Welcome!

Welcome to my Vayne guide.

I've chose to make a guide for Vayne because many people think that the severe nerfs to Vayne have "killed her". WRONG! The people who think that need to realize that just because a champion is no longer considered overpowered, you just need to change your play-style. My build will address Vayne's defensive needs with the use of offensive items and summoner spell choice.

Vayne is a carry, while I guess nobody's stopping you from shouting LEEEEEEEEEEEROYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!! in your room, it's probably not a good idea. Vayne is squishy, so compose your game accordingly to the situation at hand. Do not take on three champions at once and keep in mind at all times that by no means are you an invincible champion. The nerfs hurt Vayne... ALOT and you need to understand that Vayne's play style needs to change. Use your strengths not your auto-attacks and impress the other team enough to make them surrender at 20!

Who is Vayne? Lets find out:
The world is not always as civilized as people might think. There are still those who would follow the blackest paths of magic and become corrupted by the darker powers that flow through Runeterra. Shauna Vayne knows this fact well. As a young privileged girl in the heart of Demacia's elite, her father tried to convince her of the constabulary's ever-vigilant eye. Young and naïve, she truly believed that her world was one of perfect safety, until one night, when a twisted witch took interest in her father. The malevolent woman overcame her father's conciliar guard, then tortured her family before murdering them. The young Shauna escaped only by hiding herself and then fleeing once the hag had departed, plagued by the screams of her loved ones as she ran. A burning hatred was born in her that day, one that could never be denied.

Vayne was able to take care of herself using her father's money, and she began to train as soon as an instructor would have her as a student. By the time she was a fully grown woman, she had become a grim warrior. However, the fields of battle were not to be her home. Demacia needed a protector, one who hunted those lost to the darkness. Shauna used her family's contacts to become the first Night Hunter, and now her prowess is the stuff of legends. It is said that those who practice the black arts quake when they hear that the Night Hunter is on the prowl. Despite her crusade, Shauna has looked at the League of Legends in horror. There are champions who have clearly lost themselves to the blackest of magics, and who have been embraced within the League even though they should be put down for the safety of all. The time has come for the Night Hunter to execute her secret mission – to purge the League of Legends.

Not all shadows are to be feared. At least, if Vayne has her way.

Abilities:Tumble - Vayne tumbles, maneuvering to carefully place her next shot. Her next attack deals bonus damage.
Vayne tumbles a short distance and her next basic attack within 6/6/6/6/6 seconds deals bonus physical damage.

The bonus is equal to 55/60/65/70/75% of her total Attack Damage.

Cost
40/40/40/40/40 Mana
Range
25000
Silver Bolts - Vayne tips her bolts with a rare metal, toxic to evil things. The third consecutive attack or ability against the same target deals a percentage of the target's maximum Health as bonus true damage. (Max: 200 damage vs. Monsters)
Vayne tips her bolts with a rare metal, toxic to evil things. The third consecutive attack or ability against the same target deals an additional 20/30/40/50/60 plus 4/5/6/7/8% of the target's maximum Health as true damage. (Max: 200 damage vs. Monsters)

Cost
Passive
Range
10000
Condemn - Vayne draws a heavy crossbow from her back, and fires a huge bolt at her target, dealing damage and knocking them back. If they collide with terrain, they are impaled, dealing bonus damage and stunning them.
Vayne fires a huge bolt, dealing 50/90/130/170/210 (+) physical damage and knocking her target back.

If they collide with terrain they take 50/90/130/170/210 (+) additional physical damage and will be stunned for 1.5/1.5/1.5/1.5/1.5 seconds.

Cost
90/90/90/90/90 Mana
Range
575
Final Hour - Readying herself for an epic confrontation, Vayne gains increased Attack Damage, stealth during Tumble, and quadruple the bonus Movement Speed from Night Hunter.
For 8/10/12 seconds Vayne gains 35/55/75 Bonus Attack Damage, Tumbling grants Vayne stealth for 1.5/1.5/1.5 seconds, and the bonus Movement Speed from Night Hunter is quadrupled.

Cost
80/80/80 Mana
Range
1
Night Hunter - Vayne ruthlessly hunts evil-doers. She gains 40 Movement Speed when moving toward nearby enemy champions.

Riot's Tips:
-Tumble has many uses, but it cannot pass over walls.
-Condemn can be used to both pin targets to walls to ensure a kill, or to escape a pursuer.
-Don't go in first to a large teamfight. Wait for your teammates to initiate.

Ahhhh Runes. With Vayne, runes can definitely be your friend. While some may opt for a more defensive build, using health quints insted of Armor Pen, the benefits from the Armor Pen outweigh the health. Armor Pen is your friend! Especially with your sheen and trinity force, your tumble will hit high at a low cost and any way to maximize the damage is extremely useful.

So keeping this in mind, I opt for:

X9Greater Mark of Desolation.

X9Greater Seal of Alacrity

X9Greater Glyph of Warding.

Why you may ask? As a carry, Marks are the most effective with armor pen. The attack speed yellows are helpful because with Vayne(especially when trying to tear down tanks), the higher your attack speed, the more silver bolts procs and the more true damage you dish out. While they may be "Secondary Runes" as seals, it is not worth replacing another set for the small benefit it would yield. Why use tanky runes on a carry?? Because Vayne needs to be able to farm. If you use your range correctly you will be hard to harass and should be able to farm easily. With the extra magic resist, those pesky harasses will sting just a bit less. And they may make the difference between surviving with a sliver of health in a fight. And finally we reach the Quintessences. While some may opt to choose the standard "Flat Health Quints", let me assure you. Both are acceptable choices, but an extra 10 armor pen is going to make you hurt... a LOT. It's well worth it especially since the health you would have gotten from the quints if you opted for health will be covered when you start out with a Doran's Blade.

My masteries are fairly straightforward. I choose the mastery for damage output on Vayne. Of course you could always choose 8 or 9 in defense, but I prefer the extra ghost, experience, and buff duration found all in the 9 points you can spend in utility.

On the Offensive Tree:
X3For some nice crit-chace, and X1because you don't need anything else from this section.

X3For cooldown, and X4for the coveted attack speed.

X3because Armor Pen=Pain :D

X3for some extra damage.

X3Because with extra crit damage (and a build with crit chance), this HURTS.

X14% increased damage... WHY NOT??

In Utility:
X3Lets face it, Vayne has mana issues and this helps a little, and X1for some extra help escaping pursuers (or chasing).

X4For the AMAZING estra xp.

X1For that little extra time with Red.

While of course you can choose to change the masteries to a more defensive one, I opt for the utility. In my humble opinion, being out-leveled as a carry is literally the worst feeling ever. When your damage is minimal how are you supposed to carry a team? You need to be smart and use the laning stage to your advantage. Even if that means being more cautions while farming and taking a little longer to grab those high value damage items.

Now for the items. But first a little discussion. I chose these specific items for a reason. The main flaw in Vayne is that while she ran run INTO a fight very well, she can't run out. I chose Zeal/Phantom Dancer because of the extra move speed which helps not only with chasing, but escaping as well. With this being the goal in mind lets look at the items:
Start out with a Dorans' Blade for the extra health, damage, and a little bit of life-steal. This item goes a long way with Vayne and you can keep it until necessary late game.
Next, grab some Boots of Speed to give yourself some mobility.
Next build your Sheen. I cannot stress how amazing this is on Vayne. While the AP from it is wasted, you can fully benefit from the extra mana, and the proc helps your tumble deal massive damage.
Finish your Berserker's Greaves, which are a great option for Vayne. The attack speed is certainly worth it.
Then work on finishing Trinity Force. First with Zeal for that attack speed and move speed boost, then with Phage , for that durability and slow. Trinity force is a MUST on Vayne. The Sheen damage bonus is increase, your given extra move speed and attack speed (as well as that beloved crit-chance), and some extra durability combined with a slow. If an item can provide ALL THAT, then it's worth rushing.

Grab yourself a Vampiric Scepter after Trinity to give your self enough lifesteal to replenish between fights and in lane.
Next, build yourself a phantom dancer for even more attack speed, move speed, and crit-chance. This extra move speed is what will keep you alive, use it to finish chasing sooner, and get away without being harmed.UPDATE: When testing this out further, I have found that building infinity edge before phantom is worthwhile. Insted you can go straight for it, or build a zeal, then IF, then your phantom.
Infinity Edge is your next item. This will accumulate the crit chance you've built up and along with your extra crit damage mastery will crush opponents with ease. Especially if you can crit on a Sheen proc'ed Tumble!
Next, I prefer Banshee's Veil. At this point in the game, a stun means you're probably dead. Anything to reduce what mages can do to you and prevent being caught of guard is priceless. Especially if you already have enough sustainable damage from your items already.
And finally finish your Scepter into The Bloodthirster for some more damage and lifesteal to round out your arsenal. When you have this item try to farm up because it's potential is highly underrated. You can have a TON of extra damage from this and with your crit damage you'll hit like a truck.

I won't go into much detail about skill sequence, so I'll just discuss why I chose the order I did.Tumble is your main source of damage, so I chose to max it first. Be sure to use it when you can in combination with Sheen and Trinity Force.
Next focus on silver bolts for that huge % of true damage. This in combination with your attack speed will proc often and really help if you focus down individual targets in fights.
Condemn, in my opinion, is no longer viable for damage, but for positioning the enemy. I.E. flashing over them then pushing them into a wall, tower, or your team.

For Summoner Spells, I chose the ones that will provide the most versatility for Vayne but emphasizing survivability.
Ghost is helpful for chasing and escaping, making it an extremely useful summoner spell for Vayne.
Flash is your bread-and-butter. Use it for positioning and try to save it for defensive situations. Nobody likes it when their target flashes over a wall that they can't get over. Worst case scenario, they have to waste a flash to finish you off, and they might even flash into your team who can clean them up for you.

Some other considerations:

-Heal
-Exhaust
-Clarity
-Ignite
-Teleport

What NOT to take:

-Clarity
-Revive
-Smite
-Rally
-Fortify
-Clairvoyance

Farming with Vayne is very important. As a carry you need to maximize the amount of gold you farmed and every single creep goes a long way. Be sure to maximize your range when in lane, making it hard to be harassed. Especially important is standing behind your own creeps in necessary to avoid skillshots from characters such as Nidalee, who will punish you for being out of position.

Try to focus on last hitting, not pushing your lane. However, keep in mind that if you opponent(s) push too hard, your tower may take your creep kills from you. So bearing that in mind, just gauge how your lane is functioning and adapt a strategy to maximize your creep kills while minimizing the risks you are taking while farming.

Pros:
-Huge Damage Output
-Repositioning from abilities like Tumble, and Condemn
-Great chasing potential form her passive and especially her ultimate
-Great carry

Cons:
-Usually targeted
-Vulnerable to stuns
-Squishy

Take a look at the Pros/Cons when deciding to play Vayne because keep in mind that Vayne is a carry and by no means a bruiser or tank.

Thanks for viewing my first Vayne guide. Once again I want to reiterate that this guide emphasizes on versatility and ability to chase and escape with Vayne. Whether it's item choice, or even summoner spells, everything was chosen for a purpose.

Please leave feedback and don't forget to vote! I will be updating and revising the guide the more I experiment with it and plan to use criticism to create a much better guide than the current.

Once again thanks!

****Monday June 27, 2011 --- Build first created, no revisions yet.

****Wednsday June 29, 2011 --- Minute change with an item.

I WILL be updating the guide when I hear new opinions, and build ideas. Also, in the future I may include a section discussing game-play in more detail and possibly even game-play you would encounter in ranked. While I am not necessarily a ranked type of player, I plan to test my luck in the near future and figure out if a better item path would better suit Vayne.