Ixia is one of the safest S-tier picks in the gold lane heading into 2026. The best Ixia build this season leans hard into physical damage and passive stacking: sustained healing from Siphon Starlium, fast wave clear from Dual Beam, and an ultimate that outputs numbers few marksmen can match in a 3-second window. Her only real liability is Full Barrage rooting her in place. This guide covers the current meta build, exact combos, and how to play around that weakness in every phase of the game.
#Why Ixia Dominates the Gold Lane in Season 40
Her win rate sits around 48% overall, which looks underwhelming until you account for how many lower-rank players do not understand her passive mechanic. Among Mythic and Immortal players, her numbers read significantly higher.
The core reason Ixia is oppressive in the gold lane is Siphon Starlium. Every third enhanced basic attack heals her while dealing true damage. Against melee heroes who want to close in for short trades, she wins those exchanges almost automatically if you stack your passive before committing. Most marksmen will back off when a Chou or Aamon dives. Ixia can actually punish them for diving without backup.
Dual Beam also has only a 4-second cooldown at max level. Your wave clear is fast and your poke frequency is high. You get a free harass tool every four seconds while keeping your minion line healthy, which means enemy roamers have fewer windows to dive you safely.
#Ixia's Skills Explained
Passive: Siphon Starlium Every basic attack and skill marks enemies with starlium charges. On the third stack, your enhanced basic attack consumes them, dealing 150% physical attack as true damage and restoring HP. Weave basic attacks between skill casts to maximize uptime. The pattern is two skills, one auto, repeat.
Skill 1: Dual Beam Two beams fired across the ground. If both hit the same target, damage doubles. Enemies are slowed by 40%, and you gain 2 seconds of movement speed after casting. This is your primary poke and wave clear tool. At a 4-second cooldown, it is one of the highest-frequency skills on any gold laner.
Skill 2: Star Helix Launches an energy canister in a chosen direction. Enemies at range get pulled toward the center and briefly stunned. Enemies too close get knocked back instead. Use the pull to cluster enemies before your ultimate fires, or use the knockback to create space when someone closes in on you.
Skill 3: Full Barrage (Ultimate) Ixia roots herself in place, transforms her weapon into six guns, and fires in a wide fan shape for several seconds. This is where her damage lives. You cannot move during it, so your positioning before casting decides whether this wins or throws the teamfight.
#Best Ixia Build 2026 (Season 40)
This is the standard ranked build for Season 40. Physical damage focus, anti-tank second core, one defensive slot for assassin matchups.
| Item | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Swift Boots | Early attack speed. Helps passive stack faster in lane |
| Corrosion Scythe | First core. Slows enemies on hit, sustains DPS through extended trades |
| Demon Hunter Sword | Second core. % max HP damage per hit. Anti-tank and adds lifesteal |
| Blade of Despair | Raw physical damage. Bonus damage activates against low-HP targets |
| Wind of Nature | Physical immunity for 2 seconds. Blocks burst from assassins diving during your ultimate |
| Malefic Roar | Armor pen for late-game tanks. Swap for Immortality if you are being repeatedly focused |
Situational adjustments:
- Replace Wind of Nature with Winter Truncheon against Saber, Lancelot, or Ling. The freeze gives you 2.5 seconds of invulnerability and opens a window to Flicker out.
- If the enemy has no burst assassin and you are snowballing, replace Wind of Nature with Golden Staff for extra passive proc frequency.
#Emblem Setup and Battle Spell
Emblem: Marksman
- Tier 1: Swift
- Tier 2: Bargain Hunter
- Talent: Weakness Finder (your enhanced basics apply a slow, stacking with Corrosion Scythe for near-permanent movement impairment on your target)
Battle Spell: Flicker, always. Her ultimate roots her in place. Flicker lets you reposition mid-cast and turns a potentially punishable commitment into a survivable one. Some players run Aegis for the shield, but the repositioning utility outweighs it in solo rank where you cannot rely on teammates to peel.
For the full marksman talent breakdown, check the emblem recommendation tool.
#Ixia Combos
Basic Poke (Laning Phase)
S1 > AA > AA > AA
Dual Beam slows the enemy, then three autos trigger your passive proc. The slow makes it harder for them to reposition before you complete the sequence.
Full Kill Combo
S2 > S1 > AA > AA > S3
Pull with Star Helix to stun or cluster the target. Fire Dual Beam while they are slowed. Two autos build your passive stacks, then activate Full Barrage. Time your passive proc to land during the barrage window for maximum burst.
Flicker Combo (Teamfights)
S3 > Flicker > S2
Activate Full Barrage from a safe angle. When a diver closes in mid-cast, Flicker away from them. Use S2 to push them back further or pull scattered enemies into your barrage zone. This combo takes practice but makes you significantly harder to assassinate during your ultimate.
#Gold Lane Phase Guide
Levels 1 to 4
This is your most vulnerable window. At level 1, Ixia has one skill and no ultimate. Your roamer has not arrived yet. If the enemy jungler invades early, you have no escape.
Stay behind your minion line. Use S1 for poke only when the enemy steps forward. Do not push the wave unless your roamer is watching nearby.
If you are against a Chou: stay behind minions until level 4. His dash has a 10-second cooldown at level 1. Bait it out on a minion, then step up and punish with S1 into three autos to proc your passive.
Against Lolita: her shield blocks projectiles, which includes both beams. Do not cast S1 while her shield is active. Wait for her to cancel it or let it expire, then immediately S2 into S1 for the double-hit.
Mid Game (First Two Core Items)
Once you have Corrosion Scythe and Demon Hunter Sword, your damage is enough to threaten tanks. Rotate to Turtle only after your wave is fully cleared. Half-cleared waves invite enemy roamers to dive you while you are out of position.
During skirmishes, stay at max Dual Beam range and let your frontline absorb the first contact. S2 is a setup tool, not an opener. Let your tank engage, pull the clustered enemies with Star Helix, then activate Full Barrage from behind.
Late Game Teamfights
Full Barrage reaches peak value once Blade of Despair is complete. The damage spike on full-build Ixia is severe enough that a 3-second barrage against a grouped enemy team removes their carries.
Position 600 units behind your tank. Cast S3 from that range. If a diver gets through, activate Wind of Nature, Flicker behind your frontline, and re-engage with S1 into basic attacks. You should never be the first target the enemy reaches in a teamfight. That is your tank's job.
For how Ixia compares to the rest of the current gold lane pool, check the MLBB hero tier list filtered by Mythic rank.
#Matchup Guide
Heroes Ixia Beats Consistently
Layla and Miya: Slower attack range and no gap-close. Your S2 pull removes any spacing they try to create. Trade aggressively from level 2 and do not let them scale into late game.
Granger: His burst requires loaded passive bullets. Once he fires them, his basic attacks deal significantly less. That is your window to step up and stack your passive. Respect him when his bullets are full, punish him when they are spent.
Brody: Telegraphed poke with visible cast animations. His passive stacks take time to build. Close the gap after his S1 and punish with S2 into S1.
Heroes That Counter Ixia
Lolita: Her shield blocks every projectile Ixia fires, including both beams and the barrage shots. If Lolita is in the enemy lineup, reconsider the Ixia pick or have your team grab Lolita for your side first. This is Ixia's hardest counter in Season 40.
Joy and Ling: Both dive from angles that S2 cannot reliably punish. Joy can bypass your frontline and burst you before your roamer responds. Winter Truncheon is mandatory in slot 5 against these two.
Chou: His third Jeet Kune Do kick interrupts Full Barrage. Save S2 for when he commits his dash. If he catches you without S2, Flicker immediately after the kick animation and do not re-engage without cooldowns ready.
For live matchup win rates, the counter pick finder shows every Ixia matchup with real data.
#FAQ
Is Ixia good for solo rank climbing in 2026? Yes, particularly from Gold through Mythic. Her self-sustain through Siphon Starlium lets her win lane trades without reliable support. In Mythic and above, sharper positioning awareness is required because enemy roamers know exactly how to punish her immobility.
Should I build attack speed or physical damage on Ixia? Physical damage, not crit. Her damage comes from passive procs and skill scaling. Corrosion Scythe into Demon Hunter Sword is the correct Season 40 path. Crit builds underperform compared to this sustained physical output.
When is the right time to use Full Barrage? After your frontline engages and enemies are grouped. Never open a fight with S3. The sequence is always: tank initiates, you set up with S2, then barrage.
What roamer pairs well with Ixia? Atlas, Tigreal, and Floryn work best. Hard CC tanks create the grouping her barrage rewards, and Floryn's heals extend her trading potential in prolonged fights. Avoid roamers who need kills to be effective (Hilda, Saber) because Ixia needs the gold, not early pressure.
Is Winter Truncheon worth slotting every game? Only when the enemy has one or more high-mobility assassins. Against a team without a diver, Wind of Nature or Malefic Roar is the better call. Winter Truncheon costs you a damage slot and is worth it only when Ling, Lancelot, or Saber is actively targeting you in teamfights.
