Just to clear things up, this is a Dominion guide for Olaf. This is meant to help people who are new to Olaf on Dominion, I'll explain the terms I use but if you don't understand the basic mechanics of how to play Dominion then you should go watch some gameplay videos or something first. I know I do this a lot, but please read the WHOLE guide instead of just looking at my build/masteries/items and voting immediately. I'll include plenty of information on how to use this build effectively, why I chose the things I did, etc. I'll be revising this guide based on your feedback so if you have any suggestions please let me know. This is also my first guide, so if anything looks weird or could be improved asthetically I'd love to know as well

Pros:

- Tanky AF
- Great at defending points after 6
- Can 1v1 pretty much anyone (which is what you'll be doing mostly in Dominion)
- Both a tank AND a carry

Cons

- Very vulnerable to taunts/silences/fears
- Slowwwwwwwww
- Hard to think of cons for

9/28/2011 - First release of the Guide
9/28/2011 - Updated Item Sequence section. Added separate Gameplay section.
9/29/2011 - Updated Skill Sequence section. Completely revamped the Items section with two more builds and alterations on the first one.

Greater Mark of Desolation Greater Mark of Desolation: Armor pen is essential, and I'm not going to waste my money on or .

Greater Seal of Alacrity: Besides , and , you have no attack speed and before you don't have that much damage output even with lower ranks . Generally very useful on Olaf.

Greater Glyph of Warding: You have no magic resist items in the core build and REALLY need this MR in any situation. Optional/situational items can also compliment this, see that section for more info.

Greater Quintessence of Desolation Greater Quintessence of Desolation: More armor pen, more steam-rolling.

Optional replacements:
for some early-game armor before Atma's.
Flat health quintessences can't hurt for some early game destruction since you're not buying Phage or any health items like other builds

My mains:
Flash is so useful when chasing champs like Eve that can get away quickly and have significantly more speed than you early-game.

Ghost is pretty much a must-have for any champion on Dominion. It's all about movement, and you're already pretty slow. This is NOT OPTIONAL

If you don't like Flash for whatever reason, or are all also very viable and equally useful, it's really just a matter of preference.

I like to max out burst damage output early game by focusing on and when rushing top initially, but is essential later on.

At level 6 you want to have 1 in , 1 in and 3 in .
At 6, you're pretty much unstoppable 1v1 and when defending towers. Just wait for them to dive you and then rip them apart with your slow and avoid cc with your ult, it's not even fair really.
After 6 you want to max out first, putting points in when you can and one more in at 12 before maxing out the other two.

Some people might wonder why I don't put any points in after level 1, but with Frozen Hammer and , there's really no need and it'll just take away from your damage output and survivability.

So you start out with and . I've tried so many different builds, especially "Trolling Dominion", but this is absolutely the most effective starting item combination for Olaf. I've gotten quadrakills on top about 20% of the time I've started with these items.

After this, you're going to need some health so immediately grab when you go back. If you don't have enough, grab a and complete your Emblem of Valour if you can. Otherwise, make sure to get Phage and then if you have an extra 300 or so, go ahead and get Emblem of Valour.

With this you have significant health, attack speed, damage and lifesteal early in the game (first 6 minutes or so). You'll probably be doing pretty well, not quite 1v1 everyone yet though so don't be reckless. Keep defending/capping points, try and stick to groups (Olaf isn't really a run-off-and-cap-everything-solo champ.

The next thing you'll want to grab is your Frozen Hammer. I do this because a tanky Olaf is actually the scariest thing ever. It's fantastic. Once you get your Frozen Hammer your passive will be particularly effective, but with champs that get % of health damage you can get torn apart pretty easily, so you'll want to grab a before moving onto your . Right here is the most lenient part of the build where you can really start to make it your own, maybe grab a if you're getting rocked by magic damage or any other kind of defensive item you might want to build. The reason I emphasize is because it'll contribute to getting your even sooner. Before completing your Atma's, however, I make sure to finish my Stark's Fervor because with the 20% lifesteal from that plus your passive you end up with over 40% LIFESTEAL.

So now you've got your attack speed and your health, but to get that damage in there you just finish your and you're pretty much set. At this point you should be tearing those champs apart, even if you've got some annoying Rammus on the other team. Usually the game ends before I can get anything else, so everything after this is entirely up to you. If you're feeling squishy, grab a or (which gives AMAZING health regen because it's %), or go with if you're not getting heavily attacked/cced and just need the extra damage to rip them apart quicker late-game. I personally wouldn't spend the money on just because you already have the 40% lifesteal with and can give you pretty much just as much extra lifesteal AND some extra health/damage and magic resist if you're lacking. If someone else grabs starks though, feel free to get Sanguine and then some other attack speed item.

Overall, your core is going to be:





Situational items are SO flexible though:

Great damage output with Atmas and helps your passive by keeping you super durable even when you get down towards 30-40% health. With the health regen from this combined with Spirit Visage and your lifesteal you literally never have to recall.

This combined with and gives you SO MUCH LIFESTEAL plus some extra health (damage) and magic resist that can't hurt.

Generally I don't find this necessary because of your , but if they have a lot of casters or spell-oriented dps/melee champs then I'd grab it because you'll probably be taking most of the damage for your team unless you have another good tank like Rammus

Again not really necessary unless you get forced out of Stark's Fervor, but if you want to emphasize damage and sacrifice your attack speed then it's totally viable, it's all about personal preference.

On Dominion you'll probably be facing some teams where they stack AD champs with global ults (Twisted Fate, Nocturne, Gangplank) or fast-moving/durable AD champs, so this can be VERY effective.

I usually don't finish building this from a unless you're really getting shredded and need the extra movespeed or health regen passives.

Attack speed, crit chance and movespeed. Such a good item, but pretty expensive. I'd probably just grab then build something more effective in the short-term.

This section ONLY covers the first main build. My opinion about the items listed above remain the same for the other builds, but how they work together and how you progress through them or alter them situationally is not detailed. That is entirely up to you, I don't play those builds usually but they ARE other options.

Early game

Starting out with full boots and having ghost/movespeed masteries, you're immediately going to want to rush top through the forest, picking up the speed buff along the way.
An important note about rushing top: Too many times I've seen squishier champions speed up to top and get about 1/4 of the way through capturing the point and then getting torn apart by the opposing team that has actually stuck together. Unless the opposing team is about to capture the point, DO NOT rush ahead and try to quickly capture the point. Your goal, especially as Olaf, should be to maximize your damage output and try and get as many kills as possible. Again, your starting items are ridiculously affective when you stick to one champion, so I recommend flashing onto their casters/ranged dps as soon as the fight really breaks out and just tearing them to shreds before they can start taking out your champions. The initial fight isn't about grabbing the point super-quickly, it's about killing them quickly and efficiently.

After you hopefully win at top, you'll want to use and your to stay in the lane with the health buffs and keep defending that point. Eventually you'll either die or have to recall, and then you should be able to immediately grab the Storm Shield buff in the center of the map. This is just like capturing a point, and takes very minimal time. The shield is ridiculously effective in 1v1, which is what you'll be doing most of the time. If someone tries to gank you, tear them to shreds and DON'T miss your .

Moving on towards level 11 you'll be getting your and Emblem of Valour so you'll be acting as more of a tank, keeping firmly set in control of your points and beating the **** out of anyone dumb enough to get within range.

Once you start getting your attack speed and damage from and you'll start roaming a fair bit more, taking out squishy champions trying to run through the jungle to backdoor your points. Olaf is a primarily defensive champion in Dominion, exploding on champions that get too close but always pulling back when he needs to. Your movespeed in this build isn't the best, so remember that chasing isn't always the best option and sometimes it's better to let them go and focus your attention elsewhere.

There isn't much change in your gameplay after you have your core, you just keep roaming defensively and taking out anyone who wanders too close.

This section ONLY covers the first main build. I tried to show the sequence of item purchases fairly clearly in the other two, but how you play is completely different depending on what build you use. As in, with TriForce Olaf you probably shouldn't go running head-first into 3 enemies without some backup or someone to take the damage. The other builds ARE effective for their own respective reasons, but I don't use them enough to feel confident explaining their gameplay on an unfamiliar game-type.

Thanks for reading my guide, I'll continue to update it as we learn more about Dominion and as patch changes affect how Olaf can be played (we know a nerf is coming). Please consider my guide carefully and try it out for yourself before voting! Thank youuuuuuu!