Talk:Gragas/Strategy/@comment-71.237.124.144-20120416075506

For those of you who think Gragas is useless, you are incorrect. Not stupid (he has a high skill ceiling and I couldn't play him right a year ago when I tried) but incorrect nonetheless.

One HUGE thing about playing him: ignore the recommended build. AP carry Gragas is so much better it's not even funny.

The build I've played with him today (has a few bad games, but quite a few really good ones) involves CDR blues, quints and both offensive and defensive masteries, so you have a little over 20% CDR with no items. Mana regen and magic pen for your other runes, plus mostly utility masteries (just how I roll personally on the utility side).

I may sound a bit crazy but Gragas' dash, with its low cooldwon and longish range, makes boots something that you don't absolutely need to rush. He has enough mobility with L1 boots that you can focus on Catalyst (into RoA; I start with a mana crystal and mana/health pots 'cuz I'm weird like that) and WotA, then come bac for Sorcerer's Shoes when you feel like it. If you're playing decently you may well be able to get all three items by 25-30 minutes. This will allow you to Barrel Roll one-shot antire minion waves, kicking gold gain into high gear.

I build Death Cap next, followed by Archangel's (you will end up oom with this build sometimes, but not quite enough to necessitate an early Tear/Archangel's). Beyond this, Void Staff or another Death Cap both have potential, depending on how much MR the other team is stacking (aka how afraid they are of your barrels of death and destruction). This may seem like a squishy build, but Gragas' passive, combined with naturally high health and RoA cooperate with his escape-tastic dash to give you a surprising amount of tankiness. You might also thik that there's a bit too much burst here (sacrificing sustain)...which isn't the case either if you have ~20% CDR.

Does Gragas have a high skill cap? Yup. Is he a bad champ? Nope. You just need to practice with him more (skill shots FTW) :p

- CrazyTexan / TotallyThatGuy