Susano, Guerilla Soldier

Susano is a fast moving assassin, which makes him a quick and efficient killer. He has exceptional scaling on his first ability (Storm Katana; 90% Physical) and his ultimate (Typhoon; 110%). This scaling rewards item builds with high Physical Power, however these items generally lack a great deal of team fight utility.

Playing Susano effectively requires a good sense of timing, and hit-and-run tactics. As he grows in power he can quickly move in, secure a kill, and move out before anyone can even react or slow him down.

I'm working on cleaning up my existing guides on Susano. I've had a few on my YouTube Channel, and he makes regular appearances on my daily stream Dookie in the Morning.

Building in Realtime Guide


Dookie Jenkins Presents on YouTube

Strengths
Movement - His passive increases your movement for each ability on cooldown, and he has 2 very effective escapes in his first ability (Storm Katana) and third ability (Jet Stream).
Poke - His damaging abilities have great range, making him an excellent skirmisher, keeping Hunters and Mages on their toes.
Kill Secure - His ability to dash in and out of a fight makes him capable of rapidly securing a kill, and safely getting away.
Damage Scaling - His first ability is one of the highest scaling damaging abilities among Assassins, and capable of 100-to-0 kills in the mid-to-late game.

Weaknesses
Poor Defense - Like all Assassins, Susano is a glass cannon. He can dish it out, but cannot take it.
Poor Utility - To make full use of his potential, item utility is often at a lower priority to raw Physical Power.
Expensive Builds - Most builds will not be completed in Arena or Joust since they require high investment. This can leave Susano lagging behind in items, and having to frequently return to base to invest into partial item builds.
High Ban Priority - Susano will often be banned in draft matches due to his many strengths. This means you will not get much time in on him in ranked play.

Susano's Hit-n-Run capabilities mean that you will want to use his third ability (Jet Stream) to target an enemy, or pair of enemies, and either hit them with it, or place it in position behind them. Once in place, hit the ability again to teleport in behind your target (or on top of them) then use the first two hits of Storm Katana to deal heavy damage, and using the third part of the Storm Katana combo to dash away.

Another combination is to use his second ability to pull in one or more abilities to you, then use Typhoon to trap them in together. Once your opponents are in position, use Storm Katana to deal heavy damage as Typhoon spins up, and as it throws your opponents away (also dealing heavy damage) you use the final hit of Storm Katana to dash after anyone who survives. Use Jet Stream to escape should things go awry.

A Caution regarding Cooldown Reduction
In my many tests with Susano, I've found that Cooldown Reduction items (such as Jotunn's Wrath, and Hydra's Lament) can often work against him. His passive may not seem to be that vital to his success, however, when you build him as suggested, his movement speed makes him extremely difficult to catch. Even enemy Gods with dashes and leaps will often fall behind him after he runs through his kit. With all 4 abilities on cooldown he gets a 12% Movement Speed increase. With a full build, he is the fastest God in the game, and by the time anyone can catch up (via Sprint, or leaps/dashes) you will very likely have Jet Stream or Storm Katana off of cooldown - and then poof, you're gone.

Susano's speed is by far his most valuable asset. Working against this will undermine his efficiency, and effectiveness.

Pick your targets
Penetration builds are generally impractical for Susano. He does not do well in sustained fights, and he shines in securing kills. He can initiate ultimate chains, but it is important that you quickly back off, since a single enemy using Purification Beads or Sanctuary can turn a fight against you - and if you turn your Typhoon in the wrong direction, you can send the entire opposing team directly into your own team.

Let your Guardians and Warriors initiate, as a general rule. You can chase better than anyone, and escape just as well. Stick with your strengths. You don't have to do it all.

Skill Priority
This is simple: Max Storm Katana. After that, Jet Stream and your Ultimate. Wind Siphon is last because it doesn't pull any better at full rank than at rank one. Pretty simple.

In Conquest Susano can play Jungle and Mid with equal effectiveness. With his exceptional movement speed, he will often be able to clear a camp and move on before anyone can even assist. By the Mid Game he is so efficient he can move lane-to-lane without stopping. He can quickly out level even competent mid/solo laners in the jungle, and will easily gank lanes faster than the other team can react to.

This makes him a very selfish God. That said, Bumba's Mask is not a very ideal starting item. This is a good thing if your team uses his self sufficiency to focus on their lanes. Additionally, this allows you Support to operate much like a Jungle2 rather than a Support. They can help secure contested objectives, while Susano invades or cleans up.

This is of course to taste.