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Playing Against Kai'Sa
BotPatch 16.2.1
What They Do
Kai'Sa is a high-mobility hybrid marksman-assassin who excels at diving the backline and shredding isolated targets. She relies on stacking her for burst and evolves her abilities based on items to become a slippery late-game hyper-carry.
Abilities (What to Watch For)
| Ability | What You'll See | What It Means For You |
|---|---|---|
| Purple circular indicators around your character model | These are Plasma stacks. At 5 stacks, you take massive bonus magic damage based on your missing health. Allies' CC also adds stacks. | |
| A volley of purple missiles targeting nearby units | Deals heavy physical damage. It is strongest against isolated targets; stay near minions to split the damage among multiple units. | |
| A long-range, fast-moving purple beam | Applies stacks and grants vision. If it hits you, she can immediately dash to you using . | |
| She stops attacking, gains a purple aura and moves quickly | She is charging up attack speed. She cannot attack during the wind-up. Once evolved, this grants her brief invisibility. | |
| A near-instant dash leaving a purple trail | She can dash to any enemy marked by . It grants her a large shield, making her very dangerous to duel even when she is low. |
Respect
- !Isolated →The missiles deal 100% increased damage if you are the only target in range. Dueling her away from minions is usually suicide.
- !Support CC Synergy→When her support immobilizes you, it adds stacks. A single CC chain from a Leona or Nautilus can instantly proc her execute damage.
- !Evolved Invisibility→Once she has enough attack speed, she turns invisible for 0.5s while charging. This allows her to reposition and dodge key skillshots mid-fight.
- !Long-range follow-up→If you are hit by or ally CC, she can dash from over 2000 units away to finish you off.
Punish
- +charge time (0.6s)→She is 'disarmed' and cannot auto-attack while charging her speed boost. This is your best window to burst her without her trading back.
- +on the minion wave→If she uses to secure farm or push, her primary source of burst damage is on a 10-6s cooldown. Force a trade immediately.
- +Missed →The cooldown is long (22-14s). If she misses, she loses her ability to stack from range and her easiest way to trigger .
- +Early Laning Phase→Kai'Sa has only 525 attack range. Abuse her with longer-ranged ADCs like Caitlyn or Ashe to poke her every time she tries to last hit.
Laning Tips
- •Always stand inside your minion wave; this forces her to split damage among the creeps rather than hitting only you.
- •Watch your stack count; if you have 3 or 4 stacks, back off until they expire or you will eat a massive execute proc.
- •Do not let her support touch you; every CC they land is a free stack for her , making her burst much harder to predict.
- •Kai'Sa has no natural sustain in her kit; pick heavy poke supports to force her out of lane or burn her summs early.
- •If she starts 'charging' with , she's likely looking to trade or escape; hit her while she can't fire back.
- •Check her items frequently; once she finishes her first major AD item, her evolution makes her waveclear and burst significantly higher.
Teamfight Warning
- ⚠Never wander alone into unwarded areas; she functions like an assassin and will delete you with isolated damage.
- ⚠Use a Sweeper (Oracle Lens) in fights to see her silhouette when she uses her evolved invisibility.
- ⚠Be careful of being low HP even at long range; an evolved can snipe you and reset its own cooldown on hit.
- ⚠Don't blow all your cooldowns into her shield; wait for the shield to decay before using your execute abilities.
- ⚠In clumped fights, her damage is spread out, making her much less threatening than when she finds a pick.
AI-generated counterplay guide • Patch 16.2.1 • Cached