Vladimir vs Azir Counter Pick

Vladimir wins or loses on whether he can be targeted at all. For two full seconds after casting Sanguine Pool he is untargetable, and anything standing in the blood is slowed. Azir’s heaviest answers, Emperor’s Divide and an engage using Shifting Sands, both require Vladimir to be targetable at the moment they hit. Patch 16.13.1 shows Vladimir winning 58.6% of his 362 games.

Much of the rest comes down to range and stats. Azir opens with 575 health and 25 armor, a bit less than Vladimir’s 600 and 24. Vladimir’s damage is magic while Azir’s is mixed, so magic resist by itself does not protect Azir. Vladimir attacks from 450 units, Azir from 525, which is close enough for Transfusion to reach without Vladimir needing a long approach. When Crimson Rush is cast with a full resource bar, Transfusion gets a large boost to both its damage and its healing.

Azir pushes back by keeping his distance. Arise! Sand Soldiers take the place of his basic attacks against enemies within their range, so he can deal damage from beyond the reach of Tides of Blood. Conquering Sands slows for one second, which lets him set up an engage. By level 18 he has closed the armor gap, reaching 110 against Vladimir’s 100.5, though he still trails on health, 2,411 to 2,470. Difficulty ratings put Vladimir at 7 for effort against Azir’s 9, and Hemoplague makes everything after it hit harder. Kits: Vladimir, Azir.