Shyvana is a very interesting champion. She hasn’t been a “meta” pick in a long time now.
And in season 13, players have developed multiple different builds for Shyvana, ranging from full AP to bruiser AD, and even full tank.
And because of this, many players don’t if Shyvana is an AP or an AD champion in League of Legends!
In this post, I’ll tell you everything you need to know about Shyvana’s damage in season 13 of LoL. I’ll talk about whether she is really an AP or an AD champion and also the type of damage her abilities do.
However, I’ll also give you two different builds to match your playstyle.
So if you’re interested to know more about Shyvana’s damage in League of Legends, scroll down and let’s begin!
Is Shyvana AP or AD?

Shyvana is a mix of AP and AD in League of Legends. Her abilities deal physical and magic damage and they have AP and AD ratios.
Shyvana scales with both ability power and attack damage, so she can either be played with a full AP build, a full AD build, a full tank build, or a combination of those.
Since Shyvana is a particular case of AP and AD in League, let me explain to you how her abilities work.
Shyvana’s passive – Fury of the Dragonborn allows her to deal a bonus of 20% physical and magic damage to dragons in League of Legends, regardless of her build.
Her Q – Twin Bite is a simple on-hit effect that empowers her next auto-attack. It deals 100% of her AD plus 35% of her AP as physical damage.
In her dragon form, Shyvana deals damage to all enemies around her instead.
Shyvana’s W – Burnout is an AoE spell that burns all enemies around Shyvana with magic damage for 3 seconds. It scales with both AP and AD but it empowers her auto-attacks to deal more on-hit magic damage.
The E – Flame Breath is a ranged attack that deals a lot of magic damage. It scales with 30% AD and 70% AP in her human form. And in her dragon form, Flame Breath scales with 60% AD and 100% AP and it also burns the ground.
This ability is the whole reason why players go for a full AP Shyvana build.
And finally, Shyvana’s R – Dragon’s Descent deals magic damage to enemies caught in her path. This spell only scales with 100% of her AP and doesn’t have an AD ratio.
Judging only by her ratios, Shyvana is more AP than AD in League of Legends!
Read Also: Warwick AP Build Guide
AP Shyvana vs. AD Shyvana – What’s the Difference?

AP Shyvana deals more damage with E and R while AD Shyvana uses her Q and auto-attacks to deal damage. The AP Shyvana build has high burst damage but low survivability.
And the AD/bruiser build allows Shyvana to fight longer but deal less damage overall.
Both builds are viable in season 13.
The key difference between AP and AD Shyvana is the way she deals damage.
Like I already mentioned, the AP Shyvana playstyle is more like a mage because she uses her E to deal damage from afar.
And the bruiser AD and tank playstyles turn Shyvana into a melee fighter that dives deep into the enemy backline.
If you’re interested to see how AP vs AD Shyvana works in-game, I suggest you check out this YouTube video. It showcases a few different builds for Shyvana, so it’s an interesting watch overall.
However, even though you can play multiple different builds on Shyvana in season 13 of League of Legends, the most recommended one is full AP.
This is because the damage is so high in LoL that AP Shyvana is a better fit this season and is overall better.
And if you want to know how to play AP Shyvana jungle, scroll down to see the runes and items you’ll need!
Read Also: Volibear AP Build Guide
AP Shyvana Build – Runes & Items
Runes

- Dark Harvest – great for dealing more damage to low-HP targets and scaling for late game.
- Sudden Impact – grants you free magic penetration when you use Shyvana’s ultimate.
- Eyeball Collection – gives you a bit of bonus AP when you slay champions.
- Relentless Hunter – increases your out-of-combat movement speed based on how many champions you’ve slain.
- Transcendence – grants you ability haste and resets 20% of your remaining cooldowns when you get a kill/assist.
- Gathering Storm – passively increases your AP as the game goes on, which is great for late game too.
Items

- Nashor’s Tooth – grants you a lot of attack speed and AP which really helps in the early game.
- Night Harvester – increases your burst potential so your first E against a champion deals bonus magic damage.
- Rabadon’s Deathcap – almost doubles your AP and it’s a massive damage booster.
- Zhonya’s Hourglass – is a great defensive item for Shyvana since she’s a melee champion after all.
- Void Staff – grants enough magic penetration for Shyvana’s E to one-shot the enemy.
- Sorcerer’s Shoes – further increases your magic penetration.
Read Also: Trundle AP Build Guide
AD Tank Shyvana Build – Runes & Items
Runes

- Press the Attack – deals extra damage after you strike an enemy champion with 3 auto-attacks.
- Triumph – restores a bit of your health when you get a kill or an assist.
- Legend: Alacrity – increases your overall attack speed and helps you deal more damage.
- Coup de Grace – allows you to deal more damage to enemies below 40% HP.
- Magical Footwear – you receive a free boot 12 minutes into the game or earlier if you score kills/assist.
- Cosmic Insight – reduces the cooldown of your Summoner’s Spells and items.
Read Also: AP Sejuani Build Guide
Items

- Frostfire Gauntlet – is a great mythic item that makes Shyvana deal more damage while being tanky.
- Blade of the Ruined Kings – increases her AD and allows her to heal herself with auto-attacks.
- Sterak’s Gage – is a useful AD/tank item that grants AD and a shield when you drop below 30% HP.
- Thornmail – increases your armor and applies Grievous Wounds to your attackers.
- Warmog’s Armor – grants 800 health and tons of HP regeneration.
- Plated Steelcaps – gives you enough armor in the early game.
Read Also: Rammus AP Build Guide
Conclusion
Shyvana is a great champion if you like diversity in League of Legends. She’s one of the few playable dragons in LoL, so she’s definitely a rarity.
And the fact that you can go either AP, AD, or tank in each game makes her a very interesting pick.
I hope this guide helped you figure out how you should build Shyvana in season 13. Good luck!