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Shen
Patch 16.3.1
TopDifficulty
Medium
Strength
Early
Mid
Late
Win Condition
Win your lane or stay even while using to snowball your Bot or Mid lane. In the late game, split push the lane furthest from the active objective to force the enemy to choose between stopping you or losing the objective to your 5-man presence.
Playstyle
Global protector and lane bully who wins by out-trading opponents and turning cross-map skirmishes into 5v4s.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths
- + allows you to split push with zero risk of missing a teamfight
- + is one of the few abilities in the game that completely nullifies auto-attacks
- +High base damage on makes you a formidable 1v1 duelist in the early levels
- + provides consistent effective HP, making you deceptively tanky in short trades
Weaknesses
- -Zero innate waveclear makes you struggle to shove lanes without Bami's Cinder
- -Missing leaves you with zero mobility and massive energy debt
- - usage inherently grants your lane opponent free plates and gold
- -Falls off late game as a duelist against true split pushers like Fiora or Jax
Abilities
Provides a shield after casting an ability. To maximize this, wait for the internal cooldown before using your next spell. Hitting an enemy with or reduces the cooldown of , allowing for multiple shields in a single extended fight.
Recalls your blade. If it passes through an enemy, you get increased damage and attack speed. Always position your blade behind the enemy laner so the recall triggers the empowered state. The slow it applies is crucial for sticking to targets.
Creates a zone around the spirit blade that blocks all basic attacks for 1.75s. This is centered on the blade, not Shen. You must use to move the blade to your allies to protect them from the enemy ADC.
A dash that taunts enemies. It is your only engage and escape tool. Hitting a champion restores energy; if you miss, you will likely run out of energy and be unable to cast or in the same fight.
Channels a massive shield onto an ally regardless of distance, then teleports you to them. The shield value scales with the ally's missing health. Use this to turn ganks into counter-ganks or to join a dragon fight while you are top lane.
Teamfight Role
Protective Warden and Secondary Engager.
Your priority is using to peel for your carries. Position your spirit blade with so that your backline is inside the zone to block enemy ADC or Assassin autos.
If you see the enemy carry out of position, use + Flash to start the fight. Only do this if your team is close enough to follow up instantly.
Combos
Standard Trade
(through enemy) -> Auto x3 -> (to block return damage) -> Walk away
Your primary lane interaction. Dragging the blade through them ensures you win the trade via empowered damage and the shield.
The Flash Taunt
-> Flash (mid-dash)
Used to catch enemies off guard. By Flashing at the very end of the animation, you extend the hitbox and give the enemy almost zero time to react.
All-In Lockdown
-> (pull through) -> Auto x3 -> -> Auto
The full commitment combo. The taunt from ensures the pull-through is guaranteed, maximizing your burst damage.
The Ultimate Arrival
-> (immediately on landing) -> ->
Standard procedure after teleporting. Drag the blade to yourself immediately to get empowered autos and prepare your block zone for the ally you just saved.
Power Spikes
| Spike | Why |
|---|---|
| Level 2 | Having access to both and allows for a very strong ignite all-in that many top laners underestimate. |
| Level 3 | With unlocked, you can now take zero damage from champions like Renekton or Jax during their most important attack sequences. |
| Level 6 | You gain global map pressure. Even if you don't use , the threat of you using it forces the enemy team to play passively. |
| Level 11 | Second rank in significantly reduces the long cooldown, allowing you to influence the map more frequently. |
Tips & Tricks
- •Watch the health bars of your teammates above the minimap; it's faster than panning your camera to check for targets.
- •You can hide the spirit blade in a bush or behind a wall to make the pull-through harder to dodge.
- • can be used to dash through many thin walls in the jungle for escapes or creative gank paths.
- •The shield is granted at the START of the cast, but the cooldown reduction from hitting spells happens when the spell connects.
- •Using can block abilities that count as auto-attacks, such as Ezreal Q, Gangplank Q, and Twisted Fate Gold Card.
- •If an enemy is running away, 's slow only applies if they are moving AWAY from you. Use this to chase them down effectively.
Common Mistakes
- ✕Using on an ally who is already 100% going to die.→You lose your tower, your ultimate cooldown, and you likely die anyway upon arrival.
- ✕Tapping without looking at where the blade is.→You miss the pull-through damage and the slow, making your trade significantly weaker.
- ✕Using as your only way to move around the map.→You will be energy-starved and defenseless if a fight breaks out or a gank arrives.
- ✕Ignoring the wave state before using .→If the enemy is crashing a large wave, using will cost you 2-3 plates and 2 levels of XP.
- ✕Positioning Shen far away from his spirit blade.→You cannot use to protect yourself or allies when you actually need it.
AI-generated guide • Patch 16.3.1 • Generated