Wall-jumping assassin whose critical strikes chain into extra slows
AssassinJungleDeals physical
Ling is a jungle assassin built around wall mobility and critical-strike scaling. Cloud Walker converts crit chance from all sources at a 1.6x rate, Finch Poise's wall-cling grants half-stealth positioning most heroes can't match, and Tempest of Blades leaves a Sword Field that refreshes its own cooldown on touch, letting him reset into a second engage.
Difficulty
Very hard
Specialities
ChaseBurst
Precise wall-jump positioning, crit itemization tradeoffs, and chaining Sword Field resets under pressure take extensive practice.
Beaten by
84 hard
Strong into
13
Best duos
10
Builds
2
At a glance
Damage
8 of 10
Durability
3 of 10
Crowd Control
4 of 10
Mobility
9 of 10
Utility
3 of 10
Rated against the whole roster, not against their own class.
When Ling is strong
Attributes
Damage
8
Durability
3
Crowd Control
4
Mobility
9
Utility
3
Strengths
Cloud Walker converts crit chance from all sources at a 1.6x rate, letting crit items scale unusually well on him
Finch Poise's wall-cling grants half-stealth and faster Lightness Point regeneration, giving him map-wide positioning options
Tempest of Blades is invincible while airborne and creates a Sword Field that refunds cooldown on touch, letting him reset fights
Defiant Sword's critical strikes apply a much stronger slow, chaining naturally with his own crit-heavy itemization
Weaknesses
Extremely fragile — a single landed CC chain from a tank or control mage kills him outright before he can react
Loses his half-stealth and falls to the ground if hit by crowd control while clinging to a wall
Heavily dependent on walls for his best positioning, making him far weaker on open maps or against wall-blocking heroes
Crit-focused itemization competes directly with raw damage, so a bad crit roll noticeably softens his burst
Skills
Max Defiant Sword first for the cooldown and damage, level Finch Poise for the crit chance and mobility, and take the ultimate at levels 4, 8 and 12.
Passive
Cloud Walker
Buff
Ling's superb Lightness Skill helps him leap among walls. When resting on the wall, He gains 4 Lightness Points per second when he's on a walland 5 extra Lightness Points each time he deals damage. Ling gains 1.6 times Crit Chance from all sources but only has 150% Critical Damage.
Always active — no cooldown
What the terms mean(1)
Crit Rate
Chance to cause Crit Damage with Basic ATK (including Physical and Magic). The default is 0. A Crit Damage is guaranteed when it is over 100%. Some skills trigger this effect. For
Skill 1
Finch Poise
MobilityBuff
Passive: Ling’s Critical Chance is permanently increased by 2.5%–12.5%. Active: Ling casts his Lightness Skill, leaping onto the designated wall, entering half-stealth state, restoring Lightness Points more quickly and gaining 30% Movement Speed. If Ling receives damage, he will leave the half-stealth state. If he is controlled, he will fall onto the ground and be slowed by 30% for 2 seconds.
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Cooldown
20s
Skill 2
Defiant Sword
MobilityDamage
Ling charges in a designated direction and stabs the nearby enemies at his destination, dealing 300–400 (+40% Total Physical Attack) Physical Damage. If Ling casts this skill when he is on the wall, he'll dash to the target location on the ground, dealing 300–400 (+40% Total Physical Attack) Physical Damage to enemies within a small area and slowing them down by 30% for 1.5 seconds.
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Cooldown
2.5s
Ultimate
Tempest of Blades
BurstCC
Ling leaps into the air, becoming invincible and gaining 10% extra Movement Speed for 1.5 seconds. He can move freely when in the air. He then lands on the ground, dealing 250–450 (+100% Total Physical Attack) Physical Damage to enemies in the area, knocking those in the center airborne for 1 second, and creating a Sword Field for 8 seconds. Four Tempest of Blades will also appear on the edge of the Sword Field.
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Cooldown
52s
Signature combo
Finch Poise to a wall for half-stealth positioning → Defiant Sword to dash in and slow → Tempest of Blades to knock up and finish, touching a Sword Field blade afterward to reset for a second target.
Ling builds
Core items in buy order, with the emblem, talents and battle spell that go with them.
Crit Burst
7,500g total
Default pick for a standard jungle-assassin game plan.
A well-timed Retribution on a low-HP objective — a 'smite steal' — can snatch Turtle or Lord away from a team that appeared to be securing it, often the single biggest swing play of the early-to-mid game.
Swap in when needed
Blade Armor — Against enemy crit-reliant marksmen dueling him early.
Immortality — Insurance for diving deep into the enemy backline.
Wind of Nature — A window of physical damage immunity against the physical carry he dives onto.
Ling Crit Burst build: Swift Boots, then Berserker's Fury, then Malefic Roar, then Endless Battle.
Early Snowball
7,190g total
When ahead early and looking to chain kills across the map with the Sword Field reset.
A well-timed Retribution on a low-HP objective — a 'smite steal' — can snatch Turtle or Lord away from a team that appeared to be securing it, often the single biggest swing play of the early-to-mid game.
Swap in when needed
Blade of Despair — Swap in once ahead for maximum late-game burst.
Immortality — Insurance against a pick-off ultimate catching him overextending.
Ling Early Snowball build: Swift Boots, then Haas' Claws, then Berserker's Fury, then Malefic Roar.
Use wall-clings between fights to build Lightness Points faster and scout unseen angles with the half-stealth
2
Touch the Sword Field's orbiting blades after the ultimate to refresh its cooldown for a second engage in the same fight
3
Land Defiant Sword's critical strikes for the bonus slow, chaining into a follow-up dash before the target can escape
4
Avoid clinging to walls in the open when the enemy has ranged CC — a landed skill knocks him straight to the ground
Ling — common questions
Is Ling good for beginners?
No — he's widely considered one of the hardest heroes in the game, requiring precise wall-jump positioning and careful crit itemization to play well.
What is the best build for Ling?
Swift Boots into Berserker's Fury, Malefic Roar and Endless Battle covers the standard crit-burst build, since Cloud Walker converts crit chance from all sources at a 1.6x rate.
Which heroes counter Ling?
Natalia, Cyclops, Karina and Saber are the hardest counters since they can burst or lock him down before his mobility matters, while Aamon, Bruno, Valentina and Fredrinn all deny or out-sustain his combo in softer ways.
What does Ling's ultimate do?
Tempest of Blades leaps him into the air invincible, then lands dealing physical damage and knocking up enemies in the center, creating a Sword Field with four orbiting blades that reduce the ultimate's cooldown when touched.
