Garen vs Aurora
Skill matchup
Build vs Aurora
Build adapted to this matchup
Recommended items for Garen: Stridebreaker, Phantom Dancer, Mortal Reminder, Berserker's Greaves, Youmuu's Ghostblade, Dead Man's Plate, Force of Nature, Infinity Edge.
Starting items
Core build
Standard
Summoner spells
Anti CC
Other options
Power Spikes
Strength by game phase
Aurora's abilities
Passive, spells and ultimate
Aurora's spells and attacks exorcise spirits from the enemies she damages. Exorcised spirits follow Aurora around and heal her.
Cooldowns
Cooldowns by spell rank
| Level | Q | W | E | R |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 9s | 22s | 15s | – |
| 6 | 8s | 22s | 15s | 2m20 |
| 9 | 7s | 21s | 15s | 2m20 |
| 11 | 7s | 20s | 15s | 2m |
| 16 | 7s | 18s | 13s | 1m40 |
| 18 | 7s | 18s | 11s | 1m40 |
Playing as Garen
Tips to maximize your impact
- Silence, spin, back off
Trade with Decisive Strike (Q), then Judgment (E), and back off: the Decisive Strike silence stops your opponent from answering with spells.
- Stay closest to your opponent
During Judgment (E), stay closer to your opponent than to their minions: the nearest enemy takes extra damage.
- Back off to regenerate
After a trade, back off until Perseverance (passive) kicks in: without recent damage taken, you regenerate part of your health every second.
- Courage just before impact
Activate Courage (W) just before the bulk of the damage: you first gain a shield and tenacity, then a longer damage reduction.
- Save your R to finish
Save Demacian Justice (R) to finish: its true damage grows with the target's missing health.
Playing against Aurora
How to counter and exploit weaknesses
- Trade after her W
Take a trade once Across the Veil (W) is used: it's her spell to vanish, on a 22 to 18 second cooldown unless she takes part in a kill.
- Short trades
Take short trades: every spell or auto that hits you releases a spirit that heals her, through Spirit Abjuration (passive).
- Don't fight in her zone
Don't fight inside Between Worlds (R): she teleports from edge to edge, and crossing the edge slows you. Get out early, with a dash if you have one.
Other Garen matchups
Patch 16.21.1