The Hardest Champions to Master in League of Legends
League of Legends has proven itself capable of standing the test of time, and its massive roster of champions is the primary reason why the game is still relevant today. The roster of League of Legends continues to expand. With over 150 champions available to pick from in the MOBA, some are harder to master than others. Think of it as a tolerance level; some people love the spice, but others can’t take the heat. Many aspects make a League champion difficult to use, but the actions per minute required to play the said champion, plus the presence of using skill shots in their kit, can make things even more challenging.
If you’re itching to show off your skill to the world by mastering the hardest champions to use in League of Legends, then this article is for you.
Table of Contents
1. Yasuo
You probably saw the chances of Yasuo being on this list from a mile away. Players miserably try to play him their ranked games, only to result from them having a losing streak (and a higher blood pressure). Timing is everything regarding using his Steel Tempest and Sweeping Blade. Yasuo’s play style and concept are similar to Riven, another champion in the MOBA. They use wind as their primary power source, focusing on bursting the enemy and getting out of the high using their high mobility abilities.
The difficulty of playing Yasuo doesn’t lie in the animation cancels and combos like other champions; you can even perfect most of his bread and butter combos in a matter of hours. His difficulty lies in how relevant he’ll be during late game. Yasuo is—more often than not—memed to death because many people fumble the ball with him during this time. To become a great Yasuo player, you must learn to analyze every situation before engaging. Going in at the wrong time can cost you your life, or worse, the entire game. As long as you avoid committing misplays during team fights and not be too trigger-happy when activating Last Breath, Yasuo can be a force to be reckoned with in the mid-lane.
2. Azir
When discussing sheer difficulty, the Emperor of the Sands requires the user to be great at kiting for him when dishing out damage. You might think that he may be an easy-to-use champion at first since his soldiers do all the work for him, but once you dive in and try to understand his kit, Azir can be quite a pain to play.
Azir’s main weakness is that you must keep auto-attacking using Arise! to trade with the enemy. If you don’t, you’ll be a sitting duck (or bird to fit the context) waiting to get killed. You’ll constantly need to make game-changing and aggressive plays to ensure victory. And since the Emperor of the Sands is a squishy champion, it’s crucial to master the art of planning and position ahead of time to be of value to the team.
Mechanically speaking, Azir can be a player’s worst nightmare—especially if they’re not used to calling the shots and initiating team fights. The Emperor’s Divide may be simple in terms of definition, but its usage depends on your ability to calculate and understand the best course of action. It’s why the Shurima Shuffle exists!
3. Aphelios
Aphelios is one of the hardest ADC champions to use in League of Legends. With no movement boosts, penalties for missing attacks, and having to use five different “settings” at the right time in one move, you need to have a high level of in-game knowledge and mechanics to be effective in your matches.
The ADC role is a challenge in itself, and it gets even more strenuous when you play a champion that changes skills/weapons every minute and is highly immobile. Managing your weapons and ammo is a critical task. If you don’t micro-manage them correctly, you’ll find it frustrating to get any kills, set up ganks, and escape skirmishes. And since Aphelios doesn’t have a mobility spell to get him out of tricky situations, you can’t rely on an ability to escape.
As if the challenge of mastering him wasn’t enough, you’ll have to balance ability damage (AP) and attack damage (AD). Sure some champions can also utilize both, but Aphelios needs to have his moves split firmly between the two power types if you want him to be effective.
Other people outside the League community have also touted Aphelios as a poor attempt to copy DOTA’s Invoker. Invoker is a hero renowned for having many spells and being the most difficult character to play. We can argue about whoever’s harder to use all day, but there’s one thing we can all agree on: to play Aphelios means having to learn, master, and utilize many aspects of his kit to function normally.
4. Orianna
Orianna is the queen of micromanagement in League of Legends; rarely any other champions in the MOBA can get to her level. This stems from the Ball (yes, that’s what it’s called officially) she carries with her wherever she goes. The Ball is her primary damage source and includes every spell she uses.
Much like Azir, positioning and timing is key to winning with Orianna. Having the Ball in the correct positions at all times can’t be achieved by simply using her in a couple of matches—you’ll have to practice with Orianna to get things right. But once you get the hang of her, her mechanical complexity can be enjoyable. A single combo of Command: Attack and Command: Dissonance can melt the health bar of opposing ADCs and assassins.
The main issue with Orianna is that her move set demands her to be close to the enemies; this could result in overextension. Players can throw the Ball too close or too far and never calculate the positioning, but should you have the patience to iron out every detail with Orianna, your efforts will pay off in the long run.
5. Lee Sin
Lee Sin, while loved by all, is also hated by many. The blind monk can be demanding for some players because his combos require precise decision-making and timing. At the same time, this makes him such an excellent jungler for League of Legends. Lee Sin’s specialty is invading the enemy, ganking around the map, and stealing buffs and camps from the enemy jungler.
There’s not a lot when talking about his kit, but his complex nature lies in the reliance on skill shots. His Sonic Wave/Resonating Strike is a great skill that can take him close to an enemy champion, but getting too close to the wrong enemy can cost him his life if he doesn’t use Safeguard/Iron Will to a nearby ally.
Lee Sin is chock full of various combinations, strategies, and tactics. We’ve all seen the many YouTube montage videos of Lee Sin players outplaying everyone on the map. Once everybody got wind of the Insec kick, junglers would pick Lee Sin as their champion of choice in hopes of being the highlight of a match. The potential of Lee Sin is locked behind a wall of skill, but once you get to that level, the payoff is tremendous.
6. Akali
The Rogue Assassin isn’t a champion that beginners should try right off the bat, simply because many things could make the champion utterly useless in a teamfight. After her rework, Akali has turned into a bruiser assassin who takes advantage of animation cancels and uses combos to chip away at an enemy’s health slowly.
You’ll need to keep an eye on Akali’s cooldowns and energy bar, especially if you’re thinking of going for an enemy using her Shuriken Flip and Perfect Execution. Getting close is one thing, but coming out unscathed adds another layer to her complexity. There’s also so much time before the Twilight Shroud runs out, and since the Rogue Assassin’s only form of her tankiness is her sustain, she’s incredibly squishy.
7. Thresh
We’ve talked about jungle, top, mid, and ADC champions—all that’s left is a support to wrap it up. Last but certainly not least, Thresh is all about those hooks. The Chain Warden was popularized when the legendary Madlife—a professional support player—used his ability to hit unthinkable hooks in League of Legends. A good Death Sentence isn’t enough to make you a good support, though. That’s because Thresh’s kit relies on the play-making abilities you’ll do after it. Do you Flay in or out? Do you use The Box to keep the enemy trapped while your ADC dishes out the damage? Or do you use Dark Passage to get some assistance from your nearby jungler?
Thresh requires a significant amount of decision-making and timing to use him effectively. We’ve seen one too many whiffs of the Death Sentence that could have potentially been a kill. If you don’t want to be a part of that group, then practice being able to think on the fly.
Master ‘Em All
That’s about it for what we think are the hardest champions to use in League of Legends! You may find some of the champions on this list easier than others or think there are much more complicated ones. And that’s completely fine—everyone has their own opinions! Nonetheless, all of them are rewarding to master, so investing some time to learn them is the first step to possibly having another main champion added to your arsenal.
