In this champion guide, we are going to take a deep dive into the mid lane and take a look at Zed. What are his strengths, and how do you utilize this assassin to the best of his ability? Zed is a mobile champion who will make your opposing ADC want to curl up and cry. With him, you are a threat in any side lane and hell, maybe soon even in the jungle as well?
Zed is a classic assassin in the mid lane and in LoL Patch 11.18, he is getting a buff to his jungle clear as well, so he might just become a flex pick. With a current pick rate of 11.7% and a ban rate of over 42%, you know that he is either loved or hated. So you bet that with 2 ADCs in each game, at least one of them will ban this champion.
If you follow our Zed champion guide, then you'll be making plays like Faker in no time.
Zed Build: Runes and Items
For 90% of all matchups, you'll be playing with the Domination Build on Zed. Take Electrocute as primary keystone. This way, you have as much poke as you need, and later, some executing damage as well. Taste of Blood is your sustain, and Eyeball Collection helps you with some additional AD-scaling. In slot 3, take Ultimate Hunter, since you'll want a bit of ability haste on Zed as well.
- We also have champion guides for top lane mains like this Sett Champion Guide or this Tahm Kench Champion Guide!
As for Zed's second tree go for Sorcery. Transcendence gives you even more ability haste, while Scorch deals extra damage which is great for trades and all-ins. Ignite and Flash are the best Summoner Spells on Zed.
In our Zed champion build, we suggest building Duskblade of Draktharr. This way, you have the most ability haste possible. In Patch 11.17, lethality items were nerfed, which makes this build all the stronger!
Zed Guide: Early Game
Always start with Q! Zed has an especially hard time against ranged matchups until he hits level 3. So by starting with Q, you'll be able to last hit minions to get that much-needed CS. Once you've hit level 3, you'll be able to play around your Electrocute every 25 seconds. The classic Zed combo is W>E>Double Q, but note that every Q has to hit, so you can proc Electrocute. If you miss a Q, then you can also jump onto your shadow for an auto-attack to proc Electrocute.
Zed's AD scaling on his Q was also buffed in LoL Patch 11.17, which means the more often you land a Q, the less fun your opponent will have.
- If you want to try some ADC's then check out our Jinx Champion Guide and our Ashe Champion Guide!
Your first purchase should be Serrated Dirk and Boots. Serrated Dirk has insane gold value with Zed's level 6 and with the ultimate, you also have the first power spike! The boots give you the speed you need to make it to the side lanes and pressure them. You should look to roam to the bot lane, where a squishy ADC is just waiting to be assassinated by you. Hell, if they have a squishy support by their side as well, it's an easy double kill for you. Roaming is Zed's strength and the recently buffed Youmuu's Ghostblade is also a must-buy item for Zed.
Zed Guide: Mid Game
This is where Duskblade's strength comes into play. Thanks to the additional ability haste and the Ionian Boots, you'll have extremely low cooldowns on your spells. The passive of Duskblade slows opponents once you've damaged them, so, this means you'll never miss another Q again! If you manage to kill your opponent, then you'll also go invisible. This is great when wanting to disengage from any more unwanted fighting. You're an assassin, you go in, get the kill and get out!
- Sylas is a champion you will often face. Learn how to play him, so you can counter him!
Once you've got Duskblad, you've got quite a few choices for items. If you're playing enchanter like Lulu or Karma, then it's best to build Serpent's Fang as a second item. If the opposition is filled with tanks, then it's better to go with Serylda's Grudge. So keep an eye on the matchup before buying items!
Keep your eyes peeled for any picks. If the enemy support is too far up trying to place a ward, that's your time to jump. Seriously, what are they going to do to you?
Zed Guide: Late Game
This is probably the trickiest phase of the game for Zed. He doesn't have a whole lot of HP and you will be the priority target. Your opponents will know how much damage you dish out and try to take you out of any fight before, so it's your job to try and look for flanks instead of jumping straight into the fray of any team fight. If you get hit by a single crowd control spell, you're basically dead. Adios. Goodbye. Zed is deleted.
- We also have item guides for you! Check out this Divine Sunderer Guide or this Rocketbelt Guide!
But... that same fate can also fall upon your opponents, and then it's your turn to get the job done quickly and painlessly. So, stay patient, don't force fights — especially if the opposing ADC is surrounded by beefy tank bodyguards.
Just stay in the shadows and continue to poke out your opposition with your shadow-combo until the right flank and opportunity opens up!
Zed Guide: Good and Bad Matchups
Zed has quite a few hard counters in the mid lane. Anivia and her egg aren't an easy matchup for Zed. Also, bruisers like Irelia and Sett won't make his life any easier. If you want to survive the lane when playing against Zed, we suggest a pick like Lissandra.
Mages like Syndra, Ryze, Lux and Veigar won't have a good time when playing against Zed. They all have problems countering his shadow assassin. Zed can easily evade their stuns and roots thanks to his W, and then he is right before the immobile mage without any protection. All we can say to that is ff@20.
So, there you have it folks, the EarlyGame Zed champion guide. We hope you learned something and can shred through some squishy ADCs and mages in your next solo queue game with this assassin.
The guides, the videos, the lore, it's all here! EarlyGame will make you Challenger!