Grakk: Manic Butcher

Build and Guide Grakk: Manic Butcher

Cheat Sheet
Skill build:

Start by placing a point into Devil’s Chain. This will help harass opponents from the safety of your tower (by pulling them to you). After unlocking Earthquake and World Devourer, focus on leveling Devil’s Chain. Your priorities should be Devil’s Chain and then Earthquake, making sure to place points into World Devourer when you can; in most cases, you’ll end up maxing out World Devourer before Earthquake.

Talents:

Sprint - Grakk is a really slow character. This will help whenever he needs to flee.

Heal - Used to keep you and teammates in the fight.

Disrupt – Silencing a tower for few seconds is always helpful.

Items:

Asterion’s Buckler – for increased max HP and reduced friendly damage.

Sonic Boots – supplies armor and speed.

Berith’s Agony – this not only grants armor but adds ability power.

Gaia’s Standard – for magical defense, max HP, and speed boosts.

Soaring Aura – more HP and ability power.

Crimson Banner – more armor and HP as well as its restorative perk.

Arcana

Talisman – raises ability power

Life – raises max HP

Guard – adds armor

Introduction
Grakk was no ordinary executioner. He would torture souls of the slain, literally tearing them apart with his teeth. Of course, his actions wouldn’t go unpunished; Grakk was cursed/forced to devour souls instead of food. With each soul consumed so does his strength grows. This makes Grakk an interesting Tank/Mage. Though he is slow moving and somewhat, weak damage-wise starting out, he becomes a powerful ally during the mid to late game.

Skill Build
Blood Ritual (Passive)

Whenever Grakk receives damage equal to more than 10% of his current HP in a single blow, he triggers an explosion, dealing 40 (+0)(+74)(2% of his own maximum HP) magic damage to enemies within 500 units (2-second cooldown). Grakk will also trigger an explosion three seconds after his death, dealing 160 (+0)(+299)(8% of his own maximum HP) magic damage to enemies within 500 units.

Blood Ritual helps in dealing with melee based enemies hard hitting moves. It can be useful when dealing with ranged characters as well, though I wouldn’t rely on it in either scenario. It’s really there just to offer a little more damage when tanking amongst a group; this especially true if you die during a group fight as the resulting explosion could help swing the tide towards your side.

Earthquake

Mana Cost: 60

Cooldown: 4 sec.

Grakk stomps, dealing 150 (+0) magic damage to enemies within range and reducing their movement speed by 30% for 2 seconds. Enemies closer to Grakk will take double the damage and their movement speed will be further reduced.

Level 1: Base Damage – 150.
Level 2: Base Damage – 180.
Level 3: Base Damage – 210.
Level 4: Base Damage – 240.
Level 5: Base Damage – 270.
Level 6: Base Damage – 300.
Earthquake is a good ability to use when fighting near your tower or amongst allies as it keeps opponents from running away. That said, it doesn’t do much damage when compared to Grakk’s other abilities. Personally, I don’t worry about upgrading it too much early on – the speed reduction never improves, which is the main reason to use Earthquake when fighting.

Devil’s Chain

Mana Cost: 60

Cooldown: 17 sec.

Grakk throws a hook to pull the first enemy hit towards him, dealing 625 (+0) magic damage. After this ability is learned, Grakk’s maximum HP will be increased by 125 with each kill or assist (up to 20 times).

Level 1: Base Damage – 625. Cooldown – 17 sec.
Level 2: Base Damage – 750. Cooldown – 16 sec.
Level 3: Base Damage – 875. Cooldown – 15 sec.
Level 4: Base Damage – 1000. Cooldown – 14 sec.
Level 5: Base Damage – 1125. Cooldown – 13 sec.
Level 6: Base Damage – 1250. Cooldown – 12 sec.
It’s easy to see what one would choose to level this ability first. Not only does it help defensively – with Grakk gaining max HP whenever he gets a kill or an assist – but it also hits pretty hard. It starts out more powerful than Earthquake is when maxed. What’s really interesting is that Devil’s Chain also stuns (a fact that is oddly missing from the ability’s description). When pulling someone to Grakk, they’ll smack against him, becoming stunned for a second or two.

World Devourer

Mana Cost: 130

Cooldown: 40 sec.

After a short delay, Grakk pulls in enemies in front of him, stunning them and dealing a total of 1200 (+0) magic damage during the pull. Grakk also gains a shield if the ability hits at least 1 enemy.

Level 1: Base Damage – 1200. Cooldown – 40 sec.
Level 2: Base Damage – 1500. Cooldown – 35 sec.
Level 3: Base Damage – 1800. Cooldown – 30 sec.
World Devourer is an all-around great ability. Pulled enemies will find it hard to get away (or even attack) while Grakk’s shield helps to keep him alive when attacked by those not stuck in his assault. A word of caution though – pulling multiple enemies can be risky if you’re by yourself. Called Grakk a sitting duck would be an understatement given his low movement speed.

Skill order:

2 > 1 > 2 > 3 > 2 > 2 > 1 > 3 > 2 > 2 > 1 > 3 > 1 > 1 > 1

Recommended Talents
Out of all of the Talents, these are the ones I like using the most – only one is available per match, so picking the best one for the playstyle/build is important. I’ve placed them in order based on how I play and when they are unlocked.

Sprint

Cooldown – 100 sec.

Increases movement speed by 30% for 10 seconds

Sprint has saved my life more times than I can count. With Grakk being so slow, he is an easy target if caught by himself. Being able to sprint back to a tower or towards an ally is his only way of staving off a quick death – at least until he’s properly kitted with items.

Heal

Cooldown – 120 sec.

You and nearby teammates instantly recover 15% HP and gain 15% movement speed for 2 seconds.

Heal should be used when things get hairy. It’ll allow you to flee as well as heal anyone near you. It’s also great for needing a little extra time to take out a tower (if you’re tanking it).

Disrupt

Cooldown – 60 sec.

Silences a structure for 5 seconds.

It’s pretty self-explanatory. Pop this when your team is looking to take down a tower during mid to late game, but your creeps are far behind. If planned right, you’ll shred its health before the five seconds are up. Even if you don’t, you’ll have enough armor to tank it the rest of the way.

Items


Starter: Asterion’s Buckler, Sonic Boots

Asterion’s Buckler is a great starting item due to its low price, boost in max HP, and the 60HP/ 5 sec. Its War Cry passive–which increases damage dealt to enemies while reducing damage done to friendly units–will help whoever Grakk is laning with.

The Sonic Boot will grant Grakk +110 armor and give him a much-needed boost in speed. It’ll also reduce the amount of normal attack damage by 15%; not a big bump in defensively speaking, but every little bit helps.

Mid Game: Berith’s Agony (or Rhea’s Blessing), Gaia’s Standard

Berith’s Agony offers 270 armor, 140 ability power, and 10% cooldown. It basically allows you to call out Devil’s Chain more often and hit harder when you do so. Rhea’s Blessing on the other hand, will provide the same attack power and cooldown but also grants two passives: a life steal and a shield whenever your HP drops below 40% (it has a 75 sec. cooldown). If you’re having trouble surviving encounters, then I recommend building this item. Just note that it does cost a little more than Berith’s Agony.

I personally think that Gaia’s Standard pares well with both Berith’s Agony and Rhea’s Blessing. With the former is balances the armor with extra magical defense and with the latter, it offers additional regeneration – up to 8% HP whenever Grakk takes damage (after a 10 sec. cooldown) – to keep you in the fight. Toss in 1100 max HP and 5% movement speed and you have a well-rounded item.

Note: I know that both Berith’s Agony and Rhea’s Blessing cost more than Gaia’s Standard. There’s nothing wrong with getting the lower costing item first. I personally don’t because of how hard-hitting Grakk becomes with either of these items. Not only that, but you’ll want to be able to use his abilities as much as possible. This is where Agony and Blessing’s cooldown reduction comes in. 

End Game: Soaring Aura, Crimson Banner

Soaring Aura will grant you another 1050 max HP and 140 ability power. Its best attribute though is its Protection Passive, which reduced the magical defense of enemies within 800 unites by 75 (+5 per level). Not only are you hitting hard but you’re reducing your opponent’s ability to stave off death. Partner up with another Mage to really wreak havoc during team fights.

Crimson Banner is really just to top things off. The 200 armor and 1500 HP are great, but earning 20%HP for every kill and assist (outside of its 10 sec. cooldown) makes sure you’ll stay alive. As long as you and your team are able to take down opponents fairly quick that is, which shouldn’t be a problem at this stage of the match.



Arcana
You’ll unlock tons of different Arcana through continued play; the pool will fill up over time. Early on, you’ll only have access to level 1 Arcana though. Here are three good ones to have when using Yorn.

Talisman – Ability Power + 1.5

Grakk hits surprisingly hard for a tank. Any additional ability power is welcome.

Life – Max HP + 21

The more HP you have, the less you have to worry about armor. That means you can equip items that helps Grakk get kills…

Guard – Armor +2.5

…that said, it’s still a good idea to get some armor. He is a Tank after all.

Again, these are great for starting out. The pool holds more than just three of Arcana. For instance, I was able to add Indomitable (Armor +2.3, Max HP +33.7, Attack Speed +1%). It’s great because I can use it on Grakk for the armor and health; the attack speed isn’t needed but could be useful if I have to play as another character.

Early Game
If played well, Grakk can be a force to be reckoned with during all stages of a match. Devil’s Chain is his best ability thanks to its long reach and its passive. You’ll want to utilize it as much as possible. That said, Grakk is very slow (he’s a Tank after all). Pulling a foe without a plan of attack isn’t the best course of action.

Starting out, I make sure to place a point in Devil’s Chain before partnering with someone (preferably someone who can capitalize on my stuns and slows). I’ll then purchase Light Armor to start building towards the Asterion’s Buckler. Once in lane, I’ll fall back and let them farm creeps while keeping an eye out for opponents. The idea is to use Devil’s Chain to pull them into range of the tower. This will allow you, your partner and the tower to take shots at them before they can escape, usually resulting in an early kill.

Snagging someone with Devil’s Chain isn’t easy. You’ll have to lead opponents/predict where they’ll be. You’ll also want to make sure your partner is ready to capitalize on the situation. Make sure to keep an eye on them; if you aren’t directly communicating, at least notice when they’ve used their stronger abilities. There’s nothing worse than pulling an enemy and they turn the tables on you because you had no help. Sure, Grakk hits hard but he is a Tank first and foremost.

Going back to the items, you’ll want to finish building Asterion’s Buckler and Sonic Boots. These two items will help you mitigate some damage as well as help in clearing the lane.

Mid Game
It might take some time to get Berith’s Agony (or Rhea’s Blessing). Both are worth it in the long run though. The good news: both will grant ability power early. If you’ve gotten the hang of Devil’s Chain, making sure to go for the squishy opponents (Marksmen, Mages, etc.) you won’t be hurting for armor; the extra ability power will make short work of your foes. This goes double for World Devourer. Removing someone from a team fight via the chain and immediately hitting your ult. is a great one-two punch.

Again, make sure you aren’t caught out in the open by yourself. Even after purchasing Gaia’s Standard, it’s easy to get ganged up on if you’re not paying attention. Try to stay with someone as much as possible at this point in the game.

Late Game
If things have been going well, you should have already bought Soaring Aura and working towards Crimson Banner. Soaring Aura is where it’s at though – it Protection passive will reduce any enemy’s magical defense within an 800 unit radius. That alone makes Grakk super dangerous. He and whoever is around him with magical abilities are bound to so some damage. World Devourer could wipe a team (or at the very least, allow your teammates to mop up) if timed properly. Once Crimson Banner is equipped, there won’t be a need to go back to the fountain. As long as you’re with someone decent, you’re going to get assists/kills!

FAQ/Tips
It’s dangerous to go it alone. Grakk has some strong abilities, but is rather slow. Any Marksmen worth his salt can continuously pelt him in the back as he tries to run away. And while Devil’s Chain is his best move, pulling people at the wrong time will do more harm than good. Sure, they’ll be stunned for a second but that won’t stop them from retaliating. This is especially true if their allies are nearby.

Matchups
Grakk plays well with any Marksmen with a stun (Valhein comes to mind) and any hard-hitting Mage. He’s really good with an Assassin like Butterfly – the fact that she can further slow a foe’s movement speed makes her a great fit. She also hits really hard. If she and Grakk get the drop on someone, it’s a wrap.

Conversely, you’ll want to keep Grakk away from Azzen’Ka. Though being petrified sucks with any character, Grakk seems to really be at his mercy early on. Ranged enemies like Violet give Grakk the most trouble, again, because of his speed. Staying with someone is the best chance Grakk has until the late game. Even then, depending on how well the opposing team plays, you might be in for a rough 20 minutes. Pick your battles (and pulls) wisely and you should be fine!