How to win lane as Ambessa against Vladimir · 46.95% win rate over 558 Emerald+ games · Updated 2026-07-27
| Stage | Favoured | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Even / skill | Vlad has a famously weak level-1, but so are you — one ability, no combo, energy-gated — so neither side wins the opening; just deny his Transfusion last-hits. |
| Level 2 | Ambessa | Your Cunning Sweep into Sundering Slam plus Lacerate's near-total slow and a Drakehound's Step dash out-trade a poolless Vlad before his sustain scales. |
| Level 3 | Even / skill | Whether the level 2-3 stick lands cleanly comes down to your combo execution and reading his Sanguine Pool — a fumbled dash-weave or an early pool lets him reset. |
| Levels 4-5 | Vladimir | Your longest cooldowns land at 4-5 and his Tides of Blood poke plus Transfusion self-heal chip you while you wait on your ultimate spike. |
| Level 6 | Ambessa | Public Execution blinks behind him and suppresses through the wind-up — bait or time his pool and it is your one guaranteed kill window all lane. |
| First item | Vladimir | By first item Vlad turns the corner: his E poke and Sanguine sustain start out-healing your physical autos even with your R's armor pen and ability-damage healing. |
| Two+ items | Vladimir | Two-item Vlad pools your R suppress, kites with E poke, and out-sustains your physical-only damage as his AP scales — he reclaims the lane and out-scales you. |
Both of you are weak at level 1 — Vlad has one of the worst level-1s in the game, but you have just one ability and no combo and are energy-gated, so don't force the opening; just deny his Transfusion (Q) last-hits. Once you hit 2-3 you get a real edge: land Cunning Sweep to unlock Sundering Slam, weave a Drakehound's Step dash and a Medarda-empowered auto, and Lacerate's near-total slow so he can't walk the trade off. A poolless Vlad has no answer to that stick — punish every Q he throws to farm.
The full Ambessa vs Vladimir 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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Playing the other side? Vladimir vs Ambessa guide →
All Ambessa top lane matchups →