Fizz

Overview

Fizz is one of the most slippery AP assassins in League of Legends, built around a combination of high burst damage and the unique untargetability of his E Playful Trickster — a hop onto a pole that makes him completely invulnerable for a brief moment before he can choose to slam down on enemies or hop away to safety. His passive Nimble Fighter reduces collision with units and reduces the damage he takes from basic attacks. His Q Urchin Strike dashes through a target and applies on-hit effects including his W. His W Seastone Trident empowers his next attack to deal bonus magic damage and applies a grievous wounds bleed that deals additional damage over time. His E Playful Trickster first hops onto the pole making him untargetable, then on recast slams down dealing area damage and slowing, or hops away in a direction to reposition. His ultimate Chum the Waters launches a fish that attaches to an enemy and after a delay summons a massive shark that deals damage, knocks up enemies, and slows. He is most dangerous as a mid lane assassin who can use his E to dodge the crucial ability that would stop his combo and then blink away after delivering his burst.

Strengths

• Playful Trickster E's untargetability can dodge any ability that targets Fizz directly — a well-timed E negates point-and-click stuns, targeted abilities, and channeled crowd control that would otherwise stop his combo mid-execution
• Chum the Waters ultimate creates a delayed area knockup that is difficult to dodge once the fish attaches — the delay gives Fizz time to apply his full burst combo before the knockup lands, creating a scenario where the target is already critically low when they are knocked up
• Urchin Strike Q applies all on-hit effects including Seastone Trident W — this means landing Q not only deals damage but simultaneously applies the grievous wounds bleed, maximizing the total damage output from a single ability activation
• Nimble Fighter passive makes Fizz impossible to body block with minions or champions — he can dash through any unit without being slowed or stopped, making his approach angles significantly more flexible than most melee assassins
• High outplay potential through E's two-stage design — the initial hop makes him untargetable and he can choose afterward whether to slam forward or hop away, giving him decision time mid-combo that most champions with single-use dashes do not have

Weaknesses

• Hard crowd control that lands immediately after E ends before Fizz can reposition removes his escape — a stun that hits the frame after E's untargetability ends catches Fizz in his landing animation and prevents the escape that makes his burst safe
• Less effective against tanky compositions — his burst is designed for squishy targets with moderate health and magic resistance, and champions who build heavy magic resistance reduce his damage output to a point where the assassination attempt fails
• Falls behind significantly without early kills — his AP scaling requires ability power items that cost significant gold, and a behind Fizz without items cannot burst anyone while being squishy enough to be burst himself
• Chum the Waters ultimate can be dodged by high-mobility champions with multiple dashes — a fish that attaches to a champion with three dash abilities can be carried away from the shark's landing zone before the delay expires
• Playful Trickster E has a meaningful cooldown — using E for an aggressive dash into the enemy team rather than saving it defensively means Fizz has no escape tool available when enemies counterattack, and misusing E in a fight often results in dying before the burst lands

Early Game

Fizz's early game before first items requires careful trade management rather than aggressive all-ins. His burst at low levels is insufficient to kill most champions in a single combo without item backing, and his mana pool is limited enough that sustained fighting drains his resources quickly. The most effective early pattern is to use Q Urchin Strike to close distance and apply W Seastone Trident's bleed in short trades, then use E Playful Trickster to reposition away before the enemy can retaliate fully. These short hit-and-run trades build a health deficit without committing to a fight that Fizz cannot guarantee winning. Save E specifically for dodging the enemy's most important ability rather than using it offensively — an enemy mid laner who burns their primary crowd control into Fizz's E loses their kill threat for its full cooldown. Farm safely when the enemy has abilities available and trade aggressively the moment important cooldowns are spent.

Mid Game

Mid game after first items is Fizz's primary power window. With sufficient ability power, his Q plus W plus auto plus E combo can delete most non-tank champions before they can respond, and Chum the Waters ultimate adds a knockup setup that makes the burst even more guaranteed. The most effective mid game pattern is roaming after pushing the mid lane wave — Fizz appearing in a side lane with full combo available is an immediate threat that most laners cannot survive without jungle help. When ganking, use Chum the Waters first on the target to apply the fish, then immediately activate the full burst combo so the damage lands simultaneously with or before the shark appears. In skirmishes around objectives, prioritize finding the isolated carry rather than fighting into a grouped team — a Fizz who finds the ADC alone near Dragon can execute them before the rest of the team can rotate.

Late Game

Late game requires Fizz to resist the urge to engage at the beginning of teamfights and instead wait for the right isolation opportunity. In five-on-five teamfights with the enemy team grouped tightly, diving into the middle with Chum the Waters and hoping to burst a carry through their supports and frontline frequently results in Fizz dying before the shark arrives. The correct late game approach is to flank from an unexpected angle, identify which carry is slightly out of position relative to their team, land Chum the Waters specifically on that target, then follow up with the full burst combo from the flank before the fish delay expires. Playful Trickster E should be saved for after the burst is delivered rather than using it to approach — the combo is already fast enough to execute before the enemy can react, and having E available after committing means Fizz can escape the counterattack rather than dying in the middle of the enemy team after the kill.

Tips & Tricks

• Playful Trickster E has two stages — the initial hop makes Fizz untargetable, and the recast determines whether he slams down or hops away. Hold E for a moment before recasting to give yourself decision time rather than immediately committing to one direction. A brief pause between the hop and the recast is often the difference between escaping and dying.
• Chum the Waters ultimate attaches to the first enemy hit — in teamfights where multiple enemies are grouped, the fish will attach to whoever is closest rather than the priority target. Aim Chum the Waters around the target rather than directly at them if tank champions are standing in front of the carry.
• Urchin Strike Q applies all on-hit effects including Seastone Trident W — activate W before using Q to ensure the grievous wounds bleed applies on the Q dash rather than having to auto attack to apply it separately. This maximizes the damage of the initial approach hit.
• Nimble Fighter passive allows Fizz to walk through minion waves and enemy champions without being stopped — use this in chase scenarios to maintain pursuit through minion waves that would slow other champions, and use it to approach carries through minion lines that enemies assume will block your path.
• The shark from Chum the Waters appears at the location of the fish when the delay expires — if the enemy moves significantly after the fish attaches, the shark appears where the enemy moved to rather than where they were when the fish landed. Against high-mobility champions, aim the fish slightly ahead of their likely movement direction.

For official ability details and lore, visit the official Fizz page and the Fizz Wiki.