League of Legends news » Varus, the Arrow of Retribution Revealed!

Summoners!

If you’ve been wondering what can happen when someone really, truly lets their dark side get the best of them, then look no further than Varus, the Arrow of Retribution. This dangerous combination between caster and ranged carry is equipped with a number of abilities designed to both whittle enemies down from range, and allow him to close in for the kill.

The lynchpin in Varus’ kit is Piercing Arrow – a long ranged skill shot attack that damages enemies in a line. Pressing Q will cause Varus to draw back his bow, reducing his movement speed, but steadily ramping up damage and range (up to a cap) until you left click to select a target. Through creative positioning Varus can either use this skill to pepper enemies with long range attacks or close out a kill on a fleeing enemy with a hard-hitting shot.

In lane, Varus’ unique combination of abilities gives him the ability to apply constant pressure to his opponent. Piercing Arrow allows him to both farm safely and damage enemy champions without fear of reprisal. Meanwhile, the area of effect healing debuff from Hail of Arrows complicates a support champion’s efforts to out-heal the attrition damage. When the time comes to move in for the kill, Living Vengeance keeps Varus’ Attack Speed high while he’s last hitting, enabling him to quickly stack up Contamination charges from Blighted Quiver in preparation for a finishing blow.

In team fights, Varus’ long range allows him to maintain safe positioning until he’s able to score a kill on an enemy champion. Once he’s picked off an enemy, the massive Attack Speed boost from Living Vengeance combined with area of effect crowd control from Chains of Corruption make him a truly terrifying sight on the battlefield.

Abilities:

• Living Vengeance (Passive): On kill or assist, Varus temporarily gains Attack Speed. This bonus is larger if the enemy is a champion.
• Piercing Arrow: Varus readies and then fires a powerful shot that gains extra range and damage the longer he spends preparing to fire.
• Blighted Quiver: Varus' basic attacks deal bonus magic damage and apply Blight. Varus' other abilities detonate Blight, dealing magic damage based on the target's maximum health.
• Hail of Arrows: Varus fires a hail of arrows that deal physical damage and desecrate the ground. Desecrated ground slows enemies' Movement Speed and reduces their healing and regeneration.
• Chain of Corruption (Ultimate): Varus flings out a tendril of corruption that immobilizes the first enemy champion hit and then spreads towards nearby uninfected champions, immobilizing them too on contact.

Lore:

For his incomparable skill with the bow and his unquestioned sense of honor, Varus was chosen to be the warden of a sacred Ionian temple. The temple was built to contain an ancient pit of corruption so vile that Ionian Elders feared it could envelop the island in darkness. Varus prided himself on his position, as only the most exceptional Ionian warriors were selected for the role. He lived with his family in a nearby village and led a quiet life of disciplined routine until the day the forces of Noxus invaded Ionia. Their shock troops left nothing but death and desolation in their wake, and the temple lay in their path. Varus was forced to make a decision. He was bound by honor to stay and defend the temple, but without him the village's few inhabitants could offer little resistance against the oncoming war machine. Gravely, he chose to fulfill his duty as a warden. The corruption could not be allowed to escape.

His arrows sundered the troops who tried to wrest the temple from him that day. However, when he returned to the village, he found that it had been reduced to a smoldering graveyard. Remorse at the sight of his slain family gave way to overwhelming regret and then to seething hatred. He swore to slaughter every Noxian invader, but first he needed to become stronger. He turned to that which he had sacrificed everything to protect. The pit of corruption would consume him wholly, as a flame devours a wick, but its abominable power would burn within him until he was lost. This was a path from which there could be no return. With grim resolve, he condemned himself to the black flames, feeling malevolent energy bond to his skin...and with it, the promise of ruin. He left, seeking the blood of all Noxians involved with the invasion, a grisly task that eventually led him to the invasion's most infamous perpetrators in the League of Legends.

''The life of an arrow is fleeting, built of nothing but direction and intent.'' - Varus