Ahri Build Guide by frischideu

Introduction

Welcome to my Ahri Guide!

This guide is my first guide on Mobafire and it's as mentioned in the title about Ahri - The 9 Tails Fox. Before you read my guide please take a look at these short notes:

• I'm not a pro player and i don't say that this guide is the perfect one for Ahri
• I love criticism, but please be polite
• This guide is ideal for you if you want to play Ahri in ranked mid - it may work for other roles too, but this is only for mid.

I play Ahri in ranked, i reached gold at the moment. I played about 172 games with her, and my win ratio is 66.3%.

If you like this guide vote for it and leave a comment. If you don't like this guide leave a comment too. Thank you!

Pros / Cons

Positive:

+ High amount of skill shots, that means a lot of fun
+ Unbelievable strong ganks with her ult
+ A range taunt
+ An ultimate which can be usefull in nearly every situation
+ In my opinion the most detailed champion model in the game. She is just pretty!
+ Excellent farmer

Negative:

- She loses all mobility if her ultimate is on cooldown
- If you spam your skills too hard, you will be oom with the speed of light
- Squishy, as the most of the burst AP casters are
- Gets banned a lot

Runes

In this build i use my runes to get the most out of my early game. In midlane you will have to harase your enemy a lot and you maybe become ahead with a first blood or some kills. Also the midlane is very easy to gank for the junglers. This can be seen as positive point - if your jungler ganks - or as negative if the enemy jungler ganks. This runeset will give you enough damage to ensure a kill when your jungler ganks, even without hitting your Charm.


Greater Mark of Magic Penetration
Magic penetration is always usefull on champions like Ahri. Ability power is your main source of damage, and with magic penetration you increase your damage percental.

Greater Seal of Replenishment
Ahri needs mana to work, and the amount of mana that is given to her can sometimes make you cry. With these runes your mana problems in early won't be so hard. You can replace these seals with for example Greater Seal of Scaling Mana Regeneration or Greater Seal of Knowledge, but most of the times your jungler will give you at least the 3rd Crest of the Ancient Golem and your mana problems will be blown away.

Greater Glyph of Ability Power
Damage is what we need, damage is what we get with nine of them. You can try Greater Glyph of Scaling Ability Power here too, it depends on your favor. If you are someone who just incredible spams every skill you may place some Greater Glyph of Replenishment here.

Greater Quintessence of Ability Power
In case of Quints I prefer to use Greater Quintessence of Ability Power because they give you nearly as much damage as a Doran's Ring at the begining. But i have tried the new Greater Quintessence of Spell Vamp here too, and they give you very much surviveability on your lane.


At all you have to decide what you prefer in runes - also it depends on the enemy you are going to lane against. I hope i helpeld you a bit with my choices.

Masteries

I go for a 21/0/9 in Masteries. There is nothing special, so i will just comment the most important points.


Summoner's Wrath That point is for my Ignite. I strongly recommend to immediately Ignite when you believe you are able to kill your enemy. First you ensure your kill if they Flash away too late, second the five bonus ability power can prevent your enemy from surviving with low health. It doesn't sound much at first, but many a little makes a mickle.

Archmage 5% is quite a lot. Damage is what we need, and again damage is what we get here.

Executioner This can help you a lot if you want to finish someone of.

Summoner's Insight Simply because of flash.

Meditation Ahri has mana problems, and that is a good medicine.

Runic Affinity You have to be stupid to not spend a point here. Blue Buff is something you want to have flowing around you all time, and with that the time is increased. Nice!

Skill Sequence

With the recent changes on Ahri (Patch v1.0.0.140) she doesn't get really nerfed. After taking a look at some calculations i can confirm that Riot achieved their goal to make her stronger in late, and a little bit weaker in the early game.

Now it gets interesting: Why do i max w first? Let's take a look at the scaling of Ahri's abilities.

Orb of Deception True and Magic Damage: +0.33 per ability power
Fox-Fire Magic Damage Per Fox-Fire: +0.38 per ability power

Well, thats not such a high difference. Fox-Fire scales a bit more ok, but Orb of Deception has more range and it easier for harasement. Why do i max Fox-Fire first then? We forgot something about Ahri's W:

Fox-Fire Maximum Damage to the Same Target Per Cast: +0.76 per ability power

And that is badass. Most of the time you will use Ahri's ultimate to get close to your enemy, then you will press Fox-Fire and try to hit an Orb of Deception. That means all our three Fox-Fire will hit our enemy, and he gets raped by the +0.76 per ability power. That, and the fact that the basic damage on Fox-Fire is higher than the damage from Orb of Deception is the reason why Fox-Fire is maxed first here.

I max Charm last because it is simply used as CC and is not your damage spell. You get 0.25 seconds more per level, but thats not so much.

Skills

This skill shot is good for harasing your enemy during the laning phase and one of your damage spells. Remember that you can controll the movement of the orb with your ultimate when you try to kill an enemy. It's one of the best skills to use your passive and for farming minions. Also it deals true damage on his way back - nice against magicresist.

Your main damage spell. Try to use this skill immediately after you Spirit Rush near to an enemy, because this spell makes the most of his damage if all three Fox-Fire hit the same target. Each Fox-Fire applies the slow from Rylai's Crystal Scepter

The only ranged taunt in the game, and as well a skill shot. You can use this spell for a lot of situations, for example to escape a gank. Also you can check bushes with it because it sounds different if it hits.

So awesome. So many uses. Spirit Rush is one of the biggest reasons why Ahri is so much fun to play. It's an incredible ultimate with as many incredible uses. You can last hit an escaping enemy with it, you can get closer to your target, you can escape out of fights, you can rush through walls - there are a lot more ways to spent this skill, but it's to much to write it here. Here is a simple video about towerdiving with Ahri's Spirit Rush:

/league-of-legends/ability/spirit-rush-453

Items

Most champions you'll face in mid have at least 1 skill shot, and there is nothing better for dodging skill shots than boots. Also the 3 pots will give you some surviability for your lane.


Sadly they exist, Champions who don't have a single skill shot. Some examples for that are Ryze , Sion , Soraka.


I don't really recommend to start with this, but if you are sure you don't have to be scared of ganks or your enemy, you can upgrade this build fast to Hextech Revolver.




This build is mainly designed to reach maximum burst with Ahri. You will deal tons of damage using this build, and because of the magic penetration there is nearly no way to avoid it. If you want to relinquish on some damage you can replace the Void Staff with Rylai's Crystal Scepter. The slow will be usefull to escape without your Charm and also for ensure a kill. It will give you survivability and nice damage. The Will of the Ancients and his Spellvamp are pretty nice for holding your lane or healing in fights.





Lich Bane can be pretty fun and dealing much damage, but as i concentrate on burst damage it is not so usefull. Also you will barely have the chance to autohit during your spells in team fights.

Rod of Ages is not good on Ahri, but if you want give it a try. You go into teamfights, burst down your targets and get the **** off. Ahri has 3 chances to escape, also you have flash. According to that life is nothing you will really need.

Zhonya's Hourglass is a great item. It doesn't only give you 100 Ability power and 50 armor, it also gives you an active that makes you immortal for a short duration - Awesome if you get focused in a teamfight or for Requiem from Karthus.

Abyssal Mask is good if you are having troubles with strong and fed AP Casters in the enemy team.

Mejai's Soulstealer is not the best for ranked - If you are fed you can be mostly sure that they will focus you during fights and your chance to die is a lot higher.

Guardian Angel will safe you a lot in fights and is pretty awesome when you are fed.

Fox against...

This part of the guide is very long. You can skip it and only read the parts you will need when you meet your mid. I only write something about champs who can play mid, cause this guide is mostly for ranked games.



Akali has no chance against you until she gets to six. She will try to farm, harase her with Orb of Deception in that case. Also she will use her Twilight Shroud as a way to attack you or to farm. Throw your Orb of Deception to the position where you suppose her to be. When Akali is 6 she can Shadow Dance on you and deal massive damage. Try to outplay her with your Spirit Rush, if she gets close to you use Fox-Fire to deal massive damage. If you can land a Charm you've won the fight, but even without it you should be able to kill her.


Alistar is not a champion you will meet often in midlane. Try to land your Charm to ensure the kill, and if you use Spirit Rush save one that you can use after Alistar Headbutt on you to get away.


Anivia deals tons of damage if you are slowed or stunned from one of her abilities. Try to avoid her Flash Frost and Glacial Storm. You can see if her Rebirth is available by clicking on her. Nice to know: You can Spirit Rush through her Crystallize


Annie is a counter to Ahri. Her early harase on you can hurt pretty much when you are going to take a last hit. Pay attention when she reaches six, Flash and Summon: Tibbers can be a way to kill you pretty fast. Ganks from your jungler will ensure a kill on her. Also remember that she can use her Molten Shield to have an instant stun ready.


Brand can be ****ing dangerous. Care of his Pillar of Flame, even with Boots of Speed this high ranged spell can sometimes be hard to dodge. Try to dodge his Sear if you are burned by one of his spells to avoid a stun.


Cassiopeia is very strong. The key to win against Cassiopeia is to get ganks and avoid her Noxious Blast. If you are poisened from her Noxious Blast or Miasma she can spam her Twin Fang on you. If you want to attack her make sure to Spirit Rush before she lands her Petrifying Gaze. The best moment of trying to kill her is when her Petrifying Gaze is on cooldown.


Ezreal has not enough damage output to bring you into much trouble. Simply care of his Essence Flux as it goes through minions, and try to use Charm after Arcane Shift.



Fiddlesticks is very strong in early game. Try to play defensive and farm only until you reach six. If he Drain you run away. At six you can Spirit Rush out of his Drain, use it again to hit a Charm and bring him off. Care if he is miss, he can idle in a brush to Crowstorm on you.


Fizz can be a very painfull enemy. If he uses Urchin Strike on you counter it with Fox-Fire. Till Fizz is three you can try to deal as much damage to him as possible and to deny his farm. Wait until he has Playful / Trickster on cooldown if you want to finish him off.


Galio is pretty strong against AP champions cause of his Runic Skin. Try to farm, dodge his Bulwark and wait for ganks.



Gragas is less dangerous if you manage it to dodge his Barrel Roll. You should kill him easily in early, later he will get a bit more tanky so wait for ganks to bring him down.



Heimerdinger will push the lane hard cause of his H-28G Evolution Turret. Wait for ganks from your jungler and he will be an easy target. If he hurts you hard with his Hextech Micro-Rockets try to stay out of range and call your jungler for help. Never try to kill him alone near his turrets, UPGRADE!!! will rape you.


Karthus is nothing you have to be scared of. Dodge Lay Waste, with a bit practice and Boots of Speed this shouldn't be a problem. If you max Fox-Fire first, as i tell you to do in this guide, you can kill him with your combo when his live is under 80%. Your teammates will love it if you inform them when Karthus gets Requiem


Kassadin is made to punish AP casters, so you won't like him. If you can switch lane do it, otherwise towerhug and try to farm as much as you can.



Katarina is a bad pick against you. If she uses her Shunpo to hurt you, just Fox-Fire. If you can hit an Orb of Deception after that you hurt her much more than she does. At 6 it is getting funny, when Katarina makes her Death Lotus just Spirit Rush out, go back in again and kill her.


Kennen is a strong champion, but with brain you will be able to win against him. Try to dodge his Thundering Shuriken as often as you can. If it comes to a big fight, Spirit Rush out of his Slicing Maelstrom before he can stun you.


LeBlanc is a champion you don't want to face. She rapes you in every possible way, and you won't be able to do much against her. The combo of Sigil of Silence and Distortion will make it impossible for you to hit any of your spells. Even if her life is low, don't try to kill her alone. Her Mirror Image may reduce the damage of your Fox-Fire to nearly nothing, and she will get away or even kill you if Mimic is ready.


Lulu is, as the most supports played on ap, strong in early and does heavily fall down late. You need to take care of Glitterlance as it's her main damage spell. She can use Help, Pix! to navigate Pix on a minion and have increased range on it.


Lux main source of damage is her Lucent Singularity. Try to avoid it, she can let it explode when she wants. If you are hit by one of her spells, avoid her autoattacks or Illumination will hurt you. Avoid Light Binding all time, or she will burst you down with Finales Funkeln and Lucent Singularity.


Malzahar can turn a fight totally around when he Nether Grasp you while you Spirit Rush. So try to kill him when it's on cooldown. If one of your minions is affected with Malefic Visions stay away to avoid it's damage.


Mordekasier is strong when his shield is up. So try to do your combo at the moment when his shield is gone. If you stay near to your minions, his Mace of Spades will hurt you. Only do it if you really need to last hit.


Morgana is a two-edged affair. If this champion isn't banned you will have a lot of trouble with her ability to stay at the lane and farm like a monster. She can't really kill you if your Spirit Rush is ready, cause you will simply rush out of her Soul Shackles. Try to do a lot of ganks when Morgana is passive, if you get hit too often by her Dark Binding you will be in over her head.


Ryze is one of your darkest nightmares. If you try to do anything against him he will Rune Prison you and take your whole mobility away from you. During this he will kill you with his combo. Switch lane or towerhug, your jungler will have to help you a lot.


Sion and his Cryptic Gaze can be very hard for you. Your chance to kill him is with help of your jungler or when he is out of mana. Avoid his Death's Caress as it's his main damage source.


Soraka can be very annoying with her Infuse, but her Starcall will push the lane and your jungler has an easy job. Also she's pretty squishy, and your combo brings ugly death to her.


Swain is also a counterpick to Ahri. His sustain with blue buff is godlike, so don't even try to kill him with it. If you can get advantage with a kill before he reaches six you have a good chance to win the lane. Swains key to win against you is his Nevermove. It will gives him enough time to do his damage spells on you and kill you with his Ravenous Flock. If you are sure he can kill you in a moment when nevermove is unavoidable, Spirit Rush out. Buy Rylai's Crystal Scepter against him.


Teemo is way to squishy to have only a little chance against you. Avoid his Noxious Trap and kill him.



Twisted Fate can be strong. If you see a Gold Card above his head avert him. Also watch the minimap all the time. He can use Gate to do pretty scary ganks. His main damage spell is Wild Cards, dodge it.


Veigar is a strong burster. Try to stay out of the range of his Event Horizon when he reached six. You can't Spirit Rush through it! Wait for ganks or go roam if he plays passive.



Viktor is not one of the strongest mid champs, but his Death Ray can deal decent damage. If you want to kill him you may have to Spirit Rush out of his Gravity Field.



Vladimir is strong and very tanky. If you are infected by his Hemoplague run away, you will get highly increased damage. Remember of his Sanguine Pool, he can towerdive you with it or can turn around your towerdive.


Xerath hates enemies with high mobility, so he hates you. He shouldn't be a problem for you, remember to avoid his spells when you are marked with Mage Chains. The best moment to land a Charm is when he goes into his Locus of Power.


Ziggs is another champion that hates you. The key to succeed against Ziggs is getting close to him and burst him down. A cakewalk with the help of your Spirit Rush and Fox-Fire.



Zilean has a very strong early game. Try to farm and avoid to many Time Bomb. If his Chronoshift is on cooldown you will kill him for sure. Your jungler is important here too.

Tips and Tricks

• Farm is one of the biggest keys to win. Ahri has a very nice animation of her autohits, it will be easy to land them with her. Also your Orb of Deception is a good way to last hit at your tower, or when a lot of minion have low health.
• Of couse you want to play Ahri most of the time in ranked. But if someone picks a mid champ before you are able to pick Ahri you have to get on with it. If you are 5th pick you may have to support - ask if the 1st pick can choose Ahri for you and swap, otherwise play what the team wants you to play. You want to win, and they want to win too, so dont flame and be polite.
• Try to get Blue Buff with her all time! Sometimes there are junglers who may want the 2nd and maybe even the 3rd Blue Buff like Amumu or Maokai. You'll have to accept that, it won't make it better if you start flaming them.
• Never facecheck bushes - you can use your Charm for it.
• As you are pretty squishy you want to stay behind your tanks in teamfight and never initiate
• It is your job as mid to ward at least the second left bush (the entrance to your jungle). If your jungler is good he will ward the right side for you, if not buy 2 Sight Ward. They will help you a lot, who doesn't want to be nearly complete safe of ganks?

End notes

Thank you for reading my guide! I hope this text will help you with this wonderfull champion, and you will have as much fun with her as me. You can send me screenshots of some of your games with this build - i will put them into this guide. If you like the guide leave a comment and vote, do the same even if you don't like it as i mentioned in the introduction.

Changes:

02/12/12 - Guide was created
03/29/12 - Changed Ahri against... Annie and Swain ; Added Lulu ; some minor changes
03/30/12 - Build order a bit changed, WotA before Deathcap and more
08/31/12 - Checked for validity, will do some changes soon but everything here is ok.

Sources and Credits

Ahri image in the header by http://tekkanomaki-chan.deviantart.com/
League of Legends Wiki