Shyvana 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.

A Shyvana ARAM build is an on-hit bruiser path: attack items that hit hard and spread damage, plus Health so the dragon can sit in the middle of the fight. On the Howling Abyss she deals 100% damage and takes 95%, a small defensive buff for a champion who has to stay in melee range.

Her patch 26.21 kit is all attacks and explosions around her, and the item picks follow from that. Win rates were left out.

How is Shyvana changed in ARAM?

Damage dealt stays at 100%, unchanged, and damage taken drops to 95%. So she takes slightly less from everything, to be fair not by a lot. For a jungler pulled into a mode with no jungle, that’s a reasonable trade: Scalemail gets most of its stacks from large monsters on Summoner’s Rift (well, large monsters and large minions), and ARAM has very few of the first. The defensive buff helps make up for the missing stacks.

Why does Shyvana fit the Howling Abyss?

Her damage is mostly area damage, and the lane packs enemies together. From Riot’s patch 26.21 data:

• Scalemail (passive): takedowns on enemy champions, large minions and large monsters give stacks that improve her defenses.
• Emberstrike (Q): her next attack hits the target and the area around it, with a recast; Dragon Form adds a second recast that deals massive single-target damage. Cooldown 10/9/8/7/6.
• Inferno Aegis (W): a shield and Move Speed, then a delayed detonation around her; in Dragon Form it heals her when it hits an enemy champion. Cooldown 13/12.25/11.5/10.75/10.
• Molten Burst (E): a fireball that explodes on a large target and slows; in Dragon Form it passes through and leaves a trail of fire. Cooldown 12/11/10/9/8.
• Dragon’s Descent (R): she transforms and leaps forward, and enemies along her path flee. As a dragon she’s larger and her basic abilities are empowered.

Emberstrike hits the area around the target, Inferno Aegis detonates around her, and in Dragon Form the fireball leaves a trail of fire through the enemy line. All three get better when enemies stand close together. Dragon’s Descent is a strong ARAM engage, too: a leap forward that makes everyone along the path flee, and in a narrow lane the path usually includes several champions. Scalemail is the weak part. With no jungle camps, it has to come from champion takedowns and large minions, so it builds more slowly.

What should a Shyvana ARAM build focus on?

On-hit damage and Attack Speed for Emberstrike, area damage around her, and Health with healing amplification for the dragon. Four items and boots.

Blade of The Ruined King comes first. Mist’s Edge adds a share of the target’s current Health as bonus physical damage to each attack, which does a lot against ARAM tanks, and Clawing Shadows slows a champion after 3 attacks. Why does a slow matter so much? She has no hard crowd control outside the flee. Stats-wise you’re paying for 25% Attack Speed, 10% Life Steal and 40 Attack Damage (the Life Steal is welcome on a melee champion).

Titanic Hydra is second. Cleave makes her attacks deal physical damage on-hit and to enemies behind the target, with 600 Health on top, and Titanic Crescent empowers the next Cleave for more damage. On a single lane, “enemies behind the target” is usually a line of champions.

Sunfire Aegis takes slot three. Immolate deals magic damage every second to nearby enemies for 3 seconds after she takes or deals damage, and she’s always doing one or the other in the middle of a fight. Add 350 Health and 50 Armor, and she’s harder to remove.

Spirit Visage is the fourth. Boundless Vitality increases heals and shields on her by 25%, which covers both halves of Inferno Aegis, the shield in either form and the heal in Dragon Form, plus 400 Health and 50 Magic Resist against mages. For boots, look at who’s hitting you hardest (Steelcaps for marksmen, Mercury’s for mages and stuns).

How do you play Shyvana on the Howling Abyss?

• Lead with Dragon’s Descent. The leap makes enemies along the path flee, so aim it through as many as possible.
• Cast Inferno Aegis before you arrive. The shield comes first and the detonation follows after a short delay.
• Use Emberstrike on the front of the pack. It hits the area around the target, so the champions behind take damage too.
• Throw the dragon fireball through the line. In Dragon Form it passes through and leaves fire behind it.
• Take every champion takedown you can. Scalemail only grows from takedowns, and ARAM has no jungle camps to farm it.

How do shopping and Mark work for Shyvana?

There’s no recall in ARAM. The fountain is open at the start and each time you respawn, so buy the Blade of The Ruined King components first, since its slow and current-Health damage help from the first item. The Health relics along the lane top her up between fights, and as a melee champion she’ll usually need them.

Summoner spells lock in before the game. The snowball spell, Mark, gives a follow-up dash to whichever champion it hits. With Dragon’s Descent already a leap, Mark adds a second way in. Is that worth more than Flash? Honestly, in ARAM it often is, since getting into the fight is her whole job and the snowball also tells your team where you’re going.

Is Shyvana good in ARAM?

She’s solid. With 100% damage dealt and 95% damage taken, she plays her normal kit with a little extra durability, and that kit is full of area damage that suits a crowded lane. Thing is, the slower Scalemail stacking is the cost. Long story short, she’s an engage fighter here, not a jungler.

Back in the jungle, five champions make her life hard, and the Shyvana counters guide explains why. If the jungle role itself is new to you, start with our guide to LoL roles. Item numbers per patch sit in the LoL items database, while dragon-themed outfits and the rest are on the Shyvana skins page.

In practice, the Shyvana ARAM build is Blade of The Ruined King, Titanic Hydra, Sunfire Aegis and Spirit Visage, and the plan is a dragon leap through the enemy line with Inferno Aegis already ticking.

FAQ

Is Shyvana buffed in ARAM?

Slightly. In the Wiki’s patch 26.21 data she has 100% damage dealt and 95% damage taken, so she takes a little less damage.

What items does the Shyvana ARAM build use?

Blade of The Ruined King, Titanic Hydra, Sunfire Aegis and Spirit Visage, with Plated Steelcaps or Mercury’s Treads.

Why build Spirit Visage on Shyvana?

Because it’s a multiplier on what she already gets: Boundless Vitality makes every heal and shield on her bigger. Inferno Aegis gives her a shield in both forms and heals her in Dragon Form, so both effects get larger.

How does Scalemail stack in ARAM?

Scalemail grants stacks on takedowns of enemy champions, large minions and large monsters. The Howling Abyss has no jungle camps, so most stacks come from champions and large minions.

How was this build chosen?

We started from what Emberstrike, Inferno Aegis and the dragon do in patch 26.21, then picked items that make those three stronger. Win-rate data was not used.