Yunara, a traditional ADC, will be released in the coming weeks. Appearing first teased as the next champion in the Here, Tomorrow animated cinematic and then introduced through the side-scrolling beat-em-up game Battle of Koeshin alongside Xin Zhao. Yunara is an ADC for ADCs, with a focus on core marksman skills like spacing and orb walking. She’s all about ramping up power and unleashing it at exactly the right time. Executing attacks with her prayer beads, making her the first martial artist marksman in the League of Legends Champion roster.
At a quick glance, her gameplay could be comparable to Champions like Ash, Jinx, Zeri, or Kai’Sa. At her core, Yunara delivers extra magic damage with her critical strikes. Upon executing her R, Yunara’s other abilities become enhanced, making her a very promising botlane Champion.
The Unbroken Faith
Joining forces with the Great Spirit, Yunara, the Kinkou Order’s Fist of Shadow, delivered justice to those who disrupted the sacred balance across the First Lands, igniting what would later be known as the War of the False Kanmei. After purging the land of the evil spirits, she chose to accompany the Great Spirit into exile within the Spirit Realm, where she would reflect on the sacrifices of her unwavering loyalty and contain the Darkin Glaive. That is, until the moment when the veil between the realms is thinnest and her shrine is brought forth into the mortal realm. 
“A humble Shrine maiden, ever faithful, journeyed up to her temple in search of a way to save her village.” – The Devoted Shrine Maiden Motion Comic
Yunara’s story continues in Battle of Koeshin, now set centuries into the future in an Ionia that is unfamiliar to her. However, she is far from defenseless. Armed with ancient knowledge and techniques, Yunara has spent 1400 years in the Spirit Realm and bears witness to the mythological and archetypal figure she has become known for throughout Ionia. Now, she faces the challenge of confronting the legend she has become.
Her Moves
The goal for players wishing to master Yunara is to strike a balance between the rise and fall of power. Yunara is cautious until her enemies are vulnerable or weakened. Once that moment arrives, she can unleash her strength and chase victory with her ultimate ability, swiftly turning the tide in her favor.
Passive – Vow of the First Lands: Yunara’s critical strikes deal extra magic damage.
Q – Cultivation of Spirit: Yunara gains a stack of Unleash with every attack, plus an extra one when she hits a champion or lands a crit. At max stacks, Yunara can activate her Q to gain attack speed, bonus damage on hit, and will deal splash damage in a small area with each attack. This ability is automatically activated while Yunara is Transcended.
These spreads count as attacks that apply on-hit effects that reduce effectiveness, and they can apply for passive and strike critically if the attack that launched was a critical strike. When she is not attacking, these stacks will decay, prompting players to continue striking fresh attacks. A good item to pair with her to really strike down groups would be Runnan’s Hurricane.
W – Arc of Judgment / Arc of Ruin: Yunara sends a swirling prayer bead out, which damages and slows enemies as it travels. At its endpoint, it lingers and expands for a moment, continuing to damage enemies who don’t get out of the way. While Transcended instead of a swirling prayer bead, she fires a beam of spirit magic that slows and deals damage in a line.
This move promises great lane control, punishment to enemies who don’t move away, or landing combos with your bot companion.
E – Kanmei’s Steps / Untouchable Shadows: Yunara gains a quick burst of move speed to chase down enemies, reposition, or dodge skill shots. While Transcended, she instead dashes.
This movement speed boost encourages players to be aggressive to help land the final hit on weak enemies. Using R will reset this ability; for example, using E will give players the move speed boost, then using R will reset so players can use E again to close the distance with enemies. Items that could help buff this ability’s cooldown would be the Navori Flickerblades. Runes that can be applied to this would be Ultimate Hunter (Domination) and Axiom Arcanist (Sorcery).
R – Transcend One’s Self: Yunara taps into her full power, entering a transcendent state for several seconds that enhances all of her basic abilities for the duration.
Yunara shows potential as a new formidable traditional ADC martial arts marksman. For players that cross paths with her, it is best to learn quickly when to disengage with her.
About Author
