LEC Playoffs: Schalke 04 surprises G2 with Darius pick – How to play him in your games.
In a 1v1 Darius might be one of the strongest champions, which makes him very popular in the toplane. Despite that, he was only played a total of 6 times in the LEC, with varying success. Last saturday, Schalke’s toplaner Broken Blade painted another picture on how to play this champ in season 11.
With his help they nearly took down G2. We like to believe, that the loss was partly because of the Darius ban by G2 in game five. In the third game, the young player even managed to get a Pentakill with this unusual pick.
THE DARIUS PENTAKILL FOR @BrokenBlade, LETS DUCKING GOOOOOO!!!!!! #S04WIN pic.twitter.com/h47CNOwBHC
— Schalke 04 Esports (@S04Esports) March 27, 2021
Make your enemies bleed
Darius’ playstyle is centered around one objective: Fighting until the end. As a Bruiser he can dish out tons of damage, while taking a lot himself. With his short-range hook and his bleeding Passive, he is a nightmare for any carry. In later parts of the game he can seem a little useless, but a good Darius player knows how to change the tides of battle and goes for the enemy backline. This could be observed when watching Broken Blade repeatedly going for G2s Top-Carrys Rekkles and Caps.
The build for the hand of Noxus
Darius lacks speed, which is why a lot of players tend to take Ghost as their second summoner spell. This allows you to close gaps more easily. In season 11 things got a lot more easy for Darius. With the introduction of Stridebreaker, which allows Darius to dash forwards while doing damage, he can again switch out ghost for teleport. With this summoner spell he can join teamfights more easily and as a Darius, you want to do exactly.
As a Bruiser, Darius needs damage and health stats. Luckily the mythic item Stridebreaker provides him with just that.
After completing Stridebreaker you should build Sterak’s Gage and stack up additional armor or magic resistance through Deadman’s Plate or Spirit Visage.
If your lane opponent plays a champion that heavily relies on auto attacks, you should rush Thornmail or its weaker component Bramble Vest. Later in the game, this also helps against ADCs
As a Keystone, you should take Conqueror. It synergizes with your Passive and allows you to take additional runes from the Precision tree, where Darius finds a lot of useful buffs.
Tips and Tricks
A true Darius Main knows in what order you should attack. Between abilities you always have to hit at least one basic attack, this allows you to stack up your passive ability. It destroys any opponent by ticking their health down over a duration of five seconds. You can extend it up to five times with each consecutive hit.
Video: Know Your Meme – The xPeke
The short-range hook on Darius’ E-Ability is a good starter for combos, but sometimes it is smarter to just use Stridebreaker to close the gap and slow them down with W. That way your opponent has a harder time getting away and if they still try to run, you can still throw a hook their way.
Darius’ Ultimate does a lot of damage. Even more so when you stacked your passive to the fullest. That is why you should always try to use it as your last ability. Additionally, if you kill your opponent with your Ulti, your cooldown gets reset to zero, allowing you to use it again. When you are being ganked, this can help you get a double kill.
Also read:
- A first glimpse at the abilities of Gwen, League of Legends’ newest champion
- Riot looking at Sona changes to bring her back on the forefront
Did you try Darius in season 11? Join the discussion on social media or Discord!
You can also help improve our website by submitting direct feedback!
