How Does Fear Work In League of Legends?

League of Legends has an abundance of crowd control effects, each having a unique trait. Effects like airborne, fear, and charm are some unique effects you will find only in League. These, with the inclusion of stun, render the enemy defenseless, and unable to react to any abilities. We said that each has a unique trait, such as airborne cannot be cleansed and polymorph turns the champion into a defenseless animal.

Fear is also a unique type of CC that leaves the champion incapacitated. When a champion is hit by an ability that inflicts the Fear status effect, their movement pattern is uncontrollable. On top of that, attacking or using abilities are disabled, and any ongoing channels are interrupted. 

Although this status effect’s duration, like most others, is affected by tenacity, the few seconds of uncontrollable actions are usually enough to secure a kill on the opponent.

Fear is only used by a few champions. The main one is Fiddlesticks. Other champions include Vex, Warwick, Shaco, etc. The status effect is great for dispersing large enemy groups and making them run in different ways. But to unlock its full potential, you need to understand how fear works. So let’s take a deeper look into the unique status effect.

Also check out: How to dodge in LoL

Fear – A Description

When Fear is activated, the target is forced to move directly away from the source which feared them. The duration of fear is ability-dependant, although it is usually anywhere between 0.75- 2 seconds.

During this duration, enemies are completely incapacitated, unable to cast spells or auto-attack. It also disables the use of several summoner spells e.g. Flash, Teleport, Hexflash, and Mark/ Dash.

Any ongoing channels like Shen R or Vel’Koz R are also interrupted and cease abruptly. Fear also overrides previous forced action effects such as charm or taunt.

Also check out: Promo Helper

Can It Be Cleansed/Nullified?

Yes, there are various ways to nullify the effects of Fear. Both the summoner spell, Cleanse, and Gangplank’s W can cleanse the Fear effect if used appropriately.

Dr. Mundo’s passive, Goes Where He Pleases, can also resist the effects of Fear as long as it is active. Once it is deactivated, Dr. Mundo will get feared like every other champion.

How Is It Different From Charm/ Taunt?

While Charm and Taunt are active, the enemy is forced to move toward the source of the immobilizing effect. When enemies are Feared, they move away from the source of Fear. Other than this, all other status effects are the same for both immobilizing effects. Champions’ abilities and movement actions are completely nullified.

Top 5 Champs With Fear

Shaco

Shaco’s W, Jack-in-the-Box, is a common source of Fear throughout Summoner’s Rift and a nuisance to play against. When activated, it Fears all nearby enemies for 2 seconds.

Fiddlesticks

Fiddlesticks’ entire kit is based upon Fearing the enemy long enough to secure a kill. Unlike most champions, Fiddlesticks can Fear using any ability due to his Q’s passive. This allows him to fear enemies for a duration when he is out of enemy vision and has been out of combat for 2.5 seconds. This passive can also be activated when he is pretending to be an effigy.

Warwick

Warwick Fears enemies through his E, Primal Howl. When activated, he gains damage reduction. On re-cast, he Fears nearby enemies for 1 second and slows them by 90%.

Hecarim

One of the two champions on our list who Fears through his R, Onslaught of Shadows. Hecarim dashes to the target location, immune to any displacements. On reaching his target destination, he Fears nearby enemies for 0.75- 2 seconds and slows them. These effects are based on distance traveled.

Urgot

Urgot has a key ultimate that can turn the tide in a team fight. Using his R, Fear Beyond Death, Urgot can execute enemies below 25% health. When an enemy is executed, Urgot Fears all nearby enemies for 1.5 seconds and slows them by 75%.

Best Utilization

If you are on a champion that utilizes the Fear immobilization effect, you want to make sure you are near the enemy champion when the effect is activated. Fear only lasts for a few seconds but, due to the incapacitation, makes the target a free kill if you have the damage or CC to follow it up.

It can also be used to keep enemies away or stop them from chasing you. Shaco’s Jack-in-the-Box is a great example as you can place it around objectives or in the river to prevent junglers from getting the drop on you.

Also check: How to Identify The Real LeBlanc and Shaco?

The Takeaway

Fear is a pretty special immobolizing effect and definitely fits the lore for most of these champions. It takes some time to get used to as it differs in effect from other status effects but once you have got it down, it is extremely fun to play with. So go out there and check out this cool status effect.

Also Check Out: Dragon Soul LoL Tier List