Kai'Sa

Overview

With a wide range of builds available to her, Kai’Sa can be your hyper carry or a stopgap measure to give your team a mixed profile of damage. Complimenting the barrage of damage from her missiles is a kit full of mobility that rewards players who know how to toe the line between outplay and death. You can see her full build, including Runes, Items, and more here. 

Top 3 Things to Remember About Kai’Sa

1. Kai’Sa spikes significantly as she is able to upgrade her base abilities through stats acquired from items. Be sure to play around these spikes to maximize your tempo.

2. Killer Instinct is a great tool for finishing opponents, but be careful going in for low priority targets as trading your life, as a primary carry, one for one is often not worth it late game.

3. Supercharge allows you to reposition for aggressive poke when paired alongside Icathian Rain -- it’s not just a tool to disengage from opponents!

Strengths

Depending on the meta, Kai’Sa’s flexibility in builds can vary drastically. Sometimes one build dominates and sometimes multiple builds have similar value. You can typically settle for the most popular build, but don’t be afraid to lean more heavily towards AD or AP if you feel like your team is lacking in either direction. Killer Instinct means Kai’Sa is very good at following up on engages from your teammates who manage to catch a player out, or you can pair it with Supercharge to isolate an wayward soul yourself. 

Weaknesses

Killer Instinct can be a bit of an int button in the hands of an overly aggressive player. Teams that adapt to your tendencies can lure you in and then lock you down with CC if you’re not careful about your timing, or if you happen to get caught out with Supercharge. Kai’Sa can also feel very weak early on before she upgrades her abilities, so take care early to ensure the game isn’t in dire straits before you can even finish your upgrades. 

Game Plan 

1. Early Game: Being relatively short range and item dependent can make for tough laning phases. Thankfully your Icathian Rain’s range and versatility on minion waves should give you options to fight back. 

2. Mid Game: Look to make plays with your teammates -- you should be ready to follow up if one of them manages to isolate an opponent, and you can also look to bait teams into fights if you have strong allies to back you up. 

3. Late Game: Kai’Sa is very strong late game and will also feel strong thanks to her kit providing so much utility. Don’t let that get to your head, though, as you can still die quickly. You should still look for advantageous moments to jump in when you can!