Arduin: The Tank With Warrior Moves

Guide And Build Arduin: The Tank With Warrior Moves

Cheat Sheet
Skill Build
The long range of Rend makes it perfect for applying some heavy harassment in the early game and should be upgraded for consistent damage. Undying Protector should become a focus in the mid game to amplify survivability.

Items
Spear of Longinus
Gilded Greaves
Gaia's Standard
The Aegis
Odin's Will
Ancestral Glory
Arcana
Survivibility with this character relies on hard hits and a generous health pool. Pick up some Life Steal if using Tier-1 arcana, but stick to Attack Power and Max HP whenever you get the chance. Attack Speed and Armor Pierce are good secondary options.

Talents
Sprint
Heal
Execute
Introduction
Likely having been cut down by the unstoppable force that is Omen in a battle of the Abyss, Arduin is a strong-willed spirit that, upon being killing on the Antaris Battlefield, seems to want nothing more than to call it a day.

Sadly, his job is never over. He slots uncharacteristically into the Tank role, inching out into Warrior territory thanks to a handful of powerful moves. He can't shield or heal his allies – despite what the results screen may suggest – but instead bolsters his own defence on occasion and knocking enemies sky high for his team to cut down.

Arduin banks on a long-range initial ability and its follow-up strike to subdue opponents, giving chase – or retreating – with his Ultimate, and striking hard again under the guise of a powerful shield. Chaining his abilities isn't too difficult, but paying attention to his HP to better benefit from his self-sufficiency is difficult thanks to the lack of visual cues.

Skills
Passive: Bloodlust – Activating once Arduin reaches 50% HP, this powerful passive grants him the opportunity to heal 2% from each attack and ability for 8 seconds. There's a lengthy 60 second cooldown on this, so don't expect it to see you through longer brawls. Pairing it with the true damage buff from Undying Wish will increase  your healing potential.

Ability 1: Rend – A long-range and wide attack that sees Arduin toss his gargantuan axe several feet forward, dealing damage to those in its path. If it hits an enemy hero, Arduin can then smash the ground, creating a shockwave along a chosen path that sends those caught within high into the sky.  The cooldown won't begin until the secondary strike (if triggered) is used, but the secondary strike can be aimed independently from the first.

Ability 2: Undying Wish – Arduin creates a shield for himself that's good for 12% of his Maximum HP. Upon activating, the ability damages those around Arduin for minor magic damage. The next three normal attacks to hit a target will deal additional true damage, with each shaving off 1-second from the cooldown of Cull. This is the only ability that has its cooldown reduced by leveling up.

Cull – Another long-range attack, Arduin tosses his axe far into the distance and flings himself toward it. The axe damages and stuns the first target it connects with, leaving Arduin to damage those around him when he arrives at his weapon's destination. He can't be stopped by control abilities during the length of this attack, making it not only a great gap-closer and initiator, but a handy way to vault over the damaging fields left by the abilities of most mages.

Skill Order
Arduin, despite technically being a tank, still relies heavily on his damage output. He can't do much to protect his team outside of occasional control abilities, so making them shave off a good portion of the opposing team's HP pool should be a top priority.

Levelling up Rend first and foremost is typically the best idea whether you're paired with an ally or laning alone, as the long range and wide reach of the strike and its follow-up blow can, in an ideal situation, clear minion waves and heavily damage the enemy hero behind, with the resulting knock-up lending itself to a finishing blow from you or a nearby ally, or simply warning the opponent to keep their distance.

As you progress through the mid-game phase, however, Undying Wish will become top priority, likely reaching its full potential before Rend. Reducing the cooldown of Undying Wish will grant Arduin a potent shield more often, naturally helping to reduce the cooldown of his ultimate, or otherwise increasing the chance of it being available to coincide with Bloodlust to help keep you alive in frantic battles.

Attempt to level up Rend as much as possible, but immediately shift your attention to Undying Wish the moment team battles become a constant threat.

Talents
Sprint – With only his ultimate available as a mobility tool, Arduin's chances of intercepting an otherwise deadly enemy team encounter are slim without this powerful Talent, as using Rend to get in before it's too late can severely impact his survivability. Taking Sprint gives him a large window in which to run into battle and properly position Rend, boosting the chance of catching multiple enemies in the follow-up strike that can render them prime targets for the rest of your team.

Heal – Without Heal on your side, seeing Arduin commended for HP Restoration on the results board is nothing but a lie. Enjoying a lavish health pool that subsequently grants him a rock-solid shield through Undying Wish, Heal can be popped in a pinch to elongate the fight, potentially giving Arduin the time needed to sunder with Rend once again, or to gain another shield through Undying Wish. A great tool for a selfish tank, it's the one ability that the rest of your team will truly notice.

Execute – You're going to be spending a lot of time facing the enemy head on, so having a tool ready to cleave down a bulky tank or pesky assassin isn't a bad option. Execute deals lavish amounts of true damage that's best used when a target is low on HP and looking to flee the scene – which is a very common sight. If you don't want your team breaking apart to give chase, just finish off a high profile target right there and then.

Items
A potent and wide-reaching cleave like Rend can easily leave a bunch of targets susceptible to some serious hurt, making Arduin's first major item a wise choice that can help would-be tanks get off on the wrong foot. From then on, it's straight into building that HP pool to make a larger shield out of each Undying Wish.

Spear of Longinus is what we're talking about first. Gifting a modest boost in our Attack Power and drastically reducing the cooldown of our abilities, it aids in raw survivability through 150 additional Armor. But it's the stackable armor decrease on hit that will make this one shine, easily mitigating the defense of most heroes early on in the match, and ensuring a multi-hit combo can leech as much HP as possible once Arduin dips below the threshold of his passive. Picking up Gilded Greaves soon after isn't quite as exciting, but the extra resistances will serve their purpose.

Heading straight into raw survivability, Gaia's Standard and The Aegis are next in line. One offers Magic Defense, whereas the other focuses on Armor; you'll be going against the entire enemy team more often than not, so being prepared for both types of damage is a necessity. On top of that, they boost Max HP and MP respectively, but it's a handful of other little perks that build up across the two that will really make the difference in battle – like reduced cooldowns, slowing enemy attack speed, and activating another passive heal that could, when paired with your own, see you through to the next in a well orchestrated fight.

A rare sight on the battlefield, Odin's Will is the next recommended item choice for Arduin. It's Attack Power and Max HP are obvious boons in our favor, but it's the unique Adrenaline passive that helps this one stand out, boosting Arduin's lacklustre movement speed and increasing his damage output when hit. Throwing in Ancestral Glory at the end is a more obvious choice than most, giving him another chance to repeat his self-sustaining ability combos should he bite off more than he can chew.

Arcana
Arduin's choice of Arcana is a little more peculiar than most other tanks; thanks in part to his strategy of choice. Boosting his HP makes sense with his percentage-based  shield, but a good chunk of his survivabiltiy relies on leeching HP not through itemized Life Steal, but through his own passive. This still depends on hitting hard and fast to coincide with the window of his passive, meaning Attack Power is still high on the agenda.

When shopping for Ardiun-appropriate Tier-1 arcana, stacking Attack Power should be backed up with Life Steal in the Purple slots due to the lacklustre gains at these lower levels. Rather than mix and match armor types in the Green slots, taking up Armor Pierce should, in theory, boost your survivability by simply making you stronger.

For Tier-2 users, the idea of hitting hard and building up a beefier shield is more easily obtainable. Pummel or Batter are strong Red choices, with one bolstering the shield of Undying Protector, while the other banks on surviving by hitting faster, regaining HP more quickly, and fending off incoming damage by taking down attackers with more speed. Passion is a strong choice for Purple slots, boosting both Attack Power and Max HP for the reasons we've mentioned many times already. Pick up Serenity as your Green arcana of choice; the mixture of Max HP and Cooldown Speed go hand in hand here.

Lastly, those building a Tier-3 Arcana book can build up that shield far more easily, gaining Max HP for Valiance and Indomitable arcana and gaining slight amounts of Attack Power and Movement Speed from Assassinate in the Purple slots. You won't be quite as strong, but your shields will stay strong, leaving you with more time to hit hard.

Early Game
Unlocking a powerful ranged strike from the get-go makes the opening moments of a match a little strange for Arduin. Still techncially seen as a tank, his movepool sees him slide effortlessly into the role of your typical Warrior, making it hard to stick to harassing the opponent rather than charging in for a finishing blow after a few successful shots.

Unless you're laning with a team mate, using your abilities to hold off your opponent should be prioritized over hunting them to the ends of the earth – at least until you unlock Cull, anyway. Unlike abilities like Grakk's hook – or even Arduin's own Cull – Rend isn't stopped short by creep getting in the way, meaning a good way to avoid being hit by certain champions in the lane is to stand behind your own wave, angling Rend to strike through the minion wave to the hero sitting behind. Then it's up to you whether you want to use the follow-up strike to knock the target into the air for additional damage, or reposition it to shatter what remains of the creep.

If you're with an ally, it's best to hit the enemy to give your team mate a chance to chip in; otherwise, try to stick to farming Gold and scaring the enemy away. Cull, once unlocked, can then be used to more aggressively hunt your true target. Just pop Undying Protector whenever you're expecting damage. Timing its availability with Bloodlust is difficult, but can prove to be the deciding factor in a a multi-target fight. Aiming for it in a smaller skirmish isn't usually worth the effort.

Mid Game
This is where the power of Undying Protector will start to shine. It's difficult to see it in action with its effects seeming subtle, but as your HP pool starts to grow alongside your defensive attributes, the shield will either stop other heroes from feeling too powerful as the match goes on, or make them feel progressively weaker as you push on ahead. The additional True Damage offered will help you cut through other bulkier opponents in the stack, with the armor reduction of Spear of Longinus ready and waiting to ensure your allies can cut through them, too.

Arduin's sluggish movement speed hinders his ability to initiate larger fights, but he presence on the battlefield has a high chance of coaxing the enemy team into moving forward if he's daring enough to tread on their ground. This, or with the use of sprint, is a good opportunity to sling in with Cull as the slight immunity to control effects will open a slim window in which Rend can be activated before a stun goes off. If timed well, the team can be sent into the sky and slowed, keeping them together for longer and giving your own allies a chance to deal some drastic AOE damage. Pop Undying Protector beforehand and aim to get those three normal attacks off to reduce the cooldown of Cull and hopefully make it available for in time for a chase or escape situation if needed. If timed well, you'll have enough time out in the field of battle to pop Undying Protector again in time for Bloodlust, increasing the HP you gain through your next combo and gifting another shield that can safely see you through the fight.

You'll have to stay on your toes as Arduin. Without Sprint, he doesn't move particularly fast; yet he's still expected to take a bullet for the team in most situations. A 2-3-1 combo is a great way to intercept those chasing weaker allies, soak up the damage, and stop them dead in their tracks. Just be prepared to fight to the death if you're taking on a larger team on little health. Just give them hell while you can.

Late Game
Not much changes for Arduin as the battle rages on. He's still expected to soak up most of the team's damage while dishing out a respectable amount himself. His idea of tanking the enemy is to survive long enough through shields and small heals to send his opponents up into the air, biding his time through combos until his team figure out how to sweep up.

Thanks to the long and wide reaching Rend, Arduin can easily stop enemies from retreating to the confines of their tower, but will usually need to rely on true ranged attackers to finish the job. He doesn't stand out as a tower destroyer any more than other champions, but his shield can absorb the occasional blow if the risk doesn't outweigh the reward. His support-heavy strikes struggle to shine in single-target situations, too, making jungling between fights a little cumbersome; so don't expect to be running off to take the Abyssal Dragon on your own too often.

Instead, focus on subduing the team for as long as possible. The positioning potential of Cull and Rend make it fairly easy to herd the enemy team into a spot where a knock-up can leave multiple enemies ripe for the rest of your team, with Undying Protector there to help sustain your suicidal tendencies. Just stand your ground on the frontline and be ready to keep the opposite team away from your own by knocking them into the sky. Repelling away with Cull is a great escape tool, so think things through before diving in.

FAQS/Tips
Bloodlust has a lengthy 60 second cooldown, meaning it shouldn't be relied on to aid you in anything other than a quickfire skirmish.

The cooldown of Rend won't begin if there's an unused secondary strike. If your target is long gone, use it immediately to speed up its recovery rate.

The more targets struck during Bloodlust, the greater the HP recovery will be. Coordinating its activation with Undying Protector and tackling multiple opponents will help you benefit the most from its effects.

Counters
Arduin deals respectable damage to those he can strike, but he isn't going to clear a whole team on his own. Designed to take on a bunch and pin them in place, he can't do it forever, so pairing him with some AOE-heavy casters seems like the best course of action. Melee characters can quickly jump to his rescue, but having too many heroes grouped together is a recipe for disaster when any enemy caught within can drop their own AOE at the touch of a button, causing a world of hurt for everyone else.

Having Alice handy can help allies close in fast if Arduin slings into battle and manages to knock up a bunch of targets as her shield boosts the team's movement speed and provides them with an added layer of protection to facilitate their setup. Aliester, Mganga, Dioachan and Lauriel would benefit greatly from an added Hissy Fit, but their own skillset wouldn't demand it in this situation. Having a dedicated tank, like Toro or TeeMee, on hand could help root the enemy team for even longer, giving Arduin a chance to prepare his next assault.

Fighting against Arduin just means looking out for his ablities. Due to his limited movement speed, seeing Cull be used signals a 10 second average where Arduin will move far more predictably. Mages and Marksmen can use this time to assault him from a relatively safe range, being mindful of Rend being used to slow them down. Cull can also be used to lead over AOE spells, and his immunity to control effects during that time means anyone relying on these for the kill should wait until they're sure Cull is no longer an option. Violet and Butterfly's frantic movements and small hitbox make perfect sense here, with mages like Aliester and Veera being particularly strong counters. Gildur and Grakk are also strong tank choices thanks to their ticking stuns.