In-Depth Uranus Rework Guide: Hybrid Build

VoxVesper

====== UPDATE Feb 3, 2020 ======

HYBRID/TALISMAN BUILD IS BACK BABY!

I haven't been playing as much as I used to, but I was delightfully surprised to find that the #1 Top Global Uranus has been using a variation of the Hybrid Talisman build I first posted a while back. I had stopped using it after Wizard Boots were taken away because it seemed I wasn't getting Gold quick enough to buy the first items I need for sustain. But seeing the Top Global Uranus using this made me give it another try.

Here's my build:

ITEMS: (Buy in this order)
  Iron Mask
  Tome of Evil
  Boots
1 Talisman
2 Full Boots (Warrior/Tough)
3 Oracle
4 Brute Force Breastplate
5 Athena's Shield / Immortality
6 Courage Mask

SPELL: Purify or Flamestrike

Purify if Enemy team has heavy stuns/slows.
Flamestrike the rest of the time. This is such a fun spell to use. You can use it for escapes, to help peel for your mates, as well as to help secure kills — jump ahead of fleeing enemy and knock them back to your mates for them to finish him off. Cooldown is only 30 something seconds, so it's like having an extra skill super useful!

EMBLEM: Support
- Movement Speed
- Regen
- Avarice


I'm doing things a little different than the Top Global Uranus. He typically starts out with Wooden Mask and then goes straight into Talisman. I find it better to go ahead and get Iron Mask 1st, because this gives you some important speed AND HP for sustain. But don't spam your skills yet. Mana management is rough until you start building Talisman.

After Iron Mask, I get Tome of Evil (cooldown + mana regen). Now you got some mana sustain to use skills more.

Then I get Boots (just the Boots, not full movement item). This plus Iron Mask gives you as much movement speed as you'd have with full Warrior/Tough boots.

Then full Talisman next. I haven't had much trouble with sustain while building Talisman. You just have to be careful and don't over-commit. Have your S2 ready for escapes.

After that, Oracle.

Then Brute Force Breastplate. This is an awesome item with Talisman, because by now you have full 40% cooldown, and can spam your skills — esp skill 1 — every couple seconds. Spamming skills builds your BFB stacks, so keep doing that in between engagements to keep it maxed.  

After this point, you can really build whatever you want based on the situations need. Need more Magic Defense? Get Athena Shield. More Physical Defense? Get Immortality. More damage? Try Consecrated Energy or Ice Queen Wand. Anti-heal/regen? Get Necklace of Durance.

Lastly, I finish out the Courage Mask.



====== UPDATE Dec 10, 2019 ======

I'll keep things short and sweet. These are the builds I've had the best results with recently.


====== NON-ROAMING TANK BUILD ======

I like using this build when the enemy team comp damage is heavily weighted in one direction or the other (physical/magical). With Elegant Gem, I can get Warrior or Tough boots instead of depending on Demon Boots for mana sustain.

SPELL: Purify

EMBLEM: Support
- Movement Speed
- Regen
- Battle Spell Cooldown / Focusing Mark

BUYING ITEMS
- Wooden Mask (I still get this if my team wants, but then sell it after level 10.)
- Elegant Gem (Sell after you have Dominance Ice)
- Warrior/Tough Boots (Depending on Enemey Comp)
- Oracle
- Dominance Ice
- Athena's Shield
- Immortality
- Twilight Armor

LEVEL UP SKILLS

L1 - Skill 1 (Important for helping Mid Laner buff)
L2+  Skill 2 (unless can level up Ult)


====== ROAMING TANK BUILD ======

I use this if I'm solo tank and enemy team has a balanced damage comp (physical/magical).

SPELL: Purify

EMBLEM: Support
- Movement Speed
- Regen
- Battle Spell Cooldown / Focusing Mark

BUYING ITEMS
- Iron Mask
- Demon Boots
- Oracle
- Dominance Ice
- Athena's Shield
- Courage Mask
- Immortality


LEVEL UP SKILLS

L1 - Skill 1 (Important for helping Mid Laner buff)
L2+  Skill 2 (unless can level up Ult)


====== TRUNCHEON BUILD  ======

This build is effective on 2-tank team comp.

SPELL: Purify

EMBLEM: Support
- Movement Speed
- Regen
- Avarice

BUYING ITEMS
- Boots
- Elegant Gem (Sell after Lvl 10 when you have Dominance Ice)
- Warrior/Tough Boots (Depending on Enemey Comp)
- Truncheon (Having it early game is important because of all the damage it does.)
- Oracle
- Dominance Ice
- Athena's Shield
- Brute Force Breastplate

LEVEL UP SKILLS

L1 - Skill 1 (Important for helping Mid Laner buff)
L2+  Skill 2 (unless can level up Ult)



=================================
OLD BUILD INFO BELOW

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




====== TRUNCHEON ======

VIDEO: MVP/Legendary Truncheon Gameplay and Voiceover Tips
https://youtu.be/v23m7vl65jM


One thing that does seem to work though: the TRUNCHEON BUILD — IF you have 2 tanks.

But now with Truncheon a few changes:

BUYING ITEMS
- Wizard Boots
- Truncheon (Having it early game is important because of all the damage it does.)
- Clock of Destiny
- Athena's Shield
- Dominance Ice
- Twilight Armor

LEVEL UP

L1 - Skill 1 (Important for helping Mid Laner buff)
L2+  Skill 2 (unless can level up Ult)

In my first version of the guide, I prioritized leveling up Skill 1 first, but now (especially with Truncheon Build) I level up Skill 2 for the additional defense and escape power.

You have to play this build more like a fighter. Don't take buffs or anything, stay with a damage dealer as much as you can, but don't be afraid to clear minion waves and push lanes either if the moment is right. Especially if nobody is clearing minion waves in one of the lanes...that's a lot of gold and xp your whole team is missing out on. Especially with Truncheon, you can clear waves pretty quickly.


===== FULL TANK BUILD ======

WATCH: Mythic Ranked Gameplay

https://youtu.be/jiHYQbzNWbQ


Now I'm using mostly full tank build in Ranked. It's working really well for me now. The video above is the ranked match that put me into the #1 USA Uranus spot. Hopefully I can stay there for a while!

EMBLEMS: Same as before

BUYING ITEMS:

1. Demon Boots (Mana regen)
2. Silence Robe

3. Black Ice Shield
3. Athena's Shield
4. Dominance Ice
5. Oracle
6. Brute Force Breastplate
7. Courage Bullwark

|| VS Heavy Magic Damage ||
This gear set is even okay against 3+ Magic Damage heroes. But if I need more Magic Resistance, I go for Cursed Helm instead of Brute Force.

|| VS Heavy Physical Damage ||
If enemy team is 4 or more Physical Damage heroes, I go straight for Dominance Ice after boots. Then Thunder Belt instead of Oracle (Physical Resistance with same cooldown as Oracle). Then Brute Force Breastplate. Then Antique Cuirass. Then Courage Bullwark.


LEVELING UP

With full tank build, it doesn't seem to matter whether you prioritize Skill 1 or Skill 2.


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


Emblem: Tank
- Vitality (HP)
- Inspire (CD)
- Tenacity (+Def below 40%)

Spell: Purify

Gear:
- Wizard Boots
- Enchanted Talisman  (Yes, that's Enchanted Talisman in a TANK build! (OMG!) You'll see why.)
- Oracle
- Brute Force Breastplate
- Athena's Shield
- Sky Guardian Helm

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

— MY CREDENTIALS —

Why bother reading this long guide? Does this guy even know what he's talking about? Fair questions — especially for a guide with Enchanted Talisman as a TANK item. lol


I'm not the best Uranus player in the world, but...
  - I've played more than 1200 matches as Uranus
  - I've been top 10 Uranus players in USA (Street) for the past 6 months
  - I've been Top Global 100 several times

Most importantly: I made it all the way from Grandmaster to Mythic with Uranus in SOLO QUEUE using variations of THIS (Talisman) build.


That's right, from Grandmaster to Mythic, I used Uranus in almost every ranked match. There were only maybe 5 times I could not use Uranus because enemy team chose him. And just a handful of times I've played other heroes intentionally. That's one reason why Uranus is great for Road to Mythic — he's rarely chosen, which allows you to focus on becoming a specialized expert. Once you get the sense of his rhythm (Poke, Regen, Poke, etc.), he can be really powerful.


Uranus can get you all the way to mythic — I am proof!

— BUYING GEAR —

The order of items I buy largely depends on how the match is going.

Early Game: Generally if I'm having trouble sustaining HP, then I focus buying the more tanky/HP/Defense items for Oracle. If not having trouble, then I go ahead and buy Enchanted Talisman items.

Mid/Late Game: After buying Talisman/Oracle/Brute Plate, if suffering really heavily from physical damage, I will buy something like Blade Armor instead of Athena's Shield. However in most cases Athena's Shield is fine.

I usually buy items in this order.

1. WIZARD BOOTS.

Buy this first so you don't miss any gold bonuses from assists.

Note: Wizard Boots will soon be nerfed (less gold). When this goes live, I'll most likely buy Warrior Boots (Physical Defense) instead.

2. MAGIC NECKLACE (+10 Mana Regen)

3. TOME OF EVIL (+20 Mana Regen, 35 Magic Power, 8% Cooldown)

3rd item I buy depends on how the match is going so far. I try not to engage in battle too much early game. But if I'm having trouble sustaining HP, then I'll buy Vitality Crystal first.

4. VITALITY CRYSTAL (+230 HP)

I'll usually buy this next for balanced growth, unless I'm just not having trouble sustaining HP at all, then I'll just buy Enchanted Talisman. But that only happens maybe 20% of the time.

5. ENCHANTED TALISMAN (+50 Mg Power, +250 HP, 20% CD, Regen 10% max mana every 10s)

This may seem strange for a tank to have, but I've found it really works. With my emblem, plus Talisman, plus Oracle I get max cooldown (40%) and strong mana regen VERY early game. With this, Uranus is basically a walking mana/HP fountain that rarely if ever needs to recall. This means I can spam my skills without having to worry about mana management.

6. ORACLE (+850 HP, +36 Mg Def, 10% CD, +25% Shield Absorption and HP Regen)

As stated earlier, I buy this first if struggling with sustaining HP. Oracle is key to Uranus as it gives bonuses to HP regen from passive and also 25% bonus to his shields (skill 2).

7. BRUTE FORCE BREASTPLATE (+770 HP, +45 Ph Def, Bonus up to +15% Movement Speed, +20% Ph and Mg Def)

BFB works really well in combination with Talisman because of the very low cooldown on Uranus's Skill 1. Between Skill 1 and basic attacks, you can very quickly max out the stacks of BFB's passive Bonus to Movement Speed (Max +15%) and Ph/Mg Defense (Max +20%). Maxed out BFB passive is a significant boost to your overall defense — both magic and physical.

Pro Tip: Also, because of Talisman mana regen, you can keep those max bonuses by using Skill 1 in between enemy battles and minion waves.

8. ATHENA'S SHIELD (+900 HP, +56 Mg Def, +20 HP Regen, Shield Max 1150/1437 pts)

That shield bonus (max 1150 pts) is amazing. When combined with Oracle, it's a total 1437 HP — almost as much HP as you get from Sky Guardian Helm.

9. SKY GUARDIAN HELM (+1550 HP, +100 HP Regen)

This typically works best with my build/play style. However, if getting hit hard by a MM with Demon Hunter Sword, I'll get Blade Armor instead. Then they have to chew through all my shields and HP and Ph Defense and take damage with every hit. But in my experience, Helm is fine 90% of the time.

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

— LEVELING UP SKILLS —

Priority:
1. Level up Ultimate whenever available.
2. Level up Skill 1 next.
3. Skill 2

SKILL 1: ICONIC EDGE

Before the Uranus revamp, Skill 2 (shield) was Uranus's most powerful skill. Now, sadly, I find it Skill 2 nearly useless compared to before.

Iconic Edge however got a wonderful damage buff that stacks and can inflict a lot of damage — especially early game. That's why I focus leveling up Skill 1 first. It's especially important to get Skill 1 at the beginning of the game because the cooldown of Skill 2 is so long.

Leveling up Skill 1 also works well with this gear build because with the max cooldown, you can get full stacks more quickly. Without any stuns (after the rework), this damage is actually important to Uranus's kit as a tank. It helps Uranus protect allies because the damage (especially when the stacks build) is something the enemy team can't ignore, and they have to retreat.

With this build, you can pretty much spam this skill as much as you need. I even use it when enemies not around to keep up my Brute Force Breastplate passive bonus. With BFB, even Skill 1 can give you a speed bonus and help you escape.

SKILL 2: TRANSCENDENT WARD

This skill was sadly nerfed HEAVILY in the Uranus rework. As such, now I level this skill up last. Because of the long cooldown, I generally save this skill and don't use it except for escapes. I only use it for attack if I've got lots of backup from allies, full HP, and I have another means of escape if needed (e.g. Skill 3 or Purify). You don't want to dive in unless you're positive you'll be able to escape and regen.

Of course it's also helpful chasing down enemy kills, and tower diving. If you've got full team support, etc., pop Ult and then dive (ult gives bonus to the shield IF you do it before hitting skill 2).

But again, I generally recommend saving Skill 2 for escapes.

SKILL 3: CONSECRATION

I also generally save this for escapes. However, because the CD isn't that bad (especially with max cooldown), I also use it sometimes as mobility boost to switch between lanes and/or keep up my stacks of Radiance.

Passive: Radiance

It's important to keep up your stacks of Radiance as this affects both your damage output AND your HP regen. Try to keep your stacks up in the following ways:

- Get ahead of your minion wave so enemy minions attack you first. This is the best way of building up your stacks without taking much damage.
- Keep stacks up while switching lanes by getting hit by jungle creatures OR using Skill 3.  
- Can also keep stacks up by (carefully) poking enemy team. Best to do this only when you have all/most of your escapes available (Skill 2, Skill 3, Purify).


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

— GAMEPLAY —

Buy boots and Skill 1 at the start. Then I usually go mid lane with MM or mage, clear 1st minion wave (and hurt enemy) with skill 1. Then help mage/mm buff on top buff. Usually by the time the small monster is dead, I level up and get skill 2. But be careful using Skill 2 on the Buff monster because you don't want to accidently kill it and take buff away from your ally.

After this, stick with your ally as much as possible. But it's important with this build not to engage too heavily in fighting until you have your first 3 items (Boots, Talisman, and Oracle).

BATTLE STRATEGY

Uranus is a poke tank. He's not meant to just stay in the thick of a team battle. I usually approach team fights this way:

1. Engage. Move in, and spam Skill 1.
2. Retreat when about 50% health. Use Skill 2/Skill 3/Purify to escape and regen. I only use 1 of my escapes if possible.
3. Re-engage in battle.

If you only use one of your escapes at a time, you pretty much always have at least 1 escape available. I only use Purify in emergencies when I'm getting stunned and have multiple enemies on me.

When I have all my escapes available, there's almost no situation in which I can't escape and survive. Even 2 escapes is sufficient in most cases. The main thing to worry about is Franco's and Kaja's Ult (which you can't escape from using Purify).

Ideally, your allies should understand how Uranus works. But you'll sometimes get complaints from players who don't understand that Uranus can't just sit there and take tons of damage without retreating and regenerating. And if you're out of mana, you're nearly useless, so it's best to just recall in that case, or else go clear lanes and let Talisman refill your mana tank.


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


— TRUNCHEON BUILD —

For those interested, I've also found this hybrid Truncheon build to be a lot of fun — particularly in situations where my team needs more damage, like a 2-tank team.


Emblem: Tank
- Vitality (HP)
- Inspire (CD)
- Tenacity (+Def below 40%)

Spell: Purify

Gear:
- Wizard Boots
- Clock of Destiny
- Lightning Truncheon
- Cursed Helmet
- Dominance Ice
- Twilight Armor

This build is all about synergy between the items. Each item either increases damage of Lightning Truncheon (with increased mana) or damage of Cursed Helmet (increased HP). Also Dominance Ice slows help add to Uranus kit since he doesn't have stuns anymore.


ITEMS PURCHASING ORDER:

1. Wizard Boots
2. Elegant Gem
3. Black Ice Shield
4. Molten Essence
5. Clock of Destiny
6. Dominance Ice
7. Lightning Truncheon
8. Cursed Helmet
9. Twilight Armor


One great thing about this build is the powerful gear components (Elegant Gem, Black Ice Shield, Molten Essence). This gives you a big stats boost and even 3 passives very early game. It also enables you to scale up in a very balanced way. You can easily adapt your gear buying according to your needs. I usually buy the first 5 items in that order no matter what, but after that it depends on how the game is going. Need more physical defense? Finish buying Dominance Ice. Need more Magic defense? Finish buying Cursed Helmet.


If I'm still having trouble sustaining HP after buying Clock, Cursed Helm, and Dominance, then I either get Thunder Belt (for Ph Def) or Oracle (Magic Defense). But if no problems, then I'll go ahead and get Lightning Truncheon. It does some pretty sick damage the enemy cannot ignore. And with the full build at endgame with Twilight Armor, I can pretty much 1v1 or 1v2 anyone no problem and win. The damage from Truncheon and Cursed Helm just gets ridiculous.

GAMEPLAY


I play mostly the same as described in my Talisman build guide. However with this build I have to be a lot more conservative with my mana — especially Early-Mid game. Don't waste mana clearing minions. Save it for enemies.


Late game, however, once I've got full stacks on Clock and Dominance Ice, I can usually be more liberal with my skills. But still not as much as with Talisman build.


That said, again, I've had the most success with my Talisman build.


Thanks for reading! Hope someone finds this guide helpful!

Malicewolf

Good read. I used to play Uranus a lot before the rework. I still play him when I need to tank, but as you stated, he's become very lackluster. And I honestly never really adapted to the rework. I still built skill 2 up first. So imma change that up now and see how it goes as well as his build :)

BD007

I really value your suggestion and thoughts because you are playing uranus for a long long time.
Not only because you are global.
I was really excited about uranus but a bit sad with the update.
I think i will try talisman build.
Thanks for sharing all the strategy and tips with us.

starboi

Do you do this sometimes? Fudge! I encountered a Uranus a while ago and what he does was to play like he wants to feed me by continuously moving forward and clearing the waves in between 2 of our tower while his other ally destroys out tower.. damn! that was so good gameplay, I don't know which one to chase.

VoxVesper

starboi replied at 2019-5-21 08:11 AM
Do you do this sometimes? Fudge! I encountered a Uranus a while ago and what he does was to play lik ...

Haha, yeah that's the best way to get your Radiance stacks — those hits from minions. But you have to be careful doing that — make sure you don't get separated from your backup. It's easy to get ganked in between towers if you're all alone.

iri

Thankyouu so much. It helps me a lot. I'm starting to use Uranus when I pick tank. He is incredibly tanky, even compare to Gatotkaca as the tankiest tank ever.

For items, I always buy the yellow thingy that damages enemies nearby (forgot what its name) as the second item and then buy Oracle. And I always struggle with buying Wizard or Mana boots since his mana drains like crazy. And now you come up with Enchanted Talisman. I never thought of that and I think my problem now solved tyvm

Knyrv

Wow. Very nice guide
Reading this would make anyone wanna try Uranus.

At first, I didn't agree with the Talisman but after reading your explanation it does make lots of sense.

starboi

So what's better? The old Uranus or the new one?

post_deleted

VoxVesper

starboi replied at 2019-5-21 10:13 AM
So what's better? The old Uranus or the new one?

I honestly like Old Uranus MUCH better. His Ult and his 2nd skill were WAY stronger. His new Ult is almost like a nerfed version of his old 2nd skill. It's ridiculous. I miss old Uranus, but making the best I can of the rework.

iri replied at 2019-5-21 10:01 AM
Thankyouu so much. It helps me a lot. I'm starting to use Uranus when I pick tank. He is incredibly  ...

Haha, yeah Talisman is really working for me. One great thing about it is that it frees you up to get whatever boots you need based on the opposing team. If lots of magic damage, get Tough Boots. If lots of physical, get Warrior Boots. If balanced, get Wizard Boots. Easy!

Moona

VoxVesper replied at 2019-5-21 10:27 AM
I honestly like Old Uranus MUCH better. His Ult and his 2nd skill were WAY stronger. His new Ult i ...

The old Uranus has cc but now he kinda lack of cc now..