Unleashing the Power of Graves: How to Master the ADC Matchup
Graves, the Outlaw, is a highly versatile marksman champion in League of Legends. With his burst damage, crowd control, and mobility, Graves can be a dominating force in the bottom lane. In this article, we will discuss how to unleash the full potential of Graves and master the ADC matchup.
Understanding Graves’ Kit
To maximize Graves’ potential, it is essential to understand his abilities. His passive, New Destiny, grants him bonus armor and magic resistance when he remains in combat. This passive is especially helpful during extended trades or team fights.
Graves’ primary damaging ability is his Q – End of the Line. It fires a projectile that deals damage to all enemies it passes through, and then returns, exploding upon contact. Properly utilizing this ability allows Graves to poke enemies down or even burst them with a full combo.
Smoke Screen, his W ability, provides utility by creating a smokescreen that blocks vision and reduces enemy armor. It can be used to deny vision and create opportunities to catch opponents off guard. This ability is also effective for escaping sticky situations or negating enemy engages.
Graves’ E – Quickdraw is a dash that reloads his ammo. It grants him a burst of attack speed, allowing him to reload his shotgun quickly. This ability is key to maximizing Graves’ burst damage and kiting potential. Properly timing this ability during trades or all-ins can make a significant difference in duels.
Optimizing Early Game
In the early game, Graves has the advantage of high base damage. Utilize that advantage to zone opponents and maintain lane dominance. Harass enemies whenever possible with your Q ability and save the smokescreen for disengage or ganks.
It is crucial to last hit minions effectively to maximize gold income. Missing CS deprives you of vital gold and experience, which can give the enemy ADC an advantage. Graves has an auto-attack reset with his E ability, making it easier to last hit under tower or in pressured situations.
Warding is essential for any ADC. Ensure your support helps you maintain vision control in the bottom lane, especially in bushes and river entrances. Vision gives you the information necessary to make informed decisions, avoid ganks, and follow up on favorable engage opportunities.
Controlling Team Fights
During the mid to late game, Graves excels in teamfights. Positioning is crucial as you need to be able to maximize damage output while remaining relatively safe. Stay behind your frontline and use your smokescreen strategically to zone enemies and reduce their vision.
When engaging, use your Q to poke down the enemy team before committing to an all-in with your teammates. Be mindful of enemy crowd control and important cooldowns, and use your Quickdraw as a disengage or mobility tool when necessary.
Depending on the situation, your choice of items can greatly impact your effectiveness as an ADC. For Graves, items that provide attack damage, life steal, and cooldown reduction work particularly well. Experiment with different item builds to find what suits your playstyle and the matchup.
Conclusion
Mastering the ADC matchup with Graves requires a strong understanding of his kit, strategy, and game flow. Properly utilizing his abilities to their fullest potential can turn the tide in your favor during laning phase and team fights. Remember to optimize your early game, control team fights, and adapt your item build to maximize your impact on the game.
FAQs
Q: What are Graves’ main weaknesses?
A: Graves can struggle against champions with longer range or high mobility. He is also relatively vulnerable to crowd control.
Q: How should I use my ultimate, Collateral Damage?
A: Collateral Damage can be used as an execute tool or to deal damage to multiple enemies in team fights. Be mindful of its knockback effect, as it can potentially disrupt your team’s follow-up abilities.
Q: Which supports work best with Graves?
A: Supports that provide crowd control, peeling, or engage capabilities can synergize well with Graves. Examples include Thresh, Leona, and Nautilus.
