10 Best Champions To Counter Zaahen In League of Legends

Zaahen might be one of the newest fighters in League of Legends, but he’s already causing headaches for anyone stuck in the top lane. His mix of healing, mobility, and damage stacking makes him a brutal duelist who only gets stronger the longer the fight goes on. The good news? Zaahen isn’t unbeatable. With the right champion pick, you can shut down his sustain, break his combos, and stop him from scaling into the late-game monster he wants to be. In this guide, we break down the 10 best League of Legends champions that counter Zaahen and explain exactly why they work so well against him.

#10: Riven

Riven is a great answer to Zaahen because she can match his early aggression and punish him before he builds up his sustain. Her mobility lets her weave in and out of trades, avoiding his key abilities while landing quick bursts of damage that he struggles to heal through. If she times her crowd control well, she can interrupt his attempts to stack damage or reset fights. With smart spacing and early pressure, Riven can keep Zaahen from ever reaching the extended duels he thrives in.

#9: Fiora

Fiora is one of the strongest League of Legends duelists you can pick into Zaahen. Her kit is built around breaking down tanky fighters, and Zaahen fits that category perfectly. She can easily punish his predictable engagements with well-timed Ripostes, shutting down his biggest threats and turning his trades against him. Fiora’s mobility also lets her dance around his skillshots and force short, decisive duels instead of the long fights he prefers. Once she gets a small lead, she can completely take over the lane and outscale him in every side-lane scenario.

#8: Gwen

Gwen is a nightmare matchup for Zaahen because her entire kit is designed to shred bruisers who rely on sustained trades. Her true damage from Snip Snip!! ignores his defensive scaling, and her Hallowed Mist makes it extremely hard for him to land key abilities during all-ins. Even when Zaahen tries to force extended skirmishes, Gwen’s healing and constant DPS allow her to outlast him with ease. As the game goes on, Gwen scales into a split-pushing monster who can duel him, ignore his tankiness, and melt him in teamfights if he ever oversteps.

#7: Vayne

Vayne is one of the toughest counters Zaahen can face because her entire kit punishes bruisers who rely on durability and extended trades. Her Silver Bolts deal percentage true damage, cutting straight through his sustain and tankiness, while her mobility lets her dodge his engage tools with ease. If Zaahen ever tries to commit with W or E, Vayne can simply Tumble away and kite him endlessly. Once she builds a bit of attack speed, Zaahen has virtually no window to win a duel unless she heavily misplays. In lane or later in teamfights, Vayne turns every fight into a losing battle for him.

#6: Quinn

Quinn is a nightmare matchup for Zaahen because she completely denies his ability to ever reach her. Her ranged poke, high movement speed, and blind from Vault make it incredibly hard for Zaahen to trade back or stack his passive. Every time he tries to walk up for a last hit or look for an engage, Quinn can punish him with quick burst trades and disengage before he can retaliate. Once she hits level 6, her mobility skyrockets, letting her roam and snowball the game while keeping Zaahen permanently behind. In short, Quinn controls the pace of the lane from start to finish, making her one of the safest and most oppressive counters you can pick into him.

#5: Kennen

Kennen completely shuts down Zaahen by abusing range, constant poke, and superior mobility. His auto–Q harass makes it nearly impossible for Zaahen to stack his passive or take meaningful trades early. Even if Zaahen tries to engage with W or E, Kennen can instantly dash away with Lightning Rush, negating the all-in. In teamfights, Kennen is even more dangerous—his AOE stun and burst from Slicing Maelstrom punishes Zaahen’s tendency to dive into grouped enemies. Since Kennen never has to stand still and can safely farm from distance, Zaahen is forced into a losing lane where he can’t scale or snowball.

#4: Gnar

Gnar is one of the safest and most reliable counters to Zaahen thanks to his constant poke, mobility, and the ability to control trades on his own terms. In Mini Gnar, you can bully Zaahen endlessly with boomerang harass and kiting, denying him passive stacks and short trades. Zaahen struggles heavily into champions who can hit him without ever letting him walk up—and Gnar excels at that. If Zaahen tries to force an all-in, you can simply hop away or transform into Mega Gnar, turning the fight in your favor with massive CC, tankiness, and burst. In teamfights, Mega Gnar completely shuts down Zaahen’s engage by stunning and peeling him off carries, making it extremely difficult for the Darkin fighter to ever get momentum.

#3: Jax

Jax is a nightmare matchup for Zaahen because he completely disrupts the Darkin fighter’s plan to take extended trades. Zaahen relies heavily on repeated hits and sustained skirmishing, but Jax’s Counter Strike shuts down his entire damage window, blocking autos and stunning him right as he tries to stack his passive. Once Jax reaches level 6, the matchup becomes even harder—his ultimate gives him huge durability and consistent DPS, letting him win almost every all-in. On top of that, Jax can choose when to fight thanks to Leap Strike, making it easy to punish Zaahen anytime he steps up for trades or tries to engage. With proper spacing and cooldown tracking, Jax can snowball this matchup and completely deny Zaahen his scaling advantage.

#2: Malphite

Malphite is one of the safest and most frustrating counters Zaahen can face in the top lane. Everything in Malphite’s kit directly shuts down what Zaahen wants to do. His passive shield absorbs poke, his armor stacking makes Zaahen’s extended trades feel useless, and Ground Slam reduces attack speed, crippling Zaahen’s passive stacking and overall DPS. Even if Zaahen tries to force an all-in, Malphite can simply disengage or turn the fight with Unstoppable Force, a guaranteed knock-up that ruins Zaahen’s ability to heal or sustain through trades. As the game goes on, Malphite becomes impossibly tanky, and Zaahen’s mixed burst-plus-sustain playstyle just doesn’t punch through enough armor to threaten him. Whether built full tank or AP, Malphite turns this matchup into a slow, punishing lane where Zaahen struggles to find any advantage.

#1: Jayce

Jayce is arguably the hardest counter to Zaahen because he denies the champion’s entire game plan from level one. Zaahen needs steady trades, close-range skirmishes, and time to build stacks—Jayce gives him none of that. With constant poke from Shock Blast and Accelerated Shock Blast, Zaahen is forced to farm under turret with low HP, making it nearly impossible for him to scale properly. Every time Zaahen tries to walk up, Jayce punishes him with ranged autos and burst combos.

If Zaahen somehow gets close, Jayce simply swaps to hammer form, knocks him back with Thundering Blow, and resets the lane. This repeatedly shuts down Zaahen’s engage windows and stops him from ever using his sustain or damage stacking effectively. Jayce controls the wave, controls the spacing, and dictates every trade. Against Zaahen, he turns the lane into a textbook ranged-vs-melee beatdown, making him the clear #1 counter in the game.

Conclusion

Zaahen might be one of the strongest new League of Legends bruisers to hit the top lane, but he’s far from unbeatable. The champions on this list thrive on range, mobility, burst, or heavy crowd control—everything that shuts down Zaahen before he can ramp up his stacks and turn fights around. Whether you prefer poke champions like Jayce, duelists like Fiora, or disruptive picks like Malphite, each of these options reliably keeps Zaahen under pressure and prevents him from playing the extended fights he wants. If you’re struggling against him in lane or just want the upper hand from champ select, these counters will make your matches a whole lot easier.