Lux build and game guide



So you want to melt faces with Lux eh?

Lux is one of the most powerful nuke champions in the game if you have the skill, and more importantly, the knowledge on how to destroy people with her.

This guide should help.

***IMPORTANT::*** When to play as Lux ***::IMPORTANT***

This is probably the most essential part of this guide to read and understand.

Lux should always be picked when your team needs range and AP. If your team doesn't have a melee carry/dps - you shouldn't play lux - see, the enemy team will want to kill you no matter what... so if you have melee dps to protect you - they can't. But if you don't have melee DPS - that consists of stuns, slows, knock ups, cc and lots of dps... then you will get focused so fast in team fights your head will spin, and you will just suck.

TL:DR -- You need melee DPS to protect lux, otherwise she's not a good choice in a 5 man team. Always build your teams in this fashion.


Tank > Melee Carry > Ranged Carry > Off-Tank > Support


Lux = Support/carry. If you don't fulfill at least 3 of the other roles - lux cannot truly shine. She is a SUPPORT character at heart since she is meant to support melee - and melee needs to support her. If this relationship doesn't exist, Lux will get melted down instantly.

With that said - she just does a **** load of dmg with this build, so when your team has a strong melee/ranged carry/off-tank...

Lock in Lux and prepare to Melt Faces.

Updated for new Masteries!

New masteries essentially mixed up casters quite a bit. Before most casters went 9/0/21, but now it's more appealing to go 21/0/9... which means a loss of 6% CDR from utility tree, movement speed, xp gain and so on, in exchange for more damage. I've updated the build and the masteries section to relfect these changes.

WHAT?! Attack damage in Masteries Tree?!!?

You'll notice as of February 2012 I've changed the Offense Mastery Tree: I've specced out all but 1 point in Mental Force and specced into 3 pts into  Brute Force. The reason for this is simple:

1) 3 extra AP is really not that much. Sure it multiplies, but in the end 3extra AP isn't going to pay off as well compared to early game...

2. LAST HITTING.

At lvl1, lvl2, lvl3, and lvl4.. Lux has a REALLY hard time last hitting if you aren't very experienced with her. This additional 3 dmg on your auto-attacks and your passive  

This ensures you will land last hits and farm very well early game (an area a lot of Lux players struggle with from what I hear.)

GL, let me know if this helps some of you.

How to play Lux (Using her Combo & Harassing)

Lux's passive ability is activated each time she does damage with one of her spells. Enemies will have a little green glow on them, you want to try to always take advantage of this. Early game(after level 3), always try to harass your opponent by dropping lucent singularity  on them and detonating right away.. then run in and hit them with an auto-attack. This will hurt them, bad.. and if you keep doing this, by the time you are level 6, they should be around 50% hp.. It's always VERY important to SAVE YOUR Q as often as possible. You don't want to waste this spell if you aren't going for a kill or saving yourself.

Now, once you're 6 keep wearing them down until they are around 50% hp... depending on the champ you might want them lower... OR, you can look at top/bottom lane and see if an enemy has low enough hp that you can kill them with your laser. Either teleport to the lane or run to it, but don't let your opposing Mid see you leave.

NOW THE KILL: NOW this is very important. Using your Q  properly her makes or breaks the gank. If you are flanking someone with Flash or that can escape, you need to ONLY OPEN WITH YOUR E  . Do not use your Q or your ULT until you are certain you can hit them... i.e., when an enemy retreats, they willlikely retreat in a straight line. You want to take advantage of this since your Q travels in a straight line! I like to wear them down with my E and prevent their escape path, slowing them, and exploding right at the end, and usually, if you land a proper E, your Q will be alot easier to land while your opponent is inside your E.

TO KILL: Hit them with Q - Light binding  - this will immobilize them for 2 seconds while you throw down a lucent singularity on top of them/slightly behind them  and IMMEDIATELY USE YOUR ULTIMATE  - they will not be able to avoid it. They should be dead. and if they aren't, auto-attack them - EXPLODE the singularity(E), and finish them with another auto-attack. There's hardly any champs in the game that can survive this at low levels.

I always find myself launching Q at the enemy, and if I am 90% certain it will hit I will cast my E immediately on top of them, then my ultimate right away. This should become your standard opener. Q, if you know it's going to hit, throw E, ULT! auto-attack, explode E, auto-attack. = INSANE DMG

 Finales Funkeln always does more damage if your passive is active on your opponent, so always try to hit a Q or E before using your ult.

Also, until you can farm blue buff at around level 9, it's important that you conserve mana. Also, if your team's jungler doesn't necessarily need blue buff, always ask if you can have it.. a lux with unlimited mana is a very dangerous opponent. Spam your abilities and harass constantly to zone them out.

Always get your E  maxxed out ASAP - of course, your ult as well. Q  secondary, and IMPORTANT: W  should be smart spellcast bound to quickly cast... it saves lives. and if you cast it properly, you can apply it twice to any team mate - once going out, once coming back. To smart cast bind, press esc, go into key bindings, and find Smartcast bind spell 2. bind this to W.

In team fights, where it seems that every single player in the game is focused on one point, spam your abilities. You will change the outcome of any fight, very easily.

Lucent Singularity (E)  can be used in many ways - one is to scout the map, I always throw it into the bushes if I'm overextended to dps a turret - it will allow you to see enemy champs flanking you.. also.. it can be used to push your front line, once you have about 500 ability power, when you explode your singularity is hits very hard, and no champ will want to stand in it... it's one of the best pushing abilities in the game - since it gives you vision of wherever it is thrown. Thirdly, it can be used to ensure an escape for yourself, or when assisting a team mate escape. I get so much <3 from team mates because I will constantly put my neck on the line to shield them and help them escape a gank - this is Lux's most important role. Keeping your team alive and pushing front lines (while doing insane damage, of course)

Finally, don't be afraid to use your ult  often - if you see 3 enemy champs grouped together, send your ult right into them (or at least try to get a Q or E on them first). Many people think Lux's ult is about finishing off enemy champs, which it is very good at doing - but once you have a 36-24 sec cooldown timer - spam it as much as possible... DPS enemy champs who are hit by your ability spam will be worn down on health quickly, and forced to port back to base - you've just turned the battle in your team's favour.

How to build Lux: AP, and nothing but.

Lux is a very squishy champion. Building HP on her will not help since she is always going to be squishy. You need to learn to play very passive and behind the rest of your team. Your tank and melee also need to protect you. Achieve this, and you will nuke their team down so fast their heads will spin.

If you find yourself getting killed or focused down a lot you're probably going to be thinking "I need HP, I need survival" - STOP. You cannot build lux survival and still carry, it just doesn't work like that. If you don't start playing even more passively in team fights, and I mean super passive.. then you're going to get focused down, generally annoyed, and hate lux for being so fail.

YOU SHOULD NEVER BE WITHIN RANGE OF ANY ENEMY CHAMP. Lux out ranges everything. Don't GET HIT! Know your enemy. Bait them to miss a skill shot, and push in with your E. Always save your Q. You never know when you'll need it, E is enough to harass with until you know you can get a killshot, then use your Q.

Runes

See top of page for Rune setups.

Magic Resist Glyphs

If you are playing ranked games, you might want to roll with Flat Magic Resist Glyphs if you know you will be against a strong caster mid, IE: Morgana, Brand, Leblanc, Xerath, Ziggs, etc.

Summoner Spells

 
 
 

Suggested spells: I prefer Teleport and Clarity for just completely dominating middle lane from the start of the game and the ability to gank teleport to bottom or top @ lvl 6 and gank.

However, I am able to do well with Teleport/Clarity because I'm very experienced with Lux and I know how to hug towers and hover outside fights and stay out of danger. But if you are new to Lux or don't quite have the feel of her yet it's probably best to run with Flash.

**PRO** When to get Mejai's Soulstealer?

 is a great items on lux because she is able to get assists and kills very well with her extremely long range. However, you must only get this item if you are feeling comfortable with your farming and/or early ganks. This item can be very powerful for a snowballing lux early game, but as the game carries on to mid-end game Lux is much more prone to death. You really need to get a feel for if you want to get it or not. Sometimes that gold is better spent on rushing your Deathcap, especially if you haven't got some early game ganks.

No Rod of Ages?

You will notice I don't get  in this guide nor suggest it... people don't understand this. I will explain why Rod of Ages is a bad choice for Lux.

First off, every item in this guide adds +AP, right away. It's important you build lux with as much AP as fast as possible. Most people when building RoA get  first, which is 1325g spent in the wrong direction. While HP is nice, lux really can't escape much (if you miss your Q, you're done)... so that lil extra HP really doesn't make a difference.

Furthermore, and most importantly -- by the time you get RoA fully purchased, you could have had Deathcap up, which means you have significantly less AP @ this point than you should, and your ability to carry is instantly diminished. Without an early deathcap to carry, you cant destroy, and you cant get fed.

simple.

Why Lich Bane?

Alot of ppl ask why do you build Lich Bane on Lux? Some have even commented ridiculous claims that is a bad item for her...

Well guess what? It's really not.... it's actually quite amazing on her. Here is why:
- When you get Lich Bane with Lux you will have between 350-500 AP. That means you will auto attack enemy champs for 650 Damage or so. Auto-attack every time you cast Q, W, E, and even when you explode E - counts as another ability. So 5 auto-attacks for 600+ DMG every spell rotation. Pure melt.
GG.

When to get tier1 boots?

 is highly recommended early on lux depending on who she is facing in her lane... most of the time you can hold off buying them until AFTER your  , but occasionally if you are vs a champ like Miss Fortune, Kass, or other fast moving harass you will want to pick them up before your lucky pick.

Why Magic Pen Boots and not CDR Boots?

Magic Penetration is essential on Lux, especially in the mid-game. This is mostly why you need Magic Pen boots for mid game (after Deathcap). CDR Boots aren't good on Lux because it doesn't matter if you have lower cooldowns if you aren't doing enough damage to start with. Also, Lux's cooldowns are so long that 15% on shaves off ~1 second on each ability... with 7-9 seconds of waiting in between. If you don't do enough damage to kill them with your Q > R > E combo then they will just escape with their lives and you won't be getting kills.

Also, once you have deathcap and magic pen boots up you will do so much damage that your enemies won't even see it coming, thus making the chances of you getting mid game kills much higher.

It's true that these boots become less appealing end game when you can get Void Staff for your Magic Penetration needs, but that's end-game only. If you don't get Magic Pen Boots mid game, and get CDR boots instead you won't be doing enough damage. By the time you get void staff you will already have max CDR, so trading them in for CDR Boots at this point is also useless.

Long Story short? Magic Pen boots are required for mid-game damage, getting CDR boots instead will make your damage output drop drastically, and you will be medicore the rest of the game and will have much lower chance of getting kills and carrying the team with insane damage output.

Early Game Lux: Level 1-3

It's important that you play extremely passive with Lux at the start of the game. Don't use any abilities and just try to focus on ONLY last hitting minions in your lane for the gold income. You don't want to use your E unless you know for sure it will not hit any minions. Why? Cuz if you do too much damage to minions your lane will get pushed, and then it will be risky for you to travel too far away from your tower. It's best to just sit back and last hit until you are level 3. At level 3 is when you want to start to harass the enemy champ with E and Q. Always make sure if you land one of these abilities, you run in and auto-attack to take advantage of the extra damage on your passive.

After Level 3

Always always always focus on killing minions and getting the last hit for maximum gold income. Lux is an amazing farmer with her E. A great strategy for Lux after level 3 is to use your E on the 3 caster minions behind the front line, then 1 shot them with your auto-attack. If you manage to kill all the minions in the wave quickly, it will cause your minions to push to the enemy tower. IF you aren't quick enough however, the next wave will also meet at the tower and you will risk being zoned out. It's either fast or nothing.It will take time to get a feel for this, but usually if a 2nd wave of enemy minions meet your minions in the lane, it's a safe bet to kill them all as fast as possible, and then laugh as your enemy champ tries to last hit minions instead of the tower killing them. This will wipe the lane clean, and then both waves of minions will meet in the middle of the two towers again.

This is good for 2 reasons. 1) it causes the enemy to lose last hits to the tower, increasing the gold advantage you have over them. and 2) it allows you to leave your lane temporarily to gank bottom or top without fear of having your tower take damage.

Items / Starting Sequence

First, you want to start with a Doran's Ring  

I often carry HP potions  with me early game while I can afford the slots, they can be life saving. Put any HP potion on your #1 slot, so you will always associate hitting 1 when you have low health. It's also important to always pick up HP potions every time you port back to base at low levels, i'd say level 1-10... these little things will save your life often. Again, always move them to the 1 slot.

I'd suggest getting a Kage's Lucky Pick  as soon as you have 765 gold (this should be before level 6, so you will have that extra AP for your ult once you hit 6); It takes 25 mins to pay off(breaks even if you sell @ 17 mins), but it makes it alot easier to get the gold flowing. Port back to base, pick it up, then teleport back to mid or ur lane.

Next: depending on the opposing team's ganking/ tower diving ability you might want an early Boots of Speed  , but you can hold off getting these and get your Mejai's first. However, but DO NOT worry about upgrading this to  !!!!! REPEAT, DO NOT WASTE YOUR GOLD ON THIS EARLY! Lux is always far enough away from enemy champs that you don't need the extra speed, and no one will have magic resist till mid-late game.

This is when you start to gank. It's very important with Lux to gank as much as possible after level 6. This will increase your gold income, and also since you have about +30 ability power from runes, you will be extremely powerful at this level - while your opponents are still around level 4-5.. assuming you took solo mid lane (which you should always do!)

Next: If you were able to get a few early game ganks, and have over 2000 gold, go straight for a Needlessly Large Rod  or a Mejai's Soulstealer  if you think you are going to have no problem getting continuous kills. Always get your Rabadon's Deathcap  ASAP. If you manage to get this around level 8-10, you will instantly be destroying enemy champs. Otherwise just get a Blasting Wand  , and get an Elixir of Brilliance  to help your early game AP.

Also, you should be trying to get BLUE BUFF as much as possible. This will allow you to spam your abilities on the front lines, and wear down your opponents health as they try to take your turrets. ALWAYS let your team mates give you blue buff. It is by far the most valuable buff for Lux.

You should also get Elixir of Brilliance  CONSTANTLY after level 6, this little bit of extra AP will make or break your ability to finish people with your abilities, especially your ult. You can only imagine how frustrating it is to see an opponent escape with 5% of their HP, and you didn't have an elixir popped!

Finally get your Sorcerer's Shoes  . Some people use cooldown reduction boots for Lux, but I really don't think that's wise. Why? Because magic penetration = more damage, and 20 more magic pen does make a big difference. Lux is about bursting, and 15% less CD is not going to get you kills faster simply because lux's cooldowns are so long. 15% is about 1 second with her Q, W, and E, and if you haven't killed that enemy champ in those 8 seconds, you arent going to, they will have ran away. Also, you have 4% cooldown reduction from your masteries, then another 10% from blue elixir - which you should always have popped. That's 14%, then you get blue buff @ 22% and you are at 36%.. pretty good. And once Morello's Evil Tomb is up you will be @ max CDR. Therefore, no need for CDR boots.

At this point if you find yourself getting 2 shotted by the likes of Veigar, or any other caster, you probably will want to get a Banshee's Veil  .

Next is  . This item alone makes lux extremely dangerous, even in melee. You will be auto-attacking for 500+ dmg.

Next a Needlessly Large Rod  , then Zhonya's Hourglass  . You want to put this in your #1 slot, since you won't be carrying HP potions by this point (they're only good until about lvl 10). Some people don't understand why you use this item. Simply to prevent death. You will be focused, hard. And this item alone can save your life, vs kat's ult, vs kennen, vs anyone who is trying to focus you down, the 2 seconds it buys you will save your life, trust me. Also, some people ask why not get a Archangel's Staff? Well, to be honest I used to get this item, but quite frankly I feel it takes too long to max out, and in the end it gives just a slight bit more AP than hourglass, but hourglass will be more AP faster, armor and 2 secs of escaping death. Choice is yours, but I prefer AP sooner than later, and hourglass has saved my life many times when used correctly.

Finally end game get a Morello's Evil Tomb  & A Void Staff  to penetrate that magic resistance even more.

You will be god like.

What NEVER to do as Lux

Never go into river or jungle alone if you don't know for sure it is safe.
Never push to an enemy tower without a good idea of where the enemy team's jungler and other champions are.
Never build anything but your deathcap asap. (after lucky pick and boots of course)
Never open with just your ultimate unless you know 100% it will kill.
Never be within melee range of any enemy champion.
Never face check bushes. (use your E for scouting)
Never be in the middle of a teamfight, always "hover" outside the battle.
Never stay at a tower with no mana or little HP. Just go back, chances are you will get dived.
Never use your ult to STEAL KILL.
Never be out of mana when you are going into battle.. a Lux with no mana is useless.


and finally... NEVER, push your lane at low levels or allow yourself to get attacked by the enemy champion. Lux is super squishy early game, you want to avoid as much confrontation as possible until at least level 3 where you can start to harass nicely with your level 2 E.

What ALWAYS to do as Lux

Always look for geometric opportunities in the environment to line up your skill shots. What I mean by this is if an enemy is running away, and they have to go around a certain corner, you want to wait until you know for sure that if you send your Q at them in a direct line it will hit rather than trying to hit them at awkward angles. This also applies for your ultimate. Always try to get yourself and the enemy champions in a line so your ultimate hits as many as possible.

Always help top and bottom if you see any trouble occurring. As a Mid champion, Lux is required to leave her lane and help her team quite often.
Always keep an eye on your mana and your clarity, don't get yourself out of mana before a team fight.
Always use your ultimate, E, and Q any given chance you have to do a decent amount of damage to an enemy that will TACTICALLY impact the battle. Meaning, if your turret is getting pushed, you will want to wear the enemy team's HP down as much as you can. But don't waste your skill combo on enemy champs you know you aren't going to kill if there is no tactical advantage to doing so.
Always teleport to help your team if you think they are going to need it. Trust me, if you delay that extra few seconds could make or break the team fight.
Always save and use your shield on allied champs when you see them taking damage. As lux you will always be on the back lines, it's your job to throw that shield up as soon as someone starts getting hurt.
Always go back to base for mana if you are out.
Finally, always try to steal baron, dragon and and blue buff from the enemy with your ultimate (this is one of the best parts about Lux).

End Game

You should have over 900 Ability Power with all your items and always get an Elixir of Brilliance everytime you port back.

This is god mode time.

Team Work

Lux works best by following team mates around.

She can shield them when fighting, and usually save their lives.

She can slow enemy advances with Lucent Singularity, and also scare away pushes by sending a Funkeln right into enemy champs faces. She has some of the best lane control in the game, and is able to hold turrets almost by herself.

Never, NEVER, NEVER be by yourself as Lux. EVER. EVER! She is so fragile, that she will die instantly... and the enemy team will love to finally take you down (after you keep 2 shotting them).