Taka takes skill Top
Playing Taka has always been a bit risky, but the most recent update has brought him back, in a grea way. In my opinion, Taka is 30% build and 70% skill. With that said, I will go into fairly great detail about how to play him. He makes a great addition to a team, and with the nerf in flares, he can be a terror. Feel free to post any questions, comments, or critiques to the guide.
Early game Top
For early game, you do not want to do anything but farm up. Even an early invade is questionable, because of Taka's very weak early game. I would also stay away from the lane until you have your tension bow, and get to level six. Even still, and I'm aware this sounds a bit too safe, but if you continue farming until you're level 8, and you overdrive your A abitily, then you become much more threatening. While you are farming, remember to keep your ki stacks built on the jungle creeps, and use your b ability if you have to extend the life of your ki.
Ganks and solo invades Top
Ganks - Taka has one of the best gank potentials in the game. Once you have your tension bow, gank all you want. Come up to your 45 bush, and flare the enemy 45. If the enemy junglers are not there, initiate with your ultimate, basic attack, and A abitilty. There is no need to stutter step between those three, as your A will catch the laner. Once you burn all your burst, you ahould be able to stutter him back to the turret and finish him off. Don't be afraid to dive a bit under the turret, as your B abitilty will allow you to escape from almost anything.
Solo invades - Taka also has one of the strongest invading potentials in the game, as of 1.4. It can be a bit risky, but can have a great reward. Your main goal is to take both doubles, don't be concerned with the healing minions, as they don't offer as much xp or gold. When invading, try to take a few scout traps with you, so you can lay vision in their jungle. When you go you the jungle shop doubles, leash them as far as you can, back under e very bottom lane in the enemy jungle. Lay a scout trap as you do this, so you can see when they respawn. When going for the second, and more valuable doubles, walk the long way around the bottom on the minion mine, and leash the minions as far down as you can go. Lay another scout trap here, for the same reason. When it comes time to leave, you are in the biggest danger. You could walk all the way back, but to avoid the enemy team, I usually just recall from their minion mine.
Teamfights Top
Taka is a bit interesting in team fights. This is where practice makes perfect. Your main goal should be the carry in teamfights. There are two ways you can go about getting to him. If he always has great positioning, consider using your B ability to reach him, and drop everything you have on him. The main risk with this is, you will have no escape, if the other two turn on you. If the carry isn't positioning himself well, you can initiate with your ult, and again, give him everything, then escape with your B. The hardest part is knowing when to dive back into teamfights. You shouldn't abandon your team and let them go 2v2, but you can be melted, basically instantly if you hang around. Use good judgement, wait for your tension bow to come back up, wait for the ult to cooldown and go back in.
The 1v1 Top
Doing a 1v1 is probably the hardest, yet easiest thing to to with Taka. Chips is not including ganks, that's a different strategy. Fighting someone 1v1 means typically running into them in the jungle, or getting jumped on. This is another spot where practice makes perfect. The fight will vary from hero to hero, but here are a few standards. First of all, if you have been playing it right, the enemy team will a - be very scared of you and b - want to kill you. That being said, you need to be wary of sticking in a 1v1 for too long, because the enemy team will collapse on you. The most common 1v1 you will see while on Taka, is being run into while invading the enemy jungle. You have two options, based on how close you are to a bush. My personal preference is to run into a bush, and jump on them when they run after you, saving your B to escape. If you have to follow them for the kill, remember, the enemy team is closing around you. But a kill is usually worth the risk, so that brings up the next part. Stutter stepping with Taka is so valuable. Because you're crits give you a speed bonus, sticking to the enemy is easy, you just have to have a good stutter. At a certain point in the game, I trust Taka to 1v1 anyone, except krull. The only other oddity is another Taka. One thing to keep in mind is what they have build. If they are mirroring you, you're fine. With some practice, Taka is a nightmare assassin in the jungle.
The build is fairly straight forward. There are a few situational items, however. The bonesaw is great against heavy armor heroes lie Arden and Cathrine, but if you're against a fairly squshy team, consider another sorrowblade. As for the breaking point. Be careful when buying this item. Only use it if the enemy team hasn't been focusing you and you've been surviving for long times in teamfights. As for the attack speed, never go beyond a tornado trigger and another 40% boost, because you will outpace your critical hits. That brings up another point, in most fights, you will want to initiate with your ult and your A, as that will put you at 5 stacks instantly.
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