General Strategy and Introduction Top
Skaarf should be in the lane. Venture into the jungle to help an ally being chased, but stick really close to turrets when you do.
Skaarf needs a lot of mobility because his skills are not target-locked and must be guided.
Spitfire, especially, needs you to be moving around minions, and hitting enemy heroes from the most strategic angles.
Spitfire is the heart and soul of
Skaarf. Move fast, think fast, position smart, and spam to harass like no other Vainglory Hero before you.
Skaarf has a Heroic Perk,
Fan the Flames, that is not to be underestimated. His burn deals damage based on a percentage of the enemy's health, so it can be used to deal great damage to even the tankiest opponent. It only starts at 3% health, but it ramps up by 3% per auto attack up to 12% at max. It also lasts for 3 seconds after the last application of the buff (meaning the last time you hit the opponent with
Spitfire or auto-attack).
Skaarf is softer than tissue. DO NOT jump into the middle of the fray to use
Dragon Breath the same way that Mage-ish (but Protector, really)
Adagio uses
Verse of Judgement. At all times, stay behind your team, and
Spitfire at the enemy, landing one or two
Goop where needed. Most fights will end before you manage to place two
Goop though, so it is primarily for forcing the enemy out of strategic zones, helping an ally is critical condition disengage, or preventing the escape of a doomed enemy.
Dragon Breath takes some time to master. It has some nice perks to it (read the ability description to find out). These perks can be used to help out a team-mate make a kill or turn the prey-predator tables in a desperate escape. It also has unparalleled zoning power and pushing power. You need to have a good sense of distances to use it, however. It is also not targeted, nor does it freeze you like
Catherine's or
Adagio's AoE ultimates. You can move around while using it, and this can mean a tsunami of fire moving towards the enemy, or a
Skaarf belching smoke the wrong way. Think of it that way, when using it: you are spitting out a massive wave of zoning fire.
First Items Build Top
Ironguard Contract should be bought only if you share the lane with the protector, like Catherine or
Ardan or
Adagio. This provides you with a lot more cash, because kills made by your ally also earns you money, but sets you back a bit on items and power early in the game. The item pays for itself within 3 minutes, though. Sell
Ironguard Contract when you need the sixth slot for your last item. Do not sell it until then.
Build
Eve of Harvest first and foremost because it gives you a bit more skin and defense. AKA you are alive to
Spitfire more. Most of your power is crystal, so becoming a crystal vampire is a good idea early in the game. After
Eve of Harvest build at least
Sprint Boots.
The following items can be built in any order, suiting the needs of situation.
The Rest of the Core Build Top
THIS IS IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER. (YOU CAN BUILD THE OPTIONAL ITEMS FIRST, IF NECESSARY)
If the enemy is gank-happy, go for the
Journey Boots right away. Why? Well, it helps you NOT DIE. But, more importantly, it helps you use your
Spitfire more efficiently, as it allows you to get into strategic locations and get around minions.
Clockwork is here for the same reason. It has a good dynamic with
Journey Boots and
Spitfire, because it allows you to keep control of the lane much more often. Remember: Move fast, think fast, position smart, and spam to harass. Get it when you find yourself wishing too often that
Spitfire wasn't on cooldown.
Shatterglass is a mainstay in any crystal build. Why? POWER. Raw power. It synergises with any and every other item in this build. Build it when your hits aren't doing enough damage as they should.
Spitfire on
Shatterglass on spam, not to mention the burn from
Fan the Flames, is a sight to behold.
Alternating Current is useful for its passive (you are a crystal beast, remember?) and the attack speed. The attack speed will push
Fan the Flames, a heroic Perk dependent on attack speed, to new heights. It will pile up the stacks of burn damage WAY faster, and it will allow you to last hit on minions much more often. Don't think about kiting auto-attack, though. Skaarf is too squishy and his range too short. Kite (although it is not really kiting)
Spitfire, if you must, but that doesn't have anything to do with attack speed.
Optional Items Introduction Top
Optional items are ALWAYS necessary. There is no "one-build-fits-all". You can build all the crystal power you like on a build, but if every one of the enemy heroes has got an
Aegis, you're screwed. In that light, I present to you a list of optional items.
NOTE: There is nothing wrong with getting one of these items after getting just two or three of the Core Build. If you need it, build it!
Counter Build Options Top
Counterbuild items are used to ensure that you: (a) do not die so often or (b) keep your attacks efficient even after the enemy has counter-built against you.
Metal Jacket:
Get this if you are dying or have observed the power of an enemy hero based on weapon power.
Aegis:
Get this if you are dying, or have observed the power of an enemy hero based on crystal power. Also, this item keeps your
Dragon Breath from getting cancelled by a stun.
Broken Myth:
Get this if you notice a prevalence of shield items in the enemy's builds. That would be the
Aegis or, sometimes, the
Fountain of Renewal.
More Damage Top
This last option is to be taken if you find yourself able to keep away from the fray, or if the enemy has not been wise enough to build an
Aegis.
Choosing
Clockwork
Clockwork should be a pretty simple choice for the player who wants to, instead of packing more punch per
Spitfire, let loose more, albeit subtler, rounds. Take note, however, that the efficiency of cool-down acceleration
Clockwork gives is reduced with each successive clockwork you use. Your first
Clockwork in the core build will take off 1.83 seconds on the cooldown of
Spitfire. The second
Clockwork will only take off an additional 0.92. That's almost half efficiency for the same item. Use redundancy with discretion.
Choosing
Shatterglass
If you are dealing with a lot of slippery, ranged, or simply non-aggressive enemy players, giving yourself another
Shatterglass should turn your
Spitfire into a spam-happy, nuke-worthy, burn-damage, long-range missile of terror to bring the nations down to their knees as such the world has never seen and never will again.
Choosing
Frostburn
Get this item if you notice they have become MUCH too slippery for you and your team-mates to kill. Don't over-react and build this item after one or two escapes, but the extra crystal power it gives you is a good plus. What you are
really getting this for here is the energy boost it gives you, as you will be using a lot of energy as a
Spitfire spamming Skaarf. If you have enough energy to spend, you can dish out more damage.
Best Synergies With Other Heroes (Coming Soon! Comment your suggestions below!) Top
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