From runes to items, gameplay tips amd more, we've put together a guide to help you master playing Nasus in the toplane in League of Legends.
Be mindful that there are several ways to build and play a champion, and you'll need to be adaptable as the game and the enemy team progress.
That said, this guide is a good starting point to helping you get to grips with the champion and making an impact in your games.
Runes
Core Items
Build
Divine Sunderer is a great item on Nasus, offering health, AD and ability haste, as well as the Spellblade passive for extra % health damage.
Frozen Heart is a solid tanky item that massively increases armor, while its passive weakens enemies.
Other good items include Spirit Visage, Thornmail, Gargoyle's Stoneplate, and Sterak's Gage.
Starting Item & Boots
Skill Order
While your choices may differ according to how the game progresses, the typical Nasus skill priority is:
R > Q > W > E
Summoner Spells
These are the summoner spells most typically taken by Nasus in this role. Naturally, this may change depending on match-ups.
Gameplay
Nasus is pretty terrible in the early game, with slow attacks and low mobility. However, if you manage to farm Siphoning Strike and gain stacks quickly - a huge, huge if on Nasus, then you'll become a literal monster. Play safe early, focus on last-hitting with Q, and be patient. Try not to let your opponent get too far ahead, and make sure you keep the toplane warded.
- Level 1 - Take Q - Siphoning Strike, and begin last-hitting minions to gain stacks.
- Level 2 - Take E - Spirit Fire, to zone enemies and deal AoE damage to creeps.
- First Back - Start building towards your Divine Sunderer, or pick up defensive boots if you're struggling.
Tips & Tricks
- Enemy champions, large jungle monsters, and large minions (i.e. cannon) grant double the stacks of Siphoning Strike.
- Siphoning Strike resets your auto-attack, so alternate between that and your auto for max damage output.
- Your passive allows you to recover health when auto-attacking minions, so use this to sustain yourself in lane.
- Enemies within Spirit Fire have their armor reduced.
- Fury of the Sands increases your armor and resist.
- When Nasus uses Fury of the Sands, the cooldown on Siphoning Strike is halved for the duration.
- Fury of the Sands ramps up your damage output considerably, so use it right away in teamfights.
