Exploring Lane Match-ups: Top Lane

I've seen it a thousand times. The melee top laner goes up to trade with his ranged opponent and takes a boatload of damage. Afterwards, he pops his health potion as if nothing happened. 

Let's explore the basics in laning and hypothetical matchups that we often face.

First Scenario:

Nidalee V.S. Nasus (As the Nasus)

This is the most dreaded matchup for a melee top laner: having to go against a ranged opponent. Often times, lower elo players are confuddled when it comes down to the basics and take unnecessary damage from ranged carries out of greed.

Let's break it down to basics.

Early on, Nidalee players will often start with their W (Bushwhack) and then transition straight into their Q (Javelin Toss). In comparison, Nasus players often start off with their Q (Siphoning Strike) into their W (Wither) or their E (Spirit Fire). When it comes down to early skills, what can you tell about the biggest difference between Nidalee and Nasus early on?

Their champion design. As a champion, Nidalee is heavily geared towards her early laning phase and takes a long time to ramp up. Compared to Nasus, Nidalee's resourcefulness comes from her mobility and her split pushing potential. Nasus, on the other hand, is effective because of his late game power spike. Although, he takes an enormous amount of time to become useful, Nasus's utility in teamfights as well as his pushing potential as a group with his Q (Siphoning Strike) is nothing to scoff at. However, often times players will use Nasus incorrectly and try to "vitalize" his laning potential. 

Going back to the Nidalee V.S. Nasus matchup. At first glance, it seems obvious that Nidalee will be the aggressor early on from levels 1-5 or until Nasus's first buy. Take a look at this example.

Nasus walks up to kill the minion but gets hit by 3 auto attacks and then steps on the trap. Even though he received the gold from the melee minion, it doesn't outweigh the health potion that he used.

This sequence brings up a big issue at hand: prioritization. Although you're getting the 20 gold from the minion, you're also using a health pot in the process. One health pot is worth 35 gold, while the minion is only worth 20 gold. Even though the minion looks tempting, you have to think about whether or not it's worth it.

Additionally, a huge point that needs to be emphasized is how aggressively you play early on as Nasus. It comes down to your first buy and what you want to prioritize. If you go Crystaline Flask first, then you need to maintain a passive playstyle while making effective trades early on. With the Crystaline Flask, you want to have a balance between passivity and aggression in order to effectively use your flask. In comparison, if you start Doran's Shield, you want to maintain a completely passive playstyle against poke-heavy champions such as Nidalee. Playing far back and freezing the lane will accomplish this. 

Here's an example of an ideal situation with Nasus. The wave is strategically pushed back in between turret range and the middle of the lane.

Second Scenario: Nidalee vs Nasus (as the Nidalee)

Now, let's look at the other side of the lane. After her changes, Nidalee has become even more of a lane bully. Much of Nidalee's effectiveness comes from her ability to instill pressure early on. Let's look back at the matchup, Nidalee is a huge lane bully so prioritization of early items that allow you to split push is key to doing well on Nidalee. Generally, with Nidalee, two items are most frequently used. Either run the Doran's blade for pressure early on or go the route of the Crystaline Flask  to sustain yourself in lane while also maintaining pressure on your laning opponent.

Now, let's look at the specific lane matchup. Against Nasus, you should go a Doran's Blade early on. Nasus is a very passive laner early on but as the game progresses, he drastically outscales Nidalee. Therefore, make sure that you shut Nasus down as soon as possibly by  having insane pressure early on. Nasus is the weakest between levels 1-5 and before his first buy and it's almost impossible for Nasus to farm against someone who knows what they're doing. On the other hand, Nidalee is strongest early on from levels 1-5 so it's a dream match up for Nidalee. As Nidalee, make sure that you shut Nasus down from levels 1-5 or you'll regret it later on.

Let's look at this example.

As Nasus goes up to kill the minion, Nidalee automatically responds with an auto-attack. Maintaining heavy pressure early on and making sure that Nasus has to calculate whether or not he wants to get the minion means that you're playing the lane effectively. With Nidalee, it's especially important for you to force Nasus to trade minions for health potions and to punish him for every action that he takes.

Anyway, that's all. Have fun and happy laning. Check back for the next installment of "Exploring Lane Match-ups"!