Annie Build Guide by Keondre

Introduction

Hello everyone! I am Kat, and I bring you a guide for Annie, The Dark Child! I have played Annie since I began League of Legends. I loved mages, and noticed Annie. She caught my eye the moment I saw her in the shop. I currently own 2 skins for her: Prom Queen Annie, and Reverse Annie. I have mained Annie since level 1, when I worked up 450 IP.

_____I somehow managed to get CasterMaster to help me with this. We made this guide together, and yeahh. You are probably asking how we made it. Well, we made a troll account and then did the guide there. Then, we copied and pasted all of it to my account and released the guide. It worked out pretty well, my knowledge of Annie and his knowledge of casters.

_____This will be my 3rd guide here on MobaFire. I have studied other Annie guides here at MobaFire and SoloMid. I have spectated ranked games with players playing Annie and have watched multiple streams. I currently have been collaborating with CasterMaster to help me with this guide on the item sequence, masteries, runes, and mostly the entire guide. He has helped me and given me insight on this guide.


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Pros / Cons

As with all champions, Annie has her upsides to her downsides..

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Superb Pros + Extreme burst damage + Amazing AoE damage + Built-in Thornmail ability + Not mana dependent + Extremely viable to any team composition + She controls fire?!?!

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Atrocious Cons - Squishy - Susceptible to CC - Easily countered - Focused quickly - Useless if shutdown early - A bit difficult to master

Masteries

You can consider many different paths for Annie. Since she's an AP carry, we're going to want to take damage for our masteries. A set-up you should follow can include something like this:

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Summoner's Wrath : Worth more then both Brute Force and Mental Force combined when you use Ignite. Definitely a must. Brute Force : Helps with last-hitting. Sorcery : Reduce Cool-downs by a pinch. Arcane Knowledge : 1/4 of a Void Staff's passive. Havoc : Extra damage. Blast : +18 AP at level 18. Archmage : Definitely a must to dangerously increase your damage output. Executioner : Become an assassin, get your kills here.

Summoner's Insight : Reduce the cool-down on Flash for those times you will need it. Expanded Mind : Need that mana per level. Allows you to spam your abilities more. Swiftness : Better fast then slow. Helps throughout the game. Runic Affinity : Blue Buff will last much longer now.

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Runes

M a r k s

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Greater Mark of Magic Penetration: Your one and only marks. This will help your early game burst damage a lot. This will also allow you to rip through your opponents. Never underestimate these marks, they are powerful. No other options, this is your only option.

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M a r k s

S e a l s

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Greater Seal of Vitality: These are the seals that I use for Annie. We are going to be squishy all throughout the game, whether you like it or not. These will help you a lot with surviving and 1v1ing. Greater Seal of Scaling Mana Regeneration: These are options as well. You will not always hit every single hit with Disintegrate, it is a fact. If you still can't manage to last hit most of the minions with Disintegrate, then these are the seals for you. Greater Seal of Armor: These runes are for those occasions when you are against an AD carry mid. This will help a lot to reduce their damage. Gives you approximately 13 armor so that is something you can consider. When you are fighting an AD carry, you will most likely need these runes because they will rip you apart with just basic attacks. Greater Seal of Replenishment: MORE MANA REGEN! Take these for the same reason you would take clarity seals. You will be able to spam more Disintegrates without worrying about going oom.

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S e a l s

G l y p h s

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Greater Glyph of Scaling Ability Power: These are the glyphs that I take on Annie. These quickly outscale Greater Glyph of Ability Power, so these are better. They will give you more AP as you level up and it teaches you to stay in lane more so you can get that XP to get more AP. Greater Glyph of Magic Resist: Since we are going to be mid lane, we will be taking a lot of magic damage. These will reduce your enemy's harass by a lot, so don't take it for granted. These are literally magic damage reduction runes so these will help you survive in 1v1s, and in teamfights.

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G l y p h s

Q u i n t s

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Greater Quintessence of Movement Speed: Due to the fact that Annie is relatively slow, these are possible quints that you can take on her. These will help you juke enemies and catch up to them to blast them with a Disintegrate/ Incinerate. These will also give you an advantage on your enemies because you will be in lane faster. Greater Quintessence of Ability Power: These are the quints that I take on Annie. We deal magic damage, meaning we benefit from ability power. These will add up to around 15 ability power, equal to Doran's Ring. We are going to be doing a lot of damage with these runes. Greater Quintessence of Health: Annie is squishy. Even with Rod of Ages, you are squishy. These give you 76 health points total. Since we are starting with Boots of Speed and 3x Health Potions, we are going to need these to make us beefier throughout the game. Greater Quintessence of Spell Vamp: Since we have Disintegrate and Incinerate, this will give us a decent amount of sustainability in lane. This is an option, so take it if you wish.

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Q u i n t s

This is our main rune page set-up. This is focusing on giving you nice damage output and a nice amount of survivability.

Summoner Spells

New Annie: Ghost + Flash
Intermediate Annie: Teleport + Flash
Expert Annie: Ignite + Flash

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Since we are going to be bursting down champions, this will ensure that they won't get away. Also due to the fact that it decreases healing regeneration by 50% this will help against Heal, Wish, or any other healing ability for that matter.


We bring this for the utility that it brings. This allows you to escape ganks, catch up to opponents, escape opponents, etc. I really love this because it allows you to "blink" over a wall. Since we are going to be mid lane, their jungler will gank from time to time. Sometimes, Ghost isn't enough to get you out of a frisky situation.


A very underrated summoner spell choice, it'll be extremely helpful against a powerful lock-down team. You most likely won't get this against Malzahar or Warwick as it will not remove suppression, you'll need Quicksilver Sash for that. A good option, if your enemy team is going to stun you before you can even take action.

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This spell will help you in some cases. Since Annie is relatively slow, it will take a bit to get back in lane. This will get you back in lane if your Teleport is on CD or if you didn't bring Teleport. This will also allow you to catch up to an opponent to pop that last Disintegrate in to kill them.


Having trouble staying in lane more? Your opponent raping you to the point to where you need to recall to buy Health Potions every minute? Well this spell is your answer. This will also allow you to get back in lane to farm and/or rape your opponent! Huge wave of minions at the top lane and you are at bottom lane? Teleport your *** to top lane so you can get a gold advantage on your opponents!


Annoying AD/AP carries raping you? Exhaust them and then combo them! Keep in mind that this reduces their movement speed, magic damage output, and attack damage output. This also reduces their magic resist. and armour by 10 since we are taking Summoner's Wrath .

Skill Explanation

Pyromania Allows you to stun every 4 spells you cast. Being able to stun is great. This is what makes Annie... well, Annie. This is what you start your combo with. This allows you to rape. The bad thing is, is that it needs to be charged up. The good thing is, is that you can use this spell offensively and defensively. Using this in teamfights will benefit you and your team greatly. Make sure to charge it up before you begin a teamfight.

Disintegrate You fling a mana-infused fireball. Extremely bursty ability. Make sure to be blasting this in teamfights so you and your team can burst them down quickly. This allows you to stay in lane more. If you deal the killing blow, you are refunded the mana. This allows you to stay in lane more because you just last hit minions to get the mana back. Free chargeups for Pyromania.

Incinerate You cast a cone of fire. Amazing ability. Keep in mind that this is an AoE ability. Meaning, you can blast more than one target. Use this in teamfights so you and your team can rape them. This ability has many uses: farming, harassing, killing, etc. Make the most of this ability.

Molten Shield Gives you a shield. This is a pretty decent shield. This raises your magic resistance and armour significantly so don't underrate it. This is basically a built-in Thornmail. Enemies that basic attack you will take damage back. This increases your survivability in lane and in teamfights.
Summon: Tibbers You summon a sexy bear that deals damage. Annie's signature ability. Popping Summon: Tibbers allows you to deal a lot of damage. Make sure to land it on as much enemies as possible so you can make the most of it. This is an AoE ability so that means it deals damage to every enemy caught in it. Use Summon: Tibbers to unleash hell on your enemies!

Deadly Combos

Explanation:
This is a minimal, but effective way of harassing. You just stun them, pop a Disintegrate and Incinerate and then back off. It's simple, but hurtful for them. Their life will be disappearing pretty quickly when you are using this harass. Alternatively, you can just use Pyromania and Disintegrate OR Incinerate if you are afraid you are going to take damage before you can use the second ability.




Tips:

• Make sure to have Pyromania charged up so you can lead in with a vital stun that determines if you get the kill or not.
• Lead in with Disintegrate because it has a relatively low cooldown so you can burst them if they try to escape.
• Make sure to pop in Ignite so that they don't get away or heal up.
• Make sure to Summon: Tibbers so that he deals DoT damage.

Tips:

• Lead in with Summon: Tibbers so you can stun their entire team to ensure you guys win the teamfight.
• Make sure that Pyromania is charged before you enter the teamfight.
• Try to hit Incinerate on all your enemies.

Just a quick little video to show you the power of comboing!

Setups

Explanation:
1. You are stilling learning how to last hit with Disintegrate.
2. You do not have Flash yet.
3. You do not know mastery setups/rune setups.
4. This build is aimed for a balance of damage and health while also trying to makeup for the lack of mobility and the potential mana issues you might have.
5. This is for levels 1-11 ONLY.


The masteries here are aimed to give you some utility and a fair amount of damage output.


Runes:
Lesser Mark of Magic Penetration
Lesser Seal of Scaling Mana Regeneration
Lesser Glyph of Cooldown Reduction
Quintessence of Health

Rune explanations:

• Lesser Mark of Magic Penetration: This is just to help you with the damage output. Since you are low level, you can't really find better runes at your level than these.
• Lesser Seal of Scaling Mana Regeneration: This is for the potential mana issues. You are still learning the game, therefore you are having trouble last hitting with Disintegrate.
• Lesser Glyph of Cooldown Reduction: Standard AP per level glyphs. These are just to help you learn to stay in lane more so you know that the more you stay in lane, the more AP comes your way.
• Quintessence of Health: Since you are still learning the game, you are going to have trouble avoiding ganks and learning what 1v1s you can and cannot win. These will help you a little and give you a little bonus health to add on with Doran's Ring.

This is what you should start with. You are going to be squishy and have trouble managing to last hit with Disintegrate. Starting with this is aimed to help you stay in lane and give you that little extra kick to start the game.

Summoner Spells:

• Ghost: Since we don't have Flash yet take this. Another reason to take this is because Annie has no reliable method of escape so this will help you escape some frisky situations.
• Clarity: This is a decent spell for you if you are still having trouble managing your mana.
• Heal: Good spell. You are going to have trouble staying in lane and this will help you survive teamfights, ganks, and 1v1s.
• Exhaust: This is a good spell for you. You are still going to be struggling to pull of your combo and survive in teamfights, 1v1s, and in lane. This will help you manage your opponents without worrying.
• Teleport: You are going to have trouble staying in lane. So this will allow you to recall and get items and then be back within 6-10 seconds. That is a tiny little window of opportunity for your opponent to take advantage of, but they usually won't push because they think you will gank them.

This item setup is aimed to give you an abundant amount of health, decent survivability, and a large amount of damage output. This is focused to help you survive, kill, and gank with efficiency and effectiveness.



Explanation:
1. You have Flash.
2. You are still lacking rune/mastery wisdom.
3. You are developing at a decent pace.
4. This build is aiming for health, survivability, damage, and a decent amount of mana regeneration to compensate for you missing last hits.
5. This is for levels 12-19 ONLY.


The masteries here is aimed to give you a reasonable amount of damage, and a pretty good amount of utility throughout the game.


Runes:
Lesser Mark of Magic Penetration
Lesser Seal of Scaling Mana Regeneration
Lesser Glyph of Cooldown Reduction
Quintessence of Health

Rune Explanation:
We are stilling using the same runes until level 20 because Tier 2 runes are not worth buying. Save your IP for Tier 3 runes or buy cheap 450 IP champions along the way. I recommend you stick with these runes because it is going to be a waste of IP to upgrade to Tier 2 runes.

• Doran's Ring: This is a usual starter item if you are still in need of the health and mana regeneration, which you do need so I recommend you start with this if you are still having trouble surviving ganks and/or 1v1s.
• Boots of Speed and 3x Health Potions: This is what I used to start with around this level. This gives you a mobility advantage over your opponent and a reasonable amount of sustain in lane. Your opponents will usually start with Doran's Ring.

Summoner Spells:

• Flash: This is mandatory now. This will allow you to blink over walls, escape ganks, catch up to opponents, or get out of a sticky situation.
• Ignite: This is optional. I never took this when I was at levels 12-19 because I needed the sustain and utility in lane. I usually only took this for fun at those levels.
• Clarity: If you are still having trouble managing your mana.
• Heal: If you are still having trouble surviving teamfights, 1v1s, and/or ganks.
• Teleport: If you are still having trouble staying in lane.
• Exhaust: If you are still having trouble 1v1ing and/or ganking opponents.

This item setup is aimed to give you armour, health, magic resistance, and most of all... a lot of damage output. This will be your main setup until you get to level 20. At level 20, you can start using the next 2 setups.



Explanation:
1. You want to "support" teammates, but still own.
2. You want some spell vamp to fit into your build.
3. You want to have nice damage output.
4. You want to survive in teamfights with a reasonable amount of damage.
5. For levels 20+.


The masteries here are aimed to give you a reasonable amount of damage output and a lot of utility throughout the game to help you and your teammates.


Runes:
Greater Mark of Magic Penetration
Greater Seal of Replenishment
Greater Glyph of Scaling Magic Resist
Greater Quintessence of Health

Rune Explanation:

• Greater Mark of Magic Penetration: These runes will allow you to deal a decent amount of damage while still supporting.
• Greater Seal of Replenishment: These seals will allow you to bring in multiple stuns while keeping a decent amount of mana to help your team out later.
• Greater Glyph of Scaling Magic Resist: These glyphs will allow you to survive in teamfights and to survive those pesky AP carries.
• Greater Quintessence of Health: This will allow you to survive teamfights, and make you a bit beefier.

These are your one and only starting items as support Annie. This will bring your starting gold down to 0, but this is making the most it your starting gold. You grab Faerie Charm for the mana regeneration so you can bring in them stuns. Sight Wards for obvious reasons. Health Potions and 1 Mana Potion for the lane sustain.

Summoner Spells:

• Clairvoyance: As the support, you want to take this so you can prevent ganks in your lane and in other lanes.
• Flash: Self explanatory.
• Exhaust: To help you and your teammate handle your opponents.

The items here are to benefit you and your team bringing utility to you and your team and a decent amount of damage output. The build is focused on survivability, damage, and most of all... utility.

Items

Some awesome shoes. Helps with your early-mid game burst damage when you don't have Void Staff. The magic penetration will allow you to rape your opponents with ease. The movement speed is just a bonus!

If you need some CDR, this is the item you can get. It helps with your burst as well, removing 30% of the enemeys current health is quite a lot (especially when full health). As a bursty mage, you will be doing a lot of burst. Due to the fact that you are going to be close to your enemies when casting your combos, you will almost always be close enough to use this skill.
An item required on Annie, required on any AP carry for that matter. This will boost your damage immensely, giving you a lot of AP. As of right now, this item provides the most AP (excluding Archangel's Staff). It will give you 140 AP and the passive will boost your damage even more! 30% more AP is a lot of AP. Get this and rape them!
If you need some sustain, this is the item you can get. It helps with your burst as well, giving you some nice ap. As a bursty mage, you will be doing a lot of burst. Due to the fact that you are going to be close to your enemies when casting your combos, you can take an advantage of the passive. It helps you survive a lot of 1v1s, as Disintegrate and Incinerate give you back a decent amount of health.
An almost absolute must for Annie. Since you have 2 AoE skills you'll be hitting pretty much everyone (yes including tanks). This Void Staff here will allow us to hurt everyone who tries to stop our way. 40% magic penetration is quite deadly and I think it's definitely worth it. You could take Abyssal Mask instead if the enemies aren't getting a lot of magic resistance.
A perfect defense item and gives a LARGE amount of AP and some decent armor. Mainly the active is just DEVASTATING and can really save your life. Just when you want to Flash out but its on CD, but almost off CD, you can use its active to shorten your CDs as well. Just a really awesome defense item for Annie.

Situational Items

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An underrated item for Annie. It works, but there are probably better items then it. Standard +80 AP and magic resistance that doesn't give you as much as Abyssal Mask would. The cool-down reduction is nice if you aren't getting Deathfire Grasp, but otherwise I don't see how this item can be furthermore useful as Annie does not need the mana increments this item can regenerate.

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Great item. Provides you with AP, CDR, and an awesome active! If the enemy team has a lot of heals (i.e. Heal, Wish, Monsoon, etc.), then get this. Your Ignite will solve that problem, but it won't always be up. The CDR is a real bonus! We also mainly get this for the AP as well.

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On Annie, this item is really powerful. Not a good item to rush, but definitely makes you deal more damage and become more tanky against pesky magic-dealing champions. Also lowers all nearby enemy champion's magic resistance by 20, making you deal more damage. This not only benefits you, but it benefits your entire team. Replace Void Staff.

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I only get this item if I'm, perhaps, the number one champion on the hit-list. It gives a good amount of both armour AND magic resistance, plus the angel that brings you to life once again. If you feel threatened or have thanatophobia, then you can buy this item. Hopefully, you won't need to as your team should be protecting you. With that put, you can also buy this item IF YOUR TEAM IS COMPLETELY INSANE!

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It's Cleanse as an item, enough said. Get this if you're constantly getting hit by powerful CCs (ex. if the opposing team has a Malzahar, Warwick, and/or Urgot that is going to hunt you until you are dead).

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Annie hates to be under CC as it can spell all sorts of disasters. With Banshee's Veil, you can negate one evil spell that could easily stun you. Banshee's Veil offers health, mana and magic resistance, things Annie will need.

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Only really necessary if you are doing extremely good and you are confident that you won't lose stacks. This item is only worth it 8+ stacks. If you manage to get this to 20 stacks, then do not die. You will lose 1/3 of those stacks. Again, only if you have mastered Annie, you understand the game mechanics, and you are doing extremely well. CasterMaster's advice: I'd suggest that if you are in a very high-level game, don't ever touch this item. You'll just be dead meat when you get it. Also, we have all the necessary items to deal damage, so this item is not needed.

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Farming

Farming with Disintegrate: This is one hell of a farming skill. This will refund you ALL the mana that it costed to cast it if it dealt the killing blow. This teaches you to last hit, which is extremely important in ranked games. Last hit with this. By doing this, you charge up Pyromania and not use any mana. If you can't last hit with this ability, you are destined for failure. If you can't even last hit with this, one of the burstiest abilities in the game, then you fail soo much. Last hitting is extremely important to an AP carry mid lane, so yeahh. Last hit and make sure to only last hit.

Farming with Incinerate: This is your farming bread and butter. You will be able to farm extremely well with this spell, so don't overuse it because it eats up quite a bit of mana. I usually only use this for farming when there is a giant wave. For example: A giant wave of approximately 30 minions comes to your tower. Blast out Incinerate and you got yourself approximately 600 gold. That's equal to 2 champion kills, so do you see why farming is essential on Annie?

Farming with AA's: Of course, Disintegrate won't always be up, and sometimes you won't want to use it because you have saved up your stun. You're going to need to auto-attack to last hit those minions. This isn't a drawback at all, as you should already know how to last hit minions with auto-attacks (from playing other champions). Also note, Annie's auto-attack range is quite high, so farming with your basic attacks can sometimes be more safe then using Disintegrate and be more effective. It's your choice.

A quick video that is going to illustrate what could happen when you are farming :D

Laning

With Annie, I am a heavy harasser early game, especially with my auto-attack. It does not deal much damage per attack, but those do add up. You need to know what your attack range is. You then move around the creeps so that you are mostly safe from your opponent's attacks/spells (i.e. behind your minions so that Brand's Sear doesn't hit you) looking for last hits. Then, right after you cast a Disintegrate at a minion, you cancel the spell recovery animation with an attack on your enemy. Then you cancel that attack recovery animation by moving a bit backward - just a little bit, so that he can't retaliate. You won't usually be able to attack more than once at a time, especially since the enemy creeps will shift their focus to you, so you need to move so that they shift their focus elsewhere again. When you attack a champion, sometimes, he will step forward. Depending of his timing, the result might differ : If he stepped forward BEFORE your attack left your hand, you probably are going to exchange damage. I would suggest you combo your attack into a Disintegrate to deal more damage than him.If he stepped forward AFTER your attack left your hand, you should probably back-off. If he cannot attack you, he will back-off himself, which should give you the opportunity to land another attack. One thing though, I do not recommend harassing with Disintegrate before you are at least level 3, the damage is plain ridiculous before this point. As you read above, I usually buy Boots of Speed as my first item. One of the reason I really like it is that when I have a stun up, if I start to walk toward my opponent with that stun plain visible, he will start to back-off, HOWEVER I'll be faster than him and usually be able to land an auto-attack in his back. Free harass for me. Plus I'm zoning him out.




No matter who you're facing mid (or even in a sidelane), you should first check their summoner spells! Now, if you are very good at harassing your lane opponent, sometimes, they will be too afraid of coming close. What you should do then is try to keep them out of experience gain range without overextending. If you stand between the enemy and his creeps, he won't receive any experience for that wave, and you should be able to farm at your leisure.

Denying 2 or 3 creep waves's worth of experience that way can be a huge advantage, and I am not mentionning the demoralizing side-effect. Plus, they aren't getting any gold to top it off. Be careful to not take too much damage and ALWAYS WATCH YOUR HEALTH! Watch the minimap. If you manage to push to the tower after a kill, you should go into a teammate's lane and setup a gank with your team.




Make sure you let your lanemate know that your stun is up so you and him can rape your opponents. If you are on ventrilo or teamspeak, it is easy to coordonate your attacks. If not, here's my suggestion:

• Tell you teammate that you will try to engage a pinged target 2 seconds after the ping. If you did not engage, it means it was aborted and should wait another ping. Yes that means you should only engage when you have a stun ready. Refrain engaging an enemy with Flash though, as your lanemate will probably be unable to catchup in time before the stun ends.
• You should pick a harassment target that you will both focus whenever given the chance, preferably the squishiest one. It does not mean you shouldn't harass the other, especially if he's showing signs of aggressiveness, just that you should favor him.

If your lanemate also has a CC, make sure you don't use them at the same time, but in sequence, so that your opponent does not have the time to retaliate between them. In the best case scenario, you should know your lanemate's CC duration and use your own stun when they expire. Annie's stun is 1.75s at any time, so if you are the initiator, make sure your lanemate knows that he should wait 1.5s after you engage before using his own CC.

CasterMaster's advice: No idea why you would be in a duo lane anyways. It's pretty bad since Annie desperately needs farm and levels. Just go to a solo lane, preferably mid, though she can handle top lane pretty well.




You must understand that there are several weaknesses in Annie's typical attack pattern that smart opponents will try to take advantage of. First, and most importantly, you are vulnerable right after you cast a Disintegrate and/or an Incinerate! This is, and I mean it, your biggest weakness early game. So you should try to make sure that your opponent is never in range of you to do damage to you if you cast Disintegrate at a creep to last hit. You might say that you still have Incinerate, but remember that this spell is not mana efficient until late game. It does solid damage, but it is not as good as Disintegrate when it comes to harassing. To make things even worse, you are even more vulnerable after you cast an energized Disintegrate, since your Pyromania stacks have reset. If someone is waiting for an opportunity to gank you, it is the best moment. Also, Annie's spells have quite low range, and some enemies can really exploit that.

CasterMaster's advice: Harass ONLY when Pyromania is up. You can also attack for harassment, but always be wary of ganks. Buy sight wards/ Vision Wards to keep in check of ganks, and keep an eye on the map for the enemy jungler. If they are in a different lane, you can then show your true strength without fear!

Tenacious Battle Tactics

Annie requires a large amount of skill to use. Even when mastered, you still need to perfect all your skills and timings. We want to make the most of her skills. This is what makes playing a mage so hard. You have to influence your team by doing the best you possibly can and doing the best of the actions. You have to put the "Commander Hat" on and start giving out orders.

Example: "Enemy Ashe is extremely fed and well farmed. They do not have baron so it's fine to initiate. They also have a Karthus who is dangerous. Who do we focus commander?"

Now is the time to use your thinking cap. Let's analyze: Ashe is more fed. Karthus will be able to cast spells for free for 7 seconds after death. Ashe can't do this. Logical solution? Take down Ashe and kill Karthus later.

BUT WAIT! Is there a better solution? Let's turn up the heat. You have a Taric on your team. You now know that you can make a better solution to this. Here's an example of a good solution:

" Taric will use Dazzle onto Karthus before he can turn on Defile. I've saved up my stun and will follow up with Summon: Tibbers onto both their carries. This way neither Ashe nor Karthus is able to retaliate. After killing Ashe I'll place myself in Zhonya's Hourglass so to prevent further damage to me. While my team cleans up Karthus the rest of us can easily finish the team fight and either take baron for the advantage and/or push to win the game."

This is an example of a GOOD situation. However, this may not (and usually is not) always the case. To be extremely cautious, you must ALWAYS take a look at the worst possible scenario, as let's follow back to our previous example:

"The enemy team also has a Sona for a support. It'll be too dangerous to Flash in and deal damage, I could be destroyed instantly. Ashe has Enchanted Crystal Arrow up, this may not be the best idea. Instead, let's take a more cautious path and instead of going all-out, we'll bait them into the bush and force an unfavorable fight."

This is called strategical thinking. It's common to deceive your opponents and turn the tides in any game. This is something you have to decide.



Don't find yourself missing out on action. There are many types of strategic battle plans you can face and decide. If you are leading your team, then give out good orders. Make sure you know exactly what kind of outcome your order gives. If you are not the leader, then follow the leaders plan. If the plan is DECISIVE and INTELLIGENT. There will be times when you have to risk things, and it's ok. If you don't risk it, you won't win. If you risk it, you have a CHANCE of winning. Here's an example:

"The enemy has regrouped in five-man formation and is heading towards dragon to earn some extra gold. You have your AD carry and your jungler with you. Your support and your top lane is coming from base. You have grouped in the mid lane and haven't made a move yet."

Here we stumble upon a VERY common gameplay. When the enemy team is forcing you to fight them at dragon for a clear gold advantage.

"Your leader decides that once you have regrouped up in about 5 seconds, the whole team will fight the opposing team at dragon. The enemy team is near dragon and since it's 26 minutes into the game, they'll most likely finish in 15 seconds."

With the logical example above, if they are going to finish in 15 seconds, you know by the time you get there you only have 2 seconds left to commit the fight. They have a relatively solid ground and there isn't much you can do about it. Here's a risk you can do:

"As your team pulls together, you head towards dragon. Suddenly you realize that there's just simply no hope in trying to contest dragon. The enemy team still has Smite up, so there is no way you can steal either. A fight will only make things worst as they have a better position then you."

Now let's look at the above and decide an action.

• You will not be able to steal dragon
• You will not be able to win a fight against them
• You cannot contest

What will you do? A tag fight to baron and simply force them to give up dragon? No that's a stu... but of course!

"Your team heads towards baron as their team starts dragon. Suddenly they realize that your team is at baron and immediately withdraws their attack and moves north at full speed. As they reach the upper bush in mid lane, you pull back and launch a sneaky surprise attack and ace the enemy team."

This is just an EXAMPLE. A good outcome of a smart decision. Tactics usually backfire in a way, but in this case there simply was nothing that could've went wrong afterwards. We need to look and see a different approach. Remember that there are two sides to a decision: A good one and a bad one. Sometimes there will be an even draw but that's quite rare.

Laning Opponents (A-G)

Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Taunt
Build: AP
Power Level: 4
Skillset:


Make sure not to push too hard, you do not want to overextend against Ahri. Don't ever get greedy. If you are low on health, just recall.. if you don't, she will punish you for staying in lane. If your jungler doesn't come to help, focus on last hitting and staying ahead in CS. If you can read her moves, you will win the lane. If you can't, you are going to get owned. If she misses Charm, punish her with your combo and make sure to make it hurt! Always keep moving because she will be shooting Orb of Deception most of the laning phase. Make her recall so you can push the tower and win the lane.



Description: Melee/Burst/Anti-Carry
Build: Hybrid
Power Level: 5
Skillset:


Before level 6, she is fairly easy to deal with. Make sure to take advantage of levels 1-5 since her real burst comes when she gets her ultimate, Shadow Dance. When she throws down Twilight Shroud, get out immediately! It lowers your magic resistance and slows you, which makes you susceptible to a gank and/OR a swift death from her. When she hits level 6, do not try to engage her alone. Always try to get your jungler to gank. When you are low on health, recall because she can just dash to you kill you and just walk away like nothing happened. Do not feed her or your days of raping are over.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Stun/Slow
Build: AP
Power Level: 4
Skillset:


This one is really difficult to work with. Never tower dive her unless her passive is down. If it is up, do not tower dive her unless you can kill her and live. She can block you from escaping turret shots and even stun you at the turret. Have your jungler gank because her damage can be devastating. She has a lot of burst with Flash Frost + Frostbite / Glacial Storm + Frostbite + Flash Frost. If you can dodge Flash Frost, then you are good to go. Keep moving around to avoid her Flash Frost. She has a ton of CC, which can make you extremely vulnerable to ganks. Do not under any circumstance overextend, she will punish you for that.



Description: Ranged DPS/Carry/Slow/Stun/Global
Build: AD
Power Level: 2
Skillset:


When you begin the lane, pay attention to her first attack. He first attack will guarantee a critical hit due to Focus. Her harass is really annoying. On top of that, she literally has unlimited CC due to her Frost Shot. Her ultimate, Enchanted Crystal Arrow is a global ultimate. That means she can shoot it anywhere in the map and it will go across the entire map. Usually AP vs. AD turns out good because the AP usually wins. You can burst her down faster than she can blink. Make sure to stay behind your minions because her harass with Volley is obliterating. Keep in mind that her Hawkshot reveals the area that it passes, meaning she can prevent a lot of ganks.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Stun
Build: AP
Power Level: 5
Skillset:


The issue with Brand early is Pillar of Flame: its casting delay is so short that it's basically instant cast, and is very difficult to avoid if you are in range, even with Boots of Speed. I suggest you keep your distances, staying a few steps away from your minions as to avoid getting hit by Blaze, bouncing of a minion because of Conflagration. However the problem is that Brand will then try to zone you out if he understand you are scared. The best bet in my opinion is to farm a stun to use as a dissuasion, and farm mostly with auto-attacks. As Brand encourages very aggressive play, I would suggest using counter-attacking combos. Stunning him in tower range will spell his doom if he gets too cocky, especially because Blaze will raise the chances he aggroes the tower. Remember that he remains very squishy, & Sear is easily avoided as it is quite a slow moving projectile. If he tries to burst you, but misses his 2 skill shots, you have a few seconds of total impunity to punish him.



Description: Ranged DPS/Carry/Stun/Slow
Build: AD
Power Level: 4
Skillset:


If you suspect she will be mid, rush there ASAP to prevent her from laying her Yordle Snap Traps at your tower. Combined with her high range, this would really make your early game difficult. Watch her attack pattern, remain outside her range and try to get in to unleash a quick Disintegrate into Incinerate combo when she doesn't expect it. Whatever you do, don't try to harass her with your autoattacks, because that means you are in range of hers! Keep your farm going. Watch her Headshot buff, and make sure she has to waste it on something that isn't you. Despite its high damage, Piltover Peacemaker shouldn't be an issue as it is rather easy to dodge.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Stun
Build: AP
Power Level: 5
Skillset:


Cassiopeia will be one of difficultest champion you encounter in the mid lane. She has extreme burst, massive AoE damage, and a teamfight ultimate. When you are poisoned, Twin Fang's CD will refresh. Make sure to keep moving around so she cannot hit you with Noxious Blast. About 1.5 seconds into the 1v1, turn your back to her because she will most likely cast Petrifying Gaze. You want it to slow you, not stun you. It does a decent amount of damage, so always try to pull of your combo before she can. Make her recall and try to be ahead of her in CS.



Description: Ranged DPS/Carry/Nuke
Build: AD
Power Level: 2
Skillset:


The problem with Corki isn't really fighting him. He should know that you are a force to be reckoned with. What he does best though is farm, so your objective is to prevent him farming. Remember that Corki is an AD Carry that plays like an AP Carry early. Like with most of them, throw an auto attack at him from time to time, try to seize the initiative so as forcing him back or zoning him out. Your Pyromania's stacks should be very dissuasive. Past level 6, you should stay close (but not too close) to your minions to be able to hide behind them. Deciphering Corki's Missile Barrage and dodging them is most of the time not very difficult and will really reduce the damage he can dish out.



Description: Caster/Ranged DPS/Carry
Build: AD/AP/Hybrid
Power Level: 3
Skillset:


There are 2 problems to circumvent when facing Ezreal. First, he can stay at long range decent long rangeand still remain a threat. Secondly, his Arcane Shift is a built in escape ability which allows him to escape a lot of ganks. He can be quite dangerous in early game, so keep your guard up, even at level 1. Don't let him land a single shot if you can. I recommend you save Flash for chasing/escaping if needed. That being said, when you engage for the kill, you should try to keep your stun for the end of your combo, instead of the beginning. If you do, try to stun with Disintegrate so that you can't "miss" the stun, as Ezreal could flash out and allow you to miss Incinerate or Summon: Tibbers.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Silence/Fear
Build: AP
Power Level: 3
Skillset:


Fiddlesticks is best known for his ability to stay in lane with Drain. He brings a decent amount of CC to the table, so keep your guard up. Do not harass him unless he is oom. He will just regain his health with Drain and you will have wasted mana. However, he is quite helpless while he channels Drain if it isn't on you. I recommend just harassing him with AAs as much as possible, while farming with Disintegrate. When he gets low, he will use Drain on a minion, that is what you want. When he begins to use Drain, you want to combo him ASAP, preferably with Pyromania charged, so Drain can stop chanelling completely. If he is MIA, you want wards in the bushes so you can prevent the Crowstorm gank.



Description: Melee/Burst/Nuker/Slow/Knock-Up
Build: AP
Power Level: 4
Skillset:


This little slick fish will be able to evade your ultimate pretty easily. He can use Playful / Trickster to dodge anything. Fizz will be able to burst you down if you don't burst him down first. Just do your basic combo, but if he gets you with Chum the Waters to begin his combo, you're screwed. If he starts with Chum the Waters he will just use Playful / Trickster to catch up to you, then activate Seastone Trident, use Urchin Strike, and most likely Ignite you. Don't even think of chasing this little ****er because he will be able to run away from you soo easily. If you get stuck in minions, he will just walk right through them because his passive ( Nimble Fighter) allows him to ignore unit collision. Try to dodge Chum the Waters as it is a skill shot.



Description: Melee DPS/Caster/Nuker
Build: AP
Power Level: 1-4
Skillset:


Gragas can give you a run for your money. A good Gragas will harass you with Barrel Roll with great accuracy. He will probably set you up with Body Slam to reduce the barrel's travel distance. However, he is extremely susceptible to your AAs. He has a pretty decent amount of sustain in lane with Happy Hour. Try to predict his Barrel Roll's movement pattern so you can dodge it. He is extremely susceptible to your burst at level 6. Try to zone him out to gain an advantage on his experience/gold wise. His ultimate, Explosive Cask is an AoE skillshot. It can be dodged, but if he lands it and his team is around... you will be raped.



Description: Ranged DPS/Carry/Vision-Block
Build: AD
Power Level: 3
Skillset:


Graves can be a real problem when he is fed. So your objective is to stop him from farming and getting kills. Consider investing in early armour to mitigate his damage early game. Avoid extended skirmishes with Graves as he gains armor and magic resistance as the battle rages on from True Grit. The bonus armor and magic resist can change an expected kill to a close call. When Graves pops down Smoke Screen, get out of it immediately because when he does this, it is a window of opportunity for your opponents to rush in and gank you. In teamfights, try to get your team to split up to minimize the damage from Collateral Damage.

Laning Opponents (H-N)

Description: Caster/Nuker/Support/Pusher
Build: AP
Power Level: 3
Skillset: CH-1 Concussion Grenade


First things first, your AAs have a greater range than his turrets. For example, he lays a turret at the middle of the lane before the creeps come. Just AA it to death and take no damage. Obviously he is going to come and protect it, but just blast him with a Disintegrate + 1 AA and continue on with the turret. Later on, you want to get rid of every turret he drops ASAP. Do not AA turrets. Attack them once, move a little, attack them again, move again, etc. With no turrets, Heimerdinger poses almost no threat if you keep moving. Mind his Hextech Micro-Rockets though. If you see Heimerdinger moving forward when you only have 3 minions in front of you, one being on the verge of dying, he's trying to set this spell up, so get out of range.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Pusher/Global
Build: AP
Power Level: 4
Skillset:


Watch your steps, litteraly, don't let him harass you with Lay Waste. Being unpredictable helps a lot, and again, keep moving. Warn your teammates when he's about to reach level 6. Watch him using Requiem when he reaches level 6, I've see my fair share of Karthus' not falling back to cast it and falling to a full combo before the channel completes! Now a good Karthus can be very difficult to handle, almost on par with Anivia. Your best bet is probably to farm and let him come to you, don't be the aggressive one. Call for a gank when possible, saving your stun for that. Pre-level 6 is better so he can't Requiem after you killed him because of Death Defied. An early game defense agaisnst Requiem is to cast Molten Shield as you see it casting, it will greatly mitigate the damage. Also, Zhonya's Hourglass active will completely protect you, make sure you don't use it too soon though, as it lasts only 2 seconds while the channeling is at 3 seconds.



Description: Melee/Caster/Pusher/Nuker
Build: AP
Power Level: 3
Skillset:


This guy will get on your nerves. With Riftwalk, he isn't susceptible to ganks post-6. However, pre-6, he is fairly susceptible to early ganks. As Annie, you will be spamming Disintegrate, therefore giving him free charges to Force Pulse. That is a disadvantage to you. The good thing is, this dude has fairly long CDs on his abilities, leaving him vulnerable to your combo. Take advantage of his long CDs. Predicting Kassadin's Riftwalk movement can be greatly effective in countering him, as his harass combo involves mostly Riftwalk into range, and dropping a Null Sphere and then a Force Pulse.



Description: Melee/Caster/Pusher/Nuker
Build: Hybrid
Power Level: 2
Skillset:


She is a fairly easy opponent to handle. Since you can cancel her ultimate, she really is no problem. Most of her damage comes from her ultimate. She has a reasonable amount of harass and can escape ganks pretty easily with teammates/minions/wards around. Katarina lacks any ability to heal herself. Harass her early game to make her underfarmed and underleveled because she keeps recalling. Make sure to call MIA on her because she has pretty good ganks with Shunpo and Death Lotus.



Description: Caster/Burst/Stun
Build: AP
Power Level: 2
Skillset:


I haven't faced a decent Kennen yet. Although, I know his skillset and what he does. He will repeatedly harass you with Thundering Shuriken and Electrical Surge. One of his ways of harassing is throwing out Thundering Shurikens. The easiest way to survive this way of harass is staying behind minions. The other way is with Electrical Surge. He will get his basic attacks charged up and hit you with that blue shuriken that applies a Mark of the Storm. Then, he will use the active on Electrical Surge to hurt you. When he activates Slicing Maelstrom, punish him for trying to kill you by comboing his *** back into the respond pool.



Description: Ranged DPS/Nuke/Carry
Build: AP/AD/Hybrid
Power Level: 2
Skillset:



Pre-level 6, Kog'Maw is not much of a threat, although he can be difficult to harass, thanks to Bio-Arcane Barrage activation when you try to get closer. However, if he uses it to farm minions, wait for its 6 seconds to pass before getting agressive. Once Living Artillery is live, you should probably be on the defense until you can unleash a full combo that will kill him. As with most Carries, Kog'Maw is very squishy, though, so he better be very careful around you.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Silence/Slow/Stun
Build: AP
Power Level: 5
Skillset: Mirror ImageSigil of Silence


Another really annoying person to go up against. With her Distortion, she can just use it to harass you, escape ganks, and much more. The bad thing is, she has 3 combo breakers: Silence, Snare, and Stealth. The Stupid 3 is what I call them. If she silences you in the middle of your combo, you are in dead water. With her extreme burst, she will be able to 2 shot you with Sigil of Silence and Mimic is she has a lot of ability power. On top of that, she has basically 3 escape methods (assuming she brought Flash): Distortion, Mimic, and Flash. That makes it really hard to gank her. Although, she is vulnerable to CC. If you can live through her burst, she is in dead water. It usually comes down to who bursts the other one first so make sure you are the one to burst her.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Silence/Slow/Polymorph/Knock-Up
Build: AP
Power Level: 3
Skillset:


I haven't really gone against a good mid Lulu, so I can't really give a lot. I do know that she has multiple CCs and it makes you really vulnerable to ganks. She has 2 slows, polymorph, silence, and knock-up. That's a chain of CC, which allows your opponents to rush in and rape you. When they come to gank you, Flash the hell out of there. One of her forms of harass is with the Help, Pix! + Glitterlance. If you see eyes above your minions head or a shield around one of hers, keep moving around to avoid Glitterlance because it does a lot of damage, even at level 1. Her ultimate, Wild Growth, makes gives her more health which means she can live through your burst. I recommend you get Quicksilver Sash and/or Mercury's Treads because those will help you reduce the amount of CC that is put on you.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Snare/Slow/Shield
Build: AP
Power Level: 2-5
Skillset: Finales Funkeln


Depending if the Lux is good or not will make or break the game. A good Lux will stand back and harass you as much as possible. She has a superior range over you, which is a big advantage when it comes to harassing. I recommend you keep moving so you can dodge Lucent Singularity, Light Binding, and Finales Funkeln. Her ultimate, Finales Funkeln, will allow her to snipe anyone in a different lane as long as she hits it. If the enemy Lux is bad, then you have no problem. Keep in mind that Light Binding hits 2 enemies, so stay behind AT LEAST 2 creeps to avoid being damaged. She has a shield, snare, and a slow... which makes her invulnerable to ganks. If she overextends, stun her and tell your team to move in for the kill. She can't snare 5 people.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Silence/Suppression
Build: AP
Power Level: 3-4
Skillset:


Very annoying at level 6 since he has a combo that can kill you easily, cannot be Cleansed out of! If you want to have a chance, you need to take the initiative. Stay clear from your minions, try to farm from the sides, even if that means you need to ward a brush for safety. However, Malzahar's a prime gank target, as he has trouble dealing with 2 opponents at the same time. Watch for Flash if he has it. Also, consider getting Quicksilver Sash as it negates 3/4 of his full combo! Keep in mind that Nether Grasp suppresses you. If he just suppresses you right of the bat, then you know you are going to get ganked. Make sure to try not to overextend because him and his team can just punish you for that.



Description: Ranged DPS/Carry/Slow
Build: AD
Power Level: 3
Skillset:


Good news first, she is very squishy and susceptible to CC. If you manage to get in range of your 3-hit combo, she is toast. The bad news is, she is extremely mobile with Strut and can gank other lanes and then return to mid lane without you even pushing. If she recalls, she will be back in lane pretty quickly. If you are at your caster creeps, she will use Make it Rain to harass you and to weaken your creeps. If you are behind your creeps, she will use Double Up on the closest minion to you and shoot it because it does more damage the second target it hits. Now note her ultimate, Bullet Time. It is extremely lethal, and does a lot of damage in teamfights if positioned well. The good thing is, she cannot move if she is casting her ultimate or it will cancel. That will leave her vulnerable, so take advantage of that window.



Description: Nuker/Tank/Burst
Build: AP
Power Level: 5+
Skillset:


Here's a problematic match-up. He's the typical champion you will need to play a couple of times to understand what he can do. I'll still give you a few pointers. Under his health bar, where usually champion's have either a mana or an energy bar, you will see a white bar. This is his shield. When Mordekaiser uses an ability, he has to pay a small amount of his health, and it will fill his shield bar along providing him the ability's effect. Now, this shield absorbs damage, so you might be tempted to get rid of it by damaging him when its filled. But you must note: this shield decays over time, and Mordekaiser has trouble building it when there are no creeps around. To harass him, you have to do so when he has no shield, or almost no shield, because he has to pay for his shield with a small amount of health. Now, a good Mordekaiser knows that, so he will back off when his shield is empty. If you see that, forget about harassing him. Farm, and only farm, taking care not to be harassed either. If he gets confident you won't harass him, don't hesitate to throw a couple spells at his face if you see an opening in his shield, so he understands you know how to hurt him. Once you reach level 6-9 and have a good level advantage over the side lanes, ask for a lane swap, because you can't leave your lane undefended. Then go gank the other lanes.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Snare/Slow/Stun/Shield
Build: AP
Power Level: 3-5
Skillset:


Here's a little ***** that will get on your nerves. Her Black Shield allows her to be immune to CC. That means she can easily avoid ganks and your Pyromania. Usually you will need to bait her so you can unleash hell on her when Black Shield is down. The shield lasts 5 seconds, and has a 17 second CD. So you basically have 12 seconds to unleash hell on her. With max CDR, the spell still has a CD of 10 seconds. You still have 5 seconds in between each shield to rape her. Note that Black Shield doesn't just block CC, it absorbs magic damage as well. This will make her a decent opponent, but you will be able to kill her quickly. Getting her out of lane is a problem because of Soul Siphon. Soul Siphon gives her 35% spell vamp, so that allows her to stay in lane longer. When she uses Black Shield, wait for it to wear off so you and your team can unleash hell.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Animal
Build: AP/AD/Hybrid
Power Level: 3-5
Skillset:


Nidalee relies on being able to heal constantly so that she can return to fights or escape. Using Ignite on her is an effective way to keep her from returning to a fight or killing her if she tries to run. Nidalee is extremely susceptible to hard CC, as she doesn't have any of her own. Her ultimate, Aspect Of The Cougar will allow her to use her abilities as much as she wants because her cougar abilities do not use mana. Bushwhack / Pounce allows her to escape ganks pretty easily so be reminded of that. Always stay behind a minion because Javelin Toss / Takedown does a lot of damage. Be aware that Bushwhack / Pounce allows her to setup traps that reveals enemies that step on it. That can prevent a lot of potential successful gank. She will be able to heal herself, but she doesn't have infinite mana.

Laning Opponents (O-T)

Description: Caster/Nuker/Support/Burst/Pusher/Knock-Up
Build: AP
Power Level: 4
Skillset:


Orianna is a really strong. She is an AoE damage based mage that will wreak havoc amongst the battlefield. Do not feed her because she will be dominating if you do. She does extreme damage, has great harass, and amazing farming abilities. Keep moving so you can dodge Command: Attack and Command: Dissonance. She has a slow, knock-up, and a shield. That makes her invulnerable to ganks unless she overextends. Since you have decent farming abilities, try to stay ahead of her in CS. Always try to make her recall because if she is underleveled, she is useless. In teamfights, she excels at disabling the enemy team and supporting her team as well. She will be throwing balls around the battlefield damaging you and protecting her team. Orianna is based on skillshots, which means all of her abilities can be dodged. She has no single target abilities except Command: Protect.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Pusher/Melee/Mage DPS/Slow
Build: AP
Power Level: 3
Skillset:


Watch your steps, literally, don't let him harass you with Flamespitter and/or Electro-Harpoon. Being unpredictable helps a lot, and again, keep moving. He is a mobile melee mage DPS champion that specializes in killing the enemy team without taking much damage. Scrap Shield, Electro-Harpoon, and The Equalizer allow him to escape ganks at ease. When he has Flamespitter up, do not stand in range of it because it does a decent amount of damage. When he is "overheating" with Junkyard Titan, take advantage of the silence. Coordinate with your teammates to ensure that you guys kill him. In teamfights, he will blast down The Equalizer. Get out of it as fast as possible because it is a high DoT spell.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Snare
Build: AP
Power Level: 1-5
Skillset:


This guy will get on your nerves. He has a snare, Rune Prison. Since the range of this ability is similar to your ability ranges, this puts him at a disadvantage. If he tries to come snare you, stun him. When he snares you, this is a window of opportunity for his team to come and gank you. Do not overextend because of this. He has a lot of burst and will rape you if you don't rape him first. Don't let him harass you with Overload and you should be fine. If he uses it to farm, you can use the short window it gives you to harass him. The only issue I see with Ryze is that Banshee's Veil is very good on him, and any good Ryze will build one at some point in the game. So shutting him down so that he will take a long time to build is important. Be prepared for when he finally completes it, you'll need at least one magic penetration (i.e. Sorcerer's Shoes, Void Staff, etc.) item by this time.



Description: Ranged DPS/Carry/Pusher
Build: AD
Power Level: 2
Skillset:


Pay attention to where she goes, and how she moves. Also pay attention to Boomerang Blade. She has great harass and that Spell Shield will stop your combo from being fully completed. If she is a good Sivir, then she will use Spell Shield when you are running towards her to blast out Disintegrate and/or Incinerate. The good thing is, she is one of the squishiest champions in the game. Try to play a "bait game" with her. Try to force her to use Spell Shield. For example, run towards her and "pretend" you are about to use Disintegrate. She will instantly activate Spell Shield, thus wasting mana thinking you will shoot Disintegrate. That being said, her shield allows her to escape ganks decently. Wait for it to wear off to initate. Remember, dodge them Boomerang Blades and you will do fine.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Root/Slow
Build: AP
Power Level: 2-4
Skillset:


Going Boots of Speed is and always will be your starting item against Swain. Your biggest concern should be Nevermove, you don't want to get caught in it. There are 2 ways to play around it. You can either try to always be on the move, so that Swain has to guess and anticipate where you will be, or you can lure Swain by standing still and moving when you see him cast something. I prefer the later, but it really depends on the opponent. As with Malzahar, consider getting a Quicksilver Sash, as it will negate 3/4 of his spells. Get out of his spell range when you are in effect of his Torment as you will take more damage while afflicted by Torment. He will stay in lane forever with Ravenous Flock. The good thing is, he doesn't have infinite mana to sustain it forever. He has a slow, root, and a healing ability. That being said, he can escape ganks easily. Wait for him to use Nevermove, then initiate with your team.



Description: Melee DPS/Silence/Slow/Pusher/Carry
Build: AD
Power Level: 5+
Skillset: MercyCutthroat


To be honest, if you are mid lane against Talon, you are screwed. Play defensively until level 6 and do not get killed. I suggest starting with Cloth Armor + 5x Health Potions. This will reduce his damage a little bit and give you a lot of sustain in lane. Talon's reliance on burst damage is a heavy weakness against targets he can't quickly kill. Use this to your advantage. Call for a gank when you think Shadow Assault is on CD because it is his only reliable escape mechanism (assuming he didn't take Flash or Ghost). If he uses Cutthroat on you, just wait for the silence to wear off and then unleash hell on his ***!



Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Blind/Slow
Build: AP/AD/Hybrid
Power Level: 1
Skillset: Camouflage


Honestly, he shouldn't even be soloing mid, especially against Annie. If you suspect he is going mid, get there as fast as you can because he will Camouflage, hoping to surprise you. Here is a little tip. If you know where he is Camouflaged at, use Incinerate and Summon: Tibbers. He wouldn't dare move unless he knows he will escape. Rinse and repeat with Incinerate. If he tries to run, kill him with Disintegrate. He is an easy yordle to molest :D



Description: Ranged DPS/Carry/Slow/Knock-Back
Build: AD
Power Level: 2-3
Skillset:


She is a really easy champion to deal with. Early game, her range is mediocre so use this to your advantage. Harass her and deny her gold and/or experience. When she has used Rocket Jump and Buster Shot, coordinate with your allies to gank her because she has no reliable escape mechanisms if these 2 abilities are down. She has great farming potential because of Explosive Shot's passive. If you are near a low life allied minion, back away from it to avoid taking extra damage from Explosive Shot. Make sure to combo her because she is extremely susceptible to CC. She really isn't that difficult to deal with IMO.



Description: Ranged DPS/Backdoor/Stun/Slow/Teleport/Burst/Caster/Nuker
Build: AP/AD/Hybrid
Power Level: 2
Skillset:


He really isn't difficult to deal with. Just dodge Wild Cards. Do not get hit by it because it deals a fair amount of damage. Also watch out for a yellow card above his head. That means he can stun you. Also watch out for Stacked Deck. That is spotted by seeing a ring of floating cards around his mid-torso. You can combo him really easily. This might be a biased opinion because I have never met a good Twisted Fate. Call MIA the moment you see a burning thing above your head. That means he activated Destiny and is ready to teleport to a lane to gank.



Description: Ranged DPS/Carry/Slow/Stealth
Build: AD
Power Level: 1
Skillset: Expunge


He really isn't difficult to deal with. Twitch mid is a joke, but his team might not have a choice. When he activates Ambush make sure to have 3+ Pyromania stacks so you can burst him if he tries to "in lane gank" you. Even if he is full health, your full combo will eat him alive. Unleash Summon: Tibbers on him if he tries to do that. Play really aggressively because there is nothing he can really do against you by himself.

Laning Opponents (U-Z)

Description: Ranged DPS/Carry/Suppression/Slow
Build: AD
Power Level: 2
Skillset: Hyper-Kinetic Position Reverse


Move erratically to avoid being hit by Noxian Corrosive Charge thus preventing lock-on with Acid Hunter. Experienced Urgots will often wait for you to move into a correct position for them to harass you. Move all the time! Consider taking Quicksilver Sash because it will remove his ultimate and his slow. He really isn't difficult to deal with because he is so squishy. There is one thing that Urgot lacks the most... mobility. Use this to your advantage. Repeatedly poke him so he is forced to recall.



Description: Ranged DPS/Carry/Slow/Snare
Build: AD
Power Level: 4
Skillset:


Watch your steps, literally, don't let him harass you with Piercing Arrow and/or Hail of Arrows. Being unpredictable helps a lot, and again, keep moving. He is a mobile ranged DPS champion that relies on skill and aim to obliterate the enemy team. Keep in mind that he isn't as squishy as all the other AD carries. Always keep moving because Piercing Arrow deals a lot of damage. His poke is amazing and he has higher ability ranges than you do. The good thing is, he has no reliable escape mechanisms. Take advantage of this. In teamfights, do the usual "Multi-Target Obliteration" combo to prevent him from using Chain of Corruption to turn the tides of the teamfight. The thing about Chain of Corruption is that it is a skillshot, meaning it can be dodged. Remember keep moving around! If you are ahead in cs and/or kills, you are good to go!



Description: Ranged DPS/Carry/Stealth/Knock-Back/Stun
Build: AD
Power Level: 2-4
Skillset:


Laning against Vayne is all about positioning and timing. She is a ranged DPS that relies on abilities and AAs to do all the damage. With Final Hour, Tumble, and Condemn... she is able to escape ganks. The good thing is, she has to be positioned correctly to escape. Do not stand to close to a wall because she will Condemn you to it, and it will stun you. This will allow her free damage on you. We do not want that to happen. She is extremely susceptible to your combos. Make sure to combo her and kill her because she can escape pretty easily. When ganking her, always make sure Final Hour and her Flash/ Ghost is on CD. Also make sure she has no way of escaping. Timing your abilities is extremely important when laning against Vayne and will make or break the lane. Always make sure to time your abilities properly so that they are in sync with each other so she cannot stop you raping her.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Stun
Build: AP
Power Level: 1-5
Skillset:


He is a weak early game champion and really only shines mid-late game. His burst is amazing, do not underestimate him. He will be able to gain ability power easily by last hitting with Baleful Strike. You can see when he casts Dark Matter, it is fairly easy to dodge. Never get too close to him because he can stun you with Event Horizon. If he gets enough AP, he can one-shot you with Primordial Burst. When laning against him, deny him last hits by harassing him and zoning him out. Do not overextend because he will stun you and his team will just move in and rape you.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Stun/Slow/Silence
Build: AP
Power Level: 4
Skillset:


Viktor is so annoying! He will probably be able to kill you, but you should be able to kill him faster. The good thing is, is that his passive ( Evolving Technology) fills a slot in his inventory. Power Transfer allows him to damage you and take that damage and turn it into a shield. It does a lot of damage, so make sure to back off when he is walking towards you. His W ability, Gravity Field, slows you and then stuns you. Death Ray is an annoying spell. He will be able to poke you back and forth until he gets oom. His ultimate, Chaos Storm, is a DoT spell. Viktor summons a storm to do damage to you, and it silences you. It deals a lot of damage when it is summoned, and when it is still on. Here is his usual combo: Gravity Field, Power Transfer, Death Ray, Chaos Storm, Ignite, and then he repeats starting with Power Transfer.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Slow
Build: AP
Power Level: 3
Skillset:


Vladimir is annoying. He will be able to stay in lane and will usually only recall for items. His Q, Transfusion, enables him to deal damage and heal himself for a portion of that damage. Combined with Will of the Ancients, he will heal a lot. The good thing is, is that his abilities require health to do. Beware that he is an excellent turret diver with Sanguine Pool + Hemoplague. Never overextend as he will punish you for it. If the Vladimir doesn't know when to cast Sanguine Pool, he is in dead water.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Stun
Build: AP
Power Level: 5
Skillset: Ascended FormLocus of PowerMage Chains


Xerath is a utilistic mage that relies on spell combos to reach his full potential. His W ability, Locus of Power, allows him to be chained to the ground and gain bonus ability ranges. This allows him to farm and harass behind his turret at ease. Always keep moving. Always move because of Arcanopulse and Arcane Barrage. If he shoots Mage Chains, dodge every single ability that comes your way. This is because the next ability that hits you that is casted from Xerath will stun you. Try your best not to get stunned because that is when his team will probably move it to gank you if they are MIA. Countering Xerath is all about mobility and timing. You can move and dodge most of his abilities. And you have to time your combo right to be able to rip through his heart!



Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Slow/Global
Build: AP
Power Level: 5
Skillset:


Ziggs is a AoE based bursty mage that relies on harass and coordination with allies to wreak havoc amongst the battlefield. Ziggs has a superior range than you do. Try to dodge Bouncing Bomb as much as possible. If you are on low health, he will probably throw Mega Inferno Bomb. This is where Flash comes in handy. Flash the hell out of the Mega Inferno Bomb's range. The good thing is, is that the Mega Inferno Bomb provides a warning sign before it hits the ground. Make sure that you are awake and aware of this, or you will feed this little yordle. Even though he has superior range, you have more burst and have a better combo syncranization. Mobility is key to beating Ziggs. If you keep moving, he can't really do much.



Description: Caster/Nuker/Burst/Snare/Knock-Up
Build: AP
Power Level: 4
Skillset: Deadly Bloom


Zyra is an AoE based bursty mage that relies on harass and coordination with allies to wreak havoc amongst the battlefield. To be honest, if you are against Zyra, you are screwed. All of her abilities allow her to 1v1 even the fedest Fiora. Due to the fact that she can have multiple plant "turrets", this makes her a great 1v1. Her range is superior to yours,which makes her even harder to deal with. I recommend you just passively farm and wait for your jungler to gank. When your jungler is in position to execute a good gank, Flash + Summon: Tibbers stun her so your jungler can come in and wreck her face off. The thing about Zyra is she can easily escape a gank. Her snare, Grasping Roots, allows her to multi-snare your entire team so she doesn't get hurt. She can plant up to 5 plant turrets (I think) at once. This means they do a lot of damage. On top of that, if she is AAing you, they focus you. This means you receive a lot of damage. I recommend grabbing Banshee's Veil earlier than you would normally get it. I also recommend if the Zyra is good, get Mercury's Treads and rush Void Staff. I hope you do well against her, she is a new champion so she isn't balanced.

Teamplay

Your most important job is to stun enemies, preferably the enemy carry or support so that your team can take them out. Do not engage the tank for obvious reasons. Whenever possible, try to stun as many enemies as possible so that they are vulnerable to your full teams capabilities by eliminating them one by one, as possible: Carry, Support, DPS/Burst, Tank. Occasionally, you will need to switch around the order if someone on the enemy team is fed.

The second role is more subtle. Annie excels mid-game if played correctly, however, in late game, she loses a good bunch of efficiency. I really like having a positive KDR, but if my team is going to lose at the end, it was all for nothing. So if my team's carry is in the area, I'll do my best to feed him kills and creeps. Don't be greedy, don't try to kill them all, I know it's tempting when you are on a troll, but you need to see the big picture. If an enemy can't escape, do not throw all your abilities into the battle, back-off a little so that your carry gets the kill. This will allow you to conserve your mana.

Another role you should fill in teamfights is protecting your carry. Not protect as a tank, but try & make sure you are intimidating enough so that they can't get to your carry before they get through your tank first, then you. Blow Malzahar with a stun into oblivion if he tries to Nether Grasp your Vayne!

• Yellow: Vital to protect the jungler on your team.
• Blue: For protection depending on which lane you're on
• Red: To guard Dragon and Baron
• Orange: In order to Counter-Jungle

Passive Warding

Passive warding refers to warding areas of interest ahead of time: Buffs, choke points, gank paths, gank brushes. The goal is to give away enemy whereabouts to allow your team to react accordingly when an enemy moves through that area.

Active Warding

Active warding refers to warding areas in "emergency" situation. The position of the ward won't usually be optimal as the objective is to benefit from the ward immediately.
Some examples:

• Warding Baron or Dragon from the back of their respective pen.
• Warding mid-lane brushes from the parallels path
• Vision Warding mid-fight to reveal stealth characters without being too obvious with an Oracle's Elixir.

Annie can be a great initiator, however, it is often very difficult to assert how, when and who you should initiate on. Also, if your team has a tank, he should probably be the one to initiate! Obviously, you want to initiate with a stun, so you will have to keep yourself energized, sometimes for a prolonged period of time so that you don't waste your Pyromania charges. It will of course be next to impossible to help your team farm or push while looking for an opening. You might want to try to move around while only being at 4 charges in order to avoid being too obvious. Don't forget to cast Molten Shield into Summon: Tibbers quickly though. Next you want to take into account your target. You will probably prefer to initiate on the carry, however it is not always possible, tanks will probably try and prevent you from closing on their more squishy allies. Try to ping your target before engaging so that you can coordinate your offense. Anyone but the tank will do. However, if the tank wanders too far from his teammates, take him out. On the other hand, do NOT, EVER wander alone. Stick together. You then want to know your team damage potential, eventually weighted against the enemy's healing potential. You want your target to go down FAST once you engage. Make sure that most of your abilities are up, especially ultimates. This is an area where a voice-chat system can be very useful. In particular, if someone else has a second CC effect for using after your own stun expires, you want that effect to be ready. This is especially important if your target has some kind of escape mechanism. If your support can shield you the moment you initiate, this will usually guaranty your success. Black Shield, Bulwark, Intervention, Chronoshift, Prismatic Barrier, Command: Protect, or even Crystallize are all very potent at this. Patience is key to accomplish this. I know you are not helping much by holding this stun. It is very tempting to use it. It is somewhat frustrating. Believe me. Just wait for the *right* time. That moment where their tank backs off unexpectedly and that other guy overextend just a tiny bit. After you initiated, you probably want to blow your load fast and back off, as you are probably on the front line and getting focused. Zhonya's Hourglass can be very helpful here to force your opponents to stop focusing you NOW, and of course Flash is amazing to put some distance between you. Once your CDs have refreshed, you can jump back into the fray, but stay away from the front line.




Annie is an exceptional ganker. If you are successful at most of your ganks, the game is in your favor. Here are purposes of ganking, in order of importance:

Shut down the enemy carry

Carries only get strong with items, meaning they need money. When you are ganking, the carries should always be your primary target. If both you and the enemy carry are both mid, coordinate with your allies to setup a successful bait and gank. Enemy carries can get really scary once fed. During the laning phase, never leave your turrets unprotected.

Feeding your carry

Logically, you want your carries to get their strongest items as fast as possible, and feeding them kills and creeps is a great way to do that. You generally want to feed your AD carry first if for some reason there is another AP carry in your team. If your AD carry gets fed, he can literally recover a game and lead you guys to victory. Your carries come first, ALWAYS remember that.

Pushing

Usually when you gank a lane, your teammates will usually recall to shop/heal up. If the gank was successful, you and your teammates should stay in the lane and push the turret. Once that turret is down, you and your allies can coordinate other ganks on other lanes. If your allies are low on health and you are almost full on health, allow them to recall. If they decided to recall, you and Tibbers push the turret until it is time to back off.



Since you are mid, you should have a level advantage on the side lanes. Levels 6-9 is usually referred to as the "gank window". That is referring to the point where levels 6-9, lanes should be ganked from the laners, whereas the junglers are suppose to gank throughout the entire laning phase. Before you gank, make sure to tell your allies so that someone can come and fill your place in the meantime. Also make sure that your enemy is pushed to their tower so that you can gank and return to your lane without worrying about your turret being pushed.

Points to remember when ganking:

• Always make sure Pyromania is charged so your enemies have a lesser chance of escaping the gank.
• Always ask the lane you are ganking if it is warded.
• Wait for the *right* time so the gank is successful and not a waste of time.
• Mind the opponents escape routes.
• Always mind the mini-map. If you warded the ganking brushes, make sure that no enemy is on their way to gank so that it doesn't mess up your gank.
• If you run into their jungler, go back to your lane and wait for another opportunity to gank.

Summary

Masteries : 21/0/9
Runes: Greater Mark of Magic Penetration, Greater Seal of Vitality, Greater Glyph of Scaling Ability Power, & Greater Quintessence of Ability Power.
Summoner Spells: Ignite + Flash
Items: Sorcerer's Shoes, Rabadon's Deathcap, Zhonya's Hourglass, Deathfire Grasp, Void Staff, and Banshee's Veil.



I'd like to thank you on behalf of me and CasterMaster for reading "Incandescence Obliteration ft. CasterMaster ~ Virtuoso Annie". If you enjoyed the guide, please upvote it. If you disliked it, please do not downvote and just tell me what I could do to make this guide better. If you have time, feel free to check out my other guides!

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Glossary

Credits

Credits are going to be listed here:

• jhoijhoi for her guide on Making a Guide. I'd also like to thank her for the chapter banners. See her signature shop here! Kudos to her for the warding map as well :D
• Shizukani for the gorgeous Annie line dividers! TYVM!
• CasterMaster for obvious reasons :3
• LoLWiki for the GIFs.

Change Log

• May 27, 2012 - Guide published.
• May 28, 2012 - CasterMaster kicks in with major updates! / Tweaked the "Runes" and "Masteries" section up a bit. / Fixed some typos.
• May 29, 2012 - Made a lot of changes to the cheat sheet and the "Items" and "Situational Items" sections.
• May 30, 2012 - Fixed some typos. / Fixed up the "Situational Items" section.
• June 18, 2012 - Added "Alternate Cheat Sheet" cheat sheet. / Edited Talon's description and power level in the "Laning Opponents (O-T)" Section.
• June 19th, 2012 - Added in outro banner. / Added in the Annie line dividers :D
• June 27th, 2012 - Fixed some errors.
• July 22nd, 2012 - Edited Xerath's description in the "Laning Opponents (U-Z)"
• July 26th, 2012 - Added in Zyra to the "Laning Opponents (U-Z)" section.
• August 7th, 2012 - Tweaked the rune build on the "Alternate Cheat Sheet" build.
• September 2nd, 2012 - Cleaned up some of the setups.
• September 3rd, 2012 - Fixed up the "Items" and "Situational Items" sections.
• September 29th, 2012 - Cleaned up some grammar mistakes and coding errors in the "Laning Opponents" sections.
• October 11th, 2012 - Changed the cheat sheet up and deleted the 2nd cheat sheet.
• October 31st, 2012 - Updated cheat sheet to keep up with the DFG nerfs.