Hello guys, I'm Thualuandra, and welcome to Jackass... ops welcome to this guide.

Why an Irelia Guide?
Actually Irelia was the champion I really got envolved because I was able to learn how to lane top and I was surprise how good Irelia is.

Why should I play Irelia?
Irelia is a champion classified as a fighter and secondarily, an assassin. Well I prefer rolling her as assassin. Most people build her off tank. But in this guide and the way I play is more like top-lane-carrier like Fiora or Master Yi. And I assume to you that is not a wrong way to play her, it's just like "forgotten". Not to many people have courage and skill to do it. But with this guide you will be able to own a lot. Just be sure to have someone in your team who can start the Team Fights and you will be fine. This is the first time I am able to rank up my elo and I'm really excited about this. Enjoy the guide.

+Awesome 1vs1 fighter
+Very good lane/combat sustain
+Versatile movement
+Deal all kinds of damage (true, magic and physical)
+Can get the highest tenacity of the game (90%)
+Can counter most of top annoying champions (Fiora, Master Yi, Lee sin, Rengar, Jayce)

Cons

-Too dependent of mana in early game
-Kind hard to master
-Easy to be focused
-Can easily be countered if enemy builds up tank
-Need patience to play with, you can't just punch your Q W E R without planning.

Greater Quintessence of Attack Damage
Each of it gives you 2.25 attack damage. Total of 6.75 attack damage.
Greater Mark of Attack Damage
Each of it gives you 0.95 attack damage. Total of 8.55 attack damage.
Greater Seal of Armor
Each of it gives you 1.41 armor. Total of 12.69 armor.
Greater Glyph of Magic Resist
Each of it gives you 1.34 magic resist. Total of 12.06 magic resist.

These runes add you
+15.3 Attack Damage
+12.69 Armor
+12.06 Magic Resist

[*] You may change Attack Damage for Armor Penetration runes.

This part I have to explain why I choose 14/16/0.

Offense

This is the damage part of Irelia.

Fury
I get 4 points in Fury instead of Sorcery because Irelia depends more on hitting enemies than casting skills.
Deadliness
Get 4 points obviously because Irelia is AD (Attack Damage).
Weapon Expertise
For sure you will want 8% bonus in armor penetration since Irelia is AD.
Havoc
Get 3 points. You will always want to deal more damage. This 2% makes difference.
Brute Force
2 points on that is a gift. +3 attack damage to your normal attacks.

Defense

This is the key to a successful Irelia Assassin.

Veteran's Scars
Nice health bonus.
Durability
Is always nice to have more health. 4 points on that.
Hardiness
3 points and +5 armor.
Resistance
3 points and +5 magic resist.
Safeguard
We know that everyone in this life perform a turret dive. With Irelia... Let's try not to die while diving.
Relentless
You don't want to lose a kill because you're too slow. Get 2 points.
Tenacious
Irelia's God Power Ultimate. When you have Mercury's Treads+ Ionian Fervor (with 3 enemies champions close to you) + Tenacious it is equal... equaL... equAL... eqUAL... EQUALLL 90% of tenacity. DATTT makes you an unstoppable assassin. Everything will be mini-stun on you. Is a MUST-GET 3 points.

Most of the games I use Barrier and Flash.


I prefer using Barrier because I don't agree with players that keep in mind they need to be 100% offensive. Actually balance is everything you want in your life. Press Ctrl+1 with Irelia and she will tell you "Balance is blá blá blá.". So she agrees with me.
Barrier is a st**id spell that you can use to surprise your enemy and of course get an extra kill. I often use it to counter enemies surprising them. It works really well. When they start a 1 vs 1 against you and it's like those fights you let your champ alone to see who dies first, if you see that you will die, just spawn your Barrier and the kill is yours.
Or you can use it when people perform Turret Dive when you are low health. You spawn Barrier and use right after Equilibrium Strike to stun the enemy under Turret's attacks, and the kill will be yours.


It's not needed any comment. It's just a teleport with no target. Used to flee or catch someone. Nice to trick or cheat enemies while flashing through walls, trees and cliffs.


Most people use it for killing fleeing targets. If you really don't want Barrier and want Ignite I recommend you to use on those champions that can heal themselves. So you won't use it for killing blow, you will use it when you start a "fight for death". For extra damage and for lowering their healing purpose.


Most of top laners use it. It's nice for ganking or to go base and return to top fastly then your enemy won't hit your turret. But I avoid using this spell by doing this: When I want to go base I push top fully to the enemy's turret then I go base and when I get top again, my enemy won't have enough time to come to my turret. Or if my lane is too hard and I can't push, I ask my jungler to hold my lane for a second. You can go safely to base and your jungle will be happy to steal your farm.

Ionian Fervor

This passive only triggers when there are 1 or more enemy champions close to you. For one enemy you get 10% tenacity, for 2 you get 25% and for 3 you get 40% tenacity. Tenacity is the ability of making every effect that can stop or slow your champion to last less time.

Bladesurge

This Q skill works like a charge that applies on-hit-effects. This skill benefits itself for 100% of your attack damage. It refreshes when you do a killing blow to any target. Nice to get someone too far from you by using it in a minion with low HP and then jumping again to the enemy. Or nice to flee.

Hiten Style

This is what makes Irelia so strong in a 1 vs 1 fight and it's responsable for your sustain. I recommend you to firstly maximize this skill. You get +15 true damage for each point you get in this skill and some "life steal".

Equilibrium Strike

This is the surprising skill Irelia has. It gives you some magic damage and a slow or stun to the enemy champion, it depends on the difference of percentage of life you and your enemy have. I recommend you to maximize this skill secondly, after Hiten Style.

Transcendent Blades

This ultimate is kind hard to master because when you hit it, it just lets 4 blades to spawn up then you have to trigger again to shot 1 blade. The direction of the blade in where your cursor (mouse arrow) is. So if you need to flee while using this ult. Click on the floor kind far from you to have time to move your cursor and hit the 4 blades without stop walking.

Why do I maximize my skills like this?

Hiten Style is really strong early game because of the sustain and the true damage. This will give you everything you need to win a lane, sustain and damage. That's why you should maximize it firstly. Equilibrium Strike deals magic damage. As you're an AD champion to increase the magic damage you will have to level up this skill. As you level this skill up. The slowing/stunning time will be increase as well. From 1 second to 2 seconds. And you ask me: But why letting Bladesurge for last? Do you remember when I said that balance and sustain is everything in Irelia? Well Bladesurge get 100% of your attack damage, so as you build up damage items and level up, Bladesurge will get that benefit and will get stronger even having 1 point on it. That's the reason.

How to fight?

It's easy, when you are lanning I recommend you to have more mana potions than health potions. Since you have Bilgewater Cutlass+ Hiten Style your life steal will be too high and you won't need health potions to recover yourself, however you won't be able to handle a fight without mana. So don't be afraid, buy mana potions until you don't finish Trinity Force. Sometimes is good to farm a big wave of minions with Transcendent Blades. I prefer using it than losing the farm for the turret.
While lanning don't poke too much the enemy player because if you do the damage you deal on him you will get the same from his minions, so keep farming and when there are few minions or if your enemy is kind away from his minions you can poke ONLY with Hiten Style triggered, don't waste your mana with Bladesurge or Equilibrium Strike. If the enemy starts a 1 vs 1 fight trigger your Hiten Style and use 1 potion of health and 1 of mana, it will work like a regen and then keep attacking, when you get less health (percentage) than your target use Equilibrium Strike for a stun and Bladesurge for extra damage. Probably you will win the fight by doing this. Use your ult when you are about 70% HP, since your ult heals you.
Sometimes if you're much stronger than you enemy you can simply trigger your Hiten Style, then Bladesurge your enemy and use Equilibrium Strike, and your enemy will flee with probably 50% health, then wait another opportunity and poke again, and probably you will get a kill. Just keep your eyes on your mana bar.
In a Team Fight you should never start it. If you follow this guide you're an assassin and not a off tank. So if you're focused you won't be able to play. You should be able to flee because of your tenacity, but you will be useless. So don't start let someone else to start Team Fight. In a team fight focus your target and start with Bladesurge, since you can't simply walk chasing an ADC or a Mage.

Here I will show you what champions can threat your top against you. You will have to play perfectly to win against them. You may not agree with this but for this Irelia Assassin i'm sure those guys will annoy you a lot.


Olaf - The Berserker
Come on. Dat Olaf what annoying champion you will find in top lane. I always had problem against him, simply because he's your counter. As I master Irelia very well I can at least drawn a fight, I mean, both die togheter. I still couldn't win. Only late game I could. When I'm against him I just play safe and wait for jungler gank. Playing safe with Irelia is farming with Hiten Style to keep healing and stunning Olaf when he attacks you.


Jax - Grandmaster at Arms
Well many websites and guides say that Jax is counter of Irelia. I find weird because I never lost a top against Jax, actually I think it's because of my sustain. There is a secret to win against jax. Let him poke you, every Jax feel tempted to jump and stun whatever Rabit they find on their way. If they cast his stun, don't hit him, try to walk away, you don't really need to avoid his stun because you're the Tenacity Woman but just don't attack him because each dodge he does more damage the stun will do. Most Jax feel tempted to turret diving. That's when the Barrier and Equilibrium Strike trick will shine. That's the only trick I now.


Renekton - The Butcher of the Sands
For this champion I don't have any play, just play safe like you would do against olaf and keep stunning and healing with Hiten Style. Ask for jungle's help if you need.


Udyr - The Animal Spirit
Well I bet who can beat Udyr in a 1 vs 1. This is his speciality. He is awesome in 1 vs 1. Fortunatelly, it will be almost impossible to go top against him. So keep 1 ward close to the baron and when he aproaches you will have time to fall back to your turret.


Rumble - The Mechanized Menace
Ok I know, most of the people will beat me up because I'm saying the Rumble is counter of Irelia. Actually he's counter of whatever melee champion you role against Rumble. This was the only top I really lost. Lost with negative frag. I didn't have any chance against this champion even playing safe. That Flamespitter has almost no CD after the skill goes off and Rumble don't use mana as resource so no way. If you go against him, try to convince the mid lane to go top and you go mid with Irelia. Irelia is good in mid as well. It's better playing safe without killing too much than feeding Rumble. AARRRGGGGHHH, You don't need a fed Rumble to play against, believe me.

I will just explain the Core Build here because the starting items there are notes explaining when to use.


Sword of the Occult
Probably you're thinking "Why the hell did Thualuandra put this item in the early game?" Well you may live 80 years and you may not see anyone using this item in a game. Actually the power of this item is awesome. The damage stacks works better than Bloodthirster since when you die you lose 50% of the damage, and with Sword of the Occult you lose only 1/3 (a third). As an assassin Irelia you will be able to kill a lot and have too few deaths because of your speed and tenacity. So it's a MUST-HAVE as a first item. If you get 20 stacks you will have 15% movement speed and 110 attack damage. You won't ever regreat to have this item. you can sell it when you are ready to buy your last item.


Blade of the Ruined King
This item will give all the sustain you need, with this item you will be plenty of life steal and attack speed.


Mercury's Treads
Use this boots always, this is a MUST-HAVE in Irelia since you want that 90% tenacity I told you before. You can only have Berserker's Greaves if the other team as none of CC champion, otherwise have always Mercury's Treads.


Trinity Force
Other item MUST-HAVE on Irelia. This is everything I can't explain in words how awesome this items is. It's just everthing. Burst, speed, heal, mana, critical, attack speed, coockies, cakes, juice, pizza... Ops... got kind excited.


Frozen Mallet
This item will give you the health you missed by not building off tank. And this will give you perma slow on all of your attacks and charges. So it's brilliant now.


The Black Cleaver
Why not having some armor penetration with attack damage, cooldown reduction and some hit points? This item is awesome. I recommend this even in ADCs.


Ravenous Hydra
This item is nice because it has some life steal which applies only on that 75 attack damage, gives you some regen and two things which is really awesome. AOE (Area of Effect) damage, and an extra swing every 10 seconds (must trigger).


Enchantment: Furor
I prefer using this enchantment instead of Enchantment: Alacrity or Enchantment: Homeguard because it gives me movement speed when I attack and it is stackable with Trinity Force. As it is really easy to get close to anyone with Bladesurge you can have this buff always. With the Core Build you will have 420 movement weed... ops speed. When you attack someone you will have from 470 to 480 movement speed. So it is really good.

Overview of the Items

Look you can change whatever item you want to change. Feel free to try other stuffs but just never ever ever 4ever in your life touch the Blade of the Ruined King, Mercury's Treads and Trinity Force. Irelia can't be Irelia without these three items.

I hope you guys have enjoyed my guide I will try to record a video of any gameplay of mine. Then you will have a clearly overview of this champion, this is my first guide and probably the last. Because I really can't afford too much time for writting, I'm not even good at writting. Feel free to comment, I ask you to rate. And have a nice day. Jah bless ya