First try at writing a build! Of course I had to write it for Laura, who is positively my favourite character in and out of game. After the Logan movie....well, there was no going back from being an X-23 fan.

Anyways, to the build!

Description:

Laura is a mobile melee hero that is famous for her practically infinite signature spam. She can dish out very respectable damage to both groups of enemies and single targets, while also eating or dodging incoming attacks. With correct gearing, she can roll across map and clear terminals quicker than many heroes. Compared to her male counterpart and many melee heroes, Laura has (in my humble opinion) a better (Inner X-23-fan self: PERFECT!!!!) balance between mobility, area and single target damage, and survivability. 

Laura has two builds, the movement and the bleed. Prior to BUE, her bleed build dished out more damage, but currently, her movement build's skills have much better synergy between one another, especially with Dancing Blades, which is where this build shines

 

Talents:

Row 1: Keep Moving

No contest for the movement build. 10% bonus movement damage and wrath upon movement ability. Also considering that the first talent is hopeless for X, who has basically no spirit issue, while the second talent is for bleed build.

Row 2: Deadly Grace

Reduces Cyclone Kick cooldown to 4s, which is essential to regenerating those Dancing Blade stacks. 25% chance to reset the cooldown of Cyclone Kick and Open the Jugular is also provides occasional damage burst. Comparatively, damage boost by Opening Technique does not match the damage boost by lower Cyclone Kick cooldown and Dancing Blade stacks, while Final Technique is for bleed build.

Row 3:

Possibly the row with most room for selection.

Accelerated healing factor helps with defense rating, which is especially useful considering Durability is an archetype stat. Unexpected recovery gives Laura a skill for 20% hp regen, which is always very useful. I personally opt for Slippery Target, however, with the (practically) 30% dodge rating boost and 6% dodge chance increase. While the other two talents are great, many people seem to miss that

1) Laura actually has very good dodge rating

2) There is no need to regen hp if you don't take damage in the first place

3) You usually only get bursted down by random Juggernaut charges/farts, something Covert Assassin Rapid Healing will not help with.

Still, feel free to choose between all three.

Row 4:

Slight room for choosing. Telling Strike is for bleed build, but Building Ferocity is a very viable talent considering Capoeira is our main spender. However, I chose Bloody Leap for 2 reasons.

1) More charges on Bloody Leap + CD reduction = More usage = Higher chance to reset Cyclone Kick and Open the Juglar = More Dancing Blade stacks = Damage! (I highly doubt a crit on Cyclone Kick or Open the Jugular can compensate for extra Bloody Leap and Open the Jugular stacks).

2) More maneuverable. When you are in the heat of the battle, Bloody Leap is extremely handy at moving you from place to place quickly, as you don't have to charge up your R key, and Graceful Maneuver never brings you to the exact spot you want.

Bloody Harvest is more of sitting there because I don't use Covert Assassin anyways. Might as well have a movement healing AOE skill ready just in case.

Row 5:

Footwork is the only acceptable talent for this build. Blade Rush is hopelessly useless and Blade Trance is for bleed build.

 

Gear:

Slot 1:

Fragment of Twilight continues as the most BiS item in all slot one for 90% of heroes. What is important is how X-23's own slot 1 compares. Mark of Unipower gives +7 more to archetype stats, a chance at bleed, and a bunch of other fancy stuff. Doesn't compensate for 2000k BDR and 300 hp on hit though, but for new players, the Mark of Unipower is a very viable alternative. 

Slot 2:

Laura's own slot 2 is very useful. +4 to archetype stats, 2.7k hp, spirit cost reduction, and excellent hp regen. Some prefer the X-men bodysuit but I find that very overrated. Some prefer the Mzee Hardened Shell, which is a decent alternative, but for the time being, my 75% green rolls All New X-men bodysuit is better.

Slot 3:

Once again, Laura's own unique is excellent. High Commander Armor, Stark Sentinel Adaptive Reactor, and Coat of the Skull are decent alternatives, but Kinney Family Locket is very easy to get.

Slot 4:

Quite certainly BiS. Buffs to movement and melee powers, +8 to archetype stats, generally very good. Batroc's Savante Boots are an alternative but they don't result in as high damage, and seeing how New X-men boots are easier to get, I can't imagine why anyone would prefer Batroc's. 

Slot 5:

Lots of alternatives, none as good as her default slot 5. Boasting +4 to archetype stats and 1.6k CDR and BDR, as well as 2.7k hp, this item is a good mix of damage and survivability. Notable alternatives are Maverick's helmet, Fred Dawson's Cap and Mask of the Goat. Maverick Helmet lacks the BDR and a constant CDR boost, Fred Dawson lacks both, and Mask of the Goat lacks CDR, BDR and archetype stats. I have an almost perfect X-force mask, though, so for those of you who don't have that much time/luck/resources, the Maverick helmet is a good alternative thanks to all 100% rolls.

Legendary:

I personally prefer Shield of Perseus. It is a great legendary for melee heroes, helps your tankiness a lot, and Laura benefits a lot from the defense/dodge buff thanks to her third roll talents. Makes it a lot more relaxing to play. Usually I sit at 90k ehp and 110k ehp in combat. Notable alternatives are Axe of Ares and Gungnir.

Relics:

Atlantis is BiS for pretty much 99% of heroes. Lemuria and Subterran for more survivability, Asgard if you don't have Atlantis. I only have one full stack of Atlantis, but Laura has her name all over it.

Runeword:

Power Doop's 4.7k BDR is just too good to let go. War Plate helps survivability, although I have changed to using War Gauntlets recently. Gauntlets deal (miniscule) more damage than Axe, fyi.

Ring:

Midtown Signet is BiS, period. Constant 30% damage boost? Thanks. Some people prefer sling rings for the sig proc, but that has a 10 second cooldown, and the invulnerability shield lasts only 2 seconds. It is still a decent alternative for survivability though, if you feel like using the Axe of Ares instead of Shield of Perseus.

Spray:

X-23 Spray paint. End of Story. Zero alternatives. Period.

Insignia:

I am using Quicksilver's right now with the exact rolls this build shows. Constant +3 to speed translates as more dodge and a straight 12% damage. Weapon X, Wolverine and Mockingbird are all good alternatives though.

Catalyst:

Double +3 archetype stats is a myth, so I have just shown the one I am using. +418 hp on hit, Medkit boost and +3 to Durability is essential. The last one can be +speed on medkit use, on 150 hp on enemy defeat, or whatever there is. Generally I prefer Durability over Speed here. Critical Damage Rating rolls on all 4 affixes.

Artifacts:

Cosmically Enhanced Advanced Circlet of Cytorrak:

This item is literally an artifact sent from Zeus himself. 750 physical damage rating and 500 Brutal Strike rating is almost equivalent to rank 1 and 4 buffs from the lvl 70 Savage Axe of Ares. Let's not forget an occasional 15k bubble that could mean life or death. There's also an odd buff of getting more hp/wrath when picking up orbs, and while the hp is not that useful, the wrath regen is. BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE. How does +3 Durability, translating as 12% extra damage, sound? Because that's what you are getting. Oh also, maybe throw in some cosmic artifact bonuses?
NOTE: I still haven't confirmed if defense/dodge ratings are inherited to the bubble as well i.e. does the bubble's 15k have an ehp of 45k, or is it just flat out 15k. Either way, this artifact is amazing. The only problem is that it's hard to get. I think I farmed Cosmic Church about 132 times, full bounty, until one dropped. Happened to get 4 Cosmic Black Toms during this time.

Cosmically Enhanced White Suit Jacket:

Another great artifact for surviving. 2.5k hp and +4 durability makes this an all rounded defensive artifact option, with a bit of physical damage rating as icing on the cake. Some prefer Vibro-smashers, but the range proc on vibro-smashers is wasted, and I would much rather have the survivability considering Laura does not throw claws from afar.

Cosmically Enhanced Crossbone Teaching Credentials:

Mainly I use this because I farm CMM so much I have around 10 of these stocked up. But it's an overall awesome artifact. +1 to all attributes, decent crit and brute strike rating, and effectively 1,750 brute damage rating. I am still comparing between this and CGOK, but seeing how much easier this is to farm, I would recommend it for the time being.

Cosmically Enhanced Black Cat's Advanced Grappling Hook:

Another great artifact sent from some celestial being specifically for Laura mains. 700 movement damage rating, 650 dodge rating, another chunk of critical hit, and +4 to Speed (16% damage). Basically everything we need in a highly farmable item. I have around 5 of these I think? One good way to keep yourself invest in CMM is to pop 5x credit boost, and get farming the odin marks. You tend to get around 1000 Odin Marks per 2.5-3 hrs, and a bunch of CMM bossees killed. In my current status the only cosmic artifact I dont have yet is Cosmic Moleman staff. I have 5 to 10 spares for the rest of the artifacts.

 

Infinity: