How to win lane as Vladimir against Maokai · 54.61% win rate (293 Emerald+ games, lolalytics, sampled July 2026) · Matchup data reviewed on patch 26.15
Build MR — Q %HP-poke, pool his root combo.
Track: Maokai's W — Twisted Advance (14–10s cooldown). His lock-on root. Dodge it.
Read from Vladimir's seat: which stage windows this plan plays for against Maokai.
This is Vladimir's own plan; across 293 pooled games the lane is leaning Vladimir.
| Stage | Favoured | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Maokai | Maokai's Twisted Advance root and sapling poke out-trade you at level 1. |
| Level 2 | Maokai | Level 2 his root-into-empowered-Q combo keeps punishing your last-hits. |
| Level 3 | Maokai | Level 3 his passive sustain and zoning still win the extended early trades. |
| Levels 4-5 | Even / skill | By levels 4-5 the lane evens as your sustain comes online and his poke plateaus. |
| Level 6 | Vladimir | Level 6 Hemoplague plus sustain lets you win an all-in once his root is baited. |
| First item | Vladimir | First item your Q healing and Rylai's E stacking out-grind his falling tank damage. |
| Two+ items | Vladimir | With two items you out-scale him and pool nullifies his root follow-up in fights. |
Maokai wins the first three levels: Sapling Toss zones your creeps from 1100 and Twisted Advance dashes in untargetable to root you, backed by Sap Magic sustain that beats your pre-6 poke. Stay outside its 525 range, refuse to step in for a caster minion, and accept giving up early stacks.
Pooled Emerald+ win rates from Vladimir's side, sampled July 2026.
The full Vladimir vs Maokai 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 54.61% win rate edge over 293 games; execution can flip it.
Mostly — Vladimir has a small statistical edge (54.61% win rate), but execution decides this lane far more than the pick does.
Not a hard counter — Vladimir has a slight edge (54.61% win rate), and play quality decides the rest.
Vladimir takes Phase Rush on the Sorcery tree with Manaflow Band, Transcendence and Scorch, and Inspiration secondary (Biscuit Delivery and Cosmic Insight) vs Maokai.
Start Doran's Ring + 2 Health Potions and back for Oblivion Orb (≈800g) — cuts his healing. Build Riftmaker (drain scaling) first, then Zhonya's Hourglass, with Mercury's Treads.
Playing the other side? Maokai vs Vladimir guide →
All Vladimir top lane matchups →
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