Weird Picks #67: Tank Vayne Top

As a marksman, Vayne is currently one of the most feared on the rift as a result of powerful critical three shot burst damage combined with her ability to shred tanks via true damage. Meanwhile, her main weakness is her low early game range and her low health pool.

Playing Vayne top eliminates both of these issues, and instead makes her into a sustained damage bully that dominates from early to late-game.

Introduction

As a marksman, Vayne is currently one of the most feared on the rift as a result of her powerful critical three shot burst damage combined with her ability to shred tanks via true damage. Meanwhile, her main weakness is her low early game range and her low health pool.

Playing Vayne top eliminates both of these issues, and instead makes her into a sustained damage bully that dominates from early to late-game.

How to Play

Runes: Attack Speed Quints, Attack Damage Reds, Flat Armor Yellows, Attack Speed Blues
Masteries: 12-0-18, Courage of the Colossus Masteries
Abilities: Q, W, E, then prioritize R > Q > W > E
Core Items: Phantom Dancer, Berserker's Graves, Frozen Mallet, Sterak's Gage, Randuin's Omen, Spirit Visage

Why It Works

Strong Against Melee Tanks

Top lane is largely dominated by melee tank champions, which means that Vayne's percentage true damage works very well to scale against them late game. Meanwhile, her early game range allows her to bully them into submission.

Courage of the Colossus Synergy
This mastery not only procs when she slams enemies into walls, but also simply by using it as a knock-back. This means that Vayne can proc this keystone mastery every fight, giving her even stronger trade potential via kiting power.

Inescapable All-In
When you combine Vayne with Phantom Dancer and Frozen Mallet, she becomes completely inescapable unless you manage to jump over a wall or kill her. Since she's using an extremely tanky build, the second quickly becomes impossible.

Potential Pitfalls

Expensive Build
This builds is extremely expensive, meaning that Vayne's power spike comes slowly compared to other, more gold-efficient builds. This means that if she falls behind, she can quickly get snowballed on. However, if she completes this build she will be nearly unstoppable in all regards.

Low CC and Engagement
With a Vayne top, she has difficulty engaging. Similar to an Olaf, a Vayne with this build is likely better off split-pushing. However, if need be, she can flank enemy teams to great effect. Generally during teamfights though, she's better off peeling for the back-line by helping to shred the enemy divers as quickly as possible.

Conclusions

This build actually works very well in the hands of a skilled Vayne player. However, it is very reliant on the Vayne player landing good Condemns to maximize her snowball potential.

Suggested Rating: High Tier 2

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