Hunters haven’t been as influential as they have been in other seasons. Some have found themselves in very good positions over the season, however. One of these Hunters is Chernobog. The Slavic lord of darkness was released this season and has been one of the best Hunters this season. He is still a strong pick even in the current meta of early game pressure. So what does Chernobog do that allows him to be a strong pick up in the Hunter role? In this guide, we will explain why you should look at picking him up as much as possible in the Hunter role.

The Kit

Chernobog provides a good amount of control and allows you to play both aggressive and defensive (depending on what you are laning against). His main wave clear is his one and two combo, (Crystallized Curse and Vicious Barrage). The one problem is that this combo requires a fair amount of mana to do every wave. Managing when to detonate your one can win you poke trades in lane, as sometimes you don’t need to detonate it straight away on the wave. The one is his main source of ability damage (I know you’re an ADC and ability damage isn’t your main concern). Early game it is a standard wave clear ability but the later you go into the game using it with your two can help your team in teamfights. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention he has a root on the combo, when the crystal detonates it roots any enemy in the ability for a second. This combo is great for Chernobog, as the root allows you to get free poke off in lane and makes it easier for your team to set up their combos after. It’s not the best form of CC so wouldn’t recommend you use it as the initiation in the teamfight. Best use of the combo late game is to catch enemies that are retreating out of the teamfight or to be used to keep the CC chain going during a fight. In lane, it is more of a wave clear/poking tool. If you can land the root while you’re clearing the wave, it can allow your support to keep the CC chain going and either poke them out or get a pick, either way you win.

The one-two combo is the bread and butter of his kit

Moving on from the one-two combo, his three is a short-range dash but can be a very useful tool to disengage. It can also be used as an engage, but only do this when you are 100% sure you won’t get picked while going in. The unique thing with his three is that you can dash into a wall and dash out of it again, and this gives Chernobog a lot of survivability. The dash also makes you immune to damage and CC while in the wall, so teamfights in and around the jungle work well for him. Just think of it! There’s an Ares ult that’s on you. Just go into the wall and you won’t get pulled. Same for something like a Hun Batz ult. If you can get in the wall before the fear comes off (yes, I know that’s a very short window), you can wait out the entire ult. You can get trapped while in the wall however if you spend too much time in the wall and wait there the enemy team can surround you so just be aware of that. The best use of the three in the early game is to dash into a wall and instantly dash straight out for increased distance. Most Hunters that you’ll be facing in lane won’t have the range to keep up with you, allowing you to be safe in the laning phase. Just be aware it’s best to hold it until you know you’re getting ganked to help you escape, but then again you do have a back-up for that.

The ult allows you so much freedom over the map. It allows you to escape tight situations, it allows you to get back to lane quickly if you’ve been pushed out, and late game it gives you split push potential. The only condition you need is you need to travel to one of the enemy teams' shadow. That factor alone seems risky but the amount of times I’ve made it up in the air with less than 10% health, flew over solo and dashed into a position where I am out of range of the enemy solo laner. The ult isn’t just a disengage tool. It is great for reengagements. When you’ve used all your abilities and the enemy is low and getting away, flying to them with fresh cooldowns can allow you to confirm that kill. Don’t do this all the time, as it puts you in a vulnerable position in lane. If your team is on comms, you can set up ganks with the Chernobog ult. Just calling that you can gank mid as they are on their own can allow you and your team to set up a good gank and end up with one of you getting the kill.

Living Nightmare may have a long cooldown but is the best thing to use to get out of tight situation

One bit of his kit I haven’t mentioned is his passive. Really the only thing Heart of Cold does for Chernobog is add to his wave clear a little or provide a bit of poke on the enemy if they are standing next to the wave or next to an enemy with two stacks of Heart of Cold on them. The passive is one of the weakest passives from Hunters in the late game. In the early game, it adds a bit to his wave clear, allowing him to still have strong wave clear even if he is behind or has weaker wave clear compared to the enemy god.

Counters and Key Partners

The main thing that you look at when you pick Hunters is counters and what compliments your pick. Chernobog is the same. You need to look at what he works well within the lane and what counters him. Nox is a big one, as she counters Chernobog and works really well with him. The lord and goddess of darkness as a duo lane can be terrifying if played well. Nox’s combo into Chernobog’s can see your health disappear in little over one engagement.

Add into the fact Nox can dash into Chernobog so she can get away from engagements easily if she can dash into him. Oh, and she can dash into him before he goes into ult, allowing the two to easily gank other lanes without any response. Nox is a counter because of her silence. The silence root combo is deadly and for Chernobog it can put you in a horrid spot. Chernobog relies on the range he has with his basics and his escapability. The fact Nox can lock him in place for so long is why Chernobog really struggles against her.

Nox's silence can control Chernobog really easily

Chernobog gets countered by gods that can close him down when he dashes or can keep him locked in place so he can’t escape, so both Hachiman and Ullr are two of his top counters. Hachiman is the one who can keep up with Chernobog and his kit allows him to poke from range. Hachiman's one allows him to have a longer range on his basics that allows him to poke gods while not being in their basic range. His two also has a lot of range on it, so it does allow you to poke safely against him. When Chernobog tries to escape, Hachiman can keep up with him on his horse, not allowing him to get away from the fight. Ullr is a counter as the axe stun that sets up his combo can lock Chernobog down to get the full combo off. Usually, this can be enough to force him out of lane or even kill Chernobog.

Both Ullr and Hachiman can cause serious problems for Chernobog

Gods that work well with Chernobog are ones that have plenty of CC and can set him up to follow on with his one-two combo. Gods like Athena are the ones that work best with him as the taunt allows Chernobog to get plenty of autos off after the one-two combo allowing him to poke out the enemy laners. Athena is a great support for most duo lanes but add in her global ult with Chernobog they have the added ability to change teamfights across the map. If you and your support can communicate together on where you are both going, you can give your team so much control over the map. Other gods that do work with Chernobog are the likes of Cerberus, Geb, and Fenrir.

Cerberus provides plenty of peel for Chernobog and with his stun and ult he has great set-up. You can use a CC chain off the ult or stun with Chernobog's root so you can deal as much damage as possible. Geb is similar with the knock up and ult. He provides plenty of peel for any carry and is a safe pick to go for when picking a support. The shield also allows you to have added safety as Chernobog as he can get you out of situations that could be fatal or even allow you to get off the dash that can save you. Fenrir is highly regarded in the support role. He provides a lot of damage early and can easily get you pressure against most duo lanes, with this it allows Chernobog to get a lead and snowball from then. His stun also allows you to get off plenty of poke or provide enough control for you to easily clear the wave, add in Fenrir’s ult you can just free cast autos onto the god Fenrir has grabbed allowing you to potentially get a pick.

Both Athena and Geb are good picks in the support role and both provide plenty of control for Chernobog

What Do We Build?

Builds can differ in the ADC role. There isn’t a one size fits all for all gods. Some even have situational items that you should only build at specific points in games and in certain games. Chernobog is the same. There is an overarching theme with what to build on him, but you can easily change it up depending on the circumstances. Crit items like Rage and Poisoned Star work really well on him, but they aren't must buys on him. Crit isn’t the most popular option currently in the meta but it still works well on Chernobog. Using Rage (or Deathbringer) combined with a Poisoned Star can be a lethal combination. The number of times I've just seen crit after crit in a teamfight with that combination can really change a teamfight.

Both Rage and Poisoned Star are vital pick ups if you want to build crit

Stacking items are bread and butter on an ADC, both Devourer's and Transcendence are great on Chernobog but it depends on what you want in the game which one you go for. Devourer's is a great item because of the lifesteal. It is more common on Chernobog compared to Transcendence, because it allows you to sustain while boxing in lane. Devourer's is favoured on a lot of gods but Transcendence can be really influential. However, running Transcendence requires you to run an Asi if you want lifesteal though. With Chernobog's attack speed being quite low before the two pops, it can be better because you’ll consistently have high attack speed.

Knowing which stacking item to take can change how teamfights go

IF you aren’t going to look at crit items, Ichaival and Qin's are great items on him. Both provide attack speed, which helps Chernobog, and both provide added benefits that are worth using on him. Ichaival is a great item for Chernobog as it increases your power and decreases your enemy's. This is great during games as the slight difference in damage can be the difference between getting a kill and not or getting out of a fight. Qin's is another great item on him. The attack speed helps him out so much and the added bonus of the passive makes it a lot easier to deal with tanks. If you can’t go crit, Qin's is the next best thing for him, because of the scaling on defensive items and how much health the supports and solo laners means it makes sense to pick the Sais up.

Both Ichaival and Qin's are great alternatives to building crit

Hopefully, this helps you with playing Chernobog or playing against him.

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