that lasts for 6 seconds. It deals 70/110/150/190/230 (+60% of AP) magic damage in a small area.
Transcendent Bonus: Against champions, Dark Sphere deals 265 (+69% of AP) magic damage.

This is your main damage tool in lane. Get a group of minions low and then pop a Dark Sphere onto them. Late game, if you have enough AP, your dodgeball can one-hit minions.
Sometimes if an enemy is chasing right behind you, you can summon a sphere in front of them so that they'll walk into it when the sphere appears. This will take some getting used to but it will come in handy most of the time.

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Force of Will

First Cast: Syndra picks up targeted dark sphere, enemy minion or neutral monster.
Second Cast: Throws dark sphere, minion or monster to targeted area dealing 80/120/160/200/240 (+70% of AP), and are slowed by 25%/30%/35%/40%/45% for 1.5 seconds.
If there is nothing targeted when Force of Will is cast, a nearby Dark Sphere will be picked up instead (if there is any cast down).
Also, if you pick up a Dark Sphere, the sphere timer is reset/refreshed back to 6 seconds.
Transcendent Bonus: The duration of Force of Will's slow is increased to 2 seconds from 1.5 seconds.

Force of Will can pick up:

• a Dark Sphere
• enemy minion (including super minions)
• any neutral monster excluding Baron and Dragon
• Ancient Golem (Blue Buff)
• Lizard Elder (Red Buff)
• Summon: Tibbers
• Heimerdinger's turrets
• Malzahar's crab thingies
• Shaco's Jack In The Box
• And more stuff.

Force of Will has a variety of uses. You can use this ability to:

• Throw a conjured Dark Sphere on top of an enemy for a slow to damage them
• Throw a conjured Dark Sphere on top of a chasing enemy to slow them
• Take the enemy blue buff (ward needed) while invading to prevent the enemy jungler from a smooth jungling experience (from Keyori)
• Throw Annie's Summon: Tibbers because you're pissed
• Throw an enemy minion to kill more enemy minions
• Facecheck bushes (thrown Dark Spheres gain temporary vision at where they land)

This ability is practically dodgeball to the maximum. You pick up balls, you throw balls. You pick up minions, you throw minions. You pick up blue buff, you throw blue buff. It's a continuous cycle of picking up and throwing. However it's a useful tool to get yourself away from a chasing situation, and also to slow an enemy champion to close in on them and burst them down.

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Scatter the Weak

Deals 70/115/160/205/250 (+40% of AP) magic damage in a cone and pushes enemies back who are within the area of the cone. Additionally, any Dark Spheres within the area of the cone are knocked back in the direction relative to the sphere and cone. If any champions are hit by the Dark Spheres that are knocked back, they take 70/115/160/205/250 (+40% of AP) magic damage and are stunned for 1.5 seconds.
Transcendent Bonus: The cone width of Scatter the Weak is increased by 50%.

This is a very useful ability that Syndra possess. In fact, this ability saves lives all across Summoner's Rift! I mainly use Scatter the Weak to push conjured Dark Spheres forward to stun enemy champions. After they're stunned, I can summon another sphere on top of them for extra damage that they are unable to avoid (because they're stunned). However, if you're being chased, Scatter the Weak is a great disengage as well. If you're running away and an enemy champion is running behind you, you can summon a Dark Sphere in front or behind you (depending on how far the champion is away) and activate a Scatter the Weak to push the sphere to the enemy champion and stun them, giving you a chance to escape.

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Unleashed Power

Syndra takes each of her spheres that are currently active and throws them at the enemy, dealing 90/135/180 (+20% of AP) magic damage per sphere. The three spheres revolving around Syndra will also become active, which will deal a minimum of 270/405/540 (+60% of AP) magic damage. The damage dealt from Unleashed Power is only at minimum if no spheres cast from Dark Sphere are active at the time.
Transcendent Bonus: The range of Unleashed Power is increased by 75 units.

Oh boy, this is the ult. This is the ult. The ult that makes almost every AP mid shiver in fear once Syndra reaches the dreaded level 6, unlocking her ultimate spell that will instantly dominate any enemy with ease, no matter what.
This is somewhat true, but the more Dark Spheres you have down when you cast the ultimate, the better. You should have at least one Dark Sphere down when you cast Unleashed Power. It's great if you have two, but just remember: the more dodgeballs you have down, the better!
This ability is a targetable spell and it only targets champions. Imagine if it wasn't: you could accidentally ult a minion instead of the enemy champion. The range is relatively small until it is Transcended.
Anyway, you shouldn't cast Unleashed Power prior to dealing damage to the enemy damage with your abilities, unless you're certain that the ult itself will kill him or her (or it).

Here are some items that you should get during which phases, and items you can consider taking instead of the complete build at the top.

Start

Items you can get:


(if you will have blue buff at start)

First Recall

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Order of Complete Build

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

If there's an enemy with CC-and-kill potential such as Ahri, Lux, or Veigar, you might want to pick up these boots to avoid getting CC'd which will result in your death.

If you're against a hard hitting team with lots of AD and AP, you might want to consider getting this (and see if you can get your whole team to get it, too). The passive is extremely useful and the much needed Armor and Magic resist bonus will benefit to you and your team.

This is also very useful for CC-and-kill champions like Ahri and Lux, plus it will piss them off (+1!). The Magic Resist is useful, but you'll also be given extra mana which is cool too.

Rylai's is a very good choice of a defensive and offensive item. The health will make you last longer in team fights and can turn the tables of who wins, as the extra 500 health can let you cast more Dark Spheres and maybe another couple of Force of Wills and Scatter the Weaks. Also, for a defensive item that gives AP, 50 AP is actually quite good.

If you don't feel like getting Morellonomicon, this is a great alternative that is a bit cheaper. The magic penetration will work wonders against both carries and tanks, and the enemy will have to buy more magic resist, stopping them from getting offensive items, so that you can burst them down even more with your dodgeballs.

In this chapter, I'm going to show you the combos needed to be a pro dodgeball superstar, so this chapter would be important. I'll start off with defensive and then offensive techniques.

Defensive Techniques

->
If you're being chased, you can pull off this simple combo to give yourself more time to escape. Pulling this off is simple in itself, but can be difficult during the chase as pressure is at hand. To accomplish this, place a Dark Sphere between yourself and the enemy, or if the enemy is too close, cast the sphere in front of you, then move past the sphere. Then, aim your Scatter the Weak so that it pushes the Dark Sphere and hits the enemy champion for a stun. Watch out for enemies like Fizz though, who can become untargetable for a brief moment.

->
Contrary to the previous combo, this one is more like a "Ah, he's not gonna catch up to me but I'm just gonna throw a dodgeball to his/her face just to piss him off" combo. You can put down a Dark Sphere wherever possible, then grab the sphere with Force of Will and throw it down to the enemy (sometimes in front of him if the enemy is fast), so it slows him/her/it. This is useful when you're turning corners throughout the jungle.

-> -> ->
This combo is pretty much combining the two previous combos. It's where you cast a Dark Sphere, you pick it up and you throw it into the enemy for a slow. Then you cast another Dark Sphere between you and the enemy and cast and aim your Scatter the Weak for a stun. This one can be a bit tedious to pull off but with lots of practice you can get it down.

Offensive Techniques

Combos without Unleashed Power:

-> -> (optional)
This is pretty much the same combo before, except you're not being chased. You can put a Dark Sphere down, and then grab and throw it down to the enemy champion using Force of Will. Optionally, if you held the sphere long enough that your cooldown on Dark Sphere refreshed, you can throw it so you slow the enemy. Then, cast a Dark Sphere on top of them to deal extra damage, or sometimes, land a kill. They might try to move away when they're slowed though, so try and see where they're going so that you can aim your dodgeballs correctly.

-> ->
You're going to want to cast a Dark Sphere facing the enemy, and aim a Scatter the Weak to hit and stun the enemy champion. Once he/she/it is stunned, go up to them (if you're not in range for a Q) and pop a Dark Sphere on them.

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Combos with Unleashed Power:


-> ->
Well here it is, the first combo that includes Unleashed Power. What you want to do is cast a Dark Sphere in position for a stun using Scatter the Weak. Once you've done that, head over and diminish your enemy's health using Unleashed Power.

-> -> ->
My main combo to pull off, it usually works for taking the carries down from 100 to 0. Cast a Dark Sphere, pick it up and throw it using Force of Will so that you can aim the sphere for a Scatter the Weak stun. Once the enemy is stunned, pop another Dark Sphere on top of them, and then bombard them with your Unleashed Power.

-> -> -> ->
One hell of a combo to pull off, and you have to be quick and have cooldown reduction items on you. You'll probably be good enough if you have a Athene's Unholy Grail and Deathfire Grasp.
First, cast a Dark Sphere. This one won't be aimed for a stun, so pick it up with Force of Will and throw it at the enemy to slow them. Then, cast another Dark Sphere to line up for a stun with Scatter the Weak (if you can hit them with your sphere and then stun them with your scatter the weak, that's amazing). Once they're stunned, cast one more Dark Sphere and then hit them with your best shot (i.e. Unleashed Power).

Syndra is a very fun champion to play. However, it can be hard to have fun because you're getting killed many times by the enemy mid, especially for newcomers.
In this chapter I'm going to tell you how to play Syndra and throw your dodgeballs everywhere until they surrender.

Playing Syndra revolves around casting dodgeballs and throwing them at the enemy's face relentlessly.

Game Start / Early Game

What to Buy at Start

Syndra's strong point is in early game, so make it count. What you get at the beginning will reflect on how you do in lane, so if you have a jungler, make sure that jungler talks. If you don't have a jungler and it's duo top, make sure they both talk.

If your jungler is willing to give you blue buff (decide on this before the game starts), you will have a major advantage in lane because of your practically unlimited harass with endless Dark Spheres due to your mana regeneration. If you can take blue buff, start off with one of the following:

• x1 Doran's Ring and x2 Health Potions
• x1 Amplifying Tome and x1 Health Potion

If your jungler needs blue, you'll need some mana regeneration. You can start off with:

• x2 Faerie Charms, x2 Health Potions and x1 Mana Potion

Or, if you're against an AD champ such as Talon, pick up these instead:

• x1 Cloth Armor, x3 Health Potion and x2 Mana Potion

(You can exchange the number of health and mana potions above.)

Which Spell to Level Up

Most Syndra players will level up their Dark Sphere first, as it is their main damage and harass tool in lane. Sometimes, however, if the team is planning to invade an enemy buff, Syndra can choose to level her Force of Will first to grab and throw the enemy buff somewhere else. However, it's not usually recommended to do this because if you don't have your Dark Sphere to clear minion waves and gain experience, you won't be able to get to level 2 as quickly to level your Q.

Early Mid Lane

As Syndra, you want to harass and not be harassed. You want to get CS while denying your enemy's CS. You want to look as terrifying as possible- actually, no, that's not right...

Syndra should be a cautious yet aggressive mid laner. You should clear minion waves quickly for the gold and levels, but do not get yourself caught by the enemy. Avoid enemy jungler ganks. You know, there's a little secret on how to do this. It's in the little spoiler below, you can click it if you want:

Throughout this laning phase you should rush Athene's Unholy Grail first, to fix your mana regeneration problem. Initially to build Athene's Unholy Grail, you should take Chalice of Harmony, but if you have enough money for a Fiendish Codex, you should take that instead and get a couple of Mana Potions and/or a Null-Magic Mantle to keep yourself in lane longer.

Never waste your Scatter the Weak (i.e. to clear minions), unless you know that the lane is clear and you won't need it until after it cools down again. You want to avoid using Force of Will that often, too. Just put down a lot of Dark Spheres to harass the enemy and get farm.

Normally, I don't get Boots at all until the end of laning phase. However, that's only because I feel confident in getting away from a chase as soon as possible without Boots using a -> or -> combo to get away successfully. Really, the only times I die from a gank is because I didn't buy Sight Wards.

Once you get yourself to level 6 and you take your first point in Unleashed Power, you can decide whether you want to start engaging on your enemy or back off and keep farming for more gold. Usually if your enemy laning against you is squishy and takes a lot of damage from your Dark Sphere, it might be a good idea to start going in for a kill. Start damaging your enemy with a couple of Dark Sphere tosses with Force of Will. Once you have your enemy at 50% health, get them out with -> -> -> -> -> . GG, first blood.

Items to focus getting:
Athene's Unholy Grail
Deathfire Grasp (if possible)

Mid Game

So you're either owning or not doing so hot. If you're getting killed feel free to roam around the map for some kills. If you're dominating your lane, remember to still be cautious about your surroundings so that you won't be ambushed by Jarvan IV's Cataclysm or Kha'Zix's Leap. There are beautiful things called Sight Wards. Buy 'em. They save lives. They can save yours. even though I don't buy any, hue

When teamfights stir up, stay in the back until you can get a clear shot to burst someone down.
PROTIP: Put down a bunch of Dark Spheres in front of the enemy team, and pick them up and throw them down using Force of Will as a sphere timer reset, to have more spheres on the ground. Then use Scatter the Weak for a multiple hitting stun that can stun the entire team.

Occasionally ask for blue buff from your jungler, or if he/she/it is already roaming or in lane (and doesn't return to the jungle), just take it instead as long as you think your jungler won't get mad. When you do get blue buff, make sure you DON'T DIE. You want to keep your mana regeneration and cooldown reduction bonuses so cautious. You want to keep farming or keep getting kills, without being killed, so you can get your next items:

Items to focus getting:
Deathfire Grasp
Rabadon's Deathcap
Zhonya's Hourglass

Late Game

If you're still in the game by, I don't know, 45 minutes, and you're badly fed, as in 25 and 5 fed, then it's time for you to start taking objectives. Slay Dragon and Baron Nashor, but remember to have it Sight Warded first before you take them. You want to keep racking up kills to get more gold to buy more dodgeball items. Depending on the situation, you can get a Guardian Angel, Banshee's Veil, Morellonomicon, or any other defensive items.

Make sure to stay in the back during teamfights and don't get caught. If you somehow do, however, use your -> combo. Unleashed Power has a relatively short cooldown unlike other ultimates, so feel free to use it when you're about to burst down a squishy target.

Don't be afraid to put your dodgeballs down everywhere.

To be continued D:

Thank you so much for reading my Syndra guide! It's my first guide I've ever written on, pretty much anything. I don't think this guide will get a lot of upvotes because of the terrible-ness, but I just want to share how I play this wonderful champion to other people. Please feel free to leave feedback, I'll be thankful if you did! It'll still mean something to me if you tell me this guide is a piece of trash, because it'll tell me to never write guides anymore.

(I'm only 14 years old, but I'll take feedback like that, really.)

If you've never played Syndra before and you've just finished reading this (or any other Syndra) guide, don't expect to do godly on your first time. Syndra is a very difficult champion to play, and even harder to master, but in the end she is a very rewarding champion. Take your time, keep your calm, and keep playing dodgeball everyone! c:

-cheztheguy

My sincerest thanks to:
puricherry/cherrybutt for convincing me that I'm a good Syndra player
Myself, because I'm that lame

7/30/2013 - Fixed some formatting errors.
7/26/2013 (5 minutes after) - Fixed mastery section where I put 21/9/0
7/26/2013 - Guide published!