Each composition comes with eight suggested units and a maximum of two legendary units. We cover the items you need, how to position, the best units to play early game, and the late game replacements you can make to win your games.
Dawnbringer Karma
Units (cost): Gragas (1), Nautilus (2), Soraka (2), Karma (4), Rell (4), Ivern (4), Garen (5), Volibear (5)
Items: Blue Buff, Jeweled Gauntlet, Rabadon’s Deathcap, Morellonomicon, Chalice of Malice
Karma prefers Blue Buff to Spear of Shojin due to her 60 mana cost. Very Dark Blue Buff is also okay, but ideally, she isn’t dropping below the health threshold. Karma’s second item can either be Jeweled Gauntlet or Sacrificial Gauntlet. Sacrificial Gauntlet’s self-damaging makes Hextech Gunblade a requirement as a third item. If not going the Shadow item, Karma can use Rabadon’s Deathcap or a defensive item as her third item.
Morellonomicon is an important item for healing reduction, best used on an AoE frontliner. Chalice of Power, Chalice of Malice (the better version), and even Zeke’s Herald are great for added backline power. Prioritize frontline items with leftover components to give Karma more time to cast.
Positioning
The goal is to protect Karma and allow her to cast as many times as possible with Blue Buff. The above is a default position that should work best against a full lobby. When it gets later, make sure to scout for Thresh, Vel’Koz, and Diana on the enemy team. It can be useful to fodder a ranged unit like Soraka on the opposite corner from Karma.
You want to let your Morellonomicon user take damage first so it can apply it faster. This is especially true in the case of Volibear with Revenant revive. If there are no assassins, you can spread your units out and first/second row your melee units.
Early game units
Ziggs is probably the best Karma item holder early. Couple him with another Spellweaver like Brand or Viktor for damage. Leblanc is another great Blue Buff holder that can be coupled with Kha’Zix. Frontline can flexibly be any combination of Knights, Brawlers, or Cavaliers.
Late game replacements
It’s unlikely you hit all eight units on your rolldown, so the main traits you want to focus on are 4 Dawnbringer and 2 Invoker for Karma. If you’re hitting extra Dawnbringer units, going 6 in that trait is also good. Against heavy magic damage lobbies, you can drop the Ironclad units for Mystic. At 9, look for good legendary units like Kindred and Heimerdinger or add in Jax for a third Ironclad. Nocturne is a good Frozen Heart or AD item holder and would give 3 Revenant.
Nightbringer Aphelios
Units (cost): Sejuani (2), Morgana (3), Lee Sin (3), Aphelios (4), Diana (4), Rell (4), Kindred (5), Darius (5)
Items: Guinsoo’s Sacrificial Rageblade, Deathblade, Hand of Vengeance, Morellonomicon, Frozen Dark Heart
Guinsoo’s Sacrificial Rageblade is Aphelios’ best attack speed item, but it has to be coupled with a healing item. Hand of Vengeance works, or either of the versions of Bloodthirster. Aphelios can stack up Deathblade well with his ultimate, so it’s his best damage item. Runaan’s Hurricane is another decent damage item. Last Whisper should be saved for another Ranger.
Morellonomicon is going to be core in every comp. In Nightbringer, Morgana is the perfect user. Fallen Guardian Angel is great on Morgana because she doesn’t rely on attack speed. Frozen Heart is great on any composition that runs an Assassin, like Diana. Because you aren’t running multiple Assassins in this comp, Frozen Dark Heart is even better if possible. Zeke’s Herald is a good buff item on Kindred.
Positioning
Aphelios has a 4 hex auto attack range, so he can safely be cornered. Any Zeke’s Herald user should be next to Aphelios, typically Kindred. Kindred should be placed next to Aphelios, on the side closer to the center of the board. You can use Kindred’s Wolf to help form a box around Aphelios.
Morgana goes in the front of the composition with Guardian Angel. However, she can be brought back in the clump if she doesn’t have any tank items. Diana should be positioned to jump on enemy champion clumps. If she is holding Frozen Dark Heart, it’s best to put her on the opposite side of Aphelios by default.
Early game units
Vayne and Kalista are the premier AD item holders in the early game. Vayne is the most natural pick because you can use the Rangers you pick up along the way. An early Ashe is also a great mid game item holder. Cavaliers like Kled, Hecarim, and Sejuani are the best frontline for later transition.
Late game replacements
The example has 6 Nightbringer, but that can easily be dropped to 4. You can take out Sejuani and Lee Sin for Nautilus and Jax, giving 3 Ironclad and 2 Knight. Another option is to drop Sejuani and Lee Sin for Nocturne and Ivern or Volibear. That would add Assassin and Revenant. If your Aphelios doesn’t have strong items, you can bump up to 4 Rangers for the extra attack speed.
Redeemed Vel’Koz
Units (cost): Aatrox (1), Syndra (2), Lux (3), Vel’Koz (4), Rell, (4), Ivern (4), Kayle (5), Volibear (5)
Items: Spear of Shojin, Sacrificial Gauntlet, Hextech Gunblade, Morellonomicon, Chalice of Malice
Vel’Koz casts faster with Spear of Shojin than with Blue Buff. However, take whatever you can get because he needs the mana to cast. Sacrificial Gauntlet is great on Vel’Koz because the health hit doesn’t happen until after his full cast. Hextech Gunblade is great for survivability. Do not make the mistake of combining Shadow IE with spell crit. Each tick of the spell will damage Vel’Koz.
Once again we have Volibear ideally using Morellonomicon. Any of the backline units can use Chalice of Power or Chalice of Malice to buff Vel’Koz. Extra damage items or components can go to Kayle, particularly attack speed. Guardian Angel on Kayle gives a secondary fight win condition if Vel’Koz dies early.
Positioning
You can corner Vel’Koz, but Kayle is often just as good and can bait out Thresh hooks. You don’t want Vel’Koz getting his ultimate canceled. Clump units around him to make sure he’s safe from Assassins.
Lux should be in the opposite corner to fodder and so that her shield reaches across your clumped backline. The Morellonomicon user continues to be frontlined. Your positioning gets trickier with Zeke’s Herald, as you’ll want it to buff both Vel’Koz and Kayle.
Early game units
Any of the Spellweaver champions make for good Vel’Koz item holders. You can also pick up all the Redeemed units and use Syndra as an early carry before selling her later. Leona and other Knights make for a strong early frontline. Don’t be afraid to put early tank items on Aatrox and sell him later.
Late game replacements
Even at 6 Redeemed, there are different ways to play it. You can drop Aatrox for Leona and run Garen to add Knights and get MR shred. Varus can also be exchanged for a Redeemed unit and played with Kindred to get Rangers and Mystic. This would probably only be useful if you have leftover attack speed items without a Kayle.
The comp is very flexible if you want to drop to just three Redeemed. Vel’Koz, Rell, and Kayle are the most valuable. Running another Spellweaver helps buff Vel’Koz, You can find ways to fit Spellweaver, Ironclad, Mystic, and Knight all together. Adding Heimerdinger for Renewer and a built-in healing debuff is great if you lack Morellonomicon.
Forgotten Draven
Units (cost): Nautilus (2), Draven (4), Mordekaiser (4), Diana (4), Ryze (4), Rell (4), Viego (5), Darius (5)
Items: Runaan’s Hurricane, Deathblade, Riskthirster, Frozen Heart, Blue Buff
Runaan’s Hurricane is important to get Draven hitting more than one target. That has natural synergy with Deathblade, helping Draven stack it. He also needs to heal, so Riskthirster or Bloodthirster are great third items. Hand of Vengeance or Hand of Justice work as well. Defensively, Draven can build a Guardian Angel or Trap Claw if needed.
Every comp can use anti-heal from Morellonomicon, but we’ll focus on Tear items for our secondary units. Frozen Heart to the backline is always nice, while Blue Buff is great for near-instant Viego casts. If you don’t hit Viego, Diana can use it to try to get two ultimates off in a fight.
Positioning
The Draven positioning is a little different than the others. Because his auto attack range is only 3 hexes, we move him up from the back row (unless he has Rapidfire Cannon). We can make him safe from Assassin jumps by putting a unit behind him, and we put Ryze on the opposite corner to eat Vel’Koz or Zyra ultimates.
Nautilus and Rell are in the frontline to soak damage before Darius comes in. Mordekaiser is used in the backline in the event that he doesn’t have items. If he does have defensive items, he can be put in the frontline and swapped for Nautilus. Diana will be positioned to target enemy clumps. Viego should be placed to jump on a priority target, especially if Viego has Blue Buff.
Early game units
Putting early Draven items on Vayne is one of the easiest early game setups for Draven. You can use champions like Warwick, Hecarim, and Thresh to fill out early Forgotten synergy. Add in a Ranger to buff Vayne and fill out frontline synergies around your Forgotten melee units.
Late game replacements
There are many different versions of the Draven comp. You can drop Diana, Darius, and Nautilus to add Katarina, Thresh, and Hecarim for 6 Forgotten. You can also drop some of the same units to get to 4 or 6 Legionnaire, particularly with Kayle. Mystic can be splashed in with Kindred, who are good at protecting Draven. You can also drop the Assassins to add Thresh and Taric for 4 Knight for more durability.
Assassin Nocturne
Units: Kha’Zix (1), Leblanc (2), Katarina (3), Nocturne (3), Diana (4), Ivern (4), Viego (5), Volibear (5)
Items: Sacrificial Infinity Edge, Deathblade, Riskthirster, Morellonomicon, Blue Buff
We’re running Revenant, so Nocturne wants damage. Either version of Infinity Edge is fine though, obviously, Sacrificial will do more damage. That said, it requires a healing item in compensation, even with Nocturne’s natural healing. With regular Infinity Edge, you can go Guinsoo’s Rageblade as a third item instead.
Volibear once again carries Morellonomicon. Viego is great with Blue Buff for casting quickly. In 6 Assassins, you should build Frozen Heart over Frozen Dark Heart because all of your units are jumping together. Zeke’s Herald is also good in this comp.
Positioning
Frontline Volibear by himself. The change to Assassin jumping means backlining other units no longer pulls enemy units forward. The rest is about positioning your Assassins to jump where you want them. Nocturne and Viego should mostly be on the edges of the board to avoid focus and hit priority units. Diana should still be targeting clumps of units to knock the carry out of hiding.
Early game units
The easiest way to build early is to stick Nocturne items on Kha’Zix and rebuild him later. However, any regular carry like Vayne or Kalista will also work. Going Brawler for an early frontline is nice, as Kha’Zix and Gragas benefit from Dawnbringer. Another early option is Coven, with Leblanc carrying Nocturne items and Blue Buff.
Late game replacements
You can drop down to 4 Assassin and splash in Coven if you have a 3 star Katarina or Leblanc with items. As long as Nocturne is your carry, you will want 3 Revenant in if you can have it. If you can’t find Volibear, Morgana is a good Morellonomicon holder. She helps fit in Coven or Mystic. Ryze can push you up to 2 Mystic and 3 Forgotten.
Skirmisher Jax
Units: Kennen (2), Nautilus (2), Trundle (2), Nidalee (3), Pantheon (3), Jax (4), Rell (4), Viego (5)
Items: Runaan’s Untamed Hurricane, Caustic Quicksilver, Bloodthirster, Morellonomicon
Jax ramps up throughout combat, so survivability is key. Lifesteal of any kind keeps him going, so Bloodthirster, Hand of Justice, or Hand of Vengeance is key. Jax can never die to crowd control if he has Caustic Quicksilver. Any damage item will do in the last slot. Runaan’s Untamed Hurricane helps him make use of the Skirmisher bonus AD.
Nidalee can also be a primary carry if you can hit her 3 star. She wants pure damage in the form of Infinity Edge, Bloodthirster, and Hand of Justice. If not going for Nidalee, Kennen is a great Morellonomicon user. Zeke’s Herald is easy to use in the composition. Redemption is also great in a composition that has so many melee units.
Positioning
Stick all your melee units in the front row. Carry units like Jax and Nidalee should go one hex off the edge to draw minimal aggro. If you don’t have a Viego and are 8 melee units, you can put Rell behind the others and she will charge up to the frontline at the start of combat. Position Jax away from big enemy clumps so he can avoid as much AoE damage as possible.
Early game units
Skirmishers are a very easy composition to start in and stay in all game. You can put early damage items on Udyr or Nidalee. Hellion is another fine start with Kennen. AD Items can go on Kled. Supplement him with Cavaliers in the frontline. You should play 6 Skirmisher as soon as you have enough.
Late game replacements
There are fewer options for improvisation unless you want to drop to 3 Skirmisher. If you get a Skirmisher spatula, you can put it on Mordekaiser and go 4 Dragonslayer with Diana. If you don’t need armor, you can always drop the Ironclad units for Mystic instead.
