LeBlanc Build Guide : TankBlanc - Unconventional, but nasty LeBlanc

FAQ

Let me clarify something, despite the name of this build, it is NOT meant to be a damage soaking tank. The purpose of this is to give LeBlanc the survivability that she needs to transition into late game.

Is this a troll build?

No, this is not a troll build. Please take the time to read through and don't simply down vote because you have your own build or don't like mine. Give it a try, post screenshots of your results.

Why on earth would you build LeBlanc tanky?

No matter what anyone tells you, LeBlanc does fall off late game. Yes, you probably will win mid but in team fights later in the game, you aren't going to be much help. Building a straight burst/glass cannon will make you a waste of a champion as you aren't an AP carry (and cannot be) and you will die WAY to quickly. By building tanky, you will be able to take advantage of your CC and be of use in team fights. You can soak up some damage, as the other team will most likely focus you BECAUSE you are LeBlanc, while your AD and AP carries take them out. LeBlanc can still deal out some nasty damage without straight AP items, especially with a full Mejai's.

Mejai's?...Warmogs?...

I'll give my reasoning in the item section. Despite that I name my build TankBlanc, I don't really mean a full on tank. I just mean to give her some survivability so you aren't a glass cannon. And it sounds cool ^.^

Will this work in ranked?

I dunno, why don't you try it out and post some results?

Pros & Cons

Summoner Spells

Best Choices

These are pretty standard for LeBlanc and I see no reason to change them.

gives you an additional blink, allowing you to triple blink with your a W-R-D combo. Absolutely amazing mobility, there is no reason anyone should be able to catch you, especially once you get your . Make sure not to use your when you can use your W or R instead, 3 minutes is a long time to wait compared to < 20 seconds.

allows you to finish off that enemy champion who seemingly escapes with < 100 HP left. Standard for mids but perhaps unnecessary for LeBlanc considering that her burst should be able to take out most APs early game, even without items. I still take it because of the healing deduction and true damage. Often, I pop it on the opposing mid when they're using their HP pots, reducing the health they regen, as well as making them think I'm an idiot wasting ignite. They then get cocky and then I one shot them.

Possible Substitutes

if you really don't know how to smartcast. It becomes useless late game though, when you no longer have mana problems. Instead of wasting a summoner spell on this if you're having mana problems, you could take 3 points in or grab a //. However, buying an item for MP5 is going to slow your Mejai's which you need to build ASAP.

good on most champions, removing CC is always helpful. With a glass cannon LeBlanc, it's more necessary than it is on TankBlanc since a glass cannon's mortal enemy is CC. TankBlanc is less susceptible with Mercury Treads, , and a pool of HP from

is nice for getting back to your lane quick but since you will be midding as LeBlanc, it really isn't necessary. It can be helpful if you push your lane quickly and top or bottom needs help at turret, giving you an easy kill from an underleveled, overeager lane pusher.

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Runes

Recommended Runes

x9 x9 - MPen means more damage early game. More damage early game means more kills. More kills early game means more stacks on your Mejai's. Definitely a must.

x9 - I personally like the MR these give early game. Some mid champions *cough* *cough* will really screw you up if you get caught in their burst. These will help you take a less damage as most mids are going to be APs. Once you get your Mercury Treads, you'll have enough MR to take a burst from even another fed .

x3 - 15 free AP right from the get go is awesome. Combined with the MPen, you'll be hitting quite hard, perfect for getting some early kills.

Other Possibilities

Greater Glyph of Replenishment

/ - More flat AP = more damage. You sacrifice MPen though so if you get a mid that has MR runes, you might be in trouble.

Greater Glyph of Replenishment - Only if you have mana problems. Really, instead of wasting runes you could be using for MPen, AP, or MR, you should just learn to smartcast.

/ - Might be a better choice against a strong AP mid. More MR is less damage, nothing wrong with that.

- Even more MPen. I take AP quints instead though, I feel I get more bang for my buck with them.

- More move speed is awesome. The faster your champion moves, the easier it is to dodge skillshots. Most AP mids you'll face have 1 or more skillshot so these will make it harder for them to land a full burst on you. I'd definitely take these against a or (DEM BINDS!).

Masteries

I take pretty typical masteries for an AP mid with a few modifications.

Offensive Masteries

will give you a boost on , 5 extra AP and AD when it is on cooldown. Always a good thing, especially if you use it as I suggested, when they are using a potion. This gives you more AP and AD for last hitting and harassing.

I take full points in and to allow me to last hit easier as well as counter LeBlanc's low base AD. The 3 points you get towards your auto attack will help with harassing without wasting mana.

will also help counter your low base AD and take out the turret faster.

I don't take any points in because the 4 AP you get are not worth it in comparison to the AD you get from . Minion farm is much more important than ~2 more damage on your abilities.

because CD allows you to spam your abilities a bit more.

gives even more MPen in addition to the runes.

, the AP per level is nice but we really just take it so we can get to and .

is awesome for LeBlanc in this build. With a fully stacked and a , you'll be getting a good chunk more AP.

is a must for every AP champ. % increase damage against low champions will help you since your damage output isn't as high as a glass cannon build.

Utility Masteries

There is a bit more flexibility in this tree.

will give you 15 seconds less on your CD. Nothing more to it.

I take and over and because the mana you get from is not worth it. Early to late, it's insignificant. on the other hand is quite useful but the move speed gives you is better. It allows you to dodge skillshots and move around the map quicker. If you have mana problems, take and . is a must because you're going to need the blue buff as long as you can so you can spam your spells.

Items

Starting Items

I take an and over and x3 simply because it slows down your , a core item. The gives a good AP boost and the gives a bit of sustain. You can do without the boots because of the mastery.

Alternative Starting Items

x3

Gives you better mobility and more sustain but slows down your . I don't generally start with these items because I rush and as long as you play conservatively, you'll be fine.

This is a great starting item but slows down your entire build. Only take it if you need the MP5 and a bit of HP.

Core Items

I'm sure many of you are unhappy with all three of these items. However, I'll explain why each is necessary to this build.

is the single most important item you'll buy with TankBlanc. You want to rush this as fast as you can, buy it on your first B. We get a because LeBlanc is so good early game. You should be able to get 2 or 3 kills off the mid before laning phase ends or you win your tower. The AP gives you is extremely necessary because it's cheap and getting stacks is very easy. Now, you must be asking why you'd want this, the enemy team will simply focus you to get rid of your stacks. This isn't a problem, luckily, as I will explain.

Early game you will be fine, you have such a high burst and will snowball a bit without any AP items besides the . Once team fights start breaking out, you should have started or even finished building your . This will give you the survivability to give yourself time to escape if you get focused in a team fight. Your mobility with , , and should make it a breeze to escape.

Now to the second controversial item, . Many consider it junk, a terrible item. However, it gives TankBlanc great survivability for an awesome price. For only 3000, you'll have close to 2x the HP of most of the AP carries and other major damage dealers early game. HP early is essentially a cheap MR and Armor combined into one.

Lastly, . Another cheap item, only 2600. For that price, it gives you a good chunk of MR and Armor with an amazing passive that works amazing with LeBlanc. After respawning with the passive, simply away, run for a few seconds, back to your death point, and then the opposite direction. if necessary.

An awesome example:

[Will add video, fraps won't record for some reason atm]

Finishing your build

Depending on the game and who you're facing, you'll want to build different items near endgame.

I generally always grab a after I finish my to augment my . However, if I'm facing an AP heavy team, I'll grab a for MR, AP, and it's passive. Another option against a team with lots of single target CC would be a .

A would be appropriate if you need more mana but you'd probably want to grab it as your 5th item instead of a .

If your team doesn't have a dedicated tank, you should probably grab a against an AD heavy team. Mana, Armor, and Aura are all good for you.

Abilities

Sigil of Silence

Sigil of Silence is your bread and butter. Not only does it do a lot of single target damage, it enables your next ability to proc extra damage and silence the target. I max this first for lots of damage. While in lane, poke with this and if they don't back off, right on top of them, procing and silencing your opponent. back before they can counter. Comboing this with your will do the most damage out of all your abilities.

is great for mobility and proccing your Sigil of Silence. I take it second for easy harass in lane as well as moderate AOE damage. You can use this over walls as a built in . When used in tandem with , you can have up to a triple blink if combined with . When escaping from a group of enemies, a great strategy is to run into a bush, out of it, into the open, and run for a second or two before reactivating , blinking you back into the bush, out of the enemies' vision. You can check and with it by over the wall and quick reactivate to prevent yourself from being killed.

is primarily useful for its CC. Depending on who I'm laning against, I'll either take this on level 3 or 4. On hit, it slows the opponent and if kept chained, it will bind the enemy for a few seconds. This is quite useful for facechecking bushes, just throw your chain into the bush and if it latches to something, stay away! It's important to note, however, that the chain does not follow champions it cannot see, if you chain someone in the bush and they run to the side, the chain will stay latched to their original position until you either run into the bush or they run out of its range. What's often useful in a team fight is to double chain, first throw in your and then after it finishes, throw in your .

is an awesome ultimate. Not only does it decrease in mana cost every time it's leveled, it does extreme damage and can be utilized in many different ways depending on which skill you chain it to. I primarily try to use it with Sigil of Silence for maximum damage output.

Combos

The order you use your abilities with LeBlanc is different depending on what situation you are in. I'll go through a few of the common ones.

Early in laning phase poking without a chance of retaliation:
Sigil of Silence

Early in laning phase poking to proc your Sigil:
Sigil of Silence

Early in laning phase to get the kill:
Sigil of Silence

Double chain:

Escape:

High damage poke: (Have your last spell cast as Sigil of Silence)
Sigil of Silence

Most damage: (Have your last spell cast as Sigil of Silence)
Sigil of Silence

Gameplay

Early Laning

This is where you will shine. Don't be afraid to poke the other mid using whatever combo will work best with the situation. Be aware though, CS is more important than harass.

Remember, 18 CS ~ 1 champion kill

If you have the choice between a creep kill and harass, get the creep. However, if you know that you can get a kill, 100% sure, go in and take them out. Stacks on your are ESSENTIAL to mid and late game as they are your main source of AP.

After you kill your laning opponent, be sure to gank top and bottom lanes. You have great mobility and should be able to get a kill or two on an overextended opponent. Be sure to let your AD carry take a kill if they are available, they'll be the one carrying you late game. You still will get a stack on your for an assist.

Mid Game

This begins when team fights start breaking out. By now you will probably have your , Mercury Treads, and built with around 8-10 stacks on your . Don't be too aggressive until you get your because without MR or Armor, you can still be taken down quickly if you get focused. Make sure to roam the map, you should have mid tower down and be able to help teammates wherever needed.

Late Game

This is where you shine compared to glass cannon LeBlanc. You should have your core items built and hopefully started or finished your 5th. You probably will have 18-20 stacks on your unless you've played too aggressively and died unnecessarily.

Right before a large team fight, you can initiate it by using into their team and quick recasting it to get out. Usually, their AD carry or an off-tank will jump at the chance to get an easy kill and run out at you. Now since they are outside of safety, your team should be able to kill them easily and start the fight.

With a fully stacked and a , you should be able to do some good damage to the other team, still capable of near one-shotting the squishies (This can be seen in the replays I'll provide) even with tanky items.

Proof this works

I know there will be plenty of you who think you know so much more than me and that this is completely unviable and stupid. Well, guess what. It works. Try it before you immediately down-vote. Here are 2 replays of me playing this build: (I'll add yours if you post in comments)

TankBlanc 23-2.lrf Download
(Horrible early game but it shows how well TankBlanc does mid and late game. Also a great Guardian Angel escape at ~39:00)

TankBlanc 18-0.lrf Download

And some pictures: (Post results in comments and I'll add them!)

TankBlanc - Unconventional, but nasty LeBlanc