Ionian Fervor
This passive is what makes Irelia both durable and potent. It reduces CC duration based on how many enemy champions there are. It'll partially repay for those silly mistakes but won't bail you out of a team fight, so keep that in mind. Does not reduce suppresses, though.


Bladesurge
I level this first to farm. When a unit is killed from this, half the mana is restored and its CD is reset. In early game I use it to get last hits I otherwise cannot. Later, around level 5~, it can be used to effectively harass enemies (along with e).

Later in mid/late game, I use this skill to dash towards their squishy. With 40% CDR, its cd is very short and should be up by the time they're out of range.

I don't level it so much in the beginning because i feel its damage doesn't stack up against Equilibrium Strike


Hiten Style
this (along with ult) will keep u in lane longer than others. its passive works on buildings, so abuse abuse abuse!

in early game, this scales a LOT with Irelia's fairly low hp pool, so it can be worth getting if you like dps early or if u are guaranteed hits off of ur opponent

its active is true damage, which is invaluable. its both great against armor stacking tanks and those carries with little armor. best part, its passive is still up with the active. so theres no downside (except the mana cost, but thats no problem)

I dont level Hiten Style first because i think it doesnt synergizes well with irelia early game. its life steal is pretty good but u have ur ult for that.


Equilibrium Strike
I love CC, so of course this skill is of great importance to me. it either slows or stuns, depending on target hp. I max this out first because of its high damage scaling/level and its long CC. at level 5, it has a 2 sec stun.

I mainly use this skill to add burst damage and quickly escape if im ganked. When i am ganking, i expect them to run and not fight back (usually what happens) so i dont even bother trying to activate its stun.



Transcendent Blades
this is a smart cast spell which means the blades (4) go to where ur cursor is.
i think its damage is miniscule and its main thing is to heal. it can also farm very well (clears a whole wave of minions) this will keep u in lane longer

in team fights, i usually use this after i blow all my other skills for added dps or use it to heal if im in a bad position.

its cd is relatively low at around 30 sec with 20% cdr (lvl 2) so spam spam spam farm farm farm heal heal heal