Graves vs Darius
Hard matchup
Build vs Darius
Build adapted to this matchup
Recommended items for Graves: Hubris, The Collector, Lord Dominik's Regards, Plated Steelcaps, Immortal Shieldbow, Infinity Edge, Youmuu's Ghostblade, Mortal Reminder.
Starting items
Core build
Standard
Summoner spells
Anti CC
Other options
Power Spikes
Strength by game phase
Darius's abilities
Passive, spells and ultimate
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.
Cooldowns
Cooldowns by spell rank
| Level | Q | W | E | R |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 9s | 5s | 26s | – |
| 6 | 6.5s | 5s | 26s | 2m |
| 9 | 4s | 5s | 26s | 2m |
| 11 | 4s | 5s | 26s | 1m40 |
| 16 | 4s | 5s | 21s | 1m20 |
| 18 | 4s | 5s | 16s | 1m20 |
Playing as Graves
Tips to maximize your impact
- Clear your line of fire
Position with no minion between you and your target: each New Destiny (passive) auto fires 4 bullets that can't pass through units.
- Blind their carries
Cast Smoke Screen (W) on their carries: inside the smoke, they're slowed and can't see anything outside it for 4 seconds.
- Back away as you fire your R
Fire Collateral Damage (R) with your back to the danger: the shot knocks you backward, enough to reposition while dealing damage.
- Chain dashes during your clear
Cast Quickdraw (E) often during your clear: it reloads a shell, gives armor and magic resist, and each bullet that hits lowers its cooldown.
Playing against Darius
How to counter and exploit weaknesses
- Short trades
Take a short trade, then back off: each of his hits applies a Hemorrhage (passive) stack, and at five stacks he gains a massive AD bonus.
- Leave his blade or hug him
Step out of range or stick to him when he casts Decimate (Q): only the blade, at the edge, heals him and applies Hemorrhage (passive).
- Boots early
Buy your boots early: before he hits level 6, Apprehend (E) is his only spell to get back on you, on a 26 to 16 second cooldown.
- Respect his level 6
Once he hits level 6, don't let him put five Hemorrhage (passive) stacks on you: Noxian Guillotine (R) gains true damage with each stack.
Other Graves matchups
Patch 16.21.1