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Orianna Counters: Who Beats Orianna

Updated for patch 26.21. Ability details come from Riot’s official game data for this patch.

Orianna counters are mid laners who can reach her without walking through the Ball, or who block it outright. She’s a 525 range control mage whose damage, shield, slow and ultimate all come from a Ball she commands around the map, and she has no dash, blink or escape of her own. The picks that beat her dash past the Ball, go invisible, or punish the moment it’s somewhere else.

Here are five matchups, each argued from abilities on both sides. Win rates played no role.

Orianna counters: Orianna, the Lady of Clockwork, splash art

Why is Orianna hard to counter?

  • Clockwork Windup (passive): her attacks deal extra magic damage that grows the more she hits the same target.
  • Command: Attack (Q): the Ball flies to a spot, damaging enemies along the way, and stays there. Cooldown 7 seconds at rank 1, 3 at rank 5.
  • Command: Dissonance (W): a pulse around the Ball that deals magic damage and leaves a field that speeds allies and slows enemies. Cooldown 7.
  • Command: Protect (E): the Ball attaches to an allied champion, shielding them, adding Armor and Magic Resist, and damaging enemies it passes on the way. Cooldown 9.
  • Command: Shockwave (R): after a short delay, a shockwave from the Ball deals magic damage and launches nearby enemies toward it. Cooldown 110/95/80.

Her Q drops to a 3 second cooldown at rank 5. That’s the poke problem in one line: a long-range Ball every few seconds, with a slowing field behind it, from a mage who never has to step forward. Shockwave then turns any engage your team tries into a gift for hers. The catch, though, is the Ball itself. Every spell comes out of wherever it sits, so when it’s on the wrong side of you, she’s a 525 range mage with no way to leave.

Which champions are the best Orianna counters?

LeBlanc

Distortion (W) dashes LeBlanc to a spot and damages enemies near it, then lets her return to where she started within 4 seconds. That’s in and out before the Ball can follow. Sigil of Malice (Q) marks the target and detonates on the next ability hit, and Ethereal Chains (E) roots Orianna if she stays shackled for 1.5 seconds, which is hard for a champion with no dash. Mimic (R) recasts one of her basic spells, so the combo hits twice. Mirror Image (passive) makes her invisible and spawns a decoy when she drops below 40% Health. Who does Orianna aim the Ball at then? Often the wrong one.

Zed

Death Mark (R) makes Zed untargetable and dashes him to an enemy champion, and 3 seconds later the mark repeats part of the damage he dealt. Thing is, Shockwave needs a target in range of the Ball, and an untargetable Zed isn’t one for that dash. Living Shadow (W) sends a shadow ahead he can swap places with, Razor Shuriken (Q) fires from Zed and every shadow, and Shadow Slash (E) slows anyone hit by a shadow’s slash. Contempt for the Weak (passive) adds bonus damage on attacks against low-Health targets. In practice, she needs the Ball on herself before Zed arrives, and there’s only one Ball.

Akali

Twilight Shroud (W) drops a smoke cloud where Akali becomes invisible and can’t be selected by enemy spells and attacks, though attacking or casting reveals her briefly. Orianna’s Ball has to be aimed somewhere, and a shroud full of nothing is a bad place to guess (she’s in there somewhere, probably). Shuriken Flip (E) flips backward and lets her dash back to the marked target, and Perfect Execution (R) leaps and then dashes again to execute anyone she strikes. Five Point Strike (Q) slows. Assassin’s Mark (passive) empowers her next attack once she steps out of the ring her spell damage creates.

Yasuo

Wind Wall (W) raises a moving wall that blocks every enemy projectile for 4 seconds. Command: Attack sends the Ball flying across the lane, and the wall stands between Yasuo and the poke she depends on. His passive shield, charged by walking, soaks her opener. Sweeping Blade (E) dashes through enemy units, minions included, so he can close the gap without a straight line to her. Two stacks of Steel Tempest (Q) send out a whirlwind that knocks Airborne, and Last Breath (R) follows any airborne target with a blink. Honestly, Shockwave is the one thing he has to respect.

Naafiri

The Call of the Pack (W) makes Naafiri untargetable while it empowers her pack with more packmates, Move Speed and Attack Damage. Hounds’ Pursuit (R) sends her and the pack dashing at a champion, and she can recast it once after a takedown for a shield. Eviscerate (E) dashes and damages an area around her. We Are More (passive) spawns packmates that join every attack and ability, so a single Dissonance can’t clear the threat. Darkin Daggers (Q) apply a bleed and send packmates at the first champion hit. Is one Ball enough to deal with a pack? Rarely.

How do you play the lane against Orianna?

  • Watch the Ball, not Orianna. Every ability comes out of it, so its position tells you what she can hit.
  • Keep a minion or two between you and her, since each target after the first takes reduced damage from Command: Attack.
  • Get out of Dissonance fields. They slow enemies and speed up her allies.
  • Spread out in teamfights. Shockwave launches every enemy near the Ball toward it.
  • Commit when the Ball is on an ally. If it’s attached by Command: Protect, it’s not near you.

Which items counter Orianna?

She deals magic damage with every spell and her passive, so Magic Resist is the base. Mercury’s Treads bring 20 Magic Resist for the poke phase, plus 30% Tenacity for whatever crowd control her team adds. Banshee’s Veil carries a Spell Shield that blocks the next enemy Ability, so a mage can eat one Ball cast for free (Edge of Night does it for AD assassins). Maw of Malmortius gives AD champions a magic damage Shield when they drop below 30% Health, and Kaenic Rookern refreshes a magic shield after 15 seconds without magic damage. Zhonya’s Hourglass gives mages 2.5 seconds of Stasis to sit out a Shockwave combo. Stat lines and prices are in the LoL item database.

When is Orianna at her weakest?

When the Ball is far away. She has no dash, so if it’s been thrown to the other side of the lane or stuck on an ally, she can’t defend herself until it comes back. Jump her then (a Ball-less Orianna is the easiest kill in the lane).

The second window is right after Shockwave. It sits on a 110 second cooldown at rank 1 (80 at rank 3), and without it her answer to a dive is a shield and a slow. Look, a mid laner who saves their engage until the ultimate is spent will usually win the next fight. That’s the whole matchup for most assassins.

New to mid? Our guide to LoL roles covers it. The Orianna skins page lists her cosmetics, the Orianna ARAM guide covers her in five-on-five brawls, and the rest of the roster is in our champion guide hub. Long story short, Orianna counters reach her when the Ball is elsewhere, and dodge or block it when it isn’t.

FAQ

Who counters Orianna the most?

Assassins with dashes or untargetability: LeBlanc, Zed, Akali and Naafiri. Yasuo also counters her by blocking the Ball with Wind Wall.

Does Orianna have a dash?

No. All of her abilities are cast from the Ball, and none of them move Orianna herself.

How long is Command: Shockwave’s cooldown?

110 seconds at rank 1, 95 at rank 2 and 80 at rank 3.

What happens when the Ball is attached to an ally?

Command: Protect shields that ally and grants them Armor and Magic Resist. Her other spells then come out from wherever the ally stands.

How were these Orianna counters picked?

Orianna’s patch 26.21 ability text was checked line by line against each mid laner’s kit. No win-rate data went into it.