Voltaic Cyclosword

Voltaic Cyclosword is the Energized item for assassins in League of Legends, a 3,000 gold purchase with 55 Attack Damage, 10 Lethality and 10 Ability Haste in patch 26.22. Its Firmament passive turns your Energized attack into a hit that deals a share of the target’s current Health as bonus physical damage, grants bonus Lethality for 4 seconds and Slows, while Galvanize lets abilities fire the Energized attack too.

What do Galvanize and Firmament do?

Energized is the mechanic behind both. You build Energized stacks by moving and attacking, and once the bar is full your next attack is Energized and spends them.

Firmament is what that attack does with this item: bonus physical damage equal to a percentage of the target’s current Health (the tooltip has the number, Riot moves it), a Slow, and a bonus Lethality buff that lasts 4 seconds, which is long enough to cover the rest of an assassin combo. Galvanize is the quieter half. It lets a damaging ability trigger the Energized effect, so a Zed Q or a Talon W that lands from range applies the Slow and the damage without a basic attack, and that is the part melee assassins actually buy it for. Can you waste it on a minion? Yes, so most players hold the charge while walking into a fight, the same way marksmen do with Stormrazor.

Is Voltaic Cyclosword gold efficient?

Below par on stats: 91%, or 2,725 gold of stats for 3,000 gold. The breakdown is 55 Attack Damage at 1,925 gold (35 gold per point from basic items), 10 Lethality at 300 gold and 10 Ability Haste at 500 gold.

So you pay roughly 275 gold of stats for the Energized package. The catch is that its worth depends on how often you land the charged hit. In practice a roaming assassin who walks between lanes keeps the bar full most of the time, so each pick starts with the bonus damage and the Slow, while a champion stuck in lane trading autos burns the charge on minions. Youmuu’s Ghostblade gives the same 55 Attack Damage with a Move Speed active instead and is the usual alternative.

Who should build it?

Melee assassins who open fights from stealth or with a gap closer, plus a few AD casters who can proc Galvanize from range. Zed, Talon, Rengar, Kha'Zix, Nocturne and Naafiri are the regulars, and Pantheon players sometimes take it for the Slow on a charged W.

Who should not? Marksmen, who have their own Energized item in Stormrazor with crit chance attached, and fighters, who miss the Health. Honestly, it is also a poor first buy for most of its users. The Energized hit does the most when the enemy already has a few items and the percent current Health damage has something to bite into, so second or third is where it tends to land (first item on Rengar is the main exception, since the Slow helps him stick after a leap).

What does the Voltaic Cyclosword build path look like?

The Brutalizer (1,337 gold) and two Long Swords (350 gold each), with a hefty 963 gold combine at the end. The Brutalizer comes first for the Lethality and Haste. Nothing builds out of it.

How has it changed over the patches?

Three entries since its debut in patch 14.1, and the price has gone back and forth:

• Patch 14.19: cost 2,900 → 3,000, Ability Haste 15 → 10.
• Patch 26.9: cost 3,000 → 2,900, Lethality 18 → 10, effect text changed.
• Patch 26.10: cost 2,900 → 3,000.

Funny enough, the item has ended up at exactly the price it had in late 2024, with eight less Lethality and more of its power pushed into the passive. The table above has every change, and the LoL items database tracks the other Lethality items in the same format.

When is it the right buy?

When you fight from range or from stealth and want your opening hit to stick. The Slow and the bonus damage both reward a clean entry, and Galvanize means you don’t even need to be in melee range to deliver them. Still deciding whether a roaming assassin suits you at all? The guide to LoL roles explains what mid lane and jungle assassins are expected to do, and Voltaic Cyclosword makes a lot more sense once you have played that style for a few games.

FAQ

How much does Voltaic Cyclosword cost?

3,000 gold in patch 26.22. Its combine step is 963 gold, and it sells back for 2,100 gold.

What stats does it give?

55 Attack Damage, 10 Lethality and 10 Ability Haste.

How long does the bonus Lethality last?

4 seconds after the Energized attack lands.

Can abilities trigger the Energized attack?

Yes. Galvanize makes a damaging ability consume the Energized charge if it is ready, applying the Firmament damage and Slow.

What does it build from?

The Brutalizer and two Long Swords.

Voltaic Cyclosword or Stormrazor?

Voltaic Cyclosword for Lethality assassins, Stormrazor for crit marksmen. Both use the Energized mechanic, but the stats fit different builds.