Gnar has two distinct phases in every game. Mini Gnar pokes safely from range and stacks Rage; Mega Gnar dives in for massive CC. Learn Rage management — transform at the right moment for maximum teamfight impact.
Abilities
Skills Overview
P
Rage Gene
Passive
While in combat Gnar generates Rage. At maximum Rage his next ability will transform him into Mega Gnar, granting increased survivability and access to new spells.
Q
Boomerang Throw / Boulder Toss
Boomerang Throw / Boulder Toss — Ranged poke (Mini) / AoE slow (Mega)
Gnar throws a boomerang that damages and slows enemies it hits before returning to him. If he catches the boomerang its cooldown is reduced.Mega Gnar instead throws a boulder that stops on the first unit hit, damaging and slowing everything nearby. It can then be picked up to reduce the cooldown.
CD: 16/14.5/13/11.5/10 · Cost: 0
Catch the returning boomerang for reduced cooldown in Mini form — always catch it for CDR.
W
Hyper / Wallop
Hyper / Wallop — Passive AS / Stun on next attack (Mega)
Gnar's attacks and spells hype him up, dealing bonus damage and granting him Move Speed.Mega Gnar is too enraged to be hyper and instead can rear up on his hind legs and smash down on the area in front of him, stunning enemies in an area.
CD: 7 · Cost: 0
Mini W passive gives attack speed on third hit — weave autos to proc it for Rage generation.
E
Hop / Crunch
Hop / Crunch — Pounce to target (Mini) / AoE knockup (Mega)
Gnar leaps to a location and bounces off the head of any unit he lands on, traveling further.Mega Gnar is too large to bounce and instead lands with earth-shattering force, dealing damage in an area around him.
CD: 22/19.5/17/14.5/12 · Cost: 0
Mini E can hop over walls — use it for escapes and gap closes. Mega E knocks up all nearby enemies.
R
GNAR!
GNAR! — Transform to Mega and slam nearby enemies into terrain for AoE stun
Mega Gnar throws everything around him in a chosen direction, dealing damage and slowing them. Any enemy that hits a wall is stunned and takes bonus damage.
CD: 90/60/30 · Cost: 0
Use R when enemies are near a wall — the stun duration doubles when enemies slam into terrain.
Skill Leveling Order — Max Q for maximum poke damage in Mini form. Then E for hop cooldown reduction, last W.
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Itemization
Recommended Builds
Starter
Doran's Blade
AD sustain for both forms — useful in Mini for Q poke and Mega for melee trades.
450g
Core
Trinity Force
Spellblade on Q/E procs. Attack speed, AD, and HP — works in both Mini and Mega forms.
3333g
Dead Man's Plate
Move speed to close the gap when transforming to Mega. Armor for tankiness.
2900g
Sterak's Gage
Shield when low HP in Mega form dive patterns. HP amplifies Mega form durability.
3100g
Situational
Spirit Visage
MR vs AP comps. Amplifies any healing from Trinity Force.
2900g
Thornmail
Grievous Wounds vs healing comps. Armor for tanking ADC damage in Mega form.
2700g
Titanic Hydra
HP scaling and AoE cleave — Mega form autos proc Titanic for massive AoE in teamfights.
3300g
Trinity Force is your identity item — it works in both forms and makes your Q spellblade proc deal huge burst damage.
Runes
Precision Primary
Grasp of the Undying
Free HP every 4 seconds in the extended lane. Mega form melee autos proc Grasp for HP scaling.
Triumph
Kill heals sustain through multi-target Mega R slam scenarios.
Legend: Alacrity
Attack speed stacks Mini W third-hit passive faster for more Rage generation.
Last Stand
Gnar at low HP in Mega form deals more damage — Last Stand rewards aggressive Mega dive.
Resolve Secondary
Bone Plating
Reduces burst damage in Mini form before you can transform to Mega for tankiness.
Conditioning
Free armor/MR at 12 min — amplifies Mega form durability for dive patterns.
Shards
Attack Damage · Armor · Health
Gameplay
How to Play Gnar
01
Early Game
Early Phase
- Mini: Q poke from max range and catch the return for CDR.
- W third-hit procs for Rage gain.
- Never commit to extended Mini trades — your HP is low in Mini.
- When Rage fills to 100%, look for R slam against terrain immediately.
02
Mid Game
Mid Phase
- Splitpush in Mini, roam in Mega.
- Your R slam near walls is a 1.25+ second AoE stun that wins fights by itself.
- Coordinate Mega transform timing with your team — flash into Mega R is a game-winning engage.
03
Late Game
Late Phase
- In teamfights, position so Mega R slams enemies into walls for maximum stun duration.
- E+R combo knocks enemies airborne while slamming others into terrain simultaneously.
Teamfighting
How to Teamfight as Gnar
Gnar's teamfight value is his Mega R wall slam — a multi-person AoE stun near terrain. Build Rage through Mini poke, then engage with Mega for the CC slam.
1
Setup — Build Rage with Mini Poke
Pre-fight
01
Q poke enemies to build Rage while staying safe in Mini form.
02
Take some damage from enemy autos — damage received also builds Rage.
03
Position near walls when Rage reaches 80%+ — prepare for the Mega transform engage.
Never use R before Mega form naturally transforms — you need 100 Rage for the transform. R only works in Mega form.
2
Engage — Mega R into Wall
CC combo
01
Transform to Mega at 100 Rage with enemies near a wall.
02
E to get in range then R immediately — slam enemies into the wall for maximum stun.
03
Mega W (Wallop) — stun the highest-priority target not caught in R.
3
Cleanup — Mega Brawl
Post-R
01
Mega Q (Boulder Toss) for AoE slow on fleeing enemies after R stun expires.
02
Mega E (Crunch) for another AoE knockup if available.
03
Transform back to Mini after Mega expires — poke cleanup from range.
Flash into Mega R is the strongest engage in the game — Flash toward the wall, immediately R, enemies slam into it for 1.25s stun on multiple targets.
Tips & Tricks
Advanced Mechanics & Hidden Tech
Advanced mechanics for Gnar.
Basic
Always catch the returning Q boomerang in Mini form
the catch reduces Q's cooldown by 60%.
Intermediate
Build Rage intentionally by taking damage and auto-attacking
don't waste 100 Rage by transforming without enemies nearby.
Intermediate
R slams enemies into walls for bonus stun duration
never use Mega R in open field without a wall nearby.
Advanced
Mini E can hop over walls
use it to escape ganks through terrain.
Basic
Mega form is temporary
use all Mega abilities quickly before the form expires.
Intermediate
Coordinate Mega transform timing with teammates
tell them when you're at 80+ Rage.
Advanced
Flash into Mega R is the most impactful engage available
save Flash specifically for this.
Advanced
Mini form poke generates Rage faster when you auto-attack
weave autos between Q throws.
Matchups
Counters & Matchups
Gnar is countered by champions who can fight him in both forms and ranged champions who out-poke him in Mini form at extended range.
Click any matchup to expand tips & how to play against them
Loses Against
Camille's R is a terrain zone that she controls — Gnar's Mega R slams into Camille's own zone, which she benefits from. Her W true damage works in both Gnar forms.
Avoid using Mega R when Camille has her own R available. Her zone overrides the slam advantage — fight before she R's.
Jayce's cannon poke outranges Gnar's Mini Q in cannon form. His knockback prevents Gnar from reaching Mega R range.
Dodge Jayce's cannon Q poke and look for Mega form engages when Jayce switches to melee.
Vayne's Condemn pushes Gnar away right before Mega R, preventing wall slams. True damage cuts through Mega form tankiness.
R away from Vayne's Condemn angle — position so the Condemn pushes her into a wall instead of you.
Wins Against
Mini Gnar outranges Darius's entire melee kit. He can't stack Hemorrhage against a ranged champion.
Q poke Darius every time he walks up. He has no answer to your Mini form range — deny him all melee CS.
Mini Q completely breaks Malphite's passive shield constantly. He can't retaliate from range.
Q poke every shield charge. Mega R into walls provides the AoE stun that wins fights — Malphite's R is countered by yours.
Mini Gnar's range completely denies Nasus stacking. He can't get close without eating constant Q poke.
Q harass every stack attempt. Nasus's Wither is irrelevant against a ranged champion with E hop escape.