How can I avoid/counter being ganked at Mid as Vel'Koz?

General Grodd·4/15/2015, 12:51:02 PM·22 votes·4,830 views

Yesterday I played mid and Vel'koz for the first time (simultaneously), and most of my deaths were do to ganks. I had flash and ignite equipped for my spells; when someone was about to kill me I of course flashed.

However; being the squishy little void monster that I was, every time 2 people started to attack me (through ganking) I was useless and died pretty much every time. I'm used to playing top lane and being rather tanky so that could be affecting me.... Any thoughts/suggestions or tips? I understand being ganked can be unpredictable and therefore mostly unpreventable, but still....

P.S. I'm lvl 11

105 Comments

Takeuchi 174/15/2015, 1:01:43 PM35 votes

wards dude. mid lane you should constantly be placing wards in the two bushes in the river. after you ward try and stick closer to the bush that is warded so that if they come from the other side you'll have time to escape or devise something.

sometimes when i support ill be nice and place a pink in one, but generally its a mid laners responsibility to look out for himself. map awareness. you have plenty poke so theres no need to push up the lane and be too aggressive. utilize the geometry of your q more, watch videos on how to get max range with it. also your knock up helps out a lot. save that for the ganks when youre running away

Laughing Fish4/15/2015, 12:53:34 PM14 votes

One word: Wards. When using Vel'Koz, there is no such thing as over warding. He is slow as hell, and people love ganking him. But if you see them coming, you have plenty of time to move. And once you position correctly, you can use Vel's long range to harass the dude that just ganked you, and maybe even turn that gank into a double kill.

vfactor954/15/2015, 1:51:31 PM7 votes

I always take heal instead of ignite as Vel'koz, you should be poking/melting people at range (basically if you're fighting someone and are in range to ignite them you're doing it wrong).

Vel'koz has one of the best kits in the game for kiting so heal really helps him dodge otherwise fatal skillshots or stay out of range of gapclosers. Also avoid pushing the lane before your first back as that's when you're the most vulnerable to jungle ganks.

Sir ArmaMalum4/15/2015, 3:43:01 PM6 votes

After seeing your update on your current level I think you find this image useful: http://i.imgur.com/gzjCRmT.png

I apologize for the bad handwriting in advance, I'm an engineering student and we're second only to doctors in illegible written words :P

Mathbalnase4/15/2015, 5:29:55 PM3 votes

Use wards. Have vision. Know when ganks are coming. ??? Profit.

SSJTribe4/15/2015, 5:11:05 PM3 votes

Hey, Vel'koz main here.

As I'm sure others have said, taking summoner 21 Barrier or summoner 7 Heal instead of summoner 14 Ignite might really help you out. In my opinion, the key to avoiding ganks is learning the timing on his E until it's second nature. You can stop almost every dash in the game by timing it well, including Lee Sin, Shyvana's Transformation Ult, etc.

Lastly, if you're still having trouble consider picking up a item 3027 Rod of Ages. It'll give you the Health you need to get safely back under your tower. I actually build this item every game.

Good Luck on the Rift! Velkoz

Dalenthas4/15/2015, 5:44:50 PM3 votes

I mainly play Malzahar, not Vel'Koz, but ganks similarly wreck my day, and it's basically impossible not to push unless you don't want to farm at all. The warding advice is great (and I don't mean to put it down, it really is the easiest way to avoid dying to ganks), but doesn't really help when you're in the middle of being ganked (if your wards expire, or the jungler comes from an unwarded angle, or if the enemy jungler stealths past your wards, or maybe they just walked through a warded bush and you didn't have quite enough warning to get back to tower).

DON'T PANIC. All the advice in the world doesn't mean a damn thing if you panic. The rest of these suggestions are assuming you're not panicking.

If you're too far from your tower, it may be better to run away from the enemy jungler, instead of toward your tower. This can seem counter-intuitive, but it's better to run down the river and into the jungle than try running past a jungler, especially someone with melee range. If you ping for assistance you might even be able to get the other lane or your jungler to come rescue you. A 2v1 gank can quickly turn into a 4v4 team fight if enough people react.

Try to break line of sight by getting into a bush. If you play it right, they might assume you're luring them into an ambush with your jungler. If your jungler is good, they'll actually be there to ambush your enemy once in a while.

Save your flash to dodge their CC, don't use it too early or they'll just CC you after you've flashed. Also, save your flash if you're doomed, don't waste it if you're caught too badly. It might be more helpful next time.

If you think you're going to die anyway, rather than trying futilely to escape instead try to take someone with you. Make the best of a bad situation. Hell, on more than one occasion I was able to turn a 2v1 gank into a double kill because the enemy went in with low health assuming I'd run.

I think more than any other lane, your relationship with your jungler is important. I end up pushing a lot, so I let my jungler know ahead of time that I'll probably get ganked a lot and he should look for counter-ganking opportunities.

Martyrofsand4/15/2015, 12:57:59 PM3 votes

Ward up, and take heal or barrier. If you are in range to cast ignite as Vel you are playing him wrong. If against an assassin like Zed who can instantly jump on you exhaust is also acceptable but you should never really have ignite on Vel.

Helmight4/15/2015, 8:02:33 PM2 votes

I'm a Vel'Koz main, so I'm fairly well acquainted with the situation you've described :P

First, take Heal or Exhaust instead of Ignite. Vel is squishy as hell and if you're ever in range to Ignite someone, you got too close. Exhaust or Heal helps you deal with assassins and tanks that invade your personal space and give you a second lease on life if Flash is down.

Second, ward up your lane. 75 gold isn't much in the early game, and that coupled with your free trinket ward should allow you to stay informed of incoming ganks. Soon as you hit level 9, upgrade your trinket. You won't have to buy wards after that.

Finally, hold onto your Tectonic Disruption (E) as long as possible. It may be tempting to use it on your lane opponent to try and get more damage down, but it's your ONLY escape move. If you've pushed close to the enemy tower, holding that ability in reserve for a gank may mean the difference between life and death.

Another tip I have is to grab the Alacrity enchantment for your boots fairly early on. More MS means you can dodge more skillshots and generally stay safer in teamfights.

Good luck with playing Vel'Koz!

warpenguin5554/15/2015, 1:47:13 PM2 votes

Just though of another thing. To Predict ganks, if you have a reasonable guess as to where the enemy jungler is starting, ward that side of your lane and try to stay near there until your 1st back to buy extra wards.

That way you either A) See them coming, and even though they are closer, you can cc them and get out. OR B) They come from the side you didnt ward and you have a lot of room to get back to the tower.

If you want some more champions like him try out Ziggs Xerath Lux or Syndra . Those 5 play similar to him during laning phase but can take a little bit to get good with.

Good Luck :D

warpenguin5554/15/2015, 1:37:47 PM2 votes

Take summoner 12 summoner 7 or summoner 21 over ignite and ward. I dont play vel'koz but i like to play long range immoblie mages like him and thats probably your best best. Also if they still get past that and you have a little range left, try to move back a bit, stun 1 of them with your E, and run. Works like a charm

MrBuffington4/15/2015, 3:58:09 PM2 votes

Wards are invaluable as a mid laner, like most people have been saying, but you also need to be paying attention to your minimap and warding good locations for them to really be effective. There are some really nitty gritty stuff you can also do with wards and tracking the enemy jungler through things like vision and the game timer, as well as how your other lanes are going, but those aren't so effective until you're at a really high level of play vs. a good jungler (ie. professional. It basically involves keeping mental timers of when the enemy jungler's camps are going to spawn by understanding how the enemy jungler is likely to clear; it's a lot of mind game stuff, I wouldn't be too worried about it since most junglers you meet may not pick the most efficient paths in jungle, often leave their buffs up to gank a random lane, etc.).

Also, as others have mentioned, you might want to take a defensive summoner spell (barrier or heal typically, maybe cleanse, ghost, or exhaust depending on the match up) instead of ignite; you're a long range mage, and ignite is a fairly short range spell, you'll do better by staying alive and pumping out damage with a defensive summoner spell than trying to get in range to use ignite.

Another thing to keep in mind when playing champions like Vel'Koz (Xerath, Ziggs, Lux, etc) is that you have very long range with your spells, and you don't need to extend too far in lane, especially if you have no idea where the jungler is. If you're shoving aggressively in lane (even if you have mobility; most dashes aren't long enough to get you to your turret if you're all the way under the enemy's turret), you're a prime target for a jungler to gank. If you have knowledge of where the jungler is (ie. you see them at one of their camps, or they show in another lane, especially if you see them backing), you have a couple seconds where you can, if you want play more aggressive, try to shove the wave into their turret so it resets back in the middle (and the enemy can't freeze it in front of their turret, which is a really bad spot for you to be in). That's generally how champions like Xerath or Lux play, in my experience, just shove the wave into the enemy turret from long range and back off for the wave to reset.

Solidair34/16/2015, 4:35:17 PM1 votes

Wards.

1Maza4/16/2015, 5:17:39 PM1 votes

How is this Gameplay & Balance?

Anyway, your spells are there for safety. Farm with auto-attacks instead of wasting your cooldowns and mana on minions, then you can use your E knockup and Q slow to escape any gank, or if you're level 6 you can just land E on the jungler and burst him to death.

PS. How the hell is anyone jungling at lvl 11?

DeloricVI4/16/2015, 9:33:25 PM1 votes

Well, there's a few things that you have to learn about mid, that is different about other lanes. Junglers have more options when they want to gank mid, as to where they can enter and escape the lane. This is why it's pretty important to do as everyone else has said, and ward. Knowing when a jungler is going to come into the lane and try to murder you is a very useful thing to have for a mage who can't take much punishment. Just be sure that when you do, you keep an eye on your map; those wards don't help if you don't check to see if someone's coming!

Another thing you have to learn in the mid lane, is mana and cooldown management. Some champions have short enough cooldowns to make cooldown management largely irrelevant, but it is important. Another thing is to make sure you have enough mana, and make sure that your cc spells (your slow, your stun, etc) are ready at any time that you don't know where an enemy is. For all you know, they could be waiting in the bushes for you to use that spell, so they can come in and attack consequence-free.

Another thing to worry about is the position in lane. If your opponent is right smack int he middle of the lane, go ahead and punish him for it. But if they're staying back, be careful; the further you are from your tower, the easier it is to gank you. Also be aware of the risk involved with pushing lane. Most mids push hard, and then, when the enemy has to get that mess straightened you, you leave lane to go and help another lane (aka, roaming). When you do this, just remember how much it opens you up to ganks.

Since you're level 11 and I don't know what your gameplay is like, I figured I'd put up as many general tips I could think of. I hope none of this feels like you're being patronized! I always like to help players improve. :)

howdoIspellmynam4/16/2015, 12:09:17 AM1 votes

Vel'koz seems like a hard champ doe.

aaronconlin4/16/2015, 12:26:28 AM1 votes

Wards, and if you can land your E on them as they come for you, you can turn the fight around or at the very least escape.

D1rtFarmer4/16/2015, 12:56:50 AM1 votes

I generally use VelKoz's E like i would use flash. Keep your e up at all times... never use it in lane for farm or basic engages... you only want to engage the enemy with your q and the follow up with a proper w for the passive. and if you're winning this engage and youre lvl 6 i generally execute with the e (when i say execute, i mean line up with the knockup and execute with the ulti)... other than that.. it is most helpful in a disengage.

P.S. Ignite works wonders in deterring your attacker.. remember VK does true damage.

N30NP4NDA4/16/2015, 1:18:54 AM1 votes

Wards, Stand near tower, Play mobile champions.

Auryiel4/16/2015, 1:28:43 AM1 votes

Like other people have said, ward.

Also there's no need to run Ignite on Vel'Koz. You'd be better off with another summoner spell, like exhaust or heal, because ideally you don't want to be in range to use Ignite. Exhaust helps you deal with people diving you and heal, aside from healing you, gives you a small burst of speed which can be very useful.

Old Man Teeto4/16/2015, 3:48:20 AM1 votes

I'll start with some simple things.

Second mobility/defensive summoner.

Heal/Ghost/Barrier/Cleanse

Vel'koz is a poke/kite long range champion. You won't get to ignite value targets unless your mispositioned and likely to die, or so far ahead they have no chance at fighting.

The second one is you need to have at least ONE side of your lane warded consistently (two wards one for each entry to that side) and hug that side for protection. If you have summoner's up and they don't have strong engage/cc you can get away with less ward coverage, but it's still dangerous.

Go aggressive if you see the jungler appear on the map elsewhere, or your jungler is in the immediate vicinity (within 2 screens of mid-lane, typically Raptors).

Vel'koz is a team fighter, so make sure you show up to Dragon fights and skirmishes around buffs. His R in corridors is DEVASTATING and makes moving out of his W almost impossible.

Trídent4/16/2015, 4:31:59 AM1 votes

I'm not a Velk player or anything, but just do like what the others say, ward the bushes, be cautious, don't overextend(unless you're baiting, try not to get in range of the inner turret by yourself, unless the enemy team is aced or you're backdooring.) Also, save your E to escape, and your Q also has a big slow (I think), which should help you to escape

Eric Senpai4/16/2015, 8:24:46 AM1 votes

Farm with your spells until you run oom, then rage at jungler for not giving you blue.

Or you can buy a green or pink ward after each recall. At level 9, don't be afraid to upgrade your trinket for 250, the yellow one pays for itself in about 4 minutes.

Both of these strats are equally viable. Follow them and then you too, can be in aluminum elo.

League of Potato4/16/2015, 8:45:06 AM1 votes

First off, use the trinket/upgrade it. The two bushes on each side of the lane may not seem like much, but it's definitely worth the little extra gold to drop two wards in there. Even if you only drop your trinket whenever it's off of cooldown, your jungler and support will thank you (one less thing for them to worry about).

Second, if you realize you haven't seen the enemy jungler in a while, you should probably back off and stay near your tower. Chances are they won't try and gank you if you're floating 3 "steps" away from the turret.

Third, if you do get caught out land your E, and a Q and you should be good to go. Worst case use flash. I would save your E for either ganks from your jungler, or as an escape for yourself. I wouldn't use E to clear minions unless you know for a fact where all the enemies are on the map. This shouldn't be that big of a deal since Vel Koz has plenty of wave clear without his E.

Fourth, be aware of the mini map. Please check it every so often, just to see where everyone is. If you see someone getting chased down the river (or vice versa) you can go to help and try to secure a kill. Map awareness is very very very important.

Fifth, just as a general precaution, ping if you can't see your lane opponent. That way other people on your team can be notified before it's too late, they can also come to help if you might be getting ganked.

Sixth, learn how to play more passively, remember, it's not bad to play passively. Instead of you diving too hard/missing an important skillshot, wait for your enemy to make a mistake. Everyone makes mistakes sooner or later. Most players get greedy for a kill and will unnecessarily dive under a turret just for a kill, and usually end up dying and looking like a fool. The only time you should really be pushed to their turret is to either take the turret or push them out of lane/kill them. It's not a bad thing to hug your turret. Some games you just have to let your turret safe guard you. I can honestly tell you the jungler won't want to gank you if you're always staying near your turret.

Keep these things in mind when playing, they can be applied to multiple champions, it's really just a smart way to play in mid lane in general. If you have some type of CC such as a silence, knock-up, stun, etc... try and save that certain ability for when you get ganked. Especially if the ability has a long cooldown. Landing those CC shots can make or break a game.

I hope this helps :)

NoMonku4/16/2015, 9:13:31 AM1 votes

It is called wards. item 2044 These guys will give you vision in places where you most likely will get ganked from, so if you see them, you know that you should back off. Also you can try taking Flash/Ghost if you don't need ignite to get kills. But wards are the easiest way to live. Forking out 75g to not die and give the enemy mid/jungler 300g+w/e assist gold amount is is worth it.

Hyrum Graff4/16/2015, 1:02:43 PM1 votes

Buy wards for 75 gold or 100 gold, from the shop, so you can see the enemy jungler coming and get back to safety. ALWAYS upgrade your trinket, usually to this: item 3361 Trinket upgrades are the best items in the game right now, since they're so cheap.

Shoot your Q at the enemy jungler the second you see them, for the slow. If they're a melee champion, save your E until they use a gapcloser to jump close to you, then drop your E directly under them. (obviously, all this while you're running back to your tower).