League of Legends best Ahri build guide: Itemization, Combos, Strategy, and more

The best Ahri build paths in League of Legends 14.11 is helping the Nine-Tailed Fox have a fair bit of agency in multiple roles. While she is traditionally played as a Mid Lane mage, Ahri has been seeing success as a support, as well as an ADC.

Much of her versatile playstyle lies in the amount of mobility and CC she has in her kit. Ahri has a pretty high skill ceiling and making the most of her abilities will require a good deal of practice.

However, she is an incredibly rewarding experience, because of her Assassin and Control Mage type playstyle. Once you master her you will have a much easier time winning most matchups and climbing up the rank ladder.


Contents:


League of Legends 14.11 Best Ahri AP build (Mid/Top/Support)

Runes 

Domination/SorcerySorcery/InspirationPassive Stats
Electrocute/Arcane CometManaflow Band/Biscuit Delivery+10% Attack Speed
Cheapshot/Manaflow BandTranscendence/Cosmic Insight+9 Adaptive Damage
Eyeball Collection/Transcendence+10-180 HP (Levels 1-18)
Ultimate Hunter/Scorch

Itemization

Core BuildAlternate Build PathSituational Items
MalignanceSeraph’s EmbraceCryptbloom
Ionian Boots of LuciditySorcerer’s ShoesZaz’Zak’s Realmspike
Lich baneLiandry’s TormentStormsurge
ShadowflameRift MakerLuden’s Companion
Rabadon’s DeathcapVoid StaffMejai’s Soulstealer
Zhonya’s HourglassRylai’s Crystal ScepterVoid Staff

Spells

  • Flash
  • Ignite/Teleport/Exhaust

Skill Unlock Priority

Ahri Orb of Deception Q: Orb of Deception1  4579    
Ahri Fox Fire W: Fox Fire  2    101213      
Ahri Charm E: Charm 3        14 15 1718
Ahri Spirit Rush R: Spirit Rush61116

League of Legends 14.11 Best Ahri AD build (Mid/Top/ADC)

Runes 

Ahri AD Runes
PrecisionSorceryPassive Stats
Fleet FootworkManaflow Band+10% Attack Speed
Presence of MindScorch+9 Adaptive Damage
Legend: Bloodline+10-180 HP (Levels 1-18)
Coup De Grace

Itemization

Core BuildSituational Items
Berserker’s GreavesNashor’s Tooth
Kraken SlayerGuinsoo’s Rageblade
Experimental HexplateInfinity Edge
Trinity ForceRapidfire Cannon
Statikk ShivBloodthirster
Phantom DancerEssence Reaver

Spells

  • Flash
  • Teleport/Ignite/Exhaust

Skill Unlock Priority

Ahri Orb of Deception Q: Orb of Deception1  4579    
Ahri Fox Fire W: Fox Fire  2    101213      
Ahri Charm E: Charm 3        14 15 1718
Ahri Spirit Rush R: Spirit Rush61116

Ahri Pros and Cons in League of Legends Season 14

Pros: 

  • One of Ahri’s biggest strengths in Riot’s MOBA season 14 is her playstyle versatility. Irrespective of the role you are playing her in, she has multiple item paths that she can go for and even champion an AD build to be a side lane menace.
  • Ahri is one of the most mobile mages in the game. Her Spirit Rush will allow you to play her like an assassin while her Charm and Orb of Deception give her the properties of a control mage. Depending on the situation and team composition, you can go for either playstyle.
  • Ahri can snowball incredibly well off of early leads. Ahri’s best build paths let her have good Late Game scaling and she can hundred-to-zero any enemy carry once she has some core items under her belt.

Cons:

  • Ahri is one of the hardest mages to master. She has a very high skill ceiling and playmaking potential which will force you to invest a lot of time in mastering her kit before you start being effective in the Mid-to-Late Game. It’s very easy to make her rush to her death with her R.
  • She is also very reliant on her build and items. If Ahri falls off too far in the Early Game, she is going to struggle to stay relevant the later the game goes. She needs early leads in order for her to be effective during teamfights.
  • Ahri is very squishy. Ahri’s best build paths often rely more on damage than survivability. This makes her weak to point and click CC and it’s quite easy to focus her down during a fight if she misplays. She also struggles a fair bit against mobile assassins.

Best Ahri Combos in League of Legends Season 14

Here are some of the best Ahri combos that you should be trying in your games:

Combo 1:

Ahri Q--W--AA combo
  • Q–>W–>AA 

Ahri’s bread-and-butter combo which will let her trade with Q and then mix her Fox Fires with an Auto Attack. This will automatically proc Electrocute.

Combo 2:

Ahri E--Q--W--AA combo
  • E–>Q–>W–>AA 

If the enemy is low on health, you can try this all-in combo at level 3. 

Combo 3:

Ahri AA--W--Q combo
  • AA–>W–>Q 

This is a simple trade combo that does not use much mana. You can primarily use it to just poke the enemy out when they come to last-hit minions.

Combo 4:

Ahri R--Q--AA--W--R--AA--R--E--AA combo
  • R–>Q–>AA–>W–>R–>AA–>R–>E–>AA 

This combo is for when you are chasing the opponent. You R into Q at max range and then use an Auto Attack. Hit W when in range and then use R and AA again. The final R will be to reposition for your E and then a final AA.

Combo 5:

Ahri Q--R--W--E combo
  • Q–>R–>W–>E

This is Ahri’s quick burst combo which you can use in lane or during Mid Game skirmishes. It’s one of the best combos to catch out the enemy carries.

Combo 6:

Ahri R--E--Q--R--W--AA--R--R combo
  • R–>E–>Q–>R–>W–>AA–>R–>R 

This is her all-in combo It’s one of the best ways to get kills during the laning phase, especially if you know that the enemy Jungler is not around. This Ahri combo has an incredible amount of burst from level 6 onwards.

Combo 7:

Ahri E--R--W--Q combo
  • E–>R–>W–>Q 

This is one of Ahri’s more advanced combos that you use to juke out enemies. By pressing R as soon as you hit her E, you will be able to hide her Charm animation. This gives very little room for the enemy to react.

Combo 8:

Ahri E--Q--R--W--AA combo
  • E–>Q–>R–>W–>AA 

This is a simple combo that can catch out an enemy who is expecting a Charm coming their way. Only use this when you know that you can land the initial skill shot.

Combo 9:

Ahri E--FLASH--Q--R--W--AA combo
  • E–>FLASH–>Q–>R–>W–>AA 

Weaving Flash into Ahri’s combo is a high-level strat. This combo is not something that players new to her are advised to try out. This combo catches the enemy by surprise, but also makes it difficult for them to avoid your burst.

Combo 10:

Ahri E--FLASH--R--W--Q--AA--R--AA--R--AA combo
  • E–>FLASH–>R–>W–>Q–>AA–>R–>AA–>R–>AA 

You will be able to pull this combo off once you have complete mastery of her kit. This further masks her E animation when you couple it with Flash and Spirit Rush. Use your R during this combo to make sure that the return Q lands on the enemy.

How to play Ahri: Tips and Tricks for League of Legends Season 14

Early Game:

  • Irrespective of the build path that you are going for with Ahri, try to always harass the  enemy laner and push for leads. Ahri has good lane pressure in the Early Game, so look to use your Q to chip out enemies when they come to CS.
  • Ahri’s Fox Fire is also a great tool to harass the enemy. If an enemy champion is in range of the ability, the three fox fires that revolve around her will automatically target them. So if you are missing your Q, your W is a great tool for poking the enemy.
  • Always look to secure leads with Ahri in the Early Game. Either through kills or by securing Tower Plates. You do not want to be behind on Gold and XP once the Mid Game starts. Make sure you have her core items made as soon as possible.

Mid Game:

  • You will struggle in the Mid Game if you are not ahead. Ahri is all about catching out enemies and bursting them down with the E+Q+W combo and then following up on kills with Spirit Rush. Falling behind means your team loses out on one DPS threat.
  • Roam the map if you have your lane pushed up. Ahri is great at creating flank angles and making plays in other lanes. Try to catch the enemy laners by surprise with a gank. Ideally, you would want to roam the map with your Jungler, and take Neutral Objectives while you are at it.
  • Irrespective of an AD or AP build, Ahri is always going to be a good side-lane threat. Leave the mid lane for your ADC, and look to threaten tower damage in the side lanes. Her Spirit Rush makes her hard to gank, so you can always dash your way out of any form of enemy engage.

Late Game:

  • Ahri scales pretty well in the Late Game, however, that is only of she has a Gold and item lead. Her innate squishy nature makes her very easy to kill. So the later a game goes, the easier it’s gonna be for the enemy to focus on her. This is why your positioning will be key in teamfights. Kite around a squirmish and only Spirit Rush in when the enemy are out of their CC tools.
  • Ahri is also great at flanking. She has a much easier time gaining access to the enemy backline. Once she does catch out the enemy carries you will be able to burst them down. If you aren’t getting access to the carries, you can always chip away at the frontline. Making it easier for your team to collapse on them.
  • If there aren’t many plays happening around the map, stick to the side lane and continue to push. Make it difficult for the enemy to contest for neutral objectives. Her incredible wave clear speed makes it quite annoying to deal with her pushes the later the game goes.

Ahri counters, matchups, and Champion synergy

Ahri Gameplay Guide

Countered by:

Ahri has a hard time in lane against champions who have a lot of burst, or with point-and-click CC.

Favorable Matchups:

Ahri has a much easier time in lane against the above picks.

Jungle synergy:

  • Evelynn
  • Jax
  • Bel’Veth
  • Shaco
  • Nunu
  • Nocturne
  • Rengar
  • Kha’Zix
  • Amumu

Ahri goes well with Junglers who come with a lot of upfront burst.

Support Synergy

If you are playing Ahri as an ADC, she will pair very well with the above support picks.

Abhishek Mallick
Abhishek Mallick
Abhishek Mallick is a Senior Columnist at Backdash. He has a Master's degree in English Literature. In his spare time, he is a fighting game enthusiast, who is also addicted to Shin Megami Tensei, Monster Hunter, and League of Legends. He also enjoys reading and sifting through educational documentaries.

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