As a striker, Karl uses the utility available to him to maximise his role as a ganker focused around high burst damage. To become competent with Karl, you must play aggressively while knowing how to extend, chase, and initiate correctly. As a team player, Karl is also effective in supporting his allies through team fights. Karl also possesses the powerful skill of being able to stun enemy pros and bots, which assist him in initiating ganks and immobilising his opponents to land his incredible burst combo.

The Handler is a quick-firing fully-automatic laser-shooting weapon that has a default magazine of 15 rounds and a reload time of 1 second (if the reload is interupted after 0.66 seconds, the reload still occurs). The primary fire is hit-scan and deals relatively high damage, but suffers from some pretty steep damage falloff.

The primary fire of the handler fires a hit-scan laser every 0.2 seconds that does 36 base damage. The shots fire in a reasonably wide spread and do full damage up to the range of 1024 units and the least damage (2 base damage) after the range of 2048 units.

The secondary fire of the handler fires a slow projectile that explodes on contact with an enemy pro, bot, turret, or an arena surface. The projectile does 125 base damage and explodes in an area of effect of 128 units. It will disappear automatically if it doesn't hit anything for 6 seconds. The secondary fire does not consume ammo and can be used every 6 seconds.


Despite popular belief, Karl's handler is his main source of damage rather than his burst combo. Aim and tracking is something you'll want to get up to scratch if you wish to be competent with Karl. When approaching enemy pros, you'll want to get within a close-medium range to ensure the maximum damage possible is delivered. Karl is about dealing large amounts of damage in short periods of time.

When attacking an enemy pro, you'll generally want to use your primary and secondary fire with the handler as fast as possible to maximise damage output. Make sure you're attacking them in a position where every secondary fire hits the target as it significantly increases the damage dealt. Take advantage of Karl's secondary fire of being a powerful projectile with no fall off, as it is more useful than it seems. Time it right, and you should be able to finish off retreating enemy pros.

When prioritising multiple targets, consider that smaller pros are weaker and therefore easier to kill, however larger pros are easier to hit. Smaller pros should be prioritised as Karl's burst damage focuses on killing enemy pros before they have the chance to retreat. However, larger pros are usually worse at escaping and therefore allowing you to chase them easier. Consider these factors regarding the current situation.

Karl's bouncing buddies is a semi-automatic grenade launcher with a default magazine of 4 rounds and a reload duration of 1.75 (If the reload is interupted after 0.8 seconds the reload still occurs) seconds by default. It launches highly-elastic explosives that bounce off of arena surfaces and bounce up once (while still staying on the same horizontal axis) from any floor surface they hit. The grenades do not explode on contact; only after their timed fuse expires.

The primary fire of the bouncing buddies fires a grenade every 0.25 seconds that does 70 damage. The grenade will explode after 1.5 seconds once it hits an object. If it doesn't hit an object for 1 second it will automatically explode. The explosion has an area of effect of 256 units. The secondary fire of the bouncing buddies grapples an enemy target, doing 200 damage to it and throwing it forward 1,500 units. The cooldown of the grapple is 6 seconds.


Karl's bouncing buddies are effective at reaching targets out of range due to being able to bounce off walls and around corners. Use them to spam enemy pros with grenades at long ranges where your handler cannot reach. They can also be spammed at choke points and as a source of area denial to deter enemy pros from particular points of the map. You can also assist your allies in grapples at long ranges by launching your bouncing buddies at the pair immobilised in the animation.

You should only be using your bouncing buddies on bots that are out of range of your handler or against large groups of bots so that the explosion hits multiple bots at once. When bots are moving up a lane in this situation, you should time your bouncing buddies ahead of the bots so that they explode when the bots reach their explosive range. Even scattering the ground with bouncing buddies during a team fight can be effective in some cases. At particular ranges, you will be able to have the grenades explode in the air before they hit the ground. You may be able to use this technique to attack an enemy pro without giving them the ability to run away from the grenades as they are about to explode. Karl's bouncing buddies are also an exceptional weapon for cheesing turrets due to their nature. Details on cheesing turrets are covered in another section.

Karl fires an projectile at the speed of 3072 units that explodes on contact (in an area of effect of 192 units) on an enemy pro, bot, turret or arena surface, doing a miniscule 25 damage and stunning enemies, bots, or turrets caught in its blast for 1 second. However, should it detonate so that the explosion hits Karl as well, he will stun himself for the same duration and deal the same damage to himself. The projectile will also automatically explode if it doesn't hit for a few seconds depending on the skills level (6 / 3 / 2.4 / 1.95 seconds each level, respectively). Upgrading the skill will also decrease the lengthy cooldown (40 / 26.6 / 20 / 15 seconds each level, respectively).


You should use short circuit to initiate ganks and your burst combo. When chasing enemy pros, you can also use short circuit to close the gap between you and your opponent. You can also use short circuit to create distance between you and your enemy when being chased yourself. However, you can counter a chase this way by baiting the enemy pro and turning around and landing your burst combo after landing your stun to kill the enemy, depending on their health.

Short circuit doesn't require a direct hit to stun an enemy pro, and can even stun more than a single pro at once. Stunning more than one pro can usually double the efficiency of your burst combo, since you are able to kill two birds with one stone. Aim for the ground or even nearby wall to reliably stun an enemy pro easier. You can even stun enemy pros who are on the mascot. If they are close enough to the mascot (usually a melee-based pro), you can use your short circuit on the mascot which will usually catch the enemy pro in the stun. Short circuit can also be used to deny enemy pros from activating the annihilator.


You'll mostly want to save short circuit to initiate. Don't be afraid of the long cooldown if you see the opportunity, but don't waste it by making random throws or in places you won't be able to capitalise on. You can also use short circuit to ring out enemy pros flying over gaps with Assault or Leo to cause them to fall to their death. Same with enforcers with jets, which usually happens between the two bridges on bullet gorge.

If you're in communication with your team, let them know when you're about to go for a stun and on who so that they can act accordingly. You can even co-ordinate the use of short circuit with a particular teammate such as the Veteran to allow him to get an easy pull with ka-claw. Also, don't be afraid to have to stun yourself with short circuit in a fight to stall for your skills to regenerate.

Karl is launched upwards, damaging and knocking back enemy pros in an area of effect of 512 units around him. It also gives full air control (100%) for 2 seconds after it is activated. Upgrading prop hop reduces the short cooldown (15 / 10 / 7.5 / 6 seconds each level, respectively), the small damage dealt (25 / 50 / 75 / 100 damage each level respectively), the knockback (130,000 / 150,000 / 150,000 / 150,000 units each level, respectively), and the hop height (1,500 / 1,750 / 1,750 / 1,750 units each level, respectively). The effect of the first upgrade is much more significant than the remaining levels.



As Karl's only source of mobility, you want to make sure you make full use of prop hop. If you use prop hop correctly, you can escape most situations from extending or when being ganked. Having the lowest cooldown in the game, you can use it in most situations without having to worry about prioritising it for a possible situation. Though the damage prop hop deals to enemy pros is miniscule, it's still significant to an extent and can easily be used to finish off enemy pros who are low on health. This can be helpful when reloading.

When being chased, you can use your prop hop at the top of a jump pad to then fall back down behind the jump pad as your enemy gets to the location the jump pads leads to. This can sometimes fool enemies into thinking you've used the jump pad and are somewhere in the location the jump pad takes you to, especially in a team fight. If it doesn't work, you can also use jump pads this way to repeatedly go up the same jump pad to stall for teammates to arrive or to stall for your skills to regenerate.

You can also use prop hop to get to upper ledges and the jungle. The fact that most pros lack a vertical mobility skill allows Karl to escape situations easily (where most enemy pros can't chase) and quickly get a higher ground advantage when fighting enemy pros. You can even use prop hop in a regular fight not just to add damage. The fact that you know when you're going to use the skills allows you to continue tracking your enemy, while the unsuspecting enemy pro will lose their tracking on you for a brief moment. This can easily change the tide of a fight.

Prop hop also cancels all current momentum effecting Karl and so can be used to stop being pulled from ka-claws and being launched into other groups of enemies. This function can also be used to prevent being rung out and also recover from a potential ring out.


The fact that prop hop grants full air control allows you to use it when required or in danger, and then change direction to the most relevant area for the current situation. There are various spots which allow you to get to different areas of map quickly. Remember to jump before using prop hop to gain extra height if needed. The knockback can also be used to deny an enemy pro activating the annihilator.


You can use the knockback on prop hop to launch enemy pros into your teammates, ally turrets, off edges to ring them out, and away from retreating teammates being chased. You can also use the knockback when being chased to launch enemies away from you, as well as the actual hop to get to a location out of their reach. Prop hop allows Karl to extend and escape from ganks, but make sure the area you hop into is safe enough for you to stall for the cooldown.


There are a few jump pads which have edges nearby which you can use to bait enemy pros into, wait at the top, and then use prop hop for an easy ring out. Enemy pros with mobility skills may be able to return to safety after being launched off the edge. Try and watch these pros for when they use these skills and take their respective cooldowns into account when attempting to ring them out.


Opportunities to ring out enemy pros with the knockback of prop hop include when they are approaching particular jump pads. Examples include the ones in the jungle on Gun Mountain and Grenade III.XIV. If performed correctly, you should be able to launch the enemy pro past the jump pad and off the edge.


The knockback on Karl's prop hop can also be used to further boost the momentum of a launched enemy pro in the direction they are moving. You can use this technique to ring out enemy pros. For example, the jump pads by the annihilator on Grenade III.XIV. As soon as an enemy pro starts moving after touching one of the jump pads, you can launch them with prop hop them which will continue to send them in that direction, but much further than normal off the arena.

Junior is a semi-autonomous robot Karl throws out, which hovers in place. There is a 0.25 second delay wherein Karl does the throwing animation. Junior moves at the speed of 4,500 units until it's stationary. When an enemy pro gets within juniors detection field, which is 384 units, it starts flying towards them after a short arm time, until it hits either the target itself or another enemy pro, bot, turret or object, and explodes. Or if it reaches the end of its lifespan after it's detection, which is 5 seconds. If a junior doesn't detect any enemies in 15 seconds while stationary it automatically explodes. Juniors also does area of effect damage, full damage at 128 units and minimum damage at 256 units, which may also damage Karl in the process.

Upgrading junior reduces the cooldown (20 / 14 / 10 / 7.5 seconds each upgrade, respectively), the tracking speed (450 / 525 / 600 / 768 units each upgrade, respectively), the maximum damage dealt (75 / 150 / 225 / 300 each upgrade, respectively), and the minimum damage dealt (40 / 75 / 112 / 150 each upgrade, respectively).


Junior will generally be used as apart of your burst combo. The cooldown is short enough for you not to need to save it for enemy pros, as using junior to damage bots is perfectly fine. Though, take into account that junior only tracks enemy pros, not bots. However, junior is also useful for area denial. You can even use junior to deter enemy pros when being chased.


You can also use junior to set up traps. Placing juniors around the top of jump pads and choke points is an easy way to initiate damage to enemy pros. Karl is able to have more than one junior out at a time, to a maximum of 2 without the churros. Churros regenerate your skills, and therefore give you the ability to stack several juniors at a time.

You can either use churros to deny the area by spamming it with juniors, or create a trap with numerous juniors stacked on top of one another to heavily damage or even instantly kill any enemy pro. You can even bait enemy pros who are chasing you into these traps. Fortunately, the jungle usually has a few bots and therefore a few churros available to you. This technique becomes most effective when Bullseye or Juicebot are up as they drop several churros. Furthermore, the mascot tends to spawn around annihilator fights, which is also the most effective time to deny the area and create traps.


In a team fight, tend to place juniors around escape routes. This tactic will usually kill enemy pros as they are likely to be low on health if they are retreating. You can even use the knockback on prop hop to launch enemy pros into your juniors already active around the area.

If your teammate is grappling someone, analyse the health of the enemy pro. If you are sure your burst combo (without short circuit) will kill that pro, feel free to continue doing so to secure the kill. If that pro is sure to survive it, use your handler until they are out of the grapple. Right before the grapple animation ends, use short circuit and then proceed with your burst combo. If you don't have your stun available, you'll want toss your junior right before the grapple animation ends. If you time it correctly, the junior will activate at just the right moment to deal full damage instead of half. You will likely be able to perform this trick every time once it is mastered.


If your teammate is being grappled, there are a couple of factors you'll want to consider. If the health of the enemy pro is low enough to finish with a simple burst combo, feel free to pop your stun to break the grapple and ensure your teammate takes as little damage as possible. If their health is higher, use their immobility to your advantage to attack them with your handler. Then use short circuit at the end of the their grapple and proceed with your burst combo. Only use this technique of leaving your ally vulnerable if you're sure they'll both survive and escape if required.

Another factor you'll want to consider is your teammate's health. If it is low, you'll want to pop your stun as soon as possible and continue with the burst combo (maybe using the knockback on prop hop to create distance between the enemy pro and your teammate to allow him room for escape if you're sure they will attempt to chase your teammate). If it is high enough, you'll be able to continue with previous strategy. Prioritise your teammate's health over your enemy's health.

You'll also want to consider the number of enemies in that area. If the enemy pro in the grapple is not alone, you'll again want to pop your stun as soon as possible to allow your teammate to escape or help you in the fight as soon as possible.

One of the roles Karl specifically specialises at is cheesing turrets. This is due to his bouncing buddies being arguably the best weapon for cheesing in the game. When attacking turrets within fall off range, you'll want to be using your handler as it provides more damage per second than your bouncing buddies do. However, using your handler generally puts you in a vulnerable position. With the bouncing buddies, you can move into safety while reloading. You can use prop hop to assist you in cheesing particular turrets behind walls. Here are a list of various cheese spots for each available turret.


Loco Moco Ruins tier 1 left turret. This turret is already exposed and can be cheesed from the open. However, this spot ensures safety from the lanes if required. You can prop hop to the jungle or your bases regenitol area if you need to escape. You're also able to tag bots on the left lane and even push it to an extent from here.


Loco Moco Ruins tier 1 right turret. This cheese spot is good for protection as it doesn't expose you to enemies defending that turret at all. Being in the jungle will also bring jungle bots to your direction, allowing you to level up faster. You are also close to your base, so you are able to escape if required. However, cheesing here leaves you less mobile than other spots, so you may be prone to ganks from commandos. You may be able to tag and even push lanes from here as it is the jungle, but requires you to move around more.



Loco Moco Ruins tier 2 left and right turret. This cheese spot leaves you high up so you're more protected from ganks. This spot is also relatively close to your own base, allowing you to escape there if required. However, you are more vulnerable to enemy pros such as sharpshooters. This cheese spot is exceptionally efficient as it allows you cheese both left and right lane's tier 2 turrets. It is also relatively difficult to tag or push lanes from this spot.


Loco Moco Ruins tier 3 left turret. This cheese spot leaves you dangerously in the open, however allows you to cheese while being protected from ganks. You can also escape by prop hopping to the jungle's regenitol area as an efficient escape route. You are also able to cheese the moneyball from this spot. You should also be able to tag and push left lane from here.


Loco Moco Ruins tier 3 right turret. You can cheese both the turret and the moneyball from this spot. Again, this leaves you in the open, but allows you a quicker escape route to the jungle and also a closer regenitol vendor is needed (however, it is situated in a more dangerous location). You may also be able to tag and push right lane from here.


Bullet Gorge tier 1 left turret. This is one of the best cheesing spots in the game as it allows you to cheese while being within the complete safety of your ally turret. You may be harassed from this spot, however it is extremely easy to escape from this location and has a regenitol vendor nearby if required. You are also able to tag and push both lanes from here.


Bullet Gorge tier 1 right turret. This spot keeps you close to your base if you need to escape. Being in the jungle, bots will approach you allowing you to level up faster. You should be able to tag and even push lanes from this area, but it may require you to move around slightly. A regenitol vendor is also nearby if required, though you may be prone to ganks cheesing from here.


Bullet Gorge tier 2 left turret. This cheese spot leaves you closer to your base, allowing you to escape easier. However, you are prone to ganks as you are not as mobile here as with other spots. You are also vulnerable to the ejector, but are able to push and tag the left lane.


This spot is focused on the same turret. This one leaves you more mobile, an easier escape, and a regenitol vendor nearby. However, you are more prone to being ganked from the jump pad behind and are further away from your base. You can both tag and push the right lane from here.


Bullet Gorge tier 2 right turret. This cheese spot leaves you exposed but allows you to keep jungle control at the same time. There is also room for taking cover and to escape. This spot is right next to a regenitol vendor, allowing you to heal up if required. You can also both tag and push the right lane from this area.


Bullet Gorge tier 3 left and right turret. This location allows you to cheese both the tier 3 right and left turrets. However, you are exposed here and also prone to being ganked. nevertheless, there is an escape route through using the jump pad from behind. You can also tag and push the left lane from here. There is a similar cheese spot on the other lane.


Bullet Gorge tier 3 right turret. This spot allows you to cheese the turret from a distance, keeping you reasonably protected. There is also an easy escape route to the jungle, as well as a regenitol vendor if needed. You may also be able to tag and push the right lane from here.


Downtown Spunky tier 1 right turret. From here, you are protected by your own turrets while cheesing, as well as access to an easy escape route if needed. However, you are also exposed to enemy pros if they have control of the ring. You should also be able to tag and push the left lane from this area.


Downtown Spunky tier 2 left turret. This spot allows you to cheese the turret while keeping control of the ring. You can also prop hop over the glass if you need to escape. However, you may be prone to ganks, as well as being vulnerable to the fuzz. You can also tag and push both lanes from the controlling the ring.




All Downtown Spunky turrets. Cheesing here leaves you relatively extended, as well as being exposed to the enemy. You are prone to ganks here, however can cheese all turrets from this tunnel. There is also a regenitol vendor nearby if in need. Both lanes can also be tagged and pushed from this position.



Gun Mountain tier 1 left and right turret. These spots can both provide you protection from direct fire from the lanes. However, you are prone to ganks in both of these positions. You can tag and push the lane you are cheesing on. The spot on the upper bridges allows you to get the height advantage, as well as increased protection from the lanes. On the other hand, the other spot gives you direct access to the regenitol vendor.

Gun Mountain tier 2 left and right turret. The first cheese spot allows you cheese the turret from a distance, giving you more protection from direct fire from the lanes. There is also a regenitol vendor nearby if required. However, you are also extremely vulnerable to being ganked from behind. You may be able to tag and push the lane you are cheesing on. The other location leaves you further away from your base, but leaves you more mobile and quick access to both lanes. You could possibly tag and push both lanes in this area.




Gun Mountain tier 3 left and right turret. The first spot leaves you exposed to both enemy pros and bots, but has a close escape to the jungle, as well as a reasonably close regenitol vendor. You will also be able to tag and push the lane you are cheesing on. The second spot gives you more protection from direct fire, but also leaves you more extended than the other. You can also tag and push the lane you are on.


While using this cheese spot, you're also given access to an escape route to the jungle. Simply fall off the map in the direction of the jungle, and use prop hop to get onto the edge. Enemy pros tend to not follow you through using this route.




Grenade III.XIV tier 1 left and right turret. This spot allows you to cheese from a distance while being unexposed to direct fire from the lanes. However, you are less mobile while cheesing from here and so may be ganked in the process. The second spot gives you further protection, as well as having an escape route and regenitol vendor nearby. However, less of the bouncing buddies are likely to hit the turret as well as the lanes being harder to tag and push. You can both tag and push the lane you are on from these areas.




Grenade III.XIV tiers 2 land 3 left and right turret. Cheesing from here allows you to keep your height advantage, while being able to both tag and push the lane you are on. You are also able to take cover reasonably easily and have a regenitol vendor nearby if needed. However, you are exposed while cheesing here, as well as being possibly ganked.

The most common combination of Karl's skills is his imfamous burst combo. This deals a large amount of burst damage in short period of time which makes it great for initiating ganks. To perform the combo, use short circuit to stun an enemy pro, then proceed to throw your junior on that pro, and then use your handler's secondary fire in quick succession. Then continue to deal damage with your regular primary fire. Such a combo can almost instantly kill most pros. Prop hop can also add extra damage to this combo if required.



An effective combination on enemy commandos is to fire a clip of bouncing buddies on a spot on the ground, then bait and grapple the enemy pro on that spot. This will hold them down as they take damage from the explosions, whereas you will only receive half the damage. This will usually bring their health down enough for you to finish them off or even kill that pro. However, this trick is less effective if there are other enemies in the area.



A standard attempt at ringing out an enemy pro using the knockback on prop hop can be difficult on pros who are running massive air or have a mobility skill to recover from being knocked off the edge. However, simply stun the enemy pro with short circuit before using prop hop will immobilise that pro so that they're unable to get back onto safe ground.

Using this technique of popping short circuit before you prop hop is also useful for setting up ring outs on pros without the mobility to get back to safety. Simply use short circuit on an enemy pro who is close to an edge, then use the time they're stunned to position yourself at the proper angle to prop hop them off the edge.

The skill build I use focuses on upgrading the skill appropriate to the situation of the game. I aim to upgrade offense, defense, junior, and prop hop to the same level before upgrading them again (for example, level up those 4 skills to level 2, but only level any of them to level 3 as soon as they are all level 2). Short circuit is then upgraded when all other skills have been maxed out.

However, the order in which I upgrade those 4 skills can be done in any way depending on what's required. For example, defense may be upgraded if you are running low on health or being constantly harassed. Prop hop may be upgraded if there is a commando or various upper ledges around the area. Offense and junior are usually upgraded for pure damage output, in this case offense should be upgraded first as tracking is more important for Karl than his burst combo. On the other hand, junior may be upgraded if area denial is required (for example, access points to the jungle).

Though if nothing is particularly needed, a general skill build would be something like this:

1. Offense.
2. Junior.
3. Prop Hop.
4. Defense.
5. Offense.
6. Junior.
7. Defense.
8. Prop Hop.
9. Offense.
10. Junior.
11. Defense.
12. Prop Hop.
13. Short Circuit.
14. Short Circuit.
15. Short Circuit.

The first prop hop upgrade should be prioritised compared to the other versions as it significantly increases hop height and pro knockback, whereas the additional upgrades have no added hop height and knockback at all. However, cooldown and damage is still increased. The decreased cooldown is needed to keep Karl mobile at all times.

Offense and junior are generally focused on before the other skills to increase burst and damage output, as Karl specialises in this area. Defense will always be required to keep Karl alive as he extends and chases enemy pros. Short circuit is left until last to upgrade as you usually won't specifically need it between cooldown times anyway, even though it is a very useful skill for stunning pros, bots, and breaking grapples. As a skill for initiating Karl's burst combo, it is not an area a competent Karl should solely rely on to get him kills.

13 bacon fire rates, 3 mega magazine sizes, 8 mega reload speeds, and 1 extra reload speed coming to the total cost of 78,000 CC. This provides a capped +10% increase in fire rate, an extra +39 health, a +12.75% increase in magazine size, and a +14.75% increase in reload speed (with the disadvantage of a capped -25% decrease in accuracy).

This endorsement build focuses on a pure increase in damage per second, which is key for Karl's burst damage. You'll find yourself needing to reload a lot, and so the vast increase in reload speed will become extremely useful. The increase in magazine size is just enough to supply you with an extra round for your bouncing buddies. This increase in magazine size in combination with the increase in reload speed will make cheesing turrets and area denial even much more effective with his bouncing buddies. The effect from the loss in accuracy for the handler is miniscule due to falloff.

Fortunately, Karl doesn't require any specific products to ensure he exceeds in his role. This way, most general product sets should work sufficiently. However, there are various products which can assist him in his role in ganking, extending, chasing, and increasing his raw damage output. This is the product set I use for Karl:



Inspire gives Karl the ability to extend more than he would normally be able to as it allows him to chase kills more safely by giving him enough health to survive on retreat if required. It also assists him heavily in team fights as it allows him to stay in the fight longer. You should only rely on inspire if you are certain you will be able to get the kill and then escape safely.

Lime spunky gives Karl the utility of being able to approach more dangerous situations. It allows him to extend and chase past the point where he may be ganked as he can pop juice to give himself the health required to escape. Karl can even save himself by using the extra health to escape when using juice to break a grapple, or take the damage from that grapple and use juice afterwards to recover the health taken away from that grapple and also receive the full juice to deal counter his attackers.

Karl can also use lime spunky to bait enemy pros to a safer location who are chasing him and then use juice to give him enough health to counter the attack. He can even use it to increase his overall health in a fight as he can activate juice after he takes damage essentially increasing his maximum health for that fight. Inspire is also useful in combination with lime spunky as it allows Karl to repeatedly heal as he chains kills together when attempting to counter groups of enemy pros.

Juicy spunky is generally a powerful product for most pros. This product increases Karl's already-massive damage output late-game where killing enemy pros is the most important. His incredible burst damage will also be increased while juiced which will instantly kill most pros. This product is especially good in team fights and can even give him the potential to take down entire enemy teams in one juice if his own backs him up.