It's been a minute since I've done a League build, but it and other MOBAs are always fun to draw builds from because they give me an easily quantifiable set of abilities to work off of. I have two League builds, one for this week and another next week, that I've been sitting on for a while and am eager to debut. This one in particular is something of a weird one, but is one that I had a lot of fun with figuring out. As always, this build is conceptualized entirely in a vacuum, with choices made in an attempt to fit the character. These choices might not hold up in a campaign with different themes and should be adjusted accordingly.
Let's get into the build for Yuumi, the Magical Cat, from League of Legends!
YUUMI, THE MAGICAL CAT
CHARACTER Yuumi
SOURCE League of Legends
BUILD GOALS
o Yuumi is a sapient cat who is an enchanter in League of Legends, a type of caster that protect and open up opportunities for their allies
o Bop ‘n’ Block is her passive that periodically powers up her next basic attack that restores her mana and grants her a shield – or to her Anchor if she’s attached
o Prowling Projectile launches a missile that Yuumi can control the flight of. On impact, it deals damage and slows champions
o You and Me! allows Yuumi to attach to an ally referred to as her Anchor. She grants them greater power and gains some reciprocal power
o Zoomies causes Yuumi to heal and speed up herself or her Anchor if she is attached
o Her ultimate, Final Chapter, causes her to channel and unleash seven waves of magical damage that root enemies hit by at least three waves
o Yuumi was once the familiar of a yordle enchantress until she disappeared and Yuumi became the keeper of the sentient and magical Book of Thresholds
o She travels through the portals in its pages and seeks out friendly companions that she protects with her magic
o While Yuumi wishes to find her friend, she is still a cat who gets distracted by napes and fish
LEVEL 1
Ancestry & Heritage: Beastkin Catfolk
o Ability Boosts & Flaws: +Dexterity, +Charisma, +Intelligence, -Wisdom
o Ancestry Feat: Critter Shape
Background: Student of Magic
o Ability Boosts: +Intelligence, +Charisma
o Skill Increase: Arcana (trained), Academia Lore (trained)
o Background Feat: Recognize Spell
Class & Subclass: Polymath Bard
o Class Ability Boost: +Charisma
o Skill Increase: Acrobatics (trained), Diplomacy (trained), Medicine (trained), Nature (trained), Occultism (trained), Performance (trained), Stealth (trained), Survival (trained)
o Class Feat: Versatile Performance
o Spell Repertoire: Cantrips – daze, guidance, infectious enthusiasm, read aura, telekinetic projectile; 1st – color spray, magic weapon, unseen servant
Details
o Ability Boosts: +Dexterity, +Constitution, +Wisdom, +Charisma (Str 10, Dex 14, Con 12, Int 14, Wis 10, Cha 18)
Doubling up on beastkin and catfolk may seem weird, but Yuumi mainly wants it to gain the Critter Shape feat, which will allow her to transform into a small cat, as per her appearance in League. Unsurprisingly, there wasn’t quite a background to fit being a familiar, but student of magic seemed a close enough fit. The build really begins to pick up with the bard class, specifically the polymath bard. While Versatile Performance doesn’t help much, the polymath bard does start her off with the unseen servant spell. With this, Yuumi can cast unseen servant to have it carry a book, change into a kitten with her heritage and Critter Shape, and then Sustain the Spell while changed to have the unseen servant carry about the book, making it appear as though she’s move like she does in the game. Not that she can do much in this state aside from Sustain a Spell. As Yuumi is a support champion, most of her spells focus on supporting her allies or controlling the battlefield, such as infectious enthusiasm or color spray, which can almost serve as an early Final Chapter. With the idea of it being a projectile that she launches under her control, telekinetic projectile almost works for Prowling Projectile, but there will be better options later.
LEVEL 2
o Class Feat: Esoteric Polymath
o Skill Feat: Arcane Sense
o Spell Repertoire: 1st – soothe*
o Gear: cloak of feline rest
LEVEL 3
o General Feat: Ancestral Paragon – Cat Nap
o Skill Increase: Occultism (expert)
o Spell Repertoire: 2nd – blur, dancing shield or pack attack
o Gear: hand of the mage, cloak of feline rest, cantrip deck (5-pack)
LEVEL 4
o Class Feat: Triple Time
o Skill Feat: Trick Magic Item
o Spell Repertoire: 2nd – magic missile*
o Gear: bracelet of dashing, hand of the mage, wayfinder, cloak of feline rest
LEVEL 5
o Ability Boosts: +Dexterity, +Constitution, +Intelligence, +Charisma (Str 10, Dex 16, Con 14, Int 16, Wis 10, Cha 19)
o Ancestry Feat: Focused Cat Nap
o Skill Increase: Arcana (expert), Religion (trained)
o Spell Repertoire: 3rd – heroism, magical fetters
o Gear: mentalist’s staff, bracelet of dashing, pendant of the occult, hand of the mage, cantrip deck (5-pack), cloak of feline rest
Esoteric Polymath nabs Yuumi a book to play the part of the Book of Thresholds and will allow her to alter her spells to get what she’d like. Triple Time is a nice early way for Yuumi to give out the Zoomies, enhancing the movement Speed of all her allies for a round. Ancestral Paragon lets Yuumi pick up Cat Nap as that is what she often finds herself doing when she falls prey to her feline instincts. It also lets her pick up Focused Cat Nap, which she might make use of in a few feats. Still, it fits the character. Arcane Sense fills in for the fact that she didn’t take in detect magic among her cantrips and Trick Magic Item allows her to wield a variety of magical items, which seems to mesh well with the Esoteric Polymath feat. The heal provided by Zoomies is provided by soothe while the more controlled nature of Prowling Projectile can be achieved with the magic missile she gains here.
LEVEL 6
o Class Feat: Multifarious Muse – Maestro
o Skill Feat: Cat Fall
o Spell Repertoire: 3rd – slow
o Gear: +1 leather armor, mentalist’s staff, healer’s gloves, bracelet of dashing, hand of the mage, wayfinder
LEVEL 7
o General Feat: Ride
o Skill Increase: Occultism (master)
o Spell Repertoire: 4th – dimension door, fly
o Gear: ringmaster’s staff, +1 leather armor, 5, healer’s gloves, bracelet of dashing, pendant of the occult
LEVEL 8
o Class Feat: Inspire Defense
o Skill Feat: Quick Recognition
o Spell Repertoire: 4th – chromatic ray*
o Gear: wand of fey flames, endless grimoire, ringmaster’s staff, +1 leather armor, healer’s gloves, shapespeak mask
LEVEL 9
o Ancestry Feat: Cat’s Luck
o Skill Increase: Arcana (master)
o Spell Repertoire: 5th – cloak of colors, shadow walk
o Gear: +1 resilient leather armor, ethersight ring, wand of fey flames, ringmaster’s staff, wand of manifold missiles (1st-level), diplomat’s badge
LEVEL 10
o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Dexterity, +Wisdom, +Charisma (Str 12, Dex 18, Con 14, Int 16, Wis 12, Cha 20)
o Class Feat: Harmonize
o Skill Feat: Consult the Spirits (Occultism)
o Spell Repertoire: 5th – chromatic wall*
o Gear: wand of manifold missiles (3rd-level), +1 resilient explorer’s clothing, lover’s gloves, wand of fey flames, ringmaster’s staff, endless grimoire
By taking Multifarious Muse, Yuumi also becomes a maestro bard and thus gains Lingering Composition. She hasn’t invested much in Performance though that could be changed, but it’s a standard-difficulty DC and the Charisma focus helps. With Inspire Defense, Yuumi grants a defense boost to her allies, as per Bop ‘n’ Block, while Harmonize allows her to dish out two compositions in a single turn, buying wholly into her role as a support character. Cat Fall is taken solely for the pun while Quick Recognition builds out of the Recognize Spell from her background. In an encounter with Braum, Yuumi protected him from snow-spirits, which led to the inclusion of the Consult the Spirits skill feat. Cat’s Luck probably doesn’t make a lot of sense now, but there’s a reasoning behind it that we’ll get to.
LEVEL 11
o General Feat: Feather Step
o Skill Increase: Medicine (expert)
o Spell Repertoire: 6th – vibrant pattern, zero gravity
o Gear: greater endless grimoire, greater hat of the magi, wand of manifold missiles (3rd-level), +1 resilient explorer’s clothing, ethersight ring, wand of fey flames
LEVEL 12
o Class Feat: Eclectic Polymath
o Skill Feat: Magical Shorthand
o Spell Repertoire: 6th – teleport*
o Gear: +2 resilient explorer’s clothing, shadow signet, greater endless grimoire, wand of manifold missiles (3rd-level), lover’s gloves, greater mentalist’s staff
LEVEL 13
o Ancestry Feat: Shared Luck
o Skill Increase: Nature (expert)
o Spell Repertoire: 7th – plane shift, prismatic spray
o Gear: greater ringmaster’s staff, +2 resilient explorer’s clothing, wand of overflowing life (4th-level), greater endless grimoire, greater hat of the magi, wand of manifold missiles (3rd-level)
LEVEL 14
o Class Feat: Allegro
o Skill Feat: Continual Recovery
o Spell Repertoire: 7th – visions of danger*
o Gear: wand of manifold missiles (5th-level), broom of flying, greater ringmaster’s staff, +2 resilient explorer’s clothing, shadow signet, greater endless grimoire
LEVEL 15
o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Constitution, +Wisdom, +Charisma (Str 14, Dex 18, Con 16, Int 16, Wis 14, Cha 21)
o General Feat: Pick Up the Pace
o Skill Increase: Occultism (legendary)
o Spell Repertoire: 8th – prismatic wall, undermine reality
o Gear: +2 greater resilient explorer’s clothing, boots of speed, wand of manifold missiles (5th-level), greater ringmaster’s staff, bag of holding (type III), wand of overflowing life (4th-level)
Eclectic Polymath expands on Yuumi’s adaptability with her spells and Allegro gives her another composition cantrip that expands upon the concept of Zoomies by also potentially increasing ‘attack speed’ as well. It is in this block that Yuumi also really gains a spell to mimic the effects of her Final Chapter with prismatic spray – seven colors for the seven waves that the ability throws out. Picking up spells such as plane shift are meant to play into the portals contained within the pages of Book of Thresholds. A slight dip into Medicine and its related feats here allows her to further support and tend to her allies. Pick Up the Pace further plays into the idea of Zoomies with it increasing the pace of your allies out of combat. Since Yuumi always stays close to her allies, Shared Luck allows her to help out her friends in a pinch.
LEVEL 16
o Class Feat: Effortless Concentration
o Skill Feat: Spirit Speaker
o Spell Repertoire: 8th – spirit song*
o Gear: dragonscale amulet, +2 greater resilient explorer’s clothing, major endless grimoire, wand of manifold missiles (5th-level), broom of flying, greater ringmaster’s staff
LEVEL 17
o Ancestry Feat: Reliable Luck
o Skill Increase: Nature (master)
o Spell Repertoire: 9th – prismatic shield, weird
o Gear: major staff of impossible visions, dragonscale amulet, earthglide cloak, +2 greater resilient explorer’s clothing, boots of speed, wand of manifold missiles (5th-level)
LEVEL 18
o Class Feat: Impossible Polymath
o Skill Feat: Express Rider
o Spell Repertoire: 9th – voracious gestalt*
o Gear: circlet of persuasion, major staff of impossible visions, wand of smoldering fireballs (7th-level), dragonscale amulet, +2 greater resilient explorer’s clothing, major endless grimoire
LEVEL 19
o General Feat: Fleet
o Skill Increase: Religion (expert)
o Spell Repertoire: 10th – alter reality, gate
o Gear: +3 greater resilient explorer’s clothing, circlet of persuasion, wand of manifold missiles (7th-level), major staff of impossible visions, dragonscale amulet, earthglide cloak
LEVEL 20
o Ability Boosts: +Constitution, +Intelligence, +Wisdom, +Charisma (Str 14, Dex 18, Con 18, Int 18, Wis 16, Cha 22)
o Class Feat: Symphony of the Muse
o Skill Feat: Ward Medic
o Skill Increase: Society (trained)
o Gear: wand of overflowing life (8th-level), +3 greater resilient explorer’s clothing, mask of allure, wand of manifold missiles (7th-level), grimoire of unknown necessities, major staff of impossible visions
Effortless Concentration might find the most use with spells picked up from Esoteric Polymath, which are expanded even further with Impossible Polymath as it allows her to wield spells from other traditions. Yuumi can switch up her actions a bit better with Symphony of the Muse, no longer having to spend the extra action for Harmonize. Reliable Luck grants Yuumi the ability to use her Cat’s Luck more regularly, which she can then protect her allies more frequently with the Shared Luck feat she already possesses. Ride and Express Rider were both taken as semi-jokes to play into the fact she rides around on the shoulder of her Anchors in-game. Throughout the build, spells with a focus on colors and traveling between planes were picked to represent the portals within the Book of Thresholds and the rainbow-esque nature of Final Chapter. Most of her other abilities are achieved through the use of her compositions rather than actual spells, which frees her up to pick what she wants a bit.
FREE ARCHETYPE SUGGESTIONS: Honestly, this build accomplishes pretty much everything it needs to with the bard class. For FA games, I could maybe suggested the Blessed One Dedication with feats such as Accelerating Touch, Resilient Touch, Amplifying Touch, and Rejuvenating Touch to give Yuumi's lay on hands some additional buffing effects. Other archetypes that fit are Spell Trickster Dedication, the most obvious option of which is Disk Rider.
CONCLUSION
For a stretch, the catfolk ancestry works for Yuumi, but with the beastkin heritage and the Critter Shape feat, she gets even closer to the form of a domesticated cat. With the unseen servant from her muse, Esoteric Polymath for a spellbook, and Critter Shape to take on the form of a tiny cat, she is able to achieve her means of locomotion in League by summoning a servant, standing on the book, and Sustaining the Spell to have it carry her. While Pathfinder doesn’t have mana to restore, she can provide a defensive boost to her allies with compositions such as inspire defense. With the enhanced accuracy of Prowling Projectile, spells like magic missile or telekinetic projectile mimic its effects. She can’t attach to people without some allowance from the GM as You and Me!, but is able to enhance the strength of her allies with the inspire courage composition or spells like heroism. The heal of Zoomies comes from soothe and it’s speed up comes from your choice of allegro, haste, or triple time. She has a bit of an ability to hasten people outside of combat with Pick Up the Pace. Final Chapter with its colorful effects and its seven waves of magic is best represented by spells like color spray to start with and then prismatic spray further down the line. Student of Magic takes the place of her being a familiar to an enchantress and her travel through the portals of the book are achieved through spells such as dimension door, plane shift, and gate. And despite her desire to help her missing friend, Yuumi is still a cat who gets distracted by fish and Cat Naps.
Be sure to lemme know what you think of the build and who else you might like to see!
If you want to join in on the discussion of these builds and the ones I do for monsters or just hang out with a bunch of fellow TTRPG nerd, check out the Discord server. We also have a Twitter where we try to post teasers for the blog and are trying to get some milestones made up for. Next week,
Until then, have a fantastic Friday!
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