Sona Buvelle, Maven of the Strings + > > > CDR Reduction > Mana Regeneration > AP Sona is a AP Ranged Support who excels in having a lot of utility. She has poke, sustain, a speed boost, CC, a slow and a nuke. Basically, she is a jack-of-all-trades, allowing her to be very versatile. Her kit revolves around buffing her allies with her active and using her Crescendo to disrupt her enemies in teamfights. Since she is naturally squishy without much form of escape, she is best suited to stay behind and use her auras to aid her team. While Ability Power is important for her since she scales off raw AP, Cooldown Reduction is way more important because it allows her to continuously use her auras to aid her team, followed by mana regeneration so she can constantly keep up her auras. Ability Power comes after that. > > > > >

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Pros Amazing poke, especially early game. Can be a heal bot if needed. Versatile Kit Synergies well with most ADCs. Has an AoE stun. Boobs! (and butt, apparently)

Cons Very squishy. Relies on good positioning. Only CC is her ultimate. Skills are non-targeted. Her scalings aren't the greatest.

DISCLAIMER: There are some low-brow dirty stuff in here. You have been warned.


If you find anything outdated, drop me a PM or comment and I'll fix it as soon as possible.

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Summon Aery - Summon Aery have a manipulable cooldown where you can move closer to Aery to shorten the cooldown. Aery can shield an ally, giving an even better shield coupled with your Aria of Perseverance. A side note, the shield will proc on all of your basic abilities as they buff allies in one way or another. So if you want to poke, make sure your ADC isn't in range of your aura.

Manaflow Band - Manaflow Band improves Sona's later game as it keeps her top up with mana, so you won't need to pull back as often. Early game, it wouldn't matter much but once the mid game rolls around, it becomes really good. The mana regeneration will keep you running around longer instead of being forced to go back.

Celerity - Gives you more movement speed which is nice since you can no escape and low base speed. It lets you get damage off your Song of Celerity which is always nice. Transcendence is a bit redundant at the moment because nearly all your item gives CDR anyway.

Scorch - Allows you to take advantage of when you're at your peak. Try to wither down your enemy as much as you can ADC can get ahead in farm and exp.

Secondary Tree:
Ultimate Hunter - It allows your to have your Crescendo up for sooner. Since it's your only reliable way to peel for your ADC, it's good to have. The only tricky part is you're most likely only going to get it fully stacked by mid game.

Relentless Hunter - An alternative to Ultimate Hunter if your team has sufficient CC to protect your ADC (Not always the case). In this case, Relentless Hunter is better as it allows your to move around easier.

Eyeball Collection - It's really easy to stack this due to the nature of your kit. It gives some extra AP which is good for later on.

Magical Footwear:
It gives you free boots. Not only that, it gives you an extra +10 movement speed which is decent to boost up Sona. The 300 gold will go towards your support funds.

Cosmic Insight:
CDR is important for Sona. Getting this gives you an additional 5% CDR. Good for spamming your abilities later into the game.

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The most preferred spell for Sona who lacks a reliable escape mechanism as it can be used to jump past walls. Also, Flash allows her to do the Flash- Crescendo combo. Finally, can be used to dodge skill-shots that will otherwise kill you (use it sparingly as it has a whooping 210 cooldown).

This might be better for Sona, especially if you lane is kill-orientated. Her early game damage coupled with Ignite can easily kill the enemy AD Carry or Support (if he/she is a squishy mage type). Also good to stop ******** healing and lifesteal.

A standard support spell. It is useful regardless of the phase of the game especially if the enemy team has a champion who can dish out a lot of damage in a short time. Also very helpful to win skirmishes. Always get this if your enemy have a snowbally champions, since Ignite will be useless against them when they dive on your carry.

Hymn of Valor

Sona sends out bolts of sound that deal 40/80/120/160/200 (+50% AP) magic damage to the two nearest enemies within 850-range, prioritizing champions. Sona and allied champions tagged with Hymn of Valor's aura deal 20/30/40/50/60 (+20% AP) bonus magic damage on their next basic attack within 3 seconds.

Hymn of Valor

Your bread-and-butter skill for damage and poking. It deals amazing damage against your enemies during laning phase, especially when combined with your Power Chord. This skill is a non-targeted skill which will target the enemies closest to you, or champions if there are any present in the 850 range. During laning phase, remember to land an auto-attack with the aura buff to dish out more damage. Also, the aura could help you win early skirmishes when you buff your allies. Combines with the Power Chord the damage can be used to shatter Morgana's Black Shield. However, the on-hit damage provided by the aura will not trigger on structures. Combined with Lich Bane, you can deal massive damage to a single target.

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Aria of Perseverance

Sona heals herself and a nearby allied champion with the lowest health percentage for 30/50/70/90/110 (+20% AP) to a maximum of 45/75/105/135/165 (+30% AP). Sona and allied champions tagged with Aria of Perseverance's aura are granted a shield with a strength of 35/55/75/95/115 (+20% AP)

Aria of Perseverance

The sustain skill of Sona. Similar to Taric's Imbue, it allows Sona to heal her and the most injured ally witihin 1000 range. A very good skill to negate poke in the laning phase. However, the major drawback is it takes a lot of mana and shouldn't be used carelessly. Also, try not to use it when near a stealthed champion unless your other partner is more injured as the bolt will fly towards champions under stealth, giving away their position. Try to spread the aura to as many people as possible during teamfights to minimize damage taken, especially by AoE. With the reduced cooldown by her Crescendo and the increased heal by Redemption, her heal actually became a lot stronger, especially when you cap her CDR and get some mana regeneration. The Green Power Chord reduces damage done by the affected enemy. This is good especially against assassins who can dive your backlines as it reduces their damage output by 25%. Using this is normally better against burst assassin or mages as they normally want to get their combo out as fast as possible. If you can't get to them, getting this on ADCs is also good as they're normally the damage once the assassin done their job.

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Song of Celerity

Sona gains a 13%/14%/15%/16%/17% (+7.5% per 100 AP) bonus movement speed that decays down to the aura bonus over 3 seconds. The duration is increased by 0.5 seconds for each ally she tags with the aura. Allied champions tagged with Song of Celerity's aura gain 10%/11%/12%/13%/14%/15% (+3.5% per 100 AP) movement speed for 1.5 seconds.

Aria of Perseverance

Boosts the movement speed (MS) of Sona and her allies. A good spell for engaging or retreating. This skill is maxed last due to it being having the least impact in a fight. However, a level is taken at Level 3 or Level 4 as the boost can potentially secure a kill, whether by Power Chord or by boosting your allies' speed. This ability is the least impactful in teamfights and your Power Chord should never have this unless you're using it to catch someone out or chase someone down. Generally, your blue and green Power Chord is just better but this does have it's niche uses. It's good against enemies who are weak against kited ( Nasus, Darius).

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Crescendo

Sona plays an irresistible chord in a line, dealing 150/200/250 (+50% AP) magic damage to enemy champions and Stun icon stunning them for 1.5 seconds, forcing them to dance. Each rank of Crescendo improves Sona's aura's bonuses and Song of Celerity's self buff.

Aria of Perseverance

Sona's ultimate. It is a really strong skill that stuns people within its range. Depending on when it is used, it can potentially break a team-fight or skirmish into your favor. Note that it does have a travel time and can be blocked by Yasuo's Wind Wall or Braum's Unbreakable, so cast it before they get to use those abilities or after they used it, but never when they are using it. Also, try not to miss this skill.

As opposed to the Blue Sona, this build revolves around your heal and shields. This is especially good if the enemy have a lot of sustained damage. All the items will mostly contribute shields and health or buff them. Early game, you'll be more passive due to the lack of damage pickup, but still poke if you can. Middle game, you should be able to win most skirmishes due to your heal. Late game, you're basically a heal bot with a hard CC and some poke.

Rush Eye of Frost - Finish the quest as fast as you can to make sure you can ward up. Redemption - Never get this as your first major item since it scales with level. It's good as the second major item, after Athene's Unholy Grail but not as impactful as a first. Remember you can still use this when you're dead and it scales off the increase in health and shield line. Try not to use this for the damage as it gets very sub par in later levels. During teamfights, try to use this where it will hit most of your allies. Ardent Censer - It's still decent. How early you'll build this will heavily depend on how reliant your ADC is on attack speed, followed by your team. If your ADC is say Vayne, who relies on attack speed a lot and you have a Master Yi jungle, it's a good idea to get it as soon as you can. If only one person can make benefit of it, it's alright to delay it to your third item. However, you'll eventually want to get it for your ADC. Luxuries Locket of the Iron Solari - Good against enemies with AoE magic damage like Annie and Katarina. Using this item at a critical moment can migate a lot damage off initiations or protect your ADC. Gargoyle Stoneplate - Decent item which offers both armor and magic resist. You're likely to be closer to the frontlins anyway to buff your allies so the passive is quite easy to proc during teamfights. Since your damage is quite non-existent with this build, there won't be any drawback for using the active. Could be used when you start getting dived on. However, the odds of you getting this over other utility-defensive items is low unless you're getting dove on too much. It's sort of a I got nothing to buy, might as well get it to be tankier sort of item. Lich Bane - Mentioned below.

Situational:

Mikael's Blessing - A really niche item for me. The active is still good, especially against roaming champions like Twisted Fate or champions like long duration soft CC Morgana. The problem is it offers nothing apart from cleanse, which relies a lot on your timing and regeneration don't stack with Athene's Unholy Grail. You can replace Lich Bane with this item if you really require it.

As the name implies, this build revolves more around poking and zoning the enemy champions. To maximize this build, you need to be more aggressive. In the early game, you focus on poking the enemy, only going for guranteed kills. In the middle game, you can roam a bit if needed when your ADC backs since you have some damage. In the late game, stick with the team and just deal damage and heal when needed. Stack up your Athene's Unholy Grail.

Credit to Gumae

Rush Eye of Frost - Because spoilers are good, aren't they? How aggressive their jungler is and what support you're facing will dictate when you'll buy this. Get this as your first back if the jungler is roaming around often to watch out for ganks or to ward bushes if you're facing Blitzcrank or Thresh. No matter what, this will be your second item, latest. Lich Bane - A more offensive pickup. The AP boosts your heals and shields when giving you a very strong poke even with no other major AP items. It also caps your CDR with the 10% it gives and allows you to charge Athene's Unholy Grail more effectively. Void Staff - Why? Since Sona's AP scaling on her Hymn of Valor isn't the best, penetration will always be the best option for her. Since tanks and everybody have innate magic resistance anyway, there won't be a point when it's useless. Luxuries Rylai's Crystal Scepter - Good 4th item if you're getting burst down too quickly. It provides some additional health and AP. Get this if your enemies rely a lot on movement speed Warwick or if they are weak to kiting so your ADC will have an easier time. Luden's Tempest - It gives some AP and extra poke for your Athene's Unholy Grail's Blood Charge, along with some movement speed, allowing you to reposition better. Since Sona is generally quite spammy, you can easily charge this up. Get this if you don't need Rylai's Crystal Scepter. Athene's Unholy Grail - The heal is really good. No matter how you look at it. In teamfights, you need to constantly poke enemies to get the Blood Charge to heal your allies. It gives you everything you need, but most importantly, it boosts your heal by a massive amount.

Situational:

Stopwatch - Only needed if the assassin is constantly targeting you. (I see you, Zed). This shouldn't be the case, however, since the midlaner and ADC would have a higher priority compared to you. Later on, it can be sold or just upgraded into Zhonya's Hourglass or Guardian Angel or Gargoyle Stoneplate as needed.

Banshee's Veil - Similar to Stopwatch, get this if the enemy team that have a AoE stun that can royally screw you over. (Think Annie's Summon: Tibbers). Build this depending on how important it is, but only after Eye of Frost as vision is more important.

Ninja Tabi
A lot of champions are AA-reliant to the point 2 or 3 quick auto-attacks can completely remove you from the fight. Getting Ninja Tabi, early or otherwise can give you a slight immunity against these AA-attacks.

Ionian Boots of Lucidity
Another good option compared to Mercury's Treads. Pick this up if your enemies are not CC-heavy. Alternatively, if your enemy assassin is getting fed and roam around for kills, getting this is also a good option as your Exhaust will be on a shorter cooldown.

Sorcerer's Shoes
This is the last option of boots that you should choose. The only time when you pick this up is when the enemy has little to no CC, thus nullifying the need of Mercury's Treads and when you capped your CDR and their assassin is behind, nullifying the need of Ionian Boots of Lucidity.

Poking: Sona's Speciality

You have 2 ways of combo.
1. Hymn of Valor -> Auto-Attack
2. (2 Stacks of Power Chord) Auto-Attack -> Hymn of Valor -> Power Chord Auto-Attack
The reason for the AA beforehand is because using a 3 stack Power Chord will reset your auto-attack timer, allowing you to chain 2 attacks one after another. Try to use the bush to your advantage. Only pop out the bush to poke then quickly return to prevent them from poking you back. Don't hang around the bush when it is warded as it severely limits your option from running away. You normally out-trade most poke supports since most are reliant on their CC so as long as you don't get CC-ed, you can easily win the trades. Don't try to get greedy, you don't always need to hit 2 if you're still learning. Prioritize the ADC so you can deny their farm.

Overextending: The Bane of Sona

Sona has two glaring weakness, her obscenely slow movement speed, as well as how squishy she is. This is especially true during the laning phase before she get any items. Never underestimate the amount of damage 2 champions can deal against you. Never linger away from your minions as they can sort of help you if your enemies attack you. If you were to overextended and get caught out, it's best just to burn Flash and/or Exhaust to get away. It's normally not worth it to get killed just to poke with Power Chord.

Crescendo: Sona's Only Hard CC

As the title implied, you only have one hard CC, which has a bloody long cooldown time, therefore, you must be sure to hit the damned thing. What most beginner Sona aren't use to is there is a travel time for Crescendo. Back when I just started playing her, I always thought it was instant, causing me to miss this often. Another thing to note is that there is a travel time for Crescendo, so you're unlikely to hit your targets at maximum range if they're running from you. Practice can easily rectify this.

Sona: How E-Cups (maybe) can be a problem

One of the things that you may need to learn early is how to deal with the grabby champions. Primarily, Blitzcrank, Thresh and Nautilus. As told by above, they can easily move you out of position, especially so if they have follow up. While you'll start noticing their tell signs, Blitzcrank stopping for 0.25 seconds to fire his Rocket Grab and Thresh's wind-up for Death Sentence. The beauty about this matchup is you can force it into your favor by poking them so they can't afford to pull you. However, if you're not confident and you got counter-picked, you can pick up the Ancient Coin instead to play more passively.

Teamfight: Sona's Shine Days

Your teammate looks like a tank, feels like a tank, has items like a tank, and even smells like a tank. Let him tank. Depending on how you build Sona, your role varies.
Blue Sona - Poke
Try to wither them down by poking them before teamfights, just don't get caught out. Once the teamfight starts, just focus on poking and healing. Due to you building damage, you're generally still squishy so you should just hide around the back and do what you need.
Green Sona - Heal
With this build, you're slightly more tankier, which means you can take slightly more punishment. With your heals and shield, you can easily survive even if you get pulled too far from your team. With this build, you should stay closer to the initiators so you can keep healing and shielding them as needed. Just don't neglect your ADC, especially if your enemy has an assassin.
Just remember, in both builds, you have Athene's Unholy Grail, so you need to poke every so often so you can get the most of it.

And with this, I'll end my Sona guide, I would appreciate it a lot if you leave a vote and a comment on what could be better or how the guide was in overall or if I missed out on anything.

- Yasutsuna


Credits:
LilyPichu - TL;DR Sona Video
jhoijhoi - Formatting Guide
Latest Legend - For Proofreading this guide.
Nubtrain (from another website) - Tips on guide writing
Dr. D (from another website) - Formatting Guide
Corsair - For the punchlines.
ScrapComputer - Sona Tips
Owner of the Pictures - For the Pictures
You - For taking your time to read this guide

Changelog:
04.07.2018 - Patch 8.13 + Runes Explained
17.06.2018 - Patch 8.12
01.06.2018 - Patch 8.11
04.05.2018 - Patch 8.9
08.04.2018 - Patch 8.7
17.02.2018 - Updated and removed from reference to old items.
14.11.2017 - Changed The Ultimate Hat for Manaflow Band.
11.11.2017 - Updated for Preseason 8.


To-Do List:
- Edit the Small Things section for clarity.