How to win lane as Karma against Sion · 47.82% win rate (5,479 Emerald+ games, lolalytics, sampled July 2026) · Matchup data reviewed on patch 26.15
Free poke forever — he farms at half HP and your real job is exporting Mantra to the river.
Track: Sion's Q — Decimating Smash (10–6s cooldown). Charged knockup — break the channel or sidestep the slam.
Read from Karma's seat: which stage windows this plan plays for against Sion.
| Stage | Favoured | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Karma | Mantra is up at level 1, so RQ Soulflare lands a real first-blood-threat poke before his Soul Furnace (W) shield exists to absorb it. |
| Level 2 | Even / skill | His W comes online but he is still pushed off cooldowns and your Q poke trades with his — the lane is genuinely even in this window. |
| Level 3 | Sion | He now times a charged W shield to absorb your Q/RQ and detonates it for AoE back, so your poke stops translating into a lead. |
| Levels 4-5 | Sion | Your multi-Q peak gets eaten by the 15s Soul Furnace shield, while Roar of the Slayer's slow at 800 range punishes every step-up. |
| Level 6 | Karma | His R is a long telegraphed charge you dodge on Inspire (E) speed; with no R cooldown to bleed and Gathering Fire ticking, you reset the lane. |
| First item | Sion | His first tank item makes your Q chip irrelevant while the W shield's value climbs, so he reclaims the trading math. |
| Two+ items | Sion | Two tank items plus the W shield blank your poke entirely, and his charged Q knockup into R kills your thin frame outright. |
Level 1 is your one clean window — Mantra is up immediately, so open with RQ Soulflare for a real chunk before his Soul Furnace (W) shield is even leveled to absorb it. The problem starts at 2-3: once W is online he times the shield to eat your Q and detonates it for AoE damage back, so your poke stops sticking on a tank. Respect Roar of the Slayer (E) — it slows and shreds armour at 800 range to set up a charged Q knockup, so never walk into Q range for a greedy poke.
Pooled Emerald+ win rates from Karma's side, sampled July 2026.
The full Karma vs Sion 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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Sion, slightly — Karma wins 47.82% of 5,479 games; winnable with the right plan.
Mostly — Sion has a small statistical edge (52.18% win rate), but execution decides this lane far more than the pick does.
No — if anything Sion has the slight edge (Karma wins 47.82%), though it stays close.
Karma takes Arcane Comet on the Sorcery tree with Manaflow Band, Transcendence and Scorch, and Inspiration secondary (Biscuit Delivery and Cosmic Insight) vs Sion.
Start Doran's Ring + 2 Health Potions and back for Lost Chapter (≈1300g) — Mantra economy secured. Build Malignance / Blackfire Torch first, then Cosmic Drive, with Sorcerer's Shoes / Plated Steelcaps.
Playing the other side? Sion vs Karma guide →
All Karma top lane matchups →
More Karma top lane matchups: vs Sett · vs Shen · vs Singed · vs Swain · vs Sylas · vs Tahm Kench