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Help with Titanic Hydra and Sterak's Gage

HavokDeathwalker·8/26/2015, 3:58:51 AM·1 votes·4,470 views

TL:DR; I need help figuring out what champs to build these items on, What situation they're most/least efficient in, and what slot to build these items in.

I really like these two new items; but need help fully figuring out the appropriate situations to build them in and the appropriate champions to build them on. Please, correct me if I'm wrong or submit any suggestions for improving my build below.

Titanic Hydra let's me get beefy and gives me damage for building that path. I feel like it's a much smoother item for beefier bruisers over Ravenous Hydra . Obviously (correct me if I'm wrong), if I'm going more tanky, I want Titanic; and, if my team is tanky enough without me allowing me to go for a more damage oriented build, I want Ravenous.

I main , and he's been my go to pick for top lane since season 2. I've had ample success building Tiamat first item, then picking up Black Cleaver , before finishing my Hydra. After, I usually pick up situational items. I've even rushed my Ravenous first item if I'm up against a squishier top laner.
However, Titanic has me a wee bit confused. I've tried rushing it first item, which fails as I have no substantial health prior to it. This leads me to believe that I should rush Cleaver, or another item with health slapped on, before fully finishing Titanic.

Next up, is Sterak's Gage . This item is probably the most confusing item I've ever seen. I understand how it works, but THIS is the item, where I have a hard time figuring out who to build it on. I had hoped it would work as a stand-in second item when Black Cleaver wasn't necessary on Rene. (This is where I'm almost certain I'll get yelled at, but it massively increases the damage on his W. xD)

Sterak's seems to have good synergy with BOTH Hydras, even if I'm not building it on Rene. That being said, I can NOT figure out if what slot it's best built in. I really like this item and want to build it on a lot of my top laners. I just need help figuring out it's maximum efficiency.

Thank you anyone that takes the time to help me. xD

9 Comments

Big Lincoln8/26/2015, 4:05:37 AM2 votes

gage is good if you have:

high base AD
like having lots of health
want to be in a fight for long periods of time

build it on most AD bruisers tbh. none of them come to mind that it wouldn't be good on

i think Gangplank is secretly OP with bruiser builds

LilxPaprika8/26/2015, 3:19:53 PM2 votes

on: , , ,, with . ( attack speed triforce champs do well imo) maybe even Evelyn. I would have added hybrid kayle but they nerfed her :( xin and trundle have q that scale of full ad not just bonus.

try it Tryndamere (not even kidding) he has highest base hp after alistar.

i just played with titanic hydra on , the auto reset it really dope on it. i could see it on tank since auto reset helps apply his passive.

JackPringle8/26/2015, 4:07:51 AM1 votes

Sterak's is jsut bad, I was playing olaf 3000 hp and it needed me to lose 1600 hp in 5 seconds for it to proc. Im sorry over half my hp in 5 seconds for it to proc if im dieing that fast im not sure it's worth the pick up in that instance i want a banshe's or maybe thornmail

Umbral Regent8/26/2015, 2:17:56 PM1 votes

Titanic Hydra is an item that makes you heavily dependent on health to give an admirable damage output, but it has some extra leverage over Ravenous Hydra;

Cleave/Crescent - The first noticeable difference between Ravenous Hydra and Titanic Hydra is the Passive/Active effects. Ravenous Hydra performs a small AoE centered on the champion, while Titanic Hydra performs a cone spread of damage that originates off the target hit.
Scaling - Ravenous Hydra scales off of Attack Damage, while Titanic Hydra scales off of Health. While this doesn't necessarily limit the tankiness of the champion being played, it does put a bit more of an emphasis on specific high-health low-resist items for T/H, whereas R/H allows you to buy more straightforward defensives like Maw of Malmortius or Sunfire Cape. These are the only two points I can come up with to argue between which item to purchase. Taking the points into consideration, it's no great leap of logic to say that T/H and Sterak's Gage go hand-in-hand. Steraks allows the high-health low-resist champions to soak up a little more damage than anticipated with the ragemode shield, while also giving a hefty boon to health and consequently, T/H's Cleave/Crescent damage.

Now, the question is, who should these items be built on, and what situations call for them best? The foremost answer to the first question, for me, is simple; Darius, the Hand of Noxus. His already impressive damage makes damage items like R/H needless flair for him, especially with his new Bloodrage. Purchasing T/H also allows him to farm minions relatively safely by timing his Cleave/Crescent hits, giving him impressive waveclear alongside his Decimate. Plus, at higher health, Darius can Apprehend, then ready both Crescent and Crippling Strike to maximize damage and slow his target heavily. Yet, that doesn't answer the question in whole. In my opinion, Titanic Hydra and Steraks should be bought on melee brawlers who need to be able to spread their damage out in front of them. One might consider it on Vi, the Piltover Enforcer, due to her already impressive damage and need for extra survivability. The health benefit with other defensive items, as well as the Cleave/Crescent essentially making every auto-attack Excessive Force'd, may make her a frightening opponent. (in theory. I have yet to test T/H Vi.) Renekton seems to be a champion who could purchase either Hydra and make good use of it, whether from the raw damage of Ravenous, or the compound health damage and further spread from Titanic. Not to mention, (theoretically, of course), the Titanic Hydra would gain a fair boost to damage when Renekton casts Dominus - increasing his health, and contributing to the damage scaling on T/H.

And now, onto the second question; what situations call for Titanic Hydra (and Steraks) best? The first thing to consider is what champion you're playing. Some champions, while tanky, have difficulty farming due to opponents being able to stay in the thick of minion waves. Titanic Hydra can be a blessing or a burden in these situations, as the Cleave/Crescent may hit them and force the minions to attack you, or it could serve enough to scare them out of their horde. The Titanic Hydra's damage (i think) is counted as physical, so it can proc Black Cleaver's Cleave, weakening your opponents. Another thing to consider is Auto-Attack Resets; Crippling Strike, Excessive Force, etc. That cause you to reset your auto-attack cycle and deal another hit prematurely. If you're buying health and have auto-attack resets, the Titanic Hydra would be optimal for wave-clearing and long-range threat, whereas Ravenous Hydra would deign you close the distance to do your damage. While that isn't enough points to justify a proper stance, I'm not particularly well-versed in the use of Titanic Hydra yet, and would need more time to come up with more tactical points. But this can still be said; both items require some emphasis on specific item paths. Ravenous Hydra requires damage and resistance, while Titanic Hydra requires health. Take these into consideration when purchasing your Tiamat upgrades.

I hope this has helped you in some way, and I thank you for your time in reading.

AyRe CoNteMpT8/26/2015, 3:56:55 PM1 votes

renekton build: ravenous hydra, bloodthirster, black cleaver, deadmans plate/maw of malmortius, spirit visage/thornmail, boots

in that order, except squeeze the boots in whenever you can

Hullabaloo9078/28/2015, 1:19:11 AM1 votes

Steraks and titanic hydra arnt great together. Steraks is for all those tanky champions who synergize really well with sheen procs. Think Hecarim . Titanic, on the other hand, is for all the champs who ravenous hydra as there only really offensive item, simply because they were no good if they didnt have any damage, but didnt want to go for a full ad build. The reason why these two items dont go well together is, A, thats a lot of health wiht no resistances, and B) if you have a titanic hydra, you should build a bc, and if you have a steracs, you should build a sheen item.