Normal Skill Order

R > Q > E > W

Max Q first in almost every game. The Darkin Daggers are your primary damage tool, your sustain, and your waveclear. In Mayhem ARAM, where fights are constant and death timers are short, having Q on a lower cooldown lets you poke, execute low-health targets, and heal off minion waves between fights. You want this ability hitting like a truck by mid-game.

Take E second. The Eviscerate is your engage tool, your escape, and your reset mechanic. Putting points into E lowers the cooldown significantly, which matters more in Mayhem than on Summoner's Rift. You need to dash in, dump damage, and dash out—or dash to a fresh target if you get a reset. A low-level E feels clunky and leaves you stranded in the enemy team for too long.

W gets one point early, usually level 3 or 4, and stays there. The Call of the Pack creates pressure and blocks skillshots, but the damage scaling from leveling it is underwhelming compared to Q and the utility of E cooldowns. You level W mainly to reduce its cooldown, but you get better value by maxing your basic abilities first.

R whenever available. The ultimate is your entire teamfight identity. It amplifies your pack, gives you movement speed, and turns you into a reset monster. No choice here.

Augment-Influenced Skill Order

R > Q > W > E (specific conditions apply)

Some augments push you toward a W-max playstyle, but this is niche. If you roll an augment that specifically buffs your ultimate or adds massive area-of-effect damage to your W dash—like effects that trigger on ability cast or grant shields on hit—W max becomes a viable disruption build. You trade the safety and reset potential of E for a lower-cooldown Call of the Pack that creates more chaos in teamfights.

Another scenario: if you get an augment that turns you into a tank or bruiser rather than an assassin, W max helps you peel and zone. The packmates block key skillshots, and the lower cooldown means you have them up more often to absorb damage for your backline. You become a disruptor, not a killer.

Even with augments, Q max remains the default. Most Mayhem augments scale with ability power, attack speed, or raw damage—Q benefits from all of these. Unless the augment explicitly changes how W functions or rewards you for casting it frequently, stick to the standard order.

Adjustment Triggers

  • Heavy poke enemy comp: If you're against four or five long-range mages who delete you before you get in range, consider putting a second point in E earlier than usual. The extra dash range and lower cooldown help you close gaps or dodge critical skillshots. You sacrifice some damage, but dead Naafiri does zero damage.
  • All-in melee brawl: Against a team that wants to run you down—like multiple bruisers or tanks—Q max is non-negotiable. You need the execute damage and the heal to survive extended fights. E second lets you kite backwards and reposition when they collapse.
  • Snowball reliance: If your team lacks engage and you're forced to use Snowball as your primary initiation, E max becomes even more valuable. You Snowball in, E to a target, burst them, and E out. The lower E cooldown means you can attempt this play more often without being punished for a failed engage.
  • Augment changes your role: If you roll an augment that turns you into a healer, support, or tank, abandon the assassin skill order. W max for zone control, E max for mobility, Q last. This is rare, but Mayhem augments create weird games.

Cost of Choosing the Wrong Order

Maxing W first or second without a reason: You gimp your damage. The packmates are annoying, but they don't kill people. Q is your kill pressure. E is your survival. W is a utility spell that supplements your game plan—it doesn't define it. If you max W early, you become a mosquito: visible, irritating, but easy to swat. You lack the burst to assassinate squishies and the cooldowns to escape after diving.

Maxing E first: This feels tempting because dashing is fun, but you lose the execute damage on Q. Naafiri's job is to delete a target and reset. Without Q damage, you dash in, tickle the enemy ADC, and die. E max is for survival, not for carrying. Only do this if you're getting absolutely crushed in lane and need to play for resets.

Ignoring Q sustain: Q heals you when it kills units. In Mayhem, minion waves are constant. If you don't max Q, you miss out on massive sustain between fights. You end up recalling or dying more often, which means less time pressuring objectives and enemies.

Delaying R: Never. The ultimate transforms you from a skirmisher into a teamfight monster. Delaying your level 6, 11, or 16 power spikes by even a few seconds can cost you a fight, a tower, or the game.

Summary

Default to R > Q > E > W. Max Q for damage and sustain. Max E for cooldowns and safety. Keep W at one point until your other abilities are done. Adjust only when augments force a role change or when the enemy comp makes standard play impossible. Wrong orders leave you either too squishy to survive or too weak to kill—both lose games.