Pyke is one of the most oppressive champions in League of Legends. He’s perfect for those players who play Support but would also like to deal damage to help carry the game. In this guide, we’ll show you everything you need to know to get you started playing the Bloodharbor Ripper.

Ever find yourself being autofilled into Support but hate playing enchanters or wardens? Then Pyke is the perfect champion for you. He is basically an assassin with support capabilities. He’s extremely mobile, has excellent crowd control, and very strong early kill pressure. He has enough damage early on to even secure a first blood. His kit also allows him to be one of the richest champions in the game if he gets fed. The best part is he gets to share the bonus gold he gets to his teammates.

Abilities

Pyke’s kit is reminiscent of the typical assassin but has enough crowd control to make up for him being a Support.

Passive – Gift of the Drowned Ones

If Pyke cannot be seen by enemies, he regenerates damage that he has recently taken from champions. Pyke stores 10% (+0.25 per 1 Lethality) of damage taken as Gray Health, increased to 45% (+0.5 per 1 Lethality) if there are two or more enemies nearby.

Additionally, Pyke converts all extra Maximum Health from any source into Attack Damage instead. (1 AD per 14 Health)

Gift of the Drowned Ones gives Pyke his impressive sustain. This is why a lot of players also play him in other lanes such as Mid. The bonus AD he gets from this is not too shabby as well since it can help him deal more damage.

Q – Bone Skewer

Tap: Pyke stabs in a direction, damaging the nearest enemy (preferring champions).

Hold: Pyke throws his harpoon, pulling the first enemy struck towards him and dealing damage. They are also slowed by 90% for 1 second, and Bone Skewer’s mana cost is refunded by 75% if he hits an enemy champion.

Bone Skewer is your main crowd control ability. It’s great for dealing damage and for pulling enemies closer. It works similarly to hook abilities like Blitzcrank or Thresh’s Qs. 

W – Ghostwater Dive

Pyke gains Camouflage and gains decaying 40% (+1.5% per 1 Lethality) Movement Speed for 5 seconds.

Ghostwater Dive is a pretty straightforward ability. You gain camouflage and basically hide yourself from the enemy. It’s great for roaming and ganking other lanes to secure leads.

E – Phantom Undertow

Pyke dashes, leaving a drowned phantom behind him. After a short delay the phantom returns to Pyke, striking enemies along its path, stunning them for 1.25 seconds (+0.1 per 10 Lethality). Champions hit also take physical damage.

Phantom Undertow is Pyke’s AoE crowd control. It is also his main source of mobility. It’s perfect for setting up kills or even escaping sticky situations.

R – Death from Below

Pyke strikes all enemy champions in an X, blinking to and executing targets below a Health threshold. Enemies not executed instead take physical damage equal to 50% of the threshold. When an enemy champion dies in the X from any source, an assisting ally will receive an additional Cut and Pyke may re-cast Death From Below again within 20 seconds.

Death from Below is a pretty strong ability. It allows Pyke to secure kills even as a Support. The best part is that everyone who assisted in the kills would get a cut of the bonus gold. So in a way, everyone wins. 

Runes and Item Builds

When it comes to items, your focus on Pyke should be to increase his lethality and damage as much as possible.

Starting Items

When it comes to starting items, you have two choices depending on your role on the team. If you’re playing in a solo lane, always go for Doran’s Shield to help you sustain and get through the early laning phase. If you’re playing as a Support, take the Pauldron’s of Whiterock. This will give you an active that lets you place wards anywhere on the map.

Mythic Items

For your Mythic Items, you have two choices: Duskblade of Draktharr or Prowler’s Claw. If you just want raw damage and extreme burst, go for Duskblade of Draktharr. However, if you want a bit more utility or you need to stick to your targets, go for Prowler’s Claw instead. It mostly boils down to preference but if you’re unsure, you can’t go wrong with Duskblade of Draktharr.

Full Build

After purchasing your Mythic item, go for tier 2 boots. In this case, the best choice is Boots of Mobility. Next, go for Umbral Glaive which increases your damage while also allowing you to disable wards when spotted. Up next, you’ll need Axiom Arc for the damage as well as the refund on the cooldown of your ultimate whenever you score a kill. After, go for Youmuu’s Ghostblade for the attack damage, lethality and an active that grants you bonus movement speed. Finally, top off your build with Death’s Dance for even more damage and a bit of survivability.

Runes

For your runes, go with the Domination tree and take Hail of Blades as your keystone. This will increase your overall burst whenever you trade with an enemy. Next take Cheap Shot to increase your damage on champions with imparied movements, Zombie Wards for additional ward utility, and Ultimate Hunter to reduce the cooldown of your ultimate. For your secondaries, take Bone Plating and Unflinching from the Resolve tree. Bone Plating increases your durability while Unflinching lets you stick to your target better. For your rune shards, take double Adaptive Force and Armor.

Useful Tips

1. The Tap version of Bone Skewer is more powerful so don’t hesitate to use it when you feel like you have an opportunity to do so.
2. Pyke is very squishy so don’t hesitate to turn and run from a losing fight. Try your best to sustain and play it safe before finding an opportunity to strike.
3. For your summoner spells, take Flash and Ignite to give you more utility and to help you secure early leads. If you want to play it safe, you can swap out Ignite for Exhaust.

So there you have it! That’s all you need to know about playing Pyke in League of Legends. Be sure to check back with us again for more awesome guides on your favorite games. Have fun and we’ll see you on the Rift!