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Playing Against Darius
TopPatch 16.2.1
What They Do
Darius is a premier lane bully designed to win extended trades. He uses to bleed targets and gain a massive AD steroid once he reaches 5 stacks. His goal is to survive long enough to execute someone with to trigger a reset chain.
Abilities (What to Watch For)
| Ability | What You'll See | What It Means For You |
|---|---|---|
| Bloody droplets above your head | Stacks up to 5 times. At max stacks, Darius gains 'Noxian Might,' granting him massive bonus AD and making his deal double damage. Disengage before he reaches 5 stacks. | |
| A circular axe swing with a visible outer rim | The outer 'blade' deals full damage and heals Darius for missing HP. The inner 'handle' deals 35% damage and provides zero healing. Stay in the handle or outrange the blade. | |
| His axe glows red for his next auto attack | An auto-attack reset that deals bonus damage and slows you by 90% for 1 second. He uses this to guarantee his hits or to keep you in range for stacks. | |
| A cone-shaped hook animation | Pulls enemies to him and slows them briefly. Passively, this gives Darius up to 35% armor penetration, meaning he will shred you even if you build pure tank items. | |
| Darius leaps into the air for a massive strike | A true damage execute that scales with stacks. If he kills you with it, the cooldown resets. If he has 5 stacks on anyone, this will deal nearly 1000 true damage late game. |
Respect
- !5-Stack Noxian Might→Once is fully stacked, he gains 30 to 230 bonus AD. He can often turn a losing fight into a double kill instantly once he enrages.
- !The Heal→If Darius hits 3 champions with the blade of , he heals for 45% of his missing health. This makes him nearly impossible to kill in 1v2 scenarios if you don't dodge the blade.
- !Ghost + Flash Summoners→Darius is balanced around being immobile. If he has Ghost active, he can forced long trades to stack even if you try to kite him.
- !Level 1 Brush Cheese→Darius has one of the strongest level 1s in the game. If he starts , he can stack and kill most top laners before they reach their tower.
Punish
- +is on cooldown (24-18 seconds)→Without his hook, Darius has no way to stop you from kiting him or disengaging. Use this long window to trade and walk away for free.
- +During the windup→Darius cannot auto-attack while swinging. Use a dash to move into the handle (inner circle) to deny him the heal and stack of .
- +Short trade patterns→Darius wins long fights but loses short ones. Combo him and leave before he hits 3 stacks of .
- +Pre-Level 6→Before he gets , his kill pressure is much lower. If you are playing a lane bully or have jungle help, this is the time to put him behind.
Laning Tips
- •Always take Bone Plating in your runes; it significantly reduces the burst from his and early ticks.
- •If you get hooked by , do not immediately dash away; wait for him to use or start his so you don't get caught by the slow/blade.
- •Rush tier 2 boots (Plated Steelcaps or Swiftness) to help dodge the outer ring and kite his .
- •Stay away from your own low-health minions; he will try to you while you are locked in your auto-attack animation.
- •Darius's bleed from draws tower aggro; if he hits you near your turret, he will take shots even if he doesn't auto-attack you again.
- •Bramble Vest or Executioner's Calling are mandatory early buys to cut the healing from in all-ins.
Teamfight Warning
- ⚠Do not clump together; if he hits 3 people with one , he essentially gains a second health bar.
- ⚠If a teammate is about to die to , try to shield/heal them; if he doesn't get the reset, he loses 80% of his teamfight presence.
- ⚠Keep track of his Ghost; if it's up, you cannot stay in the frontline with less than 60% HP.
- ⚠Focus him immediately if he gets 5 stacks on your tank; he will Flash into your backline and one-shot your ADC with .
- ⚠Use hard CC (Stuns/Roots) only AFTER he uses , otherwise he can pull you out of your self-peel attempts.
AI-generated counterplay guide • Patch 16.2.1 • Cached