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Zed Lethality (First Strike) Guide
Patch 26.19 Iron-Emerald·Difficulty:
Zed jungle on First Strike and lethality. You are an item reliant assassin: full clear, race to Voltaic Cyclosword, then turn every gank into a kill and every kill into extra gold. Before your first item you are weak, so farm and stay alive; after it, W, E, Q and one auto kills a carry. Fight the enemy jungler only when Tab says you have the item lead.
Runes
Quick Tips
All phases
- •W from the side, never in front. Side angles make the double Q land every time.
- •W, E, Q, not W, Q, E. Slow them first, wait a beat, then throw Q where they dodge.
- •Stay healthy during your clear. Zed has no healing in his kit, so HP is a resource you manage.
- •When you sit in a lane, poke with W, E, Q on every cooldown. Holding it back is pressure wasted.
- •Take blue buff whenever you can. Energy is what you run out of, and from about 15 minutes blue plus items makes you a monster.
- •Into Zac, farm and wait for your items; he wins the early skirmishes.
Skill Priority
Q
›E
›W
Q
1
·
·
4
5
W
·
·
3
·
·
E
·
2
·
·
·
Early Game
Before 1st item
- •Smite your first camp the moment it is up, so it drops under half health and your autos finish it.
- •Your first clear should have you level 4 by 3:01, and by 2:58 once you are Master; that is the mark for every jungler.
- •Clear top to bot.
- •Drink the level 3 Triple Tonic potion straight away; the gold gets you to your first back sooner.
- •Full clear on repeat. Do not gank before 6 unless the kill is guaranteed; dying here loses you the item race.
First Back
Regular full clear & crab
Core Build Examples
Default
Snowballing
vs heavy AP
vs heavy AD
Mid Game
1-3 items
- •Cyclosword is your gank window. Before it you are weak; after it, W, E, Q and one auto kills a carry.
- •Make a play right after every item finishes; that is your strongest minute.
- •After a kill, walk to the nearest tower and let Bastionbreaker's charged hit take it, then base.
- •Convert every kill into an objective. Always know your next objective.
- •When behind, farm the side jungle and wait for their mistake. Mid is the worst place to fight at a gold deficit.
Situational
vs Health stackers
Good Vs
vs Hard engage
Good Vs
vs Shields
Good Vs
vs Healing
Good Vs
vs Auto attackers
Good Vs
vs Burst
Good Vs
vs Armor stackers
Good Vs
Late Game
4+ items
- •Do not engage first. Wait for their CC to be used, then go in on the carry from an angle.
- •W away from your target when you escape, never into them. Where you put W decides if you live.
- •Look for a numbers advantage before you commit. Never fight even or down without setup.
- •Buy Elixir of Iron over Wrath at full build. Surviving beats damage you already have.
F
Zed Lethality (First Strike) Guide
Patch 26.19 Iron-Emerald·Difficulty:
Why Jungle Kingdom?
Most sites tell you what to build. We teach you how to win. Our guides are researched and written by Challenger junglers, breaking down the early, mid, and late game decisions that actually decide games.
Runes
Skill Priority
Q
›E
›W
Q
1
·
·
4
5
W
·
·
3
·
·
E
·
2
·
·
·
Core Build Examples
Default
Snowballing
vs heavy AP
vs heavy AD
First Back
Regular full clear & crab
Situational
vs Health stackers
Good Vs
vs Hard engage
Good Vs
vs Shields
Good Vs
vs Healing
Good Vs
vs Auto attackers
Good Vs
vs Burst
Good Vs
vs Armor stackers
Good Vs
Quick Tips
All phases
- •W from the side, never in front. Side angles make the double Q land every time.
- •W, E, Q, not W, Q, E. Slow them first, wait a beat, then throw Q where they dodge.
- •Stay healthy during your clear. Zed has no healing in his kit, so HP is a resource you manage.
- •When you sit in a lane, poke with W, E, Q on every cooldown. Holding it back is pressure wasted.
- •Take blue buff whenever you can. Energy is what you run out of, and from about 15 minutes blue plus items makes you a monster.
- •Into Zac, farm and wait for your items; he wins the early skirmishes.
Early Game
Before 1st item
- •Smite your first camp the moment it is up, so it drops under half health and your autos finish it.
- •Your first clear should have you level 4 by 3:01, and by 2:58 once you are Master; that is the mark for every jungler.
- •Clear top to bot.
- •Drink the level 3 Triple Tonic potion straight away; the gold gets you to your first back sooner.
- •Full clear on repeat. Do not gank before 6 unless the kill is guaranteed; dying here loses you the item race.
Mid Game
1-3 items
- •Cyclosword is your gank window. Before it you are weak; after it, W, E, Q and one auto kills a carry.
- •Make a play right after every item finishes; that is your strongest minute.
- •After a kill, walk to the nearest tower and let Bastionbreaker's charged hit take it, then base.
- •Convert every kill into an objective. Always know your next objective.
- •When behind, farm the side jungle and wait for their mistake. Mid is the worst place to fight at a gold deficit.
Late Game
4+ items
- •Do not engage first. Wait for their CC to be used, then go in on the carry from an angle.
- •W away from your target when you escape, never into them. Where you put W decides if you live.
- •Look for a numbers advantage before you commit. Never fight even or down without setup.
- •Buy Elixir of Iron over Wrath at full build. Surviving beats damage you already have.