Tank Azir build with runes and items. Tank Azir guide offers in-depth how-to play, skill order and tips. Play Tank Azir build in League of Legends Patch 26.2!
Mark (Snowball) for a go-in tool if you want to be more aggressive and make picks.
Exhaust
Defensive option. Exhaust for peeling against enemy divers and assassins and protecting your carries.
Ignite
Offensive option if you are feeling spicy. Grievous Wounds + some damage. Good in early fights and you can score some kills, but reduces your going-in potential. Especially later.
How it works
General
You play Tank Azir.
You rush Heartsteel #1 and stack as much HP as possible.
You build items that scale and benefit from HP, then add Armor and MR depending on the enemy team.
Champion
Soldiers (W) proc your On-Hit effects.
Playstyle
Rush Heartsteel and get tons of HP. 💪
Auto attack everything to get stacks - your HP depends on it. ⚔️
Adapt your tank items to what the enemy team is throwing at you. 🎯
How to play
General
Getting started
You rush Heartsteel.
Guardian's Horn is a surprisingly good item for its price. You can keep it for a very long time (or even have it as 6th item).
Item Order
Item Order after Heartsteel is flexible. You need to see what you need in particular game:
Get Overlord's Bloodmail for more damage and AD.
Get Warmog's Armor as anti-poke item (helps you stay in lane) and for some sweet HP.
Get Unending Despair, if there are prolonged fights in which you can stay near enemies (or enemies near you). The items gets better, the more HP you get.
Get various Armor and/or MR items to counter enemy team.
Get Titanic Hydra for more fun, more damage and some survivability.
During fights
Your main damage and power comes from auto attacks - Grasp of the Undying and Heartsteel.
This is auto attack oriented Azir build, so do it! Especially if running with Titanic Hydra or Sundered Sky.
You can prioritize switching between champions in the fight, just to farm more Heartsteel procs.
Remember to consume your Heartsteel procs!
Adapting
You need to adapt your items to the game. Enemy team heavy on AP? Buy MR. They heavy on AD? Buy Armor. You need some damage? Well buy that.
Sundered Sky is very good damage item for this build (as #2-#4 depending on the game). It scales off your HP. It gives damage and pretty good sustain in fights. Remember to switch targets to maximize the effect!
You can use Bandlepipes to give your whole team an attack speed boost whenever you CC enemies. Great synergy with auto attackers.
Runes
Second Wind scales off with your HP, so it is going to be powerful sustain rune. You can use it by purposefully triggering it by letting enemies poke you a little or walking over some harmful spells.
Triumph is better (heal + gold), but if you want to have easier time with your mana, go Presence of the Mind.
Remember to consume your Grasp of the Undying procs!
Azir has really good auto attack animation, use it for your advantage.
Azir has -5% damage taken. This makes him OK tank.
Tips and Tricks
Champion
You should stay near Shurima's Legacy (Passive), whenever possible. It loses Armor and Magic Resist if you are too far.
Riot
Be careful about putting down both of the soldiers stored by Arise! Unless you're going all-in, always have a soldier in your back pocket if you need to escape over a wall or if you misposition your other soldier and need damage now.
In the lane, try to position your soldiers between the enemy's minions and the enemy champion. This way you can use them both to last hit and to project threat onto your lane opponent.
Think of Emperor's Divide as a defensive ability first and foremost. Use it when the enemy engages on you or your allies. Remember that your team can walk through the soldiers summoned by Emperor's Divide and use this to your advantage when enemy melee champions engage on you.