Azir is the hardest mid laner. He commands sand soldiers from long range for DPS, dashes with E, and R wall reshapes fights. Extremely rewarding when mastered, useless when played poorly.
Abilities
Skills Overview
P
Shurima's Legacy
Passive
Azir can summon the Disc of the Sun from the ruins of allied or enemy turrets.
Shurima's Legacy: attack speed increases with CDR. Build CDR = more soldier DPS.
Q
Conquering Sands
Soldier Reposition · Slow
Azir sends all Sand Soldiers towards a location. Sand Soldiers deal magic damage to enemies they pass through and apply a slow for 1 second.
CD: 14/12/10/8/6 · Cost: 70/80/90/100/110
Q repositions soldiers and slows enemies they pass through. Your main poke.
W
Arise!
Summon Soldier · DPS
Azir summons a Sand Soldier to attack nearby targets for him, replacing his basic attack against targets within the soldier's range. Their attacks deal magic damage to enemies in a line.
CD: 1.5 · Cost: 40/35/30/25/20
W summons a sand soldier. Auto-attacking commands soldiers to stab from range. Your identity.
E
Shifting Sands
Dash to Soldier · Shield
Azir shields himself briefly and dashes to one of his Sand Soldiers, damaging enemies. If he hits an enemy champion, he instantly readies a new Sand Soldier for deployment and halts his dash.
CD: 22/20.5/19/17.5/16 · Cost: 60
E dashes TO a soldier. Shield on champion hit. Your only escape — don't waste it.
R
Emperor's Divide
Wall · Knockback
Azir summons a wall of soldiers which charge forward, knocking back and damaging enemies.
CD: 120/105/90 · Cost: 100
R creates a massive wall that knocks enemies back. Blocks dashes. Reshapes teamfights.
Skill Leveling Order — Max W first, then Q, then E · R at 6 / 11 / 16
| Level | Q | W | E | R | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Take W — soldier | ||||
| 2 | Take Q — reposition | ||||
| 3 | Take E — dash | ||||
| 4 | Level W | ||||
| 5 | Level W | ||||
| 6 | R — Emperor's Divide | ||||
| 7 | Level W | ||||
| 8 | Level Q | ||||
| 9 | W maxed ✓ | ||||
| 10 | Level Q | ||||
| 11 | R rank 2 | ||||
| 12 | Level Q | ||||
| 13 | Level Q | ||||
| 14 | Q maxed ✓ | ||||
| 15 | Level E | ||||
| 16 | R rank 3 | ||||
| 17 | Level E | ||||
| 18 | E maxed ✓ |
Itemization
Recommended Builds
Core Build
Nashor's Tooth
AP + AS. Soldier autos scale with both.
3000g
Sorcerer's Shoes
Magic pen.
1100g
Rabadon's Deathcap
AP multiplier for soldier damage.
3600g
Void Staff
Magic pen vs MR.
2800g
Situational
Zhonya's Hourglass
Stasis after E dive.
3250g
Banshee's Veil
Spell shield.
2600g
Rylai's Crystal Scepter
Soldier autos slow.
2600g
Nashor's → Deathcap → Void. Soldiers scale with AP + AS from Nashor's.
Runes
Precision Primary
Lethal Tempo
Stacking AS for soldier DPS.
Presence of Mind
Mana sustain.
Legend: Alacrity
AS.
Coup de Grace
Execute.
Sorcery Secondary
Manaflow Band
Mana.
Transcendence
CDR = more AS from passive.
Shards
Attack Speed · Adaptive Force · Health
Gameplay
How to Play Azir
01
Early Game
W Soldier Poke, Farm Safely
- W soldier → auto from range for poke. Don't walk up — command soldiers.
- Q repositions soldiers for poke angles. W → Q → auto is your trade pattern.
- E is your ONLY escape. Never use it aggressively without kill confirm.
- Manage mana. W + Q costs a lot. Don't spam without purpose.
- Farm with soldiers. Each soldier auto gives CS from range.
02
Mid Game
Soldier DPS, R Wall
- W → Q → auto for sustained poke. Soldiers outrange most mages.
- R wall pushes enemies into your soldiers for devastating DPS.
- Shuffle: E → Q mid-dash → R at destination. The Azir Shuffle is the highest-skill engage in the game.
- Nashor's spike gives massive soldier DPS.
- Position soldiers between you and threats for zone control.
03
Late Game
Emperor-Level DPS + Wall
- Soldier DPS at full build rivals ADCs. You're a ranged DPS mage.
- R wall in chokepoints blocks entire teams from advancing.
- Shuffle engage → R push → soldiers DPS = teamfight won.
- Position soldiers defensively for self-peel or offensively for DPS.
- You're the highest DPS mage in the game if you can pilot him.
Teamfighting
How to Teamfight as Azir
Azir DPSes with soldiers from range and R walls to reshape fights.
1
Zone — W Soldiers
DPS from range
01
W soldiers between you and enemies.
02
Auto from max soldier range.
03
Q reposition soldiers for angles.
Soldiers expire after a few seconds. Keep summoning new ones. Don't let them all despawn mid-fight.
2
Wall — R Emperor's Divide
Reshape fight
01
R pushes enemies backward.
02
Wall blocks dashes for 3 seconds.
03
Push enemies INTO your soldiers.
3
Shuffle — E + Q + R
Engage (advanced)
01
W behind enemy → E to soldier → Q mid-dash → R at destination.
02
The Shuffle pushes enemies into your team.
03
Highest skill-ceiling engage in the game.
The Shuffle (E → Q → R) is the flashiest play in League. Practice it in tool until it's muscle memory.
Tips & Tricks
Advanced Mechanics & Hidden Tech
Advanced mechanics for Azir.
Basic
Soldier Auto Range
You DPS through soldiers, not your own autos. Position soldiers near enemies and auto-attack to command them.
Intermediate
W → Q → Auto
W summon → Q reposition → auto for DPS. This is your bread-and-butter poke pattern.
Basic
E is Sacred
E dashes to a soldier. It's your ONLY escape. Don't use it aggressively unless you're certain of the kill.
Advanced
Azir Shuffle
W → E → Q mid-dash → R at destination. Pushes enemies into your team. The hardest combo in the game.
Basic
R Wall
R creates impassable terrain that blocks dashes. Use to peel, engage, or zone.
Intermediate
Passive AS
CDR converts to bonus attack speed for Azir. Build CDR items for faster soldier attacks.
Matchups
Counters & Matchups
Azir struggles against assassins who kill him before soldiers can DPS and champions who outrange his soldier zone. He excels against immobile mages he can zone.
Click any matchup to expand tips & how to play against them
Loses Against
Fizz E dodges soldiers and bursts you.
E away from Fizz engage. Farm safely.
Zed's burst kills you before soldiers can DPS.
R push Zed away when he R's. Rush Zhonya's.
Katarina's mobility overwhelms your soldier positioning.
R push her out of R channel.
Wins Against
You outrange Veigar with soldiers. He can't cage you with E dash.
Soldier poke from max range.
You match his waveclear and outscale.
Farm with soldiers. Outscale.
You outrange Annie's Flash → R with soldiers.
Soldier DPS from outside her range.