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Playing Against Xin Zhao
JunglePatch 16.2.1
What They Do
Early-game powerhouse and diver. He excels at forcing fights with long-range engage via and , then sustaining through duels with . In teamfights, he uses to isolate targets and negate ranged damage.
Abilities (What to Watch For)
| Ability | What You'll See | What It Means For You |
|---|---|---|
| A yellow glow on his spear every third hit accompanied by a small heal VFX. | Provides sustain in the jungle and extra damage in duels. Do not try to out-sustain him in long, auto-attack-based trades early on. | |
| Spear glows blue and he stabs rapidly three times. | The third hit knocks you up. Each hit also reduces the cooldown of his other abilities. Use CC or mobility to prevent that third strike from landing. | |
| A circular sweep followed by a long-range linear thrust. | The thrust deals heavy damage, slows, and marks you. If you are marked, his range is nearly doubled. Sidestep the thrust at all costs. | |
| A fast dash that creates a small shockwave on impact. | His primary engage that grants him Attack Speed. Once he uses this, he has no way to stick to you if you dash or jump away immediately. | |
| A large wind circle that knocks back everyone except his last target. | He is immune to damage from anyone outside the circle. If you are a ranged carry, you MUST step inside the perimeter to damage him, or wait for the 5-second duration to end. |
Respect
- !Level 3 Gank→With and , he has a point-and-click gap closer and a knockup. He will often look for a 'buff-buff-gank' pathing to snowball lanes before 3:30.
- !Marking→Being 'Challenged' by increases his range from 650 to 1100. It turns a safe distance into a kill zone.
- !Early Dueling Power→Between the healing from and the cooldown reduction from , very few junglers can 1v1 him at scuttle crab.
- !Zone Control→He can effectively 'turn off' your backline's damage during a dive. If your team is mostly ranged, he can single-handedly win a fight by standing in the middle of your team.
Punish
- +Missed thrust→If he misses the thrust, his engage range is low (650). Kiting champions should abuse this window to poke him down while he cannot reach you.
- +After 3 knockup→Once his third strike is used, his burst and CC are gone for several seconds. This is the best time to all-in or trade back.
- +Pre-6 Invades→While strong, he lacks an escape. If you catch him with a teammate while his is on cooldown, he is an easy kill.
- +is on cooldown→He becomes significantly squishier in teamfights. Focus him down the moment he dives in, as he no longer has the protection circle to block your ADC's damage.
Laning Tips
- •Ward the 'pixel' brush in the river early; Xin Zhao loves to cheese gank at level 2 or 3.
- •If you see the indicator, move horizontally. Avoiding the thrust prevents him from following up with a long-range .
- •Save your escape tool (like Ezreal E or Lucian E) specifically for AFTER he uses . If you use it early, he will just dash to you.
- •Armor boots (Plated Steelcaps) are extremely effective as they reduce the damage of his and procs.
- •If you are the 'Challenged' target, don't run away from the team—you are the only one who can damage him through .
- •Xin Zhao's clear is healthy but not the fastest. If you play a power-farmer, try to vertical jungle and take his camps on the opposite side of the map.
Teamfight Warning
- âš Don't blow high-cooldown ultimates on him while he is inside his if you are standing outside the circle; they will deal 0 damage.
- âš He will try to use to knock your frontline away from your backline. Stay spread out to avoid the massive knockback.
- âš CC him the moment he lands his . If he can't auto-attack, he can't proc to reduce his other cooldowns.
- âš Insects/Displacement: If you have a knockback (like Janna R), use it after he dashes in to keep him away from your carries.
- âš Watch for the 'W-E-R' combo where he marks a backliner, dashes in, and ults the peelers away.
AI-generated counterplay guide • Patch 16.2.1 • Cached