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Does Ingenious Hunter Work on Spellblade? A Comprehensive Guide

The short answer is no, Ingenious Hunter does not directly affect spellblade passives. While the rune is incredibly powerful for reducing the cooldowns of item actives and trinkets, it does not interact with the internal cooldowns of on-hit effects such as spellblade. This means that items like Trinity Force, Divine Sunderer, and Essence Reaver that feature a spellblade passive will not have their passive cooldowns reduced by Ingenious Hunter.

However, this is a crucial distinction to understand because item haste, which Ingenious Hunter provides, does affect the passive cooldowns of spellblade items. While Ingenious Hunter does not modify the spellblade cooldown directly, item haste does.

Understanding Item Haste and Spellblade

Before delving further, it’s important to clarify what we mean by “spellblade” and “item haste”.

What is Spellblade?

Spellblade refers to a class of item passives that empower the user’s next auto-attack after using an ability. These passives typically deal bonus physical or magic damage, and they come with an internal cooldown. Popular items with spellblade passives include:

Trinity Force: Grants bonus physical damage based on base AD.
Divine Sunderer: Deals bonus physical damage based on target’s maximum HP and heals.
Essence Reaver: Grants bonus physical damage and restores mana.

These passives have a cooldown, which is the time you need to wait after using an empowered auto-attack before the effect can be applied again. Ingenious Hunter does not shorten this cooldown directly.

What is Item Haste?

Item Haste is a stat that reduces the cooldowns of item actives and passives, and as Ingenious Hunter gains stacks, the haste is amplified. This is distinct from ability haste (CDR), which reduces ability cooldowns. Ingenious Hunter grants item haste based on the number of unique enemy champion takedowns. The base value is 20 item haste and 6 item haste is added for every unique enemy champion kill. At max stacks (5 unique enemy champion kills) this becomes 50 item haste.

So, while Ingenious Hunter does not directly reduce the spellblade cooldown on items like Trinity Force, Divine Sunderer and Essence Reaver, the Item Haste it provides, does.

How Ingenious Hunter Interacts With Item Haste

Ingenious Hunter provides item haste that reduces cooldowns on item actives and item passives. The spellblade is a passive effect on items and are therefore affected by item haste provided by Ingenious Hunter. The core functionality of Ingenious Hunter is not directly targeted to the spellblade passive, but rather it is the item haste that it provides that reduces its internal cooldown.

Let’s say an item, such as Divine Sunderer, has a spellblade passive with a 1.5 second internal cooldown. Without any item haste, the user will have to wait 1.5 seconds between spellblade applications. With the 20 item haste Ingenious Hunter offers at the beginning, this cooldown is reduced. At full stacks, the 50 item haste provided by Ingenious Hunter will reduce that cooldown further.

The difference is crucial. Ingenious Hunter doesn’t magically change how spellblade operates but, the item haste provided indirectly shortens its passive cooldown.

Benefits of Item Haste for Spellblade Users

For champions who rely heavily on spellblade items, maximizing item haste through Ingenious Hunter can be incredibly beneficial. The more often you can proc the spellblade passive, the higher your damage output will be. For example, if you’re playing a champion like Ezreal who relies on Trinity Force or Divine Sunderer, the increased item haste means more spellblade procs which can lead to enhanced DPS (Damage Per Second).

Champions Who Benefit From This Interaction

Champions who buy items with spellblade passives will appreciate Ingenious Hunter:

Ezreal (Trinity Force/Essence Reaver): benefits greatly from more spellblade procs, further amplifying his damage output.
Camille (Divine Sunderer): increases her passive healing and damage from spellblade.
Jax (Trinity Force/Divine Sunderer): enhanced damage through spellblade, scaling into the late game.
Irelia (Trinity Force): more consistent and high damage.
Hecarim (Trinity Force/Divine Sunderer): the ability to trigger Divine Sunderer more often adds to survivability and damage
Nasus (Divine Sunderer): frequent spellblade procs are critical for his damage output.

It’s important to note that champions who rely on ability haste more than spellblade might find other runes, like Ultimate Hunter or Relentless Hunter, more beneficial. The goal is to weigh the rune’s impact on your specific champion and playstyle.

Important Considerations

Ingenious Hunter is most impactful on champions who purchase items with active effects and those that depend on item passives with internal cooldowns, like those with spellblade effects.
The rune scales based on takedowns of unique enemy champions, meaning it’s effectiveness grows as the game progresses and you participate in more combat.
Consider your overall build and playstyle when deciding on runes. Ingenious Hunter is very effective with the item combinations mentioned above, but may be less beneficial than other runes for those using completely different items.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Here are 15 frequently asked questions related to Ingenious Hunter, item haste and spellblade mechanics:

1. What does Ingenious Hunter actually reduce cooldowns on?

Ingenious Hunter reduces the cooldowns of item actives and item passives with a cooldown. It also reduces trinket cooldowns. This includes items like Zhonya’s Hourglass, Crown of the Shattered Queen, and Edge of Night, as well as item passives like spellblade effects.

2. How much item haste does Ingenious Hunter give at max stacks?

At maximum stacks (five unique enemy champion takedowns), Ingenious Hunter provides 50 item haste.

3. Does Item Haste work on all item passives?

Item haste affects all item passives that have an internal cooldown.

4. Does Ingenious Hunter affect Fimbulwinter’s cooldown?

Yes, Ingenious Hunter reduces the cooldown of Fimbulwinter’s shield.

5. Does Ingenious Hunter affect Radiant Virtue’s cooldown?

Yes, Radiant Virtue’s cooldown is reduced by item haste, thereby benefiting from Ingenious Hunter.

6. Does Ingenious Hunter affect trinkets?

Yes, Ingenious Hunter reduces the cooldown of trinkets, such as wards and control wards.

7. Is Ingenious Hunter better than Ravenous Hunter for some champions?

While Ravenous Hunter provides omnivamp, Ingenious Hunter can be better for champions who rely heavily on item actives and item passives with internal cooldowns.

8. How do you stack Ingenious Hunter?

You stack Ingenious Hunter by participating in the takedowns of unique enemy champions. You can only earn one stack per unique enemy champion.

9. How does item haste interact with spellblade cooldowns?

Item haste reduces the internal cooldown of spellblade passives, allowing you to trigger them more frequently.

10. Does Cosmic Insight stack with Ingenious Hunter?

Yes, Cosmic Insight provides 10% item CDR, which stacks additively with Ingenious Hunter’s item haste.

11. Can Ingenious Hunter reduce Guardian Angel’s passive cooldown?

Yes, Guardian Angel’s resurrection passive cooldown is reduced by Ingenious Hunter.

12. Is Umbral Glaive affected by Ingenious Hunter?

While Umbral Glaive was indeed affected by item haste, Umbral Glaive has been removed from the game.

13. Does Ingenious Hunter impact Moonstone Renewer?

Yes, item haste increases the rate of Moonstone Renewer’s healing.

14. Is item haste the same as CDR?

No. Item haste reduces the cooldowns of item actives and passives. Ability haste, or Cooldown Reduction (CDR), reduces ability cooldowns.

15. Why is Ingenious Hunter considered a strong rune?

Ingenious Hunter is a strong rune because it can significantly reduce the cooldowns of a variety of powerful item effects, allowing for more consistent and impactful usage, especially for champions who build items with strong passives and active effects. It also scales well into the late game with max stacks.

Conclusion

While Ingenious Hunter doesn’t directly modify the internal mechanics of spellblade, it indirectly boosts its effectiveness through its item haste. By reducing the cooldown of the spellblade passives, Ingenious Hunter can significantly amplify the damage output for champions who rely on items like Trinity Force, Divine Sunderer and Essence Reaver. Understanding the distinction between these mechanics is crucial for optimizing your builds and maximizing your champion’s potential. Make sure you experiment with different rune configurations and see what works best for you.

Does ingenious hunter work on spellblade?