And when you’re iconic, you best believe you’re going to get special treatment when it comes to skins. So if you’re currently on the verge of joining the 0/10 power-spike family, this ranking can be your guide on how to look your absolute best.
10. PROJECT: Yasuo
Released: August 31st, 2014 Price: 1350 RP Even though Yasuo is a samurai, Riot just loves giving this dude futuristic skins. And this one is personally the bottom of the barrel if you ask me. Since the skin is extremely old, and PROJECT as a skin-line wasn’t all that present back then, the design just seems lazy. Your character model is some bland cyborg dude, and all of your animations are just beep-boop orange rectangles. Even though PROJECT: Yasuo has come a long way since its release in terms of performance, it still feels slightly clunky. Although to be fair, the skin does have some upsides – like the fact that your mask goes up during your emotes, prominent sound effects, and a good splash art. But that isn’t enough to move it up our ranking. If it was 975 RP, maybe it could have weaseled up a few spots. But as it stands now, there are a lot of better ways to spend 1350 RP.
9. Battle Boss Yasuo
Released: June 28th, 2019 Price: 1350 RP Thematically, I find this skin to be really weird. Champions like Veigar or Blitzcrank were obvious candidates for this skin line, while Yasuo feels like he was shoe-horned in here randomly. The character model is a bit too bright for my taste, and almost nothing about it screams “Battle Boss”. Except that one corrupted Poro in your new backing animation, I guess… But more importantly, his animations and sound effects just do not fit him that well. The W’s sound effect seems more appropriate on a DoT ability. His E mark reminds me more of poke champions than the dash master himself. And his ult just feels underwhelming in terms of sound effects. But I will say that the third Q animation is an absolute beauty – and that alone makes this skin more worthwhile than PROJECT in my mind.
8. Odyssey Yasuo
Released: September 12th, 2018 Price: 1350 RP If you pay close attention, you might be able to deduce my hatred for futuristic Yasuo skins. Okay, to be fair, I don’t hate Odyssey as much as I’m just underwhelmed by it. I loved the event that kicked this skin line off. But the skin grew old rather quickly. The character model here is okay, but somehow managed to be boring even with an alien chameleon on your shoulder. And the new backing animation is decent, the E is okay, but the W is just forgettable. The only part that stands out about Odyssey Yasuo is your third Q animation, as the tornado is a bit smaller than usual, and can catch people off guard rather easily. That being said, it can also trick you since sometimes you won’t expect it to hit – and then it just barely hits, making you panic ult and die under tower. And that was definitely not from personal experience. But overall, I find this skin to be fairly mediocre.
7. Blood Moon Yasuo
Released: February 25th, 2016 Price: 975 RP Blood Moon has a rather special place in my heart. I simply think the theme fits Yasuo so well. His armor is just impeccable here, and it really makes you feel like a true warrior – while the mask gives you that little hint of the occult that you never really knew you wanted. All of your new particles are pretty simple, as they mostly boil down to coloring everything red, and then adding some nice sound effects on top. While your new backing animation has you doing some type of ritual that lets you sink into the ground. Needless to say, I’m a quite the fan of this skin. But that doesn’t mean Blood Moon Yasuo comes without its faults. The decision not to change the voice at all feels a bit weird, and that breaks the immersion somewhat. And while I do like the new particles, they can’t really stack up with newer skins. I would say that this is the best budget skin – but even then I have to admit that there is one better option. Overall the theme is brilliant, and the design is simple, but this skin is not topping the charts in any way.
6. True Damage Yasuo
Released: November 10th, 2019 Price: 1350 RP Given my track record of hating futuristic skins, I really expected this one to suck as well. Especially given the fact that it’s also a music-centered skin which makes no sense for Yasuo as a character. And yet here we are. What True Damage Yasuo lacks in theme, it more than makes up for with design. The character model possesses an insane level of detail with a nice mix of urban wear and high-tech elements. And the animations are also just astounding, with the little sound wave effect on your Q being a really clever way to tie this skin together. Your W also has a similar aesthetic going on, and your ult has some really satisfying sound effects. Plus your backing animation is just a jam. And if nothing else, Yasuo’s casual alcoholism makes a lot of sense with this frat-boy of a samurai. Final note: I’m not the biggest fan of the Prestige version, but I don’t outright hate it either, so take that as you will.
5. High Noon Yasuo
Released: December 13th, 2013 Price: 975 RP High Noon Yasuo has such a long legacy that I feel like the Yasuo community will burn me alive if I don’t give it the respect it deserves. In terms of theme, this one honestly nails it, since the lone ranger archetype fits into Yasuo’s lore perfectly. The character model might not be all that flashy – but it does what it needs to do rather effectively. And all of your particles have been recolored to give more of a desert vibe. It has a slightly altered backing animation that hits to the whole “shooting your bottle in the air” archetype. And your dance emote actually has you playing a mouth harmonica instead of the usual flute, which I found to be a brilliant little detail. This skin is as smooth as butter. Plus the theme fits Yasuo perfectly, the design is pretty spot on, and the price is more than fair.
4. Sea Dog Yasuo
Released: May 5th, 2022 Price: 1350 RP This skin kind of just came out of nowhere and took a lot of Yasuo mains prisoner. The theme is as simple as it gets – water. Every ability has some splash or bubble effect now. And while I originally thought that this is too lazy for my liking, the skin actually turned out quite great. Your tornado (now a whirlpool) looks stunning and the splash at the end of your ult is satisfying beyond belief. Sure, the W wasn’t as impressive, but it still served its purpose. And the sound effect that came along with it makes it a bit easier to track how long it will stay up. In terms of the character model, while I do find his main hand to be a bit off, the armor is very badass. It’s as if Aquaman actually had some style. And while I do think that the chromas ruin the vibe a bit, they’re still there if you want them. So, still a positive. Plus your new backing animation has you spawn tentacles. I don’t know why that’s a good thing but I’m just going to assert that it is. And probably the biggest selling point of the skin – is that when people call you a dog, it’s no longer an insult but rather a title. Overall, Sea Dog Yasuo went in an odd direction and actually came out with a really decent product.
3. Nightbringer Yasuo
Released: June 14th, 2017 Price: 1820 RP I mean, when you see that price, you already know what to expect. This skin took the crumbs that Blood Moon left and made an entire feast, pushing the whole demonic theme further than ever before. Both your character model and your particles are just on fire all of the time. Your backing animation has you on fire even more, your death animation has you turn into ash, and your new emotes all feature little fire demons. So yeah, it’s a pretty hot skin. But besides just the inferno, this skin has some nice features that really make you feel a bit more feral and powerful. Your ult animation swaps from the usual multi-hit combo and opts for a single decisive fire strike. Your running animation just makes you look like a feral beast that’s about to rip someone to shreds… And your dance emote has your fire spirits praise you as their god. For its price tag, I have to say that Nightbringer Yasuo doesn’t offer exactly the same amount of quality as our top pick – but it’s still way too cool to place it any lower.
2. Spirit Blossom Yasuo
Released: July 22nd, 2020 Price: 1350 RP If 1350 RP is your limit when it comes to spending, this is the best skin that you can get. It’s extremely beloved in the community, as it takes everything you loved about the base model and cranks it up several notches. You still look like a proper samurai, but you also now have a spiritual quality to your design that makes you feel a bit more powerful. Your arm is aethereal, your armor looks godly, and your hair is softer than ever. Spirit Blossom Yasuo also has one of my favorite W animations: it presents a rather calming and beautiful scene that the enemy can look at while it absorbs all of their attacks. The petal particles add another layer of serenity to the skin, and the backing animation is just beautiful. I know I keep calling everything “beautiful” but it is really hard to express just how nice this skin is. And if that means nothing to you, just keep in mind that it’s the only Yasuo skin where you don’t have to buy the pink chroma, since that’s your default – Oh no, there actually is an even pinker chroma here so I stand corrected. Nevertheless, just buy this skin!
1. Truth/Dream Dragon Yasuo
Released: October 21st, 2021 Price: 1820 RP When you notice this is among Yasuo’s newer skins, and legendary to boot, it’s easy to see why it comes out as the best. Just to get it out of the way immediately, I do prefer the “Truth Dragon” variant, as I like the more down to earth color scheme. But both are amazing. So what do you get with this skin? Well that part is rather obvious: you get dragons. Be it your third Q, your W, your ult, your backing animation, your death animation, your running animation, or your emotes, there will be a badass dragon present. And the incorporation is far from sloppy. You ride the dragon out of base, it empowers your final strike on your ult, and it stares menacingly as you taunt your enemy. In terms of the character model, Dream Dragon goes for that same spiritual vibe as Spirit Blossom – but with even more detail. While Truth Dragon handles more of the original design side of things. Needless to say, these two skins flow like water, and it makes for an amazing experience. Note: this content was created under Riot Games’ “Legal Jibber Jabber” policy using assets owned by Riot Games. Riot Games does not endorse or sponsor this project.
