Honor of Kings just got its global release recently, and fans of the MOBA genre are flocking to it trying to see what the fuss is all about. Those who are more unfamiliar with such games will struggle to adjust to it, and in this guide, we will be giving you some tips on how to play as Alessio, who is a very beginner-friendly choice that every newbie should learn.
Complete Alessio Guide
I’m never going to be able to shake off the League of Legends comparisons as somebody who played that for years, but Alessio feels like a more complex version of the very first iteration of Graves (he was a marksman too, you know).
In a nutshell, Alessio is a ranged hero who can deal a lot of area of effect damage and is typically found in the farm lane (bottom). His uncanny ability to have AoE basic attacks makes him particularly good at clearing minion waves quickly, racking up a ton of gold fast.
Before we go through some tips on how to play him, let’s quickly cover what his abilities are:
- Rebellious Little Hawk (Passive Skill) – Alessio’s basic attacks always deal area of effect damage. Simple and straight to the point.
- Upgraded Shell (Active Skill 1) – When activated, Alessio’s next three basic attacks will deal bonus damage and have a larger area of effect.
- Legendary Hero Debut (Active Skill 2) – Alessio throws down a smoke bomb that will create a cloud that will grant any friendly hero (including himself) a stealth buff while standing in it. Activating this will also send Alessio airborne for a brief moment, with basic attacks prolonging this status.
- Sunset Fireworks Show (Active Skill 3) – Alessio leaps into the air and shoots multiple shells at an enemy (grants brief CC immunity as well). These deal area of effect damage, but each subsequent hit on a target after the first shell will only deal 25% damage.
Tip #1. Focus on Clears and Harassing
Take full advantage of your area of effect basic attacks by applying constant pressure to both creeps and your lane opponents. Start off by getting Upgraded Shell at level 1 and use it against the enemy marksman as soon as you can.
By using your first skill early and frequently, you can force enemy players out of the lane as early as level 1, giving you free rein over the next couple of waves. This will also let you push up to the tower immediately, though you likely won’t have enough damage right now to make it matter.
Just keep pressing the advantage and snowball your way to a strong early and mid game. Even if you don’t secure kills early on, constantly keeping the other marksman and support out of the lane will have a similar effect.
Check out our guide on how to macro farm lane as well, as it will have some additional tips to further increase your gold farming effectiveness.
Tip #2. Abuse Legendary Hero Debut
Legendary Hero Debut sends you airborne, which allows Alessio to ignore terrain as long as he hasn’t touched the ground yet. This makes you hilariously more mobile than other marksmen.
This ability is great for both engaging and escaping, and even something as simple as navigating through the jungle. Basic attacks will also prolong this status, letting you glide through the map during a fight.
If you find yourself in a tough spot or an enemy dives you, pop Legendary Hero Debut and start moving through a wall while attacking. Unless they have a way to dash or blink past terrain, you will very likely make it out safely.
Tip #3. Hoard Red Buffs
Towards the mid game stages of a match, you should try to get the red buff as often as you can. This will allow you to secure 1v1 kills on your own since your kit lacks any form of crowd control.
As a marksman you are also pretty much one of the best candidates for having it in any team composition, as your focus on basic attacks will lead to the slowing effect having a near 100% uptime on your targets.
This tip applies to almost any other marksman too, with certain exceptions like Shouyue. On that note, we have a guide on how to play as Shouyue in Honor of Kings if you’re interested in a more unique take on the marksman role.
Tip #4. Build Up Your Critical Rate
Finally, even though you get a preset item build, just know that focusing on critical rate is one of the best things you can do for Alessio. This is because critical strikes also apply to his area of effect damage.
This means that if your enemies are all stacked together, your explosiveshotswill deal massive damage to everybody if you consistently get those critical hits. If the game drags on for long, you will be clearing out enemy teams as if they are mere creep waves.
Coupled with your ability to go airborne, you will be able to do some quick drive-by ganks on your own against wandering enemy heroes. This will also make you a split pushing machine due to how fast you will be clearing waves.
And that concludes our guide for Alessio, who is overall a really solid and easy to learn marksman that should help you rise the ranks as he is viable at any level of play. While you’re here, check out our guide on how to play Diao Chan in Honor of Kings as well so that you can start learning a different lane!
