The Basics

First and foremost, Sylas is a melee diver that typically itemizes ability power. While you do need some durability to survive in the middle of fights, Sylas can usually avoid full tanks items in favor of more damage thanks to the massive heal on Kingslayer (W) and the shield on Abscond/Abduct (E). Hextech Protobelt and Zhonya's Hourglass are core items on Sylas - the former gives him waveclear and bulk, while the latter helps him stall for cooldowns in fights.

Sylas's basic abilities are all pretty self-explanatory, but there are a few aspects to each that should be noted:

Petricite Burst (P): This might be pretty obvious, but make sure you're weaving autoattacks in with your ability casts in order to maximize damage, especially during an assassination attempt.

Chain Lash (Q): The secondary detonation on Chain Lash (Q) will always occur at the intersection of the two chains. This means that when trying to hit enemies at close range, you'll want your mouse closer to the target instead of trying to cast Chain Lash like a skillshot in order to maximize your damage.

Kingslayer (W): The heal only works on champions, not minions, so you can't use it to sustain up after a trade. Additionally, it's worth saving Kingslayer for last in your rotation - if you can get your target low enough, Kingslayer gets a heaping helping of bonus damage on top of what it normally does. Conversely, if the fight is going south, Kingslayer's massive heal can top you off and let you close out a kill.

Abscond/Abduct (E): Both casts of Sylas's E will proc Petricite Burst, so you can E1-autoattack-E2-autoattack for maximum damage. Abduct will also knock enemies up briefly, so if you've purloined an enemy Yasuo's ultimate, you can trigger it yourself without needing an ally.





A Guide to Ults

Base kit aside, the reason you choose Sylas is for his ultimate, Hijack. Early in the game, Hijack is of limited use due to its long per-target cooldown, but this ability becomes absolutely insane later in the game due to how low its own cooldown becomes. This lets Sylas steal enemy ults and immediately use them for value, without really needing to hold them for special occasions. Go ahead and steal that Ezreal's ult, then immediately fire it - you get some free damage right off the bat and will still have Hijack available to take a more powerful ultimate when the teamfight starts.

And speaking of teamfights, Sylas gets the most value out of stealing enemy initiation ults. Taking an Amumu or Malphite ult can give Sylas's team the initiation they may be lacking, or simply makes their initiation that much stronger. Second to initiation abilities are useful diver abilities like Kayn's Umbral Trespass or Zed's Death Mark - Sylas can use these to outplay opponents who aren't expecting him to go untargetable or to make his own assassination attempts that much scarier.





Jungle vs. Lane

In lane, Sylas is usually at a bit of a disadvantage. Midlane Sylas struggles against mages with high waveclear, while toplane Sylas is usually bested by bruisers with higher damage or tanks with better durability. In both of these situations, the Unchained is best off farming up and waiting for teamfights or skirmishes.

Jungle Sylas, conversely, trades the safety of lane for significantly better early game potential. Though his first clear can be rough, Sylas can gank quite well thanks to both dashes from Abscond/Abduct and has reasonable damage if he can close the gap. After his first trip through the jungle, Sylas has a much easier time clearing camps, especially if he's careful to proc Petricite Burst in between each ability cast. Finally, a jungling Sylas has a better pick of ultimates then a laning Sylas - he can visit whichever lane he prefers to steal an ult, then either use immediately for a gank or take it to a different lane.

Sure, jungle Sylas has a weaker early game than much of his opposition and can't duel for scuttle crabs as effectively, but provided he can get to his Runic Echoes, it vastly outstrips his lane performance.





Composition

Interestingly enough, the decision to pick Sylas is based more on the enemy team's picks rather than his own - after all, he can't steal his allies' ultimates. This makes him a good pick when the enemy team is running multiple high-value ultimates, and ideally when they have a lower-pressure jungler. This gives Sylas all the time he needs to farm up and gives him a good spread of abilities to choose from in the lategame. Conversely, Sylas is probably worth skipping over if the enemy team doesn't have many powerful ults or they're more on the tanky side. Sylas wants to be blowing up squishies, not brawling with tanks, so it's best to pass on him if the enemy composition includes juggernauts or tanks with limited utility on their ultimates (such as Singed or Poppy).





Conclusion

Sylas can be an incredibly flexible pick for any team and can turn your opponent's greatest strengths against them given the chance. He's certainly nowhere near a must-pick champion, but the Unchained is still a valuable diver for any Summoner to learn.

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