You and the Dunkmaster: Some tips on how to win over Top lane against Darius, the Hand of Noxus!
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Hi, and welcome to a guide containing some tips and tricks on how to defeat the notorious Dunkmaster, Darius the Hand of Noxus. Note that everything in this guide is subject to change in-game
(Side note: I have been a Darius main even before champion masteries levels were a thing, as well Worlds hype and Juggernaut update. I just don't spam him at top as much as I used to.)
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A QUICK INTRO ON THE DUNKMASTER Anyone that has been playing League of Legends for at least a couple of months will definitely know who Darius is. either they found about him in the champion list, watched Worlds 2015, saw him in Free to Play rotation, or they were one of many to be subject to a Dunkmate. As of recent time, Darius has grown more notorious due to the Juggernaut update back in August. His rework was expected to be a net nerf, a casting time on his Q, W doesn't refund cdr if it hits someone with more stacks of hemmorage as well slowed attack speed no longer applied, and his passive reworked to be a bit weaker. We were wrong. so very wrong. Darius had actually grown stronger in lane. Most of have seen what goes on in lane against Darius and the damage he can inflict on one person, to the next, to the next, and to the next. Many Top laners, even Riven mains (eurgh) have fallen victim to Darius' extreme power. What people seem to not look for are his weaknesses.
EARLY GAME DARIUS AND YOUR HEALTH Darius during the early game portion of the match is still rather strong, but he isn't at his full potential. Keep in mind Darius needs damage early game if he wants to get kills, so there is a large possibility and he can build AD first. Building Tank first (depending on champion) can prevent him from bullying you until you cry uncle. If the Darius in your lane builds Tank first, build AD against him and engage when his Q is on cool down or poke him down until he tries to play aggressive with his Q for health, this is when you can strike him safely without decimate destroying you and healing him.
By the time Darius reaches level 3/4 he will finally have his full kit at his disposal. His E, Apprehend, pulls you into him and slows you by 40% for 1 second which gives him time to deal high amounts of damage to you with his Auto Attacks and W+Q combo. To avoid this try and bait his E which will put it on cool down for 23-20 seconds. During this time frame you farm safely without him pulling you in but keep note his Q can still be a means of harass while on cool down, so predict when he is coming in for a swing.
When he reaches level 6, this is when it gets dangerous. He'll have his Ultimate up, Decimate, which is the notorious Dunk many have come to love and fear. If you engage Darius around this time keep note on what abilities he's using and keep a sharp eye on his Hemmorage stacks. The blade on his ax is the only way he can apply 1 stack of Hemmorage and his W applies one as well. If he reaches 5 stacks and you're low then Dunktown is coming in for a visit. If possible force Darius to use his dunk early, essentially baiting it. This is when you can recall and return to lane and safely engage him without worry of a dunk.
A major issue for Darius mains and players alike is that Darius his no kite or peel, so being stunned, slowed, knocked up, and silenced is a big opening for attack on Darius and raises kill potential through the roof, especially when his attack speed is reduced. So if you're playing a champion at top with mentioned abilities use them to bully and trade with him.
If you're unfortunately struggling in lane and your jungle comes up for a gank, be very careful on where you position yourself and your jungler. A lot of jungle champions early game are still vulnerable to heavy damage and if your jungle dies to Darius mid-fight then you're both getting dunked. To avoid this, engage on Darius first and then let your jungle come in so Darius' focus is centered on you and not the jungle allowing more kill potential for you and your jungler.
THE DANGERS OF DARIUS MIDDLE/LATE GAME AND HOW IT WILL AFFECT YOUR LOVED ONES
Even if Darius is lacking on his build, that can be changed during the Middle game portion of the match. Darius will probably begin to target squishy allies such as Support and Marksmen. If you know Darius is going to target these allies then help them before he gets the last laugh and dunks them into the ground with pure ease. Darius during this time of the match will also become tankier and much stronger so be sure to avoid soloing him if you know you can't win.
During team fights Darius has a lot of potential for mass Dunk-ocide if you're team is squishy enough or has enough squishy champions. Try and keep him in the back of team fights as much as possible if he's trying push in for some dunks. If possible try and engage ontop of Darius if he is pursuing an ally and keep him back from getting a kill.
Everyone knows the Fog of War is a dangerous place if there aren't any wards placed. Especially if Darius is hiding in a brush. Keep your eyes peeled when traversing through the Jungle with an ally or alone. Darius can easily position himself for a banzai attack and absolutely destroy you. Keep some map vision in the jungle so you know where he's going to be and what his intentions are.
Late game is when Darius reaches his unmatched power. Dunks will become fatal, team fights can be turned over to the enemy teak if he dunks 1 or 2 allies, and his damage output becomes insane. Unless you're fed, or you have your share of gold for your build, avoid soloing him at all costs. If you happen to catch him alone get 1 or 2 allies to surround him and kill. That way he won't be available for team fights and there will be a distinctive lack of tankiness and damage to engage with.
Depending on Darius' build, and what role you're playing, you need to play against his build. Don't try to level his build by copying it or trying to mimic it because unless you're able to deal damage to him and sustain yourself mid-fight there's a possibility you may lose that fight.
Darius is actually countered by wicked tanky champions believe it or not. His recent update makes it so that you have more of a chance against him as a Tank. Garen late game for example can safely engage on Darius and allow his allies to jump in on him. Squishier roles are still subject to being dunked to kingdom come.
HOW TO FIGHT AGAINST THE RED MENACE FOR YOUR COUNTRY Darius definitely has his counters. Knowing Darius inside and out as well as your chosen counter pick can easily stop him from rising to the bi leagues.
SOME COUNTER PICKS AS A TOP LANER AGAINST DARIUS
Wukong: Wukong has had his fair share of making a lot of Darius mains salty. He can bait Darius' ultimate using his clone without being punished heavily for trying to do so. Not only can he bait his dunk and Apprehend, Wukong can poke Darius using his Nimbus Strike for a quick dash in and a Q while using his stealth to escape any form of real danger. Wukong can also be tanky enough to sustain against Darius and go in for a ultimate move when Darius is low enough. Note that Wukong can still be hit by Darius' Q while in stealth mode so know that every time you dash him he's going to refund his health with his Q, maybe.
Tahm Kench: Although he might seem a bit obscure and odd to choose as a counter pick, well really it is, but Tahm provides an awesome poke against Darius, which is his Tongue Lash and can easily poke down Darius in lane. His Devour also serves well against Darius as a means of stopping him from applying more damage, dunking, or means of dealing damage and keeping him under your kill potential. Tahm also can use his shield to stop Hemmorage affects and counter a dunk as well sustain him self mid-fight.
Kayle: Kayle may not seem much early game, but by the time she hits level 6 she can be a real pain in the backboard for Darius. Kayle can bait his dunk using her ultimate ability, Intervention making her immune to all damage from Darius for a few seconds. Reckoning also proves useful against Darius since comboing it with Righteous Fury can bully Darius over time since Fury can attack him from a distance. Mid game she proves more viable against Darius since Darius won't be able to do much from a distance if slowed and Fury has a lower cool down.
Teemo: Satan himself. Teemo can harass Darius from a distance using his poison passive and bully his health. Teemo is also able to win all-ins easily since his Blinding Dart stop stacks from being applied from Darius' auto attacks. His movement speed also prove useful in baiting Darius' Q and E since Teemo can quickly escape Darius and move out his Q range. Shrooms also prove useful when being pursued or applying damage. If you use Teemo's passive correctly, you can easily kill Darius by trapping him with Shrooms and using your bonus attack speed from being in stealth mode, inflicting massive amounts of damage and probably killing him as well.
Gnar: It's easy enough to figure out what to do with Gnar at first glance. Use his Boomerang to poke Darius down until he's bullied out or he's consumed all his health pots. If you're grabbed but Apprehend simply hop away from him before he's able to do anything else. Mega Gnar is very useful against Darius since Mega Gnar provides bonus health and a second set of abilities. Try and engage on Darius with Mega Gnar to inflict a good amount of damage and hop out before he can take advantage of your Mini Gnar form if he hasn't already ran away. Try and tank against him as much as possible in lane and keep poking him down while you farm. Be wary however of Gnar's crappy health regen and Darius' hemmorage because if he dunks you and you make it out near death, you won't have the health regen to counter the bleed out.
Trundle: Trundle is amazing with life steal potential. His slow from his Iceberg can open a window of attack chance efficiently. Use Trundle's Frozen Domain ability in combination with his Pillar of Ice to steal damage him while being sustained, use chomp if necessary. Trundle's ultimate, Subjugate, is amazing in sustaining a fight with Darius in combination with his other abilities. Subjugate steals health and armor/magic resist from Darius, dealing magic damage, as well stealing a large amount of his health. If his kit is combo'd properly then you should be able to kill Darius no problemo. Just be careful when you engage him when has his dunk up.
