At times, Karma finds herself played with more frequency in solo lanes, but generally she is now thought of as a support main thanks to the great amount of shielding and movement speed that she brings to the team. And in lane phase especially, she still packs a wallop when it comes to damage. She also packs a Click here for the latest data on her best builds, including Runes, Items, Summoner Spells, and more.
Keys to Remember About Karma
Karma has a strong early game because she has access to more abilities than enemies right off the bat thanks to Mantra [R]. She's best picked when you have engage options elsewhere on your team and your ADC is comfortable with poking instead of needing to hard commit to fights.
Late game, you'll want to focus on using Mantra [R] with your Resolve [W] when fights break out or if your team needs to move quickly from one position to another. Using mantra with Inner Flame [Q] can leave you vulnerable to a counter-engage, whereas using it with Inspire [E] should typically be reserved for when you're able to find a pick.
Strengths
She’s one of the strongest early game supports when it comes to dishing out damage thanks to Mantra [R] allowing her to empower her Inner Flame [Q] -- it’s an ability with a big splash radius, which makes it very easy to hit early on, and all it takes is one or two of them to keep enemy ADCs at bay. As the game progresses, she can start empowering either her Focused Resolve [W] or Inspire [E] to look for picks and to provide more utility in fights. The versatility in deciding what is going to be helpful to your team depending on the context of the game makes her a very strong pick in the hands of someone with good decision making.
Weaknesses
While she can gain mobility thanks to her Inspire [E], she’s still going to struggle whenever enemies are able to lock her down. She is, at the end of the day, still a squishy ranged support. She will die if she eats some CC. And while Mantra [R] can give you access to some very powerful abilities early, that means you won’t see major spikes later in the game with your ultimate. What you see is what you get early, and empowering one ability will leave the others weaker. Pick wisely!
Game Plan
Early Game: Look to harass with your Inner Flame [Q], empowered or not -- she should be looking for as many windows to harass the enemy bot laner as possible.
Mid Game: You’ll want to group with teammates who have kill pressure, as you can run down isolated enemies with your Inspire [E] and then root them with Focused Resolve [W].
Late Game: Generally, you’ll find the most value by empowering Inspire [E] at this point in the game -- your damage isn’t terrible but it’s not going to win you the game at this point in the same way a burst of speed and shielding might.
