Pyke: The Bloodharbor Ripper

Pyke is a champion in League of Legends played exclusively as Support, classified as an Assassin/Catcher (legacy: Support/Assassin). He uses Mana (415–1398.25), is Melee with 150 attack range, and deals Physical damage. Released May 31, 2018, patch V25.10. Here’s the reality about Pyke: he breaks League’s fundamental economy. Every other support earns assist gold. Pyke earns FULL KILL GOLD on R executes AND gives full kill gold to an ally. A single Pyke R execute generates roughly 600–900 gold for the team (300+ for Pyke + 300+ for ally via Your Cut) compared to a normal kill’s ~450 total. Five R executes in a game = 1500–2000 EXTRA gold that wouldn’t exist with any other support. That’s an entire item advantage for the team, generated from thin air. This is why Pyke has a 21.1% ban rate – not because he’s overpowered in stats, but because his economic impact warps every game he’s in.

📊 Base Statistics

💡 Critical Identity: Pyke’s HP CANNOT increase from items or runes. Every point of bonus health is converted to 1 bonus AD per 14 bonus HP. Buying a Ruby Crystal (400 HP) = +28.6 AD instead. This makes Pyke the squishiest support in the game by item build, but also the highest AD support. He builds lethality like an assassin, not tank stats like other engage supports. 43 base armor is decent but 670 base HP with no bonus HP scaling = extremely vulnerable to burst.

🌊 Passive: Gift of the Drowned Ones

INNATE – HP TO AD: Pyke’s maximum health cannot increase except through growth (per level). Bonus HP is converted to 1 bonus AD per 14 bonus HP.

INNATE – RIVER MS: Pyke gains 1 bonus movement speed in the river.

INNATE – GREY HEALTH: Pyke stores 9% (+0.2% per 1 Lethality) of post-mitigation champion damage as grey health, increased to 40% (+0.4% per 1 Lethality) near 2+ visible enemies. Cap: 80 (+800% bonus AD) grey health, max 55% of max HP. While unseen by enemies, grey health rapidly converts to healing.

⚠️ Grey Health = Pyke’s Sustain: Take a bad trade in lane? Walk into a bush (unseen) and grey health converts to real HP. With 60 lethality: stores 21.2% damage solo, 64% damage near 2+ enemies. This means in teamfights where Pyke takes 1000 damage near multiple enemies, he stores ~640 as grey health. Dip out of vision for 2 seconds = 640 HP healed. This is why Pyke can play aggressively – losing trades don’t stick as long as he disengages briefly. The HP→AD conversion means Pyke can’t build tanky – every “tank” item just gives him more AD. This forces a pure assassin playstyle from the support role.

🌊 Q: Bone Skewer

Cost: 70/75/80/85/90 Mana | CD: 10/9.5/9/8.5/8s | Cast: 0.25 | Range: 400–1100 (charge)

TAP (within 0.4s): Pyke thrusts his blade, dealing physical damage to the closest enemy (prefers champions).

CHARGE (hold): Pyke charges up to 3 seconds (20% self-slow), increasing range. Recast hurls harpoon dealing physical damage to first enemy hit, pulling them toward Pyke, revealing them, and slowing 90% for 1 second. Mana refunded 75% if Q hits a champion.

💡 Pro Tip: Tap Q in melee range is faster and deals the same damage – use after E stun for guaranteed hit. Charged Q hook is the engagement tool: hook enemy ADC → they’re pulled into your team → dead. 90% slow for 1 second means hooked enemies basically can’t move. Key mechanic: Q refunds 75% mana on champion hit, making it essentially free if you land it. Missing Q costs the full 70–90 mana – Pyke’s mana pool is tight early, so accuracy matters enormously.

🌊 W: Ghostwater Dive

Cost: 65 Mana | CD: 14/13/12/11/10s | Detection Radius: 600

ACTIVE: Pyke enters camouflage for 5 seconds, gaining 45% (+2% per 1 Lethality) bonus movement speed that decays. Attacking or casting ends camouflage. Enemy champions within 1500 units are alerted to Pyke’s presence and whether he can execute them with R.

⚠️ Roaming Machine: With 60 lethality: 45% + 120% = 165% bonus MS at activation (decaying). Pyke moves faster than most champions in the game while invisible. W is the roaming tool: push bot wave → W → roam mid → appear behind enemy mid → E stun → Q pull → kill. Also triggers grey health healing while camouflaged (enemies can’t see you = unseen = grey health heals). W’s execute indicator is both a strength and weakness: enemies below R threshold see a warning, which creates PRESSURE (they play scared). But it also warns them to back off.

🌊 E: Phantom Undertow

Cost: 40 Mana | CD: 15/14/13/12/11s | Range: 550 | Speed: 3000

ACTIVE: Pyke dashes, leaving a Phantom behind. Pyke is ghosted during the Phantom. After 1 second, the Phantom homes back to Pyke, stunning enemies it passes through for 1.25 seconds (+0.1 per 10 Lethality) and dealing physical damage.

💡 Pro Tip: E’s stun comes from the PHANTOM returning to Pyke, not the dash itself. Dash THROUGH enemies so the returning phantom hits them. Flash + E: dash through enemy → Flash further away → phantom returns over a longer path = stuns enemies you Flashed past. With 60 lethality: stun = 1.25 + 0.6 = 1.85 seconds. That’s an enormous stun from a support. E → Flash is Pyke’s most important advanced combo. 100% bonus AD scaling means with 200 bonus AD (full build Pyke): 300 + 200 = 500 physical damage + 1.85s stun.

🌊 R: Death from Below (Ultimate)

Cost: 100 Mana | CD: 100/85/70s | Cast: 0.5 | Range: 750

ACTIVE: Pyke marks an X on the ground. Enemy champions inside the X that are below 250–550 (based on level)(+80% bonus AD)(+1.5 per 1 Lethality) health are INSTANTLY EXECUTED. Enemies above the threshold take 50% of the execute threshold as physical damage.

YOUR CUT: On execute, the last assisting ally receives a “Your Cut” – full kill gold instead of normal assist gold. If an ally kills a champion inside the X, Pyke also receives Your Cut. R resets on kill (recastable within 20 seconds). Pyke blinks to the X center on hit/kill.

⚠️ The Economy Breaker: At level 16 with 150 bonus AD and 60 lethality: execute threshold = 550 + 120 + 90 = 760 HP. Any enemy below 760 HP inside the X = instant death, no counterplay (except Zhonya’s or untargetability). On execute: Pyke gets ~300 gold + ally gets ~300 gold via Your Cut = ~600 gold from ONE kill. R resets on every execute in 20 seconds. A pentakill R chain = 5 executes = ~3000 gold for the team from 5 kills. That’s roughly 1500 EXTRA gold compared to normal kills. This is Pyke’s broken mechanic: he generates gold from nothing.

🌊 The Drowned Economy: Why Pyke Generates More Gold Than Any Other Support

Pyke’s R execute mechanic breaks League’s gold economy in a way no other champion can. Here’s the math that makes Pyke truly unique.

• Your Cut Math: Normal kill: killer gets ~300g, assisting ally gets ~150g. Total = ~450g. Pyke R execute: Pyke gets ~300g + ally gets ~300g (Your Cut). Total = ~600g. That’s +150g per execute compared to normal. Over 5 R executes per game (realistic for a snowballing Pyke): +750 extra gold. Over 10 executes (dominant game): +1500 extra gold. This gold exists from nowhere – it’s not taken from enemies, it’s GENERATED by Pyke’s kit.
• The Snowball Problem: Pyke gets kills with R → buys more lethality → execute threshold increases → easier to get kills → more gold → more lethality. It’s a self-reinforcing snowball. A Pyke that goes 3/0 in lane becomes exponentially harder to deal with because each kill increases his future kill potential. Conversely, a Pyke that falls behind (0/3) has a lower execute threshold and can’t generate the extra gold – he becomes a worse version of every other support.
• Grey Health = Free Trades: 40% damage stored near 2+ enemies means Pyke can trade aggressively, walk into bush, and heal. Over a 30-minute game, grey health healing can total 3000–5000 HP recovered. That’s an entire support’s worth of healing from a passive. This lets Pyke play like an assassin while having sustain like an enchanter.
• Camouflage Roaming: W gives 45% (+2% per lethality) MS while invisible. With 60 lethality = 165% MS boost at activation. Pyke roams faster than any other support – push bot → W → roam mid in 10 seconds while invisible → E stun → Q hook → R execute = +600g for team + mid laner now has a kill’s worth of gold.
• The Honest Downside: Pyke CAN’T build HP. No Locket shield scaling. No Redemption healing. No tank stats. Pyke is the squishiest support in the game by design. One CC chain = dead. No frontline capability. Against organized teams that focus Pyke, he’s a walking 300g bounty. His 49–50.88% WR reflects this: incredible ceiling (55.76% Grandmaster OTPs) but punishing floor for players who can’t position correctly. His 21.1% ban rate isn’t from being statistically broken – it’s because getting R chained in a teamfight FEELS broken even when Pyke’s team is behind.

🎯 Strategies and Gameplay Tips

Early Game (Levels 1-6)

• Level 1 Q Poke: Charged Q hook from bush = 100 + 75% bAD + 90% slow. If ADC follows up, enemy Flash or kill at level 1. Miss Q = 70 mana lost early. Accuracy is everything.
• Level 2 E → Q: E dash through enemy → phantom stuns 1.25s → Q tap during stun → auto. Deals 200 + 175% bAD + stun. Guaranteed Flash or kill with ADC follow-up.
• Grey Health Trading: Trade aggressively (auto + Q), take damage, walk into bush. Grey health heals. Return to lane at higher HP than expected. Repeat. Enemies don’t understand how much Pyke heals from grey health.

Mid Game (Levels 7-13)

• Roaming With W: After shoving bot, W camouflage → roam mid/jungle. 165% MS (with lethality) covers distance fast. E stun → Q hook on mid laner = free kill + Your Cut gold.
• R Execute Chains: In skirmishes: wait until enemies drop below threshold. R first target → resets → R second target → resets. A triple R chain = ~1800 gold for team. NEVER open fights with R – always use it as an EXECUTE finisher.
• Vision Control: Umbral Glaive lets Pyke one-shot wards. W camouflage + Umbral = complete enemy vision denial. Clear wards while invisible = enemy has zero information.

Late Game (Level 14+)

• Execute Threshold Peaks: At level 18 with full lethality: threshold reaches 700–800+ HP. At that point, R executes from nearly half HP on squishies. Position for multi-target R – the X hits all enemies in the area.
• Pick Potential: W → E → Q on isolated enemy = dead. Pyke’s pick potential never falls off because R threshold scales with AD and lethality. One pick before Baron/Elder = free objective.
• Teamfight Positioning: DON’T front-line. Pyke has no HP. Wait on the side, let fight develop, E stun key targets, R when enemies drop below threshold. Pyke is a CLEANUP assassin, not an initiator.

❌ Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

• Opening With R: R deals 50% of threshold as damage to enemies ABOVE threshold. That’s mediocre damage. R is an EXECUTE – use it to finish, not to start. Wait until enemies are below the X indicator.
• Forgetting Grey Health: After trading, WALK OUT OF VISION. Bush, fog of war, W camouflage – anything. Grey health only heals when unseen. Standing visible after a trade = wasting 40% of potential healing.
• Building HP Items: HP converts to AD at 14:1 ratio. A Warmog’s (800 HP) = 57 AD but ZERO tankiness. Pyke’s passive specifically prevents tank builds. Build lethality always.
• Missing Q Hooks: Q costs 70–90 mana. Pyke’s mana pool is 415 base. Three missed Q hooks = nearly out of mana at level 1. Only charge Q when you have a high-probability angle. Tap Q in melee is safer.
• Front-Lining in Teamfights: Pyke has the lowest effective HP of any support. One CC chain kills him instantly. NEVER be the first person the enemy sees. Approach from flanks with W, E stun from the side, R to clean up.

⚙️ Recommended Build and Itemization

Core Items

• Umbral Glaive: First item. Lethality + AD + ward detection/instant-kill passive. Pyke’s #1 item for vision control. See wards while W camouflaged → one-shot them.
• Boots of Swiftness: MS + slow resistance. 72.1% pick rate. Pyke needs movement speed for roaming and positioning. Swiftness reduces slow effectiveness from enemies trying to peel.
• Edge of Night: Lethality + AD + spell shield passive. Spell shield prevents CC interrupting Pyke’s E or R. Blocks one crucial ability in engages.
• Youmuu’s Ghostblade: Lethality + AD + MS active. More lethality = higher execute threshold + longer E stun + more grey health. Ghostblade MS active stacks with W MS.

Situational Items

• Celestial Opposition: Support mythic with slow aura. Helps team with peel without requiring HP.
• Voltaic Cyclosword: Lethality + burst proc. 61.4% WR first item (niche). Massive early burst synergy with Hail of Blades.
• Serylda’s Grudge: Armor pen + slow on abilities. Against armor-stacking teams where lethality falls off.

Runes

Primary (Domination): Hail of Blades, Cheap Shot, Sixth Sense, Ultimate Hunter

Secondary (Resolve): Bone Plating, Unflinching

Summoner Spells: Flash + Ignite

Skill Max: Q → E → W

💡 Pro Tip: Hail of Blades gives Pyke 3 rapid autos after landing E stun – massive burst in the stun window. Ultimate Hunter reduces R CD to ~50 seconds at max stacks = more R executes per game = more gold generation. Cheap Shot adds true damage on CC’d targets (E stun, Q slow). Bone Plating is critical because Pyke has no HP – it blocks 30–60 damage from 3 attacks, which on Pyke is the difference between life and death. Unflinching gives tenacity when low HP, matching grey health recovery windows.

⚔️ Counter Picks & Matchups

✅ Pyke Counters (Favorable)

1. Senna

Why: Senna has no mobility. Q hook pulls her directly into Pyke’s team. She’s squishy enough for R execute. Her slow poke doesn’t prevent Pyke’s all-in. W camouflage lets Pyke dodge Senna’s W root easily.

2. Leona

Why: Leona’s engage range (E) is shorter than Pyke’s Q hook. Pyke E dodges Leona E dash. If Leona engages on Pyke’s ADC, Pyke hooks the enemy ADC in return (trade engages). Pyke outroams Leona mid-game with W speed.

3. Karma

Why: Karma is squishy and poke-oriented. Q hook pulls Karma into kill range. Pyke’s grey health sustain recovers from Karma’s poke. R execute threshold exceeds Karma’s HP at most stages of the game.

❌ Pyke is Countered By

1. Lulu

Why: W Polymorph stops Pyke mid-combo. E shield + R HP boost pushes allies above execute threshold. R gives bonus HP that specifically counters Pyke’s execute. Lulu turns Pyke’s all-in into a death sentence – for Pyke.

2. Alistar

Why: W headbutt knocks Pyke away mid-E dash. Q knockup interrupts Q charge. R damage reduction tanks Pyke’s entire combo. Alistar’s CC chain peels Pyke off carries completely.

3. Xerath

Why: Xerath outranges Pyke entirely (Q 1450 range vs Pyke Q 1100). Constant poke prevents Pyke from walking up to hook. E stun stops Pyke’s E dash. Pyke can’t reach Xerath without blowing Flash.

FAQ

Q: Can Pyke build health items?

A: Technically yes, but the health converts to AD (1 AD per 14 HP). Pyke’s max HP remains unchanged by items. Building a 400 HP item gives ~28.6 AD but ZERO extra survivability. Always build lethality instead – more damage AND higher execute threshold.

Q: How does Your Cut gold work exactly?

A: When Pyke R executes an enemy, the last ally who assisted gets a “Your Cut” that grants them full kill gold (same as if they got the kill). If an ally kills an enemy inside the R X zone during the cast, Pyke gets Your Cut instead. This means every R execute effectively creates DOUBLE kill gold for the team.

Q: Does R go through shields/untargetability?

A: R checks the target’s CURRENT HP. If shields push them above the execute threshold, R deals the 50% damage instead of executing. Zhonya’s, Kayn R, and untargetability dodge R entirely. Revive effects (GA, Zilean R) prevent the gold generation.

Q: Why is Pyke’s ban rate so high (21.1%)?

A: R execute chains in teamfights feel unfair. A pentakill R chain generates ~3000 team gold and is one of the most tilting experiences in League. Even when Pyke’s WR is average (49%), the FEEL of playing against R resets drives ban rate.

Q: Can Pyke be played mid or top?A: Riot has specifically nerfed Pyke’s waveclear and solo lane gold generation to keep him in support. Q damage reduced vs minions, passive doesn’t generate gold from solo kills the same way. Support is the only viable role.