My first impression of LeBlanc was not as high as one might expect. I had heard several of my friends mention how amazing she was, so, when I logged in this week and saw her on rotation, I decided I might as well give her a shot. I started up a custom game and began by carefully reading her abilities and deciding how I wanted to build her. At first glance, her abilities did not really seem that useful to me, especially her ult, "Mimic" which cast a version of her last spell cast that does more damage. For me, this seemed like a rip off. I played for the first six levels with a growing sense of dislike for the champion, then I had to quit for reasons I cannot recall. However, I decided to give her another chance, and that was possibly the best decision I've ever made regarding this game. This time, I played past level 6, as well as studied her abilities a bit more closely. I began to realize how they could combo together, as well as a better order to purchase them in. It was at level 8, with nothing more than a Tear of the Goddess and a Blasting Wand, that I realized exactly how beastly she really was. I was able to nuke a Nasus three levels higher than me, and I had only one AP item. Soon, I came to understand EXACTLY how useful her ult is. So, without further ado, here is my guide to one of the most impressive champions I've ever played.
As I said LeBlanc's abilities are quite deadly, if you know how to use them. Her first ability, Sigil of Silence, deals magic damage to the enemy and places a mark on him/her for 3.5 seconds. If the target is affected by another of LeBlanc's spells while the mark is active, that enemy is silenced for 2 seconds and takes additional magic damage. Her Distortion ability allows her to teleport to a target location, dealing magic damage to nearby enemies. In the three seconds following the use of Distortion, she can teleport back to wherever she originally cast it from. Her third ability, Ethereal Chains, is a skill shot ability that, if it hits an enemy, deals magic damage and slows him/her. If LeBlanc stays within ranged of the enemy for 2 seconds, the enemy becomes unable to move and takes additional magic damage. Her ultimate, Mimic, allows her to cast a improved version of the spell she last cast, which does improved damage. Her passive, Mirror Image, causes her to become instantly stealthed for 0.5 seconds if she falls below 40% health. When she exits stealth, she creates a clone of herself that deals no damage and lasts for up to 6 seconds. However, this effect can only happen once a minute, but that is a ridiculously short cooldown for this ability,
When I play LeBlanc, I generally prioritize leveling her Sigil of Silence. Of all her abilities, save her ult, this one has the highest damage potential. Next I focus on Etheral Chains, as this ability allows her to slow an enemy and snare him/her. This is better then Distortion for chasing early game, in my opinion, as it allows her teammates to help, and it also allows her or her allies to escape more easily. It also helps later in team fights. So, my initial skill selection goes Sigil, Chains, Sigil, Distortion, Sigil, and Mimic. After this, I max out Sigil of Silence, and then focus on Etheral Chains. I don't generally start leveling Distortion until I have five ranks in Sigil and at least three ranks in Chains, but this my change with each game.
Her Mimic ability is really where LeBlanc shines. All of her abilities deal a high amount of damage, but with Mimic maxed, it does 40% more damage. That's a lot considering how much damage a Sigil of Silence can do. What's most impressive about Mimic is its cooldown time. At the start, it takes about 30 seconds until you can use it again. However, with the way I build her, I have it so that at level 18, it's only 15 seconds. That means every 15 seconds, she can kill almost anyone at full health. However, often it does not take her ult to be able to take someone down; her other abilities do quite well on their own.
LeBlanc is very dependent on understanding exactly what her abilities do and when to use them. One of her most used combos is to throw a Sigil on an enemy, and then hit him/her with Ethereal Chains. What happens is the Sigil deals damage, the become activated by the Chains dealing more damage and silencing the enemy for two seconds. As that happens, the enemy takes damage from the Chains, as well as becomes slowed. The silence from Sigil lasts 2 seconds, which is exactly how long it takes for the Chains to activate again, dealing more damage and rooting the enemy for two more seconds. This whole combo prevents the target from using any means of escape for four seconds, as well as significantly damaging him/her, making this a great combo for chasing.
Another deadly combo, the one I use to kill, is Sigil>Mimic>Distortion>Chains. The initial Sigil deals damage. The Mimic: Sigil of Silence deals 40% more damage and activates the initial sigil, dealing damage and silencing. At this point, the target is probably running, but in vane. Distortion teleports you to the target, dealing damage and activating the Mimic Sigil, which stuns and deals more damage (still 40% more than the other Sigil). At this point, even if the target is still alive and manages to throw of an escape ability (which is impossible as he/she is silenced), you can easily finish him/her off with Chains, since this deals damage and slows. Even the hardiest of tanks, who might SOMEHOW survive the initial damage of the Chains, cannot survive once they become activated, rooting the enemy, dealing damage, and allowing you to finish the job with auto-attacks or a now-useable Sigil if need be. The best part is, it will generally have taken you longer to read the first sentence of this paragraph than to kill the target.
I can honestly say I see no drawbacks to LeBlanc. There is nothing about her I dislike. Even her passive, which on many champions is often unimpressive, has helped me out many times. Often I have been close to death, and losing a third of my stacks on Mejai's Soulstealer, when my passive kicks in and allows me to escape.
Finally, I will finish off this guide by discussing how I build LeBlanc. The first ten or so games I played as her, I followed my generic build guide for mages: Archangel's Staff followed by Sorcerer's Shoes and Rabadon's Deathcap, which is generally where the game ends. However, I soon began to realize that this build was not fully capitalizing on her killing ability. She is an Assassin, and should be treated as such. So, I played around with a build, and this is what I settled on:
Start by choosing a Meki Pendant and two Health Potions. Because I normally choose Teleport and Clarity as my Summoner Spells, I don't have to get Mana Potions, as I generally do not run out of mana before I would normally recall. Getting Health Potions allows me to stay in lane against more harrasing opponents long enough to get the money for my next item. Next, I get a Tear of the Goddess and Teleport back into my lane. This is by far one of my favorite items, and I always get it first on any mage. Next, I get an Amplifying Tome and upgrade it to Mejai's Soulstealer as fast as possible. Generally, I avoid Soulstealer on Mages, just because it is such a risky item. However, LeBlanc can gain 20 stacks in a heartbeat, and keep them. After this I buy Boots of Speed, upgrade my Tear of the Goddess into a Archangel's Staff, finally grab Sorcerer's Shoes. Now I have three slots left, and the order in which I fill them differs depending on the situation. My three final items are Rabadon's Deathcap, Abyssal Scepter, and Morello's Evil Tome. Generally, I like to get Rabadon's first, then grab Morello's and finish with Abyssal Scepter, but sometimes I need the cooldowns from Morello's sooner, or I might need the magic resistance reducing aura of Abyssal Scepter first. Generally speaking, though, the order of these items is not that important, so just go with what you like best.
In addition to Rabadon's, Morello's, and Abyssal Scepter, you might consider the following items:
1. Banshee's Veil: If you're going up against people like Ashe, Ryze, or Annie, Banshee's Veil is almost a must have item. While the magic resist, health, and mana are always nice to have, they are nowhere near as important as the passive. Banshee's Veil prevents the next harmful spell that would be used against you. This means Ashe's ult, Ryze's snare, or Annie's stun, all of which can completely ruin your assassination, are blocked, allowing you to finish them off happily.
3. Rod of Ages: This is definitely useful if you seem to be targeted a decent amount and are unable to get your kills because of it. It comes with a nice amount of base AP, but also gives you some good health, as well as mana, which can work with your Archangel's Staff for more AP. These bonuses also increase for the next ten minutes. Generally, I avoid this item simply because it has to be built early to fully utilize it, which interferes with my other build. Also, I am generally able to get kills without having to worry too much about my health. Remember, only get this if taking damage is preventing you from getting kills. If you routinely get down to low health, but still kill your opponents, don't worry about it.
2. Zhonya's Hourglass: Generally, this shouldn't be necessary, but it might be at times. 100 AP is nothing to sneeze at, and the armor is always helpful. The only time I would see getting this is if you are constantly being targeted in team fights and are being killed before you can do anything. The activated ability of this item makes your opponents target someone else with their abilities, allowing you to drop back in once it's over and finish them off. However, if you know what you're doing, this shouldn't be necessary.
And finally, here's a few items you may think about getting, when you really shouldn't:
1. Void Staff: Under no cicrumstances should you get this item. Abyssal Scepter is an all around better item, having the same AP boost plus granting some magic resistance. And while Void Staff may grant a higher amount of magic penetration, Abyssal Scepter has an aura, making it apply to multiple enemies AND allowing those weaknesses to be utilized by your team as well. Always be a team player.
2. Rylai's Crystal Scepter: This item looks deceivingly useful, and on most mages, it is. However, on LeBlanc, it's pointless. If you're playing right, you should never need to have your spells slow the target. You already have a silence, a slow, and a snare, as well as the ability to teleport to your target. If you are still unable to catch people, you need to play someone else.
And that, my dear readers, is it for my second League of Legends champion review. I bid you all a good day and good luck.
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