Xerath has burst.
Xerath has range.
Xerath can poke.
Xerath can teamfight.
Xerath can kite.
Xerath snowballs hard.
Xerath has hard CC.
Xerath scales into lategame.

Why aren't you playing Xerath?

Probably because you almost never see one and when you do you can't tell how to play him.
Here's a guide for you.

• Highest burst range in the game
• Good scaling on abilities
• Hard CC
• Built-in %MPen
• Naturally tanky versus AD

• Sacrifices mobility for max DPS
• Very vulnerable to reliable gap closers
• Very mana hungry
• Hard CC requires you to combo two spells
• Skillshots hard

My name's Strainger and I play on the NA server.

I'm sitting in Platinum Division 5 and I've been playing Xerath for a very long time. I remember when they stealth nerfed his R and then gave him buffs to compromise. Later they decided to rebuff (in their words: fix the animation) the R and let him keep his buffs!
I've been playing mages in general for a good long while. After slowly learning how to play the game with Ashe, Annie, and the like, I found my favorite role was that of the mage. In particular, my mains have been Malzahar , then Kassadin , and now Xerath

LoLKing profile
http://www.lolking.net/summoner/na/20264923

Twitch Stream
[twitch]http://www.twitch.tv/thestrainger[/twitch]
I don't stream very often since nobody watches it.

I take the standard non-tanky caster mastery page of 21/0/9.

The 21 points in offense give you better damage, cooldown, and %MPen. The 4th point in the CDR mastery is usually not necessary as your build will sometimes include the full 40% CDR. You will usually have a blue buff, making only 1 CDR item necessary to hit the 40% CDR cap.

The 9 points in utility are essential. It makes your blue buff last longer. It gives you a free of mana regen before you get any mana regen items. Additionally, it shortens the cooldown of

If you are very paranoid about your lane opponent you can forego the 9 points in utility and take 9 points in defense, prioritizing the bonus health and MRes.

9 Flat HybridPen Marks

Q: Why not Flat MPen Marks?
A: HybridPen Marks give .62MPen and Flat MPen Marks give .87, but HybridPen also gives .9ArPen.
Q: Why does this matter?
A: By sacrificing a measly 2.25MPen you gain 8.1ArPen. This makes your autoattack harass much more effective and doesn't detract a noticeable amount of your magic damage.

9 HP/Lvl Seals

Q: Why not Mana Regen/Lvl Seals?
A: It is perfectly acceptable to take Mana Regen/Lvl Seals, however, your build includes a healthy amount of mana regen. Additionally you will usually have blue buff for a majority of the game. I personally prefer the extra survivability in more health.

9 AP/Lvl Glyphs

A fairly standard non-tanky mage choice for glyphs.

Q: Why not MRes Glyphs?
A: Against certain matchups MRes Glyphs are excellent substitutes. However most matchups you will be staying very safe due to your superior range and poke.

3 Flat AP Quintessences

Q: Why not Movespeed Quints?
A: Movespeed quints are a fine alternative. I prefer the extra AP for better early game harass and farm potential. Additionally, if you position well with W, you shouldn't need the extra speed.

OTHER GOOD OPTIONS INSTEAD OF IGNITE:



Always take Flash. Period. It's still clearly the best Summoner Spell in the game even after several nerfs to both range and cooldown. Having a short-range blink makes all the difference in both catching people as well as escaping.

Ignite can seem counter-intuitive because you will often times not be in range to Ignite. However, earlier in the game it helps your ability to finish off your opponents. You should be able to Ignite while they are stunned.

Alternatively, you can take . You can teleport into the bushes of another lane (usually bot) and burst the enemies before they have a chance to get out of range of you. If the enemies are overextended it's almost always a double kill for your team.

is also another acceptable summoner spell. It serves a similar function to Ignite, except it is defensive rather than offensive. You can also barrier bait people into diving your tower and then stun them while they take tower aggro.

This passive is very useful if the enemy team is heavy AD. It allows you to build damage and get resistances off of it. Even if the enemy team isn't heavy AD you still get the important stat versus the AD carry.







Your primary method of harass. The first spell you max. 900 range normally and 1300 (shoots past normal vision range into the fog) when locked down. If you're against a bad lane you can use it to farm at a safe distance. If you're in a favorable lane it can easily bully the enemy.







The most difficult spell to master. If you lockdown in the wrong place or at the wrong time it can be a death sentence. In contrast to locking down at the right place, punishing anyone foolish enough to get near you and your team.







The "utility" spell. It has higher base damage and scaling than Q but has shorter range. Its proc makes your next damaging spell stun the enemy for a solid 1.5 seconds.







Your super siege ability. It technically has identical range to Q, but is actually slightly longer since it is a circular AOE rather than a straight line.
It is much easier to hit with than Q, making it the primary choice of spell for the stun combo if you're going for the kill or really need to escape.
Your ability to fight is cut while this spell is on cooldown, but its cooldown is 32 seconds at level 3 with 40% CDR.

You always max first. This is your primary method of harassing the enemy, shoving the lane, and farming the lane.

Take a point in whenever you can.

Take a point in at level 2 for the CC combo.

Please see the next chapter for the detailed math for why the second spell you max is W instead of E in most scenarios.

At Level 7:

Flat MPen with Runes/Masteries (NO items) : 5.5
Flat Mpen with Runes/Masteries (Boots) : 20.5
Flat Mpen with RUnes/Masteries (Both) : 35.5

% Mpen with Runes/Mastery (NOT locked down): 8%
% Mpen with Runes/Mastery (Locked down) : 23%

AP (before 5% mastery) : 38.56
AP (no items) : 40.488
AP (Kage's) : 66.738
AP (Kage's + Codex) : 98.238
AP (Morellonomicon) : 119.238

Skills:

Arcanopulse @ Level 4
Arcanopulse base dmg: 195
Scaling : .6

Locus of Power @ Level 1
16% MPen

Mage Chains @ Level 1
Mage Chains base dmg: 70
Scaling : .8

Arcane Barrage @ Level 1
Arcane Barrage base dmg: 125
Scaling : .6
(hits up to 3 times)

Assuming enemy has 30 MR:

***NOT LOCKED DOWN***
5.5 Flat MPen
8% MPen

Enemy's Final MR: 22.1

Enemy's Magic DMG Reduction: 18%

***LOCKED DOWN***
5.5 Flat MPen
23% MPen

Enemy's Final MR: 17.6

Enemy's Magic DMG Reduction: 15%

Total Damage with Kage's

***RAW DAMAGE***
Q: 235
E: 123
R: 165 (x3) = 495
TOTAL: 853

***NOT LOCKED DOWN***
Q: 193
E: 101
R: 135 (x3) = 405
TOTAL: 699

***LOCKED DOWN***
Q: 200
E: 105
R: 140 (x3) = 420
TOTAL: 725



At Level 11:

Flat Mpen with Runes/Masteries (Boots) : 20.5
Flat Mpen with RUnes/Masteries (Both) : 35.5

% Mpen with Runes/Mastery (NOT locked down): 8%

AP (before 5% mastery) : 48.68
AP (no items) : 51.114
AP (Morellonomicon) : 129.864
AP (Morellonomicon + Deathcap) : 332.6232

Skills:

Arcanopulse @ Level 5
Arcanopulse base dmg: 235
Scaling : .6

***MAXING E SECOND ROUTE***

Locus of Power @ Level 1
16% MPen

Mage Chains @ Level 3
Mage Chains base dmg: 170
Scaling : .8

Arcane Barrage @ Level 2
Arcane Barrage base dmg: 200
Scaling : .6
(hits up to 3 times)

Assuming enemy has 30 MR:

***NOT LOCKED DOWN***
5.5 Flat MPen
8% MPen

Enemy's Final MR: 22.1

Enemy's Magic DMG Reduction: 18%

***LOCKED DOWN***
5.5 Flat MPen
23% MPen

Enemy's Final MR: 17.6

Enemy's Magic DMG Reduction: 15%

Total Damage with Morellonomicon

***RAW DAMAGE***
Q: 313
E: 274
R: 278 (x3) = 834
TOTAL: 1421

***NOT LOCKED DOWN***
Q: 257
E: 225
R: 228 (x3) = 684
TOTAL: 1166

***LOCKED DOWN***
Q: 266
E: 233
R: 236 (x3) = 708
TOTAL: 1207


***MAXING W SECOND ROUTE***

Locus of Power @ Level 3
28% MPen

Mage Chains @ Level 1
Mage Chains base dmg: 70
Scaling : .8

Arcane Barrage @ Level 2
Arcane Barrage base dmg: 200
Scaling : .6
(hits up to 3 times)


***NOT LOCKED DOWN***
5.5 Flat MPen
8% MPen

Enemy's Final MR: 22.1

Enemy's Magic DMG Reduction: 18%

***LOCKED DOWN***
5.5 Flat MPen
34% MPen

Enemy's Final MR: 14.3

Enemy's Magic DMG Reduction: 13%

Total Damage with Morellonomicon

***RAW DAMAGE***
Q: 313
E: 174
R: 278 (x3) = 834
TOTAL: 1321

***NOT LOCKED DOWN***
Q: 257
E: 143
R: 228 (x3) = 684
TOTAL: 1084

***LOCKED DOWN***
Q: 272
E: 151
R: 242 (x3) = 726
TOTAL: 1149


***CONCLUSION***
Against a lane opponent not running MR/lvl glyphs your DPS is higher if you max E second.



Against an enemy with 50 MR:

At Level 7:

Flat MPen with Runes/Masteries (NO items) : 5.5
Flat Mpen with Runes/Masteries (Boots) : 20.5
Flat Mpen with RUnes/Masteries (Both) : 35.5

% Mpen with Runes/Mastery (NOT locked down): 8%
% Mpen with Runes/Mastery (Locked down) : 23%

AP (before 5% mastery) : 38.56
AP (no items) : 40.488
AP (Kage's) : 66.738
AP (Kage's + Codex) : 98.238
AP (Morellonomicon) : 119.238

Skills:

Arcanopulse @ Level 4
Arcanopulse base dmg: 195
Scaling : .6

Locus of Power @ Level 1
16% MPen

Mage Chains @ Level 1
Mage Chains base dmg: 70
Scaling : .8

Arcane Barrage @ Level 1
Arcane Barrage base dmg: 125
Scaling : .6
(hits up to 3 times)

***NOT LOCKED DOWN***
5.5 Flat MPen
8% MPen

Enemy's Final MR: 40.5

Enemy's Magic DMG Reduction: 29%

***LOCKED DOWN***
5.5 Flat MPen
23% MPen

Enemy's Final MR: 33

Enemy's Magic DMG Reduction: 25%

Total Damage with Kage's

***RAW DAMAGE***
Q: 235
E: 123
R: 165 (x3) = 495
TOTAL: 853

***NOT LOCKED DOWN***
Q: 167
E: 87
R: 117 (x3) = 351
TOTAL: 545

***LOCKED DOWN***
Q: 176
E: 92
R: 124 (x3) = 372
TOTAL: 640


At Level 11:

Flat Mpen with Runes/Masteries (Boots) : 20.5
Flat Mpen with RUnes/Masteries (Both) : 35.5

% Mpen with Runes/Mastery (NOT locked down): 8%

AP (before 5% mastery) : 48.68
AP (no items) : 51.114
AP (Morellonomicon) : 129.864
AP (Morellonomicon + Deathcap) : 332.6232

Skills:

Arcanopulse @ Level 5
Arcanopulse base dmg: 235
Scaling : .6

***MAXING E SECOND ROUTE***

Locus of Power @ Level 1
16% MPen

Mage Chains @ Level 3
Mage Chains base dmg: 170
Scaling : .8

Arcane Barrage @ Level 2
Arcane Barrage base dmg: 200
Scaling : .6
(hits up to 3 times)

Assuming enemy has 50 MR:

***NOT LOCKED DOWN***
5.5 Flat MPen
8% MPen

Enemy's Final MR: 40.5

Enemy's Magic DMG Reduction: 29%

***LOCKED DOWN***
5.5 Flat MPen
23% MPen

Enemy's Final MR: 33

Enemy's Magic DMG Reduction: 25%

Total Damage with Morellonomicon

***RAW DAMAGE***
Q: 313
E: 274
R: 278 (x3) = 834
TOTAL: 1421

***NOT LOCKED DOWN***
Q: 222
E: 195
R: 197 (x3) = 591
TOTAL: 1008

***LOCKED DOWN***
Q: 235
E: 206
R: 209 (x3) = 627
TOTAL: 1068


***MAXING W SECOND ROUTE***

Locus of Power @ Level 3
28% MPen

Mage Chains @ Level 1
Mage Chains base dmg: 70
Scaling : .8

Arcane Barrage @ Level 2
Arcane Barrage base dmg: 200
Scaling : .6
(hits up to 3 times)


***NOT LOCKED DOWN***
5.5 Flat MPen
8% MPen

Enemy's Final MR: 40.5

Enemy's Magic DMG Reduction: 29%

***LOCKED DOWN***
5.5 Flat MPen
34% MPen

Enemy's Final MR: 27.5

Enemy's Magic DMG Reduction: 22%

Total Damage with Morellonomicon

***RAW DAMAGE***
Q: 313
E: 174
R: 278 (x3) = 834
TOTAL: 1321

***NOT LOCKED DOWN***
Q: 222
E: 195
R: 197 (x3) = 591
TOTAL: 1008

***LOCKED DOWN***
Q: 244
E: 136
R: 217 (x3) = 651
TOTAL: 1031


***CONCLUSION***
The DPS for maxing W or E is almost identical at 50 MR.


***FINAL CONCLUSION***
Its ALMOST ALWAYS best to max W second after Q.
The small amount of DPS you will lose is not enough to counterbalance the greatly decreased cooldown on your W.

In most games, this is my build order:
+

1st back:
+ + 2-3 + 1-2

From there:
+

->

If I want more CC
->

If I want more damage
->


General Scenarios:
Against balanced enemy team
1st item:
-> -> -> -> ->

Enemy AD fed or against heavy AD
-> -> -> -> -> ->

Against Heavy AP
-> -> -> -> ->

Enemies stacking MR
-> -> -> -> -> ->

Boot Enchantments
Under most circumstances you'll want Alacrity but if you find yourself needing to quickly defend your base or heal and run back to lane quickly get the all-star Homeguard

You should get these enchantments whenever you feel is most necessary.
Example: the enemy team is pushing our inhibitor tower. I have ~1K gold and can either buy or . I will buy homeguard and save the tower, denying the enemy team a total of 750G and only be slightly behind towards my next big item.

These builds are very interchangeable, but one thing remains constant:
You. Must. Get. OR . First. The mana regen and CDR are absolutely necessary to your playstyle of siege machine.

Q: Why no Void Staff?
A: %MPen stacks multiplicatively and not cumulatively. Your W gives you free %MPen while locked down. At level 5 W gives 40% MPen with a 4 second base cooldown. You don't need a Void Staff. You have one built in.

In summation, the items that should always constitute a part of your build are:

As I said before, the builds are very interchangeable. Here is a quick reference for items that typically do best against certain conditions:

Enemy AD is getting fed:

Enemy AP is getting fed:
OPTIONAL:

Enemies starting to stack MR:
MAX and LAUGH

Enemies stacking HP:

Enemies are getting stomped:

Depending on who you're laning against will determine how you should approach the lane. A good general start is + for mobility and sustain.

Try to hit level 6 before your first back. But do not hesitate to go back if you take too much harass or are getting jungle camped. Buy consumables accordingly.

Goal for first back
OR + + at least 1 (bonus points if you can get part of your )

You should ONLY get if you're against a lot of AP or a hard counter such as or . Otherwise is a much better option because it gives you AP as well as generates gold.

At this point you should be getting blue buff fairly soon. If your lane opponent isn't a hard counter you should be able to effectively spam Q harass until you're ready to try to burst them with your full combo.

Your full combo is:
W -> E -> R -> Q -> R -> R

Be wary of the enemy jungler as Q spam tends to push the lane. USE YOUR WARDS

If your lane opponent is a hard counter try to just stay back and farm. Do. Not. Let them close the distance and start killing you. Xerath's combat effectiveness is highest at mid to long range. If you let them get close to you, then you are probably dying.
Stay safe and farm with Q and W
Try to keep your ramp warded for your bot lane since you will be playing defensively which will give the enemy mid a higher opportunity to gank bot through your jungle.

At this point you should have at least your or , , and a good chunk of your next item.

During this part of the game try to keep a ward on you at all times. Many kills are to be had by simply warding over a wall, locking down, and destroying whoever you find on the other side.
If any skirmishes or teamfights break out, try to use as many spells as you can while being locked down in a SAFE location.

If a fight starts moving towards you IMMEDIATELY de-lock and start moving into a better position.

The NUMBER ONE thing for you to master to skirmish and team fight effectively is positioning.

Good positioning will allow your teammates to take aggro while you chunk the enemies from far out of their range. If you positioned just right you should be barely in range of a locked down E from their front line. If a carry or squishy champion (usually support) gets in range of your E you can immediately try to stun combo them. In a skirmish or team fight this forces them to burn a flash to avoid the stun. Otherwise they will almost always die from the combined damage of you and whoever else is involved in the fight on your team.

The SECOND most important thing to understand in skirmishes and team fights is to not tunnelvision on one target.

Out of the 5 damaging spellcasts you will use during a fight, 4 of them are AoE. Your job is to hit as many people as possible, therefore doing as much damage as possible to the enemy team. Often times you can kill a squishy target without needing to stun them.

LASTLY you must understand your damage potential. This is a much more difficult concept to grasp and typically only comes with experience and lots of dedicated gameplay. You need to be able to gauge if you are able to kill a target under many different conditions such as:

• Sniping someone and getting away before their team can react
• Early game jungle ganks
• Skirmishes around jungle buffs
• Team fights around important objectives (i.e. Dragon, Baron)
• Kiting with your W and Q

[highlight]YOUR JOB IN A TEAM FIGHT OR SKIRMISH IS TO DO AS MUCH DAMAGE AS POSSIBLE TO AS MANY ENEMIES AS POSSIBLE[/highlights]

You should have 4 to 5 items at this point. Your burst potential is very very high. Wards are your best friend at this point in the game if you have any item slots left. Try to get at least 2 each time you go back. The more vision you have, the easier it is to catch somebody off-guard for your team and secure a major objective.

If you have no inventory slots left open, instruct your teammates to ward EVERYWHERE, but particularly over walls so you can potentially instagib an enemy squishy.

When fighting at Baron, if your team is taking Baron, try to lock down close to Baron but not next to the back wall. This is so you can hit people standing behind the pit but simultaneously are not taking damage from Baron. However you must take into account what champions are on the enemy team so you don't get caught and killed. The other place to lock down is in the bushes in the river so you can zone out the enemy team or poke them before they have a chance to start fighting.

You should ONLY lock down in the bushes if you have the adjacent bushes warded so you don't get caught.


If you are trying to prevent the enemy team from getting Baron, the two best locations to lock down and attack are in the bushes in the river or in the bushes behind the Baron pit. This allows you to reliably hit anybody in the pit while keeping yourself at a safe distance.

If an enemy has built no health items and is very squishy, you can usually kill them in 3 or 4 hits. After seeing this people usually react by saying:

Difficulty rating is on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being most difficult. I will be covering the more frequently played champions so you can have a more realistic idea of what you might encounter.

People that will give you a hard time and should play defensively against:


In general, gap closers and high mobility assassins give Xerath a hard time.

People that you should be able to bully around in the lane:


In general, people with slow skillshots and champions that rely on getting close to you to do more damage but lack a reliable gap closer.

In Depth

Popular Champions

Difficulty: 4-7
She gets a dash after level 6. Similar to Kassadin but harder to use and harder to win with. After level 6 you have to avoid her Q as much as possible. If she's allowed to reset her R cooldown you're in serious trouble.

Difficulty: 5-7
A different, more popular, long-range siege machine. She has 4 skillshots so she's much harder to play than your average champion, but she hurts quite a bit. Your 2 main ways to win the lane are to anticipate her E and move out of it while it's coming towards you and stay behind minions so you don't get snared. If you're worried about not being able to dodge enough you might consider an early to negate some of the harass and help you harass back.

Difficulty: 9
He does magic damage, resists your poke, has a short cooldown gap closer, and deals all magic damage. Once he hits 6 he can very easily push you out of your lane and then go gank your other lanes. Your best solution is to autoattack harass as much as you can and ask for help from your jungler ASAP and before he hits level 6. Kassadin can beat you easier than Ahri, but a skilled Ahri will beat you harder.

Difficulty: 6
Nidalee has to hit skillshots or get in melee range to kill you. If you lock down in the wrong places you will be destroyed by spears, but if you get too close post-6 you'll get jumped on. You must find a balance between staying behind minions and keeping a safe but close enough distance to harass/burst. Positioning is key in this matchup.

Difficulty: 5-10 (completely dependent on opponent skill level)
It is true that Ahri is a counterpick. However, the more you play the matchup the more you will get used to how to approach it. She is only as dangerous as the player using her. The better the Ahri player the more danger you're in. Tip: If Ahri knows the matchup you MUST play passively or face the consequences of getting stomped. However, if she doesn't know the matchup you can play more aggressively and try to keep her scared of you and blind of her true potential.

Difficulty: 6-9 (dependent on skill level of opponent)
High range with high utility. She can shield herself, zone you with her ball, and have nearly as much range as you do. Depending on how good your opponent is will determine how hard she will be able to effectively harass you. The best strategy is simply trying to predict where she will try to move her ball. However due to her high skill cap she won't always be able to zone you out.

Difficulty: 6
Fizz is farily close ranged so you should be able to get harass on him, however he usually has a fairly considerable amount of MR so your poke won't be as effective as usual. After you both hit 6 he has an advantage. He can't kill you if he doesn't land his ult, but his troll pole will make it difficult to kill him.

Difficulty: 8
Highly mobile assassin with huge burst at level 6 and a gap closer at level 2. She can silence you and root you. She's easy to burst but very difficult to beat in lane due to how mobile she is. Additionally, all of her damage is magical. You should always buy an early in this matchup.

Difficulty: 2
Very similar to Heimer but is slightly more difficult since he's able to farm from outside of your non-lockdown harass range. You should still be able to easily poke him out of lane and shouldn't ever die to him unless you're taking heavy aggro from the enemy jungler. If he tries to duel you, he's in range for an easy full combo plus ignite.

Difficulty: 2
Another short range caster. He's still dangerous due to his high and reliable DPS, but as long as you don't miss your stun he will never be able to duel you without outside help. It helps to lock down in a slightly aggressive position so if he decides to try and fight you can stun him before he gets more than a couple spells off.

Difficulty: 3
TF has to be in autoattack range to reach his full damage potential. If he manages to stun you and hit you while stunned, you should take one of two actions depending on your remaining health:
Situation 1: Healthy
Turn around and immediately try to burst him to death since his spells are on cooldown
Situation 2: Near death
Stun combo while running away. If he tries to teleport into your tower, throw every spell you have at him while he takes tower shots. As long as you dodge his Q you should be able to win the lane fairly easily.
IMPORTANT NOTE
Since TF can teleport gank you have to do a few things differently in lane. Firstly you should keep your ramp warded as often as you can and instruct your bot lane to keep the river warded at all times. Second, if TF does teleport gank and you're not already on your way to his destination, push your lane as hard as you possibly can while he's gone. If you manage to get his tower while he's ganking it will allow you to gank much faster without worrying about your own tower. The better you can anticipate his teleports, the better you will be able to win.


Other Matchups


Difficulty: 6
Another high mobility assassin. However your passive will help the matchup since all of his abilities are AD rather than AP. Unfortunately his gap closer also silences you and when he ults you won't be able to stun him before you get bursted.

Difficulty: 7
Depending on what he starts will determine how easily you can harass him out of lane. After he gets some life steal it will be very difficult to push him out. This matchup is easier since his gap closer is shorter range unless he evolves it. However you have to be careful to dodge his skillshots. It still nukes hard even though your passive is relevant in this matchup. Additionally he also has a stealth to dodge your stun.

Difficulty: 7
She's techincally melee but her ability gives her ranged with bonus magic damage on hit. She also has a magic damage nuke that slows you down while she gets in her higher DPS. The matchup is bad before 6 but is about even after 6. However you won't ever be able to burst her due to her ult.

Difficulty: 4
This matchup is significantly harder if you can't dodge skillshots. It's much much easier if you can. He's melee so you can autoattack harass, but his passive is very strong against you. However, your W should help greatly in negating some of the early game resists. Push him out of lane and either try to take the tower or go gank another lane.

Difficulty: 1
This matchup is a cakewalk. The only way for you to die to him is if you run into his turrets or get too close for his rockets over and over again. Heimer basically can't touch you and is in deep trouble once you hit 6 due to his natural squishiness and your absurd bursting range.

Difficulty: 3
Your poke is much more reliable than his, although the lane will be largely a push war. Usually he will be able to outpush you. However once both of you hit 6 in order for him to combo you he has to get in range of your E, therefore putting him in danger of getting combo'd. This is a good matchup to practice your reaction time on your stun combo.

Difficulty: 3
Her autoattack range is pitifully short. Your harass should be able to outweigh her early game spellvamp and if you get even a little bit ahead her shield won't matter. This is due to the fact that your E will do enough damage to break it, so although you will lose some overall damage, you will still get to stun her. Stand behind minions and win the lane.

Difficulty: 3
Your primary objective in this lane is to deny Veigar as much CS as possible. He will be difficult to kill if he's good at landing his stun. If he isn't, then you should be able to kill him fairly easily. The longer he has to wait to get his DFG the longer it will take before he can burst you back. You may want to get an additional MR item against him since his ult scales off of your AP as well as his.

Difficulty: 2
Vlad is too short range to be able to kill you without burning his only escape to your burst. Your harass will be good, but you will have to hit it many more times to shove him out of lane. However if you're unable to 100-0 him while he's stunned he might be able to get away with the pool.

Difficulty: 4
This lane is a push war. And you will lose it. If your opponent knows what he's doing at all he will be able to push you to your tower and you will ultimately get outCSed by that fact. Fortunately not only are Morde's spells short ranged, but he also has melee autoattacks. If you can ever land a stun on him when he has no shield its usually a kill.

Xerath is an interesting champion in a team's composition because he has excellent poke capabilities, but also has an excellent team fight presence. This is in contrast to a champion like Nidalee , who has arguably the best poke in the game, but if built AP is very weak to hard engages.

In my experience, champions that work good with Xerath if you're going for a POKE comp:



These champions typically have a reliable, spammable long-range harass with good damage.
Janna is included on this list because of her ability to effectively disengage fights. If your team wants to siege and poke rather than jump in and fight she is very very effective at not allowing the enemies to jump you.

Champions that work good with Xerath if you're going for a TEAM FIGHT comp:



These champions typically are either very hard to kill and can soak up a lot of damage while you sit back and cast, have a strong hard engage, have good CC, or have a lot of large AoE effects.

For example, can lock people in his R, making it very easy to hit them with any of your spells.

Xerath doesn't see much play. His skill set takes some practice but is very very rewarding. He is weak to a few select counterpicks but has a decent to favorable matchup against most champions.

Practice your stun combo and skillshots and you'll be destroying mids like its a bot game.

Now go forth. Go forth and siege.