How to Play Fiora like a Master Duelist

We bring you this Fiora guide that will teach you how to play her like pro-LPL players and ensure that your understanding of League of Legends improves too!

Fiora’s Identity

Fiora’s kit allows her to be incredibly adaptable, and she can outplay her opponents if you have good mechanics. Fiora is not only excellent in the 1v1 situations, but she also scales tremendously into the late game. It makes her a terrifying champion to play against for the opponent team, and they need to spend a lot of their resources to stop her from taking over the game.

What makes Fiora stand out from other top laners is how effectively she can split push into the late game. There are so many top laners that can quickly demolish turrets like Yorick and Jayce but what separates them from Fiora is her ability to win 1:1 duels against the opponent champions. We will discuss this in a detailed manner later in this Fiora guide.

There is one thing that not many players recognize about Fiora at first, and that is how steep the learning curve is if you want to learn how to play Fiora like the best players in the world. You don’t only need an understanding of her unique mechanics but also need to improve your knowledge of the game state to utilize her potential fully.

Pros to picking Fiora

1. Extremely Mobile

Fiora is one of the best gap closers that Riot Games has released by quite some margin. Fiora's abilities allow her to get on top of her targets, so they can never escape. When you max your Q (Lunge), you dash on a very low cooldown and combine your items. You will be so fast that the opponent won’t even see you coming.

2. Uncounterable?

We might have gone a little too far in our excitement, but technically we aren’t lying. You will see Fiora guides out there telling you how Jax or Poppy will always win against you, but that’s not the truth. If you master Fiora and play to her strengths, then you can even come out on top in these challenging matchups!

We might have gone a little too far in our excitement, but technically we aren’t lying. You will see Fiora guides out there telling you how Jax or Poppy will always win against you, but that’s not the truth. If you master Fiora and play to her strengths, then you can even come out on top in these challenging matchups!

We will go over some of the toughest matchups later in this Fiora guide to give you an idea of how to play Fiora even when the odds are stacked against her.

3. Very Versatile

Fiora is a champion with different modes. She can be easily labeled as the Jack of all Trades and that’s what allows her to be so dangerous at the highest level. Suppose your team is being demolished in team fights and there is no way out except split pushing, then it’s your lucky day because you can do it very efficiently. If your team is winning team fights but don’t have control over key objectives you can look for picks as you will hardly ever lose a duel against an enemy team champion.

The possibilities with Fiora are endless and we will teach you the different ways you can play her in a later section of this Fiora guide.

Cons to Picking Fiora

1. Weak Wave Clear in Laning Phase

The reason why Fiora is weak in the early game isn’t due to her damage or team fight potential, but it is due to how weak her wave clear is. While you may be able to defeat your lane opponent 1:1, you will start off at a disadvantage in gold. You may find yourself severaly out of position if you go after every CS.

2. No time to hesitate!

The difference between good and bad Fiora players is decision making. The best Fiora players find the perfect opportunity and go all in on their opponents but the average ones take too much time to think about what they want to do next. It is very easily punishable because despite Fiora’s insane amount of physical damage, you can be punished if you don’t time your abilities right.

It is the reason this Grand Duelist is one of the hardest characters to play in League of Legends. We will teach you the most effective Fiora combos later in this guide.

3. Very Squishy

Fiora, despite her pros, is a very squishy champion in all stages of the game. If she is unable to get into melee range of her own opponents, then she can be punished very easily with hard crowd control abilities. You have survivability tools but if you are a victim of chain crowd control by the opponents then you are going to die.

Fiora is also often reliant on lifesteal and omnivamp to keep her health up. Grievous wounds is especially effective at keeping her sustain down. You can offset this by including items like Sterak's Gage and Death's Dance in your Fiora build, which provide great sustain in addition to decent damage amplification.

Fiora’s Abilities Explained

We will start our tour of how to play Fiora with an in-depth summary and guide to her abilities.

Fiora’s Passive Ability: Duelist’s Dance

The passive is what makes Fiora so powerful in duels throughout the game. Suppose you have ever played Fiora or played against a Fiora. In that case, you might have seen a symbol appearing around the champs. This symbol can appear in four directions around the enemy team members: front, back, left, and right. If Fiora damages them from the direction this vital has appeared on, then she deals extra damage to them.

The amount of additional damage provided by Duelist's Dance is directly proportional to the max health of the opponent champions, and that’s why Fiora can very quickly take down tanks too!

There is one other thing that many players forget about the vitals, though, and that is the bonus movement speed. Whenever you pop off a vital by hitting an enemy champion, Fiora gains a burst of movement speed that you can use to your advantage. If you really want to learn how to play Fiora like professional players, it’s necessary to know how to utilize this passive to its maximum power.

To really take advantage of her top-notch physical damage and movement speed buffs is to add some attack speed into your Fiora build.

Can I predict where the next vital will appear?

It is challenging to predict the exact side the vital will appear on. Still, the best Fiora players worldwide have noticed a few details that we would like to share with you. There is a pattern that always occurs, and it’s how the left side along the backside of a champion and the right side along the front side of a champion is paired. If the first appeared from one pair, then it will always appear on one of the two options from the other pair. This allows you to better understand how to position yourself and your auto attacks while dealing with champs that want to fight you.

There is another detail we have noticed, and that is how the vitals change based on what side you are playing. If you are playing on the blue side in the top lane, then the first vital will always appear on the front side or the right side. If you are playing on the red side in the top lane, then the first one will appear on either the backside or the left side of the champion.

Use these insights to gain a significant advantage in your next fight and up your win rate!

Fiora’s Q: Lunge

The exceptional mobility of Fiora that everyone talks about comes from Lunge. The ability allows you not only to chase down low health targets but also enables you to escape in case a trade goes wrong. The best thing about Lunge is that it is not a targeted ability. Instead, it can be used by just clicking in any direction you want to dash towards.

The exceptional mobility of Fiora that everyone talks about comes from Lunge. The ability allows you not only to chase down low health targets but also enables you to escape in case a trade goes wrong. The best thing about Lunge is that it is not a targeted ability. Instead, it can be used by just clicking in any direction you want to dash towards.

If you hit a target with your dash, then your cooldown will be reduced by almost 60%. Lunge already doesn't have a very long cooldown, so this will allow you to use this ability more than twice in a skirmish. You can also dash towards walls to catch your opponents off guard, so there are many creative outplays you can execute for your highlight reel.

Due to it's utility for both engagement and retreat, as well as its relatively low cooldown, Fiora is one of the few champs that can do quite well without taking Flash as one of her summoner spells. When played in the top lane, Fiora can actually do well with just Teleport and Ignite. This combination of summoner spells gives her good map mobility, reduces her CS losses when returning to the Fountain, and provides her even greater dueling capabilities.

Fiora’s W: Riposte

Fiora parries all incoming damage, disables for a short period, and then stabs in a specific direction. This stab slows or stuns the first enemy champion hit if Fiora blocks an immobilizing effect with this ability.

Riposte is one of the few abilities in the game that can counter crowd control abilities that are almost certain to tie you down. The best example is Veigar’s cage, one of the most annoying abilities to play against. Still, with Fiora, you can easily play around with it. If you use your Riposte and either flash or use your Lunge to escape the cage, then you won’t be stunned and can quickly get on top of squishy champs.

This was just one example we thought of. Still, you can undoubtedly dodge so many crowd control abilities if you use your Riposte ideally, so please work on that!

Fiora’s E: Bladework

Bladework is perhaps the most straightforward ability when it comes to Fiora. Even if you don’t know how to play Fiora, you can use this ability to its max strength. Fiora’s attack speed will be increased for the subsequent two attacks. The first attack slows the target, while the second critically strikes. It will catch your opponents off guard, and you can quickly turn a trade around with Bladework.

This ability works very well with the Blade of the Ruined King, which also provides attack speed, movement speed, damage, and lifesteal.

Fiora’s R (Ult): Grand Challenge

There are so many Fiora guides out there that will tell you that this is the best 1v1 ultimate in-game, but we believe that is ultimately a potent tool in team fights too! Fiora reveals all four Vitals on an opponent and improves movement speed while near them the moment you activate the ult. Fiora and her allies in the area are healed over the next few seconds if she hits all four Vitals or if the target dies after she has struck at least one vital on them.

You can even use Grand Challenge as an escape tool as it grants you bonus movement speed and can allow you to not die while split pushing.

Guide to Fiora's Best Runes:

There are two rune pages that we will talk about in this guide. The first rune page will be the standard rune page that you should always go for, but in case you feel that the lane matchup could prove to be difficult, you can opt for the second rune page too.

1. Conqueror Fiora!

If you are playing against an enemy team that doesn't have much kill threat against you, then it would be very beneficial if you opt for the late-game scaling conqueror runes page. It will allow you to go toe to toe in the lane with champions that don’t have a lot of kill potential, and you can put them on the back foot. Many champions are utterly useless if they can’t get lane priority like Aatrox or Volibear, so pressure them early on with this conqueror rune page.

2. Grasp Fiora:

This runes page allows Fiora to survive in the early laning phase against lane bullies like Renekton or Kennen and be a split push threat in the later game phases. If you go even with them on minions around the 15th-minute mark of the game, you did a good job. If they get on top of you, proc your Grasp and hit them with two to three attacks of your own before leaving for safety.

This rune page will take some power away from you in the late game in favor of more power in the mid game. Still, you can be an absolute monster while split pushing, and that should be your objective whenever you head into the game with this page.

How to Play Fiora in the Early Game?

The way to play Fiora in the early game has many variances and depends on what champion you are up against. That’s why Fiora is said to be one of the most complex characters in League of Legends and perhaps the most challenging top laner to master. We will walk you through how you can see lane against champions that are lane bullies, disruptive tanks, and champs that you can go toe to toe within the laning phase.

Playing Fiora against Aggressive Champs (e.g. Renekton, Darius, & Jayce)

Fiora is definitely an excellent early game champion, but that’s not where she shines. Fiora shines when the mid game and late game arrives, and she gets two to three core items in her inventory. You will be able to shred down any champion with obscene amounts of true damage.

Still, unfortunately, you need to reach that stage without giving away too much to your opponents. We will highly advise you to either take Doran’s Shield or Corrupting Potion in such lanes. It will give you a lot more sustain in the laning phase, and you can farm your minions without ever being under any kill threat.

The way you manage your minion waves will also be crucial. The best approach is to set up a freeze near your own turret, as that will ensure that the opponent champion is overextending rather than you. If possible, try to maintain good communication with your jungler, as early kills can really put you into a spot where you can turn the game around on your own.

How to Play Fiora against Disruptive Tanks? (e.g. Volibear, Poppy, Malphite)

The thing that annoys many champions about Fiora is her mobility. Unfortunately, that can be countered with the help of champs that have a lot of disruption built into their kits. The way to play against these champs is to look for level advantages and then fight them off.

You will always have more wave clear than them, so use that to punish them in the early game. If you can deal a lot of damage to them in the early levels, then you should look to set up a slow push towards their turret. It will ensure that they lose many minions and give you free recalls into the lane!

How to Play Fiora against Other Champions

If you are playing Fiora against a champion that is neither a lane bully nor a disruptor, then it’s time to have fun. You should always start Doran’s Blade against most champions as you want to engage in as many duels as you can. The best approach is to hit the enemy whenever they try to farm and push the wave consistently. That would allow you to attain lane priority to help out your teammates.

The standard approach here would be to fast push the waves but don’t be hesitant to freeze them off and create a massive cs difference among you two. If the enemy brings their jungler, then no need to be afraid. You can just ult one of them and turn the fight around for a quick 2v1 victory in your favor.

The standard approach here would be to fast push the waves but don’t be hesitant to freeze them off and create a massive cs difference among you two. If the enemy brings their jungler, then no need to be afraid. You can just ult one of them and turn the fight around for a quick 2v1 victory in your favor.

Trinity Force is a great item to take in your Fiora build, as it provides a number of bonuses that will help in most matchups.

Warding with Fiora in League of Legends

Fiora, just like every other champion in the game, must consistently ward to prevent jungle ganks. You should also constantly be watching your minimap. Without map awareness in LoL, you will have a hard time knowing when is the right time to go all-in vs hold back and wait.

How to play Fiora in the mid game and late game?

You will be playing Fiora as a split pusher for most of the game, even if you are super fed. It is due to the nature of your champion and how fast Fiora can take down turrets. We recommend you always take Teleport as your second summoner spell alongside Flash, as it will be the primary factor that will decide what you have to do in the game later on.

If you have your teleport up, always play at the other end of the next main objective on the rift. Suppose Baron is spawning in the next thirty seconds, and all your teammates are establishing vision control around that. Still, it’s not your job to go there and help them out in this little mini-game. You should instead push down the bottom lane turrets and get as much map control as possible. If there is a team fight about to go down, you can simply use your teleport to help out your team.

If you have your teleport up, always play at the other end of the next main objective on the rift. Suppose Baron is spawning in the next thirty seconds, and all your teammates are establishing vision control around that. Still, it’s not your job to go there and help them out in this little mini-game. You should instead push down the bottom lane turrets and get as much map control as possible. If there is a team fight about to go down, you can simply use your teleport to help out your team.

If you can catch any champions on the enemy team out on their own, you should almost certainly duel them, unless they have a significant level or gold advantage over you. Even with a large disparity, Fiora will often come out the winner due to being an amazing duelist. Her Ultimate ability is one of the reasons she is fantastic at 1:1 fights.

If your teleport isn’t up, then you should actually play in the lane beside the current objective but make sure you don’t overextend. A good position is to just keep the wave near your own side and zone off the enemy champions from getting any gold or experience from them.

How to play Fiora in team fights?

There is a lot you can do with Fiora in team fights, but you need to ensure that the enemy team initiates the combat. It will allow you to not worry about any hard crowd control abilities landing your way. It will enable you to dash towards the backline and take down either the mid laner or ADC player of the opponent team, making things a lot easier for your team. You can then look to take down the tanky target on the opponent team as you have a lot of shredding power built into your kit.

The Best Fiora Combos

1. Where did she go!?

It is one of the most complicated combos to execute in League of Legends. Still, if you are serious about playing Fiora, then you need to learn this combo. The combo starts off with you using your ultimate and then quickly following that up with an auto-attack. The moment the auto-attack is landing, you can press your E and flash to the adjacent vital, and it will pop off that too! You are already halfway through the vitals and can use your Q for popping off the third vital. You can simply auto-attack the opponent from the last remaining side as they have already been slowed due to your first E attack.

It is one of the most effective combos and something that catches many players by surprise!

Summary: R > AA > E > Flash > Q > AA

2. The Lane Trade

The way you can harass the enemy champions in lane is straightforward yet very effective. It will revolve around your usage of the Q and how you can play around with your vitals. The general idea is to dash towards the vital, hit them with an auto-attack, and then use your E for the auto-attack reset. You can just use your second E auto on them before disengaging or follow that up with your W to chase them down.

Summary: Q > AA > E > AA > W

Concluding Remarks on How to Play Fiora

We have talked so much about how you can play Fiora like professional players. Still, the execution is in your own hands. That’s why we will recommend you to actually play as much Fiora as possible before you start playing the champion in your ranked games. She is a reasonably tricky champion to learn for both beginners and experienced players.

If you are looking for a less advanced champion to play, you may want to check out these other great LoL tips to help you improve in the game.

We know that you might have noticed that there is no section talking about items in detail, and that’s due to how volatile League of Legends actually is. Everything can change within a few patches but don’t worry, as our advanced algorithm takes thousands of games into account before recommending you the most optimal items.

If there was anything that we didn’t discuss or missed in this article on how to play Fiora, please feel free to help us out in this little venture and comment below on what we can do to improve and make this the ultimate Fiora guide available!

Also, if you are looking for another great League champion to learn how to play, check out our recently revised Sett guide.

Images Courtesy of Riot Games.