Varus Build Guide by ifound1dollar

Varus: The Hybrid King (Patch 10.24) (Preseason WIP)

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Varus Build Guide By Updated on

Guide Discussion (15) More Varus Guides

Runes: consistent

1 2 3

Precision

Lethal Tempo

Triumph

Legend: Alacrity

Coup de Grace

Inspiration

Magical Footwear

Biscuit Delivery

Bonus:

+10% Attack Speed
+9 Adaptive (5.4 AD or 9 AP)
+6 Armor

Spells:

Standard Bot

Flash

Heal

Recommended Items

Ranked #18 in
ADC Role

Win 49%

Get More Stats

Ranked #18 in
ADC Role

Win 49%

More Varus Runes

Items

Starting items

First back (<1300g)

first back (1300g+)

standard mythic

second/third item

standard on-hit build

standard crit build

situational items

Ability Order Q Max

1 2

Varus Passive Ability

Threats & Synergies

Threats

Synergies

Extreme Major Even Minor Tiny

Show All

None Low Ok Strong Ideal

Extreme Threats

Ideal Synergies

Braum

Ideal

-Work in Progress-

Synergies

Ideal Strong Ok Low None

Braum

Ideal

-Work in Progress-

Champion Build Guide

INTRODUCTION

PROS/CONS

ABILITIES

RUNES

ITEMS

THANKS!

CHANGELOG

Hi! I'm ifound1dollar, a Diamond main in North America (spoiler: this isn't a guide). I really enjoy making in-depth guides, so here's one for !

This is my in-depth guide to on-hit . I hope you learn a thing or two!

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Pros:

+Strong mid/late game
+Multi-target CC
+Long range
+Grievous wounds
+%max Health damage
+Hybrid damage/build

can efficiently deal hybrid damage, which allows him to fit into basically any composition. He's also pretty consistent, as he's useful in all stages of the game; he can fend for himself in lane, and with the on-hit build, he's very useful mid to late game. His ultimate, , is a great utility because of it's ability to effect so many enemy champions from a long range. On top of that, he has % max Health damage that's easy to proc, as well as built-in Grievous Wounds.

Cons:

-Weak pre-level 6
-Squishy
-Immobile
-Cool-down reliant
-Skillshot reliant

' main weakness is that he's highly immobile; if he gets caught without an escape, he's dead. He also has very little presence early game, as is a major part of his kit. His kit relies on his abilities to detonate Blight, so when he has no abilities up, his damage can be quite underwhelming in a fight. Another possible negative is that he's skillshot reliant - his Q, E, and ult are all skillshots that can be easily dodged.

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Ability Sequence
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18

This is the standard ability sequence for . You'll want to start off with a point in either for the Grievous Wounds effect or for the longer range and higher damage. Level 2 you can get either Q or E, depending on which you started. At level 3 you should get a point in W. You should almost always max first, as it's a very strong poke tool and allows you to farm from a distance. If you're building AD, you'll probably want to max second, but if you're building AP, it's best to max second instead. Max last if building AD, and last if building AP. A point in should be taken at levels 6, 11, and 16.

Passive: Living Vengeance

Cost: None
Cooldown: None
Range: Self

On champion kill or assist, Varus gains 30% bonus Attack Speed for 5 seconds.
On minion or monster kill, Varus gains 15% Attack Speed for 5 seconds.

This ability actually plays a big part in ' kit when building on-hit. It's what allows him to DPS as much as possible and pop off in a teamfight after getting just one kill or assist.

Q: Piercing Arrow

Cost: 70/75/80/85/90 Mana
Cooldown: 20/18/16/14/12s
Range: 925-1625

Varus starts drawing back his next shot, gradually increasing its range and damage, then he fires it, dealing minimum 10/47/83/120/157 (+1 per Attack Damage) to maximum 15/70/125/180/235 (+1.25/1.3/1.35/1.4/1.45 per Attack Damage) Physical Damage, reduced by 15% per enemy hit (minimum 33%).

While preparing to shoot, Varus cannot auto attack or use abilities, and his Movement Speed is slowed by 20%. After 4 seconds, Piercing Arrow fails but refunds half its Mana cost.

Piercing Arrow’s damage and Blight stacks detonated scale up to 50% bonus damage based on how long the ability is charged.

is ' long-ranged poke/execute ability, and a tool to farm from a distance. It's very important to land at all stages of the game, as it detonates Blight, even when not charged up to max. It's also a great poke tool - try to hit an enemy champion directly with it in the laning phase, as it'll deal a large chunk of damage to the first target hit.

W: Blighted Quiver

Cost: None
Cooldown: 40s
Range: Self

Passive: Varus' basic attacks deal 7/8/9/10/11 (+0.25 per Ability Power) bonus Magic Damage and apply Blight for 6 seconds (stacks 3 times).

Varus's other abilities detonate Blight, dealing Magic Damage equal to 3/3.5/4/4.5/5% (+2% of Ability Power) of the target's maximum Health per stack. This damage is capped at 360 against monsters. If the target is an enemy champion or epic monster, Varus's basic cooldowns are decreased by 12% per Blight stack detonated.

Active: Varus next Piercing Arrow deals additional damage equal to 6/8/10/12/14% of the target's missing Health. Damage is increased by up to 50% (to 9/12/15/18/21% missing Health) based on charge time. The damage is capped at 360 against monsters.

is the most important part of ' kit when building on-hit; it's why he synergizes so well with . The double on-hit passive of the item can apply full stacks of the ability on targets in just two auto attacks, and deals more bonus Magic Damage as well. It's important to get as many stacks of this ability on your enemy as possible, as the % max Health damage is quite strong, especially when building AP.

E: Hail of Arrows

Cost: 80 Mana
Cooldown: 18/16/14/12/10s
Range: 925

Varus fires a hail of arrows that deals 60/100/140/180/220 (+0.6 per bonus Attack Damage) Physical Damage and desecrate the ground. Desecrated ground slows enemies' Movement Speed by 25/30/35/40/45% for .25 seconds and reduces their healing and regeneration by 50%. The slow duration is refreshed if enemies stay within the zone.

This ability is ' most reliable way to detonate Blight. It has a decently sized hitbox, and a pretty quick travel time, making it near impossible to dodge without using a dash or blink. It's also his source of Grievous Wounds, which can mean the difference between winning or losing a 2v2 in lane. It's important to time this ability well, as you'll want to negate the enemy ADC's Summoner Heal.

R: Chain of Corruption

Cost: 100 Mana
Cooldown: 120/90/60s
Range: 1075

Varus flings out a tendril of corruption that deals 100/175/250 (+100% of Ability Power) Magic Damage and immobilizes the first enemy champion hit for 2 seconds.

The corruption then spreads towards nearby uninfected enemy champions, applying the same damage and immobilize if it reaches them. The corruption will continue to spread until there are no further unaffected targets in range.

Targets rooted by Chain of Corruption gain 3 stacks of Blight over the duration of the root.

is ' form of hard CC, and the reason he's so great at teamfighting. This ability has the potential to root all 5 enemy champions, and is a great zoning tool. Late game, when building AP, this ability will to deal immense damage. It has a 100% AP ratio, so after you've finished your , this can deal upwards of 800 Magic Damage to every enemy champion!

Tip: After hitting an enemy champion with this ability, the rest of the enemy team will usually try to move away from that ally so they aren't also effected by the Corruption. This can be utilized if you want to break up the enemy team mid-teamfight.

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RUNE STATS

OFFENSE
+10% Attack Speed

FLEX
+9 Adaptive Force (5.4 AD)

DEFENSE
+6 Armor or +8 Magic Resist

PRIMARY TREE

PRECISION

Lethal Tempo

grants you bonus Attack Speed for 3-6 seconds after damaging an enemy champion. This synergizes very well with , as the on-hit build greatly benefits from higher, uncapped Attack Speed. is another option. has a relatively weak laning phase, so the sustain from this rune can help him survive in lane, at the cost of a little less damage late game. can also be useful on occasion, but is much more consistent. is a rune best designed for bruisers, and therefore doesn't really work well with .

Triumph

heals you for 12% of your current Health and grants 20 bonus gold on a takedown. This can be the difference between life and death in skirmishes and teamfights, so it's always a safe option. is another option, because can be useful when running or when paired with a healing support like . is a very niche option, but doesn't really work with most attack-based marskmen.

Legend: Alacrity

Out of the 3 'Legend' options, is the best option for any marksman, as they rely heavily on Attack Speed. can sometimes be useful, but when building AP it's almost completely useless. isn't a viable option because as a marksman, doesn't rely on tenacity.

Coup de Grace

is a very well-rounded, consistent option for basically any carry, since it deals bonus damage to enemies below 40% Health. However, is definitely a viable option when facing tanky champions, and can synergize very well with . grants quite a bit of bonus damage, but it's very inconsistent. As a marksman, you shouldn't rely on being low Health to deal damage.

SECONDARY TREE

INSPIRATION

Magical Footwear

grants free boots after 12 minutes (reduced by 45s per takedown), and grants a bonus 10 Movement Speed. This is a safe option for any champion who isn't running , as a free 300g item is always beneficial. However, can also be a good option. It can help defend against and pull off dives, or negate a champion like 's burst. is designed for playmaking champions, and won't have much use for a marksman.

Biscuit Delivery

grants 3 that heal for 10% of you missing health, which is an incredibly useful tool for any marksman with a weak laning phase. Though can help to hit powerspikes earlier, it's really not worth paying the lending fee, so it's not a good option. is only viable on certain champions with specific playstyles, and isn't one of them.

Cosmic Insight

The third Inspiration tree is a little lackluster for most marksmen. While can be slightly beneficial because of the reduced Summoner Spell cooldowns, it's really not a great option for an attack-based marksman. is basically useless, because you won't benefit much from moving faster towards movement impaired units as . is another rune that's designed for certain champions and playstyles, and doesn't do much for .

SORCERY

Details