Hello! This is my first build here on Mobafire. Just so you know this build wont be all that effective unless you know what you are doing. The reason I say this is because if you don't get fed, the build isn't very effective. Normally, when someone is fed you build against them. With this build, that just won't work. In normal play, this build is put to waste because usually nobody wants to stray from their build. That is why this build is a little picky. Many people tell me all of the time that Akali is "Over Powered". This is not true. This Champion is very easy to shut down early game and is very easy to counter at top/mid lane. All it takes to shut her down is just one kill and she will be left behind. Akali is only "Over Powered" if she is fed, but then again so is any other Champ. Read on and enjoy!

This guide will be updated heavily throughout the first week or so. Expect more changes coming later and more coding/gameplay and explanations.

Tell me any other things I should change, gimme some feedback it really helps! I also added a counter chapter, go check it out. I'm having trouble with the masteries, I forget how to edit the coding.

I will be adding MUCH more bbcoding and other changes that I feel necessary. I've already got a few comments that have some great ideas and I will be adding a lot of new things into my build. So you will be seeing large amounts of bbcoding in the future. Alternative/Situational Items, Masteries, and Runes coming soon!

As Akali, you will probably be playing mid, as she isn't too great top lane nowadays. While in the laning phase a really important thing to remember is that your pre-6 is next to useless. Most champs will be able to handle you easily, so some extra help from the jungler is much needed. So once all of that fun stuff is over, generally Akalispends the rest of the game roaming and cleaning up. Team fights aren't too easy to play as Akali though.
9/10 times the first thing you should do is ult on the biggest threat (usually adc) and make quick work of them. Work your way down the ladder of threats, ADC, AP Carry, Top/Jungler, and Support. A lot of times you will find yourself chasing down low health stragglers which is exactly what you're supposed to do.

Akali is countered by pretty much anybody with a lot of health(other than if you're massively fed). Skilled players can beat high health champs, but the one thing Akali can't do is fight champs with a jump.
COUNTERED BY:
Jax is all around a hard champion to outplay. If you are hoping to beat him top, don't. Everything about him counters Akali. His jump, high damage, and high hp. AVOID THIS CHAMPION.

Lee Sin is another counter. He is self explanatory. The only way you might even be able to do anything is by staying behind minions and keeping to your turret, but he would just eventually out farm you.

Darius will shred Akali. When you go up to Q him he would just pull you in and that would be the end of it.

So pretty much every single AD bruiser or anybody tanky in general counters Akali. In that case anybody with a jump as well. That is why I don't play her top. There are all together more viable champions to play that aren't as easy to counter. If she is played at top your team also won't be as tanky. It's almost like playing viegar in the jungle just because he has a stun and an AoE. This is just a rule of thumb though, if you get matched up with a champ like listed, just play passive and farm with Q.

Gragas although melee, can be a lot for Akali. After a while she won't be able to do enough damage to him. He also has too much harass with his barrels and too much sustain. I don't recommend going against this champion.

Mordekaiser counters for the same reason as Gragas.

Malzahar counters Akali mainly because of his poke. Everything in general about him counters her, except his health. He will absolutely destroy her at mid.

COUNTERS:

Any champion like Lux, Ahri, and Orianna are countered by Akali. When they throw their orbs/stun they are completely opened for an initiation. They also can't really stop you from poking and farming. Once level 6 they will stand no chance against you. Akali's jump is the perfect initiator to get them.

Teemo is a tricky choice for going against. You will have to play defensive early because his poison and Q will do a ton of damage. If you can get to level 6 you shouldn't have a problem though.

For more counters look at lolcounter.com.

Middle is relatively simple and is where I usually lane. Even against high range champions Akali is very useful. Lets say you're going against an Anivia and you're worried that you're going to get picked off by her ranged moves. All you need to do is stay back around your turret and farm minions with Mark of the Assassin while always keeping a lot of distance between you and your opponent. Keep doing this until your jungler comes into the lane. Once you get your first kill you should have no problems getting yourself fed.

I've found that Akali top is more popular than mid. If you want to play top then this is what I recommend. You will need a bruiser/tank in the Jungle: i.e Rammus, Wukong, Olaf, or Volibear. I also recommend having a tanky mid: i.e Gragas or Mordekaiser. I say this because your team shouldn't have more than two squishy Champions. I will include a build for top if your mid is going to be squishy: i.e Veigar, Ahri. Otherwise stick to the build I came up with. Your Jungler should also be able to do some early ganks, but will need to be tanky. Rengar fits the bill, he should be able to let you get the kill and throw in a few more stray ganks and your lane will be fine. Farming at top is the next thing. It's exactly the same as you would do mid. Use Mark of the Assassin to farm and keep your distance from the enemy champion and stay close to your turret. If you try to harass early you will be an easy gank, besides chances are a bruiser will be top and you wont be doing much damage anyways. I myself would just rather have bruiser top altogether. You wont be doing much damage to anybody who isn't squishy untill later game when you have some penetration.

PROS:
Awesome general assassin.

Hard to outplay.

Great anti AD carry.

Very hard to 1v1.

CONS:

Not as much burst damage as a flat AP build.



You will get flamed for buying Black Cleaver (if you choose to).

Very item dependant. (Who isn't?)

You aren't as tanky as you normally would be going AP.

The enemy team will surrender at 20 minutes. :D

The ideal starting items would be Doran's Shield and 1 Health Potion. If you are going against a skill shot champ go with Boots of Speed] and 4 [[Health Potion.




Or any other items that will give your sustain. Akali really needs this sustain for early game, where she is weakest.

Next on the list is Sorcerer's Shoes , Long Sword(OPTIONAL), but most importantly Hextech Revolver . These are the first few damage items you will purchase. If you are getting too CC'ed then run a Mercury's Treads. You will find that you will need to build tanky on Akali.
Now get your Giant's Belt which builds into Rylai's Crystal Scepter later on.

Now get Lich Bane, although the mana goes to waste its the passive and AP you are buying it for. After you hit your q this item will dish out crazy damage.

Black Cleaver(optional), if you want more from your auto attacks switch out hextech gunblade for it) and Blackfire Torch are self explanatory, more damage and pen plus some needed health. Both passives burn away at health and will make your burst a lot stronger. Last but not least is Rylai's Crystal Scepter. You may or may not need to get this item earlier.

Let's talk about switching out some items. I find that sometimes switching out Rylai's Crystal Scepter for a Warmog's Armor can be helpful due to the fact that you might need some more health for survivability. You should of course adapt your build to the match you are playing in, as well as your playing style. You will be hacking away at their MR and well as their armor at the same time, making you a formidable foe to 1v1. Another question might be why the only item I have for defense is Rylai's Crystal Scepter. The reason
is it really isn't needed on Akali if you use the correct masteries. I only recommend using another defensive item if you really need it.
I will add that getting a Giant's Belt early on is mandatory and you will not regret it.

For Summoner Spells I prefer Ignite and Flash. Both spells I think are great on Akali. Flash for basic use and Ignite for more burst, which you will need.
Other possibilities would be Teleport which is good for top laning if you know you will need to recall a lot. Heal is viable and it's good for your health, and you will have to use it most games in order to pick up some kills. Exhaust is a great spell to use on her if you're top and want that kill on a gank early in. It's very helpful in getting you fed so you can jump in and demolish. The last spell I want to talk about it Cleanse. I really hate this Spell. If you really want it just buy a Quicksilver Sash and there is your Cleanse.

MORE TO COME

Not much to say for these, just arrange your masteries for highest dps :/.

|Ability Combos/Maxing Order|
You should always max out your Mark of the Assassin, then Crescent Slash, and your Twilight Shroud last. Obviously get Shadow Dance whenever you can. Your main combo is Mark of the Assassin, Auto Attack, Shadow Dance, Twilight Shroud, Crescent Slash. After that keep chasing your target down with Shadow Dance. You really only use your Twilight Shroud for slowing and getting away, in this case slowing.


|Escaping|
If you're trying to get away, Shadow Dance to a minion to gain some distance and throw your Twilight Shroud to slow the enemy. If they are still right behind you, sit in Twilight Shroud for awhile then Shadow Dance or Flash away in the opposite direction from the enemy.

|Farming|
For farming, you mainly want to last hit minions with your Mark of the Assassin since you have energy instead of mana and it has decent range. This will keep you out of the attack radius of the enemy champ. If there is a large group of minions right in front of you, using Crescent Slash will damage them all. This will just increase your farming speed.

|Other Combos|
For a combo against a champ far away from you, start with (but definitely throw a Q at them first if you are in range) Shadow Dance in order to get right on top of the enemy, then hit them with Mark of the Assassin, followed by an auto attack. Next hit them with Crescent Slash, Twilight Shroud (To slow, make sure to place this in front of the opponent). Then chase down with the rest of your Shadow Dance stacks, auto attacks, and Ignite if you brought it.

I hope you really enjoyed what you just read. I didn't include every detail because I'm sure most people will just say tl;dr. I didn't go into extensive thought with skills mainly because you will learn everything about Akali mainly by playing her, not just reading a guide on her. Thank you for checking out my build! Big thanks to jhoijhoi for help with coding and Zaums11 for encouragement and ideas. GLHF