I am an ADC main in the BR server and play a lot of different champions, but I consider Xayah and Kai'Sa as my mains, since I play them the most and the best!

I started playing Kai'sa on early season 10, but I didn't quite commit to mastering her until late season 10. I totally owe my improvement to FXN Saber, without him I wouldn't have been able to wrap my head around this champion!

At the moment she’s my second highest mastery champion. She is also one of my favorite ADCs, my usual comfort pick and the main reason I like her is because of her flexibility and independence when compared to other ADCs!

Ability RundownA summary of Kai’Sa’s abilities

Pros & ConsChampion strengths & weaknesses

Summoner SpellsBest summoner spells

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This is the most standard skill order for both crit and hybrid build. Maxing W is not worth it in crit build because you will build no AP (and W scales off AP); and in hybrid builds you usually start getting AP items only in the late game, making W max still not good until later on.

At level 2 you can take Supercharge instead of Void Seeker if you feel like you will need the movement speed to dodge an important ability or disengage. It can be good against champions like Pyke, Thresh and Blitzcrank. But in most games taking W at level 2 is the best, especially if you have an all-in support, since it will help you burst the enemy ADC.

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When going AP builds you usually still max Q first, since it is your main source of damage and the first thing you evolve. AP Kai’sa deals damage by hitting W AND stacking her passive, and to stack passive you will need your autos - which deal AD damage. So getting Q evolve first and maxing Q is still very beneficial, especially in the early game. After that you max W and lastly E.

Again, as with AD/Hybrid builds, you can take Supercharge level 2 if you feel like you need it but Void Seeker is better.

Kai’sa has 2 main runes: Lethal Tempo and Hail of Blades, and she can use as a secondary rune page either Domination, Inspiration or Precision.

In this section I will go into her most common rune setups.

This is an early game focused setup and it is really good if you can snowball lane. If I want better early trading + sustain I take Inspiration as my secondary, and if I have an aggressive support to help me snowball I like taking Precision.

This is a late game focused setup and it is really good if you are more focused on scaling. Works really well with enchanter supports and lanes where you usually fight extended trades. Really good as a standard! The secondary tree really depends on personal taste and lane. I am comfortable going Domination most of the time, but I will take Inspiration if I feel like I need a bit of help in the early game.

First thing to note is that only stats from items and levels count -- Runes don't! This is why sometimes you will see a bug displaying you have reached the 100 AD/AS/AP but your evolve is not yet ready.

Kaisa’s evolves are a core part of her kit, identity and powerspikes – this is why all the most popular builds are the way they are and why certain build orders are more commonly seen.

Your first and most important damage spike comes from evolving Icathian Rain, which is achieved by getting 100 AD from items+levels. This ability is your bread and butter for damage. Evolving Void Seeker and Supercharge require 100 AP and 100% Attack Speed respectively. Killer Instinct does not evolve.

There are many ways to reach the necessary 100 AD/AS/AP. I will list the most common ones – but do take note that certain build paths let you evolve, for example, your Q before level 11 and some that take up until level 13.

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Since Kaisa’s kit relies on her itemization to be effective her builds can get pretty complicated as they are very variable and some players will have a preference towards a specific path. But fear not! I did my best to keep it simple and objective for you.

In this section my main focus is on her AD and on-hit builds - full AP one-shot builds are currently only for fun and it has generally been that way since nerfs to her W.

Hybrid BuildOn-hit build with a little bit of spice

AD On-Hit BuildFocus on auto attacks and shredding tanks

AD Crit BuildYour average, good-for-anything build

The first is technically an on-hit build, and there are two ways to go about it, generally speaking: Rageblade 3rd or Nashor’s 3rd. You ideally always start with Doran's Blade.
If you go the Guinsoo's Rageblade path you’ll be opting into a more on-hit style and you will get a delayed W evolve compared to the alternative.
If you go Nashor's Tooth instead, you still get the on-hit but you reach W evolve a bit earlier, and since you’ll have more AP you will have a bit more burst than if you went for Rageblade.



The Eclipse build focus on burst AP damage and also has two version: Nashor's Tooth or Guinsoo's Rageblade for a second item instead of a third. If you go Nashor’s you will have more AP burst but no Q evolve, and if you go Rageblade you give up on an extra AP item for triple evolve (note you will still need Nashor’s for your E evolve after Rageblade).
If you are really struggling against assassins you can get Zhonya's Hourglass instead of Shadowflame.


These builds are good when your team lacks AP damage. Early on you will have pretty decent hybrid damage and late game you transition into having more AP damage. This is not necessarily an “AP one-shot” build (though you can still blow up squishies if you’re ahead) - you will deal most of your damage by getting your passive to proc and hitting W combos.

This build gives you both Q and E evolve after a few levels, but you still don’t get the W evolve unless you build Zhonya's Hourglass. Kraken + Terminus gives you both Q and E evolve in time, but I recommend you always start Doran's Blade.
You don’t have to build Zhonya’s, but I find it too valuable to pass up since it gives you an easy W evolve and you get its precious active. If you feel like you don’t need it though, you can go for Bloodthirster, Guardian Angel or Lord Dominik's Regards for your last items.

Honorable mention to the following situational items: Blade of the Ruined King as a 3rd item when you are against a super tanky team, and Wit's End as a late game item when you are facing mages and CC.

This build feels good in most games and is a good on-hit alternative when your team already has decent AP carries. You should be decent against tanks and still deal a lot of damage to squishy champions.

This build is probably the most flexible, as you have a lot of options. Kraken Slayer, Stormrazor and Statikk Shiv are all decent first items.

Your second item can be Infinity Edge, Navori Quickblades if you need some ability damage and reduced E cooldowns for self peel (also more of a late game build), and The Collector is the best choice for early game snowball. You can get your Q evolve faster if you buy your next item’s AD components first, and this is especially powerful when going the Collector because of Serrated Dirk.

Your third item is also flexible. Phantom Dancer, Runaan's Hurricane and even Guinsoo's Rageblade are all good. Do keep in mind you’ll be aiming for your E evolve here.

All items after that are situational.


You ideally start Doran's Blade, since this will give you the earliest possible Q evolve, but you may go for a Long Sword if the enemy has strong poke. Kraken + AD-heavy item gives you an easy and straightforward Q evolve, and sets you up for E evolve on your third item.

The crit builds are all-around okay, but they generally get outshined by other builds as long as AP and hybrid are valid.

Here we will be going in-depth on how to optimize Kai'Sa's damage by using her abilities well. At first glance her abilities are rather straightforward, but they can be easily misused. Knowing how you can maximize your damage and still survive a sticky situation will make playing this champion much more rewarding!

Do keep in mind that sometimes the optimal is not always feasible, meaning that to score kills or outplay your opponent you may need to go against what is “optimal” for her Second Skin passive usage for example – but at the same time, using this ability well will allow you to score way more kills.

Players who are new to Kai’sa or who are not very advanced in their mechanics might struggle to use her abilities well consistently. This is FINE – take your time, practice, and have fun first and foremost. You don't need to play perfectly.

Your passive is pretty straightforward: you auto champions, you stack your passive. You hit Void Seeker, you stack passive. You deal magic damage with each auto. You like having CC on your team. Proc your passive and you get a huge damage bonus.

This means that what you should be looking for in fights is stacking it as fast as possible. But what can you do to achieve this?

For starters, you could take the rune Hail of Blades, making sure to auto the same champion three times in succession to make the most out of the rune. Really good early game when you don’t have a lot of attack speed.

You’ll want to use auto resets such as Void Seeker + AA or Killer Instinct + AA and always hit your W to get your damage off faster – especially early game. Guinsoo's Rageblade also helps, though it doesn’t fit every build. Teams and supports with plenty of CC are also great to have.

Getting Second Skin to proc is very decisive in your early game damage. It is sometimes worth it to Flash on an enemy sitting on low HP and 4 stacks to proc your passive because it’s a lot of damage. It may not seem like it at first, but the small details can make a huge difference. Paying more attention to this ability is a nice thing to focus on if you want to master this champion.

Icathian Rain is your bread and butter to deal damage so you usually want it to evolve first and use it well.

It deals a huge amount of damage to isolated targets, so naturally you want to position yourself in a way that allows you to hit just your target. In teamfights this could mean kiting away from grouped enemies and staying at max range. You want to single out one champion – Supercharge and Killer Instinct can help with that.

It is ideal to fight away from enemy minions and jungle monsters during all stages of the game.

In lane, your Icathian Rain can help you push lane, but keep in mind it deals more damage to low HP minions. You should auto-attack them until they have less than half their HP and then use Q to insta kill them.

This ability is also a great trading tool. If you can get away with it, trade with the enemy ADC or support with auto and isolated Q (as isolated as possible). You will catch many enemies off guard with your damage, especially if you can make full use of your Hail of Blades. If you manage to hit Void Seeker as well it’s great.



Extra tips:


You can cast Icathian Rain just before Void Seeker and Supercharge to deal damage while you are channeling those abilities.

Sometimes you will use Q and see it is targeting minions instead of the enemy champion... How to avoid that? Well, your Q range is slightly smaller than your auto range. So use your Q when you are in auto-attack range and you will most likely hit it!

First, keep in mind that if you go full AD you are never going to evolve this ability. You need 100 AP to evolve it and depending on your build it won’t be worth it.

Hitting this ability will grant you true sight, which means you will be able to see champions like Akali and Shaco when they are supposed to be invisible. It will also give your 2 plasma stacks (3 if evolved), which allows you to use Killer Instinct on the marked enemy.

When you are only building AD, the main purpose of this ability is to allow you to go in with your R, combo, stack your passive, and snipe enemies. When you have it evolved its poke damage can be pretty okay and hitting it will make your burst combos and “burstier”, so it’s important you don’t miss it.

You can combo Void Seeker + Flash to reposition it and make sure you hit it, especially during laning phase. Your W will go to the targeted direction but it will be cast from your new location. If you time it just right though, you can make what is called "Phantom W", which is a visual bug that makes it look like your W is coming from the place you were before flashing.

In the early game you will want to use this ability to combo and trade/all in. You will see many players using this ability to poke enemies, and in a lot of cases that’s just not worth it.




When can it be good to poke in lane?

You have a poke/long range harass support and you want to help them harass

You want to get an assist/help teammate but you are too far away

You have this ability evolved




What are the best ways to use this ability?

Using it to get vision and avoid face checks

Using it to catch a mispositioned enemy you can kill by following your W with Killer Instinct

Using it as an auto reset

Comboing it with Killer Instinct (R + W) to quickly burst a squishy target

Using it to stack your passive faster

Sniping low HP targets




Why you would want to combo R+W?

Let's assume you have a Rell support and she managed to engage on the enemy bot laner. You could W immediately to stack your passive faster... but what if there is a minion in the way? Or a champion who is not the priority target?
In these cases, you can R behind all these obstacles and MAKE SURE the enemy gets hit by your full combo - Your W, your isolated Q, your autos.
You will need some practice to get the combo right while mid-air!

You want to have this ability evolved after your Q and it evolves when you have 100% attack speed. Supercharge has two main uses: to run away or to go in.

Usually, you want to use this ability to dodge important abilities and to kite. Only use it to go in if you can get away with it (if the enemy can't punish you for using your mobility). One exception to that is when you evolve it and gain Invisibility – You can use it to go into range of a vulnerable target from fog of war and surprise them.

When you are pushing into the enemy tower you can use E to take platings faster, but beware if you don't have vision. If there are enemies nearby it is best to use this ability to run away in an emergency. Otherwise, using it for plates and turrets is not that bad since auto attacking will reduce this ability's cooldown.



Some extra uses

In the early game you’ll usually not build Berserker's Greaves, so you can use your E as an attack speed steroid and mobility to compensate for your lack of boots, so use it wisely.

You can use Supercharge before a fight as a way to increase DPS once you’re in... it gives you a nice setup to R in and blow up vulnerable targets. But especially when your target is surrounded by their allies it is a good idea to save E in order to have some mobility. Killer Instinct is one of your main defensive tools, so if you use it aggressively you want to at least have your E for survival, especially if you have it evolved.

You can also use E combined with other mobility tools to run away. As an extreme example (which I have had to use when mispositioned): you can Killer Instinct to go around an enemy, Supercharge to run away and Flash over a wall. When you have all your mobility tools you are pretty slippery, so don't waste them mindlessly. You may be tempted to use E aggressively or to move faster, but it is a self peel tool so be aware of how you are using it.




Ideas on how to juke enemies with your Invisibility

Pretend to go in one direction, E and turn around

Use invisibility so that enemies can't use targeted abilities on you ( Yasuo E, Annie Q, Teemo Q)

Use it as a way to counter auto attack steroids and autos in general ( Xayah W, Kog'Maw W, Ashe Q, Vayne autos, Jhin 4th shot)

Use E to dodge a skillshot and then go in (this often catches enemies off guard).

Now here's the ability people probably misuse the most, and that is because it can be both an offensive tool and a defensive tool. The ability is at its best use when you can use it both offensively and defensively!

You will see some Kai’sa players hitting Void Seeker on a seemingly isolated squishy target, R in and then die soon after because the entire enemy team was there. This can be avoided by exercising self restraint and thinking before acting!

Because of how Kaisa works, you ideally don't want to R into the entire enemy team. Make sure you are sticking to the sides of the teamfight so that you can run away if things go ugly and you can isolate your target.


An important thing to know about Killer Instinct: it counts as a Dash, which means it can be interrupted by Vex and Poppy. You are not untargetable, if you try to R on a Jinx and you fly over her traps, you will get trapped. If you get caught on Poppy ult you will fly away. If you Ahri lands her charm mid air your R will be interrupted and you will get charmed.




Let's look at its offensive uses

Isolating a target to hit Q

This is especially important in teamfights. You can use Killer Instinct to reposition and isolate the priority target. You should be cautious and ideally use R like that when the enemy has used their CC and self peel on someone from your team instead.


Engaging or following up on an engage

This is pretty straightforward. Maybe you or your support manage to get your enemy marked, you see their team is not there and you go in for the kill. You can also use it to help a teammate if they have CC to mark the enemy.


Using it as a auto reset for more burst

This is a use people often overlook but I suggest you do try to practice it in your 1v1. Basically, you can aa+R+aa. Make the most use from that after using your Hail of Blades, you will get 2 stacks quickly after the first 3 you get from the rune.

Using it as a auto reset when you have already engaged on the enemy means you don't need to R to reposition yourself - instead, you can use it in a 1v1 to dodge, get a shield and reset your passive. Your Ult won't go to waste if you use it both offensively and defensively!





Now the defensive uses

Repositioning

Maybe you are caught in the middle of a teamfight and enemies surround you - but suddenly, you see your team has caught someone on the sides with CC – You get a free out of jail card! You can also get yourself out if you hit Void Seeker on a distant target.
Maybe the enemy is standing close to a wall and you need to get away. You can R over the wall!


Juking enemy abilities

Morgana Q, Seraphine R, Sett W - you name it. If you have enemies marked you can R to juke important abilities.
One tip that works best against bruisers and the kind is: when they are going for you, run away to one side and R to the other. This might glitch their minds for a moment and you may get away from a champion like Sett or Riven who used their abilities predicting you were going to follow a direction only to see you dash to the other one.


Getting a shield

Killer Instinct gives you a massive shield. If the enemy has a lot of damage you will want to R to both reposition yourself and soak up damage instead of engaging.




Last useful tips:

Your Void Seeker range is the same as your Killer Instinct range at max level

To be able to R on a target they have to be inside your range. If you R into someone from max range you will be able to cover the area that is out of your normal range. If the enemy is barely out of range but you can see the area of your passive is inside your range, you still CAN'T use Killer Instinct.

You will see a visual indicator (a "pulsation") when you can R someone out of your screen. Useful for getting away!

You will land where your cursor is and will not follow enemy champions. If you R to catch up to someone and they Flash over the wall, your R will go to the direction your cursor was when you cast it rather than following the targeted champion.

Kai’sa is a marksman/assassin hybrid – she wants to isolate and kill single targets with her burst and kite around the enemy team.

Her playstyle will vary a bit depending on the team you are up against: if you are against bruisers and champions that can catch and burst you, you will want to play as a front to back ADC. You will stand behind your team, hit the closest target, use your abilities for self peel and only go in if you can execute a target and run away.

If you are against squishy, vulnerable champions you can start playing as an assassin. Most of the time you will still be playing relatively safe, but if you are fed and the enemy is actually vulnerable you can easily solo kill them using your self peel and burst. In teamfights you can sometimes get away with using Killer Instinct to reach the backline and kill them one by one once their defensive tools are down.

Kaisa does well with teams that can CC enemies for free stacks and enable pick offs on the enemy carry, as well as peel for her. As a short ranged ADC who revels in close combat, she tends to be vulnerable when her team doesn't have a frontline and when they have mainly ranged champions.

The most reliable way to get a lead from level one is to push for level 2 first. You can use Icathian Rain to help you last hit multiple minions at once, or, if the enemy mispositions and becomes isolated from the wave, you can use your Q to get a nice trade. If it is too risky to push level one, just concede prio and wait for level 2 to play more aggressively.

IF PLAYING INTO GOOD MATCHUPS

In favorable matchups you should generally be looking to get good trades and pressure the enemy while being careful to not get ganked.

When you fight, try to hit your full combo and using E and R for self peel especially when you don't have vision. Before your Q evolve you will have to hit your W, isolated Q and proc your passive to do damage and score kills. If you misuse your abilities you may find yourself lacking a bit of damage or losing the trade.

If you score a kill in the early game, do your best to maintain your lead. Don't get overconfident, remember Kai’sa needs her Q evolve to truly shine. Play around your strengths and don't throw your lead. Use your Killer Instinct wisely.

IF PLAYING INTO BAD MATCHUPS

In Hard or Passive lanes your main priority should be farming and scaling. Don't force plays if you don't have a lead or if the enemy lane has more kill pressure than you – you’re not an early game champion, you just have to be patient. Try not to die so as to not give the enemy a bigger lead.

Your priority should be on wave management, macro gameplay and keeping a steady gold and xp income. Getting picks with your team is relatively easy on Kai’sa because of Killer Instinct, so it’s alright to just wait for the right moment to fight instead of trying to force plays.

In a passive lane, dragon rotations can be very risky, and it is often here where players will mess up their lanes.

Avoid rotating to dragon if your wave has not fully crashed into the enemy tower, and don't over-commit to a fight. Don't thoughtlessly rotate without lane prio. Early drakes are not that big of a deal, by the mid game you can focus more on helping your teammates with dragons as you will either have destroyed the enemy tower or lost yours.

Mid game generally starts when the first tower falls. It is at this point where you have to be especially careful if your lane is going even, as the enemy mid or top laners will try to make plays on your lane. Your team will also start requiring your help to get drake, herald or baron.

PLAYING OFF YOUR LEADS


If you are ahead, focus on pressuring the enemy, farming, getting towers and pushing your lead further. Ping your jungler or mid to make plays bot and get yourself further ahead. Once you take bot tower, start rotating with your support to take more towers/objectives and make picks around the map to put yourself further ahead and put enemy solo laners behind.

By "making picks" I mean: you can ambush a lonely enemy or the enemy happens to misposition and your team can collapse without inting. Don't get overconfident as the enemy solo laners might be stronger than the bot laners and still kill you.

IF YOU ARE BEHIND…

If you are behind, it is especially important to focus on farming so you can get your evolves. Avoid making rotations unless you can get something good out of it.

Before making any plays or rotating you will want to shove any lane you are farming, be it bot, mid or top. It is at this stage of the game where many players throw their lead - they stop farming and rotate to every single jungle skirmish.

A good rule of thumb for choosing when to rotate with your team or not is: is there something worth fighting for, and what do I lose for this play?

If your team can get something out of a skirmish, like drake, baron, or tower, then you can look to shove the wave into enemy territory and rotate. If your team is outnumbered, you probably shouldn't go as it is a losing fight. Pay attention at all times to see if enemies are missing - if they are, assume they are rotating or coming for you.

KEEPING A STEADY GOLD INCOME


To get the most out of the mid game as an ADC, solo farm whenever you don't have to be with your team. If you think your team will get caught, spam ping them off, or farm as quickly as possible for good rotation or to allow a disengage. And don't share farm with solo laners and jungler.

At this point in the game you should already have your evolved Icathian Rain and Supercharge (around 2 items, or close to it) so you’ll be very strong. You’ll be important in teamfights. If you are even or ahead, try to keep the enemy chunked with good rotations and good fights.
If you are behind, you might not have managed to get both your evolves yet and your priority should be to get strong enough to be useful to your team.

Also avoid ARAMing mid. If either your team or the enemy team ARAMs but no real fights are breaking out, farm jungle or side lane. Sharing xp with 2+ people will do nothing to set yourself further ahead.

This is where you should already have your core items. Most of the time you will keep the same playstyle as in the mid game - pressuring enemies if you are ahead, farming waves, getting gold and getting stronger to contest objectives or force plays. At this stage it is very important that you do not die, as spawn timers will skyrocket and your team will be at a great disadvantage if outnumbered and without your damage.

This also means making picks is more valuable as you get more time to take Baron and towers! When the enemy has a number disadvantage, always look to see if you and your team can take something for free.

You should have plenty of time and pushing power to always be there for your team, but PLAY SAFE when Killer Instinct and Flash are down.

Also look to always be on the same side of the map as the objectives your teams want to contest - Don't split push bot if baron is up, don't be top when soul is about to spawn. Let the top laners be on the opposite side of the map, as they usually run Teleport.

This is the point of the game where you are usually the main carry. You will deal the most damage to towers and monsters, and in teamfights you should also do a lot of damage as long as you are positioning and building properly.

Your priority is to stay alive to carry your team. Don't wander around on your own.

This section will cover the most basic things to perform well as an ADC - how to farm, wave management and tips on how to survive as a squishy glass cannon. There will be a focus on Kai’sa but the tips here can help you with pretty much any other marksman.

Everything I am going to share I have picked up over time both from personal observations and from getting tips from high elo players!

1. FarmingTips for steady income

2. Wave ManagementTypes, how to’s, pros & cons

3. ADC Survival GuideSurvival guide to Summoner’s Rift

I feel it is difficult to explain wave management in text format so I will try to keep this short and simple as possible for your convenience.

There are three main types of wave management and each one has their uses and a way to accomplish: Fast Pushing, Slow Pushing and Freezing.

This is usually what low elo players do constantly, especially newer players. This is when you quickly kill all minions, which results in a thin wave that crashes under the enemy tower.

Slow pushing is when you create a big minion wave that slowly pushes to the enemy tower.

A freeze is when the wave is stuck and doesn't push to either one side or the other. It is a great defensive move and can be very bad for the enemy.

In laning phase, you ideally want the freeze to happen just outside of your own tower range so that it can be beneficial to you. Having a freeze happen in enemy territory is extremely dangerous for you and puts the enemy in a safe position.

Freezing requires a lot of practice and attention, so if you are still new to this, just start by trying to avoid freezes from happening and learning fast push & slow push. Once that's more settled on your mind try to practice creating and keeping freezes!

HOW TO FREEZE Freezing is the hardest to get the hang of because it depends on the position the wave clashes and how healthy minions are. To freeze the wave outside of your tower range you need to have around 3 or 4 healthy minions on the area of the closest bush to your tower. To keep the freeze you want to last hit minions, but if you see the freeze is turning into a slow push (into your tower) you will have to thin the wave by killing excess caster minions. If the wave is becoming a slow push into enemy territory, just let it happen so that you can keep denying enemy gold and xp. The enemy will stop this from happening if they auto the wave. To freeze the wave in the middle of the lane you need only to keep an equal amount of minions on both sides. A freeze in enemy territory usually hapens when you try to fast push, but your wave clashes with the upcoming minion wave just outside enemy tower range. This type of freeze is good for the enemy as it leaves you vulnerable, and if you recall during such a freeze you will possibly lose an entire wave of gold and xp.

WHEN TO FREEZE Maintain a freeze in your territory if you want to hold a more defensive position in lane, which you might want if you have Flash down, if enemy jungler is nearby, or if the enemy has a very aggressive engage lane, like Leona + Tristana. A freeze in the middle of the lane is very good if you have an engage or hook support, like Rakan or Blitzcrank, as it gives them the most space to find all-in opportunities. A freeze in enemy territory is very dangerous and is best avoided if enemy can somehow engage on you or gank you.

BREAKING A FREEZE To break a freeze in middle or enemy territory you need to get close and fast push. If that's too dangerous, ask your jungler for help. If the enemy fights it's a 3v2 in a best case scenario. To break the freeze close to your tower you can just let the enemy wave stack and crash or you can thin it and begin a slow push towards the enemy tower.

ADVANTAGES Freezing allows you to zone the enemy away from cs, set up for ganks (if done in your territory) and keep you protected from ganks. If you manage to freeze the wave in the middle of the lane you give more room for your support to engage or catch the enemy from the bushes or the alcove. Keep in mind the enemy support could do the same.

DISADVANTAGES A poorly positioned freeze makes you very vulnerable to ganks, engages, and can make you lose a ton of CS and XP. Freezing defensively can also make ganking difficult for your jungler (if there are too many minions) and it can make it harder for you to rotate to river skirmishes. In other words, defensive freezes sometimes mean you hold less lane priority.

It is common knowledge that Summoner's Rift is a very perilous place to the average ADC player. If you are not careful, no matter how fed you are you can still get solo killed by 0/10 Yasuo OTP player. Even the enemy enchanter support can solo kill you under the right circumstances (I’m not joking).

This is why this section of the guide exists. Hopefully you will be able to last longer following some of these tips!




KNOW YOUR LIMITS

You can only do so much when you have no summoner spells, when you have had a stressful day at work/school and you can't move your fingers because it’s too chilly outside. On top of that you could be playing against your personal counter - maybe you just can't play against Vayne with any champion because she tilts the hell out of you and you end up losing the game regardless of what you do.

It's important to be realistic and understand your limits as a player - whether you are against a champion you cannot stand, how much BS you can take before tilting and running it down, how many buttons you can press at once to survive a teamfight, how aware you are of your cooldowns. Play safe/cool when you know you are at a personal disadvantage.




KNOW YOUR CHAMPION’S LIMITS

I get it, sometimes Kai’sa feels like an assassin and playing her gives you an adrenaline rush that not many ADCs can offer. Diving the enemy ADC and one-shotting them feels really good! But Kai’sa is not unbeatable and if you decide to take risks when your Flash, Killer Instinct or Supercharge are down you could end up throwing your lead - or the game.

You can be 10/1 and still lose to the average assassin player if your self peel tools are down and you are surrounded by 3 enemies. Make conscious decisions and don’t blame your team if everything goes wrong after you pushed your champion’s limits way too far.



RECOGNIZE BIGGEST THREATS

This is both champions as a whole and specific champion abilities. Malphite may not be a huge threat himself, but his Unstoppable Force is, so you want to be ready to react accordingly when his R is up. If you know you can't outplay a Zed then track him on the map and keep your distance. On champion select, instead of waiting for the game to start, stop and think about what abilities in the game can kill you and plan how you can avoid getting hit by them.