[2.4b] Akali Guide - How to stomp top lane with Akali
How to stomp top lane with Akali
Pros
- flexible playstyle(many combos)
- Counters most Top lane champions
- Insane escape and catch kit in all Abilities
- Onehit squishy Targets
- Can't be countered by Zhonyas
Cons
- Takes a lot of time to learn
- Gets banned in most Games next to Katarina
- Hard to play in teamfights
Akali Build
Best Build Guide for Akali
Item Build Description
Additional information on the items
Lich Bane - gives 10 ability haste and boosts the AP damage tremendously. After this Item it is possible to onehit squishy targets with one combo
[stasis enchant] - the most important item to survive and carry teamfights and also win versus other assassins. After casting the ult into 5 enemies it's good to activate it instantly
Rabadon's Deathcap - boosts AP
Infinity Orb - boosts AP and Ability damage, gives 200 HP
Void Staff - boosts AP, Magic penetration
Liandry's Torment - a good item against tanky match ups because it burns down the HP. Can be replaced for Hextech Gunblade in case there are many squishy targets. Hextech Gunblade heals you, boosts the AP damage and slow enemies
Haunting Guise - I rush this item in the early game against a tank to burn down his HP easier. After this item I continue with Liandry's Torment or Lich Bane
The onehit build is my prefered build for most match ups. Akali becomes very dominant early and it continues until the game ends. After she is ahead, she will be unstoppable and every item will make her more powerful. She might onehit even tanks then. The other build is against really tanky match ups because of Liandry's Torment . Teamfights will last longer so it is important to survive. That's why I'm also using Guardian Angel here
Akali Runes
Best Runes for Akali
More damage means easier to onehit. This is more a Fighter rune set
This is a rune set for players who never played Akali before. It's easy to trade with Electrocute , you get extra tenacity against heavy CC match ups and more healing + Gold from Honeyfruits for more sustain
Skill Order
How to distribute skill points
Summoner Spells
When to take which summoners
Combos
Learn how to maximize the champions potential
The most basic and also most important combo for Akali to kill an enemy. In case the enemy isn't dead then just spam some more Qs ;) or if you almost die then you can go out with your Ult and leave the enemy alone
A combo for the laning phase to trigger Electrocute and deal massive damage. After the E you can also activate the W to avoid CC/ be save from damage. It's also useful to gank or kill isolated targets because this combo can onehit after doing it once or you have to hunt the enemy down with some more Qs and the passive
Akali Matchups & Counters
Detailed information on how to play matchups and counters
Easy to lane against. He won't be able to farm and gain stacks. If he moves then do massive damage with the Shuriken Flip + Five Point Strike combo. At lvl 5 he becomes a bit more dominant but not a big deal for Akali . After he activates his Fury Of The Sands you can camp in your Twilight Shroud shroud and run away with your Shuriken Flip . At the end of his ult you can kill him with the Perfect Execution combo and that's how you win the lane
Tipps and Tricks
- Your Shuriken Flip will always hit the enemy when you activate it instantly after the Perfect Execution unless he uses flash or a minion blocks
- Zhonyas can block many ults and combos from top laners and assassins. Keep that in mind to win 1v1 (for example Garen, Darius, Zed, Diana, Fizz. You can block whole combos with the stasis)
- Akali can easily onehit squishy targets. However, a hard fed ADC is a hard fed ADC. Akali fears them and gets nightmares when she thinks about it
- You aren't safe in the shroud. Don't use it against AoE champions(Renekton Q, Garen E) ,champions with knockback (Tristana ult) or Fiora who can hit invisible enemies with her Q. Just try to run.
- All abilities can help you to catch and run. Her Q slows, her W gives you invisibility and a speed boost, her E can pull you away(for a short distance or over small walls) or you run the enemy down when it hits and the ult is like a dash. You can confuse the enemy with it and make a large distance with the recast of it
- In case the enemy isn't in ult or E range but he is really close to you: You use your Shuriken Flip backwards so you push yourself to the enemy for a short distance and instantly activate the ult. You can catch up and kill him
- Don't fear anyone when you got the full build. Then you are unstoppable in 1v1, 1v2, maybe even 1v3
- Try to save the first Ult for the first Drake. A triple kill might be more tasty than just a solo kill on baron lane. The first drake is spawning so fast that you won't be able to use 2 ults in that time(when you fight the enemies at the drake and on baron lane)
- You can ignore the minion wave when you engage. But don't forget to use the shroud then. The minions are an important factor to win a 1v1 because they do a lot of damage in the early game. Use it as advantage or ignore it
Why is my guide reliable?
Wild rift wasn't an interesting game because I played league of legends before. But then I noticed Wild rift feels much more balanced and just better so I switched to Wild rift and deleted league of legends. In league I probably played more than 200 games in Akali and continued in Wild Rift. I've tested many builds and runes, played around 200 games with her in Wild rift and I believe I pretty much mastered her. I can still learn things and improve small mistakes but in total my gameplay with her is good but I'm not playing her that often since she gets banned every 2nd round. Kinda unfortunate but also fortunate because Akali is just a pain to fight her(personal experience...). Imo the best top laner for the early game. Expect more Guides about other Top Laners soon!
One last note
I didn't play against every Baron laner with Akali yet/I don't have a lot of experience against these champs. Kennen, Jax, Graves, Gragas and Wukong are missing in the matchup list. It's just my personal feeling and it might not be true: Kennen and Graves are going to be very lane dominant but Graves will fall behind until Akali gets some items and Kennen will be a tough enemy for the whole game because of his CC and mobility(To be fair I have no idea how Kennen works because I never played him yet don't face him that often). Gragas won't have a lot of kill pressure and will easy lose the lane since level 1. Wukong and akali will both go for trades but at the end Akali will win when she gets ult because she can pretty much dodge everything. HOWEVER, that's just my opinion, thoughts, feelings about these matchups and not any facts so don't rely on that.