Playing against Vi: what to respect and when
What Vi threatens, which cooldowns open your safe window, and Riot's own notes on beating it.
What you are up against
Vi is a fighter that wants to trade repeatedly, survive the return damage, and win the third exchange rather than the first. At 125 attack range Vi has to walk into damage to deal it, so every trade begins with a decision about whether you can afford the walk.
That shapes the lane more than any item choice: you are deciding, every wave, whether to stand where it does its job.
The cooldowns that decide your safe window
Blast Shield
Vi charges a shield over time. The shield can be activated by hitting an enemy with an ability.
Vault Breaker
Vi charges her gauntlets and unleashes a vault shattering punch, carrying her forward. Enemies she hits are knocked back and receive a stack of Denting Blows.
Denting Blows
Vi's punches break her opponent's Armor, dealing bonus damage and granting her Attack Speed.
Relentless Force
Vi's next attack blasts through her target, dealing damage to enemies behind it.
Cease and Desist
Vi runs down an enemy, knocking aside anyone in the way. When she reaches her target she knocks it into the air, jumps after it, and slams it back into the ground.
The window is the cooldown
Each of those numbers is a window. With its defining ability down, Vi is a fighter without the tool the whole kit is built around — that is when the lane is yours.
Vi is mana-gated, which is the real limit on how often you can contest a wave early.
Riot's own notes on playing against Vi
Worth reading even when you are the one playing Vi: it is the list of what your opponent is being told to do to you.
- A fully charged Vault breaker deals double damage. If you see Vi start to charge you should back off or try to dodge it.
- Vi will shred your Armor and gain Attack Speed if she manages to hit you three times in a row. Try not to engage in extended brawls with her.
- Vi cannot be stopped while using her ult. Remember to save your displacement effects until after she's done charging.
Where Vi is strongest
| Stat | Level 1 | Level 18 |
|---|---|---|
| Health | 655 | 2440 |
| Attack damage | 63 | 63 |
| Armour | 30 | 109.9 |
| Magic resist | 32 | 66.9 |
Movement speed 340 and attack range 125 do not grow with levels — they are the two numbers that stay true all game.
Full Vi page — abilities, stats and every skin →