Hai Yue Overview: January 2026 Meta Essential
Role Classification and Positioning
Hai Yue functions as a mage across three roles. Primary position: mid lane, leveraging shadow minion mechanics for wave control and zoning. Secondary: clash lane for sustained dueling through tether mechanics. Jungle viability stems from passive interaction with camp clearing and objective control.
Eternal Blood passive generates shadow minions dealing 50 (+7% magic attack) magic damage, enhanced minions add 80 (+14% magic attack)—halved against wild monsters. Passive recovers 20-40 (+0.5% additional health) while granting 30 shadow power, 30 movement speed, 10% healing effects when 6 minions active.
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Early 2026 Meta Dominance
Expected January 2026 release. Ravenous Tether extracts 10/14/18/22/26/30 physical attacks and 30/45/60/75/90/105 magic attacks from opponents, dealing 25/36/47/58/69/80 (+7% magic attack) damage while recovering 10/12/14/16/18/20 (+0.25% extra health). 4-second tether slows enemies 2.5% every 0.5 seconds, breaks at 1000 distance.
Shadow Moon ultimate provides 30% movement speed in shadows, 2 seconds immunity to effects, descends with 400/560/720 (+53% spell attack) damage. This combination counters immobile mages and squishy marksmen.
Strengths and Weaknesses
Strengths:
- Sustained combat through healing and shadow minion damage
- Normal attacks deal 40/48/56/64/72/80 (+100% physical attack +20% magic attack) spell damage
- 10% slow on attacks, grants 10 shadow power
- Constant lane pressure while building resources
Weaknesses:
- Vulnerable to burst before ultimate activation
- Relies on positioning for tether maintenance
- Countered by Han Xin, Hou Yi, Marco Polo, Yaria, Angela, Daji
- Anti-healing items (Venomous Staff, Mortal Punisher) counter passive sustain
- Magic defense (Darknight Breastplate, Eye of Phoenix, Sage's Sanctuary) reduces damage
Complete Skill Breakdown
Passive: Eternal Blood
Each minion contributes 50 (+7% magic attack) magic damage, enhanced minions add 80 (+14% magic attack)—50% reduced against jungle camps. Maximum 6 minions creates zone control and waveclear.
Recovery activates when minions damage enemies: 20-40 (+0.5% additional health) based on level. Grants 30 shadow power, 30 movement speed, 10% increased healing effects.
Skill 1: Painful Shock and Dark Transfer
10-second cooldown. Deals 200/220/240/260/280/300 (+24% spell attack) magic damage. Second activation teleports Hai Yue to targeted location with identical damage. Bypasses terrain and enemy formations.
Use Dark Transfer for repositioning during team fights, not pure damage. Wasting it leaves you vulnerable for 10 seconds.
Skill 2: Ravenous Tether
9-second cooldown. Extracts physical/magic attack stats while dealing continuous damage over 4 seconds. Extraction: 10-30 physical attack, 30-105 magic attack at max rank.
Slow accumulates to 20% over full duration (2.5% every 0.5 seconds). Recovery: 10-20 (+0.25% extra health) per tick. Purify spell removes tether.
Ultimate: Shadow Moon
Transforms into untargetable shadow for 2 seconds, removes all debuffs. 24/22/20-second cooldown. Gains 30% movement speed, immunity to crowd control. Descending strike: 400/560/720 (+53% spell attack) damage.
Time ultimate to anticipate enemy burst windows. Activating too early wastes immunity; too late results in death. Counters Liang and Donghuang whose kits rely on sustained crowd control.
Skill Leveling Priority (1-15)
Prioritize Skill 2 (Ravenous Tether) for max points. Secondary: Skill 1 (Painful Shock). Ultimate at levels 4, 8, 12.
Sequence: 2→1→2→Ult→2→1→2→Ult→1→1→Ult→1→2→2→2
Best Equipment Build
Core Items
- Boots of Tranquility: Movement speed, magic penetration
- Scepter of Reverberation: Cooldown reduction, magic power
- Savant's Wrath: Spell damage, mana sustain
- Insatiable Tome: Magic lifesteal complements passive healing
- Void Staff: Penetrates enemy magic defense
Sixth slot: situational based on enemy composition.
Early Game (Levels 1-7)
Start: basic boots, two magic power components. First back: complete Boots of Tranquility for roaming. Second purchase: Scepter of Reverberation components for cooldown reduction. Item spike at level 5-6 with first ultimate.
Mid Game (Levels 8-12)
Complete Savant's Wrath by level 9 for objective contests. Insatiable Tome fourth item, completed by level 11. Magic lifesteal synergizes with Eternal Blood, creating unkillable sustain.
Late Game
Void Staff completes core build at level 13-14. Percentage-based magic penetration counters enemy defense stacking (Sage's Sanctuary, Longnight Guardian, Overlord's Platemail).
Situational Adjustments
Against multiple magic defense stackers: prioritize flat penetration earlier. Against anti-healing compositions: delay Insatiable Tome for raw damage. Mobile assassin compositions: earlier defensive items. Tank-heavy lineups: percentage penetration priority.
Optimal Arcana Setup
Recommended Configuration
- Saint (Red): +5.3 Magical Attack per arcana
- Tribute (Blue): +2.4 Magical Attack, +0.7% Cooldown Reduction per arcana
- Avarice (Green): +1.6% Magical Lifesteal per arcana
Maximizes shadow minion damage with cooldown reduction and lifesteal. Tribute reduces Ravenous Tether cooldown to 8.37 seconds.
Alternative Setup
10 Red Moon, 8 Hunt, 2 Avarice, 10 Mind's Eye. Trades magic attack for penetration and movement speed. Benefits aggressive jungle invades and roaming.
Priority for Limited Resources
- Saint arcana (maximum damage)
- Avarice (sustain synergy with Insatiable Tome)
- Tribute (cooldown reduction)
Buy Honor of Kings tokens online through BitTopup for immediate arcana access.
Hai Yue Counters
Top Hard Counters
- Han Xin: Gap-closing mobility, burst damage eliminates before ultimate
- Hou Yi: Long-range poke, percentage damage bypasses shadow minion protection
- Marco Polo: True damage, mobility prevents tether maintenance
- Mai Shiranui: Burst combo, crowd control chain prevents ultimate cast
- Prince of Lanling: Stealth initiation exploits positioning requirements
- Wukong: Clone mechanics, burst overwhelms sustain
Common traits: high mobility breaks tether range, burst damage eliminates before healing, crowd control prevents ultimate.
Skill Matchups
Against Yaria, Angela, Daji, Bian Que: prioritize defensive positioning, farm under tower. Use Dark Transfer exclusively for escape until level 8. Maintain vision control, request jungle assistance.
Team Composition Counters
Multiple anti-healing sources (Venomous Staff, Mortal Punisher) + magic defense stacking neutralizes strengths. Teams with 3+ gap-closers prevent safe tether application. Poke-heavy compositions whittle health before team fights.
Itemization Against Counters
Heavy crowd control: purchase tenacity items. Burst compositions: prioritize health-stacking earlier. Magic defense counters: complete Void Staff as third item when facing 2+ Darknight Breastplate, Eye of Phoenix, Longnight Guardian, Overlord's Platemail, or Sage's Sanctuary.
Best Team Compositions
Ideal Partners
Liu Bang: Global ultimate supports aggressive positioning, crowd control enables guaranteed tether. Wuyan: Zone control, peel mechanics protect during ultimate channeling.
Tank heroes with displacement maximize Ravenous Tether effectiveness. Area denial prevents opponents from breaking 1000-distance threshold.
Heroes Hai Yue Restrains
Strong against Princess Frost and Luna. Ravenous Tether's stat extraction counters their positioning and sustained damage. 30-105 magic attack reduction diminishes damage during team fights.
Immobile mages and marksmen without dash struggle to break tether. Shadow minions provide vision revealing stealth attempts.
Complete Team Comps
Sustained Team Fight:
- Clash: Tank with crowd control
- Jungle: Bruiser with initiation
- Mid: Hai Yue
- Support: Liu Bang/Wuyan
- Marksman: Sustained damage dealer
Pick Potential:
- Clash: Split-push specialist
- Jungle: Assassin with burst
- Mid: Hai Yue
- Support: Roaming playmaker
- Marksman: Self-sufficient farmer
Pre-Release Farming Guide
Currency Requirements
Expect 13,888-18,888 gold or 588-888 vouchers. Epic Limited skins: 1188-1688 vouchers direct purchase or 1.5-2% drop chance per pull, guaranteed after 60-80 draws. Budget: minimum 1188 vouchers for skin or 7,128-13,440 vouchers for guaranteed draw (worst-case 80 draws at 89-168 vouchers per pull).
Efficient Farming
Ranked matches: Each victory provides 80-120 gold plus bonuses, defeats grant 40-60 gold. Five ranked matches daily with 50% win rate yields 400-500 gold, requiring 28-47 days for 18,888 gold.
Event modes (December 2025-January 2026): 200-500 tokens per completion, convertible to gold/vouchers.
Daily Quest Optimization
- Play 3 matches: 30 gold + 20 tokens
- Win 1 ranked: 50 gold + 30 tokens
- Guild activities: 20 gold + 15 tokens
- Hero training: 10 gold + 10 tokens
Daily totals: 110 gold + 75 tokens. 30 days yields 3,300 gold and 2,250 tokens.
Event Participation
Monitor for:
- Login Rewards: Daily vouchers and tokens
- New Hero Trials: Test Hai Yue, earn rewards
- Limited-Time Missions: Hero-specific challenges
- Recharge Events: Bonus vouchers through BitTopup
Voucher Acquisition via BitTopup
BitTopup provides secure, fast voucher top-ups with competitive pricing. Purchasing 2,000-3,000 vouchers covers hero cost (588-888), one Epic Limited skin (1188-1688), and arcana pages (200-400) for complete day-one readiness.
Gameplay Strategy
First 5 Minutes
Focus safe farming, shadow minion stack maintenance. Use Painful Shock for waveclear, not harassment. Position near minion waves for passive shadow generation. Equip Flash for early safety before ultimate unlock.
Mid Game Rotation
After completing Scepter of Reverberation and Savant's Wrath (levels 8-10), begin aggressive rotations. Shadow minions provide river vision. Coordinate with jungle for dragon, use Ravenous Tether to zone enemy marksmen.
Prioritize mid tower pressure when opponents rotate. Maintain vision through shadow minion placement in choke points.
Team Fight Positioning
Position mid-range during initiation. Apply Ravenous Tether on priority targets (marksman, mage) before damage windows. Reserve Shadow Moon for critical moments: dodging ultimates, removing crowd control, securing eliminations. Descend onto grouped enemies for maximum area damage.
Split Push vs Group
Split push when:
- Team composition favors 4-1 split
- Enemy lacks global ultimates or fast rotations
- Vision confirms enemy positions elsewhere
- Allied team can defend 4v4 or disengage
Group when: Enemy has strong dive potential (Han Xin, Prince of Lanling, Wukong).
Comeback Mechanics
Focus defensive farming, objective stealing. Shadow minions provide safe waveclear. Use Dark Transfer to steal enemy jungle camps. Avoid forced team fights—create picks through Ravenous Tether on isolated targets.
Advanced Tips
Animation Canceling
Cancel Painful Shock's cast animation with immediate Ravenous Tether. Reduces combo time by 0.3-0.5 seconds. Sequence: Painful Shock→Ravenous Tether→Normal Attack→Dark Transfer→Normal Attack.
Vision Control
Shadow minions function as mobile wards. Place in river bushes before rotating. During team fights, position on flanking routes to detect assassins.
Spell Timing
Flash (default):
- Close distance for guaranteed tether
- Escape ganks before ultimate
- Reposition for optimal Shadow Moon descent
- Dodge skill shots
Purify (situational): Against Liang, Donghuang, or 3+ crowd control sources.
Common Mistakes
- Using Dark Transfer aggressively without ultimate available
- Activating Shadow Moon too early
- Neglecting shadow minion positioning
- Building pure damage without sustain items
- Chasing beyond tether range (1000 distance)
Rank Climbing
Diamond: Consistent farming, objective focus. Prioritize dragon control, tower pressure.
Master: Advanced macro play. Coordinate tether timing, communicate ultimate cooldowns.
Mythic: Perfect mechanical execution, matchup knowledge. Track enemy ultimate availability.
Unlock Hai Yue on Release Day
F2P Methods
Requires 28-47 days consistent farming for 13,888-18,888 gold. Begin immediately. Prioritize ranked matches, daily quests. Complete trial missions for gold rewards and hero shards.
Voucher Purchase via BitTopup
Fastest unlock: purchase 588-888 vouchers for immediate hero unlock. Bundle with skin acquisitions: 2,000 vouchers covers hero + Epic Limited skin. BitTopup's competitive pricing, fast delivery, trusted reputation ensures reliable transactions.
Limited-Time Release Events
Monitor for:
- First Week Discount: 20-30% voucher reduction
- Bundle Offers: Hero + skin packages
- Login Bonuses: Free hero shards
- Recharge Rewards: Bonus vouchers during release week
Skin Bundle Value
Direct purchase at 1,688 vouchers vs. 70 average draws × 128 vouchers = 8,960 vouchers. Direct purchase provides 81% cost savings vs. worst-case draw scenario.
FAQ
When is Hai Yue releasing? Expected around January 2026 based on regional patterns. Monitor official updates for exact dates.
Best build for Hai Yue? Boots of Tranquility, Scepter of Reverberation, Savant's Wrath, Insatiable Tome, Void Staff. Provides magic damage, penetration, cooldown reduction, lifesteal.
Which heroes counter Hai Yue? Han Xin, Hou Yi, Marco Polo, Mai Shiranui, Prince of Lanling, Wukong. Items: Venomous Staff, Mortal Punisher, magic defense equipment.
Best arcana setup? Saint (+5.3 Magical Attack), Tribute (+2.4 Magical Attack, +0.7% Cooldown Reduction), Avarice (+1.6% Magical Lifesteal).
Mid lane or jungle? Best in mid lane for safe farming and scaling. Jungle viable but passive deals halved damage to wild monsters.
How much does Hai Yue cost? 13,888-18,888 gold or 588-888 vouchers. Epic Limited skins: 1188-1688 vouchers direct purchase. Secure vouchers through BitTopup for instant day-one access.
Ready to dominate with Hai Yue from day 1? Secure vouchers now through BitTopup for instant hero unlock, exclusive skins, and bonus tokens. Fast, secure, trusted by millions worldwide!
