Persephone, Her Garden Grows (Mid Guide/Build)

Hello and welcome to my Persephone guide. She's been nerfed (her passive has) but she's still in a strong state. Her over usage of plants and her abilities can ensure that even if you lose, you go off with a bang and get at least a good amount of kills.

Passive: Pomegranate Seeds
Persephone gains Pomegranate Seeds when her Harvest plants wither. If she has more than 25 Seeds she can spend these to resist death, continuing to fight at full mana for 8s but dealing 60% reduced damage and moving 20% slower. This can be cancelled before the revive occurs. Additional seeds are sold when she enters the fountain for 3 gold a seed. Persephone can hold 100 seeds.

Pretty much, whenever she uses her one or two, she puts down Harvest plants. Any time you activate this or when the plants wither (go back to you from anywhere on the map) you gain one pomegranate seed. If you acquire over 25 seeds, additional seeds will be sold but you still keep 25 seeds. Be careful though, sometimes there is a bug where the gold noise will still echo for you which can be annoying. It has happened to me twice so far.

Ability 1 - Bone Rush

Persephone calls forth a skeletal warrior of the underworld. This warrior charges forward 35 units or until it comes into contact with a god. It charges with such force that when it stops it topples, sending bones flying forward and damaging enemies in its path. The skull from this warrior flies forward and becomes a Harvest Skull when it lands.

This is often used for clearing waves and damaging any enemies who are unfortunate enough to be close behind the minions. The line has a range of 35 units but I'm unsure of how far the "cone" (in the target range in jungle practice, it starts at 60 and ends between the opposite side's 20 and 30. I prioritize this ability but I still get the 2 first for some extra poke.

Ability 2 - Harvest

Persephone places a skull (max 6/6/8/8/10) and can activate it with a basic attack to heal herself. She stores up to 6 Skulls. After 2.5s it turns into a Sprout that explodes when activated, damaging and slowing enemies. After 16s it turns into a Flower that chases down enemies when activated for 2.2s before biting them. After activation or 120s (2 minutes) it withers. Enemies recently hit by Harvest take reuced damage from additional hits stacking 3 times.

This is pretty much what most of her kit revolves around. This is a good early poke tool but the Sprout is better for wave clear. The reduced damage takes place after the first one hits, doing 40% reduced, 64% reduced and finally 78% reduced, where upon activation of a 5th plant, will reset. For the first two levels of this ability, you can only place down 6 plants, and for the 3rd and 4th levels, you can place 8. When maxed, you can place 10 harvest plants. This is why I use soul gem with her since when you activate the plant to heal, it can easily stack it.

Ability 3 - Flourish

Persephone floods the ground around her with live giving energy that propels her from the ground directly forwards or backwards; based on the direction she is moving. Harvest plants inside the area grow to the next stage and activate. Any Harvest plant placed after using this ability will instantly be a Sprout.

This is a pretty basic jump. It's her escape/travel mechanic. It's not the best, but it works. It can also be an engage since the next harvest plant will be a sprout, able to damage and slow enemies caught in it.

Ability 4 - Grasp of Death

Persephone conjures a mass of Entrapping Vines that she throws forwards, entrapping the first enemy god or wall it touches. Gods entrapped are crippled, rooted and will have less attack speed. Vines will attach to gods who get too close to the vines but can be destroyed after 5 basic attacks.

This is her main CC and can set up for team fights, set up for her other abilities or can just confirm kills. It does a pretty good amount of damage but will do a little less to those who are only hit by the vines. The attack speed reduction is only 15% but its still a good use of it, especially if its early game and nobody got their attack speed items yet (Hunters, Hunter-played mages or basic attack oriented assassins might've but its still something.)

Some good combos are:
3, 2, basic

2 (Your choice to keep it in stage one or if you want it to be a sprout), 2, 3

2 (Sprout and plant it far), basic, 1

4, 3, 2, basic

4, 2, 2, 1, 3

Soul Gem - This can be easily stacked up by using her 2, as long as you already have at least 4 held pomegranate seeds.

Bancroft's Talon - This is often used when you want to fully utilize her passive. Since she is considered untargetable but is still at 1 health, she has Bancroft's fully stacked.

Typhon's Fang - This will often be used on her when you choose to get Bancroft, Pythagorem's and Soul Gem.


Doom Orb - Despite its rework, it still remains a good item on her for me. It provides mana, movement speed, 145 magical power and mp5.

Rod of Tahuti - It's a good item for a good amount of mages and works well with her. If she gets any enemies to 50% of lower health, they are most likely going to be killed by you or killed by any rotating ally. Either that or they're gonna be poked out of lane.

Pros:

- Good Damage Output
- Setup is decent
- Her escape is okay, but its not the best. Still, it's something.
- Decent Sustain

- Squishy
- Escape isn't the greatest and gods with better leaps/dashes/movement speed buffs can catch up to her.
- Flourish's cooldown is a bit high so if anybody attacks her while this is on cooldown (during the early levels of the game where they don't have this leveled up), she could possibly be killed.

Persephone is a good match up with gods who have good CCs. Gods such as Yemoja, Heimdallr or gods with decent CC can help her out to set up her own skills better.

I hope this helps you out and I hope it works as good for you as it does for me. I'm open to any feedback you give me. Thanks for reading (if you did).