Questions about Skarner rework

Predatorator·Aug 18, 2015·5 votes·2,317 views

Hello, and thank You for reading this. so, about the upcoming rework for Skarner:

he pratically lost his passive attack speed, and his Q has no base damage, but charged Q has nice AD scalings...should i use AD marks, Arm Pen marks, or keep the AS marks for faster clears and faster Qs outside the shrines?
i watched alot of obe games on youtube, but so far i only see team skarner winning. So i'd like to know how does it feel to play him when his team is actually loosing, when he doesn't have any access to his buffs?
i'm not really convinced on this one, but may it be a nice idea to build both TF and BC on him? i know you're gonna loose gold because the rage passive doesn't stack, but apart from this, it seems nice to still have the HPs, armor shred and 20% CD. Sorry for my bad english, and thank You for Your attention!

9 Comments

TrebbiAug 18, 20156 votes

I have only tested his initial clears on the PBE, because I live in EU so I hate playing PvP at 200 ping so sorry I cant be more of help, but here is what I think.

I think that he will favor having Steraks Gage(helps your sheen to do more dmg and skarner shield scales with HP) + Trinity force because it increases his already big base AD and he uses all the stats of Trinity force pretty well. Or you could go iceborn gauntlet and black cleaver as he still has some AP scaling, but I think you dont need much mana because of the spires.

his Q is 2,5 seconds with 0,25 second reduction per auto attack, which means you will get many sheen procs without building much CDR, so perhaps attack speed runes might be good.

So I guess you might want cinderhulk, Deadmans plate and an MR item and I think your kinda sorted.

PredatoratorAug 18, 20151 votes

Thank You =). i'm starting to like steraks on skarner, because of the above mentioned reasons, and i'll try to pair it with a TF in as many games as possible, at least when a bruiser build is possible. i used to build IBG and BC toghether in my tank build, and i'll probably do that even after the rework. same with cinderhulk, though i'm tempted to switch devourer with warrior. so my build should look like: Bruiser: TF, warrior/devourer,mercs,deadman's,SV,steraks Tank: IBG,cinderhulk,mercs,deadman's,Banshee's,BC Thank You again =)

RiotRiotRepertoirAug 18, 20153 votes

should i use AD marks, Arm Pen marks, or keep the AS marks for faster clears and faster Qs outside the shrines?

I personally think AD marks give him the most, but I've also had a high Diamond Skarner main tell me that both AD and AS will be viable.

So i'd like to know how does it feel to play him when his team is actually loosing, when he doesn't have any access to his buffs?

He'll most likely fall back into tank-ish patterns in these cases, trying to stun as many people with his E and Flash R when that's an option. His damage will definitely be lower here, though.

i'm not really convinced on this one, but may it be a nice idea to build both TF and BC on him?

We've found that if you get ahead, going Black Cleaver, Sterak's, and TF actually leaves him pretty effective, though I imagine in games where you don't get off to a great start, just choosing your preference of one or two of these works just fine. One of the things that makes BC even better than before is that he procs physical damage more frequently, so he stacks the passive faster.

SuperLuigiLXIVAug 18, 20153 votes

{quoted}

I personally think AD marks give him the most, but I've also had a high Diamond Skarner main tell me that both AD and AS will be viable.

He'll most likely fall back into tank-ish patterns in these cases, trying to stun as many people with his E and Flash R when that's an option. His damage will definitely be lower here, though.

We've found that if you get ahead, going Black Cleaver, Sterak's, and TF actually leaves him pretty effective, though I imagine in games where you don't get off to a great start, just choosing your preference of one or two of these works just fine. One of the things that makes BC even better than before is that he procs physical damage more frequently, so he stacks the passive faster.

I've mentioned this several times, but I keep getting no response...

Why didn't you guys make his passive into an Azir-type passive where he converts a ward into a minute-long crystal ward/statue/sentinel so he can actually be an objective-focused jungler when Dragon and Baron aren't the objectives he's going for or when the objective is "DO NOT LOSE THIS INHIB TURRET"?

PredatoratorAug 19, 20151 votes

Thank You =). i'm definitevly going to try AD marks.

I find it to be ok to use tank builds in a loosing scenario, finding a way to use his passive while defending in his base would be nice, i don't know if that may take him over the top, but it could feel nice.

yeah, i agree building 3 offensive items, which two of them costing 3k+ gold, is a exceptional case, but i'm so tempted =p. IN the end, i can't wait to try my new skarner out! last but not least, You're doing a superb job on the boards, keep it up =)

Teridax68Aug 18, 20152 votes

Here's my 2 cents from the time I spent testing Skarner on the PBE

Skar Skar actually has a lot more attack speed within his crystal zones, and that's pretty much guaranteed to happen on a large part of your clear, but otherwise yeah, he's a bit lacking in that in zones not under his control. I'd definitely recommend AD marks, since he now scales super-well with AD even at the start, and they'll make more of an impact both while clearing and while ganking early on, where you won't be autoattacking enough to really validate AS marks.
Skarner suffers a bit more than the average jungler when his team loses control of the jungle, since he needs to jump through the additional hoop of capturing a crystal to be able to be effective, but it's still possible to stealthily capture crystals and become an absolute beast when the enemy team collapses on you. Baron and Dragon control become significantly more difficult, though, and Skarner's not really the best at stealing objectives or contesting them from the losing side.
I personally prefer over , as it offers better sticking power, CDR and defensive stats, and doesn't really waste its passives. You're going to be picking items like Sterak's Gage and on the side anyway, so you'll have more than enough overall damage.

PredatoratorAug 19, 20151 votes

thank You =), i'm going to use AD runes then. i'm more a fan of TF, because it makes you faster and more offensive-oriented. i'll try both the builds however. i'm a bit concerned about his "left behind" scenario, but yeah, can't wait to test him out =)

MessaigaAug 18, 20152 votes

I'm thinking Warrior may become quite strong on him as a first item. It allows you to reach the break point where your Q does about as much damage as it does currently (60 base physical and magic damage at 135 AD) and from there on your Q will get stronger as you gain levels. After that I think Dead Man's Plate would be good (it solves your kiting issue and provides quick tank stats). The downside to this build is a late Sheen item (won't have Sheen until you begin building your 3rd item).

I feel that Sheen will only work well early when you are snowballing, but I could be wrong. He needs early AD and HP in order to have reasonable Q damage and shielding from W (which looks as though it will be a one point wonder ability now).

PredatoratorAug 19, 20151 votes

thank You. i'm looking at warrior in my bruiser build for skarner, since devourer seems a little bit less appealing. early on i use to build enchanted smite, sheen and mercs, because of the passive and mana, but i may try to switch it for a phage, for better sticking power, ad, and hp. however, i use to build IBG asap because having those stats early helps alot, and the TF as fifth item. i can confirm, W looks more like a 1 point wonder now =)