Here I will just post some changes done to this Guide because of Item, Champions or Rune changes in future patches.


December 15th, 2024 - Patch 14.24

No signifigant changes.

Nothing relevant.

Guide unchanged.

Me lazy.

Keep fighting.

Good luck.

Me sleep.


November 20th, 2024 - Patch 14.23

Not much changed for Galio this patch. Season still looks for him and despite his increase in pick and banrate, the devs havent mentioned something that could result in a nerf. So we are still good and continue playing him as before.

There are just a lot of Champion changes this patch, but nothing too interesting that could affect Galio.

I did add Smolder and Ambessa in the [Threats and Synergy] Option though.

- Added Smolder into the [Threats] section.

- Added Ambessa into the [Threats] section

So thats it already for this patch. Since no one reads these anyways, I can tell you, the single person who reads this, a little secret. But dont tell anyone! *waves you closer* (*whispers* I really love Galio...) but pshhh...!

Until next time and keep on smashing.


November 5th, 2024 - Patch 14.22

Nothing really changed this patch. Items or Runes or anything else, that could be important for Galio, were not touched at all.

The build changes I did last patch also still feel pretty strong. The Mana nerfs just nerfed Galio's early game, but with the mana sources he hasnt lost anything else really.

Galio is still a strong pick and in a good Position right now, so I wont change anything here, for this patch.

A big GG to SKT T1 and Faker who won worlds. Faker could actually choose to give Galio a Prestige Skin, which would be pretty dope. lets hope for the best.

Other than that, I wish you all "good luck and have fun" in your games this patch, and thanks again for sticking with me here, and reading my guide.

Until next Patch.


October 22th, 2024 - Patch 14.21

Gentleman, it is time. Its time for our first Galio Nerf since many seasons now. But it was only a matter of time. With Galio Proplay prescence right now and the constant nerfs to items that didnt really affected him, it was pretty sure that he gets hit eventually.

But fear not! Its nothing too tragic and we can still play our boy like the machine he is. Lemme explain a bit.

- Galio's base mana recuded from 500 to 410.

This means that his base mana on level 1 got reduced by 90. His Mana per level got unchanged. So you basically can do one Winds of War less before running out of mana. This is planned to get Galio off of his Hollow Radiance or Stormsurge first rush he has been going for a while now.

But you can still rush your Hollow Radiance into Riftmaker against AP laners, you just need to smack in a Tear of the Goddess and youre good to go.

So currently you need atleast some sort of Mana to stay consistant on Galio and have your abilities ready for a fight. You can use Manaflow Band or even Presence of Mind and you would be good to go and could still build the same as before.

For this guide and the builds I use, this will be a bit differently. In the patch notes it is stated that the devs want Rod of Ages to be a viable pick for Galio. If you know my guide for a while now, you know that I am too a big fan of Rod of Ages and in my eyes it is definetly a item that gets ignored a bit too much. Yes it has a bad build path, yes you lose some early game value, but nontheless, its a strong Item for Galio and gives him everything he needs.

I cant talk for the rest of the Galio players, but I will talk briefly the way I will play Galio now. I will mainly stick to Rod of Ages and Fimbulwinter for Tank/Bruiser with Luden's Companion and Blackfire Torch as my AP choices.

That means I did some big changes to my builds and I quickly want to atleast mention them without going too much into detail.

Over the last few patches I did some brainstorming and testing and I decided to get rid of the Domination rune page completly. I also will abandon Sorcerer's Shoes completly, since they had a another nerf in this patch.

Arcane Comet is just a better version of Electrocute while offering more value with its subrunes, that being Transcendence and Nimbus Cloak. With Arcane Comet you only need to hit 1 ability which also works for a more ranged build, while with Electrocute you need to hit your entire combo, for almost the same damage and a longer cooldown.

Sorcerer's Shoes had their value reduced another time, since they only give 12 Magic Penetration now. Ionian Boots of Lucidity just offer Galio way more and are cheaper anyways. They play into him having lower cooldown aswell as reducing the Ghost + Flash playstyle I enjoy so much.

So those 2 are out for now. I changed the builds accordingly and also updated the runes you should use paired with the items. Right now, all the builds listed above are also builds I am using in my games. That wasnt the case before. It was important to me to only add stuff into this guide I actually use, so I apologize for keeping some items listed as "Build" despite never really using them.

And I think thats already everthing I wanted to get out.

Galio wasnt really nerfed, he just needs a different approach now. He is still a extremly strong Champion, a solid laner, a good roamer and a massive teamfighter. So stay awesome, keep smashing and as always, I will be here for your Questions and Thoughts, until the next patch drops.

Best of luck to all of you.


October 9th, 2024 - Patch 14.20

With Patch 14.20 we dont get that many changes, but some change Galio slightly, so I will just list them here.

First of, Stormsurge and Luden's Companion had a small damage nerf. Nothing too crazy, but it will be probaly noticeable. But to be fair, those items were pretty strong, and the main reason why I recommend them (Mana, Ability Haste, AP, Movement Speed) got unchanged, so they are still solid items that will stay in these builds.

Next of we had some rune changes:

Phase Rush gives more Movement Speed earlier but less later into the game. So in short, lower level = faster / higher level = slower (than before). So also nothing too crazy. Late Game Phase Rush is still pretty strong and will still do his job by engaging or disengaging.

Nimbus Cloak on the other hand was just straight up buffed. So the entire Movement Speed it gave is just increased completly. I can highly recommend sticking to Nimbus Cloak because it decided entire games in the past, depending how you use it, but mainly with your Shield of Durand you can make some massive plays. As said before, I recommend using Ghost and Flash paired with Ionian Boots of Lucidity to get the max value out of it.

Grasp of the Undying was also changed. You might think it was actually nerfed, but thats only the case for Squishies who shouldnt be using Grasp of the Undying in the first place like Senna, Nidalee or Gangplank. Basically it scales completly with HP now. So Tanks get the most of its value out of it, that means it also benefits Galio more, since were using Tank and Bruiser builds. While on the other hand, champions that used this rune before, get less out of it, so its easier to kill them. So just a buff on our side.

Other than that, I think that is everything noteworthy this Patch.

But I got one more thing for you guys.

The Galio W bug was finally fixed! I can play my champ now!

Play Video
I wish you all a very nice patch and good games, until next time!


September 25th, 2024 - Patch 14.19

Hello again. Again I apologize for this delayed update, but I took some time to test all the new item changes and theorize with the Builds.

For you who dont know, Patch 14.19 basically nerfed every item across the board. But I can assure you, Galio was hit the least from these changes. He is still very strong, and less damage in the game overall, really plays into his Kit with his Shield of Durand and Justice Punch.

Now to the Build changes.

We are in luck, because we dont have to change that much in our build variety. Lich Bane, Stormsurge and Shadowflame got their Movement Speed nerfed, but their AP increased, so those are still very good Assassin Items, so no change here.

Luden's Companion and Blackfire Torch also had their Stats adjusted a bit, but overall, theyre still very strong so no change to the AP and Ranged builds aswell.

A lot of Tank items like Sunfire Aegis, Thornmail and Abyssal Mask got also adjusted, but they got hit the least from a nerf perspective, compared to other items.

Here comes the only change I decided to made. I present you my new Standard Tank Build, which gives you everything you need. Last Patch we used Sunfire Aegis and Abyssal Mask and this time we trade them with Unending Despair and Spirit Visage for a full sustain build with Grasp of the Undying, Second Wind, Revitalize, the healing from Riftmaker and the shield from Fimbulwinter.

Since Sunfire and Abyssal got nerfed, I think this new build will be a sick new way to play and stay in teamfights and just never die. Everyone will deal less damage this patch, so we can stay alive even more with this combo. I already gave it a try and it feels massive.



Mind that I sold my boots for Jak'Sho, The Protean and this was also a Ultimate Spellbook, because I just wanted the Gold fast and see the stats. But I assure you, it performs in Normal and Ranked games aswell, it just needs some time to become active.

For anyone else, you still can just go the usual AP builds, because nothing really changed there and its still very strong.

I added Sunfire Aegis and Abyssal Mask in "Bruiser Build #1 (Grasp of the Undying)" to use them for a bit more damage in combination with Rod of Ages, so this should also be a nice build.

Then just a quick note that Shield Bash got his Armor and Magic Resist removed, but the damage was increased. At first I thought I would change Shield Bash for maybe Demolish but it turns out, as you can see in the Picture above, that it actually does a lot of damage, and we have our Shield of Durand Passive Shield up almost all the time, so its actually a damage buff, thats why I will keep using it.

So thats it for this Patch then. I hope you appreciate the time I took for these, but I promise it will be worth it. Galio still looks very strong and a good pick for almost every scenario.

Best of Luck in the new season, and as always, keep on smashing!



September 15th, 2024 - Patch 14.18

Hello everyone. I deeply apologize for this delayed update. I was pretty sick the last few days, and needed some bedtime. I always want to be atleast a bit clear and concentrated when I write this stuff here, so I rather took some time, before telling you guys something wrong.

Getting started then:

- Quick Update: It would really take way too long to include every minor change some matchups and laner get every single patch, so I change my approach to only add something here, when it effects the [Threats & Synergies] section of the guide. That means if a Ahri E does 40 more base damage, thats a big change itself, but I wont actually include it here, if its place in the [Threats & Synergies] doesnt get changed by me. This safes me some time, and is probably better for you folks too, since you dont need to read too much then. If a Champion should get a serious change that makes it harder or easier for Galio so much, that it effects where its placed in [Threats & Synergies], I of course will let you know.

Patch is looking pretty good for us right now.

- ADCs getting nerfed with Bloodthirster, Immortal Shieldbow, Fleet Footwork while some of our items get buffed like Luden's Companion, Shadowflame and Stormsurge.

These buffs and nerfs makes it easier for us to deal even more damage, while also reducing the defense and sustain of ADCs. Because its a straight forward buff, It wont change much in the guide itself, but I noticed something that I would like to change now, because it just works a bit better.

- Swaped the second item in [AP Build #1 (Assassin) (Eletrocute)] from Shadowflame to Stormsurge. The extra movement speed and the easier time to proc the passive thunderbolt now, is something I noticed when trying this build. It really helps to get a bit more damage out, while also being able to catch enemy carries and even get out of it alive, something Shadowflame doesnt really do. So I just swaped the Item Position, when to buy it in the build.

- Fixed some small typos in the guide. (Thanks to u/Kaiometh for pointing them out.)

Thats already it for today. Stay tuned, because it seems that the next patch that will hit us, will change the Meta drastically.

Until then, keep smashing.


August 28th, 2024 - Patch 14.17

Patch 14.17 didnt change that much that could be important to Galio. Some champs got nerfed and buffed again, but nothing that should be worth to mention in regards of Galios Matchups.

One thing they did change tho, is how channeled abilites work when your are stunned.



Basically this means, if you are stunned by any ability, you can just hold W during the stun, to instantly begin charging W as soon as the stun is over. The awesome thing about this is, that this also counts for holding W while youre still channeling your R or E.

I made a small video to showcase this here. Pay attention how I can just hold my W while other abilites are still coming out.


Play Video

This will make plays and comboing with Galio easier and more reliable to hit.

- Also added Vladimir Into the [Threats] section.


August 14th, 2024 - Patch 14.16

Patch 14.16 didnt change all too much, that could be regarding Galio, but I will mention some minor things.

- Blade of the Ruined King had a slight change. Basically it stats got nerfed, but its passive damage was increased by 1% per attack for melee champs. This should be better for Galio to play against pesky ADCs like Lucian, Akshan or Tristana.

- Speaking of, some champions you face had some slight changes like Corki, Lucian, Syndra, Sylas, Qiyana, Katarina, Azir and Orianna. But to be honest, there shouldnt be something to look out for specifically. Just some minor buffs and nerfs, so no real changes on how to face them.

- Biggest change for 14.16 is probably the Death Timers. Basically you have to wait a few seconds longer before respawning on level 1 to 9, but on the other side you also have a longer movement speed buff after dying, so you can reach your lane quicker. This was made to indirectly nerf Snowballing and Teleport, which makes sense in my eyes. Shouldnt change all too much for Galio himself, but keep these changes in mind against your enemies. [If someone would to read more detailed into this, I got the link to the patch here: https://www.leagueoflegends.com/en-us/news/game-updates/patch-14-16-notes/]

- After some more testing and looking into the build variety, I came to the conclusion to make a few changes to thesection. In short I wanted only Builds listed I actually use in my games and have knowledge about, so I changed 2 Item builds.

- Removed the [Bruiser Build #3 (Grasp of the Undying)]. It was too situational
and its build path was horrible. The other 2 Bruiser Options are basically
everything you need. With Option #1 being more tanky and Option #2 focusing
more on damage.

- Changed the [AP build #3 (catch enemies) (Phase Rush)] to [AP build #3
(ranged/poke) (Arcane Comet)]. Since I mainly use Ghost + Flash with
Nimbus Cloak, I dont really had that much use for Shurelya's Battlesong.
The entire build got changed to a Poke Build using [[Luden's
Tempest]] which works well against squishy champs that have quite the range or
are hard to reach like Hwei or Syndra. Mid to Late game, after getting
a few more items, you can almost one shot enemies with a well placed Winds of War.

Overall, that should already be it. Again, if anything changes, I let you guys now here in this section. Until then, I wish you all the best in your League games. Keep on Smashing!


July 31th, 2024 - Patch 14.15

Patch 14.15 gave us some changes, so lets get right into them.

- First of all, finally added Aurora in the [THREATS AND SYNERGIES] section. Shouldnt be all too hard to play against her. Only thing thats annoying is her pre level 6 in combination with Electrocute.

- Champions like Akali, Aurelion Sol, Cassiopeia, Sylas, Yasuo, Yone and Zed had some changes. Only thing worth mentioning here might be Sylas who is becoming more of a Bruiser, so playing with a bit more HP and using some Anti Heal like Morellonomicon will definetly help his increased tankiness and sustain. Cassiopeia also seems a bit more annoying in the early game where she can use her Abilites even more now, due to the mana changes. Her late game got a bit adjusted tho, so just playing a bit more defensively in the early, might already do the trick.

- ADC Items like Kraken Slayer and Lord Dominik's Regards had some nerfs, so suck on this ADCs! Will definetly playing against champions that use these items like Tristana and Akshan be a lot easier now.

- Stormsurge buffs is pretty redunant in my eyes. A bit more Movement Speed is meh. Overall its not a bad Item per se, but something like a Shadowflame just offers way more to a Galio AP build. So it will be unchanged in the Tier List.

- Null-Magic Mantle had an adjustment where it costs 50 gold less, but also gives 5 Magic Resist less, which again is pretty redundant in terms of gold value.

- Then we got all the Shoes nerfs. Mercury's Treads will lose 5 Magic Resist and cost 100 Gold more. While this affects Galio who likes his Mercury's against AP champions, this also effects Galio's enemies, so its a lose on both sides. Which is fine, I guess...

ADCs also lost some value with 5% less Attack Speed on Berserker's Greaves so thats again nice for us, which makes laning and facing ADCs easier.

Ionian Boots of Lucidity cost 100 gold more and give 2 less Ability Haste, which is a slight nerf.

Sorcerer's Shoes give 3 less Magic Penetration.

Plated Steelcaps cost 200 gold more, but also give 2% basic attack reduction back, like we had pre nerf, so its back to where it was.

- Then finally, we got some Item Changes that Galio will like.

Cosmic Drive gives 100 HP more and also gives more Movement Speed from its passive. Since we lose Cosmic Drive a lot in our builds, this is just a straight up buff and will probably feel quite nice.

Hextech Rocketbelt also gives 100 HP more, but I am still not a big fan of this item, but thats just me personally. It gives good stats for Galio, but I dont really feel the Active Dash and cant make it work into a Build.

Void Staff gives 5 AP more which is pretty nice, but overall, I recommend sticking with Cryptbloom on a Full AP Galio Build, since it offers better stats and a nice passive heal which comes in handy in a big Teamfight. It stays in B tier.

Last but not least we have a Abyssal Mask buff. Man I love this Item. It also costs 200 Gold more now, but the % Magic Resist Shred got increased from 20% to 30% and its Radius where its applied also got increased by 100 Units. Galio is perhaps THE best champion to make use of this Item, due to how his Colossal Smash and Shield of Durand works. Im not kidding when I say that his is now the best Magic Resist Item you can buy. Definetly a strong item option for Galio right now.

- Therefore I removed the Force of Nature in Tank Build #3 (against heavy AP) (GRASP OF THE UNDYING) and replaced it with Abyssal Mask for when the enemy team has basically only AP damage.

So yea, 14.15 looks pretty big for Galio. A lot of Build Options, ADCs got nerfed, and some counter matchups should be easier now. Keep in mind that the Boot nerfs affect everyone, not just Galio himself, so overall a solid Patch for our Big Stone Boy.


July 17th, 2024 - Patch 14.14

Honestly, not much to mention here, some counters like Tristana and Corki had slight nerfs, but that wont really affect them at all in the [Threat] Section.

Items didnt got touched at all, so nothing to mention there aswell.

Therefore, there are no changes to this guide for this patch at all.


June 26th, 2024 - Patch 14.13

Patch 14.13 also didnt changed a lot for Galio directly. Brand got a slight nerf, which will makes laning against him a bit easier, but on the other side, Orianna and Lissandra got a buff, which will likely result in them being played a bit more often.

Something noteworthy is the Electrocute changes. Its base damage at level 1 got increased by 20, while its base damage at level 18 got reduced by 30. This will make Electrocute a good option for early game snowballs against champions you can win fight against easier, like Katarina, Akali and Fizz.

Dark Harvest also good some changes, where it deals more damage with more stacks you got, but overall, I would suggest staying with Eletrocute, since its just better fitting for Galio, aswell as being easier to Proc, since you dont need a certain HP threshold.

What I did do tho, after some more testing is changing the [BRUISER BUILD #2 (GRASP OF THE UNDYING)] into a complete new build. This is now basically like the [AP BUILD #2 (RANGED/POKE) (ARCANE COMET)] just the Bruiser version of it. I think Blackfire Torch and Liandry's Torment are pretty underrated on Galio, since his Colossal Smash can also proc the burn, while also having 4 AOE abilites which lets you burn every enemy caught with your Abilites. Like mentioned, I just added Jak'Sho, The Protean and also Warmog's Armor for some sustain and tankiness into this build.

- Also changed Warmog's Armor from C to A tier. I just realized that this item now also gives movement speed, while the Passive Regen is up. (Thanks to u/tchanqua also named "Warmogger" (hehe...) on Reddit for bringing this to my attention) This make it easier to catch enemies of guard with your Shield of Durand, but you only got 1 chance, since as soon as you enter combat, that buff is gone. But overall, its a better choice now after its recent changes. In my eyes Heartsteel is still the better option in most cases.


June 12th, 2024 - Patch 14.12

Patch 14.12 didnt added much in regards to Galio as a Champion or his laning phase.

They only changed Void Staff AP from 80 to 90, which is pretty nice. But overall I see Cryptbloom still the better option with the additional 15 Ability Haste and the healing AOE, so I wont change its place in the tier list.

Because there isnt much to talk about this patch, enjoy this Meme I made about the Buffs/Nerfs of our Laning Opponents:



Also just a quick shoutout to a buddy of mine, Porjn. He is a good friend of mine and played a lot of Galio Jungle. He recently made a Guide here about Galio Jungle. As I told you guys here before, Im the wrong person to ask anything Galio Jungle related to, so I wanted to share his Guide with you guys. (https://www.mobafire.com/league-of-legends/build/gungle-galio-jungle-off-meta-609674)


May 30th, 2024 - Patch 14.11

The Current Season with Patch 14.11 is still pretty "clunky". Some ADCs and Items were nerfed, but overall it is still a pretty unbalanced state of the game (in my eyes). I did some minor changes, that are listed below because overall I think the Runes and Items listed here are still your best shot to be succesfull with Galio. That said, I added Riftmaker to the Tank Item Builds, because you really need some damage to kill those pesky Carries before they shred you down.

- Added Hwei into the "Threats" section. (I forgot to add him since he came out, and for that I apologize.)

- Added Teleport back into "Summoner Spell Options". With the current meta where you play against Hwei, Akshan, Ahri, Tristana and Taliyah, surviving the Laning Phase is pretty important, thats why I added Teleport back into these lanes as viable option.

- Changed the 4th Item in "TANK BUILD #2 (AGAINST HEAVY AD) (GRASP OF THE UNDYING)" from Sunfire Aegis to Riftmaker. Like mentioned above, we get atleast 150 AP just from Riftmaker alone (depending on HP), which we will need to get some Damage in and kill enemy carries.

- Changed the 4th Item in "TANK BUILD #3 (AGAINST HEAVY AP) (GRASP OF THE UNDYING)" from Kaenic Rookern to Riftmaker. Same as above. We get atleast 150 AP just from Riftmaker alone (depending on HP), which we will need to get some Damage in and kill enemy carries.

- Added Luden's Companion as first Item in "AP BUILD #1 (PURE DAMAGE) (ELETROCUTE)", while removing Stormsurge out of that Build. With Ludens we get around the same damage as Stormsurge but we also get 20 Ability Haste, 600 Mana and even more AP.

- Removed the "SUPPORT (DAMAGE AMPLIFIY)" Rune Page. Unfortunately, with the changes to Press the Attack, the Damage increase works only for yourself and not your teammates anymore, so I changed the Rune Page for this build back to Aftershock. With Aftershock you should still deal some insane damage, while also not dying instantly.


May 18th, 2024

I just quickly edited the "Discord" Link down at "Introduction" to the Offical Galio Mains Discord Server, of which I am now proudly the owner of. Thanks again for the old admins and their work and I cant wait to make the Server a better place for everyone involved. We also have a extra "Build" Forum on our Server where I created my Guide listed here as a extra post. So if you would like to discuss or talk with us about that or want to join the Galio Mains in general, fell free to click the link come join us!

- Changed the Boots from Ionian Boots of Lucidity to Sorcerer's Shoes in AP BUILD #2 (RANGED/POKE) (ARCANE COMET). With the new Blackfire Torch and our Transcendence, we have more than enough Ability Haste so we can swap to some Magic Penetration.



May 15th, 2024 - Patch 14.10

Patch 14.10 gave us no direct buffs or nerfs, but It changed some Items in our Builds for the overall good!

- Anathema's Chains got removed. Reduced to atoms.

- Shurelya's Battlesong got some minor stat nerfs, but that wont make it less valuable then it is, so just a slight nerf here. It will stay in S tier.

- Warmog's Armor gives whopping 1000 HP now, but I still see Heartsteel as the better Item overall. Maybe some builds can work, but I cant make it fit into one of my builds. So it stays down in C Tier.

- Fimbulwinter just gives straight up more HP. Makes our builds that use Tear of the Goddess just straight up better.

- Bami's Cinder gives a bit less HP now, but we get Ability Haste with it now, which is also something Galio likes. This means that Sunfire Aegis and Hollow Radiance are still 2 very strong items and they will stay in their Tiers.

- Randuin's Omen got its [Rock Solid] passive removed which is quite big. The Slow got increased and it still reduces Crit Damage while also giving 20 more Armor now, but overall Frozen Heart still feels like the superior version, so it will stay in B tier.

- Unending Despairs heal triggers every 5 seconds now, and not every 7 seconds anymore which is actually quite big. It makes the Item way more reliable and working even better in big teamfights. Because of that it got up from B tier into A tier.

- Abyssal Mask got some minor changes. It costs 100 gold less, but also gives 10 less Magic Resist. On the other side, its passive Radius got increased and the MR Reduction is 20% now and not (up to) 25 MR flat. This reduces the MR of enemies with almost no Magic Resist not that much, but for Bruisers and Tanks that build some MR items even more than before. So overall still a very strong item and therefore it will stay in S tier.

- Knight's Vow got some slight changes with 100% more HP regen which is really nice and also its damage redirection is 12% flat now. Still a very strong item to keep your Carry alive and its Tier wont be changed by it.

- Zeke's Convergence got its mana removed and its ability haste got recuded by 10, but for that it now also gives 25 Magic Resist and 100 HP more. This makes it a good overall Support Item and helps you engage the entire enemy team even better. Therefore its staying in A Tier.

- We got a new Item added that also works on Galio. Blackfire Torch got added and it will replace Luden's Companion in [AP BUILD #2 (RANGED/POKE) (ARCANE COMET)]. Its basically just a better Ludens and It makes us able to go a full Burn build with Liandry's Torment. Really nice to keep those Winds of War coming to keep the burn and anti-heal debuff on annoying enemies.

- Because of our new Blackfire Torch there is no real Reason to go Luden's Companion anymore. Blackfire Torch is just straight up better and the cooldown from Ludens got nerfed to 12 seconds anyway. Therefore it got moved down to B Tier.

- Ghost got a nerf which is kinda sad, but understandable to be honest. It now only lasts for 10 seconds and its cooldown got increased by 30 seconds. Im still gonna use Ghost anyway, because the Value of catching enemies together with Nimbus Cloak is still there and something I want to keep. If you would like to change to Teleport you are free to do that.

- On that note, Exhaust got a slight change too. Its Slow got increased by 10% but its Cooldown also is 30 seconds longer now. Makes it a bit easier to catch enemies paired with Nimbus Cloak again.

- Press the Attack also got changed a bit. It now remains the entire fight and not just 6 seconds, which makes our [DAMAGE AMPLIFIY FULL BUILD (PRESS THE ATTACK)] even better. On that note, Legend: Tenacity got removed but Legend: Haste got added, which gives us more Ability Haste when going this build, which is also nice.

- Font of Life got changed too. It now straight up heals us and our Teammate when hitting someone with Shield of Durand, Justice Punch or Hero's Entrance. This works great with our Solstice Sleigh and Revitalize. This makes our [PEEL FULL BUILD (GUARDIAN)] slighty better, I would say, because your Ally doesnt have to attack the stunned target and just gets healed straight up.


Overall all these changes, paired with the entire ADC Item changes should keep Galio in a good spot, no matter if building Tank, AP or Bruiser. Just keep in mind, that this can all still change. I have already played some games to list these changes here, but I too cant predict everything. Im gonna continue playing Galio, test new absurd builds just for fun, Grinding SoloQ and FlexQ again, and as always, I will let you guys know if something is changing.

Until then, I wish you all good luck with your next season and may you be protected from Taliyah, Ahri and Tristana picks.


May 1st, 2024 - Patch 14.9

Patch 14.9 gave us some minor nerfs to some hard counters like Ahri, Taliyah and Akshan, so Yippie!

I wanted to change the overall look of this guide, thats why I removed all the [First Back] Item rows. They were just redunant and made the Guide look to full and scared off People when they first looked at it. You could get lost pretty easily, thats why I just got rid of them.

I also changed some Builds and Item orders a bit after some testing with different Items and Builds. Changes listed here:

- Moved the [AP FULL BUILD #3 (FIGHTER/SKIRMISHER)] build into the Bruiser category with [Bruiser Build #3]. It was more Bruiser anyway, and I wanted space to add [AP build #3 (Catch Enemies)].

- Added the [AP BUILD #3 (CATCH ENEMIES)] Item Build. Thanks to some Players who really wanted to see me suffer, by picking Ezreal and Lucian into my Galio Mid Pick, I decided to add an (Catch Enemies) Build to reach those Mobile Champions. You basically just activate Shurelya's Battlesong and maybe Ghost aswell, and catch those 'Rats'.

- Changed the [DAMAGE AMPLIFIY FULL BUILD] 5th item from Sunfire Aegis to Dead Man's Plate. Helps you to catch the enemies better and also adds even more damage to your already massive burst.

- Removed the [ENGAGE FULL BUILD] 6th item Abyssal Mask. As its Place added the Trailblazer as 4th Item. Honestly I dont know why I didnt added the Item that literally made you AND your teammates faster to an ENGAGE Build. Yea, so sorry about me using 2 braincells when making that build. But now it should work better. Please dont shoot me...

- Changed the [PEEL FULL BUILD] 6th item from Jak'Sho, The Protean to Trailblazer. Trailblazer is the last item that can help you to peel your Teammate a bit more with the Movement speed they get behind you and the Slow you add when smacking someone, thats why I replaced it.

- Added a new Rune Page for the [DAMAGE AMPLIFIY FULL BUILD] for Support. The new Rune that boosts our amplification even more is Press the Attack. Yes I know it sounds cursed at first, but Galio's Colossal Smash actually counts as 2 attacks from the 3 required to trigger the Effect of Press the Attack. So an Engage could look like this: Justice Punch into Shield of Durand into Colossal Smash into Winds of War into another Auto Attack or Colossal Smash and you got your Press the Attack active and your Teammates can do the rest. Also again works super good with Bloodsong, Imperial Mandate and that satisfying Heartsteel bonk.

Also added the recommened Rune Pages to the Build Description.



April 17th, 2024 - Patch 14.8

With Patch 14.8 we just get some minor buffs to make laning phase and mobility a bit better for us. We get 5 more Movement Speed and 1 sec lower Winds of War cooldown on the first level.

I just changed the Bruiser builds a little bit, because there was some Mana missing, and I really began to like Liandry's Torment as an Item, thats why im adding this there.

Changed the [Bruiser Full Build #1] 3rd item from Cosmic Drive to Liandry's Torment. Not much to say here, Liandry's helps us fight longer and also deal some more DPS while we rotate our Abilities.

Changed the [Bruiser Full Build #2] 3rd item from Jak'Sho, The Protean to Fimbulwinter. Just to remove the Mana problems and also get a bit more bit more Ability Haste and Shield.

Changed the [Bruiser Full Build #3] 3rd item from Cosmic Drive to Fimbulwinter. Just to remove the Mana problems and also get a bit more tanky with the passive Shield.


April 3th, 2024 - Patch 14.7

Changed the [Peel Support] Build from Thornmail and Abyssal Mask as last item, into Redemption and Jak'Sho, The Protean as last item. The Reason is to fully commit for the protect ascpet of the build, since you should have enough defense stat from the first 3 items anyway.


Changed the 5th Item from the [AP FULL BUILD #1] Build from Void Staff to Stormsurge . Void Staff gives you just pure damage, which isnt bad per se, but Stormsurge, despite its nerf, still gives movement speed which makes it easier to catch enemies, and its passive Lightning Proc, still deals some good damage if you already have high AP Damage.


Changed the last 3 Items from the [AP FULL BUILD #2] Build from Rabadon's Deathcap -> Liandry's Torment -> Shadowflame into Liandry's Torment -> Rabadon's Deathcap -> Morellonomicon. This Build works pretty well against Bruisers and Tank like Illaoi or Ornn. For that Reason, I changed the Items to better play against these kind of champions. We build Oblivion Orb early into the game to reduce the healing these champs mostly have (for example: Darius, Illaoi, Volibear,etc.) and finish into Morellonomicon as last item. Against these Champs Liandry's Torment works pretty well, due to their high HP, but we need some Ability Haste first, to proc the passive consistently.


Changed the 4th Item from the [Bruiser #1] Build from Liandry's Torment to Cosmic Drive . With the new 14.7 changes Cosmic Drives works better into our Shield of Durand and honestly, its pretty much one of my most favourite items at this point. We get more Movement speed, HP, AP, and Ability Haste.


Changed the 3th Item from the [Full Tank #3] Build from Abyssal Mask to Jak'Sho, The Protean . Jaksho gives us some Armor for atleast 1 AD champion, Basic Attacks that everyone uses anyway, and reduce some Turret Damage along with it. It also increases Magic Resist anyway, so I see it more fitting into the Heavy AP enemies we build against.


Added the [AP ASSASSIN / FULL DAMAGE] Runepage to those who want to fully commit for pure damage. Im still not a fan of the Domination tree, but with the 14.7 Changes we get some pretty heavy damage increase on our Justice Punch and Colossal Smash so if you just care about pure damage and nothing else, you can pick this page.


Added the [FIGHTER / UTILITY] Runepage to the Build. This is my new go-to Build for almost any Game I build AP/HP into. Rod of Ages, Cosmic Drive and Phase Rush just feels so awesome to play with. This is basically a movement speed build, but it offers Utility into every scenario, from catching enemies to escaping certain death.





March 20, 2024 - Updated the whole Guide to 14.6 for the new Galio Changes.

Hi everybody! My name is Hexeria. Im a German Galio Main who hit Master in SoloQ and Grandmaster in Flex last season. I wanted to take some time to show you all how Ive been playing him and what I learned over the last few years. DISCLAIMER: Keep in mind, that everything I will mention here, from the Runes, to the Items, to the general Playstyle, is just how I like to play and what I had success with. Galio is a champ that can be played in many different ways, and it doesnt mean, your playstyle is wrong.

If you got any questions or would just like to discuss any topic or share your thoughts, dont hesitate to reach out to me.

Discord: https://discord.gg/uC9MsM8uUs

Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/Hexeria

Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/hexeria

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@Hexeria

So lets start!

Galio - The Colossus Melee, Tank, Mage, Support What is Galio? Galio is a Support Heavy Champion that has the ability to sustain a lot of damage thanks to his tankiness, but also cause a lot of damage due to his high base Damage and Heavy AP Scaling. Furthermore, his Crowd Control is one of the best in the Game. You can lock down enemies, or protect your team pretty easily if done right. Where to play Galio? It depends which role you prefer, but the normal Lane choice would be either Mid or Support. Disclaimer: If you just want to play solely for fun you can pick him on Top lane but I wouldnt recommened it in Ranked games, or if you play to win. He has a harder time laning on top against heavy AD champions and Bruisers, while having less Impact on the rest of the Game due to your Position on the Map. You also deny your Team an important AD Bruiser or Tank Toplane pick by picking Galio Top. Also some people try Galio in Jungle, but i wont cover this here in this guide, because I simply havent really played Jungle Galio or Jungle at all at that matter. His kit comes in handy during ganks and roaming, but he has a hard time clearing camps, and his Passive reset doesnt work on normal jungle camps. However, I can highly recommend a Galio Jungle Guide from a Friend of mine, Porjn. We know each other well, and he played a lot of Galio Jungle. He recently made a Guide here about Galio Jungle. (https://www.mobafire.com/league-of-legends/build/gungle-galio-jungle-off-meta-609674) So if you would like to know more about this, be sure to check him out and leave a like on his guide. How good is Galio in the current Meta? There are definetly champions that are better than Galio in many ways. The meta is pretty AD focused which causes a huge problem due to Galios low base armor and the uselessness of his Magic resistance against Physical Damage. Also because Galio is a melee champ, he has a harder time laning on Mid and Support against range champions, that can easily poke him to death, or are out of his reach to engage at all. That doesnt mean he is a weak champ, or useless at all. Thanks to Galio's kit, he will always be useful to his team no matter how far behind you think you are. Even if you just die constantly, you can be of value to your Team or even decide the entire game. Galio can adapt to many different playstyles and has many Items at his Disposal that help him win the game. I know that finding the right Build for every game is hard, but if you start to understand how to play in certain Team Comps, I guarentee you, you will win more games and have more fun in General. I will try to make Build variety more clear, later in the guide, but If you have a specific Question about a Champion or didnt understand something quite right, please dont be afraid to ask me however you like to. Sometimes its hard to put into words what your thought process is and then it gets easier to just talk to the person directly. I help whereever I can. What are Galios Strengths? Galio has a lot of Crowd Control at his disposal, the ability to push his lane pretty hard and therefore roam freely to help his teammates and he really shines in teamfight or Fights with more than 2 Persons involved in general. Despite Attack speed and armor, he has pretty good base HP, Mana and even AD for an AP champ. With his new changes to Colossal Smash he can reduce the cooldown of his next passive smash, when hitting an enemy with one of his other abilites. So if you want the most DPS possible, its smarter to slow down your Combo a bit to get that passive reset in. His Shield of Durand can taunt all 5 enemies at once for up to 1,5 seconds. His Justice Punch knocks the enemy up for 0,75 seconds And his Hero's Entrance can also knock up every Enemy caught within for 0,75 Seconds. His kit alone, if played right, allows you to keep and enemy stunned for a max of 3 whole seconds. Combine that with Ability haste items so you get your abilites up sooner to start the stun fiesta anew. So a full combo, in the best scenario possible would be something like this: Colossal Smash -> Justice Punch -> Colossal Smash -> Winds of War -> Colossal Smash -> Shield of Durand -> Colossal Smash. In most cases this wont work though, but you understand what im trying to say here. You need to work with your passive reset to get everything out of your champion. Just using every single ability without a Colossal Smash in between will lose you some damage. So a more realistic engage into a fight against enemies who arent standing inside you, would be something like this: Justice Punch -> Colossal Smash -> Shield of Durand -> Winds of War -> Colossal Smash His Colossal Smash and Winds of War alone lets you kill an entire minion wave in a few seconds. So pushing and securing minions isnt that of a problem. But whats even more important is to roam as soon as you see the potential and pushed a wave under the enemy turret. With his Hero's Entrance and the ability to protect your teammates from enemies, you alone can turn the tide of a fight and its outcome. What are Galios weaknessess? Unfortunately he also has some problems. Like i mentioned before, most champions counter you and youre not in a good position to win 1vs1 easily. His Shield of Durand and Justice Punch aswell as his Hero's Entrance have a pretty high cooldown. So as soon as you jump into action in early or mid game, your gonna stay there feeling like a minion who cant do much if his kit is on cooldown. Thats why Ability haste and the Colossal Smash reset is so important for us. Also because he has pretty good mix of both AP and Tank, he cant do one extremly good. There are Tanks that can take for damage than him, and there are Mages that do more damage than him. Again you are also a melee champ and have a harder time against ranged champions. How should you play Galio? Again keep in mind that this is my opinion. There are people who tell you to play as offensive as you can to quickly snowball the enemies themselves. But I like to play pretty safe and wait for Opportunities rather than forcing them. Try to lane as safe as you can. React to mistakes of your Enemies. Play with our Teammates (Jungle as Mid, and ADC as Support). And get as many gold as you can, to reach your Powerspike. Galio will, no matter his state in the game, always be of use to his teammates and become stronger the longer the game goes. In midlane I prefer to stay safe in the early game and just get as many minions as possible. I dont try to get into a 1vs1 with my enemy that often, because Galios early game is a bit weaker. You can try though, to get help from your jungle for a easy kill, thanks to your Stun Combo, or push the wave into the tower and look for a Roam to your Jungle, Top or Botlane. As Support I either look for engages against an enemy botlane that allows be to engage, protect my ADC and just peel him constantly, or if youre up against a counter lane, try to roam and be useful somewhere else in the Map. Every Game is different and you really need to adapt to different approaches. I try to explain a bit more later in the guide. You can also read the "Threaths and Synergies" Tab to see what you should do against who.

The best 2 Rune Pages for Galio, no matter which build you go, is without doubt Resolve and Sorcery. While the other Key Runes like Conqueror, Electrocute or even Glacial Augment definetly work in some way and change the Way you can play Galio, overall the Subrunes in Precision, Domination and Inspiration are much weaker.

Phase Rush Phase Rush works actually pretty well on Galio. It gives him a short movement speed after he gets his combo out which also gives slow resistance. This works awesome for your Shield of Durand where you get slowed during the channel. You can use phase rush to either go further in and catch ADC's or Carries in the enemy backline or use the movement speed to quickly get back out of a trade or certain death.

Arcane Comet Arcane Comet can work for poke builds or when you want to stay behind and blast them do death with your Winds of War to get damage out. Its also works awesome for a One-Shot full damage build, because the comet is guaranteed after you stunned your enemy.

Summon Aery Aery can work against some Matches where you maybe go a burn build, if the enemies got 3 or more Champs with high HP. The shield only triggeres on Allies if you target them with your Hero's Entrance but overall it is not recommened!

Nullifying Orb Nullifying Orb can work in some scenarios, where you face a lot of AP Damage but the value you get from the other 2 subrunes in this category are much higher, so it is not recommended!

Manaflow Band This Rune can completly solve all your mana problems, if you dont go a Mana item that is. Galio doesnt need that much mana but either an item like Rod of Ages, Luden's Companion or even Frozen Heart should give you all the mana you need.

Nimbus Cloak Nimbus Cloak is by far my most liked subrune. It gives you a quick movement speed after using Flash, Ghost, Exhaust or Ignite to quickly catch enemies with your Shield of Durand or to escape. This rune alone can decide entire fights and even game outcomes. This should be your standard subrune in almost every build and is highly recommended!

Transcendence Transcendence is the most important rune on Galio. It gives 10 Ability Haste, as well as reducing your cooldown if you manage to takedown an enemy alone or with your teammates. Due to his long cooldowns and the value of getting them back up quickly, this rune is highly recommended!

Celerity Celerity can be niche in some scenarios to catch really mobile champs, in combination with Nimbus Cloak or Predator but with Nimbus Cloak and Ghost you already have enough movement speed. So its rather weak compared to Transcendence and is not recommended!

Absolute Focus It makes no sense to give up Transcendence for a max of 30 AP, if you are above 70% Health. This happenes rather rarely, because you need to get close to enemies to get damage in, so you lose HP anyway. It is not recommended!

Scorch Scorch works pretty well, if you want to get as much damage as possible out from the beginning, or to snowball an easy matchup quickly. It works well with full damage builds.

Waterwalking Some people will now argue, that waterwalking is good for Galio to better roam from Mid to Bot or Top and from Bot to Mid and Top, but its just 10 Movement Speed in the river, which is pretty useless, aswell as max 30 AP if u happen to fight in the river, so its really situational, and rather weak. Just go either Scorch or Gathering Storm. This rune is not recommended!

Gathering Storm This is the opposite of Scorch where you want to scale better into late game, or got matchups, you cant do much in early game anyway. It just gives you more AP the longer the game goes. This helps your damage aswell as your tankiness, due to how Shield of Durand works.

Grasp of the Undying This is my most used rune for tank builds. Galio already has pretty high base HP and in combination with Heartsteel and other tank items can stack an insane amount of max HP overall. Even if youre playing against a ranged matchup, you can go Grasp because it scales with your %HP anyway, so it will work even without stacking it in the early game. It helps you stay longer in the Heat of battle, until your long cooldowns are back up again. In combination with your Colossal Smash and Heartsteel it can do some serious burst damage. This rune is highly recommened if youre going a tank build.

Aftershock When in doubt, go Aftershock. Its the best overall rune for Galio in every scenario. You can build Tank or AP with it, doesnt matter. It gives him everything he needs and works on Mid and Support. The downside is its long cooldown, but overall this rune works every time.

Guardian Personally I like to go Guardian if we got a hyper carry as ADC that needs a lot of peel to get damage out, like Vayne or Samira. In combination with Font of Life + Knight's Vow + Locket of the Iron Solari you can just glue yourself to your Carry and keep the enemies away with your Justice Punch and Shield of Durand.

Demolish It can work if you got an easy matchup you can constantly push, but Galio is stronger in teamfights and shouldnt be played as a splitpush champion. It can be useful, if you play agressive with your ADC to get the first turret quickly but Font of Life and Shield Bash give more value overall, so this rune is not recommended!

Font of life Good rune for Botlane where you try to keep your Carry alive. My standard support rune if I want to peel my ADC. Pairs good with Solstice Sleigh and Revitalize.

Shield Bash Also an extremly good rune for Galio because it gives you the damage increase, as long as your Shield of Durand shield stays active. So you can take all the time in the world to smack someone with the Shield Bash damage, and after you Shield recharged for 12 - 8 seconds, you get the Increase again. This rune is highly recommended!

Conditioning Great Rune if you know you can survive past the 12 minute mark to get extra more resistance into your build which again works together with your Colossal Smash and Shield of Durand. Also works well if youre going a Tank build with items like Thornmail and Abyssal Mask. If you got a difficult matchup where you get a lot of damage early, go Second Wind instead.

Second Wind Also a standard Rune for me I almost go every match. Galio is weak in his early game, so surviving that part is crucial. Lets you heal some crazy amount of life if paired with Doran's Shield. Overall this Rune is highly recommended!

Bone Plating Im not a big fan of this Rune, because it gets triggered to easily on you, because you need to get close to farm minions, or stack your World Atlas and after that its on a long cooldown. It can work if you get into a fight and try to reduce the damage your getting, but just go Second Wind its almost the same, just better in every aspect. This rune is not recommended!

Overgrowth Your go to rune in also almost every build and matchup. Having MAX HP is always nice, but it also works into your Shield of Durand aswell as Grasp of the Undying, Heartsteel, Abyssal Mask, Sunfire Aegis or Hollow Radiance, etc. Overall this is a very important Rune in many scenarios and is highly recommended!

Revitalize Works for a "Peel" Build as Support to protect your ADC. But on Midlane it loses some value. It works with your Shield of Durand passive shield, and also with Font of Life and Grasp of the Undying, aswell as Unending Despair and Fimbulwinter. It can be of use, but overall the MAX HP provided by Overgrowth increases all these values anyway, so you can just go that.

Unflinching This rune got absolutely gutted in the last changes. The highest Value it can now give you is 10 Armor and 10 Magic Resist but only if youre stunned and 2 seconds after that. Overgrowth and even Revitalize are just better in every way. If the enemy has a full stun team, you can try this rune, but overall it is not recommended! for either tank or damage builds.

Disclaimer: The Item listed here (despite Boots and World Atlas options) are ranked from S to C tier. This means I ranked them by their Value they offer Galio just as a champ. So for Example just because a Malignance is listed in C tier, doesnt mean the items is bad, perse. It just means that this single item doesnt offer Galio that much of value compared to other items.

Ionian Boots

Ionian Boots - Cheap and are a huge power spike for Galio and his long cooldown.

Mercury's Tread

Mercury Treads - Against a lot of CC and slow or in general to counter AP.

Sorcerer's Shoes

Sorcerer Shoes - Your standard boots if you want to build pure damage.

Plated Steelcaps

Plated Steelcaps - Against enemies who use a lot of basic attack or to counter AD in general.

Boots of Swiftness

Boots of Swiftness - Great for enemies that slow quite hard and it also decreases your self slow from Shield of Durand.

Bloodsong

Bloodsong - Your standard Support item if youre going for a "Damage Amplify Build", so for example where you buy Abyssal Mask or Imperial Mandate to increase the damage the enemies take. You also take this when building Heartsteel as Support, because it deals a massive amount of damage in Combination with Aftershock and your Colossal Smash.

Solstice Sleigh

Solstice Sleigh - Your go to Support item, if your main goal is to keep your ADC or Carry in your Team Alive. So a good "Peel" Build could something be like Solstice Sleigh, Guardian, Font of Life, Revitalize, Locket of the Iron Solari and Knight's Vow. If played right, you can protect your Carry from any danger coming his way.

Celestial Opposition

Celestial Opposition - Your standard "Engage" Build Item. Works well for big teamfights, or secure some kills on Botlane if played with your Jungler. Not only lets you tank more damage in combination with Aftershock, it also slows enemies after the Damage Reduction is over which again works into your Shield of Durand for some easy kills.

Abyssal Mask

Abyssal Mask - Super cheap, all its stats work into your kit ( Colossal Smash, Shield of Durand), aswell as reducing the Magic Resist of nearby enemies, which not only increases the Damage you deal with abilites, but also the Damage from Sunfire Aegis / Hollow Radiance or Thornmail for example.

Cosmic Drive

Cosmic Drive - Overall, one of my favourite items for Galio. It gives AP, Ability haste, HP and Movement speed which all have a pretty high value on Galio. Gives everything you need, while also reducing your cooldowns which you need to cycle trough your Abilities to reset Colossal Smash over and over again.

Fimbulwinter

Fimbulwinter - Extremly cheap, solves all your mana problems by just buying Tear of the Goddess early, gives HP which works into your Shield of Durand again, aswell as Ability haste to cycle trough abilities. It also gives you a Shield when stunning someone with Shield of Durand, Justice Punch or Hero's Entrance. Works well for teamfights, since the shield increases if there is more than 1 enemy around.

Heartsteel

Heartsteel - I love this Item so f*cking much. If there is no enemy who does %MAX HP damage like a Fiora, Vayne or Blade of the Ruined King User, you will feel unstoppable if you get to stack this item early in the game. It lets you survive against many different Champions, mostly Assassins, but also increases everything from your Shield of Durand to Abyssal Mask to Sunfire Aegis/ Hollow Radiance to Riftmaker, etc. You can also SMASH enemies litearly in combination with Grasp of the Undying and Colossal Smash.

Jak'Sho, The Protean

Jak'Sho, The Protean - A pretty solid Item for almost every scenario you can face. Gives you every stat you need to be more tanky, aswell as increasing Armor and Magic Resist even more, when fighting. The stats again work into your Colossal Smash, Shield of Durand, Thornmail and Aftershock.

Lich Bane

Lich Bane - Gives your Colossal Smash a serious damage increase, and can one shot an enemy really quickly, if you hit a full combo. You also get a big amount of AP, ability haste and movement speed which all are imporant stats for Galio.

Locket of the Iron Solari

Locket of the Iron Solari - A good item for Support overall and always valueable, no matter which game you are in. Gives you your most desired stats, which are Armor, Magic Resist (flows into your Colossal Smash and Shield of Durand, Ability Haste to get your Abilites back more often, awell as HP, which again flows into your Shield of Durand. The Passive Shield also helps you and your teammates to survive some deadly scenarios.

Rod of Ages

Rod of Ages - Super cheap, good as first item for almost any build and also works great for scaling. Solves your Mana problem, gives you HP for Shield of Durand aswell as AP for the rest of your abilites. Always a solid choice.

Riftmaker

Riftmaker - Awesome Fighter Item. Lets you stay in the heat of battle, due to the stacking passive and Omnivamp, aswell as giving you even more AP if you already got other HP items, like Heartsteel, Rod of Ages, Abyssal Mask, Sunfire Aegis, etc. Works great into a Tank or Bruiser build.

Unending Despair

Unending Despair - Nice item for staying in the heat of battle. Gives good overall stats and a Heal that scales with your HP and the amount of enemies around you. So pairing this with a Tank build and your Shield of Durand you can tank some serious damage and let your team do the rest. Pairs well with heal increases like Spirit Visage and Revitalize, aswell as dealing more damage, the more HP you have.

Banshee's Veil

Banshee Veil - Gives you all the stats you need, increase your damage output in 2 factors: first the AP and second the MR it gives your Colossal Smash aswell as the damage reduction on your Shield of Durand, while also letting you block a spell for free and reduce the AP damage you take.

Cryptbloom

Cryptbloom - Better version of Void Staff. Gives you everything you need to deal some good damage. AP, Ability Haste, Magic Penetration. Also its passive works well for bigger fights, and can help your Team stay in a battle, due to its healing mechanic.

Force of Nature

Force of Nature - Best Tank Item to counter AP champions completly. Against a heavy AP enemy team, you can go this item and should already be way too hard to kill. Its Magic Resist and HP again plays into your Shield of Durand and Colossal Smash.

Frozen Heart

Frozen Heart - Best Tank Item to counter AD champions aswell as basic attackers, like Yasuo, Yone, Irelia, Tristana, etc. Also solves your Mana problem and is extremly cheap. Works well if you are looking to counter said champions, by building Plated Steelcaps next, into Thornmail to also deal some high damage.

Hextech Rocketbelt

Hextech Rocketbelt - Cheap item and also gives you a quick dash to better catch enemies with your Shield of Durand or Justice Punch. Its stats also give you AP, Ability Haste and HP, which again benefits your Shield of Durand.

Hollow Radiance

Hollow Radiance - Good item to not only counter AP champions, but also deal some damage that scales with your Max HP, so Heartsteel, Abyssal Mask and other HP items, increase your damage. The Magic Resist Version of Sunfire Aegis which also increases your Wave Clear potential.

Imperial Mandate

Imperial Mandate - Underrated Item in my eyes. Galio has so much CC and you go a full out Damage amplify build with Bloodsong, Heartsteel and Abyssal Mask to deal some nasty damage.

Kaenic Rookern

Kaenic Rookern - Awesome Magic Resist Item that gives you whopping 80 Magic resist and 400 HP which is huge for your Shield of Durand and Colossal Smash. It also add its passive magic shield on top of your Shield of Durand magic shield, which lets you shield massive amount of AP damage.

Knight's Vow

Knight's Vow - Awesome item if you want to keep your ADC or Carry alive, while also receiving some heals when they deal damage. Works well with a "Peel" build in combination with Guardian, Font of Life and Locket of the Iron Solari.

Liandry's Torment

Liandry's Torment - Nice item against enemies who have a lot of HP like Tank or Bruisers. Adds a burning effect to your damaging spells and can counter some champions. Only downside is that it only gives HP and AP but no Mana or Ability Haste. Works well against Champions who also have some Heal if paired with Morellonomicon.

Blackfire Torch

Blackfire Torch - Good item to keep your distance against enemies, you dont really want close in your face, such as Renekton, Illaoi or Riven. Solves your mana problem and also gives you massive 90 AP and 25 Ability haste while also allowing you to poke enemies consistantly. Works well with Liandry's Torment. Only downside is, that it gives no HP so you are a bit more Squishy with it.

Luden's Companion

Luden's Companion - A nice item that solves your Mana problems aswell as letting you play a bit more ranged against enemies, you cant fully engage directly. Use it with your Winds of War to poke enemies and then go in for the finish, when their Health is low enough.

Morellonomicon

Morellonomicon - Your Usual Item to counter enemies who heal a lot of HP on themselves or teammates like Sylas, Vladimir or Soraka for example. Gives you HP, AP and Ability Haste, so also a good solid item overall.

Rabadon's Deathcap

Rabadon Deathcap - Dont need so say much here, just plays into your high AP scaling and gives you extremly high AP. KEEP IN MIND: it just increases your Damage, so you get no other benefit from it, so its an item that should be bought later.

Shadowflame

Shadowflame - Awesome Item for pure Damage. It grants you massive 120 AP and 12 Magic Penetration, aswell as adding crits to your Abilities if the enemy is below 35% HP. Downside is no HP, Mana or Ability Haste, though.

Shurelya's Battlesong

Shurelya's Battlesong - Cheap item that gives Galio everything he needs. works for either Mid or Support. It gives you Mana Regen, aswell as AP, Ability Haste and movement speed. Its active is also a movement speed increase that also benefits teammates around you. So its great for catching enemies or escaping together with your teammates.

Spirit Visage

Spirit Visage - Good overall Stats, that give you everything you need. Not only does it increase your Shield of Durand passive shield, but with the right Build it can increase many different shields and heals, such as Grasp of the Undying, Rod of Ages, Fimbulwinter, Unending Despair,etc.

Stormsurge

Stormsurge - A nice Item to deal some extra damage to a single enemy or a whole group, depending on the Fight youre having. It also increases your Movement Speed to better catch enemies and Kill them quickly. A nice Item for full AP Galio to get rid of squishy enemies.

Sunfire Aegis

Sunfire Aegis - Awesome damage if you stay close to enemies aswell as counter AD Champs. synergies well with Heartsteel and other HP items, aswell as profiting from Abyssal Mask to deal even more damage. The Armor version of Hollow Radiance.

Thornmail

Thornmail - Best item to counter everything that works with basic attacks. Build this against champs like Yone, Yasuo, Irelia or ADC's in general. Synergies well with Frozen Heart and Jak'Sho, The Protean to increase its passive damage.

Trailblazer

Trailblazer - Again a movement speed Item that can help you catch enemies and even slow them with a Colossal Smash. Your teammates are also faster, if they follow your path, but its stats are overall a bit on the weaker side. It gives no Magic Resist or Ability Haste and the Armor and HP isnt that high to begin with.

Zeke's Convergence

Zeke's Convergence - cheap, wide variety of stats that are all valuable for Galio and also gives you a AOE Aura that slows and deals damage after landing your Hero's Entrance to catch enemies more easily with Shield of Durand which can decide entire fights if played correctly.

Zhonya's Hourglass

Zhonyas Hourglass - Gives you high AP and Armor to counter some AD champs aswell as the ability to be untargetable for 2 seoncds to wait till your cooldowns are up again, or your teammates join the fight and finish off your target.

Dead Man's Plate

Dead Man's Plate - The stats are not all too great for Galio but its passive gives you some crazy movement speed, aswell as a big smack after reaching 100 stacks. Increases Smash damage even more, when paired with Heartsteel, Grasp of the Undying and somethinh like Iceborn Gauntlet or Bloodsong.

Iceborn Gauntlet

Iceborn Gauntlet - Overall great stats and a nice passive that increases your Colossal Smash damage aswell as slowing enemies in its Area. But the stats arent too high at all and its Armor only works into AD champions and not AP champions. You also still have some longer cooldowns which doesnt get that passive up more than a few times in a fight. Not bad as Item but very Situational.

Mejai's Soulstealer

Mejai's Soulstealer - I personally dont like playing with luck in my games. Dark Seal alone is pretty cheap and gives you good stats and the possibility to stack some AP, but I wouldnt finish it into Mejai's Soulstealer. It takes away one important Item Slot and if you unlucky die 1 or 2 Times you basically lost all its value. Just spend your gold on complete AP items that offer you more Options without gambling.

Randuin's Omen

Randuin's Omen - Must have against a lot of Crit based Champions like Yone, Yasuo, Lucian, Caitlyn and other ADC's that use Crit. It only really shines though, if the enemies have around 3 of these Champions. In most cases Frozen Heart is just the better version of the 2. It gives Ability Haste, reduces attack speed and is cheaper than Randuin's.

Void Staff

Void Staff - Increases your damage potential a lot and makes you able to oneshot squishys, but Cryptbloom is just the better version. Void Staff only adds raw damage, while Cryptbloom also gives you Ability Haste and a AOE Heal of Elimination. KEEP IN MIND: It only adds damage and nothing else, so build it later into the game.

Warmog's Armor

Warmog's Armor - Warmog lets you regenarate Health, outside a fight and also gives you increased movement speed, while not in a fight. This can help you to get back into a fight quicker and catch enemies of guard with your Shield of Durand. The difference between Heartsteel and this item is, that Heartsteel lets you stack even more HP, aswell as letting you smash enemies for a lot of damage, while also increasing the AP gained from Riftmaker even more, hence while its only in B tier.

Malignance

Malignance - Yes it solves your Mana Problems. Yes It gives 80 Ability Power and 25 Ability haste which is huge. Yes it also reduces your Hero's Entrance cooldown. But its passive doesnt really benefit from your Ult. You wont deal that much damage with the AOE. Just buy Luden's Companion which is almost the same, but gives more Value.

Redemption

Redemption - Yes its more an enchanter Item, but if you want to fully keep your teammates alive and peel your ADC pretty hard, you can buy this Item last, if the game is already that long. It Works pretty well, if you got Revitalize, Guardian, Locket of the Iron Solari, Font of Life and Knight's Vow, so its an option.

Here im gonna show you some Games I had and my thought process which Build I went and why.

Game Example #1:



Here I was filled Top against a Garen and of course I picked Galio. The enemy team has quite a lot of % Max Health Damage in form of Garen's Demacian Justice, Anivia with Liandry's Torment, Kaisa with Second Skin and Maokai with Bramble Smash. Therefore a Tank build wouldnt make that much of a sense here. I looked at my team and saw that we had enough frontline potential already with Thresh, Jarvan IV and Swain. So I decided to go AP. I dont really want a Garen too close to me, so I took Arcane Comet and build Luden's Companion first, to poke him from a distance with Winds of War and kept my Justice Punch and Shield of Durand if he got too close.

My team was doing fine with their lanes so I decided to not roam that much, and just deny the push Garen forced on my Lane. With my Build here I could keep the minions away from my tower, without getting melted my a Garen Combo. Eventually Garen had to leave the Lane to defend his base. I pushed quickly, got the tower, and joined my Mates in the teamfight. In the end, my team was too strong, Garen couldnt splitpush anymore and we just had one big last teamfight where we focused Kaisa and Anivia and this won us the Game.


Game Example #2:



Here I laned against a Katarina. The enemy team has no Anti Tank Champion despite Maokais Bramble Smash and laning against a Katarina is pretty easy. Therefore I can easily go my standard Full Tank Build and get stacks on Heartsteel and Grasp of the Undying without too much effort. We might be lacking some AP damage, but with my Sunfire Aegis and Abyssal Mask in combination with the damage Karma on botlane, we had enough AP damage anyways.

Not much to say here. I bullied Katarina pretty hard by just using Colossal Smash + Heartsteel + Grasp of the Undying and kept either my Shield of Durand or Justice Punch to interupt her Death Lotus. I got fed too hard and couldnt be killed rather early in the game. In the End I just charged in the fight, tanked pretty much everything and my team just had to follow and kill them while I absorbed most of the damage.


Game Example #3:



Here I was put on Support with a Ryze as ADC (for some reason). The lane matchup against Smolder and Janna is pretty hard, since Smolder just stacks his Dragon Practice from a safe distance, while Janna can keep me at distance with her Howling Gale and Monsoon.

Because there wasnt much I could do here, I told Ryze to just farm and keep the wave away from our Turret and started roaming pretty early as soon as I hit level 3 to get all my abilites. At first I roamed Mid and got my Taliyah a kill since the Stun combo between Galio and Taliyah is just too much for Cassiopeia. After that I helped my Kha'Zix with the Scuttle Crab and managed to kill Viego as he tried to contest it. I recalled and instantly went Top, as soon as my Olaf hit Level 6, and we managed to kill Aatrox too.

At this point the game was pretty much done. Ryze could easily farm on bot, I rotated between each lane every now and then, placed Vision in the enemy jungle and catched everyone who wasnt directly under their Turret.


Game Example #4:



Here I was once again filled on Toplane, but that wont stop me from playing my Boy. As soon as I saw the Lucian Top though, I knew this game will be disgusting. Despite Blitzcranks base Damage and the Hybird Build on Azir Midlane, they were full AD with Lucian and Tristana as ADC and Kha'Zix as Assassin. So I went for the Frozen Heart, Plated Steelcaps and Thornmail Strat.

Early game against Lucian is pretty hard. He will deny most of your Farm and can kill you pretty quickly with his DPS while also keeping the Distance due to Relentless Pursuit. I didnt even tried to fight or poke him, and solely focused on getting as much Gold as possible without dying unnecessary. I started with Doran's Shield and Second Wind and just bought my items.

As soon as I finished my Frozen Heart first, I could start playing a bit less defensive. The Mana allowed me to poke Lucian just a bit and push my wave so I could start roaming or help my team in general. My Volibear was doing the Void Grubs and Lucian was moving to him, aswell as Kha'zix. I Hero's Entrance Volibear and could easily force them both of this Objective, since they couldnt kill me so fast with Frozen Heart and Plated Steelcaps. Volibear joined the fight and we easily could kill both, with me getting both kills. I could finish my Thornmail and at this point I could just run Lucian down without much effort. I pushed and got both Top Turrets and joined my team for Dragon fights and pushing the other lanes. Azir was kept out of the game, so now there was no one who could deal that much damage to me so we just ran them down and finished the game easily at this point.


In General, if you are uncertain what to do in your Game, I would recommend rather playing safe and getting as much Gold as possible, or start roaming, if the game allows it, than forcing yourself into a matchup youre uncertain with. Its better to just Recall back in base, and playing Safe then feeding your enemy and making it harder for your team. Have patience. As I mentioned before, no matter which part of the game your in, you will always be useful.