A Guide to Precision Runes in League of Legends
Precision runes are are critical for champions who depend on steady attacks and prolonged engagements, whether that’s an ADC sniping from the backline or a melee bruiser charging into the fray. Here’s a breakdown of everything you need to know about Precision runes, from their unique effects to the champions that thrive with them.
Note: If you want to check out our other rune guides you can find them here.
Precision Runes: What They Are and How They Work
The Precision rune path in League of Legends is designed to boost sustained damage, attack speed, and long-term effectiveness in fights. Precision runes give champions better control over damage output and survivability, making them a natural fit for champions who rely on basic attacks or abilities that stack damage over time. ADCs, fighters, and a few assassins find great value in this path.
Choosing a Keystone: The Backbone of Precision Runes
The keystone rune in any path is the game-changer. It sets the tone for your entire setup so you’ll want to make sure you choose the right one based on your champion as well as your opponents. Precision has four keystone choices that each have a distinct playstyle attached to them:
Press the Attack
Effect: Hit an enemy three times quickly to deal bonus damage and make them take more damage from all sources.
Best For: Champions who thrive on fast hits and close-range fights, like Vayne, Xin Zhao, and Lucian.
Tip: This is your go-to for champions that excel in high-intensity trades, giving you that edge in the laning phase.
Lethal Tempo
Effect: Each attack increases your attack speed, stacking up with each hit.
Best For: Ranged champions like Jinx and Ashe, and some melee champions like Tryndamere.
Tip: Lethal Tempo is perfect for champions who do well in longer fights and need to keep hitting without interruption.
Fleet Footwork
Effect: Moving and attacking charges up a burst of healing and a speed boost.
Best For: Champions who need sustain and mobility in lane, like Kai'Sa and Yasuo.
Tip: Fleet Footwork adds some safety into the mix, keeping champions mobile and healthy during trades.
Conqueror
Effect: Hitting enemies builds up stacks of adaptive force, with bonus healing when fully stacked.
Best For: Fighters and brawlers like Riven and Irelia who excel in drawn-out fights.
Tip: Conqueror works best for champions who want to stay in the thick of a fight and rely on every point of healing and damage they can get.
Precision’s Secondary Runes: Building on Your Foundation
The secondary runes in Precision offer powerful support, allowing you to tailor your setup further based on your role and the challenges you expect.
Heroism Runes
Overheal
Effect: Extra healing becomes a shield.
Best For: ADCs who rely on lifesteal or champions with regular healing.
Tip: Overheal provides protection against burst damage, letting you trade longer without retreating.
Triumph
Effect: Restores health and grants bonus gold after a kill or assist.
Best For: Assassins and fighters who dive deep, like Zed or Katarina.
Tip: Triumph’s healing is invaluable in clutch situations, allowing you to chain together kills in team fights.
Presence of Mind
Effect: Killing or assisting an enemy restores mana and extends max mana temporarily.
Best For: Mana-reliant champions, especially those who spam abilities like Ezreal.
Tip: Great for champions who need frequent mana restoration, helping you stay effective in extended battles.
Legend Runes
Legend: Alacrity
Effect: Grants stacking attack speed with each kill or assist.
Best For: Attack-speed-focused champions like Jinx and Kog'Maw.
Tip: Alacrity allows you to stack up attack speed throughout the game, making it easier to stay dangerous in long fights.
Legend: Tenacity
Effect: Reduces the duration of crowd control effects.
Best For: Bruisers and front-line champions who face a lot of crowd control, like Garen.
Tip: Tenacity is crucial if you’re up against a team with heavy stuns or roots, giving you the resilience to stay in the fight.
Legend: Bloodline
Effect: Provides lifesteal, scaling over time.
Best For: Champions like Yasuo or Samira who need sustain in fights.
Tip: Bloodline allows you to stay longer in battles without needing to heal up, ideal for champions who often fight at close range.
Combat Runes
Coup de Grace
Effect: Deals more damage to low-health enemies.
Best For: Assassins and ADCs who aim to secure kills quickly.
Tip: This rune shines when you’re focused on executing enemies at low health, letting you secure kills with ease.
Cut Down
Effect: Deals extra damage to champions with more health than you.
Best For: ADCs or champions against tank-heavy teams.
Tip: Pick Cut Down if you expect to face high-health champions, giving you extra firepower to bring them down.
Last Stand
Effect: Increases damage when your health is low.
Best For: Bruisers like Olaf or Aatrox who fight at close range.
Tip: Last Stand rewards champions who can survive at low health and allows them to land extra damage in dire situations.
Using Precision as a Secondary Path
Precision can also be used as a secondary path for champions in other primary paths like Domination, Sorcery, or Resolve. Here’s how it pairs well with other paths:
Domination + Precision: Assassins like Rengar get extra attack speed and sustain, enhancing their burst damage without sacrificing utility.
Sorcery + Precision: Champions like Orianna can use Precision’s sustain for better trades while still benefiting from Sorcery’s poke damage.
Precision as a secondary path provides flexibility and adaptability, allowing champions to add survivability or consistent damage.
Tips for Maximizing Precision Runes
Customize Based on Matchup: Choose your keystone and secondary runes based on both your champion and your opponent’s strengths.
Focus on Your Champion’s Strengths: Precision works best for champions with strong attack-speed needs and sustained damage output.
Play to Scale: Runes like Legend: Alacrity and Triumph get stronger as the game progresses, so take advantage of early skirmishes to stack these bonuses.
Precision runes are designed for consistency and power. With the right setup, you can control fights from start to finish, ensuring your champion is equipped to tackle anything the enemy throws your way.