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For Gnarnia: League's Top Lane Powerhouse
In current meta, Gnar is one of the strongest top laners in LoL. Start playing him.
Adorable? Yes. Deadly? Yes.
© League of Legends
Gnar was one of the most anticipated champions in the history of League of Legends. From his adorable appearance to his unique kit, everyone was excited to see him join the League. But for the most part, after his release last month, the response to Gnar was mixed at best. The general consensus is that his transformation is hard to control, certain match-ups are incredibly hard, and no one seems to know the optimal way to build him.
Unfortunately, that’s all completely wrong. Confused? Don’t worry, we’ve got the best way to play this prehistoric yordle—as well as why he’s one of the strongest champions in the game right now and why he’s the best top lane ticket to get ranked rewards before the season ends.
A Different Approach
Gnar is pretty cute
© League of Legends
Gnar is unique. When creating him, Riot wanted to make sure he wasn’t just another champion with two forms like Elise and Jayce—two characters they have historically had issues balancing. “We wanted to finally make a transformation character who felt good in both forms,” Riot Gypsylord said in an official Gnar Q&A. He went on to explain that when a champion can swap at will, their forms lose meaningful weaknesses.
Being unable to control his transformation, however, led to a lot of issues. Players find him difficult to learn and control; his Mega Gnar form comes from his passive and is based on rage he gains in combat. Unlike Shyvana, the other champion with two forms that’s based on a resource, he can’t trigger it—her transformation is tied to her ultimate whereas his happens immediately upon his rage bar being filled.
While initially frustrating to the player experience, the real reason why his transformation needs some unpredictability is because he’d be too strong otherwise. Mega Gnar is the perfect mixture of tank, crowd control, and damage; being able to hold onto it to switch at the right moment would make him completely broken.
Why Gnar is Strong
Both of Gnar’s forms are powerful. They also have completely different play styles and purposes.
Mini Gnar is a split pusher who is hard to pin down. With a percent health magic damage on his W, he does a surprising amount of damage to even the tankiest foes. Furthermore, he’s fast. With a move speed modifier on his W plus a slow on his Q, he’s able to kite exceptionally well. His mobility through E which can be bounced off targets to make him go even further makes him very agile.
Conversely, Mega Gnar is a slow bruiser with a lot of ways to control the enemy—making him the perfect pick for a team fight. He regenerates health and gains extra resistances in Mega Gnar, making him deceptively durable. Aside from that, his real strength is in his ultimate. It functions just like Vayne’s Condemn but it can hit up to five enemies; combined with his W which becomes a stun as well, he has three seconds of AoE stuns he can chain off in Mega Gnar form which completely locks down enemies in a team fight.
Gnar is an unpopular pick
© LoL King
A Conflict of Builds
When Gnar first came out, no one knew how to build him. Former professional top lane for Gambit Gaming, Darien, took him for a spin on the solo queue ladders where he built him damage. From this point on, most Gnar players assumed building him with a BoRK and other damage items was the way to go.
While it’s fun to destroy an enemy and can be a viable choice if greatly ahead, tank Gnar is the better way to go. After the initial rush of a Brutalizer, Gnar is able to build to counter his lane’s damage: if they’re attack damage, rush Omen. If they’re magic damage, pick up a Banshee’s Veil. Next up, build for who is fed on the enemy team, picking up more resistances as needed. Finish it off by building a Last Whisper to amp up his damage by giving him more damage.
Gnar’s Future
As Riot does more quality of life fixes, expect Gnar to be played everywhere from solo queue to the professional arena. Tank Gnar is extremely strong right now and he’s just starting to get recognized. He’ll likely climb in the ban charts as time continues to pass before he’s inevitably toned down a bit.
With three seconds of stuns, immense mobility, and the ability to build tank yet still output a lot of damage, Gnar is the epitome of the perfect top laner. Learn him sooner rather than later if you want to capitalize on his glory days.
And hey, he’s pretty cute too.
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