Combos · ADC

Tristana combos

the Yordle Gunner

3 Tristana combos explained key by key: in which order to cast the abilities, when to use them and what each step does. The main combo is W › E › Q › AA. Further down: every ability's cooldown, cost and range, and the skill max order measured over ranked games.

Tristana combos

Written guide · based on the official ability texts

The execution

Q AA AA

When: An enemy is isolated or weakened.

Rocket Jump brings you closer and slows, Explosive Charge places a bomb on the target, Rapid Fire boosts your attack speed to finish.

The defensive ultimate

When: An enemy dives you.

Buster Shot deals magic damage and knocks the target back; if they carry an Explosive Charge, the blast radius is doubled, which also hurts their nearby allies.

The kill chain

E AA AA AA AA

When: A team fight is underway.

Every takedown makes your projectiles explode around the victim: position yourself to hit several enemies at once.

Common mistakes

Diving with Rocket Jump without an escape: its cooldown is long.
Using the ultimate offensively when it knocks the target back: it is also a defensive tool.
Forgetting that your range grows with levels: do not play like you are level 1.

Cooldowns, costs and ranges

A combo only comes back once its abilities are off cooldown: these values (rank 1 to max rank, in seconds) tell how long to wait between two combos. Source: Data Dragon 16.19.1.

Ability	Cooldown (s)	Cost	Range
Q · Rapid Fire	20/19/18/17/16	15/20/25/30/35 Mana	20
W · Rocket Jump	22/20/18/16/14	30/35/40/45/50 Mana	900
E · Explosive Charge	16/15.5/15/14.5/14	50/55/60/65/70 Mana	550
R · Buster Shot	100	100 Mana	550

Official ability descriptions

PassiveDraw a Bead

Increases Tristana's Attack Range as she levels.

QRapid Fire

Tristana fires her weapon rapidly, increasing her Attack Speed for a short time.

WRocket Jump

Tristana fires at the ground to propel her to a distant location, dealing damage and slowing surrounding units for a brief period where she lands.

EExplosive Charge

When Tristana kills a unit, her cannonballs burst into shrapnel, dealing damage to surrounding enemies. Can be activated to place a bomb on a target enemy that explodes after a short duration dealing damage to surrounding units.

RBuster Shot

Tristana loads a massive cannonball into her weapon and fires it at an enemy unit. This deals Magic Damage and knocks the target back. If the target is carrying the Explosive Charge bomb, the bomb detonation radius is doubled.

Skill order

Max order: E > Q > W50.4% · 127 games

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15
Q			●					●		●		●	●
W		●												●	●
E	●			●	●		●		●
R						●					●

The order shows which abilities reach rank 5 first; the grid shows the most-played level-up sequence with that order (measured over 161 games).

Riot's official tips for playing Tristana

Her massive gun allows Tristana to fire on targets at a great distance. Utilize this to prevent your enemies from ever laying a hand on you.
Use Rocket Jump after you have stacked up your Explosive Charge on an enemy to finish them off with a burst of damage.
Use Rapid Fire to help stack up your Explosive Charge on enemy champions.

How to play around Tristana's combos

If you see Tristana activate Rapid Fire in a fight, stun her and try to back off until the spell dissipates.
Stand away from your creeps in a lane to take less collateral damage from Explosive Charge.

Frequently asked questions

What is Tristana's main combo?

The execution: W › E › Q › AA. An enemy is isolated or weakened. Rocket Jump brings you closer and slows, Explosive Charge places a bomb on the target, Rapid Fire boosts your attack speed to finish.

Which ability should I max first on Tristana?

The most-played max order is E > Q > W (127 games, 50.4% win rate).

What is the cooldown of Tristana's ultimate?

Buster Shot has a 100 second cooldown depending on its rank.

Build, runes and counters: full Tristana guide · every champion's combos · tier list