Karthus - League of Legends Champion
Win Rate
47.8%
Pick Rate
1.0%

KarthusTop Build

FMage
Patch26.4
Matches1,089,240
LaneAll Lanes
TierAll Tiers
Last UpdatedMar 5, 2026
MethodologyData Methodology
AuthorDakota Chinnick

The patch 26.4 Karthus top build uses Mercury's Treads, Shadowflame, Rabadon's Deathcap, Blackfire Torch, Malignance, Liandry's Torment, Farsight Alteration. This Karthus build has a 9.73% pick rate and a 57.08% win rate in LoL patch 26.4. Alternatively, check out some of the other ranked Karthus build choices below.

OverviewBuildAbilitiesRunesCountersMatchupsArenaARAMTips

Select a Karthus Build

Most Played
Most Popular Build
Core Build Items
  • Shadowflame - Karthus Most Popular Build core itemShadowflame
  • Rabadon's Deathcap - Karthus Most Popular Build core itemRabadon's Deathcap
  • Blackfire Torch - Karthus Most Popular Build core itemBlackfire Torch
57.1%Win Rate
+9.3%WR Diff
9.7%Pick Rate
Alternative Build 1
Core Build Items
  • Shadowflame - Karthus Alternative Build 1 core itemShadowflame
  • Zhonya's Hourglass - Karthus Alternative Build 1 core itemZhonya's Hourglass
  • Blackfire Torch - Karthus Alternative Build 1 core itemBlackfire Torch
54.9%Win Rate
+7.1%WR Diff
4.2%Pick Rate
Alternative Build 2
Core Build Items
  • Void Staff - Karthus Alternative Build 2 core itemVoid Staff
  • Rabadon's Deathcap - Karthus Alternative Build 2 core itemRabadon's Deathcap
  • Blackfire Torch - Karthus Alternative Build 2 core itemBlackfire Torch
53.8%Win Rate
+6.0%WR Diff
4.3%Pick Rate
Alternative Build 3
Core Build Items
  • Shadowflame - Karthus Alternative Build 3 core itemShadowflame
  • Void Staff - Karthus Alternative Build 3 core itemVoid Staff
  • Rabadon's Deathcap - Karthus Alternative Build 3 core itemRabadon's Deathcap
52.7%Win Rate
+4.9%WR Diff
4.5%Pick Rate

Best Karthus Build - Highest Win Rate Items

This Karthus build focuses on ability power for maximum spell damage. Build the core items first for your power spike, then adapt with situational items based on enemy team composition.

Full Build
57.08%Win Rate
+9.26%WR Diff
9.73%Pick Rate
445Build Matches
These are Karthus's essential core items that you should build in nearly every game. Shadowflame (50.4% WR, +2.6% WR diff, 70.2% pick rate) provides 110 AP. Rabadon's Deathcap (55.8% WR, +7.9% WR diff, 51.8% pick rate) provides 130 AP. Blackfire Torch (49.1% WR, +1.3% WR diff, 76.3% pick rate) provides 600 Mana, 80 AP. Rush these items first to reach your power spike and maximize your impact.

Karthus build strength based on the items chosen in the build when compared to all builds across every champion. Strongest in: Magic Damage. Lower in: Physical Resistance, Physical Damage.

Top situational items for Karthus include Malignance, Liandry's Torment. These can be swapped out depending on the enemy composition and team needs.
The best boots for Karthus are Mercury's Treads. Adjust based on enemy team comp.
The recommended trinket for Karthus is Farsight Alteration for vision control and map awareness.

Combined statistics from all items in this Karthus build.

  • Total magic resistance Magic Resistance:20
  • Total movement speed Movement Speed:45
  • Total ability power Ability Power:470
  • Total mana Mana:1200
  • Total health Health:300
When facing Karthus's top counters like Kayn, Volibear, Amumu, consider adjusting your situational items to increase survivability and match their damage output. If counter champions are building high damage, prioritize armor items against AD-heavy counter picks or magic resistance items against AP threats in your situational item slots to reduce burst damage and improve trading potential. Your core build provides strong damage output. Against tanky counter picks, consider penetration items or percentage-based damage from your situational options to maintain kill pressure. Adapt your final build slots with items like Malignance or Liandry's Torment based on which counter champions you're facing and their itemization patterns. Monitor enemy builds and adjust accordingly for optimal Karthus performance.

This Karthus burst mage build is optimized for players looking to maximize their impact in League of Legends. With a 57.1% win rate across 445 matches, this build has proven highly effective in the current meta. The build's key strengths include devastating ability power scaling with 470 total AP. Choose this build when your team needs magic damage, especially if teammates are primarily AD-focused. Karthus with this build can punish teams that stack armor. Consider the enemy team composition when finalizing your situational items to maximize Karthus's effectiveness. However, be aware that this build lacks defensive stats making Karthus vulnerable to burst damage and no built-in sustain for extended fights. With a total gold cost of 16,450, this Karthus build scales into the late game. Focus on farming efficiently and reaching your Shadowflame, Rabadon's Deathcap, Blackfire Torch power spike before taking major fights. For optimal results with this Karthus build, focus on proper itemization timing, positioning in teamfights, and adapting your situational items based on the specific challenges each game presents.

Champions that use similar core items to Karthus. These builds share at least 2 core items with the current top karthus build and may have similar playstyles and power spikes.

Xerath champion
Xerath
Core Items
  • Luden's Echo - Xerath core item
  • Shadowflame - Xerath core item
  • Rabadon's Deathcap - Xerath core item
55.2%Win Rate
11.5%Pick Rate
Taliyah champion
Taliyah
Core Items
  • Shadowflame - Taliyah core item
  • Rabadon's Deathcap - Taliyah core item
  • Blackfire Torch - Taliyah core item
58.5%Win Rate
2.9%Pick Rate
Ahri champion
Ahri
Core Items
  • Shadowflame - Ahri core item
  • Malignance - Ahri core item
  • Rabadon's Deathcap - Ahri core item
57.0%Win Rate
8.1%Pick Rate
Ekko champion
Ekko
Core Items
  • Shadowflame - Ekko core item
  • Rabadon's Deathcap - Ekko core item
  • Dusk and Dawn - Ekko core item
57.5%Win Rate
12.7%Pick Rate

See Also

Karthus OverviewKarthus RunesKarthus CountersAll Items