Yasuo
Master Tier Champion Guide
Identity
Yasuo is the epitome of a high-skill, high-reward skirmisher, a champion for those who want to be the star of the show. You should play Yasuo if you crave a playstyle defined by mechanical finesse, outplay potential, and the thrill of turning a fight on its head with a single well-timed ultimate. His kit, free from the constraints of mana and built on low cooldowns, allows for a relentless pace of aggression and a feeling of constant action. With an infinitely deep well of tricks and combos, Yasuo offers a journey of continuous improvement, rewarding dedication with the power to single-handedly carry games.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths
Has one of the best basic abilities in the game, Wind Wall, which blocks almost every projectile and auto attack.
Very high carry potential and can melt through squishies and tanks due to mixed damage.
Has next to no cooldowns on main abilities and doesn't use mana (uses Flow).
Weaknesses
His approach is very linear and easily counterplayed in higher ranks.
Has one of the weaker laning phases in the game.
Is a lot weaker if he doesn't have setup for his ultimate (Last Breath).
Laning Phase
Yasuo's early game is often difficult, necessitating patience and intelligent pressure management.
Balance Aggression
Due to low cooldowns, Yasuo can fight frequently, but success relies on finding the perfect balance of aggression and non-aggression.
Early Game Difficulty
Yasuo's laning phase is one of his weakest points. The most important thing is not dying to ganks and falling super behind.
Passive Usage
Take advantage of his passive shield (Way of the Wanderer) to take good trades and compensate for his poor base stats. Try to execute trades before the shield is poked off.
Drawing Pressure
A key goal is to aggressively draw pressure to your lane (making the enemy jungler visit) without dying, thereby relieving pressure on your other lanes.
Wave and Priority
Focus on getting priority and playing for scuttle crab. Get good Control Wards down to control the area and secure a huge edge.
Top Lane Specific
When playing Top Lane, you need to freeze the wave just before your turret from the start, as Yasuo is heavily abused by ganks due to limited escape options.
Team Fighting & Macro
Macro Strategy (Mid Game)
The mid-game generally starts around 12–15 minutes.
Sidelane Assignment
Since Yasuo mid typically does not take Teleport, he should ALWAYS be in the sidelane of the objective the team is looking to secure (
E.g., bot lane for Dragon).
Gold Acquisition
Your job is to pick up as much gold as possible.
Jungle Denial
After pushing a wave into the enemy Tier 2 tower, always take the enemy jungle camps (Gromp, Krugs, etc.). This denies experience from the enemy and builds a massive level lead, which is crucial for split pushers.
Team Fighting (Late Game)
When the late game arrives, Yasuo should be grouping with his team 90% of the time to secure vision and force a fight for Baron. Yasuo has multiple roles depending on the game state:
Main Carry
If the most fed, play the fights slowly, survive as long as possible, and wait for crucial enemy CCs to be used before fully committing.
Engager/Follow-up
Set up an ultimate (Last Breath) on a key enemy carry to start the fight, but only if your team is in range to follow up.
Peeler
If a teammate is the main carry, use Wind Wall to block major damage from killing the carry and use knock-ups/ult to protect them.
Disruptor
Save Wind Wall to block key ultimates (E.g., Miss Fortune R, Seraphine R, Ornn R). If tankier, constantly knock up important enemies while heavy damage dealers win the fight.
Runes
Standard/Damage
Keystone: Press the Attack (PTA). Secondary Path: Resolve or Inspiration. Focus: Provides the strongest damage early game. Notes: Conqueror is an acceptable alternative, especially against very tanky teams in long fights.
Sustain/Lane
Keystone: Fleet Footwork. Secondary Path: Resolve. Focus: Provides the best movement speed and lane kingdom. Notes: Good into lanes like LeBlanc, Ahri, or Zed where PTA/Conqueror provide low value, but it lacks 1v9 potential.
Core Runes
Regardless of Keystone, the Precision path often includes Legend: Alacrity (crucial for lowering Q cooldown) and Last Stand (provides the best dueling/outplay potential). The Resolve path often includes Second Wind (best into heavy poke lanes) or Bone Plating (good against all-in champions like Fizz/Renekton).
Key Combos
Q Flash
Q
Press Q, then immediately Flash. This is simple and catches enemies off guard.
Beyblade (EQ Flash)
EQThis is also called EQ Flash.
Airblade
EQ
RKnock up an enemy → EQ onto something → R. The EQ goes off during the ultimate animation, granting another Q stack.
Keyblade (Hardest Combo)
EQEQRFast DPS Trade
EQThis is faster compared to EQ → Auto, which leaves you stuck in the animation.
Tips & Tricks
Abilities
QYou can cancel your auto attack animation by using Q between every auto (Auto → Q → Auto → Q) for faster DPS.
- Q has an uncancellable windup; you can use Q → Flash or cast Q while stunned.
You can hide the animation of your third Q by using W before Q (WQ).
WWind Wall grants vision.
You can Wind Wall during your
E dash (EQW) to block skillshots (e.g., Ahri, Lux, Zoe) that try to hit you during the dash animation.
ESweeping Blade will only do its maximum damage to an enemy champion if you dash to 2 enemies before dashing to the champion.
You can easily use E to dash over walls using jungle camps. Using the 'Target Champions Only' feature helps execute these hops. Gromp is probably the easiest camp to hop over.
RPay attention to when your
Q tornado runs out, as Yasuo is very vulnerable after losing his only way of CCing his opponent. When considering using R, think about who can damage and CC you before you commit.
Item Synergies
Wave Control
When playing Top Lane, if the enemy champion allows it, you can use Wind Wall to block ranged minion basic attacks to help freeze the wave.
Summoner Spells
Flash should always be taken. Ignite is the standard second choice. Exhaust is recommended against Zed and other assassins, as it is a highly effective anti-burst tool that scales well. Cleanse is highly situational, recommended only against Lissandra or Zoe.
Starting Items
Doran's Blade is standard against melee matchups; Doran's Shield is preferred against ranged poke lanes, often paired with Second Wind for better sustain.