How to win lane as Vladimir against Karma · 51.81% win rate (4,262 Emerald+ games, lolalytics, sampled July 2026) · Matchup data reviewed on patch 26.15
Her full combo meets a two-second pool — the whole lane is the timing war over one untargetable button.
Track: Karma's W — Focused Resolve (12s cooldown). The root tether — break it with range or line of sight.
Read from Vladimir's seat: which stage windows this plan plays for against Karma.
| Stage | Favoured | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Karma | Karma's Q Inner Flame out-ranges your Transfusion and pokes you at level 1. |
| Level 2 | Karma | Level 2 her poke plus W root keeps you off the wave. |
| Level 3 | Karma | Level 3 empowered RQ roots and bursts you from long range to zone cs. |
| Levels 4-5 | Even / skill | By levels 4-5 your Crimson Pact HP absorbs her poke and evens the trades. |
| Level 6 | Vladimir | Hemoplague at 6 lets you all-in and burst her through the RE shield. |
| First item | Vladimir | First-item sustain out-heals her poke and lets you walk her down on Mantra cooldown. |
| Two+ items | Vladimir | Two items in, you dive past her enchanter utility and pool her root in fights. |
Karma out-ranges you 1-3: her RQ at level 3 roots and bursts from range and zones you off cs. Farm at max range, dodge her Q telegraph, and only step up when her Mantra is down. Track Karma Focused Resolve (Tether): 12s flat — break it with range or pool it before the root ticks. Karma's RQ (empowered Mantra + Q Inner Flame) at level 3 is a long-range root-and-burst that out-ranges your Q Transfusion and zones you off the wave. Respect her Mantra cooldown: after she blows RQ she's a plain poke champ for the next stretch.
Pooled Emerald+ win rates from Vladimir's side, sampled July 2026.
The full Vladimir vs Karma report continues with the mid-game plan, the late-game and teamfight plan, every power spike to play around, and the win conditions for both sides — plus cooldown tracking and the live enemy-jungle tracker inside the app.
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Vladimir, slightly — a 51.81% win rate edge over 4,262 games; execution can flip it.
Mostly — Vladimir has a small statistical edge (51.81% win rate), but execution decides this lane far more than the pick does.
Not a hard counter — Vladimir has a slight edge (51.81% win rate), and play quality decides the rest.
Vladimir takes Phase Rush on the Sorcery tree with Nimbus Cloak, Transcendence and Scorch, and Resolve secondary (Bone Plating and Overgrowth) vs Karma.
Start Doran's Shield + Health Potion and back for Amplifying Tome + Boots (≈900g). Build Riftmaker first, then Cosmic Drive, with Mercury's Treads / Sorcerer's Shoes.
Playing the other side? Karma vs Vladimir guide →
All Vladimir mid lane matchups →
More Vladimir mid lane matchups: vs Galio · vs Hwei · vs Irelia · vs Kassadin · vs Katarina · vs LeBlanc
Also played in: Top Lane