Counter Tips to Beat
Zyra
Zyra
Rise of the Thorns
Zyra is played as a support and mid occasionally
Abilities
Counter Champions
Counter Items
Introduction
Zyra is a high damage support with a focus on CC and harassment. She is immobile and squishy as most mages tend to be and as a result is a strong focus target for assassins looking to snowball. Zyra has the ability to change an entire match, with the right decision making thanks to her damaging, heavy CC AOE ultimate and her relatively powerful spitting plants that are especially painful early.
Abilities
Passive – Garden of Thorns
Seeds spawn around Zyra periodically, becoming faster with level and lasting 45 seconds. If an enemy Champion steps on a seed, it dies.
Zyra can cast spells near seeds to grow plants. Extra plants striking the same target deal reduced damage.
Q – Deadly Spines
Thick vines spread through the ground and explode into spines, dealing magic damage to enemies within the area. If cast near a seed, Deadly Spines grows a Thorn Spitter plant, which fires at enemies from afar.
W – Rampant Growth
Zyra plants a seed, lasting up to 60 seconds. Deadly Spines and Grasping Roots cast near seeds will turn them into plants who fight for Zyra. Additionally, Rampant Growth passively grants her plants improved maximum Health.
E – Grasping Roots
Zyra sends forth vines through the ground to ensnare her target, dealing damage and rooting enemies they come across. If cast near a seed, Grasping Roots grows a Vine Lasher, whose short range attacks reduce enemy Movement Speed.
R – Stranglethorns
Zyra summons a twisted thicket at her target location, dealing damage to enemies as it expands and knocking them airborne as it contracts.
Our Top Counter Tips For Zyra
Zyra is as fragile as the plants she loves so much. If she ever dares to misposition without vision, you and almost your entire team can kill her.
Zyra isn't as powerful when you're close to her, especially if you've avoided her grasping roots. Playing reactive and punishing a Grasping Roots whiff is a textbook way to pressure her, and her AD Carry
Do not be afraid to engage on her if she has used two or more abilities and you have a reasonable amount of health. She'll die quickly and her AD Carry will be in a one vs. two
Stay out of the Fog of War against a Zyra team. You might end up getting CC'd for days.
Champions That Counter Zyra
Miss Fortune
You can bounce your Double Up's off of her plants, leading to her taking extreme damage from simply standing near them. She's also too immobile to avoid a Make It Rain + Bullet Time Combo without her flash, making her an easy pick for you post six, as long as the other AD Carry isn't pressuring you too hard.
Akali
She's food for you if you see her at or after level six with her grasping roots on cooldown. She can't run from you with her lack of mobility and easily dodgeable CC and your dashes. You're her worst nightmare.
Veigar
An uncommon pick in both support and mid these days, but Veigar has the ability to abuse her lack of mobility with his stun zone, and if she's mid he can abuse her tendency to build AP with his ability to turn an opponents AP back onto them.
Itemization
Quicksilver Sash
Locket of the Iron Solari
You're good to get some minor magic resist if you're having a hard time laning against her, since Mercurial Scimitar isn't such a ridiculous first item anymore. Still, if you can avoid taking enough damage to warrant that, that is even better. Mitigating her damage with good positioning and maybe an extra dorans blade is a better way to be, and doesn't put you so far behind on your core items.
