Darius wins lanes by being an unmovable wall of Hemorrhage stacks. Get 5 stacks, R execute, reset, repeat. He's the simplest lane bully in the game — walk up, Q, auto, W slow, get your 5 stacks, and press R.
Abilities
Skills Overview
P
Hemorrhage
Passive
Darius' attacks and damaging abilities cause enemies to bleed for physical damage over 5 seconds, stacking up to 5 times. Darius enrages and gains massive Attack Damage when his target reaches max stacks.
Q
Decimate
Decimate — AoE spin that damages and heals Darius; outer edge applies Hemorrhage
Darius winds up and swings his axe in a wide circle. Enemies struck by the blade take more damage than those struck by the handle. Darius heals based on enemy champions and large monsters hit by the blade.
CD: 9/8/7/6/5 · Cost: 25/30/35/40/45
Outer edge of Q applies Hemorrhage — step back before Q so the enemy is hit by the outer arc, not the center.
W
Crippling Strike
Crippling Strike — Enhanced auto that slows the target's move speed
Darius's next attack strikes an enemy's crucial artery. As they bleed out, their Move Speed is slowed.
CD: 5 · Cost: 40
W slow prevents enemies from escaping after Q pull. Use W immediately after E pull for guaranteed slow.
E
Apprehend
Apprehend — Pull that brings all enemies in front toward Darius
Darius hones his axe, passively causing his physical damage to ignore a percentage of his target's Armor. When activated, Darius sweeps up his enemies with his axe's hook and pulls them to him.
CD: 26/23.5/21/18.5/16 · Cost: 70/60/50/40/30
E pull is telegraphed — use it when enemies step up for CS, not from maximum range where they can react.
R
Noxian Guillotine
Noxian Guillotine — Execute that deals true damage scaling with Hemorrhage stacks; resets on kill
Darius leaps to an enemy champion and strikes a lethal blow, dealing true damage. This damage is increased for each stack of Hemorrhage on the target. If Noxian Guillotine is a killing blow, its cooldown is refreshed for a brief duration.
CD: 120/100/80 · Cost: 100/100/0
R at 5 Hemorrhage stacks for maximum execute damage. At 5 stacks it deals true damage.
Skill Leveling Order — Max Q for maximum Hemorrhage stacks and heal. Then E for lower pull cooldown, last W.
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Itemization
Recommended Builds
Starter
Doran's Shield
HP sustain for early trades — Darius needs to get in range for Q and W.
450g
Core
Titanic Hydra
HP scaling and AoE cleave on Q — Titanic's active amplifies Q Hemorrhage stacking in teamfights.
3300g
Stridebreaker
Slow makes E pull unavoidable and W slow overlap locks enemies in Hemorrhage range.
3300g
Sterak's Gage
Shield for surviving the damage taken while stacking 5 Hemorrhage. HP amplifies Titanic.
3100g
Situational
Black Cleaver
Armor shred stacks with Q autos for maximum damage against armor-building enemies.
3100g
Thornmail
Grievous Wounds vs healing comps. Armor reflects damage during sustained melee fights.
2700g
Spirit Visage
MR vs AP threats. Healing amp amplifies Q outer edge heal in extended fights.
2900g
HP items are your power — R execute damage scales with Hemorrhage stacks and all items. The more HP you have, the more HP your enemies must lose for the execute to trigger.
Runes
Precision Primary
Conqueror
Stacks rapidly with Q autos and Hemorrhage ticks. Full Conqueror healing on top of Q outer edge heal.
Triumph
Kill heals between R resets — Triumph sustain lets you immediately start stacking on the next target.
Legend: Tenacity
Tenacity critical for Darius — CC interrupts Hemorrhage stacking. Reduce lockout time to keep applying stacks.
Last Stand
Darius takes damage while stacking Hemorrhage — Last Stand amplifies R execute when at low HP.
Resolve Secondary
Bone Plating
Reduces burst damage in the window between E pull and 5-stack R execute.
Conditioning
Free armor/MR at 12 minutes — lets Darius tank more damage in the 5-stack window.
Shards
Attack Damage · Armor · Health
Gameplay
How to Play Darius
01
Early Game
Q Outer Edge Trades
- Q outer edge only — back up before Q so the enemy is hit by the bleeding arc, not center.
- E pull when enemies walk up to CS — the pull sets up Q outer edge automatically.
- W slow any enemy trying to run after E pull — the slow keeps them in Q range.
- 4-5 autos + Q = 5 Hemorrhage stacks naturally. R when stacks are full for execute.
- Q heals Darius on outer edge hit — stay at low HP briefly, Q for recovery, then trade again.
02
Mid Game
E Pull + 5-Stack Execute
- Group for skirmishes — 5 Hemorrhage + R execute resets are devastating in multi-target fights.
- E pull enemies into your team for free stack setup. Your team's damage plus Hemorrhage = fast kills.
- W slow makes fleeing enemies die to Hemorrhage bleed even without R. The DoT kills runners.
- R resets on kill — dive into grouped enemies and R chain 2-3 targets sequentially.
- Stridebreaker slow before E pull guarantees the pull hits even on mobile enemies.
03
Late Game
Teamfight R Reset Chain
- R chain in teamfights — R the first kill, R2 the second, R3 the third with no mana or CD limit on reset.
- E pull the enemy carry into your team. W slow keeps them in Hemorrhage range.
- 5-stack Hemorrhage true damage R at full build one-shots most carries regardless of HP.
- Titanic Hydra active in grouped enemies stacks Hemorrhage on multiple targets simultaneously.
- Conqueror full stacks + Hemorrhage tick + Q heal = nearly unkillable in extended fights.
Teamfighting
How to Teamfight as Darius
Darius in teamfights E pulls the carry into the team, stacks 5 Hemorrhage with Q and autos, R executes for a reset, then chains the reset onto the next priority target.
1
Engage — E Pull Carry
Setup
01
E pull the enemy carry or support into your team's damage.
02
Q outer edge immediately — the pull puts them directly in Q range.
03
W slow the pulled target so they can't escape before 5 stacks are applied.
Never E pull at maximum range on mobile carries — Flash or dash escapes the pull. Walk closer first, then E pull at shorter range for a guaranteed grab.
2
5 Stacks — Hemorrhage Build
Stack phase
01
Auto + Q outer edge + auto = 3 stacks. Two more autos reach 5 stacks.
02
W slow prevents escape during stacking. They must stand in Hemorrhage range.
03
Conqueror fully stacked by 5th auto — Conqueror healing on top of Q outer edge heal.
3
R Execute — Chain Resets
Execute chain
01
R at 5 Hemorrhage stacks — true damage execute one-shots the target.
02
R resets on kill — immediately R the next priority target without cooldown.
03
Chain up to 3 R executes in a single teamfight if targets are below threshold.
Don't wait for enemies to be at exactly the R threshold. R at 5 stacks regardless of their HP — the execute damage scales so high that even full-HP carries die to 5-stack R at full build.
Tips & Tricks
Advanced Mechanics & Hidden Tech
Advanced mechanics for Darius.
Basic
Q Outer Edge Only
The center of Q heals but doesn't apply Hemorrhage. Step back before Q so the outer arc hits. Landing center Q wastes your stack application.
Intermediate
E Pull at Short Range
E at maximum range misses mobile carries. Walk close enough that the pull is guaranteed, then E.
Basic
R Reset Chain
R resets on kill with no CD or cost. In teamfights, kill one target and immediately R the next — chain 3+ executes in a single fight.
Advanced
5-Stack Execute Timing
Count your stacks — each auto or Q applies one. At exactly 5 stacks R deals true damage. Press R when the bleed symbol is fully lit.
Intermediate
W Slow After E Pull
E pull then immediately W — the slow prevents them from running out of Q range before you get stacks. E→W→Q outer edge is your core trade sequence.
Basic
Q Heal Sustain
Q outer edge heals Darius for each champion hit. Q heal is your primary sustain in lane — back up, Q outer edge, repeat.
Advanced
Passive Bleed Kills
5 Hemorrhage stacks deal significant damage per second. If an enemy escapes at low HP, the bleed often kills them in the escape.
Intermediate
Conqueror Stacking
Darius fully stacks Conqueror by the 5th auto naturally in every trade sequence. Always fight to full Conqueror before using R for maximum healing.
Matchups
Counters & Matchups
Darius is countered by ranged champions who can harass before E pull range and mobile champions who can dash out of his pull and W slow.
Click any matchup to expand tips & how to play against them
Loses Against
Vayne kites Darius with Tumble outside E pull range. True damage Silver Bolts bypass Darius's HP stacking.
Flash→E for guaranteed pull on Vayne. After pull, W immediately — she cannot Tumble out of the slow window.
Quinn's range lets her harass through every Q animation. Vault knockback interrupts E pull before it reaches.
Bait Quinn's Vault (E) before using E pull. Her Vault CD is long early — punish the window immediately.
Teemo's blind makes all of Darius's autos miss during the blind duration — no stack generation. Range harassment prevents trading.
Walk into Teemo's range then immediately E pull when he steps up. His Q blind is telegraphed by his walk-up animation.
Wins Against
Garen's silence too short to stop Darius's stack pattern. His limited mobility makes E pull trivial to land.
E pull Garen immediately when he tries to Q silence you. Your 5-stack R at level 6 one-shots him before his execute.
Malphite's immobility makes E pull guaranteed. His passive shield is shredded by Q Hemorrhage stacks rapidly.
E pull Malphite freely — he has no dash or escape. Q outer edge strips his passive shield and stacks Hemorrhage simultaneously.
Darius prevents Nasus from stacking. E pull into 5-stack execute denies all Q farming. Early game dominance snowballs extremely.
E pull every Nasus Q stack attempt. Your 5-stack R at 6 one-shots him. He can never stack into you.