Volibear has always been an incredibly easy champion to play and get accustomed to in League of Legends due to his skill set, which is mostly self-activating or directly aimed at enemies. After the rework, Volibear still maintains this characteristic, even simpler with a stun that directly targets enemies. However, Riot Games has added interesting mechanics to prevent him from becoming “too simple to be boring” like before. You can explore Volibear’s skill set HERE.
Essentially, the two main roles that Riot has targeted for the new Volibear are the jungle and top lane, as they will fully utilize this bear’s strong dueling capability and tower diving potential.
Building Volibear for Jungle
The strength of Volibear in the jungle lies in his extremely effective ganking ability with his Q – Thunder Claws, helping allies in lane maximize damage from skill shots. Furthermore, his ultimate’s ability to disable towers also ensures a successful gank when diving.
Regarding runes, there are two main paths you should consider: one is the gank-heavy path with the rune Grasp of the Undying, and the other is the path that excels in jungle fights with Conqueror. Regardless of which route you choose, the secondary tree should be Sorcery for the movement speed boosts, allowing you to maneuver flexibly and quickly close in on enemies to maximize damage.
Our advice when playing Volibear in the jungle is always to buy the Hunter’s Machete, as this item adds 35 bonus damage on-hit to jungle monsters, while the passive of this champion’s Raging Storm also applies on-hit effects to enemies hit by lightning. Therefore, you will have an extremely fast jungle clear rate with Hunter’s Machete instead of the Hunter’s Talisman.
In terms of items, an essential item is the Liandry’s Anguish, as it enhances Volibear’s ganking ability, provides more durability, and especially adds damage when stunning enemies with his Q. The remaining items should supplement survivability, crowd control reduction, or combat approach speed, which are most suitable for Volibear.
Building Volibear for Top Lane
Unlike the jungle role, Volibear in the top lane greatly relies on trading skills early in the game, so the two skills providing healing are W – Frenzied Maul and E – Storm Shield at the first two levels. With W dealing damage and offering healing, this demigod is very hard to lose trades against opponents during the laning phase. Therefore, the Conqueror rune is optimal for Volibear in the top lane.
In the later stages of the game, Volibear’s role remains that of the team’s main tank and the frontline during attacks. Don’t hesitate to dive towers with Volibear; at level 16, he will disable the structure for 6 seconds, which is more than enough time to determine the outcome of a team fight.
Regarding items, given the nature of the top lane position, you need some damage to be effective. Volibear requires at least one attack speed item to be combat-effective. Among the attack speed items, the Blade of the Ruined King is affordable, provides on-hit effects, and has healing capabilities when you’re low on health, making it a perfect fit for Volibear. Aside from the Blade of the Ruined King, other items that Volibear should acquire should enhance survivability and longevity.
Conclusion
The rework of Volibear has improved his clumsy appearance and the boring skill set of the old version, providing a much stronger and more challenging gameplay experience with his ultimate, Stormbringer. Nonetheless, the essence of Volibear remains as a tank and initiator, so ensure you have good teammates to keep up with your engage capabilities!