Best Darius Counters in LoL – Which Champion to Pick Against Darius

LoL Esports

June 12, 2023

Davide Xu

Darius is one of the more challenging top laners to play against in League of Legends. This is because of his passive, which is one of the most aggravating things to play against. But don’t worry, we have some counters that can put this axe-wielding soldier to bed.

Image via Riot Games

5 Best Darius Counters

Whether he is on your team or against you, Darius is one of the most annoying champions to be with on Summoners Rift. I often find that the Darius’s on my team are the ones that have no idea how the champion works, and get abused in a ranged versus melee matchup. But when I have a Darius on the other team, it feels like my team is getting run through as he is racking up kills left, right, and center.

He can either be completely broken or completely useless, there is no in between. I guess that is how the champion is meant to be played. Because he doesn’t really scale well into the late game, and is reliant on his passive or ultimate execute in order to be useful in the game. He is limited in that regard, and isn’t a great laner to deal with the sidelanes. But in the lane, he is definitely a problem, and most would rather ban him than play against him. But what if he’s not banned? Don’t worry, here are five champions that can take care of your Darius problem in League of Legends.

Dr. Mundo

Image Credits | Riot Games

Although Darius is very good into tanks, Dr. Mundo is an exception to this rule, and even if Darius gets some anti-heal, he isn’t going to be able to deal with the sustain of Mundo. Mundo is definitely one of those annoying tanks in the top lane that you just can’t shake.

Mundo’s Q does a lot of damage, more than you think, and if he lands a few of those onto you in succession, you’re either going to have to pop your health potions, or go back to base. And even if Darius does try to get a kill onto Mundo, he will just sustain the attacks and heal up, leaving Darius worse for wear rather than the other way around. Let’s look below at some of the ways Mundo can tackle the lane versus Darius

Like in a ranged matchup versus Darius, poke him whenever he goes up to farm. He will start to feel the pressure.
Don’t be scared to walk up to him when you have your passive up, his only CC is E, so even if he goes in on you, you’ll be fine.
Definitely use ultimate before Darius’s stacks have reached max, or you’ll lose an insane amount of health for no reason.
Only play with respect if he starts buying anti-heal, because he does then have some kill pressure over you.

Read more: Best Champions to carry early game in League

Jayce

If being a tank is not really your style, and you would like another champion that can get down in the mud and scrap with Darius, then we highly recommend taking Jayce. This is one of the matchups that Darius players hate going into. Jayce has two forms, his ranged form and his hammer form. When he is ranged, he makes it a living hell for Darius, as his long-range auto attacks can chunk Darius out whenever he goes for minions. And in his hammer form, he can burst Darius while also knocking him away if he ever tries to engage.

Image Credits | Riot Games

That said, Jayce can be a tough cookie to crack; you need to make sure your combos are on point in both forms if you are to make the matchup work. If the Jayce doesn’t know what he’s doing, then he’s going to have a rough time against Darius, who will just flash on his head. Let’s take a look at how Jayce can play the lane:

You definitely need to track his summoner spells, because even if you knock him away with E, he can still flash and or ghost to catch up.
Runes are important, try to prioritise movement speed, because in the one versus one you’re going to need it.
Make sure to build up the wave, because then he will have a much harder time chasing you down.
After your tear, maybe look at getting boots, just to help with the lane.
Later in the game, you do beat him pretty hard, so even if you can’t get much done early, you’ll scale.

Jax

Since the rework of Jax, he has had the upperhand in the matchup against Darius. It’s been a rather one-sided affair, with Jax being the one coming out on top in most scenarios.

Although Darius’s passive cannot be blocked by Jax’s E, it still can negate any of the damage that could come from that attack. This allows Jax to have much better short trades with his empowered W.

Image Credits | Riot Games

Although Jax will have an advantage in the lane, it’s still a skill expression matchup, you can’t just enter the line thinking you’re going to win. It’s all about managing your trades, wave manipulation, and more. Both champions can kill one another basically, but Jax definitely has the right to win the match-up if the lane is played how it should. He should be able to withstand the pressure from Darius once both champions hit level 6. Here are some helpful tips to get you through the lane against Darius:

Don’t use your E too early, because then Darius has the upper hand in the matchup. It won’t block the passive ticking up either so be mindful of that.
You have the control at all times, so when he goes to hit minions, hit a couple of quick auto attacks followed by a W attack. If he gets mad, use your Q or E to negate the damage.
Don’t get greedy if he is at full health by level six, you will find yourself heading back to the grey screen. Just farm up, trade well, get an item or two, and then you’re good to go.
Be wary of the summoners he has. He will often run flash and ghost, so he will have many ways of escaping you.

Read also: Best Clash Team Comps

Yorick

Although he is getting nerfed soon, the next patch to be infact, Yorick has been more of a popular figure in the top lane and not just a champion that split push fanatics like to use. It’s become more of a one-sided matchup since the buffs to Yorick. He is annoying prior to his level six, with the ghouls being a problem for champions with not the best early games. On top of that, Yorick when he hits level six goes to another level in the one versus one. His maiden will chunk through Darius’s life, and it’s difficult for him to deal with the maiden too.

It’s made increasingly worse if Darius gets trapped in Yorick’s cage, because he can be attacked by Yorick while simultaneously being attacked by the maiden and her ghouls. Let’s explore how you would play the lane as Yorick.

Stack your ghouls up as much as possible, it’s hard for Darius to focus on them and you. And also, he can’t kill them instantly with his Q.
Make sure you can get the advantage early, because he does have kill pressure if he reaches level 3 first.
Darius works well if there are less minions, because it gives him the opportunity pop ghost and run at you. Save your cage for his engage as he takes a while to kill it.
Don’t engage with Darius if he gets level six before you.
Unless you’re heavily dropping behind in farm, you can always play the scaling game and don’t engage with the enemy. As long as Darius doesn’t snowball, Yorick will outscale him anyway.
You scale better than him, so if you can’t create many lane advantages, don’t worry, you can outpush him later in the game.

Sett – Not afraid of your damage

Sett is one of the best pound-for-pound top laners in League of Legends, and he won’t shy away from a fight versus Darius. The brawler can deal with the extended trades rather well, so don’t be scared to really get in there and scrap with Darius. It is still a skill-expressive matchup, but this is the type of matchup that Sett thrives in.

Image Credits | Riot Games

Darius does still have kill pressure in this lane, but a good Sett player should still be able to shut him down without any problems. Sett has enough in the Arsenal to deal with Darius, and sustain most of the incoming attacks that Darius will throw at him in the early game. As long as Darius does not get that early kill, then all will be okay for Sett.

The W is where it will decide if Darius is going to win the lane or Sett is going to win the lane. It may be scary, but you need to take enough damage to build that W bar up to full. If you can land a big W, then you are in for a good time. Let’s look at how Sett can get the upper hand against Darius:

Only start brawling with Darius once you have all three skills unlocked.
Always go for the E when you have minions between you and Darius, as this will force the stun, which can then be followed up by your Q/empowered Q.
The outer circle of his Q is where he will do the most damage and heal, so if you need to, use E to put you inside the circle.
Only use your W at max if you are certain it’s going to land. Also hold it for as long as possible.
Hold the W for when he is about to use his ultimate if you get caught in that position, it should mean you survive because of the large shield.

Read more: Best Bot Lane Duos in LoL