League of Legends Vladimir Guide: Best Build, Runes, Combos

Vladimir is a powerful mage in League of Legends who thrives in extended team fights thanks to his sustain, burst damage, and scaling potential. Known for his unique health-cost abilities and game-changing ultimate, Vladimir excels at diving into enemy teams and turning the tide of battle with well-timed combos. Whether you’re playing him in mid or top lane, mastering Vladimir means understanding his healing windows, wave control, and all-in potential. In this guide, you’ll learn the best build, runes, items, and combos to make the most out of Vladimir and consistently carry your games.

Vladimir Abilities Overview In League of Legends

Vladimir’s kit is all about sustaining in lane, dealing massive AoE damage in teamfights, and scaling hard into the late game. His passive, Crimson Pact, converts bonus health into bonus ability power and vice versa, making tanky AP items incredibly effective on him. His Q, Transfusion, is his main poke and sustain tool, dealing magic damage and healing him—after two casts, it empowers for extra damage and more healing. His W, Sanguine Pool, lets him dive under enemies by turning untargetable while slowing and damaging enemies beneath him. His E, Tides of Blood, charges up and then releases a wave of damage around him—great for waveclear or burst trades. Finally, his R, Hemoplague, infects a group of enemies, increasing the damage they take and dealing a big burst of magic damage after a delay. Used together, these abilities make Vladimir a late-game monster with insane teamfight potential.

How To Play Vladimir in League of Legends

Best Summoner Spells For Vladimir

The best summoner spells for Vladimir are Flash and Ghost. Flash gives him the ability to reposition quickly—great for escaping ganks or flashing in to finish kills with Hemoplague. Ghost synergizes perfectly with his playstyle, letting him stick to targets during extended trades or teamfights, especially when paired with his Q and E spam. If you’re up against heavy crowd control or want safer laning, you can consider Teleport, but Flash + Ghost is the go-to combo for dominating mid to late game teamfights.

Best Runes For Vladimir

The best runes for Vladimir focus on scaling damage, sustain, and teamfight impact. Phase Rush is his ideal keystone because it gives him a burst of movement speed after landing abilities, letting him weave in and out of fights while charging his combos. Take Nimbus Cloak, Transcendence, and Gathering Storm in the Sorcery tree to boost mobility, ability haste, and scaling power. For secondaries, go Precision with Triumph and Legend: Tenacity to help him survive all-ins and reduce crowd control duration. This setup gives Vladimir everything he needs to scale into a late-game monster.

Best Build For Vladimir

The best build for Vladimir maximizes his sustain, burst, and teamfight presence. Start with Hextech Rocketbelt as your Mythic for extra mobility and burst damage. Follow up with Rabadon’s Deathcap to drastically boost your AP, and Cosmic Drive for ability haste and extra movement speed. Zhonya’s Hourglass is essential for survivability, letting you dive in and stall during cooldowns. Add Void Staff to shred magic resist, and round out the build with Spirit Visage or Shadowflame depending on whether you need more healing or penetration. This setup makes Vladimir tanky, fast, and deadly in teamfights.

Best Combos To Learn For Vladimir

The best combos to learn for Vladimir focus on timing your damage and survivability for max impact. In lane, use E → Q → AA for short trades, charging your E just before going in. For burst, go Flash → E → Q → R → W to surprise and blow up squishies—always try to Flash+E right before R to hit the entire group. In teamfights, start with R → E → Q → W, then reposition and finish with another Q or E after cooldowns reset. Always weave in Q empowered hits after 2 spells to keep healing up and maximize damage.

Conclusion

Vladimir is one of the strongest scaling AP champions in League of Legends, offering powerful teamfight presence and unmatched sustain. With the right build, optimal runes, and well-timed combos, he can dominate lanes and turn the tide of late-game fights. Mastering his unique mechanics and cooldown management will let you outlast and outplay your opponents with ease.