How to beat Ahri

Common role: Mid

The best counter to Ahri in Mid is Kalista: 58.9% win rate over 57 ranked games on patch 26.17.

A mobile mage who charms you in and bursts, with three ult dashes to escape.

What makes Ahri dangerous

Ahri pokes with her Q, and lands her charm (E) to lock you for a full burst combo. Her ultimate gives three dashes to engage, chase or escape, making her a safe, slippery pick who roams to other lanes and deletes squishies. She's forgiving but relies entirely on landing her charm.

How to play against Ahri

• 1Dodge her charm (E) — it's a slow skillshot and the setup for all her damage. Stand behind minions and sidestep it; without it she can't burst you.
• 2Track her roams. Ahri leaves lane with her mobility to gank other lanes — ping and follow, and she loses her main source of leads.
• 3Punish her when her ultimate is down — that's her only escape. Without her three dashes she's an immobile mage you can all-in.
• 4She's squishy. Assassins and hard engage beat her once her charm and ult are used — bait them, then commit.

Weaknesses to exploit

• ✓Entirely reliant on landing her charm skillshot.
• ✓Squishy — dies to burst when her ult is down.
• ✓Mediocre waveclear and short trading range early.
• ✓Predictable roams if you have vision.

Abilities & how to counter them

What each of Ahri's abilities does — and how to play around it.

• P
  Essence Theft

  After killing 9 minions or monsters, Ahri heals.After taking down an enemy champion, Ahri heals for a greater amount.

• Q
  Orb of Deception

  Ahri sends out and pulls back her orb, dealing magic damage on the way out and true damage on the way back.

• W
  Fox-Fire

  Ahri gains a brief burst of Move Speed and releases three fox-fires, that lock onto and attack nearby enemies.

• E
  Charm

  Ahri blows a kiss that damages and charms an enemy it encounters, instantly stopping movement abilities and causing them to walk harmlessly towards her.

  Strong: a charm that locks you for her full combo. Weak: a slow skillshot — stand behind minions and sidestep it; no charm, no burst.

• R
  Spirit Rush

  Ahri dashes forward and fires essence bolts, damaging nearby enemies. Spirit Rush can be cast up to three times before going on cooldown, and gains additional recasts when taking down enemy champions.

  Strong: three dashes to engage, chase or escape — her safety net. Weak: on cooldown she's an immobile mage — all-in her when it's down.

Itemization

Ahri is AP burst. Magic resist (Mercury's Treads, an MR item) and a Zhonya's/Banshee's to eat her charm-into-combo answer her. The single best counter is simply dodging her E — do that and she's harmless.

This guide covers Ahri's core kit and playstyle — advice that holds up across patches.