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For the Teamfight Tactics trait, see Shapeshifter.

An ability is a unique action (as opposed to summoner spells / active ability items) performed by and only available to a champion. Each of these special moves make up a portion of a champion's 'kit'.

Note that Baron Nashor and Rift Herald are currently the only examples of non-champion units with abilities.

Champion Kits[]

Every champion kit (with some exceptions) follows the same basic structure: an innate with no ranks, three basic abilities with five ranks each, and an ultimate with three ranks.

• Innate: Available as soon as the game starts. Innate abilities passively affects a champion for the entire match but cannot be ranked up like an ability, often scaling with other effects (such as the champion's level) to compensate.
  • Innates sometimes feature a unique mechanic that helps define a champion's playstyle.
• Basic abilities: Available from level 1 and controlled by the - - keys. Basic abilities are learned over the course of the game by ranking them up after every level-up, the earliest for maxing one out being level 9.
  • The current rank of an ability cannot be higher than half the champion's rounded out level, limiting each new rank for the same ability to every odd, single-digit level.
• Ultimate: Available from level 6 (can only be ranked up again at levels 11 and 16 at the least) and controlled by the key, Ultimates are considered a champion's strongest, most characteristic, and most game-changing ability.
  • Ultimate abilities feature a HUD indicator attached to the champion's portrait letting allies know the state of each other's ultimate cooldowns (black if not learned yet, blue when on cooldown, green when ready to cast).
• Pseudo-Ultimate: Classified as an ultimate for effects that interact with ultimates, such as Sylas' Hijack.

Components[]

Any given ability can possess one or more of the following components (combinations may vary)

• Scaling: Abilities increase in potency and/or strength through a portion of certain stats that the champion has acquired, such as from items and/or runes.
• Cost: Most abilities require the champion to expend a resource cost ( mana,  energy,  health or other) in order to be cast, becoming unable to do so if they possess less than the required amount (the ability's HUD icon will turn blue).
  • Toggles continuously consume a resource until the ability is toggled off manually or does so automatically upon resource depletion.
  • Resourceless champions do not have costs on their abilities.
• Cooldown: Champions must wait a certain length of time before they can use the same ability again via a  cooldown. This wait can be shortened by the haste stat.
• Ammo: Some abilities run on charges (as opposed to a cooldown) in order to be used.
  • Stock: Activation charges are generated periodically up to a maximum (recharge time is affected by ability haste)
  • Barrage: Charges are generated upon activating the ability, and are available for the duration (all unused charges are lost when it ends). Used charges incur no additional resource costs, but are gated with static recast cooldowns.
• Range: Describes the number of units the caster and the target must be from one another in order for the ability to be cast / to hit (hitbox collision detection determines if the range used is center-based or edge-based).
  • In-game tooltips do not display either range or targeting (visually drawn by placing the cursor over an ability's icon on the HUD)
  • Some abilities feature an unlimited global range, commonly ultimates.
• Cast time: Abilities may incur a casting time in which the champion is unable to perform any other actions for a short period of time until the ability takes effect (can only be interrupted by the champion's death). Cast times are measured in seconds and commonly last for 0.25, 0.5, and 1 second(s). They prevent abilities from triggering their effects instantaneously.
  • A cast may include a lockout that prevents certain actives until afterward (buffer), or disables them entirely. This lockout can extend past the cast time up until the ability ends.
• Channel: Abilities may incur a channeling time in which the champion is either unable to or must not perform any other actions for a period of time in order for the ability to successfully take effect during the time of the channel or after it completes. Channels can be interrupted by the caster themselves by performing certain actions that would do so (unless otherwise stated) and all forms of cast-inhibiting crowd control in addition to disrupt.
  • Note that channeled abilities which cause the caster to move will have their channels be also interrupted by root and ground effects.
  • A special form of channel includes charged abilities, where the caster must maintain their channel in order to increase the ability's effectiveness over the duration. These abilities have both an active and a recast component.
  • Interrupted channels will not refund the ability's cost nor cooldown as a consequence. Some channels may compensate with a reduced cooldown from certain conditions of the channel being interrupted, such as the caster interrupting it themselves.
• Active: Must be cast at a target unit / location / direction in order to be used (innate abilities never feature this component). Autonomous actives usually require a nearby target or no targets in some cases to be used.
  • Some abilities, after being activated, feature a Recast component which can be used after the initial activation to cast a second part of the ability's effects. Abilities with multiple recasts are considered to have numbered casts, referred to as the First Cast, Second Cast, and Third Cast (no known abilities feature more than three casts including the active).
• Passive: Affects the champion without any specific input required on their part, similar to an innate.
• Toggle: Allows the champion to cycle the ability between an on and off status, with the ability continuously applying its effects while it is on and being stopped after it is turned off.
  • Some toggles will swap an ability's effects for another.
• Stance: Causes the champion to shapeshift themselves and/or their abilities, gaining persistent effects (mutually exclusive) and/or temporary ones while losing others.
  • Rapid stance-swapping is usually regulated by a brief global cooldown in order to prevent a champion from continually accumulating temporary effects.
  • Some stances replace temporary effects by granting completely different basic abilities based on the active stance.
• Summon: Champions can bring forth other units to assist them and/or their allies on the battlefield.
• On-Action Effects: Abilities within a champion's kit can interact with certain actions and/or each other for synergistic effects and results.
  • Most abilities apply spell vamp, omnivamp and/or spell effects from items and runes.
    • A select few apply on-hit effects and on-attack effects (but only if specifically stated to be able to do so).

Effects[]

Any given ability can possess one or more of the following effects (combinations may vary)

• Combat: Enhances offensive and/or defensive aspects.
  • Damage allows champions to kill enemy units.
  • Buffs affect the caster and/or their allies for their benefit.
  • Debuffs affect the caster's enemies for their detriment.
    • Special forms of debuffs include crowd controls which disable the target's actions or hinder their combat capabilities in other ways.
• Utility: Enhances non-combat aspects.
  • Blinks and dashes serve as forms of mobility for a champion, allowing them to move around obstacles or create distance between their opposers.
  • Healing provides a means of sustains.
  • Shields enhance survivability by absorbing damage to prevent health loss.
  • Stealth grants invisibility and camouflage to avoid enemy detection.
  • Invulnerability gives immunity to sources of enemy damage.
  • Untargetability grants immunity to enemy focus-fire (preventing targeted abilities from acquiring a unit as a target)

Trivia[]

Innate abilities[]

• Moonsilver Blade, Nimble Fighter, Living Forge, Pit Grit, Crimson Pact, Way of the Wanderer, Way of the Hunter and Cell Division are the only innate abilities featuring two independent effects.
  • Death Defied, Icathian Surprise, and Glory in Death are the only innate abilities that allow for post-mortem activity.
• Spider Queen and Aspect of the Cougar are the only innate abilities with two effects that stack with others and/or with abilities.
• Transcendent has the most independent effects (four).
• Shurima's Legacy, Prophet of an Elder God and Garden of Thorns are the only summon innate abilities.
• Rage Gene, The Darkin Scythe, and Skaarl the Cowardly Lizard are the only stance innate abilities.
• Martial Poise is the only innate abilities that generate a new item for their owner.
• Serpentine Grace and A Harmless Scarecrow are currently the only abilities preventing a champion from purchasing an item.

Basic abilities[]

• Jayce's basic abilities can each be ranked up six times.
• Udyr's basic abilities (he has no ultimate) are stances that grant both persistent and temporary effects (each can be ranked up six times).
• Lee Sin's basic abilities each have two parts.
• Kha'Zix and Viktor are currently the only champions that can truly evolve their abilities to new abilities.
  • Kai'Sa, Rengar and Syndra gain extra effects on their abilities.
• Spider Form / Human Form, Rage Gene, Mercury Hammer / Mercury Cannon, The Darkin Scythe, Skaarl the Cowardly Lizard, Aspect of the Cougar, Behind Enemy Lines / Skystrike, and Burrow / Unburrow, are stance abilities that 'shapeshift' their wielders, granting them one or more extra basic abilities.
  • The Darkin Scythe and Dragon's Descent 'shapeshift' both their wielders and basic abilities.
  • The Darkin Scythe allows only a single stance change per game.
• On Summoner's Rift: Azir's Conquering Sands, Shifting Sands, Shen's Spirit's Refuge, and Zeri's Burst Fire are basic abilities that cannot be ranked up at Level 1.
  • On ARAM: Azir starts with 1 point in Arise! and Zeri starts with 1 point in Burst Fire.

Ultimate abilities[]

• Nocturne's, Kayn's, Ornn's, Quinn's, Riven's, Tahm Kench's, Twisted Fate's, and Urgot's ultimate abilities each have two differing casts within a single ability usage.
  • This excludes ultimates that are repeatable, toggleable or terminable by their second cast.
• Enchanted Crystal Arrow, Whirling Death, Chronobreak, Trueshot Barrage, Cannon Barrage, Super Mega Death Rocket!, Requiem, Paranoia's nearsight, Dawning Shadow, Stand United, Wish, and Destiny are the only global ultimate abilities.
• Spider Form / Human Form and Aspect of the Cougar are all available at level 1 and each has four ranks (levels 1, 6, 11, and 16).
  • Mercury Hammer / Mercury Cannon is available at level 1 and has only one rank.
• Endless Banquet is the only ultimate ability that evolves a champ into a different form and adds extra stats.

Pseudo-Ultimate abilities[]

• Udyr's Wingborne Storm
• Jayce's Transform Mercury Hammer / Transform Mercury Cannon

Others[]

• Riposte, Divine Judgment, and Cosmic Radiance are the only abilities that provide pure invulnerability.
  • Tempered Fate, Frozen Tomb, Force of Will (non-champions only), and Chronoshift grant invulnerability through stasis effect.
  • Hallowed Mist, Crescent Guard, Lamb's Respite, and Aegis Assault have a conditional invulnerability. Gwen and Xin Zhao are vulnerable if enemies enter their respective zones; Kindred and allied champs can be displaced outside of Lamb's Respite and lose the invulnerability. Pantheon is only invulnerable in the direction he faces with his shield.