Assassin
Beginner Rule
After Zed uses Death Mark (R), focus on dodging his shurikens — that's where much of the damage comes from.
Zed is an assassin who excels at bursting vulnerable targets and escaping before retaliation. He wants to use Death Mark (R) to jump onto carries before combining shadow abilities for massive burst damage. Many beginners panic after being marked and move unpredictably without a plan.
Level 6 – Death Mark creates kill pressure.
First Item – Burst damage spikes significantly.
Two Items – Can reliably threaten carries.
Shadow positioning
Death Mark
Roams
Burst damage
QWhat it does
Throws shurikens dealing damage to everyone hit. His shadow throws a parallel Q simultaneously.
How to play against
Track his shadow position — his Q plus the shadow Q deal double damage if both lines hit you.
WWhat it does
Active: his shadow dashes forward. Can swap positions with it. Passive: energy on ability hits.
How to play against
He places the shadow to create flanking Q angles. Watch where his shadow is positioned.
EWhat it does
He and shadows slash nearby enemies. Shadow slashes slow.
How to play against
His E is short range. The shadow E slow enables his team's follow-up.
RWhat it does
Goes untargetable and dashes to an enemy marking them. After 3 seconds the mark repeats all damage dealt.
How to play against
After R you take all his damage again. Disengage and heal before the 3 seconds expire.
W → E → Q
Standard poke combo.
R → Full Combo → Return
Assassination pattern.
Shadow Swap → Reposition
Creates outplays.
Contempt for the Weak: his basic attacks on targets below 50% health deal bonus magic damage. Below 50% HP he deals bonus true-ish magic damage — never be near Zed below half health.
