Trying out some Theorycrafting for Ekko patch 5.15
Comprehensive on Ekko - itemization w/o runes. masteries 21/9/0 Relevant patch 5.15 Disclaimer not an Ekko main. Plat4 theorycrafter trying to expand knowledge and apply. Opinion based, situations may vary, results may vary. Report as needed.
tl;dr ekko build w/o cdr runes: (Hit n Run) H.Guise > Athenes > Ludens > Wota > Dcap > Finish Liandry’s (All in AP) Morello > Ludens > Dcap > Zhonyas > Wota
Hit n Run Build breakdown thought process (I will answer “why not this item?” later):
Haunting Guise - Ekko ideally runs two styles of play once patch 5.15 comes through: “Hit and run” Ekko, and “All In AP” Ekko (to higher level players this may not exactly be the case, but it is closer to what Riot wants the champion to do). With more relevant AP ratios, Guise offers a boost to AP, meaningful health, and flat magic pen early. By building the parts early in lane, Ekko still has a decent lane sustain and all in potential. His early skirmishing is generally determined by 1 or 2 spell rotations, which is why I opt for this item. DO NOT GET LIANDRYS UNTIL LATER.
Athenes - Athenes has several uses in conjunction to the mana regen it provides. After Guise is completed, Mana Regen and CDR become stats that are much more beneficiary to the build. Ekko farms and controls the wave easily with Q, and can intimidate the enemy laner with W and E pressure, allowing for strong roaming potential. Athenes innate 25+ magic resist provides apt lane resistances versus a plethora of midlane mages that have the means to poke him out (cough cough viktor, cough ahri, cough lux etc), which becomes even more effective when stacked on top of the HP from Guise. While not as offensively based as morello, Athenes guarantees mana back on kills, which can make all the difference when Ekko needs to turn a fight around with W and R.
Boots - Note here that normally I would like Sorc Shoes around now (sometimes before, sometimes much later, it varies). An arguable secondary choice could be mobility boots to bolster Ekko’s already powerful Hit n Run tactics. Additional Mpen with Guise deals near true damage to many carry based champs, perfect for lane and early game where magic resist isn’t as common. Or make a trade off for additional speed for more pressure on the map to snowball, added notes are that due to Ekko’s tendency to be very slippery, the mobi boots can help him escape much more swiftly. Even more significant, the earlier these boots are purchased the faster Ekko can return to lane to push out and gank.
Ludens - Ludens currently adds some much needed AP to our build, faster waveclear, and even more movespeed. Athenes contributes CDR and mana to keep firing out abilities for more Ludens procs. My understanding is that Z Drive Resonance also procs Ludens, meaning E will activate Ludens on hit.
Will of the Ancients - Wota is the most controversial item on this build list, and for good reasons too. Earlier we established two main types of Ekko play, All in AP or Hit n Run, at the moment Wota can actually benefit both builds. First thing I want to accomplish with Wota is effectively hitting 30% CDR (why 30%? Blue buff gives 10%, get some.) in conjunction with Athenes. At this stage of the game, it is very likely that you will get blue buff. The second thing Wota gives is more AP, yippee. The last part is the ability for Ekko to stay alive in sustained fights when used in tandem with W or R. In this stage of the game, fights can be heavily determined by well timed/placed abilities with Ekko. All of Ekkos damaging abilities receive a huge boon from Wota, hitting more that 3 enemies (minions included) with Q or R grants a ton of health back, Ekko’s E, and passive (which gains benefit from W passive) give Ekko a whopping metric shit ton of health back. Add that to a scenario where a medium-low health Ekko hits a shield of 80/100/120/140/160 base + 150% AP, and suddenly you look like Boxbox building lifesteal.
Death cap - Rabodons buffs up your power, synergizing with your AP ratios and afore-mentioned items, while the boost to power is significant, this Ekko build delays Dcap due to the fact the first two (more like 1.5 really) items only give an approximate of 85 AP. Ludens and Wota promote the spike that Ekko will get upon buying this item in the late game. That said, should Ekko be ahead, both Wota and Dcap are fantastic items to stay ahead, one just offers more utility/sustainability and the other more power.
Liandrys - Finally Liandry’s Torment: This item’s purchase time is extremely difficult to gauge correctly, my general opinion says last unless your enemy is building only HP and/or Armor versus your team. The key reason to delay this item as last is simply because the item says “applies damage equal to 2% of the target’s CURRENT health” (x2 if affected by movement impairment effects). This is incredibly difficult to gauge how significant this item can impact a game. The completed Mpen hardly changes despite a nice buff to Ekko’s AP, the effective health gain by this time is completely derailed due to the fact that we aren’t in prelevel9 laning phase. However the item is still significant in that it has synergy with all of Ekko’s kit, and can help shred tanks incredibly quickly.
ADDITIONAL and NICHE ITEMS (most other items that aren’t mentioned just aren’t as significant imo):
Rylais - Noobtrap item in my opinion, HP and AP adds are significant, however Ekko already has a great time kiting and slowing enemies with his entire kit. Due to how much gold Ekko needs to obtain to complete the item, we opt for much greater utility and early game setup with our other items.
Nashor’s Tooth - Interesting item, the boosted AP and CDR help, but the Atk Spd can be counterintuitive in playstyle, Ekko’s strength is not typically just standing there whacking you over and over again, its more like whack you once or twice every so often. It does have synergy with his kit though.
Hextech Gunblade - In my opinion this item is worth looking at if you’re planning to play with ludens and Nashors tooth. 20% spellvamp isn’t ignorable, nor is the AP you get from it. To maximize its synergy and returns you will need a much more reliable source to get it off cooldown, hence with nashors (and morello/athenes). Ludens grants additional movespeed to help Ekko stick and dodge as needed.
Morellonomicon - Book powerful. Give CDR. Give Mana regen. Beat stick. Grievous wounds is niche vs someone like mundo, vlad, shen, morde etc. Can help vs Lifesteal first builds like Kalista and Vayne though.
Zhonyas - Zhonyas is a great item for mages looking to fight AD mids, the additional purpose to Ekko is that he can manipulate his past a little bit more with zhonyas. By remaining in the middle of the teamfight under the protection of zhonyas, Ekko can look to use his ult right where he is, on top of enemies missing key spells to lock him down or damage him. Definitely armguard first over haunting guise if needed. Zhonyas over Liandrys if needed.
Abys Scept. - Abyssal grants Magic Resist and takes it away from enemies nearby, nearly always in range for Ekko. The item is powerful, opting to grab it over Guise is definitely understandable, but at the same time, the build path is incredibly defensive without much mana regen. If youre taking a lot more poke than you’d like from magic damage, don’t hesitate to take this over Guise. However be aware that the spike from the item comes marginally later than Guise, closing an opportunity window for early plays. Athenes grants mana regen, alleviating the stress on mana while still providing meaningful magic resist and AP.
Void staff - Vstaff grabs more Mpen and AP. This becomes more significant late game, or when you’re really ahead looking to snowball even harder. It has nothing special with Ekko, just like Dcap.
Randuins Omen - Ekko can use Omen in its full glory, Tankko is not a thing of the past, and it has powerful niche uses where Ekko grabs early spikes and tops it off with randuins to completely bury AD opponents. It can also be used to help Ekko’s already amazing engage prowess. Honorable mention is Righteous Glory, but the item is two sided; it provides Ekko with nothing but HP in tank stats, and can be a huge gold sink if a large play isn’t produced off it. Randuins is the much safer and arguably more powerful option. Can replace Guise lategame. Can use together with Zhonyas.
Spirit Visage - Visage gives 10% CDR on top of its regenerative synergy and HP/MR. This item can replace Guise in the late game as the pen begins to drop off (unless Vstaff is purchased, even then is arguable). This item accents Wota in our build and is fairly useful in the late game vs magic damage. Ekko’s ult goes well with it.
If you like/logically criticize this post let me know. Im working on improving and applying my game knowledge. Thanks.
