I was fortunate enough to catch a couple games with Olaf today so I wanted to share my impressions, as usual. Olaf is definitely a strong champion – potentially too strong, though I think his lack of a initiator/gap closer will be his weak point.

For starters, Olaf is insanely strong in the early game. My first match with him I managed to bait a Kayle/Nasus combo down my lane a bit before creeps had spawned. They had me to about 60 percent when I turned and my lanemate (another Kayle) and I rocked them. Olaf’s attack speed gets so high he is just unmanageable if you have to be close to deal damage.

Unfortunately, his passive is his one great strength. Yes, it is awesome, but I wish his other skills offered a bit more. Ghost is pretty much a necessity, because you just aren’t fast enough otherwise. If someone is toward the edge of your axe range, the distance they cover while you cast is enough that they’re out of range by the time your axe lands.

Olaf is very strong in the jungle, which is good considering his ability to burn through mana. Most of his skills are cheap, but they’re up often so you can really churn through that blue bar. It’s also really nice to have lizard buff early in the game for the slow. That means you can rely less on your somewhat sporadic axe and more on your heavy-hitting Reckless Swing.

The fact that Reckless Swing is pure damage is another strength. It deals what it deals, regardless of your enemy’s resistances. It can also hit you pretty hard in the early game, so be sure you’re going to live through the encounter before spamming this too hard.

As for the rest, it feels a little early to talk about Olaf’s position as a part of the ongoing metagame. Patch Day always encourages odd choices, and I saw more Kayle players today than I care to remember. I also seemed to see Ashe in every game I played, which meant I was getting kited all over the map. If you’ve enjoyed heroes like Pantheon or Mundo, give Olaf and go and let me know what you think.