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Needs some top lane help

meta jg ·1/6/2015, 4:47:58 PM·1 votes·3,554 views

Hello NA League,

I'm currently a Gold III player trying to move from mid/support (swain/taric) into top lane, but im having lots of trouble.

The three champions I play top the most are Vladmir, Nasus, and Irelia. How ever, none of them I have the success I had as compare to my swain and supports, and Ill list their problems I had one by one.

Firstly I let you know about my play style, I have this defensive/counter-play play style, meaning I don't usually go aggressive on the enemy, I prefer to let them make the first move and ill work against that, or they messed up their first move and then I can go on them and counter-play as I see fit. I tried to get CS over harass and kills, and I don't like to roam or tower dive.

Second problem I have is champion mobility, I do poorly with champions that have dashes or blink in general, so assassins are a no go for me, I have tried, and failed all of them, Akali, Yasuo, Kassasin, they don't work with the defensive play style I have.

Third is the inability to hit skill shots, I do poorly with skillshot based champs as well, hence why if u check my stats, u see very little skill shot reliant champs.

Now, my current champ pool for top, vlad is the most played, I like his ability to cs very well, since I a bit of a wreck when it come to csing properly, however, I only feel his power spike when I hit 3 full items. WOTA, Hourglass, and Crystal Scepter mostly. Before those three items, I feel very weak and not able to do much vs a similarly build riven, jayce or trynda. The problems come in the early game teamfights at around 15 mins, when I only have one and a half full items. If I don't come down for the team fight, we lose a 4v5 or 4v4 and they get drake and bot/mid towers. If I do come down, I can feel how I wasn't doing very much with just a WOAT and a Armguard.

Nasus is the second, he to me is like a melee vlad, sustain, tankyness, and damage LATER, he does much better is a 1v1 compare to vlad, but similar problem with vlad when it come to early game team fights. I feel like don't have enough stacks on Q at 20mins to be effective. On average I get about 270 stacks with Q at 20 mins. If im doing poorly, I get maybe 170, doing well, around 350.

Irelia is very different and outside of my normal champion pool, I forced my self to try her because my gaming bro hated the fact that I cant play mobile champions. (he mains fiora and is very aggressive). My main problem with irelia right now is this, (You just go even! You don't even try to win the lane!) not my words, my bros words. Which is right, I have this "I must not feed the enemy there fore must be passive" and it doesn't seem to work on Irelia, sure I can go even vs darius, renekton, and pantheon, but this doesn't work vs jax, rumble or Cho.

Yesterday I had a jax vs ire game, once he gets double dorans and a cutlass, (lvl 9) I cant do anything anymore, I had double dorans and ninja tabi. We trade, he sustains up, im zoned, losing cs and hes free farming.

Or before that, a rumble game, Go in to trade, gets kitted by harpoon and his MS buff in his minion wave, stay away, eat flames here and there or harpoons under the tower.

Heck, even the cho game, lvl 1-4 cs as usual, lvl 5 jump on him, eat his rupture and get AAed all the way back. at lvl 7 I ate 2 ruptures under my tower and he landed a third one 30 seconds later and ommed me. Now he too tanky for me to even try to kill and is csing as he pleases.

I would love to post these matched on to youtube when I can, hopefully someone whos an irelia main can help and see what did I do wrong, but some how LOLreplay is not working since the preseason for me. Ill try something else.

So, what the verdict NA league? Give up on irelia? I don't really want to, or stay with nasus and vlad? or even drop top lane altogether? I donno, im at a loss right now, no idea what direction I should go.

8 Comments

Raise Dongrs1/6/2015, 5:51:53 PM5 votes

HELLO DICKCHOCOLATES IT'S TIME FOR SOME FUCKING SCIENCE. ALRIGHT BOYS AND GIRLS LET'S DO SOME COMMON SENSE. YOU GOT YOUR WARRIORS, YOUR TREE GUYS, BLADE LADIES, AND YOUR PURPLE MAGIC MEN, BUT WHAT IS TOP LANE MISSING? MOTHER FUCKING NINJAS. THAT'S RIGHT, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE ONE AND ONLY SHEN. SWEET BABY JESUS LOOK AT THOSE SWORDS HAWLY SHIT I JUST WANT HIM ALL UP IN THAT RIFT. HE SAVED MY NAN WHEN SHE FELL DOWN THE STAIRS. ALRIGHT, SO WHAT'S SO COOL ABOUT SHEN? .... IS WHAT IDIOTS SAY. CLEARLY IF WE LOOK THE ANCIENT WORKS OF LEONARDO DAVINCI. IN HIS MOST FAMOUS BOOK HOW TO KICK FUCKING ASS HE CLEARLY WROTE IN THE GLOSSARY THAT SHEN WILL CRACK UP SOME ASS IN TOP LANE. ARE YOU REALLY GOING TO DENY ONE OF THE FUCKING NINJA TURTLES? I DIDN'T THINK SO. SO SIT THE FUCK DOWN, SON. WE'RE GOING ON AN EDUCATIONAL JOURNEY.

PASSIVE - HOLY SHIT, WHERE DO I EVEN START. THIS GODSEND OF A PASSIVE DEALS BONUS MAGIC DAMAGE BASED ON FABIO'S MAX HP AND HAS A 9 SECOND COOLDOWN. BUT HOLD YOUR ASS; IT'S COOLDOWN IS REDUCED BY A SECOND WHENEVER SHEN BASIC ATTACKS, BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE! THIS ASSHOLE REGAINS ENERGY FROM THIS PASSIVE. SWEET NECTAR OF JESUS' TIT THAT'S SEXY

Q - THIS GUY IS WICKED RAD, AMIRIGHT? BUT HE HAS ABILITIES TOO. THE FIRST ONE IS VORPAL BLADE. WHAT A HOT-ASS NAME. SHEN THROWS A SWORD AT YOUR BITCH ASS, PUTTING A MARK ON YA BOIIIII. WHEN ANY OF SHEN'S ALLIES HIT SOMETHING WITH THIS MARK, THEY SLOWLY HEAL HP OVER TIME BASED ON SHEN'S MAX HP. HOT DAMN THAT'S SOME GOOD SUSTAIN. VERY EFFECTIVE IN KNOCKIN YA' FUCKIN' HEAD OFF AND HEARING THAT NINJA LAUGH SPAM BACK TO BASE

W - THIS ABILITY AWAKENS THE BEAST INSIDE MY BODY. SHEN'S W GIVES HIM A SHIELD THAT SCALES OFF OF AP. NO BIGGIE, RIGHT? WRONG. WHEN YOU BASIC ATTACK WITH THIS ON, EVERY AUTO SHORTENS YOUR PASSIVE'S COOLDOWN BY AN EXTRA SECOND. BURNING SENSATIONS AM I TURNED ON BY THAT. EVERY AUTO SHORTENS THE COOLDOWN BY 2 FUCKING SECONDS. IF THAT DIDN'T MAKE YOUR PANTS HIT THE FLOOR, I DON'T KNOW WHAT WILL

E - THIS IS THE RUDEST FUCKING MOVE IN THE VIDEO GAME. SHEN'S E IS A SKILLSHOT DASH THAT COSTS 100 ENERGY AND TAUNTS ALL CHAMPIONS HE PASSES THROUGH, CAUSING THEM TO AUTO SHEN. AS A BONUS, IT DOES MAGIC DAMAGE THAT SCALES OFF SHEN'S AP AND MAKES SHEN TAKE UP TO 50% REDUCED DAMAGE FROM THEM. HOT BALLS THAT'S SOME TANK. AS AN ADDED BONUS, FOR EVERY CHAMPION SHEN PASSES THROUGH, HE REGAINS 40 ENERGY. THAT INCENTIVISES THE BIG PLAYS. TAUNT YOUR ENEMY UNDER TOWER FOR MAXIMUM REKKAGE

R - SHEN'S FINAL ABILITY IS AWESOME. AT ANY TIME, THIS GUY CAN CAST HIS R ON A TEAMMATE ANYWHERE ON THE MAP TO GIVE THEM A RAD AS FUCK DUDEBRO SHIELD. JUST WHEN YOU THOUGHT SHEN WAS TOO RAD OF A DUDEBRO, HE TELEPORTS IN ON THAT BITCH FROM THE FUCKING SKY. BOOM, GET THE MOP, WE'RE GONNA NEED TO CLEAN THIS FUCKFEST UP, BECAUSE WE JUST OWNED SOME SKRUBS.

IN CONCLUSION, SHEN IS A FUCKING BADASS TANK THAT CAN 1V1 CARRIES LATE GAME AND WIN. WHAT EVEN IS THAT. SO FELLOW SUMMONER; CONSIDER TAKING SHEN INTO TOP LANE, AND PASS ON THE NEWS

RiotRiot MechaMoose1/6/2015, 6:28:55 PM4 votes

Give Maokai a try! He can be pretty tanky and sustain-y. And if you get ahead, you become an unstoppable monster tank!

Stephenizgod1/6/2015, 6:43:21 PM4 votes

Swain top is actually pretty good so i would recommend trying him up there, Swain can go anywhere and build anything... cuz Swain...

This is going to sound weird but Garen can do very well just playing passive. Normally he is a lane bully, but if you build tanky and only use abilities when they come in on you then you will be fine. Not to mention his passive is meant for playing passive.

The thing about Nasus is its almost a better idea to just stay top and farm while your team teamfights. It will piss your team off if they lose, but this is what i see every Nasus doing. Then late game when they finally stroll into a fight they 1-shot the ADC.

Maokai is a great tanky top laner with great utility.

Try Singed, he is fun and all you need to do is run around with your poison on. He has this wonderful ability to somehow make every enemy near him want to chase him... i dont understand it but we are all guilty of chasing Singed against our better judgement.

Mordekaiser cant be aggressive unless he can dish out a ton of damage, he is one of like 8 champions without CC and he has no gap closer/escape and low Movement Speed so being ganked is either automatic flash or death. He is similar to Vlad in that he needs Spellvamp to be viable, but once you get that he becomes harder to kill with his passive and spellvamp.

Cho'gath all you need to do is hit your knock-up and you are good.

Gangplank is fun, use your Q to farm or use your Q to poke, either way you benefit greatly.

insaiyanbacca1/6/2015, 6:40:00 PM1 votes

so its kinda hard to for me to give you advice here as your playstyle is almost the exact opposite, im overly aggressive and love skillshots, but i will try to help you here. as to champs for top as mechamoose said mao seems like he'd fit you, galio may also be a good choice they are both substantially tanky and have killer teamfight when they hit 6, Nunu top is a good option as he does have good farming sustain and teamfight as well as some decent poke so you can free farm.Skarner skarner is a bit different he would be a better situational pick say if the other team looks like they're going to need to be shut down.Yorick he isnt the most fun but he gets the job done in near any matchup he has sustain poke dueling and farming unfortunately he cant teamfight if your adc is not doinng good. ok there's my attempt at advice

warpenguin5551/6/2015, 6:29:58 PM1 votes

Use Gnar, nobody can touch you unless you want them to

ArcaneArcher891/6/2015, 7:21:32 PM1 votes

You might want to consider new champions to branch into.

A slow/reactive playstyle fits Chogath perfectly. Depending on match up, I usually prefer doran's ring and pots. Use your q to harass when they CS-should grab you 2-3 cs as well. Save your W for when the jungler ganks or when your opponent goes in. This can save your life big time. Farm with your R- with the reduced CD for minions, it's even more important to get full stacks. Also keep in mind that your R is great for dragon/baron. You deal a 1000+ true damage at level 6. This can secure/steal dragon better than smite.

Ryze doesn't have any skillshots and is one of the hardest top laners to farm against.

RekSai is new, but extremely fun. She has a single skill shot, and a kind of dash(better for wall hopping than anything else). She also deals tons of damage, has some decent sustain, and a free teleport @ 6

Singed is probably my best recommendation though. He has 0 skillshots, slightly immobile, an farms up for late game. He's also a very farm and react type champion that pays out big when you get the farm. If you can get item 3116 &item 3151 , you can literally kill people for chasing you. His poison trail also lets him free farm.

SpecterVonBaren1/6/2015, 9:45:33 PM1 votes

Another good one to go for if you like just being passive is Lissandra, although people usually poke the enemy a lot with her, you can also just focus on cs and play safe, if the enemy has some sort of dash or blink then you can usually get away easily with the slow on q, root on w and your e.

doom bot 82 1/7/2015, 9:24:15 PM1 votes

riot is right maokai is really tanky he out scales everyone late game so he might be banned but try him in pvp and btw you can go with champs like ryse or swain top too.btw if u wanna add me in game i can help ya