Ivern – Skill Order (Normal & Augment-Influenced)

Normal Skill Order

Priority: R > W > E > Q

Start W (Brushmaker) at level 1. Mayhem's constant fighting means you need immediate zone control to break enemy vision and set up early roots. Take E (Triggerseed) at level 2 for the shield and slow, which keeps you or an ally alive during the first all-in. Grab Q (Root Caller) at level 3.

Max W second after R. In standard ARAM, players often max E first for the shield strength, but in Mayhem, the reduced cooldown and increased brush duration on W offer more value. The mode forces frequent, chaotic skirmishes, so having permanent brush zones lets your team reposition, drop aggro, and abuse brush passive bonuses. Max E second for shield reliability. Leave Q for last; the root duration does not increase with rank, so you only gain cooldown reduction, which is less impactful than the utility and defense provided by W and E.

Augment-Influenced Skill Order

Priority: R > E > W > Q (if you get shield or defensive augments)

If you roll augments that scale with ability spam or grant effects on shield cast—such as those giving speed, damage reflection, or on-hit effects to the shielded target—swap your priority to E first. The lower cooldown and stronger shield let you trigger those augment effects constantly. You become a defensive engine for a dive-heavy teammate.

Priority: R > Q > W > E (if you get heavy CDR or root-utility augments)

Rarely, an augment might drastically lower ability cooldowns or add damage to crowd control effects. If your Q suddenly deals meaningful damage or becomes available every few seconds, maxing it second lets you spam roots and trigger those effects. This turns Ivern into a catch-bot rather than a pure zone support. This order is niche; only commit to it if the augment explicitly rewards landing Q or reduces its cooldown to absurdly low levels.

Main Max Reasoning

  • W (Brushmaker): Mayhem fights are long and drawn out. Maxing W creates large, lasting safe zones. Allies can duck in and out to break target locks, and melee allies can close gaps using the brush to hide their approach. The cooldown drop ensures you always have a zone ready.
  • E (Triggerseed): Your primary defensive tool. Maxing it increases the shield strength and the slow duration on the burst. If the enemy team is heavy on burst damage, you might prioritize this over W even without augments.
  • Q (Root Caller): The utility (root and dash anchor) stays relevant with one point. The cooldown reduction from leveling is nice but not worth sacrificing the zone control of W or the protection of E.

Adjustment Triggers

  • Enemy Composition: If the enemy has five melee champions or heavy divers who rely on vision, rush W max. The vision denial frustrates their engages. If they are a poke composition with long-range mages, shift to E max to survive the harass.
  • Ally Composition: If you have an ADC or a juggernaut who can abuse brush for passive bonuses or safety, prioritize W. If you have a squishy mage who gets dove repeatedly, prioritize E to keep them alive through the burst.
  • Augment Synergy: If an augment turns your shields into offensive weapons or grants massive speed boosts, E becomes your highest value spell. If an augment gives you damage on crowd control, consider Q max.

Cost of Choosing the Wrong Order

Maxing Q first or second without a specific augment to justify it is the most common mistake. You gain cooldown reduction, but the root duration stays flat. You end up with a slightly more spammable root but weak shields and tiny brush patches. In Mayhem, where damage numbers are high, a weak shield means your ally dies before you can react. Small brush zones get cleared instantly or ignored, removing your unique vision control.

Maxing E blindly when your team has no one to shield effectively—perhaps a team of five long-range poke mages who stay safe anyway—wastes the potential of W. You end up shielding full-health allies while the enemy team controls the lane center because you lack the brush presence to contest the space.

Ignoring augment shifts costs you the game. If you have a shield-spam augment and you still max W, you miss out on the primary win condition the mode gave you. You play a generic support instead of the augmented powerhouse the build intended.