Showmaker’s insane new tank Akali build is taking over League of Legends
Riot Games Love her or hate her, Akali is one of League’s most divisive champions, and there’s a new build taking the pro scene by storm that makes her even more frustrating to play into.
Akali has been one of League’s more popular mid laners since the release of her rework in 2018. She was one of the highest-presence champions at the 2018 and 2019 World Championships, and has remained a consistent presence in pro play and solo queue ever since.
Recently, Akali’s presence in solo queue across the world has begun to creep up, and it’s all thanks to a new tank build that’s taking over high ELO games.
The build utilizes Turbo Chemtank as its core mythic item, and has one of the highest win rates of any Akali build in the world right now at 54 percent according to lolalytics.
YouTuber Midbeast recently released a video on the build, calling it “completely unkillable” and explaining that “in the late game, nothing will beat you in a 1 vs 1”.
League of Legends’ new tank Akali build: Runes
Because of the build’s tankier nature, most pros are opting for Conqueror as their primary rune over the high burst potential of something like Electrocute. The rune’s inbuilt healing allows Akali to sustain herself for even longer during extended fights, making her even harder to kill on top of the tank stats she’s already gaining from the build path.
The build’s highest win rate rune setup according to lolalyticsTank Akali items
The two most important aspects of this build are Turbo Chemtank and Demonic Embrace.
The bonus health gained from Chemtank is turned into bonus Ability Power by Demonic Embrace’s Dark Pact passive. This essentially means that the tankier you get, the more damage you deal.
Pro players are also tending towards Shadowflame as their third item for yet more bonus health and magic penetration. The core combination of Chemtank, Demonic Embrace, and Shadowflame makes Akali incredibly difficult to kill, but also deal a surprising amount of consistent damage.
After that, the build can be adapted to suit the game at hand. Morellonomicon, Zhonya’s Hourglass, Void Staff and Rabadon’s Deathcap are all valid options depending on game state, with some offering further defensive stats and others allowing for higher damage output.
We’ve seen very little Akali so far in professional play in 2022. But with the growing popularity of this build path, there’s a chance we’ll see the Rogue Assassin somersaulting her way back into the global meta.