Hemorrhage
(Innate): Darius' basic attacks and damaging abilities cause enemies to bleed for 12 / 15 / 18 / 21 / 24 / 27 / 30 / 33 / 36 (+0.3 per bonus attack damage) magic damage over 5 seconds, stacking up to 5 times. Darius gains 5% movement speed for each bleeding enemy champion.
Tips :
The quantity of blood drops indicates the quantity of stacks applied.
A duel fighter passive
Please bleed
Darius’ passive enables him to impose himself in the lane stage. At the beginning of a game, and in its middle, the passive can cause lots of damages once you’ve reached 5 stacks.
Please be aware that each enemy touched by your Hemorrhage will give you a 5% speed bonus so Darius can follow its targets more easily.
This passive is the reason why Darius is said to be one of the best duel fighters of the game. With his 5 stacks of passive, he is able to cause lots of damages during a long lasting exchange.
In a word, if two players start a duel having each 100% PVS and equal stuff + levels, there is a great chance that Darius will win.
But this effect is so huge you have to estimate it correctly before you start a duel. If the enemy is only half HP, you won’t have enough time to stack passive and then fully benefit from it.
Be careful: Hemorrhage’s stacks can be removed by Mercury’s belt.
Decimate (Q)
(Active): Darius deals physical damage to all nearby enemies in a circle around him. Champions in the outer half of the ability are struck by the blade, taking 50% additional damage.
Tips :
The external part of the circle cause more damages
Your main spell
Blade hurts
Decimate is Darius’ main spell. It causes massive damages at the beginning of a game for only a low cost of mana. Damages are increased if you touch your opponent in the second part of the circle (that corresponds to the range of the axe blade.) You should then try to hit the enemy with this zone’s extremity.
This spell will enable you to push minion waves back as the zone will touch the distances and the CaC.
More than the push, this spell is great to harass your enemy. It has a correct range and can touch your enemy in the middle of his minions, which is very useful to cause damage in lane.
Last but not least, this spell also has a Hemorrhage effect which enables you to quickly stack your passive. Please note Decimate does not reset the auto-attack animation: you are therefore able to launch the spell whenever you want without being scared of missing an additional auto-attack (and damages).
Finally don’t forget it does not cost much mana so take a good time spamming it!
Cooldown: 9 / 8 / 7 / 6 / 5 seconds
Physical Damage: 70 / 105 / 140 / 175 / 210 (+0.7 per bonus attack damage)
Maximum Physical Damage: 105 / 157.5 / 210 / 262.5 / 315 (+1.05 per bonus attack damage)
Crippling Strike (W)
(Active): Darius' next basic attack deals additional damage and slows the target's movement and attack speed for 2 seconds.
Crippling Strike's base cooldown is reduced by 1 second for each stack of Hemorrhage on the target.
Tips :
Z ‘s effect is slightly visible when you activate it.
You asked for a slow?
You stick like glue
Crippling strike is Darius’ main sticking tool. As some champions can easily kit Darius, it is very necessary you use the Apprehend and the Crippling Strike to maintain the infighting with your targets.
You have to know two things about that spell:- It will reduce the speed of moves AND attacks. You’ll then be able to easily fight most of the bruisers that depend on the attack velocity (Irelia, Olaf…)
- His CD is reduced when used on a target affected by your Hemorrhage.
So try to place some Hemorrhage stacks before you use Crippling Strike to reduce its loading time. Crippling strike will moreover reset the auto-attack timer so do not launch that spell before a white attack or you may lose an auto-attack.
Cost: 30 / 35 / 40 / 45 / 50 mana
Total Physical Damage: 120 / 140 / 160 / 180 / 200 %
Slow: 20 / 25 / 30 / 35 / 40 %
Apprehend (E)
(Passive): Darius gains armor penetration.
(Active): Darius pulls in all enemies in front of him.
Tips :
The pull is big enough to go through some walls
Mini-Blitzcrank
Get back here!
Just like a Blitzcrank pull, Apprehend will enable you to bring enemies back to you.
It is important to notice the spell can catch different targets at a time so you can grab your enemy in the middle of his minions.
But its range is however not very good and your enemies will easily avoid it in the middle of a game.
There is however an invocation time needed and good players (enemies) may flash to prevent the pull.
Finally, as the spell does not cause any damages, it won’t give any Hemorrhage stacks to your enemy.
Armor Penetration: 5 / 10 / 15 / 20 / 25 %
Cooldown: 24 / 21 / 18 / 15 / 12 seconds
Noxian Guillotine (R)
(Active): Darius leaps to target enemy champions and strikes a lethal blow, dealing true damage. For each stack of Hemorrhage on the target, Noxian Guillotine deals an additional 20% damage.
The cooldown is refreshed if Noxian Guillotine kills the target.
Tips :
A kill = an ultimate bonus.
Execution French Style !
No more Head
Once you’ve reached level 6, Darius’ gameplay will rely a lot on that unique spell. In the middle of a teamfight it can transform a single scratch on your enemies’ back into a massive injury.
Noxan Guillotine enables Darius to cause an impressive amount of damages to your enemy. If your target dies from that skill, it should become available again.
This spell needs some time to be invocated so be careful with champions who have shields. They could easily prevent your attacks from being fatal and then would make you lose the reset. Even worse: a well done ultimate by Kyle could block your ultimate and its potential entirely.
If your Guillotine’s target has at least 5 Hemorrhage stacks, your spell will be twice as efficient, which is not negligible. So, for a maximum impact, try and use your classic skills to place some auto-attacks before you use your ultimate.
Cooldown: 100 / 90 / 80 seconds
True Damage: 160 / 250 / 340 (+0.75 per bonus attack damage)
Maximum True Damage: 320 / 500 / 680 (+1.5 per bonus attack damage)
Pros
Cons
