Her passive “Surging Tides” gives her allies movement speed when they are hit by Nami’s abilities.

Nami’s most important ability in the lane is her W “Ebb and Flow”, which you therefore take at level 1 and maximize first. Nami unleashes a torrent of water that bounces back and forth between allies and enemies. Allies are healed while enemies take damage. This ability is therefore perfect for poking enemies and sustaining yourself in lane at the same time. She can cast the ability on herself, an ally or an opponent. Use this depending on whether the damage or the healing is needed more urgently.

At level 2, you skill the E “Blessing of the Tide Caller”, which lets you buff an ally. Their next three attacks or abilities deal additional magic damage and slow down the enemies they hit. The combination of her W and E make Nami very strong in short trades, as she and her lanepartner can deal a lot of damage quickly and then heal up again.

The last ability you level up is Nami’s Q “Water Prison”. She sends a bubble to the clicked spot, which damages and stuns any enemies hit. Due to the slow flight speed of this skillshot, you usually have to predict where the enemy will move to. The easiest time to hit the Q is therefore when the opponent is already immobilized or in a position where he cannot dodge well. On the first few levels, a well-aimed Q is your best chance of outplaying a gank or an opponent’s all-in. Throwing them randomly in the hope of landing a poke can quickly cost you your life. If you still want to use the Q offensively to get a kill in lane, buff your Adc with the E beforehand so that it slows down your opponents and you can hit the Q more easily. Your combo will then look like this: E->AA->Q->AA->W

As usual, you skill Nami’s ult “Tidal Wave” whenever you can. When activated, Nami summons a wide tidal wave that throws enemies into the air, then slows them and deals damage. In addition, allies hit by Nami’s passive gain twice as much movement speed. The knockup from Nami’s ult only lasts half a second. So if you want to use your ult to guarantee a hit Q, you have to throw it just before the tidal wave hits your opponents.