Krul is a jungle hero who can wreck havoc in prolonged battles. His first ability can give him a bonus health for a short while, his second can deal devastating damage and also heal, and his ultimate can stun, slow and deal damage. With smart item building, Krul can drag out fights, tapping into his late-fight potential and annihilating the enemy. Because of his large potential reservoir of health, he is sometimes left as the last man standing, thus he is also suited for duels and almost always wins in them. But remember, Krul is not suited for 1 vs. 3, he is at best able to survive in 1 vs. 2, that is, if there are no slippery opponents.


Before the guide continue, I want to thank others who has written hero guides here on Vaingloryfire. It is with reading their guides that I have formulated a summation of their strategies and made it my own. I highly encourage you to adjust what you see here to suit you own play style or hero and hopefully, you will make it into a guide and upload it on Vaingloryfire.


(note: The "Fun Builds" are not effective and should only be used if you are playing casual queue or low skill tier)

Krul's abilities are made for durability, surviving in even the most dire circumstances. He has barriers, heals, and a stun for disruption and chases. These abilities also allow him to brave the damage from turrets to gank laners and ambush unsuspecting junglers in brushes.


Heroic Perk: Shadows Empower Me
Krul's heroic perk activates when he stands still in brush for 1.5 seconds. That means he can't be attacking, moving, or even taking damage. Damage over time will also stop the perk from activating. After activation, Krul gains 2 movement speed and his next attack will slow his target by 40%. Use this to gank laners who push to far and stop them from escaping.

If you by any chance die in brush, make sure to buy all the items you need while waiting, as the heroic perk activates even when you die. Thus, you will gain a boost of speed leaving the spawning platform.

First Ability: Dead Man's Rush
Dead Man's Rush allows Krul to sprint over a short distance to attack his target and also grants Krul a health barrier that lasts for 2.5 seconds. You must be targeting an enemy for it to activate and it will only activate if the enemy is within "sprint zone"; that means Krul won't sprint across the map to attack an enemy. The health barrier activates with the ability activates, not when Krul strikes the enemy, so the health barrier will still exist if Krul is stunned mid-rush. Dead Man's Rush are also treated as basic attacks, allowing them to have basic attack characteristic. For example, if Krul has Aftershock and uses Dead Man's Rush, activation of the ability activates Aftershock's ability, allowing Dead Man's Rush to damage the enemy with the ability's damage and Aftershock's.

Use this to close the gap between you and your enemy. When ganking the laner, use this to catch up with the enemy hero if they escape your attack range, burst the hero, or use it to protect yourself from turret fire. Activate this skill first to have the health barrier in team fights, as the enemy will most probably try to burst you down. This way, you technically have more health.

Get this skill first if the enemy decides to invade, as Spectral Smite needs to 4 stacks to get the same amount of damage, which is unlikely with your low starting attack speed even with Swift Shooter. Also, Dead Man's Rush has a slightly lower cooldown. Spectral Smite is better suited for farming jungle monsters.


Second Ability: Spectral Smite
Spectral Smite has a passive and active aspect. The passive allows Krul to stack Spectral Smite stacks on enemies each time he basic attacks or use his abilities (excluding small land minions, however, it will stack on Petal's munions). Using Spectral Smite will not provide a stack. Each stack decreases the enemy's attack speed and crystal power by 10%, with a maximum of 8 stacks. The stacks last for 4 seconds and is renewed each time Krul attacks the enemy. Each stack also gives Krul bonus lifesteal. Stacked enemies will have a skull over them, with dots appearing for each stack. Activating Spectral Smite will clear all stacks, damaging Krul's opponent and healing Krul based on how many stacks were consumed. Spectral Smite will be canceled if Krul is stunned mid-channelling, although it is very unlikely, however, it will explain why it sometimes doesn't work.

The more stacks on the target, the more damage Spectral Smite will do. When bursting laners, use the heroic perk to land basic attack (1), attack again (2), Dead Man's Rush (3), attack again (4), then keep attacking if possible, then Spectral Smite them. If you are alone in ganking, stutterstep the laner and when you reach a number you are comfortable with, smite the hero. In team fights, and especially when going up against a Krul who doesn't fully understand the hero, do not use Spectral Smite, as you get lifesteal from each stack. Only activate it is you are bursting down a hero or if your opponent has low enough heal so that you can kill the hero with Spectral Smite. When going against a Krul, DO NOT Spectral Smite you opponent. Think about what you will be losing: lifesteal, the enemy Krul will attack faster, and their crystal power is no longer suppressed. Only use it if you know the enemy Krul has used up his Spectral Smite or if he is close to death and can die with Spectral Smite.

Don't get Spectral Smite at level 1 if you plan to invade the enemy jungle (this is discouraged) or if you are defending from an enemy invade. Make it a rule to get the overdrive on Spectral Smite as fast as possible, as this significantly increases all aspects of the ability, most notably the damage per stacks, which become 110. Think about it, 1 stack=110, 3 stacks=330, and 5 stacks=550, paired with the ability's base damage of 400. This can easily kill both heroes and jungle monsters alike.
Also, try to get the minimal amount of stacks required to kill a jungle monster when farming, then Spectral Smite]] the monster. This will speed up farming. If you insist on using both Dead Man's Rush and Spectral Smite to farm, don't use both on the same monster. If you are against a single monster, only use Spectral Smite; if two, Dead Man's Rush on one and Spectral Smite on the other.

While attacking Kraken, use this to burst Kraken at the last second, as no other ability can do more damage in one hit. That said, DO NOT use Spectral Smite on Kraken if you entire team is engaging her, as it takes too long to get the stacks up and ability to reset. Only use it on the brink of capture. Kraken can be stolen on the last hit.


Ultimate: From Hell's Heart
Krul's ultimate is a bit of a wild card. The attack causes Krul to throw the sword lodged in his chest, which will fly to a certain point and then travel back. The sword will deal damage to and pass through all none heroes. If the sword hits an enemy hero, it stops and the hero is stunned. Once the hero recovers, it is slowed. The stun increases according to the distance it has traveled, thus the enemy is stunned longer if the sword is on its return path. Krul is able to move during the sword's travel, allowing Krul to "direct" the sword in a certain direction.

From Hell's Heart can be used in ganks for obvious reasons, chases, and as a disrupter. Important abilities to disrupt are Skaarf's Dragon Breath, Joule's Big Red Button, Rona's Red Mist, and Adagio's Verse of Judgement. When ambushing, it is a good idea to throw the sword behind you and run past the enemy hero you want to stun. You heroic perk also grants a burst of speed. On its return path, the sword will be traveling so quickly, it will be next to impossible for the enemy to Reflex Block the stun. The only problem with this is the possibility of missing (wasted ultimate) or hitting the tank (also a waste), who usually enters the brush first. That said, You can throw the sword in a weird directions to dodge the tank. Additionally, you can lengthen a stun on a enemy hero by throwing the sword on the still target.

Immediately get this ultimate upon reaching level 6. Having this will help you in chases, ganks, and disruptions if needed. Upgrade From Hell's Heart to level 2 when you can, as this will lower the cooldown and allow you to throw more swords. Don't get the third level of this ability as the overdrive of the first and second abilities are more useful.

Krul's nature and habit is to drag out fights, meaning it is the best opportunity to get Breaking Point, which gets more and more powerful as the fight lengthens. However, getting Breaking Point will make you red team enemy #1 and you will be bursted down as quickly as possible, meaning your items will have to allow you to survive the initial burst and drag out fights.

(The following are listed in order of importance)

Breaking Point

Krul's best weapon, which boosts Krul's attack speed by 40%. In addition, for each second Krul is attacking enemy heroes, he receives one stack, boosting his weapon power by 15 (9 for non-melee heroes, but Krul is melee) and 5% critical chance and damage, with 20 maximum stacks. Stacks are lost each second when Krul doesn't attack enemy heroes. When fully stacked, Krul gets 300 bonus weapon power and 100% critical chance and damage (very rare, but just ten stacks gives Krul 150 weapon and 50% critical chance and damage).

Although this weapon seems too powerful, one thing must be understood: stacks are gained when Krul attacks enemy heroes, not when he is in combat with them. The difference is that "attacking" means basic attacking enemy heroes and "combat" is whenever he is dealing damage or being attacked. Thus, Krul generates NO stacks while being kited, meaning chases during team fights will hurt Krul if he doesn't get to his target.
Breaking Point essentially replaces Sorrowblade and Tyrant's Monocle, Spectral Smite replaces Serpent Mask, and Tension Bow is not that great of of an asset to Krul, leaving the only "effective" items for Krul to be Bonesaw and Tornado Trigger, both of which will later be covered.


Boots

Sprint Boots, Travel Boots, and Journey Boots are all a great asset for Krul, who needs stickiness, or mobility. The passive speed they provide allows faster travel and activating them to sprint will let you to catch up with heroes faster. While sprinting, you can either stutterstep the hero you are chasing while sprinting or run ahead and stutterstep from there.

It is strongly encouraged for you to get Sprint Boots as fast as possible, as this will aid in chases and escapes. Getting Travel Boots is also a good idea, as the out of combat speed it provides allows you to get to locations faster.

It is good to stop at Travel Boots, as Journey Boots is not much different and your primary need for boots if mobility. However, if you find you boots constantly on cooldown, you should consider buying Journey Boots, as it has a lower cooldown and gives miscellaneous passive boosts (specifically, health, health regeneration, armor, shield, and higher passive speed than Travel Boots).

If you are desperate for speed, I recommend having double boots, but since the 1.7 update, duplicate items no longer provide double the abilities. Instead, get boots that are one tier apart. Thus, get Travel Boots and Journey Boots or another combination of the three.


Shiversteel

Those of you considering Frostburn as a better choice, it isn't. The maximum slow Frostburn can achieve is 35% (and that is with 200 crystal power) and Shiversteel has 40% and lasts 2.8 seconds for melee heroes. Upon activation, each basic attack slows the target hero, allowing you to catch up to and stutterstep in chases. It also grants +500 maximum health.

Shiversteel is valuable for another reason: slippery carries. Heroes such as Taka, Vox, and Ringo are notorious for hit and run tactics, as well as kiting and dealing massive damage. It is essential to kill these carries before they kill you, and that requires both Shiversteel and boots. Luckily, Dead Man's Rush also applies Shiversteel's effects, however, Spectral Smite does not.


Atlas Pauldron

A powerful counter to Krul, SAW, and other heroes who depend on basic attacks. Upon activation, Atlas Pauldron charges for 0.8 seconds, then sends slows the attack speed of nearby heroes by 65%. It also provides 85 armor and 35 shield.

Atlas Pauldron is best used at the start of battle, as this can prevent on hit effects from stacking. The armor from this item also helps you resist basic attacks and weapon powered heroes.


Reflex Block

Your only line of defense against stuns, silences, and other status effects, although the first two are the most important ones to block. This item gives you +200 maximum health as well as activating this item to create a barrier worth 25% of your missing health and block all status effects for 1 second. You will need experience and instinct to block dangerous stuns and silences, which can cause Krul to not attack, thus no stacks of Spectral Smite and Breaking Point and Krul will be unable to heal.


Weapon Infusion and Crystal Infusion

Infusions are very important in the late game and around Kraken Spawn. They can give you a boost in weapon or crystal power, as well as attack speed or cooldown acceleration, respectively, and also armor and shield boosts. If you are surviving okay, get infusions whenever you can. Remember, Weapon Infusion is more important than Crystal Infusion, but get both when you can.

Breaking Point vs. Bonesaw

I've seen this argument in the comments on other guides, and I want to make it clear. Bonesaw is effective if your enemy has high armor, but is less effective if they don't and instead have high health for example. Krul's role is to drag out the fight and Bonesaw caps out pretty early. In addition, high Breaking Point and Spectral Smite stacks will give Krul insane lifesteal. Also, if carries are nearby, Krul can probably kill them in less than 5 hits.

No build can prepare for all scenarios, thus, you must change your build to suit the needs of every battle. This section will cover general threats, then to heroes, and finally items.

Team compositions to counter

All weapon (or two weapon one support)

This should be a no brainer. If everyone on your enemy's team built weapon, it is a good idea to build armor. Pay attention though, to what they build. If they have high attack speed, build Atlas Pauldron, and if pure weapon power, Metal Jacket. If they choose to get Bonesaw, however, get Atlas Pauldron, it will be much more effective.

Metal Jacket or
Atlas Pauldron


Two weapon and one crystal

In this case, consider getting either Metal Jacket or Atlas Pauldron based on whether the enemy is going pure weapon or attack speed, respectively. Additionally, get a Light Shield or Kinetic Shield to repel the one crystal; Kinetic Shield if it is a carry.

Metal Jacket or
Atlas Pauldron and
Light Shield or
Kinetic Shield


One weapon, one crystal, and one support

If this happens, see which hero has greater damage potential and counter that hero. For example, if there is a crystal SAW, a weapon Glaive, and a support Catherine, the weapon Glaive would probably pose the greatest threat, as he would probably have high attack speed and critical percentage, and pair that with his area cleave, he would wreck your team. Knowing SAW will use Mad Cannon after his Suppressing Fire, you should get an Atlas Pauldron, which will slow down the attack of both SAW and Glaive and the bonus armor would lessen Glaive's damage.

Different heroes will cause you to make different choices, but try to find the best solution to solve a dilemma like this.


One Weapon, Two Crystal

You can get either high shield, Aegis, or moderate shield and help a squishy teammate survive, Fountain of Renewal. remember to get Light Armor of Coat of Plates. Pretty much the same strategy as two weapon and one crystal.

Aegis or
Fountain of Renewal and
Light Armor or
Coat of Plates


All crystal (or two crystal and one support)

Same as all weapon and two crystal and one weapon: Get Aegis or Fountain of Renewal if a squishy teammate is dying. Try both if you are dying too much.


Heroes to counter

Celeste

She is guaranteed to get crystal power, so invest in early shielding and build towards Aegis as she gets stronger. If she is somehow doing too much damage and you find your teammates dying, get Fountain of Renewal.


Krul

Your fellow Kruls will probably have the same build as you, so you need to target them first. Atlas Pauldron will be your first step in nullifying his power. Krul overrides Celeste.


Ringo

Ringo is of little threat if he goes crystal, but will annihilate you if he goes weapon. If he is the greatest threat on the enemy team, get Metal Jacket, otherwise, get Atlas Pauldron to slow his team down, then chase Ringo down. Ringo overrides Krul, but not when Krul has Breaking Point, in which case, read Krul's section on the Threat Meter.


Glaive

Depending on the build, Glaive can be a nuisance to a grave threat. Critical build Glaive will deal massive damage to your team, so it is important to build an Atlas Pauldron. Critical Glaive overrides Ringo.


Rona

Rona has the threat of bursting down Krul if she has gotten Sorrowblade or Shatterglass, making her a very dangerous hero. Build shielding to stop her abilities, as well as reduce burst damage from other heroes. Rona overrides Ringo, but not Glaive.


SAW

SAW is a great threat to your team. Depending on which build he takes, your build will be different; Aegis for crystal and Metal Jacket for weapon. But for both builds, get Atlas Pauldron first. SAW overrides Rona, but not Glaive.


Vox

More dangerous than SAW, Vox's high mobility means he can toy with Krul from a safe distance. Crystal Vox can't do much but if he goes weapon, he is lethal. Build Metal Jacket, as Atlas Pauldron is ineffective against him. Be wary of Alternating Current}, as this Vox can do decent damage. [[Vox overrides both SAW and Glaive.


Taka

A very slippery hero, he will deal massive damage if left ignored, but if you attack him, he will use Kaku to escape (or some other way), effectively distracting you from you main target. Once you shift focus, he will return and continue to harass you. Get Kinetic Shield to survive his bursts, then get more armor; both Metal Jacket and Atlas Pauldron will do. Taka overrides Vox.

Note: not all heroes are listed here, as only the ones posing the greatest threat need special attention.


Items to counter

Breaking Point

Going up against another Breaking Point will be hard, but build up you stacks on the hero carrying it an you will be fine. However, if that hero is mobile, like Vox, you have a serious problem. Burst that hero down as fast as possible. If there are multiple Breaking Points, it is a best for your team to also get Breaking Points and try to burst down the one with the highest attack speed on the enemy's team.


Bonesaw

Bonesaw is a pain. It shreds your armor, leaving you vulnerable to heroes who have insane amounts of weapon power. There are two solution: high health and Atlas Pauldron, however, both have its drawbacks. High health will leave you vulnerable to Aftershock, which can be catastrophic. Atlas Pauldron works as long as the person having Bonesaw is melee; if the hero is ranged, it will be hard to kill that hero before many stacks are put on you.


What to use

Bonesaw

Metal Jacket is your best protection against weapon power, but your Breaking Point does weapon power, so Metal Jacket is your enemy's best defense against you. Get Bonesaw if an enemy carry gets Metal Jacket, but don't if only the tank/support has it. Bonesaw will give Krul 50 weapon power and 50% attack speed, which will aid in Krul landing more Spectral Smite stacks as well as Bonesaw stacks. Also, Bonesaw shreds armor, meaning everyone on your team will have bonus armor pierce (in a sense) against the stacked hero.


Tornado Trigger

Get Tornado Trigger if there is an enemy Krul who got it or a Bonesaw and a Breaking Point. At high stacks of Breaking Point, if he manages to attack faster than you, you are finished. You can also get this item if there is a powerful crystal carry (such as Skaarf or Joule) to get more stacks of Spectral Smite on them to lessen their damage or if your want to be aggressive. But beware, getting Tornado Trigger means giving up a defense item, potentially making Krul more squishy.


Warhorn

We've all been there. Kited to death by a Vox or Ringo one the edge of your attack range. Well, this solves all kinds of problems with that. The giant speed boost will propel you forward to catch that pesky carry and slow him/her with Shiversteel. It is usually best for a support/roamer to get this item, but it is quite okay if you get it. Remember to not only use this for yourself, but also to help an ally run away.

There are a total of four perks in getting this item: Ironguard Contract, get more gold while you're ganking in lane, more health, speed boost, and damage against non-heroes in the late-game, as Krul should have almost no extra weapon damage outside of fights.


Aftershock

This should go without saying if your are experienced: get Aftershock if your enemies are building lots of health. Aftershock passively gives Krul 25% cooldown acceleration, 2.4 energy recharge, and 35 crystal power. The item activates whenever Krul uses an ability and lets Krul's next basic attack do 15% of the target's health as damage with half of that being used to regenerate Krul. Aftershock does 400 max damage against non-heroes. This means, the more health your enemy has, the more effective it Aftershock is.

Aftershock pairs well with Dead Man's Rush, as using Dead Man's Rush activates Aftershock and also applies the basic attack effect. Use this if any warriors (heroes such as Glaive and Joule) get Crucible, but ignore those who are less tanky (like Vox and Taka, whose health doesn't increase substantially after getting Crucible (it does, but not the the point of Glaive and Joule with Crucible.

In Vainglory, there are three characteristics to any hero: damage, durability, and mobility. No hero is built for all three, take Krul for example: Krul has moderate health, armor, and shield, can have high damage, but is easily kited and lacks the mobility of ranged heroes and assassins. Heroes are thus built for only two: Vox for damage and mobility, Fortress for durability and mobility, and Joule for damage and durability. Carries are usually characterized with high damage, but lacks in one of the other two departments. Tanks and supports have high durability, but low damage and sometimes even mobility, such as Adagio, but his slow makes up for that.

There are two ways in Vainglory to make a great hero build, that is to either achieve an extreme level in one particular characteristic (such as multiple Shatterglasses for Joule, giving her great damage at the expense of durability) or to have balance across all aspects. For example, burst damage builds deal great damage in a short time, but such heroes usually have little defense. Tanks have high durability and low damage.

Krul is a warrior, meaning he will need to be balanced across all three, as opposed to assassins and snipers. Breaking Point and Spectral Smite gives Krul the damage he needs, but Krul lacks in durability and mobility, which is where the build comes in. Items like Atlas Pauldron and Aegis reduces the damage Krul receives, lengthening his time in fights and tapping into his late battle potential. Boots give Krul the speed he needs and Shiversteel levels the mobility of Vox and Ringo to Krul's level.


To recap, Krul requires balance across all three characteristics. Boots and Shiversteel are used to level other heroes mobility to that of Krul's, Breaking Point and other attack speed items augment Krul's damage output as well as lifesteal and late battle sustain, and fitting defensive items to survive early battle bursts.

General

Krul is a carry and suited best for jungle and poorly for lane, so start him in the jungle along with a support. As mentioned before, Krul's job is drag out fights, where his Spectral Smite ability can severely cripple enemy carries, so focus on carries in team fights. Krul is the most powerful hero in the game when it comes to 1 vs. 1, and only a few heroes can take him head on, so if there is only one person on the enemy team and you find him/her, engage! Krul's greatest weakness comes from low mobility compared to most ranged heroes, allowing for the opportunity of kiting and rendering Krul useless. Thus, only engage ranged heroes when you have boots or Shiversteel ready.

Mine warfare is your best defense and offense in the early game. This consists of dropping a Scout Trap whenever you are attacking or being attacked by the enemy. The Scout Trap takes time to arm itself, but when it explodes, it does huge damage to low level heroes. Always have at least one Scout Trap with you until level 6, at which point this strategy becomes less effective.

Halcyon Potions are important items for Krul, who is energy hungry without ability items ( Clockwork, Aftershock, or Eve of Harvest). You should have at least 2 whenever you leave shop and get five whenever you can. Also, Halcyon Potions are different from other items in one aspect: they give you the full cost back whenever you sell them. This means selling Halcyon Potions are cost efficient. Thus, sell some potions if you know doing that will get you an important item during a match.

Kraken's power can be a formidable force, especially when a team fight breaks out in front of her. Only available after Kraken Spawn, is can be a risky move, but if done correctly, can even turn the tide of battle. There are ways to cause Kraken to attack the enemy team. Splash and area damage and bounces from Catherine's Stormguard and Vox's Resonance can cause Kraken to attack. Another, very risky move is to poke Kraken, initiate a fight, get out of Kraken's range, causing it to attack the pursuing enemy team, and continue the team fight. WARNING: incorrect use of the last method may result in Kraken attacking your or your team and be damaging to the fight.

Krul is categorized as an warrior, however, his abilities and heroic perk also gives him the characteristics of an assassin. When a team fight starts, don't charge right in, instead, look for the opponent's highest damaging carry. Wait in brush, and when you see the carry, use the heroic perk to get to him, slow the carry, activate Shiversteel, use Dead Man's Rush, get as many stacks as you can, then smite the carry for the kill and health, then turn around to engage the remaining carry. Krul is fitting for duels, thus if your carry dies, it isn't much of a problem, and tanks don't really influence fights much.


Early game

Early game Krul is incredibly weak, so don't get any ideas about an early invade. Only travel to the middle of the map (or jungle shop) to either get a Scout Trap to repel enemy invades or to stop the enemy from stealing your two jungle monsters. It is best for Krul to start at the two large jungle monsters if you know you can't stop enemy invades.

The first item Krul gets should be a Swift Shooter, which will allow Krul to get more Spectral Smite stacks on his target faster. Along with that, get two Halcyon Potions. You can also travel to the jungle shop to get a Scout Trap if you are paranoid about early jungle invades. Krul should never get an Ironguard Contract, as he is a very item hungry hero and the more gold you can get on him, the better. Always have a support get it.

While farming, stack the minimum amount of Spectral Smite stacks on a jungle monster and then smite it. This is the fastest way of clear jungle camps. As you upgrade Spectral Smite, less and less stacks will be needed.

Krul's item after clearing the jungle once can be one of several. He can get Blazing Salvo if you want only a Breaking Point and no other weapon items, another Swift Shooter for greater attack speed and aggression, tier one boots for mobility, Oakheart to build towards Shiversteel, Light Shield to defend against crystal carries (such as Celeste and Skaarf), or Light Armor to build towards Atlas Pauldron to counter an enemy Krul. Whatever the choice, make sure to always have potions on hand, as this build has little energy sustain if Krul overuses his abilities.


Mid-game

Krul should be trying to gank the laner whenever he finishes farming the jungle and waiting for the monsters to respawn. There are only two circumstances in which you can successfully gank and get out alive. The first is when the enemy crosses the midpoint of the lane (namely, the middle of the circle in the lane), at which point, you should use the heroic perk to slow the target, activate Shiversteel if you have it, use Dead Man's Rush to either catch up to the target or get an extra stack of Spectral Smite, stutterstep (basically move while attacking, remaining with your target), and smite the target if manages to retreat to a turret or when you have reached a confident number of stacks to kill the hero. Note: exceptionally slippery heroes ( Vox, Taka, Joule, etc.) and those with a stun or slow ( Celeste, Adagio, Petal with Frostburn) will be able to escape or reposition themselves to kite your, respectively, so don't over-extend and get yourself killed if you are ganking by yourself.

Mid-game is also where Krul can succumb to the burst damage of assassins (namely Taka and Rona), as Krul in this stage would probably only have Breaking Point, Travel Boots, and no tier three defense item (and if you do, most likely just one). Thus, be extra careful during this time in the game.

At this point, Krul should have gotten Travel Boots, rushed Breaking Point, and on his way to a tier three defense item or Shiversteel. Never forget the value of energy sustain from Halcyon Potions, so make it a habit to always have at least two when you leave the shop (five is possible).


Kraken Spawn (the 15 minute mark)

If you have focused on farming and ganked in moderation, you should start to see a rise in Krul's power around this point. However, it is important to note gameplay changes from here on out.

Firstly, your enemy will most probably group together and almost always travel together. Ganking the laner no longer becomes a safe thing to do, as the rest of the team would most probably be in brush for an ambush. Jungling with your roamer is also unsafe, as a 2 vs. 3 is hard to win and you are leaving your laner by his/herself. As such, group together with your team and travel together to save each other from being caught out.

Second, team fights are detrimental to the game if you lose and may even cause you the game, so make no risks. Many times what happens is that both teams are so careful, both sides enter a stand off and no one does anything. The most important rule, DO NO INITIATE FIGHTS!!!. Ambushes tend to favor the ambushing team, so be that team. In another sense, Vainglory becomes a game of patience; whoever loses patience, will probably loses battles. Note: ambushes do not guarantee victory and results may vary. The only time when a fight is initiated by your team is when you have a Scout Trap in the enemy brush (highly unlikely, unless they are idiots) or when they are revealed by a Flare Gun.

Thirdly, do not get careless. If you wiped out the entire enemy team because they ignored you for the better part of a battle, do not try to take them on by yourself. You managed to annihilate them because you had high Breaking Point stacks. You would rarely last ten seconds by yourself against an enemy team.

Fourthly, even though you are a warrior, don't be the first inside a brush you suspect the enemy is hiding in. Instead, have your tank go in first.

Fifthly, Kraken is a force to be reckoned with, and if the enemy team gets it, you just might lose the game. Although Krul is one of the few heroes able to take on Kraken alone, it takes a long time and you will be spotted by the enemy, so don't take her yourself. There are three circumstances when you should take Kraken: the first is when you know the enemy is a considerable distance away from Kraken and your team can burst her down in less than 30 seconds, any more can result in Kraken being stolen, the second is when you succeed in aceing the enemy team, in which case, attack Kraken even if by yourself, and the third is when the enemy is trying to take Kraken and they are near getting it, in which case, wait until Kraken is near the point of capture, then use Dead Man's Rush to try to steal her. Additional Kraken capture advice can be found under the Spectral Smite section.

Late game (past 25 minutes)

Late game rules are the same as Kraken Spawn, except with a few changes. A battle lost will mean a game lost, stakes are greater, and infusion use should be rampant. Never, ever, ever, take risks at this point.

Every hero have their strengths and weaknesses, and there are heroes who exploit you weaknesses to kill you. Here, I identify each heroes' strength and give you ways to counter them.

Adagio is a powerful support who can give you pain across the entire game. His first ability heals his teammates and deals damage over time to nearby enemies (your allies). If he uses this on himself, a 70% slow is applied to those around him. Throughout the game, this brings you pain, as health bars constantly change and the slow makes him extremely hard gank. His second ability, however, is not much better. It boosts the damage of a targeted hero by a certain amount for a certain amount of time. The bonus damage is applied for each basic attack and does more damage against those with Arcane Fire (the damage over time from Adagio's first ability). His ultimate is probably even worse. It takes 2 seconds to charge up and at the end of it, Adagio deals damage and stuns those with Arcane Fire. It is impossible to Reflex Block Adagio's Gift of Fire (first ability), and blocking it would be an waste, so Adagio is able to deal constant damage while also extending the life of his team. Agent of Wrath (second ability) makes his teammate deal more damage and can't really be countered. Verse of Judgement (ultimate) is easy to Reflex Block, but Crucible would be the best choice, as it blocks it for your entire team. At this point, you may think you have to take down Adagio as fast as possible, right? well don't. Adagio is actually a support/roamer, so he would be the tank instead of a sniper. Killing him wastes time and doing that would be like trying to kill Fortress or Catherine. Most times, Adagio manages to get your team killed because of his ultimate, so counter that with a Crucible if one of your teammates doesn't have it. It may be smart to get a few Spectral Smite stacks on him before focusing on the carries, as this would reduce the damage from his abilities. If Adagio is being played as a carry, focus on him, as his damage output will be much greater than the tank version

Ardan is played only as an support/roamer/tank and will hardly ever venture into the realm of damage dealing. However, it is still important to pay attention to his abilities. Ardan's first ability is Vanguard, which can be targeted on Ardan or his allied heroes. Using it makes Ardan charge towards the target and upon reach the target, Ardan damages and slows nearby enemies as well as give the target a health barrier and speed boost. Ardan's second ability is Blood for Blood, which lets him deal crystal damage to a single target. Gauntlet is Ardan's ultimate and the one to be most wary of. Gauntlet deploys a barrier over an area of the map, and any enemy heroes traveling through it will be stunned and damaged. Repeated crossings will still result in damage and stun. Ardan trades his damage for durability and mobility, thus he is not much of a threat. Vanguard can be annoying to deal with, as the barrier is increased by a percentage of Ardan's health, thus if Ardan has a large amount of health, the barrier will be hard to get through. If you want to use Spectral Smite and your target is protected by Vanguard, wait until the barrier expires before smiting. Blood for Blood is not much of a deal. If you are desperate to get out of Gauntlet, use Reflex Block to block the stun and walk out of it. Remember to ignore Ardan in team fights and target the carries.

Catherine is the worst tank to face in the game. Her first ability, Merciless Pursuit, can stun you for a maximum of 1.75 seconds. Her second ability, Stormguard, reflects damage above a certain amount. Catherine's ultimate is Blast Tremor, which silences and deals damage to enemies in a large cone. Merciless Pursuit is very hard to Reflex Block, but your survival might just depend on it. If you don't block it, Catherine usually follows up with Blast Tremor if she has not used it already. This disables your abilities, making you unable to disrupt ultimates, Reflex Block more stuns, use Dead Man's Rush to activate your health barrier, or Spectral Smite to heal. Stormguard is not much of a problem, but don't Spectral Smite her if it is up. Ignore Catherine, but use Reflex Block at the right time and you will be on your way to killing enemy carries.

Celeste can be deadly and hugely annoying if you don't counter build her. Her first ability ( Heliogenesis) has a very short cooldown and deals high area damage and can reveal you in brush. Upon reaching level 8, Celeste is sure to get the overdrive, increasing her casting range to 9. The second ability is Core Collapse, which deals crystal damage and does area stun. Celeste's ultimate, Solar Storm, launches a line of stars that flies across the map, allowing her to kill you even if you try to escape, or deal high damage during a team fight. Heliogenesis will prevent you from getting close to Celeste or her team, and since this ability reveals you in brush, ambushes can be revealed. With Celeste, Kraken Spawn and late game rules change; you should try to assassinate Celeste when you are with your team. Two ways to do this: attack Celeste if she comes up to use Heliogenesis, or your roamer/support initiates a team fight and you quickly spot her. Not killing Celeste will result in the first ability being spammed and dealing heavy crystal damage. Core Collapse is very dangerous and hard to escape from due to its area effect. Reflex Block when you see a red animation beneath Krul and watch out for it when ganking, as this will ruin you chance to kill her. Solar Storm can really be stopped, but if you are high on health and shield, take the blow for someone on you team if you know they will die. Additionally, it is possible to stop her ultimate with From Hell's Hearth, although this is encouraged only if no one on her team has a devastating ultimate (no Joule, for example). Build early shielding in the early to mid-game, as crystal is the only way for Celeste to go. Celeste's characteristics makeup is high damage, low durability, and low mobility (although her range makes up for that). With high shield, you take away her damage, leaving her with nothing. Watch out if Celeste builds multiple Shatterglass and a Broken Myth, which will synergies well with her abilities. Target her, in which case. No matter the circumstance, always build shielding.

A powerful early gamer, Fortress can ruin you early game and stunt your growth if you are not careful. His first ability, Truth of the Tooth, marks you as prey, giving heroes moving towards you a speed boost. Additionally, he will leap towards you with his next basic attack. Law of the Claw is his second ability, which deals crystal damage and bleeds you and gives attacking heroes a small lifesteal boost. Upon you receiving six basic attacks, a Mortal Wound is applied, reducing your healing, and deals a percentage of your health as damage. Fortress's ultimate is Attack of the Pack, in which he summons three wolves, which seek out different heroes across the map and also providing vision. Each attack from the wolves deal bleeding damage and applies a Mortal Wound after several hits. Truth of the Tooth can allow enemies to catch up to you when escaping and there is nothing much you can do. Law of the Claw is especially annoying as it reduces healing and deals slice damage, but again, not much you can do. Attack of the Pack is not much of a threat, as each wolf dies with three hits (and only three hits) and gives you 50 gold if you land the last-hit, but kill them quickly because of the Mortal Wound. Fortress is a tank and usually builds heavy health, so ignore him for the most part in team fights. Not much to counter-build against Fortress, as he poses little threat. Mentioned before, he can be dangerous early game, so always stick to you jungling partner (although that should be routine). Ignore, focus on carries, and target him last, that is your route to success.

Glaive is a powerful warrior with high damage and large area critical cleaves. His first ability is Afterburn, which allows him to rocket across a fixed distance, damaging every enemy he passes through, and replaces his next attack with one that blows back his enemy and briefly stunning it. His second ability is Twisted Stroke, which allows him to execute a critical strike and does bonus crystal damage is he has anything. Each level of this ability gives him bonus critical percentage and damage. As of Update 1.9, energy cost has been reduced. Glaive's ultimate is Bloodsong. Bloodsong's passive is that Glaive generates one stack for each basic attack and every stack gives 1% lifesteal. Glaive can activate the ability, dealing area damage by a set amount plus damage for each stack. Doing this clears all stacks. Afterburn can knock you into a dangerous position, such as a turret or cut you off from your team. Afterburn can be Reflex Blocked, preventing both the stun and push-back. Twisted Stroke is mostly a passive skill but just the passive is dangerous enough. Bloodsong does less damage than you would think, but it has a large area effect. Most Glaive players go for the critical damage build, which prioritized critical percentage and damage, weapon damage, and attack speed. Getting Atlas Pauldron is imperative against a critical Glaive, as this will greatly slow his attack speed. Getting Spectral Smite stacks will further slow his attack speed. Glaive is a highly dangerous hero who can deal massive damage to your team. Use Atlas Pauldron and build Breaking Point stacks on him.

Joule's heroic perk is something of an annoyance: she gets bonus armor from basic attacks attacking her from the front. Since she will always face you, trying to get behind her is not that good of a strategy. Additionally, she has heavily reduced armor compared to other heroes, but very high shield, so Spectral Smite will do less damage than it would normally do. Her first ability is Rocket Leap, which allows her to leap into the air and deal crystal damage as well as stun when she lands. Her second ability is Thunder Strike, which allows her to send an attack in a direction, damaging all enemies in that distance. This ability has a low cooldown, so she will spam it. Joule's ultimate is Big Red Button, which deals massive damage over 1.5 seconds in a certain direction. Rocket Leap must be Reflex Blocked if you can. It takes a bit of practice, but a red circle will appear where she lands. Also, this will be ability that makes her so hard to gank in lane. Thunder Strike will be spammed, so she should be your primary target if she does too much damage. If Joule channels Big Red Button, get out of her way quick, as this does too much damage and Krul will either die or be left with little health. If a large amount of Spectral Smite stacks has been placed on her, you will not need to get out, as the ultimate does crystal damage and Spectral Smite reduces crystal power. There are two paths for Joule: weapon and crystal. Weapon Joule have an extremely powerful Thunder Strike, so direct everyone to kill her. Crystal Joule will have powerful abilities, so make sure to escape her ultimate and Reflex Block her Rocket Leap. Joule is an ability based hero, so having Catherine on your team and silencing Joule will give you a much better time. Avoid Big Red Button, target her depending on her damage, and make sure to counter-build her.

Koshka is a constant threat in any skill tier. Every time her abilities hit an enemy, her movement speed in increased by .5 to a maximum of 2. Pouncy Fun is her first abilities, which makes her leap to her target over a short distance and deal crystal damage. Twirly Death is her second, in which she twirls and deals damage to those around her. For every enemy she hits, she gains one stack up to a maximum of 12. Each stack boosts the damage of her basic attacks by a certain crystal amount and a stack is consumed per basic attack. Koshka's ultimate is Yummy Catnip Frenzy, where she targets and stuns the target for 2.2 seconds. During that time, she deals crystal damage. Koshka's most common build is crystal, with some people going for support (dubbed "Tankshka"). Both of her abilities deal crystal damage, so shielding is is a good counter-build against her. Twirly Death stacks are particularly dangerous, as they have a 110% crystal ratio. Yummy Catnip Frenzy is perhaps the most dangerous ability in the game. The 2.2 seconds stun spells certain doom in most cases, but luckily for you, the game developers have made it slightly easier to reflex block. Just before the stun, a large image will briefly appear above her target, so this gives you a small window of opportunity to activate Reflex Block and avoid the stun. Facing against Koshka, rush Shiversteal and Reflex Block after Breaking Point. If Koshka has farmed a substantial amount of gold and has a high crystal damaging build, get Aegis after getting Reflex Block. Target Koshka if the ranged carry is very slippery and use Shiversteal to slow her down. Use Reflex Block and build shielding to negate her otherwise lethal abilities (but still be wary of her).

Everybody loves to face off with an identical hero to see who is better, and be sure to best other players with little experience or understanding of Krul. For Krul's abilities, see the abilities section. There are roughly three builds Krul can have: Breaking Point, burst, and weapon. Of these three, Breaking Point is the most dangerous because of its late battle capabilities. Burst is not as effective and is only effective for the first few seconds. Weapon Krul requires a lot of gold and is usually more squishy than a Breaking Point Krul. Here is a rundown of Krul's goals: identify carry with the greatest threat, get to carry, stick with them, attack them, and kill them while also building Breaking Point stacks. As I've mentioned multiple times, Krul lacks mobility, and that goes for your opponent too, so it will be easy to stick with him. Always attack the enemy Krul when they have Breaking Point, but not when they are burst. Weapon Kul can dish out a lot of damage and you can choose to either target him or ignore if the other carry is more dangerous. Counter-building a Breaking Point Krul is quite easy. There are two ways: attack speed or armor. When your attack speed is higher, you are dealing more damage per second, thus higher lifesteal and the ability to out last the enemy Krul in a fight. Building a Tornado Trigger is a good idea, but always get Atlas Pauldron first, as it gives you both the attack speed slow and armor and slight shield. If you are able to use Atlas Pauldron when both you and your enemy have high Breaking Point stacks, you can probably outlast him. Armor is a bit less effective, as Bonesaw is a direct counter. But if you really want armor, get Metal Jacket. Remember, don't use Spectral Smite unless you are sure the enemy Krul will die, or else you will be losing lifesteal and your opponent will gain attack speed. Always have higher attack speed, Atlas Pauldron is a must, don't Spectral Smite unless it is a killing shot, and remember that Breaking Point Krul is extremely dangerous (and especially so if they saw this guide).

Petal commands three "munions" which can dish out consistent damage during battle and she can effectively kite with them. Her heroic perk is basicially a description of her munions, with the addition of a basic attack speed boost if a munion bits a target that has recently been basic attacked. This makes her weapon builds far more viable. Her first ability is Bramblethorn Seeds, which lays down one seed that provides nearby heroes with a slight heal armor and shield boost, and vision. As of Update 1.9, her second ability has been changed to Trampoline!, which launches her in her facing direction if she is standing on a seed. All pets are then rallied to her. This ability also lets her vault over walls and other obstacles. Petal's ultimate, Spontaneous Combustion, explodes her three munions, dealing area crystal damage and leaves behind three seeds. During channeling, munions can move, are invincible, and appear to have a fuse on their head. Petal is not as ability reliant as most laners, instead, she relies on her munions, which deal crystal damage. As such, silences and stuns are not as effective, since the munions are independent of Petal. Her second ability will provide her with escape, but you can still chase her down again. There is not much to do about her abilities, which is why you need to counter build Petal with armor or shield items. Weapon Petal my seem like she isn't taking advantage of her munions, which gain additional health and damage as Petal's crystal power increases, however, it is of significance to note her attack range is 7 meters, the highest in the game. This means, she will be kiting you from afar and can deal large amount of damage before you even reach her. Metal Jacket will counter-build nicely and also remember to build a Shiversteel, as she has no escape abilities, only her boots and Warhorn if an enemy tank has it. Crystal builds are the most dangerous of Petal builds because of the insane damage her munions can dish out and the burst damage from Spontaneous Combustion. Aegis is the best item to counter-build against her, but remember to kill her quick, as her Spontaneous Combustion can melt your entire team. Also, note that her munions die when she die, meaning don't waste time on them and just go straight towards her. Petal is a dangerous, but weak carry. One the trinity scale, she has only damage and lacks both durability and mobility. Killing Petal will be easy if you manage to sneak to the back lines, but with her newfound second ability in 1.9, she can slip away.

Perhaps the most common hero in the Halcyon Fold, Ringo is useless in unskilled hands, but is a complete monster in the right hands. His first ability, Achilles Shot slows and deals with crystal damage, while his second ability, Swirling Silver, gives him a movement speed and attack speed boost. But he can still kill you even if he can catch up with his Hellfire's Brew, in which he launches a fireball that follows you and upon impact, deals 100% shield pierce damage and damage over time. Ringo's primary asset is his mobility, gained from both his first and second ability, along with the usual build of high weapon damage. Skilled players will get Tension Bow and utilize the bonus damage from the item along with Ringo's heroic perk, Double Down, to deal massive damage. But if you manage to sneak to him and activate Shiversteel, he is dead unless there is a Warhorn. Hellfire's Brew seems scary, but note that it travels slowly, so it is easy to Reflex Block. Be very careful of Ringo. He can turn the first half of your health to mush and start kiting you from there. Shiversteel and Warhorn are very effective counters and you may sometimes require both. Remember to Spectral Smite him for health and the kill. Be wary of supports, for they will most probably try to save Ringo. Among the annoying ones are Catherine (stun and silence) and Ardan ( Vanguard and Gauntlet. Get Shiversteel first, then finish counter-building, slow, boots to catch up, smite, and you're done.

Rona is an ability reliant hero, however, he heroic perk causes her to not have energy and instead, have bloodrage, which is gained through combat; thus, thinking she has no energy is a grave mistake. Furthermore, she attacks 50% faster than other heroes, but deal 80% damage (still more damage, though). Upon gaining full bloodrage, Rona gains an attack speed boost and a health barrier equal to 8% of her maximum health. In short, having full bloodrage gives a small health barrier. Rona's first ability is Into the Frey, which allows her to leap a small distance and deal area crystal damage. Upon impact, the ground ruptures and deals additional crystal damage. Rona gains damage reduction from all sources temporarily if she damages any heroes upon impact, and the reduction amount increases depending on how many she hits. Her second, Foesplitter, is the one where the pain comes. Foesplitter can be activated twice in succession, with the first one giving Rona bonus bloodrage, and the second one consuming half of Rona's bloodrage (50) and increases the damage by 0.35% per point of bloodrage. Red Mist is Rona's ultimate and allows her to deal damage to every enemy around her. She will be able to move, but at reduced speed, weapon lifesteal will be reduced by 50%, and she consumes bloodrage continuously. She is able to deactivate Red Mist at anytime. Rona may have completely destroyed you a few times, but once you fight her a few times, you will know how to beat her. Both Foesplitter and Red Mist have high ratios, so early counter-building is pretty much the only way beat Rona. Don't worry about the damage reduction from Into the Frey, as it is an early battle perk and Krul's power comes late battle. Most players use weapon builds, but crystal builds can also be dangerous, as crystal ratios are also high. Her high attack speed is very dangerous, so getting an Atlas Pauldron would be ideal. Counter-build, Atlas Pauldron, and you will be able to outlast Rona.

More coming soon.

No hero can take on a 1 vs. 3 and Krul is no exception. In solo queue, your item build is the most important thing you could do, but if you are playing with friends or in a party, make sure to coordinate with everyone to get a good composition. Heroes here are separated by their usual domain (lane or jungle) and by their suitability. At the end, a full team will be recommended.



The Best Compositions (Jungles)


Catherine is perhaps the best support out there. While Atlas Pauldron cripples those with attack speed, Catherine's stun and silence cripples ability based heroes (such as Celeste and Skaarf), especially when both are maxed. I can't exaggerate enough how important her stun and silence are. Countless times I have died due to an ability spamming hero. The best items to accommodate Krul are Warhorn (for the Ironguard Contract effect and the powerful speed boost), Crucible (to block any devastating abilities), Shiversteel (bonus slow when Krul's run out), Atlas Pauldron (also a bonus for Krul), and Contraption (for vision and the capture of a pesky Taka).


Fortress is also another good partner for Krul. With exceptional chasing abilities, a ranged hero like Ringo wouldn't dare to kite Krul (unless he is way too overpowered). Vision from his ultimate means you can secretly take Kraken without the enemy's notice. Like Catherine, the best items for Fortress will be Shiversteel (when Krul can't catch his target), Warhorn (extra speed), Crucible (same reason), and Contraption in the case of Taka.



Mediocre Compositions (Jungles)


I won't deny it, Ardan's Gauntlet and Vanguard are excellent for locking down a carry, however, he loses his power when Krul can be easily busted down from an over-farmed Joule or Skaarf. That, paired with his lack of powerful combat abilities, Ardan's power diminishes compared to Catherine, who can cripple ability based carries. However, this difference is only apparent when you enter higher skill tiers. Ardan's build should include Warhorn, Crucible, and Shiversteel.


Adagio has a good slow, but it only lasts 1.5 seconds. He has a heal, but it doesn't really help a Krul who is being bursted down. His powerful stun is very predictable and high skill tier players will make quick work of it with Reflex Block. In short, Adagio doesn't have much to offer to Krul, but may be of use to another hero on your team.


I don't want to appear to be highly restrictive of the roles of certain heroes, but having a support Koshka, Joule, or Glaive simply won't do, especially when such heroes have so much to contribute in a fight. This may be good in low to mid skill tiers, but in a highly competitive game, I don't recommend doing something like this unless someone on your team is highly skilled in using that hero. This is hard to avoid in solo queue, but you may be able to win even if it happens.



Worst Compositions (Jungles)


Taka is an amazing assassin, but pair him with Krul and one of you will die very quickly, crippling the team. Both of these heroes are very squishy unless some defense items are put on them, however, it is not ideal for either one to play the role of support since they lack the durability of natural supports.


Rona is another bad match for Krul, since both are item and gold hungry. Rona requires the sustain and lifesteal for her to deal serious damage, which would leave Krul with little gold and sustain. If it were the other way around, Rona would be severely underpowered.


Don't even think about it. Petal is a laner and you are breaking the norm by allowing her to jungle. But to do it with Krul, you have to be trolling and/or lack understanding. Think about this: Krul needs gold and otherwise lacks sustain, Petal is a carry (gold hungry) and can't fill the role of a support/tank, and your laner would also be squishy. What are you thinking putting three squishy and gold hungry heroes together?



The Best Compositions (lanes)


Ringo is a big help when he is on your team. His Achilles Shot slows, Swirling Silver gives him attack speed and movement speed boost, and Hellfire Brew allows you to not worry about the carry escaping with a sliver of health. This hero can help you burst down a carry and deal serious damage, but his survival can be pivotal to your success, so protect him. Make sure he farms well early game by ganking the enemy laner and protect him from enemy retaliations for such an event.


Petal in lane is very different than a Petal in jungle. With her munions at her disposal, your enemies will suffer an mental breakdown of whether to attack you or Petal, as her pets can deal a lot of damage if left ignored. Both crystal and weapon Petal can help you out. If Petal gets Frostburn, it will aid you in catching a pesky ranged hero. If she decides to go weapon and gets Breaking Point, both of you must be bursted down (but that just isn't possible).


Celeste may have a predictable build, but her long range a pin=point damage will wear down your target (provided you are not off chasing a Vox that just can't be reached). Her stun and powerful and large area burst from her ultimate will make killing carries easier, but beware, she has no escape skills, so you might be left alone if you are too far away to help.



Mediocre Compositions (lanes)


SAW has a great early game and his high damage potential rivals that or even exceeds Krul's. However, he is not recommended as "best composition" because of one thing: he lacks mobility. When both of your carries can be killed with hit and run tactics as well as lacking short battle sustain, SAW and Krul can be a mess together. However, this may be a different story in lower skill tiers and casual queue.


Skaarf has long range area damage capabilities that can seriously harass his opponents, and his ultimate will even speed Krul up to catch his targets. Even against SAW, one of the most annoying heroes to lane against, he can dish out serious damage with Spitfire. Coordination with Skaarf will be imperative, as enemies will easily get away if Goop is constantly lit aflame and bad aim will turn Skaarf useless.


Vox is a late-game hero, whose power is significantly greater in a drawn out match than a short one. The problem here is that Krul is also weak early game, meaning there is the possibility of your team being crushed early, stunting hero growth, and causing you to lose the late game goal. If your team can pull off the early game, you just might be able to win.



The Best Team Compositions


Ringo and Catherine are both stellar laners and roamers, respectively. Ringo can deal massive damage to enemy carries while Catherine stuns it to make sure it doesn't get away. Catherine's silence also cripples ability based heroes, while Krul builds Spectral Smite stacks to weaken the carry's crystal power and attack speed. In team fights, Ringo should focus on the low durability carry, however, Catherine's stun can go on either carry, since Ringo and Krul should be able to burst down the target carry fairly quickly.

Ringo should build weapon damage even though Krul has Breaking Point, as this would be the way for him to deal the maximum amount of damage.

Catherine's stun should prioritize the following heroes in order of importance: Vox, Taka, Skaarf, Joule, and Glaive. However, it is still best to save the stun for a powerful ultimate.

There are five different kinds of heroes in a teamfight: Hero of Greatest Durability (HGD), Hero of Least Durability (HLD), Hero of Greatest Threat (HGT), Hero of Greatest Mobility (HGM), Carry of Lesser Mobility (CLM), and the Reasonable Target (RT). In other words, there is a tank, a squishy, a higher damaging carry, a slippery, and one containing the overlap of HGT and CLM, respectively. Lets break this down to a teamfighting logic.

The HGD of a team is the tank, which should never be targeted as common knowledge (assumed). The HLD is one of the two carries, usually the laner, and is very squishy. The HGT can also be the HLD or not and can dish out the highest net damage (counting damage done to all three heroes on the opposing side). The HGM is the most slippery carry and also overlap with the previous two. The CLM is usually a warrior and carry and, as the name implies, is not slippery. The RT is the hardest to determine and describe, but this is basically it: a hero able to dish out decent or hight damage, can't kite, and can't escape easily. As Krul, your target is the RT.

The RT does not usually exist in a team, but must be created during a fight. How? you may ask, well the reason can me summarized in one item: Shiversteel. It has been a long standing tradition in Vainglory to make laners slippery (SAW is still, at times, slippery) and Shiversteel has been the remedy to that. Therefore, use Shiversteel to reduce mobility and turn the HGT and HGM into the HLM and RT.

Junglers, may not have an asset as a laner, but they contain something else, damage potential. Glaive and Joule are two monsters that need to be watched out for in the game. The two of them are also the HGT most times.

In a teamfight, target the RT to build up Breaking Point stacks (and not chase a Vox around the map). Then, you can use your high damage to destroy the HGM in a few hits. However, there is an exception to targeting the RT: when there is an mage ( Skaarf, Celeste, and Vox). Mages do insane crystal area damage, which allows them to kill you before you even do decent damage on the RT. Killing a mage is top priority for your entire team.

Remember, single target damage, such as SAW, is less of a threat than an area attack, such as Skaarf.

In short, heroes dealing multi-target damage are first priority, even if the single target damage hero is SAW.

I hope this guide has helped you to play Krul more competitively and has allowed you to climb the ranks of Vainglory. They say Krul isn't seen much high elo play, but I hope this guide may change that. I've gotten to The Hotness gold with this build and I hope those with greater abilities can get higher. Again, I want to thank the guides on Vaingloryfire for giving a greater picture of how heroes work and which builds are best for which hero.

If this guide has helped you or if you think this guide is well written, don't hesitate to upvote this guide.

If there is anything you disagree with or have suggestions, please enter what you think in the comments section below.

My in-game name is Dresden11