Corki mid/bot by S4 Low Challenger (2024)

I am low challenger of season 4 in NA and I fill during rank. I am making these guides for myself and friends mainly so sorry if you're looking for visuals.

Published 10/19/14
Added a small skill order for first 3 lvls for early game chapter 10/21/14
Added how to fake cs to dodge skillshots in early game chapter, and added Janna to synergy chapter 10/25/14
Updated Twitch matchup 10/30/14
Updated Draven matchup, added Lulu matchup 11/3/14
Updated Caitlyn matchup 11/9/14
Added Sivir to When to pick Corki chapter 11/11/14
Updated When to pick Corki chapter 11/12/14
Clarified brand matchup and lower difficulty 11/16/14
Added tower harass in Early Game chapter, Added W through nexus in Mid Game chapter, Added hexdrinker 11/20/14
Updated for new rift beta 11/21/14
Replaced elixir of fortitude for wrath, added pantheon to dragon chapter,added janna matchup 11/24/14
Updated early game chapter such as fake ward 12/1/14
Added Braum matchup 1/11/15
updated farming under tower chapter 1/18/15
Updated title and when to pick corki 1/21/15
updated dragon and baron chapter 2/12/15
Updated summoner spells 2/18/15
updated item chapter 3/21/15
Updated jinx matchup, updated when to pick corki chapter 4/26/15
updated Introduction and When to pick Corki chapters 8/7/15
Added greater stealth totem trinket to items, updated items chapter about trinkets and mid game chapter 8/30/15
updated when to pick Corki chapter 10/6/15
Updated timers chapter 10/15/15
added ashe matchup, updated when to pick corki, runes, masteries, items, timers, the level one before minions spawn, leashing, mid game and late game chapter 12/17/15
Updated conclusion chapter 12/20/15
updated runes, skill usage, recall scenarios, early game, and team fighting chapters; added poppy, bard, and rengar matchup 12/21/15
Added zyra and kindred matchup; updated poppy and lucian matchup 12/22/15
added leona matchup 12/31/15
added vladimir matchup 1/3/16
Updated items chapter 1/9/16
updated skill usage, early game, mid game, and late game chapter; reformatted these, recall scenarios, & items chapter 1/12/16
Updated purchase order; updated recall scenarios and items chapter 1/13/16
added xin, ryze, and jhin matchups 2/6/16
Updated when to pick Corki chapter and items chapter 2/17/16
updated items and items chapter 2/19/16
Updated minion advantage chapter 2/29/16
updated when to pick Corki chapter 3/13/16
Updated mid game chapter 3/23/16
updated when to pick Corki chapter, added katarina and sivir matchups 3/28/16
Added ekko matchup, updated thresh matchup, and fix typos 4/2/16
added rumble matchup 4/8/16
Updated when to pick corki chapter 4/9/16
updated items and mid game chapter 4/20/16
Updated when to pick corki and dragon chapter 5/20/16
updated runes, team fighting and runes chapter 5/28/16
Updated when to pick corki chapter 6/28/16
updated when to pick corki chapter 9/22/16
Updated when to pick corki chapter 10/12/16
updated leashing, early game, and baron chapter 10/17/16
Updated title to adc 10/21/16
updated masteries; when to pick corki chapter, added maokai matchup 12/31/16
Updated when to pick corki and conclusion chapter 2/10/17
updated almost everything since transitioning from bot to solo lane 12/15/21
Updated runes and runes chapter 1/22/22
updated when to pick corki and conclusion chapters 1/25/22
Updated when to pick corki chapter 3/6/22
updated when to pick corki chapter 7/2/22
Updated when to pick corki chapter 7/13/22
updated items and items chapter 7/15/22
Updated items,runes, when to pick corki chapter, and items chapter 7/16/23
updated spells, items, runes, threats, when to pick corki chapter, summoner spells chapter, runes chapter, items chapter, champion synergy chapter, and leashing chapter 8/8/24

As of patch 14.15, you can first pick Corki as he can be flexed mid and bot. Currently he is god tier in that his counters are not good enough. You counter garen mid, azir, zilean, swain, viktor, illaoi mid, sylas, malz, galio, and gangplank. Ask to swap lanes possibly if you are against akshan and ivern mid.

Flash is mandatory on this champion. Teleport is a solo lane staple. If you are not good at it, research and practice. Barrier is the staple for bot lane now.

Sustain runes means you don't need to win trades, but do not get all in'd.

Doran's Blade for mid. Long Sword start for bot lane. Cull for lane swap to top.

I will miss Sorcerer's Shoes first used by the player Score from KT Bullets, but now you are physical damage. Late game sell swiftness for zephyr.

Get Elixir of Wrath for dragon soul and elder dragon.

When lvl 9 in game as mid, get Farsight Alteration to ward your jungle bushes to cover flanks.

Legacy note: lastshadow9 had said Corki should sell Sorcerer's Shoes end game for magic item like Void Staff.

You should always time the enemy summoners. Do this with ctrl a then ctrl c after typing the timers and later remind your team with ctrl v. You should always time the enemy summoners. Flash is 5 min, but Ionian Boots of Lucidity reduces flash by 30s, Cosmic Insight reduces flash by 46s, together reduces flash by 69s. Exhaust and Cleanse are 3 min 30s while Ignite and Ghost are 3 minutes. Teleport can be looked at by holding tab and divide their teleport cooldown by 60. Heal is 4 min. Buffs are 5 minutes if you dont have vision of their buffs to make use of riot's buff timers. Dragon and baron are timed by the game scoreboard. inhibitor is 4 min.

Actions per minute; you should try to never stand still. It will warm up your hands if you keep clicking in left and right or in circles. Also do some wrist exercise so you don't develop anything bad.

In lane you want to Phosphorus Bomb auto when you trade since the enemy can dodge your q easier if you use it after you auto. Also there is a delay since the skill shot is lobbed. It is a bit longer range for harass compared to auto. Don't activate Gatling Gun if you are just going to run away.

You can't Valkyrie through nexus when going mid lane, you can Valkyrie from fountain.

Note: no Trinity Force in my build currently. Use Missile Barrage to activate Trinity Force procs when killing structures, but in fights you generally use any one skill before each auto. Also in fights just use Gatling Gun right away since your Missile Barrage has good cd to activate Trinity Force procs.

The Package from Hextech Munitions does an insane amount of damage but you don't always get to use it. Usually used to knock aside enemies and make sure you can get out alive, if you can't get out alive then don't use it offensively. Remember you get an extra Valkyrie after using the Package. Generally use it to kite against divers when they get next to you.

Wards won't be enough as good jungle players know how to get around them. You need to keep track of junglers by their pathing. First know which side they started by a deep ward or on his teammates leashing. Be careful though, as people can fake leash. Ping on the map which camps the enemy jungler should be at and all laners should play accordingly. If you ping jungler is on opposite side of map while your jungler is on your side, you should trade with the enemy laners. If jungler is on your side, then play safe and do not push lane.

Blitzcrank needs kill pressure, which Corki can apply.

Thresh needs kill pressure, which Corki applies.

Poke comps with many ad sources of dmg can use Corki rather than Lucian or Caitlyn.

Team with heavy ad dmg benefits with Corki.

Leona needs kill pressure, which Corki applies.

Janna and her disengage kit lets your team poke more. Her ad bonus of Eye of the Storm lets your skills hit harder.

Do not pick a skill yet until you see your lane opponents in lane, when top laner appears at top to show there is no lane swap, or there is no delay invade. Your first skill in all but one situation should be Phosphorus Bomb, but if you get caught then get Valkyrie. You should defend a choke point safely. If defending top river, do not stand in bush. If defending mid lane then have vision of both bushes and no need to have vision of their tower. You should use your trinket ward if you see a group of invaders then you ward where you are escaping to. If you ward in front of them they can kill it. A delay invade optimally happens at 1:25. If an enemy sees you when you are about to ward, its better to back off and ward a spot that they cannot see even though it is not as deep.

Against certain junglers that can invade after red buff, such as Graves may be good to ward dragon. If you can push safely, then ward raptors to track the jungler.

Junglers don't really need a leash, but you may as bot lane till 1:36.

If jungler starts at top and you're top, you can leash until 1:36 which you then go top. If a cheese can happen top, just ward it beforehand or go the long way around. If you know who is going into your lane then use your skill to help leash. Use Phosphorus Bomb at 1:36.

As mid, you do not leash.

Generally for all lanes, if you have more minions you can go aggressive if you know where everyone is in the map; but not past the minions if you need your minions to help fight the enemy champs, unless you can completely zone them. If there are 10 enemy minions and you have 3 minions just back up all the way to tower as you will get collapsed on by the enemy. Since you will not lose any cs(creep score), you might as well go back to tower anyways. It takes 7 minions as solo lane to get lvl 2 so you should count both minion waves to see if you get lvl 2 first, they get lvl 2 first, or both sides will get lvl 2 at the same time. If they are getting lvl 2 first then you're gonna have to back off far. If the lane is even then you have to be cautious. Only do short trades when playing aggressive or else you take too much minion damage. You can go for longer trades if you notice that you benefit more from it.

You should watch your lane and your teammates to see if they have the factors of getting dived. The most obvious one is low health. Others are no flash, huge incoming minion wave, and champions missing. If you pay attention to other lanes or yourself, you can warn the possible dive and move your jungler, others can roam to help, or get in a spot for a safe teleport, all to turn around the dive. If none of the responses are available then the possible victim must leave. The duo lane should generally be together when the minion wave is at their tower, or else the enemy duo can 2v1 dive the lonely bottom player. Tell that bottom player to leave or call others to turn the dive around.

Towers will prioritize minions toward the bottom of the lane first. During early levels you can auto once on a full hp caster minion then tower shot then farm. The caster minions near the top of the lane will most likely get hit by your minions which means you need to auto those more than once or not at all. Use your skills to catch farm under tower as a last resort. Your support should help out.

Best case scenario is you know where everyone is on the map and you can safely push to their tower if you have more minions or freeze when they have a bit more minions. You can recall before a siege minion wave(which spawns after 2 minion waves during early game), so that by the time you go back to lane you won't miss out on too much cs since siege takes a while to be killed by tower as well as enemies can't push that fast.

If you killed your enemy laners and you do not know where everyone is on the map then you should go to your tower and recall. Do not risk getting killed by their jungler or whoever. If you got a successful jungler to gank you then ask him to push with you unless you are all low enough for a triple kill. After recalling, buy while walking to edge of fountain always until 20 minute mark.

Never trade if you are not full health.

You should conserve mana by not using Gatling Gun unless there is an all in or gank.

When trading, use Phosphorus Bomb followed by 1 auto then back up. You use Phosphorus Bomb first since if you auto first they can dodge Phosphorus Bomb easier. If you are not full hp and just want to harass then just Phosphorus Bomb since it is a bit longer range than 550 range auto.

Missile Barrage, like other skills and autos, should generally be used right when they go for a last hit. If you hit them then its good, if they dodge it when his cs is about to die then he will miss the cs. A win win situation. If they are about to harass you when you go for cs, then u need to pretend to go for a cs then back off to the left, right, or back to dodge the skillshot.

Ward mainly when you push to enemy tower or for lane bushes. You can fake ward by walking to a spot and pretending to ward.

Get all 3 skills lvl 3 if you expect gank or all in. Play back, preferably at tower, when support is missing.

Generally when your jungler comes, you let him show first before engaging since you don't want to die in a 2v2 before ur jungler gets to do anything.

At the 8 minute mark your passive spawns The Package. Generally save it 30 seconds before dragons. After you base and buy use Valkyrie or walk while buying to get to the Package and pick it up.

Mid game generally starts when a tower dies or when someone gets lvl 6 as they can tower dive.

Just get experience and play safe to wait for next dragon fight. This is why late game counter picks are best. Be in side lane to get solo experience. If your tower is taken, freeze the lane until your laner enters a fight. You will get experience while they lose that side lane experience.

DO NOT DIE FOR A TOWER. Even if it is one hit away, just get it later when it is safe.

Only buy Control Ward for dragons.

Always group for dragons, you can use Teleport to come back to dragon when low or to catch experience in a side lane.

Never get aced as just a siege wave is enough to end the game.

It is ok to lose inhibitor. Just focus on dragons and protecting nexus towers. Always take dragon over baron unless it's cloud. Always take dragon over towers and inhibitors as well. Do not take base towers if dragon or baron is coming up soon as the enemy will generally respawn in time.

If you have open nexus(no nexus towers) then sit in base until all inhibits respawn.

Only do dragon when 2 enemies are dead or at base & while your team isn't low, or it is a free dragon. A free dragon is when the enemy team is aced, their teleports are down, completely cleared their vision, they're taking top buff, or recalled to base.

If they have Fiddlesticks, , Master Yi, Udyr, Shaco, Elise, Karthus, Lee Sin, and possibly more(not to mention laners helping out), then you need to keep it warded from a specific lvl onward for a possible sneak.

If the enemy starts dragon, poke them until dragon is half hp, then fight. Poking them makes them disoriented to either finish, run, or fight. Dragon does aoe so if you start it, have one person in the pit to tank it away from team.

Always team fight for the third dragon as everyone would be closest in items. As scaling team, you can give the first two if not safe to contest.

Prioritize dragons over everything else.

If you have dragon soul, instead of starting elder dragon camp the enemy jungle and fight. If playing protection composition, backline hits dragon while frontline zones, then get off dragon if they go in.

When securing baron for bait or to take, you want to deep ward and ward surrounding bushes to keep from getting stolen or to get a pick. Do not exclude the tri bush towards top lane.

As red team you want to pink outside the pit and sweep inside the pit.

As blue team you want to pink in the pit near the entrance so that the enemy doesn't kill it over the wall.

Do not stand behind the baron when taking it, since it will do damage to everyone behind it.

As for positioning when taking baron you need to stand outside the pit with your carries. As for ward kills in the pit, support should be the one since support's dmg against baron is least important. When the enemy is in the baron pit, hit the baron to make it hit your enemies. Never use your cc at baron when enemies are around. One person should zone the enemy team if they are coming to stop the baron attempt. Communicate with your team beforehand to finish, run, or turn to fight.

At 20min and onwards you must ward it against sneaks from high objective junglers such as , Udyr, Karthus, Fiddlesticks, Master Yi, and possibly more(not to mention laners helping out).

Always take baron over inhibitors.

Preferably poke down the enemy before fighting. Tell your team to not engage so you can poke. You try to position yourself where you can deal 100% dmg w/o interruption. Which means going to 1v1 an enemy carry isn't always the best option. Prioritize the squishiest enemy or highest threat when they get in your range. This means you don't always hit the tanks first for some fights.

As a poke champion, you generally do not want to auto attack during team fights.

https://youtu.be/VwoHBLS5MXs?t=1961
Corki should have not gone after caitlyn and just use his aoe damage in that jungle fight on the other 4 members. He wouldn't have gotten hit by any cc.

Another example: if Leona and Lucian are in your range, then hit Lucian while avoiding Leona skill set as best you can. If you are in danger then generally you want to go to your teammates rather than away, unless you got Fizz ulted or something.

The Package from Hextech Munitions during a team fight depends on your situation. If all enemies used all of their cc then you can Valkyrie in, then Valkyrie out in a 5v5. Primarily use it to knock aside multiple people rather than hoping they will walk on the trail. In early game small skirmishes like 3v3 or 2v2, you may not need to Valkyrie out right away since enemies usually won't have the burst that early and are getting hit by your teammates. Generally use it defensively to kite divers.

Corki is strong first pick as flex in the draft is valuable. All questions in the comments will be replied by private message. I stream on twitch.tv/bive and offer coaching lessons for all roles for $20/hr. https://www.youtube.com/user/sinc67/videos is my youtube.