SKILLZ Top
Catherine is a great character to start with. Shes' very flexible with how you build her and how you play. For this build you'll run as what I like to call a stun wall. You don't do a lot of damage with this build but that's alright. Most of the time you'll be stunning and setting up kills for either your jungle or lane. (most of this just general knowledge). Going with stunning the skill you'll use most often is merciless pursuit you'll take the overdrive for this. I like to abuse it a little cuz her perk (CAPTAIN OF THE GUARD) she gains 1 armor and shield every time she land a stun on a enemy heroes. In a heated game you should average close to 70 stuns by late game. Be aggressive with it but don't start team fights you can't win.
You'll want to take the overdrive on the next skill to. Storm Guard is a great shield when heading in to a team fight. You should normally rush in with a stun then hit Storm guard right after. The overdrive will help soak a little damage and throw back some crystal at opponents attacking you.
Finally the ult. The ult is nice but it's slow and has a short range. It's a nice extra but you'll rely more on the other 2 skills much more then the ult. The cool down isn't the best either though it does get better by lv. 12. Use to start a fight or for CC in tight areas. (caution DO NOT use when enemies are using abilities( as to silence them) or to steal Kraken, the ult is to slow and you'll usually ult when it's already to late unless timed perfectly)
Unlike other captain champions Catherine relies heavily on utility and defense items. She doesn't have team buffs like Ardan or Lyra so building for these things are a must. Starting off Storm Crown is most important. Beginning of game start with Oak Heart, Hour glass, 2 potions, and a flare then rush for Storm Crown. After Storm crown get Sprint boots and build for contraption. Storm Crown helps with cool down and deal true damage. Abuse Contraption as much as possible. Lay traps EVERYWHERE! Traps give sight which is really important. Lay them under Gold mine, Most bush, near turrets, and at base. Finally build for War treads. This will allow you to help allies chase and flee.
By Mid game you should have Storm Crown, Contraption, War treads. This will set you up to finally build Defense.( Luckily with Captain of the Guard you wont be naked, you should have around 20 - 30 stuns by now). With the necessary utilities out of the way start with your defense Items. Go for Fountain of Renewal first then Crucible. This will help keep allies in battle and not dead.
In late game your enemies should be pretty tough. So do Catherine a favor and give her some armor and shield. The last item is really up to you. Builds Aegis if your opponents are running Crystal or Metal Jacket for weapon. Personally I like to get Slumbering husk its just a little extra that lets you stay in fights longer. If i'm fighting speed abusers like Rango or Krull I'll get Atlas Pauldron. Finally if faced with another Catherine or a utility Fortress then I'll get Nullwave Gauntlet just too keep them from using Items.
EXTRAZ Top
Catherine if played right is a great captain, here are a couple tips and tricks I've picked up from playing her.
In Instead of 2 potions and a flare you could pick up 1 potion and a mine just to lay down some vision early game. Whenever I die or beam back I usually lay a bomb back at base and by late game theres usually like 20 - 25 bombs just laying all over the place. It helps and is just run.
Watch were your mines are. Some times I'll lay a mine then stun an enemy on top of it dealing extra damage. The same can be said in tight fights with say Rona or krul. Lay a mine while fighting will help deal just a little more damage to them.
Watch for Ults, Scarf and Adagio in particular. Their Ults take some time to preform so wait till they start, then stun. This will automatically stop their ult. The same can be said for Kestrel and Celeste but you'll usually be out of range from them since their Ults are Global. The same can be said for some abilities a couple heros have. For example Rona when she does that spinning axe thing or Saw with his machine gun thing. the stun will give time for your allies to either kill or run.
Always stun the highest damage or squishiest enemy first not the tank. Killing the weapon carry or squishy first help you gain control of team fights.
Use Merciless Pursuit to flee. Turn use it and when enemies get to close stun them. The skill's speed boost usually last 1 to 2 seconds so it should buy you a little time to let either you or your allies get away safely.
Always combo Merciless pursuit then Storm guard when starting a fight. It just helps a lot.
Finally the captains job is to set up and protect their allies. Be protective of squishes stay close to them and if need be sacrifice for them. they'll usually pick up on the kill or live longer. It's always satisfying knowing that you've saved an ally from death.
Last thoughts Top
i'm no expert or pro at running Catherine but this build has brought me through a lot of tough games especially after the 2.1 update. I'm not the best with my money, I will buy an extra potion here or there but this is pretty straight forward with the path I take. Just full support. Always make sure you got vision, and use the stun almost all the time. Good Luck!
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