Ivern ARAM Build and Guide

Updated for patch 26.21. Ability details come from Riot’s official game data for this patch; ARAM balance numbers come from the League of Legends Wiki’s champion data.

An Ivern ARAM build is an enchanter path that buffs allies through Triggerseed rather than leaning on raw shield size. That matters, because the Howling Abyss trims him twice: 95% damage dealt and 80% shielding. Sure, but items like Ardent Censer and Staff of Flowing Water still pay out in full, since their buffs don’t scale with shield size.

The picks below come from his patch 26.21 ability text and each item’s description. Win rates weren’t part of it.

How is Ivern changed in ARAM?

Two nerfs, and the second one hurts more. Ivern deals 95% damage, which barely matters for a champion who isn’t a damage dealer in the first place. Shielding at 80% is different: Triggerseed is his main way of helping a teammate, and every shield it puts out is smaller here than on Summoner’s Rift. Why would Riot cut it? Most likely because a one-lane map puts every ally within reach of his shield all game long (that part is our reading, not Riot’s). Either way, the build has to work around it.

Why does Ivern still work on the Howling Abyss?

Because his kit is about allies, and in ARAM all four of them are always nearby. From Riot’s patch 26.21 data:

• Friend of the Forest (passive): he can’t attack or be attacked by non-epic monsters, and he grows groves on jungle camps to free them for gold and experience.
• Rootcaller (Q): a vine that damages and roots enemies hit; allies can dash to the rooted target. Cooldown 14/13/12/11/10.
• Brushmaker (W): in brush, attacks from Ivern and nearby allies deal bonus magic damage, and activating it creates a patch of brush. Cooldown 0.5.
• Triggerseed (E): a shield on an ally that explodes after a short duration, slowing and damaging enemies, and refreshes if it hits nobody. Cooldown 11/10/9/8/7.
• Daisy! (R): summons his Sentinel friend, who can be re-cast to attack or move. Cooldown 140/130/120.

The passive is a jungle tool, and ARAM is one lane, so it does very little here. Everything else gets better. Rootcaller’s dash for allies means four teammates can follow a root instead of one jungle partner, and in a lane packed with champions the vine has more targets to catch. Brushmaker creates brush wherever he wants it, which turns an open lane into a place where his team’s attacks deal bonus magic damage. Daisy is a second body in a mode where bodies block skillshots. The shield is the weak point, at 80%, though the slow and damage when Triggerseed explodes don’t depend on the shield size (well, the damage is at 95%, like the rest of his damage).

What should an Ivern ARAM build focus on?

Effects that trigger on shielding, not bigger shields. Ability Haste so Triggerseed comes back faster, and items that hand allies Attack Speed, Ability Power or damage each time he shields them. Four items plus boots.

Ardent Censer comes first. It gives 45 Ability Power, 10% Heal and Shield Power and 125% Base Mana Regen, and Sanctify grants both Ivern and the shielded ally 25% Attack Speed and 20 magic damage On-Hit for 6 seconds. The shield is 80% of normal. The Sanctify buff isn’t touched by that number. On an attack-speed carry with Triggerseed every 11 seconds or less, it’s the best value on the list.

Staff of Flowing Water second. Its Rapids passive gives Ivern and the shielded ally 40 Ability Power and 15 Ability Haste for 6 seconds, which suits a team of mages, and its base stats add 35 Ability Power, 10% Heal and Shield Power and 10 Ability Haste. Pick it over Censer outright if your carries are all casters.

Imperial Mandate goes third. Control grants 20 Ability Haste to abilities with Immobilizing effects, and Rootcaller roots, so the vine comes back sooner. Command marks an immobilized enemy champion as 7% Vulnerable for 4 seconds, which is free damage for every ally who dashes in behind the root.

Redemption rounds it out with 30 Ability Power, 15 Ability Haste and 10% Heal and Shield Power. Its Intervention active restores Health to allies and deals true damage to enemy champions in the area after 2.5 seconds, and on a single lane the whole enemy team often stands inside it. For boots, Crimson Lucidity gives 20 Ability Haste, and Noxian Haste adds Move Speed after he protects allies with abilities, which Triggerseed does constantly.

How do you play Ivern on the Howling Abyss?

• Shield the champion about to take a hit. Triggerseed explodes after a short delay, so a shield on whoever’s diving also slows the enemies around them.
• Throw Rootcaller into the crowd. Every ally can dash to the rooted target, and in ARAM four of them usually are close enough to do it.
• Grow brush where your team fights. Brushmaker’s bonus magic damage only applies to attacks made in brush, and the button has a 0.5 second cooldown.
• Send Daisy in first. At 140 seconds on rank 1 she’s a long cooldown, so use her to soak the enemy engage, not to chase.
• Re-cast Triggerseed when it misses. The shield refreshes if the explosion hits no enemies, so a quiet moment isn’t a wasted cast.

How do shopping and Mark work for Ivern?

Thing is, recalling isn’t a thing on this map; the fountain opens for business when the game starts and again whenever you respawn. For Ivern that’s a reason to buy the shield-trigger item early, because Ardent Censer’s Sanctify does its job from the first full purchase and doesn’t care how much gold you have afterward. Health relics on the lane are better spent on your carries (honestly, he rarely takes the first hit anyway).

Summoner spells stay fixed once the game loads. Landing Mark, the snowball, lets you dash onto the champion it hit, but does Ivern want to be on top of anyone? Not really. He wants to stand behind his team and shield them, so a defensive spell or Flash suits him better. For what it’s worth, a Mark that hits does tell your team exactly who to follow up on.

Is Ivern good in ARAM?

He’s playable, and better than the numbers suggest. Damage dealt at 95% and shielding at 80% are both nerfs, but his root, his brush and Daisy aren’t affected by either, and the right items turn each Triggerseed into a buff for an ally rather than just a shield. To be fair, the catch is a team with no attackers to benefit.

Five junglers that make his Summoner’s Rift games miserable are covered in the Ivern counters guide. Our guide to LoL roles covers what supports and junglers do in a regular game, the LoL items database has every item here with its exact stats, and the Ivern skins page shows his cosmetics.

Put simply, the Ivern ARAM build is Ardent Censer or Staff of Flowing Water, then Imperial Mandate and Redemption, and the job is putting a Triggerseed on the right ally every time it comes back.

FAQ

Is Ivern nerfed in ARAM?

Yes. In the Wiki’s champion data for patch 26.21, Ivern has 95% damage dealt and 80% shielding in ARAM.

What items does the Ivern ARAM build use?

Ardent Censer or Staff of Flowing Water, then Imperial Mandate and Redemption, with Crimson Lucidity boots.

Why build Ardent Censer on Ivern?

Sanctify gives Ivern and the shielded ally Attack Speed and magic damage On-Hit for 6 seconds. That buff does not shrink with Ivern’s reduced ARAM shielding.

Does Ivern’s passive do anything on the Howling Abyss?

Very little. Friend of the Forest is about jungle camps and groves, and the Howling Abyss is a single lane.

How were these items chosen?

We lined up his patch 26.21 kit with what each item actually does on a shield, an ally or a root. Win-rate data was not used.