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Talgor's Detailed Arena/General Ao Kuang Guide

22 6 238,757
8.5
by Talgor updated December 6, 2014

Smite God: Ao Kuang

Build Guide Discussion 26 More Guides
Choose a Build: Mage (preferred arena build)
Mage (preferred arena build) Attack Speed
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Ao Kuang Build

Build Item Shoes of the Magi Shoes of the Magi
Build Item Bancroft's Talon Bancroft's Talon
Build Item Demonic Grip Demonic Grip
Build Item Rod of Tahuti Rod of Tahuti
Build Item Polynomicon Polynomicon
Build Item Obsidian Shard Obsidian Shard
Build Item Greater Sprint Greater Sprint

Ao Kuang's Skill Order

Water Illusion

1 X Y
Water Illusion
3 15 16 18 19

Dragon Call

2 A B
Dragon Call
2 8 11 12 14

Wild Storm

3 B A
Wild Storm
1 4 6 7 10

King of the Eastern Seas

4 Y X
King of the Eastern Seas
5 9 13 17 20
Water Illusion
3 15 16 18 19

Water Illusion

1 X
Ao Kuang Teleports forward into Stealth, leaving behind a watery form of himself. He remains in Stealth for 5s or until he attacks or takes damage.

Ao Kuang may activate this ability again to detonate the watery form, dealing damage to nearby enemies.

Ability Type: Circle, Teleport, Damage
Damage: 70 / 120 / 170 / 220 / 270 (+70% of your Magical Power)
Range: 30
Radius: 20
Cost: 70
Cooldown: 15s
Dragon Call
2 8 11 12 14

Dragon Call

2 A
Ao Kuang summons 6 dragons to his side. For every successful basic attack Ao Kuang makes, a dragon will dive to the target dealing additional damage. This ability ends after all dragons are used, or after 10s.

Ao Kuang may activate this ability again to send forward any remaining dragons in a ranged attack. The dragons damage and Slow the first enemy they hit.

Ability Type: Line, Buff, Damage
Attack Damage: 35 / 50 / 65 / 80 / 95 (+30% of your Magical Power) per hit
Ranged Damage: 20 / 25 / 30 / 35 / 40 (+13% of your Magical Power) per remaining dragon
Slow: 30%, for 1s + 0.25s per remaining dragon
Range: 55
Cost: 60 / 65 / 70 / 75 / 80
Cooldown: 15 / 14 / 13 / 12 / 11s
Wild Storm
1 4 6 7 10

Wild Storm

3 B
Ao Kuang unleashes a storm of lightning from his sword, damaging all enemies in front of him. This will send a Dragon from Dragon's Call forth, dealing damage to hit targets.

Ability Type: Cone, Damage
Damage: 90 / 135 / 180 / 225 / 270 (+40% of your Magical Power)
Range: 30
Cost: 50 / 55 / 60 / 65 / 70
Cooldown: 7s
King of the Eastern Seas
5 9 13 17 20

King of the Eastern Seas

4 Y
Ao Kuang grabs a single target, damaging and knocking them into the air. If the target is below a Health threshold, Ao Kuang will also reveal his true form, becoming an airborne Dragon and executing them restoring Health. After transforming Ao Kuang then picks a new location to land, dealing damage to enemies within 20 units.

Ability Type: Target, Knockup, Damage
Damage: 90 / 140 / 190 / 240 / 290 (+50% of your Magical Power)
Execute Threshold: 30%
Heal: 10 / 15 / 20 / 25 / 30% of maximum Health
Landing Damage: 100 / 150 / 200 / 250 / 300 (+50% of your Magical Power)
Landing Range: 200
Cost: 90 / 100 / 110 / 120 / 130
Cooldown: 100s

Introduction



Hello guys. I am Talgor, a (before removal) diamond ranked Arena League player, and I wish to first thank you for checking out my guide for Ao Kuang. Once my FRAPS decides to start working, I will be making another video like in my Ullr guide, so keep a lookout!

You can view my Ullr guide here:

http://www.smitefire.com/smite/guide/talgors-diamond-level-ullr-build-4403

THE IMPORTANCE OF MINIONS IN ARENA!!!!

Before we continue any further, know that one minion wave IS WORTH MORE than a kill.

If there is a minion wave running towards your portal, and you decide to go chase an almost dead enemy for a kill, one of two things will happen:

1, you lose 7 points from the minions going into your portal, but you kill the enemy. Outcome = -7 points for your team, -5 points for enemy team.

2, you lose 7 points from minions getting in your portal, and the enemy gets away. Outcome = -7 points for your team, assuming you didn't die while chasing.

NOW, say you let that enemy get away and you killed the minions running towards your base. Outcome = -7 points for the ENEMY team.

ALWAYS kill minions over chasing kills. Use your skillshots on minions whenever available, (in Ao Kuang's case, Wild Storm) EVEN IN A TEAMFIGHT.

Proof of Success

Pros / Cons

PROS

Good wave clear with later levels of Wild Storm

Most versatile god in the game to date

The stealth from Water Illusion is a fantastic tool for escaping and assassination, while also doing a shocking amount of damage

Execute also acts as an escape or another engage

Extremely high burst damage

Skills are fairly easy to hit



CONS

Stealth can be broken fairly easily, and gods with damage-over-time abilities counter Water Illusion extremely well.

King of the Eastern Seas can easily be countered by Greater Purification Magi's Blessing Salvation etc

Easy to use, very hard to master. Has endless skill combinations

Must remember to detonate Water Illusion and throw Dragon Call, or you are facing extremely long cooldowns

Items

Ao Kuang has been a challenge to build, since there are soooooo many items that synergize well with him. I will first explain my normal build, then suggest other items that could be subbed in for personal preference.

MAIN BUILD


Shoes of the Magi - Ao Kuang is a burst mage, meaning you will always take Penetration over Cooldown Reduction.

Bancroft's Talon - No idea why I randomly decided to get this second one game, but it happened, and it shocked me how well it worked. The passive is extremely useful early game, as you will be getting stupid amounts of damage for a cheap price. As Ao, you will usually be taking some damage as you try to assassinate an enemy, which will only make you stronger.

Demonic Grip - I wanted to like attack speed Ao Kuang a lot more, but it just didn't seem necessary to get a ton of attack speed. Demonic Grip is the only attack speed item I feel is necessary, since it gives just enough attack speed to get off your six dragons before the enemy team has time to respond.

Rod of Tahuti - Staple item for a mage. Gives you mass amounts of power.

Polynomicon - Not a popular item on Ao Kuang, but I love it. At this point in the game, you already have a good amount of power, and with the easy proc from Wild Storm, this item is the icing on the cake for your burst damage.

Obsidian Shard - Personally, I go Obsidian Shard last just because Penetration is nice late game, but Ao's sixth slot is really open to whatever item you feel would finish out your build.

Greater Sprint - I usually have this maxed out by the time I get Demonic Grip. It helps you stick to a target or escape a bad situation every 60 seconds.

========================================================================================


SUBSTITUTE ITEMS



Gem of Isolation - I occasionally grab this item if I'm going against a bunch of gods with jump abilities, so that they will remain slowed for a bit after they land giving me a little time to catch up. The extra health doesn't hurt either.

Hastened Fatalis - This item works great on Ao, giving you the ability to stick on your enemy and get off all your dragons with ease. However, it doesn't really offer much else.

Telkhines Ring - Item to grab if you are building attack speed Ao. The passive procs on every enemy when using Wild Storm which is nice for clearing minions or when enemies are grouped.

Chronos' Pendant - I've seen quite a few people use this item on Ao Kuang. It isn't bad, but I feel as a burst mage Ao doesn't benefit much from cooldown. You can always just grab a blue buff.

Skills

King's Sword





This passive can mean the difference between a kill or an enemy escaping with 5% health. Always try to let King's Sword fully charge before going in to assassinate an enemy. Also keep in mind that even if you are close to having no mana, if you have charges up, you can still escape with a free cast of Water Illusion from King's Sword.


1. Water Illusion: (Max Third)



This skill is absolutely amazing. Do not underestimate the damage of this skill; more often than not I see Ao's just use it to dash into a fight and leave the clone sitting back near their base. While the stealth is a nice way to engage upon an enemy, it will usually end up in your demise since you have now used your only escape. I personally engage on the enemies back line once a teamfight has started, saving Water Illusion for escape.

-When you are going to dash away from an enemy, try to get as close to them as possible before using Water Illusion to get away. This will make them swing an auto-attack at you (slowing their movement) also allowing you to detonate the clone as soon as you are safe.

-If King of the Eastern Seas is on cooldown, I like to save Water Illusion as a finisher. I get the enemy to about 5% health, then Water Illusion back towards my base as I immediately detonate the clone, killing my enemy and distancing myself from incoming enemy team members.

-If you are using the stealth from Water Illusion to engage, be sure to activate Dragon Call and possibly Sprint beforehand, or your stealth will break.

-Make sure you detonate your clone ASAP once you are safe. If you don't, you are adding about another 5s to the already 15 second long cooldown.

BEWARE!! Water Illusion's stealth is very susceptible to Damage-Over-Time abilities and will break with a single tick of damage. Gods like Sylvanus, Zhong Qui, Xbalanique, Loki, etc can counter your stealth with said abilities. Make sure you are not suffering from a DoT before trying to go into stealth.



2. Dragon Call: (Max Second)


This ability makes your next six auto-attacks obliterate your enemies. It can also be fired as a projectile, sending all your remaining charges out to do reduced damage.

-Try to get as many auto-attacks as you can out of Dragon Call before firing it as a projectile.

-If an enemy is escaping, use Dragon Call and then use Water Illusion to get next them. Line up the projectile version of Dragon Call while in stealth and finish them off. Even the projectile does an insane amount of damage at rank 5 with items.

-As with Water Illusion, make sure you expend your extra charges once you are done attacking an enemy, or you will be looking at a longer cooldown.

-When running from an enemy, activate Dragon Call and turn around quickly to shoot the projectile at them. It applies a nice slow that should give you time to make some distance.



3. Wild Storm: (Max First)




Imagine the damage and range of He Bo's Water Cannon combined with the activation of on-hit effects like Polynomicon. This skill is great for clearing out minion waves and harassing enemies who wander too close.

-When using Water Illusion to go in to assassinate an enemy, line up Wild Storm and use it as the ability that breaks your stealth while following up with a barrage of Dragon Call.

-Make sure to constantly use this ability in teamfights. Its 5 second cooldown synergizes very well with the 4 second cooldown of Polynomicon.

-Remember that Dragon Call is an on-hit effect, and will be activated by Wild Storm.



4. King of the Eastern Seas



This ability is usually a free kill when you have whittled down your enemy. After executing your enemy, you hover in the air, and can come crashing down again for moderate damage. The damage on the ultimate itself is quite underwhelming, so don't overestimate it and dive into a team.

- King of the Eastern Seas is a great escape tool. When it is up, you can usually burst down an enemy and execute them before their team has time to respond, then fly away to safety.

-Even if you cannot execute an enemy, King of the Eastern Seas can be used as an Epic Uppercut, and can lock down an enemy while your team comes to follow up. If you do knock an enemy in the air like this, make sure to activate Dragon Call and have your Wild Storm ready to cast before they land.

BEWARE!!! Many items counter the hell out of the execute side of this ability. Aegis, Beads, Magis, basically any ability or item that prevents CC will prevent you from executing your enemy. The damage will still go through however. Press tab often to see what your enemies are building, and choose your target from there.

Video of Skill Combinations

I will have a video tutorial very similar to my Ullr video coming soon (probably around Christmas time). Keep your eyes out. Until then, I hope the skill explanations I have given so far will suffice!

Leave a Comment

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Collapse All Comments

1
destrukshor | December 30, 2015 4:26am
I'll test this ASAP but I think you already change my mind about how Ao should be played.
1
TR33ZUS | October 12, 2015 5:55pm
Awesome build man, went 29/6/11 first time with it
1
LandetaLover96 | May 29, 2015 9:27pm
Man! I was getting my butt kicked really often. I saw your guide and followed it. Just had a great game! Excelent build.
1
ChaacBlock | March 6, 2015 4:40am
No, I just hate this build. Ao is one my most frequent gods in the new season as well as the old one. I build him so that way he attacks fast and through people.
1
Talgor (8) | January 29, 2015 8:05am
ChaacBlock wrote:

Absolute worst Ao build I have ever tried


Maybe it is just your playstyle ;)
1
ChaacBlock | January 27, 2015 2:59pm
Absolute worst Ao build I have ever tried
1
Talgor (8) | January 21, 2015 1:26pm
Lleweilyn wrote:

That's a awesome guide ! Thanks to him I've got my first Pentakill in Smite and that's my 1st day playing with him *_* (Though I'm Diamond with Nemesis so I know how to play an assassin ^^)


And I'm agree, Polynomicon is really GREAT with him and Wild Storm making this skill good for Initiate, Kill Secure, Poke... for everything in fact. And he Lifesteal is good to take.

That's a +1 for me


Grats on the penta i'm glad it helped out! I'm sure the experience with Nemesis helped out a ton
1
Lleweilyn (1) | January 18, 2015 4:06pm
That's a awesome guide ! Thanks to him I've got my first Pentakill in Smite and that's my 1st day playing with him *_* (Though I'm Diamond with Nemesis so I know how to play an assassin ^^)


And I'm agree, Polynomicon is really GREAT with him and Wild Storm making this skill good for Initiate, Kill Secure, Poke... for everything in fact. And he Lifesteal is good to take.

That's a +1 for me
1
Talgor (8) | December 22, 2014 10:20pm
NashorEA wrote:

Thanks for guides dude :) Used your guide for Ullr (now he's diamond! :3) and this is another awesome guide. Build works really well.


No problem man, glad to hear they helped!
1
NashorEA | December 22, 2014 1:12am
Thanks for guides dude :) Used your guide for Ullr (now he's diamond! :3) and this is another awesome guide. Build works really well.
1
Talgor (8) | December 19, 2014 8:10pm
Branmuffin17 wrote:

@Talgor

Yeah, I had only built him like I normally do Freya because I wasn't familiar with him, and linked him to Freya's build because of his ADC qualities. They're obviously nothing alike, since Freya's #1 and #2 make her a fast attack mid-ranger, and Ao really needs to be in closer. Your build is absolutely the superior one.

Yeah, when I build using Fatalis, I definitely need to do it later. Thanks for the tips!


Thank you for the support, i'm glad you like the build!
1
Branmuffin17 (394) | December 19, 2014 9:54am
@Talgor

Yeah, I had only built him like I normally do Freya because I wasn't familiar with him, and linked him to Freya's build because of his ADC qualities. They're obviously nothing alike, since Freya's #1 and #2 make her a fast attack mid-ranger, and Ao really needs to be in closer. Your build is absolutely the superior one.

Yeah, when I build using Fatalis, I definitely need to do it later. Thanks for the tips!
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