Harley Guide

Harley’s mobility makes him a slippery character that enemies will find hard to kill when played properly. To get the most out of his burst damage and mobility though, you need to play around your Magic Hats and have a keen eye for enemy crowd control abilities that can stop you from returning safely to your hat.

In the early game, Harley should be securing jungle creeps and monitoring lanes, helping allies who are getting ambushed and swinging the fight to his team’s favor. 

While he isn’t classified as an assassin, Harley has a very burst and run kit like an assassin. Seek out lone enemies who are out of position, especially marksmen and immobile mages. 

Harley can offer his team some damage in team fights by playing more traditionally like a mage — staying at a safe distance and poking enemies down, using his abilities to deal burst damage on high priority targets. Whether you stay with your team in the back line and play defensively or flank like an assassin to get to the enemy damage dealers will be up to personal preference and your comfort on the hero.

Items

Because of his high mobility and slippery nature, Harley can be built like a glass cannon, enabling him to more easily burst enemies down and take them off the battlefield without taking a scratch himself.

Start with Star Shard for early jungle game dominance. The jungle item can either not be fully upgraded or sold later in the game for more damage depending on your playstyle and preferences.

Arcane Boots help Harley burst through enemy magic resistances, which is a necessity considering even his basic attacks deal magic damage. Smart enemies will build magic resistance against Harley, and this will help nullify some of that.

Magic Power items help increase Harley’s power. Defensively, items like Winter Truncheon can give him boosted power while also giving him the ability to freeze and avoid damage in the event things go poorly.

Abilities

Harley’s Poker Trick enables him to boost his own Attack Speed, helpful for weaving in auto attacks between spells and especially good for having stacked when using Deadly Magic on an enemy. Stack your attack speed and using your ultimate ability to Basic Attack for an extra 50% damage on those Basic Attacks when the ring explodes.

Space Escape gives Harley a nice get out of jail free card, allowing him to sneak up on enemies and quickly disappear back to his hat. You have .4 seconds to deal your damage, so you have to act quickly. 

Consider placing your magic hat someplace hidden, like a bush, so that you will have some cover when disappearing — especially if you’re in tight quarters and enemies are all around. Get into the position where you’d like to return and then use Space Escape to blink in, use your burst damage and get out.

Try to use Deadly Magic on high priority enemies, like the Marksman or Mage. These enemies will be much easier to burst down due to their own glass cannon builds, and you also will be taking out the enemy’s damage, rendering them very unlikely to win a team fight. Your team can use these advantages to push objectives and take towers with little resistance.

Emblems

As a Mage Genius, it’s no surprise that Harley takes the Mage Emblem page. 

Use Agility for added movement speed, enabling you to get in and out more quickly — especially helpful for making the most of the 4 seconds on Space Escape.

Observation increases his magic penetration, helping him deal consistent damage even against enemies who try to counter him with magic resistance.

Lastly, Impure Rage allows his damage to burn even harder. Mystery Shop is also a viable option, allowing him to get items cheaper.