There is a temple hidden in the mountains between Noxus and the Tempest Flats, where the secrets of an ancient and terrifying sorcery are kept. The area surrounding the temple is littered with the exsanguinated corpses of those who have mistakenly wandered too close. These served only to pique the curiosity of Vladimir, when - in his youth - he trekked through these mountains during his flight from Noxus. A day earlier, the teenaged Vladimir had brutally murdered two boys his age, for no better reason than to enjoy the intoxicating scarlet bloom that surged forth. He realized immediately that he would never be able to suppress his murderous desires, and if he remained in Noxus, his foul deeds were sure to catch up with him. Without hesitation, he abandoned the city-state, and journeyed south.

The trail of bodies led him to a crumbling stone temple. Inside he found an aging monk who appraised him with eyes of pure crimson. Vladimir surprised the monk by returning the wicked gaze with zeal. Recognizing the boy's sinister craving, the monk taught Vladimir how to manipulate and control the fluid of life, often practicing on passing travelers. When it came time for Vladimir to learn the final lesson, the monk warned that failure would result in death. Vladimir did not fail, but success bore a grisly surprise. During the ritual, every drop of the monk's blood was drawn from his body and fused with Vladimir's, imbuing him with his master's magical essence, and that of every hemomancer before him. Left alone and suddenly without purpose, Vladimir resolved to return to Noxus, demanding enrollment in the League to prove the supremacy of his craft. When the Noxian High Command observed the gruesome fates which befell the palace guards, they elected to avail themselves of Vladimir's unsavory talents.

''That which runs through you will run you through.''
-Vladimir

Disclaimer: I am not saying that this is the only way to play Vlad, or that AP Nuke vlad is bad. Read the description and try the build before you rate. :)

Vlad is a really cool looking champion, and totally worth the 6300 IP. In fact you can even look good with him when you have no skills at all, which is part of why he is popular and many call him OP.

This is not a full guide with explanations on how to play Vlad etc. It is pretty easy to learn how to play him, just harrass with Q, initiate teamfights with R and escape with W. The only thing I will say is always save W till the last possible second before using it. It will save your life. :)

New patch: Vlad's passive is being nerfed and the pool no longer increases movement speed. This means you will get a bit less AP from Ryalai's and from Spirit visage, but otherwise this build still works great. Just DON'T get Warmog's. The nerf to pool is annoying, but with the extra movement speed from force of nature combined with flash, you should still be able to escape ganks.

This build is for Vlad to counter a heavy caster team, or just a team with some fed casters with mejas. (Think Karthus, Katarina, Kennen, Veigar, Annie...)

Actually Vlad is pretty strong against most DPS carries because of his harrass and pool ability, so this build covers his biggest weakness: nukes and bursts.

If you have the cooldown seals, then you will reach full 40% cooldown reduction with Spirit Visage, which is a BIG plus for Vlad. (Not to mention the extra HP and therefore AP that Spirit Visage gives) The cooldown on Q is so short with 40% CDR that you will feel like a ranged carry. Also it makes your W and R skills come back a lot faster, just try the build and you will see the difference.

With Ryalai's you can kite effectively and catch fleeing noobs to trap in your mejas. Why Force of Nature? Well when you have 3000+ HP at level 18, you will regenerate health very fast so you probably won't need to go back at all except to shop. It regenerates a % of max health, and your pool and ulti cost a % max health. Doesn't take a genius to work out why this item is good then.

You should be pretty unkillable by the time you have completed Ryalai's and Spirit visage. The Rabaddon's is just the icing on the cake. If you are having trouble with some DPS carry, then think about getting Zhonya's hourglass instead. Other good final items are Warmog's Armor and Guardian Angel, but if you get to 5 items and you still didn't win yet then the problem is not with your items.

Many people complain that Vlad is OP, and in a way they are right, but he is still nothing compared to champions like Tryndamere or Rammus. The new patch should nerf him down nicely, but it is actually quite easy to beat him. Just try to disable him, then focus him down. (Malzi's ulti is perfect for this.) He is also very vulnerable after using pool. So if you chase him after he comes out of pool he is an easy kill. Finally, he is weakest early game. After about level 7 or 8 he gets a lot harder to kill.