Vladimir/Strategy

Skill usage

 * Level to level 5, as it is 's most constant single target damage ability, as well as his heal. Remember that the base healing component is a flat amount modified by additional ability power, so even if the target is not damaged (i.e. shielded, blocked by, or blocked by ), you will still be healed by the ability.
 * When using, you won't be healed until the particle returns to you.
 * Having at least 1 rank of can help you survive for much longer, as it resets aggro. A skilled player can use it to turret dive or to dodge abilities. However, it has a long cooldown and a short duration, so do not become too reliant on it for escapes.
 * It is wise to use to chase down an enemy or escaping from one. Using it as a damage skill could leave you extremely vulnerable if you can't kill the enemy.
 * is excellent during teamfights to wait for your cooldowns to come up and don't have.
 * While Vladimir cannot use any abillities during, if is used before using , Vladimir will still receive the movement speed bonus making it a very viable escape maneuver. Conversely, if Vlad is slowed before going into pool, he will still be slowed during the pool.
 * During he becomes untargetable to both enemy and allied champions.
 * During, he will not be healed by an ally or.
 * Using at the right moment can dodge projectiles like, , , , , , ,  and.
 * does not cancel leash spells such as, , or ; it also will not prevent the stun from , this includes even when you have pooled then touched the barrier.
 * can be cast without having any enemy targets nearby. This can allow you to keep the buff constantly active or build stacks to prepare for an attack. It can also increase the effectiveness of a if used prior to activating it. Additionally, using it when a stealthed enemy is nearby will allow you to detect them, they will not destealth, but you will be able to see the missiles flying into their direction. This also works if an enemy is concealed in brush nearby.
 * Gaining stacks of prior to a gank can result in devastatingly high nuking ability upon multiple enemies. For the same reason,  damage output rises exponentially after about 10 seconds during team fights as his stacks increase very quickly, which can result in massive AoE damage when combined with.
 * causes targets to take bonus damage, so it is advised to use it at the beginning of team fights to increase the overall damage your team can inflict upon your enemies. Mid to late game, will negate both the increased damage debuff and the 5 second delayed damage component, make sure to spend as many of the opposing team's charges prior to activating.
 * can take time to learn when to cast. The most important aspect of timing this ult is making sure you cast it when the enemy has committed to the fight. Often, if you lead with it, the enemy team will disengage and your ult will have had little to no impact.
 * can be used to finish off a target low on health. The range to the edge of the AoE is deceptively long; keep this in mind when deciding whether to pursue a target near death.
 * When using, be wary of champions who can counter the delayed damage, such as those with shields or heals. Do not depend on it to ensure your kill.
 * Casting will not deal any immediate damage, and therefore can be used to kill low health enemies under their turret.
 * Casting on  or  clones will not affect them, so it shows clearly which twin is real.

Build usage
can be built as a tanky caster due to by building health and AP items. Like most AP champions, it is better to focus on AP and CDR, and neglect armor and magic resist, unless the enemy has % hp based damage.
 * Both and  are good choices for Vladimir.
 * It's generally advised to get because Vladimir greatly benefits from CDR and has very limited options of CDR items as a manaless AP.
 * is one of the most popular items on spell casters. On Vladimir, thanks to his, it also gives him 254 HP and the 30% bonus AP gained interacts with his passive.
 * , and later,, is the most important item on since it will increase the amount healed with  as well as adding a healing component to the rest of his abilities and increasing his maximum health due to his passive. The spell vamp compensates for the cost of 2 of his abilities, as they use health to cast.
 * While in Vladimir is not affected by any auras, including auras from items such as . Try to avoid being in pool form when  secondary damage applies; otherwise you will receive NO health back from spell vamp.
 * is a stronger item for Vladimir than other AP Champs because he gains AP from the 250 HP it gives. It's a strong item for mid game for most AP champs, but even better on Vlad.
 * is a great item for most casters, but will benefit even more from it due to his lack of CC and range as well as his passive: it will grant 612 HP and 92.5AP instead of 500 HP and 80 AP. Additionally, the passive gives his spells constant slows.
 * will improve all healing/spell vamp for Vladimir, making it a strong item.
 * is a useful item for it's active can be amplified by his ultimate.
 * is one of Vlad's best items. It grants him tremendous defense and offense.

Countering

 * To zone him out of experience range you can use, or  when he has a high amount of stacks on  as it is almost always a sign he is trying to restore his health with.
 * Some champion abilities can reduce health regeneration. and  are a couple of examples.
 * Early game, stay just out of range of his . If he uses it on a minion run forward to harass before his cools down.
 * Try to harass into using his  early in a fight so he takes more damage from it and cannot use it to escape focus fire.
 * Even if uses  he still takes damage from DoT spells such as ,,, and.
 * Remember that doesn't heal  until the particle returns to him, and because the animation is two-staged (impalement, then return), most single-target projectiles like, , and  will generally hit him before he's healed. This is useful to remember should you be uncertain about last-hitting him.
 * You can use to remove  (which is usually paired with ) if he uses it on you. So buying it against  is a good and rather cheap counter.

Champion spotlight
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiUgrEWRx6M