Senior Editor Chris Tom checks out Sona, Maven of the Strings and League of Legends' new resident bard.

Overall, Sona appeals to the current meta-game of League of Legends that really enjoys giant team battles, where both teams like to sit in a lane and poke at each other for what feels like an eternity. In fights like these, where you have a solid front-line and a strong back-line of DPS champions, Sona really shines with her ability to keep the aura bonuses of all three of her songs up perpetually. This means that all of your tanks and DPS champions get a speed, defense and attack boost over their enemies, and Sona will be able to continually heal whoever has the lowest HP.

Sadly, while I do enjoy playing Sona, she does need to be played somewhat passively to get the best out of her. Some Sona players I have spoken to prefer the idea of staying right in the middle of the fight, supporting the front lines with damage and heals, but this requires a fairly tankish Sona, and can cripple her ability to heal for large amounts. Alternatively, I, and many others, prefer to build Sona as a pure spell caster, using her superior movement speed to constantly stay out of range of the enemy. Sona's Aria of Perseverance and Song of Celerity both seem to have an exceptionally long range, so it really isn't a requirement for Sona to be sitting on the front lines of battle.

What Sona ultimately requires, however, is that classic LoL front line of champions who are ready to absorb the brunt of the enemy attacks. Since Sona lacks any true escape mechanisms outside of trying to move fast (or her ultimate), she is a very squishy target. Unfortunately, after the mid to late-game mark, Sona also becomes a fairly low priority target because, while her buffs are good, they are not that good in a single burst of team fighting. Sona really shines the longer a fight goes on, but since teams usually don't expect a fight to last long (30 seconds at best), then it's much smarter to go for the team that Sona is supporting, rather than this champion herself.

In this way, Sona players would do well to surround themselves with powerful allies who can benefit from having that increased movement speed, as well as characters who need a little bit of time to set up their ultimates. Galio and Amumu come to mind, as a good Sona ultimate can easily pave the way for them to follow up. As well, if your front line is letting a few champions slip through, just stick to the strongest back-line damage dealer of your group (Kog'maw, for example), and the moment you see that would-be assassin, throw out your ultimate, heal your teammate and shred your opponent to bits. Since Sona's ultimate isn't absolutely necessary for a team fight (like Amumu or Galio's ultimates), using her as a champion protector is probably the best thing she can be.

Sona is only really as good as her team is, so if you stick with that classic combination of tank, off-tank, DPS, caster DPS and support, Sona will definitely have a field day. Just remember that, like the good musician you are, you need to support your band mates to get a good sound. If that sounds like something you would enjoy to play (and it really is fun to zoom around the map with her "Song of Celerity"), then be sure to pick up Sona in the Riot Store today.

Chris Tom, Senior News Editor / Staff Writer