League of Legends - Zilean Champion Strategy and Item Build Guide

Zilean

Basic Information

Champion Stats

Lore

Skills

Icon	Description
	Time in a Bottle (Target Range: 1000, Static Cooldown: 120)Zilean generates 2 / 3.5 / 5 / 6 / 12 experience (does not count towards level up) every 5 seconds. Time in a Bottle is on cooldown when the game starts. When the amount stored is enough to level up an allied champion and Zilean has been out of combat for the last 10 seconds, he can right-click the target ally to initiate a 1 second channel (if interrupted, Time in a Bottle goes on a reduced cooldown). A successful channel levels up the target and grants Zilean the stored amount as experience of his own.
	Time Bomb (Target Range: 900, Collision Radius: 100, Effect Radius: 300, Cost: 60/65/70/75 Mana, Cooldown: 10/9.5/9/8.5/8)ACTIVE: Zilean throws a ticking time bomb to the target location that detonates after 3 seconds, dealing magic damage to all surrounding enemies. Time Bomb will attach itself to units hit directly, or those who move within a small radius while it’s on the ground, detonating at their location when the duration ends. Time Bomb detonates immediately if another one attaches itself to the same unit, briefly stunning all affected enemies.
	Rewind (Cost: 35 Mana, Cooldown: 14/12/10/8/6)ACTIVE: Zilean reduces Time Bomb’s and Time Warp’s cooldowns by 10 seconds each.
	Time Warp (Target Range: 550, Cost: 50 Mana, Cooldown: 15, Movement Speed Modifier: 40/55/70/85/99%)ACTIVE: Zilean bends time around the target champion, slowing enemies for 2.5 seconds or granting allies bonus movement speed for the same duration.
	Chronoshift (Target Range: 900, Cost: 125/150/175 Mana, Cooldown: 120/90/60, Health Regained: 600/850/1100 [+200% AP])ACTIVE: Zilean places a protective time rune on the target ally champion or himself, lasting for 5 seconds. If the target takes fatal damage during that time, they are put in stasis for 3 seconds and then revived, regaining a set amount of health.

Strategy

Mid Lane

• He only has one skill that does damage – (Q) Time Bomb. Tag your enemy laner with (Q) Time Bomb and (W) Rewind then another (Q) Time Bomb, Zilean can do considerable damage. During early game, Zilean can zone out his enemy champ by harassing him to near death which would prompt him to go farm under the turrets.
• (Q) Time Bomb can easily wipe out minion waves. Max this out first.
• He is almost impossible to push in mid as his bombs can keep his enemies away.
• After the laning phase, even as a mid laner, Zilean is still a utility champion with his (E) Time Warp and (R) Chronoshift
• Build items that have Cooldown Reduction (ie. Frost Queen’s Claim, Morellonomicon, Zhonya’s Hourglass). This will create the ultimate spamming champion. Your Q would have 2-3 seconds of cooldown which would mean more damage to your enemies.
• Your bombs also disrupt the formation of the team and can send them scrambling around the map.

Support

•  As a support, he provides good harass for enemy champions. During levels 1-3, Zilean’s harass (spamming your (Q) Time Bomb and (W) Rewind to keep away both the AD Carry and Support of the other team) can provide a clear level advantage for your AD Carry. The problem here is that the blast can take down some few minions too.
• Use (E) Time Warp to either boost your allies’ or hinder your enemy’s movement speed.
• Take note who in your team is being focused during team fights. Cast (R) Chronoshift to keep your ally alive.
• Build items that have Cooldown Reduction (ie. Frost Queen’s Claim, Morellonomicon, Zhonya’s Hourglass). This can bring down your Ultimate to 20 seconds and you can save more teammates.

Runes & Masteries

COMING SOON

Summoner Spells

Mid Lane		Support
Ignite	Flash	Exhaust	Flash

Item Builds

Mid Lane

Starter Items
Doran’s Ring	Total Biscuit of Rejuvenation	Warding Totem

Core Items
Morellonomicon	Archangel’s Staff	Sorcerer’s Shoes

Morellonomicon – This item gives good Ability Power and mana regeneration. Morellonomicon also inflicts Grievous Wounds to enemies who have low health and are tagged with (Q) Time Bomb.

Archangel’s Staff – This item gives excellent bonus Ability Power, mana and mana regeneration. Once you max out the mana requirement, it transforms into Seraph’s Embrace. This last item gives Zilean a mana shield that blocks damage so long as you have mana.

Full Item Build
Morellonomicon	Sorcerer’s Shoes	Archangel’s Staff
Rabadon’s Deathcap	Banshee’s Veil	Void Staff

Rabadon’s Deathcap – This item massively boosts your Ability Power which powers up your (Q) Time Bomb and (R) Chronoshift.

Banshee’s Veil – Banshee’s Veil gives Zilean initial protection from one enemy skill. This is vital as disabling or focusing Zilean will force him to use (R) Chronoshift on himself.

Void Staff – This item gives good bonus Ability Power and magic penetration, enhancing (Q) Time Bomb‘s damage.

Situational Items
Zhonya’s Hourglass	Rod of Ages	Luden’s Echo

Zhonya’s Hourglass – Another defensive item, Zhonya’s Hourglass puts its user in stasis, making him immune to all damage.

Rod of Ages – If you feel like your game is going to take long, purchase Rod of Ages. It gives decent and gradual bonus health, mana and ability power until you reach its max stacks.

Luden’s Echo – This item gives (Q) Time Bomb splash damage when it detonates. It also increases his ability power and movement speed.

Support

Starter Items
Spellthief’s Edge	Total Biscuit of Rejuvenation	Warding Totem

Core Items
Eye of the Watchers	Locket of the Iron Solari	Redemption

Eye of the Watchers – A standard Sightstone upgrade, this item gives bonus Ability Power, health and cooldown reduction, as well as the ability to cast wards on the battlefield.

Redemption – This item lets Zilean heal his teammates during clashes. It also gives decent health, mana regen and cooldown reduction.

Full Item Build
Eye of the Watchers	Ionian Boots of Lucidity	Redemption
Archangel’s Staff	Locket of the Iron Solari	Rylai’s Crystal Scepter

Archangel’s Staff – Same reason as his Mid Lane build, he needs a huge mana pool to keep chucking his (Q) Time Bomb and (E) Time Warp in the battlefield. This item gives these things to him and a shield when he transforms it into Seraph’s Embrace.

Locket of the Iron Solari – Another standard support item, Locket gives you the ability to shield your team during team fights.

Rylai’s Crystal Scepter – This item gives Zilean’s (Q) Time Bombs a slowing effect when they detonate, allowing his team to isolate and eliminate enemies.

Situational Items
Liandry’s Torment	Banner of Command	Morellonomicon

Liandry’s Torment – This item gives your (Q) Time Bombs additional damage-over-time to further bring the hurt on your enemies.

Banner of Command – If you feel that your team needs more pushing and lane pressure, Banner of Command gives a bit of tankiness and the ability to promote your lane minion into a stronger version of itself.

Morellonomicon – Same as his Mid Lane build, Morellonomicon grants Grievous Wounds on Zilean’s (Q) Time Bombs – enemies who are low on health will have hindered healing for a couple of seconds.

Playing Against

• Staying out of Zilean’s (Q) Time Bomb radius renders most of his skills useless.
• Before he reaches level 6, Zilean is very squishy and can be burst down by well-coordinated gank.
• Force him to cast (R) Chronoshift either on himself or on his ally at an inopportune moment to greatly diminish his contribution in team fights. You can do this by either focusing on him early on or try to isolate a squishy target.
• Most of the Zilean abilities are utility-centered and only (Q) Time Bomb does damage. Use this to your knowledge and always adjust your playstyle depending on his approach.

Hard Counters

• Morgana – Her Black Shield effectively negates Zilean’s Time Bomb and  Time Warp.
• Blitzcrank – Zilean is a squishy champ, and prefers to throw his Time Bombs at opponents at a safe distance. Blitzcrank can pull him towards enemy territory with Rocket Grab, forcing him to use  Chronoshift prematurely. He can even silence him with Static Field when he manages to grab him.
• Sivir – Sivir can block one of Zilean’s  Time Bombs to regain mana and harass both Zilean and his lane partner.

Strategy Video

COMING SOON

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