Azzen'Ka:The Long Range Control Mage

Build and Guide Azzen'Ka:The Long Range Control Mage

Cheat Sheet
Skill build

3>2>1

Recommended Talents

Flicker, Sprint, Heal

Items

Orb of Magi>Enchanted Kicks>Hecate's Diadem>Virtue's Necklace>Frosty's Revenge>Rhea's Blessing

Arcana

9 AP/MP reds,9 HP/MS Purples,9 Armor/Magic D greens

Introduction
Azzen-ka is a control mage who can dictate the flow of fights with high damage abilities and a powerful crowd control passive. His long range allows for him to deal tons of damage and cc opponents while within the safety of his team. Although he is very vulnerable to assassins he has the capability to single-handedly win games with his powerful ultimate ability.

Skill Build
Passive: Sand trap
Azzen-ka’s abilities apply a stack that petrifies and damages after reaching 3 stacks.

Ability 1: Sand Punch
Long Range AoE knock up. Combos well after target has become petrified from other abilities.

Ability 2: Dust Devil
Targeted ability that bounces among targets. The ability can hit a maximum of two times per unit, the second hit doing 60% damage.

Ability 3: Sand Wraith
Skillshot burst spell that leaves an AoE damaging 60% slow on the first target that also applies stacks of Sand Trap.

You want to level Dust Devil first as well as max it as it is your main damage ability in and out of lane. Only take Sand Punch when you have to, even though it is a good skill it doesn’t compare to the other two abilities. As for a certain way to combo your spells there is no perfect combo for every situation. Sometimes starting with Wraith is better than any other ability.

Recommended Talents
Flicker makes up for the lack of mobility in Azzen-Ka’s kit and allows him to possibly disengage from assassins or tanks and possibly allows the opportunity to land one more dust devil. Highly recommend over all other talents.

Sprint has the same function of flicker in which it helps Azzen-ka get out of danger or keep up with an enemy to land more abilities for Sand Trap. Sprint is better in situations where you are able to kite from enemies.

Heal grants a good chunk of health on demand in a game where anti-healing effects aren’t very prevalent. Heal also works on all nearby allies which makes it a good talent not just for Azzen but for the whole team.

Items
Enchanted Kicks is the best choice for boots as the build already grants you 40% cooldown speed. The 75 Magic Pierce also helps with burning down tanks.

Hecate’s Diadem is simply a very powerful AP spike that only gets stronger as you purchase more items.Works well with the scaling of Orb of Magi. Not much to say.

Virtue’s Necklace is a lot of stats and a decent passive for not a lot of gold. Good amount of AP and cooldown speed and mana regen. All around great item that rewards team fighting by restoring 20% mana after a kill or assist.

Frosty’s Revenge adds a 25% slow to all abilities making it easier for you to land other abilities or for you or your team to catch up on a slowed enemy. The item also grants movement speed which is a great stat for a hero with no movement abilities.

Rhea’s Blessing is Azzen-ka’s last hope for survival as it gives him some magic life steal to help sustain himself in late game fights as well as giving him a shield when he falls below 40% HP. This item could be the difference between winning or losing a game. The reason you purchase it last is it is most potent when you have max items with a high amount of AP.

Early Game
Azzen-ka has a very dangerous power spike as level 4 and thus should play passive until he hits this level and has full access to his kit and full burst and CC opportunity. Laning simply means Dust Deviling the minions and trying not to extend past the river. This does not mean you should not try to trade with your lane opponent as the build allows for bad trades as long as your opponent does not also build Phoenix tears. The goal of the early game is to either kill your lane after hitting 4 or to force them to recall so that you can roam and try to snowball. When ganking another lane, engage using your Sand Wraith to make it easier to land your other abilities.

Middle Game
Continue the cycle of pushing your lane opponent out or killing them and roaming to help other lanes until you can get the abyssal dragon and get all the outer turrets. After you can begin to group with your team to start setting up for the Dark Slayer and working on Second tier turrets.

Late Game
Now is the time to stay with your team at all times, Azzen-ka can win a teamfight with one just one rotation, so it is of utmost importance that you do not get picked or killed during the late stages of the game. Your tanks or warriors should focus on helping peel for you so that you can output as much damage as you can. However due to the nature of the game communicating this is hard so positioning is key to secure your safety in late game fights. If you are able to get off one rotation before dying and hit a majority of the enemy team you can feel relieved that you did your job.

FAQ/Tips
Try to use your massive range to your advantage by abusing bushes to catch enemies off guard.

Don’t be afraid to throw out Sand Wraith on jungle monsters or neutral objectives to burst it down as fast as you can.

When taking the Sage elder you can pull it into range of the spider camp allowing for dust devil to get its maximum value against both monsters resulting in a faster kill.

Fight in or near the enemy minion wave or around jungle monsters when in a 1v1 scenario so that Dust Devil can bounce on your opponent twice.

Matchups
Assassins)

Batman: Generally good matchup unless Batman has an item/level advantage. He has to use Dark Knight to engage on you otherwise you can simply out range him. If he does close the gap, immediately try to hit him with Sand Wraith and Dust Devil so that your Sand Punch is guaranteed to hit. Use your talent skills to disengage or finish him off.

Butterfly: Blink abilities like BackStab are really strong against Azzen-ka as they allow for his opponents to instantly escape from Sand Wraith or Sand Punch. It is best to wait until Butterfly uses her blink before using either of those abilities unless she is stunned by Sand Trap. She shouldn’t have the burst to kill you alone so just wait for her to engage before using your rotation.

Kirknak: Pretty simple, out range him until he engages with Horn Rush or Drone Drop, hit him with either Sand Punch or Sand Wraith then proceed to stun lock and burst him down.

Murad: Probably one of Azzen-ka’s hardest counters as Murad has three blinks on one ability as well that his ult makes him untargetable. Best bet is try to predict his Thorn of Time with Sand Punch and try to burst him down before he can blink again or away.

Nakroth: Pretty weak assassin, because he revolves around auto attacking he is very vulnerable to Sand Punch and Sand Wraith. Use either one of these abilities when he dashes onto you and burst him down before he can knock you up with his passive.

Raz: Hard matchup due to Raz’s high mobility and burst. However he is a very low HP character so if you are able to hit him with your combo he will usually die to one rotation. Try to hit with Sand Wraith as he approaches.

Zill: An assassin with both a blink and an ability to go untargetable is bad news for Azzen-ka. Try to kill him from a range or hope you can survive his combo before trying to burst him down.

Mages)

Aleister: Because there isn’t much of a range difference between the two, it is best to try and keep your distance as he has a targeted stun that enables his combo. Try to catch him with a max range Sand Punch into the rest of your abilities. Try not to Dust Devil him directly as it will put you in range of his ultimate.

Diaochan: Avoid Diamond Dust at all cost as it is a very long stun that will be death for Azzen-ka. Stay moving and try to land either Sand Punch or Sand Wraith to instantly burst her down.

Ignis: Very similar heroes that accomplish the same thing, Azzen-ka does everything better so should be able to easily beat with a single rotation while Ignis has to land a number of abilities before he can finish you off.

Ilumia: A mage that excels in team fights but is pretty weak in 1v1’s. She will keep her distance and try to poke you down. However she doesn’t have a burst combo so don’t be afraid to approach her to hit multiple abilities to trigger Sand Trap.

Jinnar: Very annoying matchup as his ultimate grants him damage reduction and movement speed making it hard to land abilities as well as hard to burst him down. Try to bait out his ultimate and disengage before finishing him off.

Kahli: She will try to keep away from you, she isn’t much of a threat on her own. Use your range to zone her or punish her with Dust Devil when she approaches her minion wave. If she ever gets stunned by Sand Trap, follow up with Sand Punch and Sand Wraith to clean up the kill.

Krixi: Stay away from Krixi as her knockup is nearly instant and is followed by a powerful burst combination. Abuse your ranged advantage or lock her down using Sand Wraith before approaching to finish the kill.

Lauriel: Try to fight her in a minion wave as hitting abilities on her will be hard because of her low cooldown dash. If you manage to stun her follow up with your other abilities to quickly kill her before she can heal with her abilities. She will win in a prolonged fight so try to burst her or disengage.

Natalya: Hard matchup as her range matches yours. Try to burst her down before she can use her ultimate as she gains and a shield and CC immunity while in it. Her cooldowns are longer than yours so try to fight her in between casts.

Preyta: He moves extremely fast in his ultimate and gets a shield to stop you from bursting him. Even if he misses all his skills his auto attacks are empowered. His high mobility makes it hard to kill but if you can land Sand Wraith and follow up with Sand Punch it will kill.

Veera: Easy matchup. You outrange her and out damage her. Don’t get poked out by Hell Bat and it should be an easy all in.

Marksmen)

Fennik: Common theme with marksmen is not to take prolonged fights. Stay out of auto range and try to hit him with Sand Punch and finish with the rest of your abilities. If he uses Rolling Thunder, use Sand Wraith to punish and burst him down.

Slims: Play behind minions and wait for him to use Leap of Vitality before committing either Sand Punch or Sand Wraith. If he is caught in either stunlock until dead.

Tel’annas: Hard matchup due to her being one of the few heroes that out ranges you. Her built in slow makes it hard to disengage if she catches you. Try to kite back until Eagle Eye is down before trying to catch her with Sand Punch or Sand Wraith. She has no mobility so it is a certain kill if either of these abilities are hit.

Valhein: Low range marksman with no dash is an easy kill for Azzen-ka. Throw Sand Wraith at him and follow up with full rotation for a quick kill.

Violet: Much like Tel’annas you have to wait for her to make a mistake and punish with Sand Punch or Sand Wraith. Because of Tactical Fire she can outrange and poke you essentially without risk.

Yorn: Same as Valhein, low range marksman with no dash. He can’t dodge Sand Wraith so he dies to the rotation.

Supports)

Alice: Her passive gives her high movement speed every time she casts a spell so she can be hard to lock down with Sand Punch. However she does very little damage and can eventually be killed by using Dust Devil to proc Sand Trap before using Sand Punch and Sand Wraith to finish before she can apply her shield.

Chaugnar: Unfortunately this hero is designed to ruin your day as he has two ways to remove Sand Trap as well as having a massive health pool and plenty of ways to catch up or stick onto you. Kite him as best you can but you are most likely going to be trampled.

Mganga: No mobility, low range, no burst. You could probably Dust Devil him to death before you are half HP. Start with Sand Wraith and finish him with standard rotation.

Peura: Her only damage ability is her ultimate. No mobility, low range, no burst. Standard rotation until dead.

Tanks)

Cresht: Like most tanks, if Cresht gets on top of you during Metamorphosis you are probably going to die. Try to kill him before he can get into his tankier form, if not Sand Wraith and try to kite back until it runs out or one of you is dead.

Gildur: Low range hero that has very low damage except for Extravagant. Try to dodge it as much as possible while poking him out yourself. If he tries to close the gap with Siege use Sand Wraith immediately so if he follows up with Indulgence, he will eventually be stunned out of it so you can continue your combo.

Grakk: Play behind minions to avoid getting hit by Devil’s Chain and don't get close enough for World Devourer to hit you. Otherwise he has no mobility and no range so he can become an easy kill for Azzen-ka.

Lumburr: Try to predict when he is about to use Rampage and catch him with Sand Punch so that he can not follow up with either of his other abilities. Use Sand Wraith to continue the lockdown before alternating between Dust Devil and Sand Punch till dead.

Maloch: If he uses his ult to engage on you try to time Sand Punch to knock him up after he lands so he can’t follow up. Afterwards lock him down with Sand Wraith and kite back with your other two abilities.

Mina: No mobility, no range, no problem. Sand Wraith into Sand Punch until she is dead. Don’t let her close and you shouldn’t have any problems.

Omega: Very predictable hero, he has to run straight at you to do anything. Simply hit him with Sand Wraith and kite back with your other abilities. His damage output is low but he has a great chain of cc’s and high movement speed and constant shields. He normally builds tanky so it may be a hard kill.

Ormarr: Stay out of melee range and punish him with long range or Sand Wraith when he closes the gap. Try to get out of Standing Tall as fast as you can as it does tons of damage.

Taara: Try to avoid bursting her right away as she does more damage the lower HP she is. Kite her back until she is in range to die to a full rotation.

Thane: Though he has a high amount of CC, his damage is relatively low so you can take prolonged fights with him. Avoid fighting near his turret as he may try to shove you in with Valiant Charge.

Toro: He doesn’t do very much damage and he doesn’t take very much damage. Just try to ignore him or walk away as its not worth your mana to get into a 2 minute fight with this cc immune bull tank.

Warriors)

Arthur: He generally has to run straight at you so catch you so try to knock him up with Sand Punch or slow him down with Sand Wraith. If he does catch you his ultimate can be stopped if Sand Trap triggers while he is in the air. Generally he isn’t too tanky so two rotations should be enough to put him down.

Lu Bu: After he uses his three charges of Red Stallion Lu bu is very vulnerable to all of Azzen-ka’s abilities and can be bursted rather quickly. However if you are caught by the knock up it can spell big trouble for you. As always use your long range to your advantage against melee heroes.

Skud: Abuse range, Stunlock when he closes the gap. He will try to dash behind you and knock you back with his ultimate then try to auto attack you to death. You have ample chances to hit with either Sand Punch or Sand Wraith. His abilities only give him armor so he is still vulnerable to all your attacks.

Wukong: Thanks to his passive, Wukong will have an easy time sticking to you and bursting you down. Try not to waste either of your stuns on the clone, this is a hard matchup as his second ability is also a dash that grants him magic defense. However he mostly likely will be a glass cannon and can still be bursted with full rotation.

Zanis: Low Range, High damage. Though he does have a movement speed buff he can be easily kited or simply bursted down if he chases you. Even if he does catch you he doesn’t have a reliable way to dodge Sand Wraith. Simply hit him with your ultimate and get some distance by following up with Sand Punch as you kite back.

Zephys: This man has everything that is going to give you a hard time. Good mobility, numerous stuns, high damage, and damage reduction to boot. Best bet is to hope you survive his burst so you can stun him and try to kite back. If you know his ultimate is on cooldown then you have a good chance of killing him from range.

Zuka: High mobility, High damage, and two stuns. Zuka is most likely going to kill you if you don’t kill him first. Even if you hit him with Sand Wraith he has plenty of dashes to avoid getting stunned by Sand Trap. Landing a Sand Punch will be hard as he constantly rolls around you. Also he has a shield and empowered autos so none of his abilities can really be outplayed.