Olaf

Olaf

Master Tier Champion Guide

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Identity

Olaf is a relentless Bruiser defined by his ability to ignore crowd control and run down the enemy backline with his ultimate, Ragnarok. He thrives on the brink of death, gaining immense attack speed at low health, turning seemingly lost fights into victories. This unique low-HP dueling power, combined with the true damage from his E, also makes him one of the fastest and most effective objective takers in the game, especially against Baron.

Strengths & Weaknesses

Strengths

  • Insane Level 1 Power: He has one of the strongest Level 1s in the game due to his Q’s cooldown reduction upon pickup, allowing him to dominate early trades and invasions.

  • CC Immunity: His ultimate completely ignores crowd control, making him devastating against CC-heavy compositions.

  • Early Game Skirmisher: He comes online quickly (around one to two items) and is often the strongest unit on the map during the 10 to 15-minute mark, enabling powerful early snowballing.

Weaknesses

  • Low Mobility: Olaf is inherently slow and lacks a built-in gap closer, making him easy to kite if his Ghost/Flash/Ultimate combo is on cooldown.

  • Vulnerability Pre-Six: Without his ultimate, he is very susceptible to ganks, especially against champions with good CC setup (Olaf EE.g., Shen, Maokai).

  • Kiting Champs: He struggles heavily against high-damage, high-mobility champions who can kite him effectively, such as Kindred, Vayne, or Cassiopeia.

Laning Phase

The laning phase on Olaf is defined by aggression and resource management, leveraging his Level 1 power and wave control to set up kills.

Early Aggression (Level 1)

  • You should always be thinking about how to use your Level 1 strength to impact the game.

  • Invade: Look to invade the enemy jungler to burn their Flash or make their first clear difficult.

  • Trade/Zone: Look to fight your lane opponent aggressively in the bushes or zone them between the minion wave and their tower to deny XP and gold.

Solo Kill Strategy: Go Fishing

  • Do not start an all-in by running straight at the enemy with Ghost and Ult. Instead, think of it like fishing:

  • Chuck the Hook: Keep chucking axes (Q) out, using them as your 'hook'.

  • Commit When it Hits: As soon as an axe hits, that is the moment you commit—pop Ghost and Ultimate to run them down the lane. If the ax misses, go back to farming and wait for the next opportunity.

Wave Management and Trading

  • Olaf truly excels when he has a long lane to chase opponents down.

  • Avoid Crashing Wave 2: If you crash Wave 2 too quickly, the enemy will be under their tower, making it impossible to hunt them down.

  • Aim for a Base: Aim to crash a big wave (Wave 3 or 4) and recall.

  • Create the Freeze: By crashing and basing, the wave will push back toward you. Once you have a freeze established just outside your tower, you can look to utilize that long lane to set up a solo kill.

  • Short Trades: Use yourOlaf QQ, especially when they go for a last hit, as they are less likely to dodge it. YourOlaf WW (Vicious Strikes) provides an Auto Attack reset and a shield, making it excellent for short, favorable trades.

Macro and Teamfights

Olaf’s mid-to-late game focus shifts from dominating his lane to disrupting the enemy backline and controlling the map during his power peak.

Macro Focus

  • Skirmish Focus: You should be involved in as many early skirmishes and fights as possible (for objectives like Dragon/Herald) because Olaf is strongest around the 10–15 minute mark.

  • Side Lane: Olaf is not a split pusher. Your goal in the side lane is to trap the enemy top laner under their turret, preventing them from rotating or gaining map advantage. Once they are trapped, you can fog between lanes and look to join your team.

  • Base Timings: Always look for good base timings, especially after crashing a big wave, since you don't have Teleport most games. You never want to be overstaying on the map when you are unable to fight (low HP/mana, no ult).

Teamfighting

  • Teamfighting on Olaf is simple but requires patience and timing.

  • Flanking: The most effective way to enter a fight is by flanking from the side. If you plan to flank from behind, make sure you are unseen (use Sweeper).

  • Wait for the Moment: Do not blow your full combo (Ghost + Ult) immediately at the start of the fight. Wait for the enemy team to make a positioning error, or wait for the backline to waste a key cooldown or gap closer (like Flash).

  • Ultimate Extension: Your ultimate only lasts 3 seconds unless you are hitting an enemy champion with an auto attack or yourOlaf EE. If you can't reach your primary target, hit anyone you can to keep the ultimate rolling and maintain CC immunity.

Key Combos

The Full Commit All-In (Fishing)

QQ
+
Ghost
+
RR
+
EE
+
Auto
+
QQ

Pop Ghost the moment the Q hits, not before, to prevent them from flashing or dodging it.

Quick Burst/Finish (Gank Setup or Dive)

Flash
+
Auto
+
EE

E will follow the Flash.

Safe Trade/Shield

Auto
+
WW
+
Auto

W provides an Auto Attack Reset + Shield.

Tips & Tricks

Abilities

GeneralGeneral

  • Approach Velocity is Key: This Inspiration rune is crucial. The extra movement speed you gain when moving toward a target you hit with Q helps you pick up the axe faster, secure E damage, and chase opponents you otherwise couldn't.

QQ

  • Focus on picking up yourOlaf QQ immediately to reduce its cooldown and significantly boost your sustained DPS early on.

EE

  • Remember that E deals true damage, making it your primary damage tool for quickly clearing Baron, especially when you are low health and have high attack speed.

RR

  • Never Build Mercury Treads: Seriously, don't do it. Since your ultimate grants CC immunity, Merc Treads' tenacity is completely useless—it's a troll item on Olaf.

Item Synergies

Early CDR

On your first base, if possible, buy an item component that grants cooldown reduction (CDR). This is 'really op' because more CDR means more axes (Q) are thrown, which results in more overall damage than just stacking flat AD early.

Starting Items

Take Doran’s Blade nine times out of ten for the early push advantage. Only take Doran's Shield against highly annoying ranged champions like Vayne or Quinn.

Mythic Flexibility

Stridebreaker is the most consistent option due to the movement speed and slow effect, which is great for running down the backline. Trinity Force is a strong 1v1 item, excellent when facing traditional side-laners like Fiora, Darius, or Riven.

Survivability Second

If you choose a high-damage Mythic (like Trinity Force or Ravenous Hydra), you should always pair it with a survivability item second, such as Sterak’s Gage or Death’s Dance, to avoid being too squishy. Sterak's is particularly good when the game is mostly teamfighting.