Zed vs Irelia

Zed
vs
Not enough games
Irelia
Heavy AD damageSplit pushSustained DPSHigh burst

Build vs Irelia

The champion's reference build, for lack of enough games in this matchup

Recommended items for Zed: Voltaic Cyclosword, Bastionbreaker, Axiom Arc, Ionian Boots of Lucidity, Edge of Night, Serylda's Grudge, Lord Dominik's Regards, Guardian Angel.

Starting items

Scorchclaw Pup
Health Potion

Core build

Voltaic Cyclosword
1
Bastionbreaker
2
Axiom Arc
3

Standard

Ionian Boots of Lucidity
4CDR
Edge of Night
5

Anti CC

Mercury's Treads
4vs CC

Other options

Edge of Night
Serylda's Grudge
Lord Dominik's Regards
Guardian Angel
Endless Hunger
Youmuu's Ghostblade

Power Spikes

Strength by game phase

Irelia's abilities

Passive, spells and ultimate

Ionian Fervor (P)

When Irelia strikes enemies with spells she gains stacking bonus Attack Speed. At maximum stacks she also gains bonus damage on hit.

Cooldowns

Cooldowns by spell rank

LevelQWER
310s20s16s–
68s20s16s2m05
96s18s16s2m05
116s16s16s1m45
166s12s13s1m25
186s12s10s1m25

Playing as Zed

Tips to maximize your impact

  1. Combo with two shadows

    To kill, cast Death Mark (R), then Living Shadow (W), Shadow Slash (E) and Razor Shuriken (Q): with two shadows, you throw three shurikens.

  2. Dodge with Death Mark

    Cast Death Mark (R) just as the enemy casts their decisive spell: during the dash, you're untargetable.

  3. Save the swap back to your shadow

    After Death Mark (R), save the recast to get out: you swap places with the shadow left at your starting point, far from the fight.

  4. Save your energy

    Save enough energy for a full combo rather than casting your spells for nothing: Living Shadow (W) refunds energy when you and your shadow hit the same target.

  5. Flank to reach the carry

    In teamfights, go around the sides and save Death Mark (R) for an isolated target: going in from the front exposes you to the whole team's CC.

Playing against Irelia

How to counter and exploit weaknesses

  1. Stay away from low-health minions

    Don't stand near your low-health minions: Bladesurge (Q) resets when it kills, so she chains dashes from minion to minion until she reaches you.

  2. Dodge the line of her blades

    As soon as the first blade of Flawless Duet (E) lands, change direction: the stun only hits enemies caught between the two blades.

  3. Trade before her passive stacks

    Take your trades when Ionian Fervor (passive) isn't stacked: she builds stacks with her abilities, and at max stacks her autos deal more damage.

  4. Wait out her Defiant Dance

    Save your burst for after Defiant Dance (W): while charging, she takes much less damage, but she can't do anything else.

  5. Dodge her blade ult

    Dodge Vanguard's Edge (R): its blades make you Unsteady, which resets Bladesurge (Q) on you, and the cage they form damages and slows anyone who crosses it.

Patch 16.21.1