How to win lane as Nautilus against Karma · 41.46% win rate over 41 Emerald+ games · Updated 2026-07-27
| Stage | Favoured | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Karma | Karma has Mantra-empowered RQ poke at level 1 and pokes you off the wave while you have no anchor range to answer — she chips you for free. |
| Level 2 | Karma | Her Inner Flame (Q) and RQ root out-range everything you own, and you still have no gap-close to punish her overstep. |
| Level 3 | Karma | Even with Q-W-E online your Dredge Line (Q) is a slow skillshot she dodges on Defiance (E) move speed, and a whiff lets her RQ-root you for free. |
| Levels 4-5 | Karma | Her E shield and move speed plus RQ poke let her kite and out-sustain your W splash trades while you can't close the gap. |
| Level 6 | Even / skill | Depth Charge (R) is undodgeable so it beats her kite for one cast — bait her E shield first and it is a genuine coin-flip all-in. |
| First item | Karma | Her first item Liandry's/Mandate plus perma-up RQ root out-pokes your zero-damage tank build and she kites you indefinitely. |
| Two+ items | Karma | Your tank-only itemization adds no kill pressure on a champion who never walks up — concede the duel and play her as a teamfight CC target. |
Karma owns levels 1-3 because she has a point-and-click poke engine before I have any way to touch her. Her Inner Flame (Q) and the Mantra-empowered RQ root-tether chunk me from range while I have no anchor gap-close until level 3, and even then my Dredge Line (Q) is a slow skillshot she sidesteps on Defiance (E) move speed. Don't throw Q at open-ground Karma — a whiffed anchor leaves me rooted by her RQ for a free poke rotation. My only real early trade is a landed Q that pulls me into passive-root and a W-shielded splash trade, so I farm with E waves and wait for her to misposition.
The full Nautilus 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.
Become a Founding Member — $1.99/month →🔒 Secure checkout · 💰 7-day money-back guarantee · ✋ Cancel anytime
Early Access price — $3.99/month for new members after launch.
Playing the other side? Karma vs Nautilus guide →
All Nautilus top lane matchups →
Also played in: Support