Olaf Top Build 16.11
Olaf Top build in patch 16.11 has a 66.0% win rate over 50 games. This setup focuses on boots are an early movement purchase built to improve baseline mobility and reduce how punishing bad positioning feels. they are mainly bought to help with spacing, lane movement, and getting to fights or objectives faster.
Olaf Build Guide & Strategy (Patch 16.11)
About Olaf
Olaf is a relentless juggernaut who wins by forcing extended fights with axe slows, heavy melee damage, and an ultimate that lets him run straight through crowd control. He is terrifying when he gets on top of people early, but he becomes much easier to kite if he loses momentum or mismanages his approach.
Olaf Build Strategy & Items
Boots support a tempo-oriented style where movement matters as much as raw stats, letting you weave in and out of trades, dodge skillshots, and reach waves or skirmishes sooner. They fit gameplans built around cleaner rotations, safer lane resets, and better control over distance in fights. The item fits auto-attack focused gameplans that rely on scaling damage and stronger repeated hits over the course of fights. It supports carries who want their future item path to stay on track while still adding some threat to trades and skirmishes. The item supports defensive lane plans where you expect to take physical poke, minion-supported trades, or sustained harassment from auto attacks. It fits champions who want to blunt early AD pressure, farm more safely, and reach later spikes without bleeding too much health. Boots are an early movement purchase built to improve baseline mobility and reduce how punishing bad positioning feels. They are mainly bought to help with spacing, lane movement, and getting to fights or objectives faster. Cloak of Agility is a critical strike component aimed at increasing the payoff of basic attacks rather than their frequency or base strength. It is mainly bought by crit-scaling champions as a step toward larger damage spikes later in the build. Cloth Armor is an early armor component meant to reduce incoming physical damage from basic attacks and AD-heavy trading. It is mainly purchased to stabilize lanes or builds against opponents who threaten through repeated physical hits. Chain Vest is a heavier armor component bought to make a meaningful jump in physical durability. It is mainly for players facing strong AD threats and wanting a sturdier mid-step toward larger defensive items. Long Sword is the basic attack damage component for champions who want a small but efficient increase to their physical output. It is mainly bought to improve trading, farming, and build flexibility without delaying larger item paths.
Olaf Key Strengths
Their value shows up everywhere because early movement speed changes how quickly you can reposition, chase, retreat, and respond to map plays. Boots also make trading more reliable for champions that need better angles, tighter spacing, or faster entry into range. Cloak of Agility is attractive because it advances core crit builds while giving immediate upside to every attack that can convert a small opening into meaningful damage. It also pairs naturally with champions whose kits multiply the value of crit through sustained DPS or enhanced attacks. Cloth Armor is strong because it directly targets one of the most common early damage patterns, making physical trades noticeably less punishing. It is especially valuable into marksmen, fighters, or lanes where repeated auto attacks matter more than occasional burst from other damage types. Chain Vest gives a much more noticeable armor spike than smaller components, making it a strong answer when physical damage is the main obstacle to playing the game. It also helps tanks and bruisers hit safer engage and peel timings because incoming AD punishment becomes easier to absorb. Long Sword is attractive because it gives clean AD at a low cost, making it one of the easiest ways to sharpen early damage and last-hitting. It also builds into a wide range of assassin, marksman, fighter, and utility items, so early purchases rarely feel restrictive. Dagger is useful because it immediately improves attack cadence, making farming under pressure and weaving extra autos into short windows much easier. It also accelerates many offensive item paths, especially for champions that care about on-hit effects, attack resets, or rapid stacking. Doran's Blade is valuable because it gives a rounded early stat package instead of committing purely to offense or defense. That mix makes it easier to last-hit under pressure, trade back with confidence, and keep pushing lane presence without feeling too fragile. Gustwalker Hatchling stands out because movement changes how a jungler influences the map, from faster rotations to more reliable lane entry paths. It is especially useful for champions that thrive on repeated activity, countergank timing, or weaving rapidly between farm and pressure. Health Potion is valuable because it turns gold into reliable early endurance, which matters most when the first few waves decide pressure and recall timing. It also works across many matchups, making it one of the simplest ways to stay active after a rough exchange. Steel Sigil is useful because it gives a more fight-ready feel than purely scaling components, helping champions survive the kind of repeated contact that happens in close-range play. It also smooths item pathing for builds that want sturdiness now without waiting on an expensive completion. Control Ward is powerful because it changes what both teams are allowed to do around fog of war, often deciding whether a pick, dragon setup, or lane trap is even possible. It also creates lasting value well beyond its cost when placed in positions that survive and continue denying enemy vision. Fiendhunter Bolts stands out when the enemy team gives you durable targets that need to be worn down through repeated autos, because it turns uptime into real front line damage. It also suits champions that already prefer on-hit or fast-attack patterns, making each second of free firing feel much more meaningful. Infinity Edge is prized because it creates one of the most recognizable damage spikes in crit builds, especially once enough supporting crit chance is already in place. It is particularly powerful in front-to-back fights, where a well-protected carry can use the item to shred through targets far faster than smaller AD upgrades allow. Phage is useful because it gives melee champions a more practical combat feel than isolated stat pieces that only solve one problem at a time. It also helps lane transitions into skirmishes, where a little extra health and offensive pressure can make repeated close-range exchanges much more manageable. Plated Steelcaps are strong because they answer one of the most common and persistent damage patterns in the game: sustained physical chip from attacks. They are especially useful into double-AD pressure, ranged harass lanes, or late-game carries that would otherwise shred you through repeated autos. Sterak's Gage is valuable because it gives bruisers a much better chance to survive the moment when several enemy abilities land at once. It is especially strong on champions that thrive in extended melee fights, since living through the initial collapse often gives them enough time to turn the fight back with sustained damage. Experimental Hexplate is valuable because it sharpens the exact moment many fighters care about most: the entry into a fight after ultimate activation. It is especially useful on champions whose ult defines their threat pattern, since the item helps that window come up more often and feel more punishing once it begins. Ravenous Hydra is valuable because it turns ordinary farming and trading into much stronger map pressure, especially for champions that want to shove first and move. It is especially good on picks that remain in combat long enough to use both the extra area damage and the sustain, making duels and messy skirmishes much easier to control. Randuin's Omen is valuable because it specifically targets the kind of explosive physical damage that can otherwise punch through ordinary tank itemization. It is especially good against crit-heavy carries and AD divers, since it makes their biggest offensive spikes much harder to convert into a clean kill. Scout's Slingshot is useful because it turns movement and approach timing into practical offensive value, which helps active champions actually reach the fights they want to start. It is especially effective in skirmish-oriented games where getting to a target first or arriving from a better angle matters more than a pure stat stack. Death's Dance is valuable because it gives bruisers more room to stay active after diving into dangerous range, which is often the difference between a successful skirmish and dying before the second rotation. It is especially strong on reset-oriented fighters and sustained melee carries, since staying alive slightly longer often lets them completely swing the fight. Sundered Sky is attractive because it gives fighters a very practical way to make their first connection feel threatening without sacrificing the ability to keep scrapping afterward. It is especially useful on champions that frequently start fights themselves, since it rewards clean entry timing and helps them maintain momentum once the brawl begins. Stridebreaker is especially useful on melee fighters whose biggest problem is not damage once they arrive, but actually staying connected long enough to use it. It gives those champions a far more reliable way to punish slippery carries and ranged solo laners that would otherwise kite out their whole pattern. Serpent's Fang is especially useful when enemy compositions are built around saving priority targets with shields, because it directly attacks the mechanic that would normally blunt your whole combo. It gives assassins and AD skirmishers a way to preserve kill pressure in games where shield-heavy protection would otherwise make every engage feel one step short.
Best Olaf Runes & Spells
Conqueror is a stacking combat rune designed for champions that build momentum as a fight develops. It mainly rewards repeated contact, sustained ability use, and the willingness to stay engaged until accumulated combat power starts to outweigh early burst runes. Last Stand is a combat rune that increases a champion's damage as their own health gets lower. It is mainly chosen by fighters and other close-range champions that expect to keep dealing damage deep into dangerous trades instead of backing off the moment they are threatened. Magical Footwear is an economy rune that delays early boot purchases in exchange for a later movement and gold-efficiency spike. Its purpose is to free up early spending for combat stats or lane tools while still securing stronger baseline mobility once the boots arrive. Cash Back is an economy rune built around making completed purchases snowball more efficiently. Its main purpose is to soften the cost of item spikes so a champion can chain power increases faster than normal once key buys start coming through. Biscuit Delivery is a lane sustain rune meant to keep health and resources from collapsing under repeated pressure. Its purpose is to make difficult early phases more survivable so a champion can continue farming, trading, and contesting waves instead of being forced out too quickly. Approach Velocity is a chase rune built to help players close distance once a target has already been slowed, controlled, or otherwise made catchable. Its purpose is to make successful setup matter more by turning partial access into full contact. Legend: Alacrity is a scaling attack-speed rune made to sharpen auto-based gameplay as stacks accumulate. Its main purpose is to increase how quickly a champion can deliver repeated hits, making sustained DPS and trigger-based attack patterns feel smoother and more threatening. Triumph is a takedown rune that rewards successful fights with a burst of recovery and extra payoff at the moment an enemy falls. Its main purpose is to keep momentum alive after the first kill so a champion can survive the aftermath and continue pushing the skirmish. Flash is an instant repositioning spell built around solving range, angle, and danger in a single moment. It is mainly used to create or escape decisive situations that normal movement cannot cover in time. Ghost is a sustained mobility spell centered on extended movement rather than a single instant reposition. It is mainly picked to improve chase, kiting, and target access across longer skirmishes where spacing decides the outcome. Smite is an objective and jungle control spell designed around camp clearing, neutral secure, and role-defining tempo. It is mainly taken to manage jungle routes efficiently and to give reliable finishing power on monsters that decide map control.
How to Play Olaf (Early, Mid & Late Game)
Olaf Laning Phase (Early Game)
In the early game as Olaf in the Top lane, prioritize consistent farming and map awareness. Aim to secure your Ravenous Hydra as quickly as possible to establish a lane advantage and create opening opportunities.
Olaf Mid Game Strategy
During the mid game, utilize your 3 item power spikes to control lane transitions and objective contested zones. As Top Olaf, your roaming potential and skirmishing power are at their peak.
Olaf Late Game Strategy
In the late game, focus on teamfighting effectiveness and critical positioning. As Olaf, your role is to maintain utility and pressure in final sieges, coordinated and protecting objectives with your full item build.
Olaf Mechanics & Gameplay Tips
Strong Olaf players chain Undertow pickups to keep permanent pressure, weave Reckless Swing at the right moments, and judge exactly when Ragnarok should be used to ignore the key crowd control rather than pressed too early. Weak Olaf play shows up when axes are thrown where they cannot be retrieved, when he tunnels past his damage window, or when he activates his ultimate without a clear path to stick to a target.