Akali - Wasn't she nerfed?

Introduction

So you want to master the deadly Fist of Shadow? I've been expecting you, summoner.

Hello summoner, and welcome to my guide on my first and favorite 3150 IP champion Akali.
I've wanted to make a build about my favorite assassin for a very long time, and now, after about 400 games with her I think it's time to do it. The closet thing to it was a forum post during her FOTM (Flavor of the Month) - Link - but anyway, moving on to the real thing.

Pros n' Cons

spaaaaaaaaaaaaaace

Pros + Excellent harass + Brutal burst to squishy champions + Instant stealth + High mobility + Great duelist +? Energy system to fuel her abilities + Good penta-kill potential + It's a flippin' ninja! + She's as bad-*** as she looks

space

Cons - Item dependent - Takes time to do well with her - Squishy under CC - Always focused on - Banned most of the time - Vision Ward Oracle's Elixir

Masteries

Why a 21/9/0 mastery?

• Your passive Twin Disciplines is triggered upon obtaining bonus AP and AD so you will need points here.
  
• Akali is known for her insane burst and spell vamp, making her a strong 1v1 champion. Getting this 21 points in offense build will make you do that insane burst (note that the more damage you do, the more life you gain from said spell vamp).
• Executioner. Akali loves Executioner bonus.
• Resistance + Hardiness + Veteran's Scars = happy early game Akali.

If you feel like you're not ready to go all out on her, you can try a more defensive build by going 9/21/0.



Ziggs Patch: They changed Deadliness mastery from 4% crit to bonus AD per level. The AD per level seems... OK, not as good as the initial bonus from Brute Force but it gives three times the bonus. If you feel like getting it you could take this mastery set up:

Summoner Spells

• Flash - Ever since I got this spell it's been on my summoner spells hotkey 95% of the time. Even though the range got nerfed and you might end up smacking on a wall instead of flashing over it, the odds are that wont happen most of the time if you are careful and patience enough to use it just in time. Also a great tool for getting in range for one of your abilities or getting on the right position.
• Ignite - Two things, securing kills and rejecting enemy spell vamp / life steal during team fights or 1v1s giving you the upper hand.

• Cleanse Always handy to have, especially during team fights when you get focused to death.
• Ghost Alternative yet less efficient escape mechanism. Though Flash into Shadow Dance is a better option if going for a kill.
• Exhaust Good spell all around, but not really necessary.

Meh Spells

• Teleport Split push, support other lanes, protect your lane from afar, shopping break. Not the best for Akali imo.
• Surge No.
• Promote Are you trolling?
• Revive Anyone even uses this one?
  
  ...
• Clarity Hue!

Runes

Even though it looks like an organized mess with all kind of runes, it works! It procs your passive completely at Lv 1 giving you spell vamp AND bonus damage on basic attacks, making effective harass, last hitting and sustain.

x2 Greater Mark of Insight - Magic Pen. is a must.
x7 Greater Mark of Strength - For passive. Also good for last hitting more effectively.
x9 Greater Seal of Resilience - You're squishy, remember?
x7 Greater Glyph of Warding - Yep, you're squishy.
x2 Greater Glyph of Potency - Need this to trigger your passive. Also early AP is perfect.
x3 Greater Quintessence of Potency - For the passive too. And damage.

x7 Greater Mark of Strength + Lv3 Brute Force = 9.65 Bonus AD
x2 Greater Glyph of Potency + x3 Greater Quintessence of Potency + Lv1 Mental Force + Lv4 Blast + Lv4 Archmage = 19.77 AP
Twin Disciplines can trigger upon reaching 9.5 bonus AD and 19.5 bonus AP, so that's about enough to start the game with both passive bonus active at lvl 1.


This are some basic runes you should have laying around. While not the recommended set, it can still work wonders depending on your playing style as you might find the recommended set to lack magic penetration. But don't worry, there's an item for that! Void Staff.

x9 Greater Mark of Insight
x9 Greater Seal of Resilience
x9 Greater Glyph of Warding
x3 Greater Quintessence of Fortitude / x3 Greater Quintessence of Insight

Skill Sequence

Twin Disciplines.
Upon obtaining 20 Ability Power, Akali's basic attacks deal 8% bonus magic damage, increasing by 1% for every 6 Ability Power gained thereafter.

One of my favorite passives out of the other assassins. Gives you great bonus magic damage on all your basic attacks and increased spell-vamp.

Mark of the Assassin.
Akali spins her kama at a target enemy to deal magic damage and mark the target for 6 seconds. Akali's melee attacks against a marked target will trigger and consume the mark to cause additional damage and restore Energy.

The mechanic of this spell, just as any other similar triggered bonus damage spell (such as Heroic Charge and Condemn) looks to be about good enough for the risking of getting into melee range to trigger it, right? This spell mechanic works way better than those two, mainly because it doesn't needs a wall and the enemy close to it to trigger the bonus damage.

This is your main source of damage. Mark of the Assassin plus Twin Disciplines bonus AP damage from the basic attack to trigger the mark plus Sheen / Lich Bane = sick damage.

Use Mark of the Assassin to burst, use it to farm, use it to harass, use it whenever it's up. When in lane against Akali she'll harass you by tossing it over and over again (why? because energy system allows her to continue the harass for as long as Akali wants).

"45 damage? Ha, I recover that HP before you can toss me anoth- lol? that sure has a low cooldown."
"Alright I'll just evade the next one she tos- AH STOP IT!"
"If you throw another one of tho-" First Blood - An enemy has been slain!



Twilight Shroud.
Akali throws down a cover of smoke. While inside the area, Akali gains Armor and Magic Resist and becomes stealthed. Attacking or using abilities will briefly reveal her. Enemies inside the smoke have their Movement Speed reduced.

Instant stealth that slows enemies standing on it. Great for escaping and engaging a battle as it gives you 50 armor and magic resist while you're inside it.

Thanks albableat for reminding me of this <3 - If you leave the shroud area you won't become visible again instantaneously, you should have 0.5 sec of stealth after leaving the field.

Beware of Vision Ward and Oracle's Elixir.



Crescent Slash.
Akali flourishes her kamas, dealing damage based on her Attack Damage and Ability Power.

While not her most famous skill, it gives you a decent AoE that you can use to farm minions and poke around. Your 'last hit' left a minion with 10 HP? Crescent Slash right away. Don't use it unless you're sure to kill at least 3 minions or playing extremely aggressive, not worth the energy. Unless you're at a solo lane use it to last hit as much as possible if you missed a last hit by a small amount of damage.



Shadow Dance.
Akali moves through shadows to quickly strike her target, dealing damage and consuming an Essence of Shadow charge. Akali recharges Essence of Shadow charges both periodically and upon kills and assists, max 3 stacks.


Akali bread and butter. One hell of a sick gap closer (being the single target gap closer with the highest range in game - besides Lee Sin's Sonic Wave / Resonating Strike but easier to land and Nocturne's Paranoia without the fancy effect and long cooldown) with basically no cooldown which on top of all that deals quite a lot of damage. It comes with a price thought, the price of only three charges that recharge one by one every 25/20/15 seconds OR gaining instantly a charge with every kill and assist.

Use Shadow Dance to close gaps, to combo with a tossed Mark of the Assassin, to escape a dangerous situation/overextend by jumping to a minion, jungle monster or enemy champion.

Laning, Harassing and Combo Sequence

Solo lane

• One thing to keep in mind all the time. YOU DON'T USE MANA! spam that Q all over the place.
• You want to out CS your enemy, get to Lv 6 first and start your combo ASAP. While possible with Mark of the Assassin and Twilight Shroud, the gap closer and extra damage from Shadow Dance makes a huge difference.
• You want to toss Mark of the Assassin to last hit minions that are quite away from you, finish off a low HP minion with it followed by a basic attack to trigger the bonus damage.
• Poke your opponent from time to time between Lv 1 and 5 with Mark of the Assassin (if possible do a basic attack before the mark expires) to keep him below half HP, as for the moment you hit 6 you should be able to either kill or just send him to base to keep up the lane advantage.
• Don't forget to roam once you're above Lv 6 and your lane opponent is gone!

Duo lane

• Depending on who you're laning with, you can either prioritize harassing over CS if you're sure to get kills/assists.
• Last hit, get gold, get your Hextech Gunblade, carry hard, win the game.

Combo Sequence

Even lane - Mark of the Assassin > Mark of the Assassin > Mark of the Assassin and so on.

Lane opponent is either melee or letting you harass him:
Mark of the Assassin > basic attack.

If you find it risky to trigger the bonus damage from Mark of the Assassin then:
Mark of the Assassin > Twilight Shroud > basic attack

Post Lv 6 - Mark of the Assassin > Shadow Dance > basic attack Twilight Shroud
OR - Mark of the Assassin > Shadow Dance > basic attack > Crescent Slash


NOTE: I Will upload laning phase videos as soon as the game stops lagging for me, so next week most likely.

Item Builds and Paths

Quick Guide

Detailed Guide

Starting Items

+ x3

Have no idea of what to build up? Feeling like your lane is gonna be tough? Pick the standard boots+3. Boots of Speed give great early game mobility for you to stand any lane, as well as keep the harass up. Health Potion are a must, since you're limited to melee range while Mark of the Assassin is on cooldown. Even if you are send back early, buy some more Health Potions, really useful everytime, everywhere.

+

Strong choice for early damage and strong harass. Though I wouldn't recommend this start most of the time, it's still a really good start to build right into Hextech Revolver.



I'm not a huge fan of this item as first buy for Akali, but it can instantly trigger your passive if you don't have your rune set ready to kick off. You might be send back early because of the lack of mobility, poke damage and Health Potion sustain.


Core Items

or

This set up is aimed to give you high damage, and high sustain. This is really all you need to win a game.

Regardless of your boots of choice, getting an early Hextech Gunblade can really snowball you to finish a build (I rarely get to finish a full build when playing Akali, sure the items are expensive but worth every gold to the point of penta-killing with just a gunblade and a lich bane - true story!)

TIP: If you see your opponents (other than the tank/initiator) build early magic resist ( Negatron Cloak) keep in mind you will have to change Sheen for an early Void Staff.

About Rylai's Crystal Scepter
I keep getting asked why I don't pick Rylai's so here's what I think of it and why I don't consider it a core item nor a must.

First of all, sure the HP and AP is great ... for 3105G. "But but but... it slows!" Yeah... you can slow by tossing a Twilight Shroud where your opponent might go. Also don't forget you have THREE charges on Shadow Dance which are about enough to ensure an unlucky squishy on your sight as it is the single-target gap closer with the highest range in game. For 3150 G I'd rather get a deathcap (alright, deathcap cost 450 more gold, but come on, that's a kill and a handful of minions) to burst down faster instead of slowing for 35% AFTER USING A SPELL for 1.5 seconds. So you will have to keep spamming Mark of the Assassin once you run out of Shadow Dance charges to attempt to catch up to an opponent.

In other word, it's too much money for an item that is just not that good for a burst assassin, leave this item for someone that requires the HP boost and slow for his spammeable spells. It's not a bad choice, just not the best to use as a core.

Back to why I pick Hextech Gunblade on all my builds is because it is by far the best item you can get for Akali. It procs your passive if you've got no runes for her, gives A LOT of good stats for a hybrid designed item, SPELL-VAMP, a 300 magic damage active that also slows. And last but not least, it's fairly easy to build up.

As for Sheen, it's simple. Dat Mark of the Assassin burst.

Remember to map hack for only 75g for 3 mins. *hint* *hint* Sight Ward Vision Ward


Luxury Items



More damage, simple as that. Collateral damage on squishy champions and enemy carry.


Logic Behind the Build

Core

• Sorcerer's Shoes - Magic penetration, which is a must for a burst assassin that wants to kill the enemy carry as fast as possible to move to other threats.
• Hextech Gunblade - Gives you all you need to fully activate your passive regardless of runes, excellent stats for a hybrid designed item AND a 300 magic damage active (I'd suggest placing it on item slot #1 and smart cast that item slot).
• Sheen - One of the best items to increase your Mark of the Assassin damage output.

Luxury Items

• Lich Bane - Improved Sheen for insane damage.
• Rabadon's Deathcap - You're AP, you burst, you need this. Don't rush it though.
• Void Staff - More AP and magic penetration, which you will find yourself getting as people tend to stack magic resist against you. If they don't, then go for more damage oriented items.
• Will of the Ancients - "Why more spell-vamp on Akali? this doesn't makes sense" It does. If you're getting taken down with ease, get this item whenever you can to improve 1v1, 1v2 and 1v3 scenarios to make you last a lot longer.

Items to Consider

Tips and Tricks

Twilight Shroud Tips and Tricks


Instant stealth bubble that you can place around you. Oh.. the possibilities! This might sound like a plain spell, sort of like a generic escape tool. Well good sir/ma'am, I'm afraid I'm here to prove you wrong and show you some cool tricks you can pull off with this 'bubble'.

Lose Agro
Pretty obvious since it makes you invisible right away, but good to keep in mind when fighting under minions agro.


For instance, you're on the way of a minion wave and immediately grab agro from all 6 minions.

Toss a Twilight Shroud right away and let the wave pass through, losing agro.



Scout
Since you can place your shroud at a safe distance from a brush or any other area covered by the fog of war, feel free to use Twilight Shroud as a scouting tool.



You can also place it in between two brushes to scout both ends. Works great on top/bot lane and plenty of other spots around summoner's rift.




Juke
Another fun and easy trick you can pull off if executed correctly is to juke your opponents into thinking you went the way you placed your shroud at.


Let's say you're being chased and your enemies are following you (the white lines path). Now you can go either the orange or the purple way.

You can juke by tossing Twilight Shroud on one of the two ways you could take to escape, then taking the other path. This works most of the time, but don't use it all the time or they won't fall for it.


Another trick you can pull off is to place a Twilight Shroud close to any area covered by the fog of war or brush and simply walk from your bubble to the desired area (leaving Twilight Shroud area makes you visible again after half a sec) so your opponents won't notice when you entered the brush/area until the shroud expires and they notice you're gone.



Zone out Opponents
Simply place your shroud whenever your lane opponents are feeling they got their lane under control.

Use it on a brush if you see enemies hiding in them and force them to leave the brush. *cough* Garen *Cough*.

Another zoning placement can be, after your minion wave starts attacking the enemy minion wave, place it BEHIND the enemy minions to prevent your enemies from CSing (if they do attempt to last hit, punish them with Mark of the Assassin and a basic attack while inside your Twilight Shroud.


The bait
Turret diving is tempting, especially when such an annoying champion like Akali has under 100 HP and she's out of Health Potions.

Nunu: "Turret dive, we must turret dive!"


*Tosses Twilight Shroud under turret*trollface.jpg




Shadow Dance Tips and Tricks

Create Gaps
While you can use Shadow Dance to gap close to an enemy and burst him down, you will find yourself in tight situations eventually. If you still have a charge left, you can jump to an enemy minion to create a gap.


Imagine that is not Nasus Bot and is someone with chasing potential and your shroud is on cooldown. A very tense and dramatic moment. So you just Shadow Dance to a minion to get out of danger.



Situational Flash
You might find yourself in danger with flash on cooldown. If you have vision of a jungle monster on the other side of a wall, or you're carrying a Sight Ward with you, you can Shadow Dance through walls to jungle minions.

Dominion

Yes, we know dominion is not the most popular game mode, but it's still there.

You need to have a clear idea if what you want to play here. You can be either the disrupter, the defender, the capturer... the psycho burst penta-killer!

Starting items

+ x3

Long story short. Dominion = Speed.
Just 2 or 3 Health Potions cause you will be using them before you get any spell-vamp. Casually using them when fighting for the Windmill.


+ x2 + x4

Why Boots of Speed instead of Hextech Revolver? Let me describe dominion in a single word: SPEED. . Amplifying Tomes to boost your early damage when fighting the initial capture points and couple Health Potions to sustain the first 5 mins.

+

Good if you're staying bot or capturing mid capture point to head top right after.



Sure, why not. It delays your spell-vamp though.

Build Goal



With dominion's high pace and constant fights you will have to face. Spell-vamp will give you the sustain and possibility to enter pretty much any kind of fights all over the map. By having Hextech Gunblade, Will of the Ancients and Hextech Revolver ( Twin Disciplines bonus implied) will give you a ******ed amount of spell-vamp to get countless tripple kills every time you play dominion.

FAQ: Is the spell-vamp from Hextech Gunblade, Will of the Ancients and Hextech Revolver stackable?
-Yep! you should have some INSANE spell-vamp to survive most encounters around the small map.

Thanks for reading!

I'd like to thank everyone who had the time to read my guide and hopefully its been of some help. I'll keep the guide updated if there's a single change to either Akali or her core items.

Feel free to post your game results using this guide. Here are a couple of my games using it.

Pedroxido's

Protyp's

F.A.Q.

1.Is the spell-vamp from Hextech Gunblade, Will of the Ancients and Hextech Revolver stackable?
-Yep! you should have some INSANE spell-vamp to survive most encounters around the small map.

2. Why not build Rylai's Crystal Scepter as a core item?
-First of all, sure the HP and AP is great ... for 3105G. "But but but... it slows!" Yeah... you can slow by tossing a Twilight Shroud where your opponent might go. Also don't forget you have THREE charges on Shadow Dance which are about enough to ensure an unlucky squishy on your sight as it is the single-target gap closer with the highest range in game. For 3150 G I'd rather get a deathcap (alright, deathcap cost 450 more gold, but come on, that's a kill and a handful of minions) to burst down faster instead of slowing for 35% AFTER USING A SPELL for 1.5 seconds. So you will have to keep spamming Mark of the Assassin once you run out of Shadow Dance charges to attempt to catch up to an opponent.

In other word, it's too much money for an item that is just not that good for a burst assassin, leave this item for someone that requires the HP boost and slow for his spammeable spells. It's not a bad choice, just not the best to use as a core.

3. What about Mejai's Soulstealer and Sword of the Occult?
-Think you can pull it off and keep over 12 stacks? Go ahead.

Changes Log

January 31th

• Skill Sequence visually improved.
• Added "Logic Behind the Build" in Items Section.
• Added Dominion chapter.
• Added my opinion on Rylai's Crystal Scepter below core items.
• Added F.A.Q. chapter.

February 1st

• Change on Deadliness stat bonus. Updated mastery chapter.

May 1st

• Spectator Mode Patch: Change on Will of the Ancients recipe.
• Updated item build.

See you on the fields of justice, summoner!