Guide Sections (15)
- Champion Stats
- The Hook Start
- The Pyke Skin Tier List
- When They Ban Pyke
- Runes That Work on Pyke
- Leveling Pyke's Abilities
- Mastering Pyke's Kit
- Matchups That Matter for Pyke
- Execute Greed
- When the Matchup Is Unplayable
- The Vision Setup
- The Lethality Support Build
- Pyke's Strongest Moments
- The Gold Share Flex
- Recent Patch History
Champion Stats
Low elo players have terrible awareness of execution thresholds. They will stay in lane at 30% HP, not realizing that a Flash-E-Q-R combo kills them instantly with zero counterplay. They also fail to respect his roaming potential (W - Ghostwater Dive). You can gank mid lane, kill the enemy mage, and return to bot lane before your ADC even misses a minion. His passive grey health regeneration allows you to take 'bad' trades that would force other supports to base, only to heal it all back in a bush and engage again. The 'Your Cut' gold mechanic also accelerates the game economy, effectively making your team items ahead purely through kills.
The Hook Start
The 'Bush Hook' Dominance. Start Q (Bone Skewer). Rush to the lane bush closest to the enemy tower (if blue side) or river bush. Charge your hook from the fog of war. If you land a hook on a Level 1 enemy, you pull them into your minion wave/ADC. With Hail of Blades and Ignite, this usually burns their Flash or kills them outright. Even the threat of the hook forces them to play terrified, zoning them off the first wave experience. Alternatively, invade the enemy jungle—a Pyke hook is the best Level 1 invade tool in the game.
The Pyke Skin Tier List
'Ashen Knight Pyke' is the ultimate flex—the music during his R resets is enough to tilt the entire enemy team. 'Project: Pyke' has very distinct SFX that make his E-dash feel extra impactful. 'Sand Wraith Pyke' used to be a 'pay-to-win' skin due to the subtle Q animation, but most modern skins are well-balanced.
'Empyrean Pyke' is the new gold standard. The neon effects and the unique R music make every reset feel like a main character moment. 'Ashen Knight' remains the most prestigious for its soul-piercing audio.
When They Ban Pyke
If Pyke is gone, Blitzcrank is your best 'tilt the enemy' backup. The hook satisfies the same primal urge. If you want to be 'helpful', Thresh. But we know why you picked Pyke—you want the gold.
Nautilus for hooks. Blitzcrank for pulls. Thresh for style. Blitzcrank is the 'hook and kill' brother.
Runes That Work on Pyke
Hail of Blades is mandatory for the early-game burst in lane. It allows you to land 3 fast autos after a hook-stun combo. Sudden Impact for the lethality on your dash/invis. Treasure Hunter to reach your items faster. Secondary Bone Plating + Unflinching for survivability.
Leveling Pyke's Abilities
Max Q first for the lower cooldown and higher damage on your hook. Max E second for the stun duration and damage. W is maxed last for the movement speed increase.
Mastering Pyke's Kit
Bone Skewer. You can tap it for a slow or hold it for a hook. The hook always pulls the target a fixed distance. You can hook people over walls. Use the tap-Q for guaranteed damage in close-range skirmishes.
Ghostwater Dive. You gain camouflage and massive movement speed. Enemies will see a shark circle if you are too close. Use this to roam from bot to mid in seconds.
Phantom Undertow. You dash and leave a phantom that returns to you, stunning enemies hit. You can use FLASH during the dash to redirect the phantom and catch people off-guard.
Death from Below. An X-shaped execution. If a champion dies in the X, you can cast it again for free. It ignores all shields. Mastery of the R-timing is what separates a good Pyke from a great one.
Matchups That Matter for Pyke
Easy Lane. She's squishy and has no self-peel except a slow net. Hook her, stun her, and she dies. Just don't get poked out at level 1.
Skill Matchup. It's a hook battle. Whoever lands the first hook usually wins. Use your E to dodge his hook and stun him in return.
Hard Counter. She can silence your Q-channel and her R can heal people out of your execution threshold at the last millisecond. You must target her first in every fight.
Execute Greed
Stop trying to be a frontline! Pyke cannot gain bonus health from items; he is structurally squishy. If you E (Phantom Undertow) forward into 3 people without a plan, you will be CC'd and deleted instantly. You are a shark, not a tank. Wait for the chaos, flank from the side, and look for the execute reset. Also, stop holding your Ultimate for the 'Pentakill' moment. If using R on a full HP target (for the damage/blink) secures a kill for your team, DO IT. Greeding for resets is the easiest way to throw a lead.
When the Matchup Is Unplayable
Dodge if facing Morgana or Lulu. Morgana's Black Shield makes your Q and E useless. Lulu can polymorph you mid-dash or ult her target to push them out of your execution range. Also dodge against heavy-tank comps like Ornn + Zac—you can't execute targets that have 5000 HP easily.
The Vision Setup
Stay on the outskirts. Wait for enemies to drop below the execution threshold. Use your E-Flash to catch priority targets or to escape. Your job is to clean up the fight. Once the first execution lands, you should become a blur of R-resets across the screen. If you miss your R, exit the fight immediately and wait for cooldowns.
Umbral Glaive is your first, second, and third priority. If you aren't clearing 15 wards a game, you're not playing Pyke. Use Zombie Ward for the extra AD. Darkness is your primary weapon; the hook is just the executor.
The Lethality Support Build
Full Attack Speed Pyke. With Hail of Blades and a Kraken Slayer (if you're trolling in normals), Pyke can actually duel people with just autos. It's terrible for ranked but hilarious for stomping players who don't expect the support to right-click them to death. (Or Hubris into Ghostblade for absurd AD).
Hubris is a trap for Pyke unless you're snowballing out of control. Stick to Ghostblade and Opportunity for the movement. Pyke lives and dies by his ability to be 'not there' until he is.
Pyke's Strongest Moments
Level 2 is your first kill window (Q + E). Level 6 is your biggest spike—now you are a gold-generating execution machine. Every time you R, you give yourself and an ally bonus gold. A Pyke with 2 items (Umbral Glaive + Ghostblade) by 15 minutes is a game-ender.
Dirk completion is when a single hook-E combo chunks for 60% HP. Once you have Axiom Arc, you can R someone every 30 seconds. By 25 minutes, you should have fed your ADC enough gold to buy 6 items. If they haven't, it's their fault.
The Gold Share Flex
Mastery 7 spam every time you land a cross-map execution. Use the 'Gifted Gold' prompt as a weapon—remind your carries that you are the one putting food on their table. All-chat '?' after you E-Flash through three people and stun them all.
Every time you R, ping the 'Gifted Gold' prompt in chat. It's the ultimate 'I carried you' reminder. If you miss R, immediately W-camouflage and pretend you were never there. Stealth is for hiding your shame too.
Ping 'Your Cut' in chat. R reset pentakills. Flash E stun. You are playing a different game (The Money Game).
Recent Patch History
Recent Balance Changes
| Patch | Date | Type | Changes |
|---|---|---|---|
| V14.17 | Aug 28, 2024 | NERF | Base stats nerfed |
| V14.9 | May 1, 2024 | NERF | W buffed |
| V14.3 | Feb 7, 2024 | BUFF | Q buffed, W buffed, Base stats buffed |
| V13.19 | Sep 27, 2023 | BUFF | W buffed, Base stats buffed |
| V13.14 | Jul 19, 2023 | ADJUST | Base stats adjusted |
