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Katarina Build Guide by LegendRevz

Middle You spin me right round

Middle You spin me right round

Updated on November 17, 2013
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League of Legends Build Guide Author LegendRevz Build Guide By LegendRevz 12 6 72,176 Views 61 Comments
12 6 72,176 Views 61 Comments League of Legends Build Guide Author LegendRevz Katarina Build Guide By LegendRevz Updated on November 17, 2013
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Introduction

Welcome to my Katarina guide! Katarina is an AP carry that excels in bursting high-priority targets down. My in-game name is LegendRevz and I am a gold I in the EUW server. I started playing katarina at level 20 and have not stopped playing her since. She is my favourite champion in league of legends and hopefully this guide will make you fall in love with her too :D This is my first ever guide and it took me a while so I would really appreciate if you could leave a like or comment on how I could improve it! Thanks ;)
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Pros/Cons

Pros / Cons


Pros


+ No skillshots
+ No mana
+ Insane passive
+ AoE ultimate
+ Snowballs hard
+ Practically ungankable with Shunpo
Cons


- Usually focused and CC'ed down
- Melee Range
- Interruptable ultimate
- Can fall behind hard
- People flame because 'OP CHAMP'
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Masteries






I run 21/9/0 katarina because Katarina is an assassin and wants to deal the most damage output possible. I take a point in Summoner's Wrath since it gives me that extra AP and AD which could be a kill or the enemy escaping after igniting. I take 3 points in Sorcery because most of the items I get do not have CD reductions which can be annoying with very long Bouncing Blades and Shunpo cooldowns. The rest of the offense points are what standard AP mids would take dealing the most damage. For obvious reason I won't take AD on katarina. I also do not put points into Butcher since I already feel comfortable farming without it. I also take the standard 4 points into Durability and 1 point into Veteran's Scars since I want to get the most health possible while still doing damage. I take 3 points in Resistance and 1 point in Hardiness because usually I will be up against midlaners and will want that extra magic resist.
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Runes

Runes




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Summoner Spells

Summoner Spells To Consider


Flash

Always use this. Synergizes so well with Shunpo and can win games. Best summoner in the game.

Ignite

I love using ignite on katarina because it gives me that extra damage for a reset or finish off low enemies. Almost no-one can survive a full katarina burst with ignite and there is nothing more frustrating than the enemy getting away on 1 hp and not having ignite

Teleport

This is pretty decent on katarina since she can teleport in any lane and clean up fights however I would not recommend using this in solo queue because you will need to have the map awareness to know where to teleport at what time. When with premades however it is very useful since they can tell you where and when to Teleport. I personally prefer ignite.



Viable summoner spells


Barrier

I have tried Barrier a few times on Katarina and even though it saved me many times I personally preferred having Teleport or Ignite. It's ok if you're getting bursted down.

Cleanse

Very useful against hard CC abilties such as Amumu Curse of the Sad Mummy however you can simply buy a Quicksilver Sash which is basically a cleanse and I would see it as a waste.

Ghost

If you are struggling with chasing however in my opinion Flash if far more helpful and versatile.



Summoners you should never get


Clarity

YOU DON'T USE MANA MAN! YOU'RE NOT ALWAYS ON 0 MANA!!!

Heal

Would highly recommend you don't get this unless you haven't unlocked all summoners yet then you may aswell ;(

Revive

Level 1 all over again!

Smite

One day I will try this.... ONE DAY!

Exhaust

Can help set-up ganks for the jungler and can maybe be useful VS Akali or Diana


Clairvoyance

Do people still use this?
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Abilities

Sinister Steel


Voracity: Scoring a kill or assist will reduce the cooldowns of Katarina's abilities by 15 seconds.

Voracity is one of if not the best passive in the game. CD refreshes for every basic ability and a 15 second cooldown reduction on your ultimate makes you lethal in teamfights. Eliminating one target and instantly jumping on another and so on providing easy penta kills. This is also very useful for tower dives being able to kill the enemy then shunpo away to a minion or champion. If you're lucky you will be able to use Death Lotus twice in the same teamfight!



Bouncing blade: Katarina throws a dagger that bounces quickly from enemy to enemy, dealing magic damage and marking them. Each subsequent hit deals 10% less damage. Bouncing Blades hits a total of 5 unique targets (4 bounces), each striking the closest next target.
Striking a marked target with an ability or basic attack will consume the mark to deal additional magic damage.

Magic Damage: 60 / 85 / 110 / 135 / 160 (+0.45 per ability power)

Cooldown: 10 / 9.5 / 9 / 8.5 / 8 seconds

Range: 675

Your only source of harass and tool of farming early game since you cannot run the risk of running up and autoattacking a minion due to her weak early game. I will be going into what ability I max first in the Skill sequence chapter

Tips and Tricks
  • It can bounce of minions so it's practically free harras
  • Can hit targets even if they are not visible (stealth/fog of war)
  • You can proc the mark with sinister steel or an autoattack but not with Shunpo


Sinister steel Sinister steel: Katarina whirls her daggers around her, dealing magic damage to all enemies in the area. If she hits an enemy champion, Katarina gains Movement Speed for a short duration.

Magic Damage: 40 / 75 / 110 / 145 / 180 (+0.25 per ability power) (+0.6 per bonus attack damage)

Cooldown: 4 seconds

Range: 375

A small AoE damage spell. When proc'ed with Bouncing Blades does a nice amount of damage. Also Helps Katarina waveclear far easier due to her being a melee champ. This allows her to shove lane's and make enemies pay for roaming. Also has a very low cooldown and can be used to last hit minions you won't be comfortable autoattacking with. However be careful when doing this since you may shove the lane and put yourself in an easy position to be ganked.

Tips and Tricks


Shunpo: Katarina instantly moves to her target's location and takes 15% reduced damage from enemies for 1.5 seconds. If the target is an enemy, she deals magic damage.

Magic Damage: 60 / 85 / 110 / 135 / 160 (+0.4 per ability power)

Cooldown: 12 / 10.5 / 9 / 7.5 / 6 seconds

Range:700

Most fun and coolest looking ability in the game in my opinion. Usually this sets up Death Lotus and allows you to blink everywhere getting easy kills while the enemy gets confused. Remember that when you Shunpo you will end up behind your target so it's useful for juking or counterattacking. Be careful being to aggressive with this ability in lane however since it is your only escape route (except for Flash) so make sure the enemies aren't next to your lane if you're going to use this ability.


Tips and Tricks


Death lotus: Katarina becomes a flurry of blades, channeling for 2 seconds throw up to 30 blades to nearby enemy champions. Katarina throws up to 10 blades at 0.2 second intervals, dealing magic damage and applying Grievous Wounds to the closest 3 enemy champions. Grievous Wounds lasts for 3 seconds and reduces incoming healing by 50%. An enemy champion can be hit by a maximum of 10 daggers over the 2 seconds.

Magic Damage: 400 / 500 / 600 (+2.0 per ability power) (+3.0 per bonus attack damage)

Cooldown: 60 / 55 / 50 seconds

Range: 550

Probably the best ultimate in the game if not interrupted. However it is all about timing. You should never initiate a fight since you will just get cc'ed down and die. You should in fact wait for the enemies to use their CC then go in. The more you play Katarina the more you will recognize this period of time and ult in. Once you use your ultimate atleast one target should be dead and you will have all of your basic ability cooldowns back to finish off any low enemies. If you kill enough enemies you could have Death Lotus back off cooldown and use it again!

Tips and Tricks
  • Death Lotus applies grevious wounds which reduce incoming heals by 50%
  • It can also only attack 3 people while channeling
  • This ability cannot be used if an enemy is not in range of it.
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Skill Sequence

Ability Sequence Order



> Sinister steel > >
This skill sequence isn't set in stone except for maxing Death Lotus whenever possible and Shunpo last. Whether you max Sinister steel or Bouncing Blades first depends on the enemy champion you are against. Maxing Q allows for safe harassment in lane and provides a larger burst combo however maxing W makes farming far more easier and clearing waves simple. I personally prefer maxing W in most match-ups since I like to push waves and gank other lanes however in some situations maxing Q would be far better since you won't get punished for going to farm.
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Items

Items

Item Sequence

Haunting Guise 1300
Sorcerer's Shoes 1100
Zhonya's Hourglass 3250
Rabadon's Deathcap 3500

Starting items



x 4: This is the standard on katarina I would usually get this since it provides me with early mobility and a nice amount of sustain. However, I will not have a ward making me vulnerable to ganks.

x5 : This is what I start VS AD mids since I will that early armor to negate that early damage

x 4 sight ward x 2 : This is what I would start against teams with really aggressive junglers that I expect to gank my lane a lot. Udyr or Lee Sin etc.

Core items



: This is the best starting item for katarina providing damage and survivability however later in the game I sell it because Liandry's Torment isn't a great item on katarina and there are better items

: What most AP mids would get giving you nice magic pen and extra movement speed. Getting Haunting Guise first would be better since you don't really need an item that gives you extra movement speed and magic pen since you are probably fast enough to catch enemies at that time of the game and extra health and AP is very useful. Not to mention it also gives you magic pen.


: Not much to explain here what almost every AP mid gets best item for amount as AP possible which is what you want with katarina It also increases your AP by 30%!

: My favourite item in this game the active is so amazing and allows you to make amazing plays. A must-get item every game especially on a champ like katarina where you can wait for your cooldowns while untargetable. Also the extra armor is very helpful.



Late game items



: Void staff is amazing lategame. By this time of the game the enemy usually builds some sort of magic resist (unless their stupid) and you will need to build magic pen to counter this. This is where void staff comes in giving you 35% magic pen making it an essential item lategame. Always build this if the enemy stacks magic resist

: In my opinion this is a very underrated item on Katarina if you keep getting focused you can just get GA and put out as much damage as possible before you die. Then you respawn and just clean up the fight due to katarina's passive. Amazing item!

Situational items



: This is a nice item on katarina if they enemy team stacks HP, ( Cho'Gath or Volibear) since it deals 15% of target's maximum health in magic damage. This mean's that if the enemy stacks health this item will do a lot of damage. Not to mention it gives you 120 AP and 10% CDR

: This item should really be in the core items however there may be some games where the enemy have a lot of AD damage in which you will need to build armor ( Zhonya's Hourglass or Thornmail). Build this item if you have another AP champion in your team or the enemy team have a fed AP carry or the enemy team have 2 AP champions. This item grants magic resist which could be very useful however it also reduces the magic resist of nearby enemies by 20 so building it with another AP champion in your team will end up in you both doing a lot of damage.

: Build this if they enemy team is practically all AD. It will provide you with that extra 100 armor which could be very useful.

: Build these boots instead of Sorcerer's Shoes if you're against a teamcomp with hard CC. Do not build this for the magic resist but for the tenacity. IF you are against champions such as Kassadin or LeBlanc then this item is vital.

: Build this against champions with hard CC ( Malzahar, Ashe or Warwick). This is like a extra cleanse and can determine the tide of a teamfight. Using this against malzahar especially makes him pretty much useless without his ultimate just make sure you use it ASAP

Build this if you know you will get fed and snowball. Once you get 20 stacks you get an insane 160 AP and 15% CDR


DO NOT GET



: I cannot stress how frustrating it is to see Katarina players still building this item. Rushing Haunting Guise is far better since it gives you the early stats you will need. People say they need it for the sustain however I have tried using it many times and it doesn't even give you much health back, if you want sustain you can just get Health Potion. Also Katarina is a assassin meaning she has a burst combo. After using her combo she cannot heal, spell vamp would be far better on champions with low CD such as Ryze

: In the current season (season 3) hextech gunblade is no longer an amazing item on katarina since they nerfed her AD ratios. In season 2 it was a core item and I built it every game however now I never build it. I'll admit the passive could be useful for catching enemies however there are just far more better and useful items to get. Hextech Gunblade also gives you 10% lifesteal which is useless on katarina it also costs 3300g which in my opinion is just not worth it. Please don't build this item!

: Rushing haunting guise is great for Katarina giving her all the early stats she needs however I would not recommend upgrading it to a Liandry's Torment. This item is not good on katarina because there are better items which could be used instead to give magic penetration like Void Staff or if the enemy stacks health you should get Deathfire Grasp. Furthermore you won't really need that extra health because you will already have 2000 health by the end of the game which in my opinion is enough. Also they changed katarina's channeling time for Death Lotus to 2 seconds from 3 seconds meaning the passive won't be that helpful.

: In my opinion there is no pointing in getting this item. There is no need to slow the enemy and there are far more important items you could get. You are already tanky enough with your defensive masteries and the extra armor from Zhonya's Hourglass or maybe the extra MR from Abyssal Mask. You will be wanting to kill the enemies as quick as possible not slowing the enemy allowing your teammate's to come and take the kill. You're the AP carry you want as much kills possible!

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Laning

Early Game Levels 1-5





Your main goal when playing Katarina early game is to outfarm your opponent while also harassing them. Depending on who you are against you can either play aggressive or passive. At level 1 you may have to let a few minions slide since you do not want to take a lot of harass and you are melee range. Using Bouncing Blades to farm is a good idea however it is on a 10 second cooldown at level 1 so it may be difficult to farm without taking a load of harass. However once you hit level 3 you will have your full combo which does decent amount of damage and you can trade with your opponent.

Mid Game Levels 6-15




This is the part of the game where Katarina excels and deals insane amount of damage. Push your lane and look for an opportunity to gank another lane. This is a teamgame so as the mid laner your job is to roam the map and assist other lanes. However do not roam if your lane is pushed and at your tower since you could be punished and your turret could be destroyed making it not worth. Try to force teamfights by going botlane in which the enemy midlaner could follow since katarina excels in mid game teamfights due to Death Lotus and Voracity.

Late Game Levels 16-18




At this stage of the game both teams will be looking to kill baron nashor and win the game. Do not get caught out since this could determine the game and give them the win. If you have your full item build buy an Oracle's Elixir or Elixir of Fortitude or Elixir of Brilliance since they will just pop instantly and you won't be wasting gold. Wait for the right oppurtunity and use Death Lotus I will be going into more detail about when to use Death Lotus in the Teamfights chapter.
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Teamfights

The most important thing you need to know when playing katarina. How to teamfight with her. Katarina's role in teamfights is to wait at the back until you see a perfect opportunity to use Death Lotus. You should be standing at the back of your team until somebody engages. Pre-fight your job is to avoid poke such as Nidalee Javelin Toss. You can also poke the enemy with Bouncing Blades but be careful when doing this since you could take a lot of damage or be engaged on. Using the maximum potential of Death Lotus in a teamfight could determine whether or not you win the game. The more you play Katarina the more you will recognize the perfect moment to use Death Lotus and do the most damage possible. However there have been times where I have used Death Lotus and just been CC'ed down and there is nothing more frustrating then that. However I know hardly ever get CC'ed down since I just wait for everyone to use their abilities then go in and do insane damage :) I can't be with you and tell you when to go in but what I can do is advice you when to in most situations. For example Xin Zhao has just used his Crescent Sweep and Kassadin used his Null Sphere all their CC is down and now is the perfect opportunity to use Death Lotus. You use it and get a double kill then use Q E W on the last 3 targets. Easy pentakill.
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Tips and Tricks

Using Shunpo to sight wards


Shunpo is basically Flash with a shorter cooldown. However you will need something to Shunpo to and there might not be something available. This is where a sight ward comes in. You can carry a ward at all times and when you're in a sticky situation you can just 'ward jump' away which can possibly save your life. Here is a clip of ward's saving me from dying and also ends up in my team getting a kill.

Using Death Lotus in brushes


Like Nunu & Willump's Absolute Zero when you use your ultimate the enemy will not vision of you when you are in a brush. This means that you can surprise enemies by using this and their health will just rapidly decrease. This is a very helpful trick and I like to use it alot in my games.



Skill Combos



Pushing lane : > Sinister Steel

Risky harass and main combo : > > Sinister Steel

Safe harass : > sinister steel >

Kill combo : > > > sinister steel >



Smart casting


Smartcasting is essential on katarina I highly recommend you use it. If you don't know already smartcasting allows you to simply click the key rather than having to click the key then leftclicking with your mouse on the enemy. This increases how fast you use your abilities and could determine whether or not you get a pentakill. Try it!

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Lane match-ups

Ahri



Ahri has a very annoying auto attacking harass during early levels and kill potential once she hits level 6. If played properly can be one of the biggest counters to you. She can Spirit Rush away when you ult and come back in and kill you so be careful. Once she uses her Charm harass her with a skill combo. She has no escapes before level 6 so ask for early ganks.

Difficulty

7



Akali



Akali like you can burst down high priority targets and excels mid-game. Do not let her kill you in lane or she can snowball hard. Don't let her proc Mark of the Assassin because it hurts! She has no cc to interrupt Death Lotus however she can Shadow Dance away to minions if there are close by so make sure there are none or she has no stacks. If you just get Oracle's Elixir late game she's pretty much useless. Consider rushing Abyssal Mask[ and putting a Vision Ward in the middle of the lane.

Difficulty

6



Anivia



A good anivia player will destroy you however there aren't many. This is still a really difficult lane and I wouldn't recommend picking Katarina into this match-up. Her Glacial Storm > Frostbite or Flash Frost > Frostbite hurts a lot! Engage on her if she uses Flash Frost. She is very mana hungry so ask your jungler to try and deny her the 2nd blue buff or in fact any blue buff. Without it she won't be able to spam her abilities and will be oom fairly quickly. If she does get blue buff your best chance is to push and roam!

Difficulty

7



Annie



In this match-up you must max Bouncing Blades first. Your Bouncing Blades has a higher range than all of her abilities so if you position well then you will be doing a lot of free damage. Also if you max sinister steel first you will have to come close to do a decent amount of damage and when you do annie can just blow you up. I'd recommend getting Mercury's Treads since you will be getting stunned a few times. Also consider getting Quicksilver Sash to stop her stuns. Ask for early ganks because she has no escapes and roam.
Difficulty

8



Brand



Shouldn't be too hard since you have Shunpo to dodge his skillshots. Don't die early since he can snowball very well. Also, be careful for his stun because if he hits it, you will take a lot of damage. Once you are Blaze stay away from him until it wears off or you'll take a lot of extra damage or be stunned.

Difficulty

5



Cassiopeia


I do not have a lot of experience in this match-up because people don't use Cassiopeia for some reason however when I did face her I did fine. Dodge her abilities and try to shunpo to her as soon as you see her Petrifying Gaze animation. You will need fast reaction time for this but it should be easy. This will put you behind her meaning she has missed her ultimate giving you an easy Death Lotus. Also ask for early ganks since she has no escapes.

Difficulty

5



Cho'gath



You cannot kill him because of his stupid sustain. Do not die early or you will be destroyed. Your best bet is to farm hard and take wraiths or wolves whenever possible. Roam if you see an oppurtunity but remember that cho'gath can push lanes very quick. Also note that he can stop your Death Lotus with Rupture or Feral Scream if he uses both these abilities to push the lane, that is your window to use Death Lotus. Even though you probably won't kill him you should do a decent amount of damage.
Difficulty

10



Diana



A lot of people say Diana is a very hard counter to Katarina and I disagree with all of them. Although diana can interrupt Death Lotus with Moonfall that doesn't make her unbeatable. Pre 6 you should destroy her since you can dodge Crescent Strike with Shunpo then have a free window to harass however after 6 she does become annoying. However she shouldn't be able to kill you unless you keep taking Crescent Strike to the face for some reason. Push the lane and roam and try to bait out Moonfall before using Death Lotus

Difficulty

7



Elise



Elise mid is uncommon these days however she can be very annoying because of her annoying sustain and poke. She does not have great wave clear so push the lane to her turret and roam. Remember she can stop Death Lotus with Cocoon or by just using Rappel when you use it.
Difficulty

6



Evelynn



Really easy lane. Evelynn is very squishy and has no CC to stop Death Lotus but be careful to not take too many Hate Spikes. She will most likely roam so make you make your team aware she is missing and if you see which lane she is going too follow her. Also do not get baited with Agony's Embrace if you are both low health since she gains a health shield from it.

Difficulty

3



Fiddlesticks



Not an impossible lane since he is squishy but is very difficult. If uses Terrify and Reap then Death Lotus in and you could probably kill him. If you see him using Bountiful Harvest on a minion punish him for it! You must get Mercury's Treads in this match-up to reduce the fear and silence duration. Also be careful for ganks since Terrify can set them up easily.

Difficulty

9



Fizz



I personally hate playing against Fizz with any champion simply because he does amazing damage. He can dodge your Death Lotus with Playful / Trickster so make sure it's on cooldown before you go in. I would recommend maxing Bouncing Blades first in this match-up since fizz does more damage to you when you're close to him. If he takes Barrier and Ignite ask for an early gank and try to bait Playful / Trickster should be an easy kill. Also do your best to dodge Chum the Waters with Shunpo or you'll most likely be dead.

Difficulty

7



Galio



He will build loads of MR and when he does you can't kill him. I'd recommend building Quicksilver Sash and use it as soon as he uses Idol of Durand then you can get out. I'd also recommend getting Void Staff once he gets his MR for obvious reasons. Try to dodge his skillshots and kill him early because he's pretty squishy until he gets his MR. He's also very mana hungry.
Difficulty

7



Gragas



Can be a very annoying lane but you should win if you play it right. He can destroy minion waves at around level 8 so try and clear waves quickly if you want to roam. Try to Shunpo to him when he uses Barrel Roll then you can have free harass. Try to reach level 6 before him and go all-in with Death Lotus. Remember he can stop your Death Lotus with Explosive Cask so if he is quick enough he could probably kill you.

Difficulty

5



Heimerdinger



I don't have much experience in this match-up because not a lot of people play him. But he is very squishy and once your level 6 you can blow him up with the kill combo. However remember he has CH-1 Concussion Grenade to stop Death Lotus if it directly hits you and can possibly kill you, so be sure he doesn't have many turrets around him if you go for the kill combo
Difficulty

3



Karthus



Easy lane you cannot lose. If you do lose you need a lot of practice with Katarina or the Karthus is just insane. Poke him before 6 and dodge his Lay Waste then once you hit level 6 all in him and he should be dead. Once you kill him make sure you Shunpo back out since you don't want to take damage from Death Defied. Buying Zhonya's Hourglass is a good idea since it stops Requiem.

Difficulty

1



Kassadin



One of the hardest match-ups for Katarina. His Null Sphere can stop Death Lotus or he can just Riftwalk away. Pre-6 demand ganks from your jungler because his only escape is Flash. If he uses Null Sphere on you don't run back, you should chase him because he has nothing to use. Also his autoattacks with Nether Blade hurt a lot early so don't take too many. After level 6 he will probably roam so make sure you make your teammates know he is MIA and try to guess where he'll be going and follow. You cannot kill him 1v1.

Difficulty

9



Katarina



Skill match-up. Max Bouncing Blades first and if she maxes sinister steel first you should win easy. She will have to come close to do damage and you can keep throwing knives and doing damage. Shunpo away if she uses Death Lotus but remember she can do the same. Rush Zhonya's Hourglass and use it when she uses Death Lotus.

Difficulty

5



Kayle


Hard match-up. Her Righteous Fury + autoattacks hurt a lot and her poke is annoying. When you use Death Lotus she can just Intervention herself and probably kill you so make sure it's on cooldown or you have way more health than her. Try to push the lane and roam as much as possible.
Difficulty

7



Kennen



A pure skill match-up. Stand behind minions to dodge his Thundering Shuriken and remember if he get's 3 Mark of the Storm you will be stunned and this can stop Death Lotus. If you see you are currently hit by 2 Mark of the Storm stand back until it finishes. Once he hit's you 5 times his shuriken will change to a blue-ish colour meaning his Electrical Surge passive is back. Be patient and stay back until he hits a minion then go for a kill combo!
Difficulty

5



Kha'Zix



Do not get isolated or you will die! Other than that it's an ok match-up. You need to build Zhonya's Hourglass in this match-up for the armor. I'd recommend maxing Bouncing Blades to avoid all melee trades since he wins them. If he roams ping MIA and follow because he has really good ganks which is why he is viable as a jungler. Make sure his Leap is on cooldown when you Death Lotus in.

Difficulty

6



LeBlanc



As scarra once said. LeBlanc is possibly the hardest counter for Katarina in lane and of course he was right. However this doesn't mean it's impossible. She has 2 silences at level 6+ and can either Distortion away or use Ethereal Chains when you use Death Lotus. Push the lane hard early levels because she is awful at farming under turrets. She can juke really well with Distortion because she can Mimic it. Abyssal Mask is a must in this match-up or she'll just keep blowing you up. Push the lane and roam at around level 3-4 to surprise other laners because they most likely won't ward until later.
Difficulty

9



Lee Sin



Stand behind minions so he cannot hit his Sonic Wave / Resonating Strike on you and you should be fine. Be careful if he tries to insec you by wardjumping behind you and using Dragon's Rage towards his turret or his jungler because then you will be dead. Remember Dragon's Rage can interrupt Death Lotus.

Difficulty

5



Lissandra



Very annoying match-up but doesn't counter you as hard as people say she does. Pre-6 you should destroy her constantly harass her until she has no more potions. Her Ring of Frost is a snare meaning it does not stop your Death Lotus so do your best to get level 6 before her, bait her Glacial Path and go for the kill combo. If this doesn't work the lane may be difficult so constantly push and roam!

Difficulty

7



Lux



Should be an easy match-up because she is purely skillshot dependent and Katarina is a very mobile champion due to Shunpo. Make sure she never hits Light Binding on you or you will take a lot of damage. Dodge her Lucent Singularity with Shunpo and you should be fine. Her Prismatic Barrier is a pretty strong shield and can be very annoying and her Finales Funkeln is on a pretty short cooldown but overall you should be fine.

Difficulty

4



Malzahar



You definitely need to get Quicksilver Sash in this match-up and use it as soon as he uses his Nether Grasp. This will reduce a lot of his damage and you could probably do your kill-combo straight after and kill him! He will push lanes all day forcing you to farm under your turret. If he stays close and harasses you under your turret, ask your jungler to gank and punish him! Usually he can farm easily because of Malefic Visions so you will need to keep up!

Difficulty

7



Mordekaiser



Can be troublesome in lane. He wins early trades and you can't roam because he constantly pushes the lane. They key to beating Mordekaiser is to demand early ganks from your jungler. He has no escapes but Flash so it should be an easy kill. He also cannot stop Death Lotus. If you are ahead enough you can easily beat him in 1v1s.

Difficulty

7



Morgana



Should be a very easy match-up similar to Lux. Dodge her binding and try to bait her Black Shield before using Death Lotus. If she uses Soul Shackles on you Shunpo away to avoid getting stunned.

Difficulty

3



Nidalee



From personal experience, I've never had any difficulty with Nidalee. You can dodge her spears with Shunpo or by just standing behind minions. Also, your Death Lotus applies a grievous wound reduces incoming healing by 50% meaning her Primal Surge will heal a small portion of her health if she uses it as soon as you Death Lotus. She cannot stop Death Lotus but she can Pounce away. A good idea is to engage on her as soon as she changes back to human form.

Difficulty

4



Orianna


Don't let her get constant autoattacks on you because of Clockwork Windup. Do your best to not get caught out using Shunpo because she could combo you and probably kill you. Don't stand on her balls because that's basically asking to get harassed. Orianna snowballs really well so do not give her an early kill or you're going to struggle.

Difficulty

6



Ryze



This is a difficult lane. Katarina and Ryze are both my mains and a good Ryze player will beat a good Katarina player. Ward his wraiths because he could spell vamp off them if he his low and you can catch him out. Push the lane early because she struggles to farm under turrets without using abilities which will cost him a lot of mana. Early levels he has no escape but Flash so ask for ganks and remember he cannot stop Death Lotus because Rune Prison is a snare.

Difficulty

7



Swain



His Nevermove does not stop Death Lotus but does an annoying amount of damage. Pre-6 you can trade with him and after 6 you could go for the kill. Remember Death Lotus applies a grievous wound reduces incoming healing by 50% so Ravenous Flock heal will be reduced by 50%. Ask your jungler to ward their blue buff and try to deny him it because his Ravenous Flock makes him very mana hungry. Try to bait Nevermove and ask for a gank early.

Difficulty

6



Syndra



Pre-6 harass her and try to dodge her skillshots and avoid her stun. She has a pretty strong burst at level 6+ so don't get caught out with Shunpo. If she uses her Scatter the Weak engage on her and you could probably kill her.

Difficulty

6

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Summary

I hope you found my first ever guide helpful, it took a lot of time and effort! Please comment and rate and tell me any ways I can improve this guide! I will be finishing the lane match-ups soon. Thanks!!
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