Since the early days of League of Legends, Zilean has been a go-to support pick for players that enjoy both the mage and the enchanter playstyle. Zilean can deal lots of damage but he can also protect his allies, so he’s a useful champion all around.
In terms of synergy, the champions that work very well with Zilean are usually the ones that benefit from his movement speed and those that charge into a teamfight, depend on his ultimate, Chronoshift, to save them.
An argument can be made that any champion benefits a lot from Zilean’s R, especially melee fighters. But since the bot lane is a place for AD and AP carries, here I’ve pulled only 7 picks that have amazing synergy with him.
Check them out.
7. Samira
Even though Samira usually favors the melee tank supports in LoL (because of their durability and CC) she has had a high win ratio with Zilean for an extremely long time. And the reasons are obvious.
For starters, Zilean can stun an enemy champion with a double bomb, giving Samira the ability to right-click them in order to dash to them and deal lots of extra damage. This is available to Zilean on level 2.
Moreover, Zilean’s E plays a huge role in Samira’s performance throughout the game, simply because of how beneficial MS is to this champion. Remember, Samira is a short-range ADC with most of her damage coming from her melee form.
And finally, Zilean can always use his Chronoshift on Samira, preferably when she’s dealing huge AoE damage in the middle of the teamfight. Samira is naturally a hard champion to stop (especially when fed) and Zilean doubles her life.
Zilean also receives some benefits from being paired with Samira. For instance, Samira’s W is a wind wall that blocks most attacks and spells, shielding both herself and Zilean. And this is a very helpful tool for countering the enemy jungler whenever he comes to gank.
Recommended Items
Here, Zilean should consider building Shurelya’s Battlesong as a mythic item instead of the AP mythics. This is because Samira usually does enough damage for both of them, and the bonus movement speed from Shurelya’s might be essential.
Zilean should also build Mikael’s Blessing for cleansing CC from Samira during a teamfight which can help her a lot.
Read Also: 8 Best Synergy Supports for Samira
6. Jhin
Jhin is another ADC that you can always rely on to perform well in combination with Zilean. And the synergies should be obvious to everyone.
For example, each time Zilean places a bomb on an enemy champion, the ability marks that champion for Jhin’s W. Jhin can then root the target and allow himself and Zilean to dump the rest of their damage.
With his E, Zilean can choose whether to speed up Jhin or slow an enemy. Both effects are useful in different situations and both help Jhin get in range or get away from someone.
Manipulating Time Warp for gaining movement speed is really important for this duo. This is because, unlike most ADCs, Jhin is immobile and depends on moving swiftly for both dealing damage and avoiding it.
Zilean’s R can save Jhin when multiple enemies jump on him and he has no way to escape them. He can then cast a double bomb to allow Jhin to respawn and quickly get away from them.
On the other hand, Jhin’s utility can help Zilean be more effective at land his bombs throughout the game, so this duo goes very well together.
Recommended Items
With Jhin, Zilean should prioritize Luden’s Tempest and go for a full AP damage build. It will improve your poke and the burst makes it more likely that you’ll mark enemy champions for Jhin’s W.
5. Nilah
Nilah is arguably one of the most broken ADCs in League of Legends. And in combination with Zilean, she’s a nightmare to deal with.
First of all, both Nilah and Zilean have passives that grant extra experience to each other. In other words, Zilean and Nilah will ALWAYS reach level 2 before their opponents, no matter the matchup.
What this essentially means that you’ll have the opportunity to set up a level 2 fight in each game. Simply use Zilean’s Q to poke on level 1, then double bomb on level 2. Nilah can then quickly swoop in with her E and start fighting the enemy duo.
This is a great strategy to create HP and Summoner’s Spells advantage from the very beginning of the match. It will put you in the driver’s seat and allow you to control the entire bot side of the map.
As a melee carry, Nilah will usually be positioned in the middle of every teamfight. And since that also makes her a focus of the enemy team, Zilean should always save his ultimate for her. This is what the enem team fears the most, so make sure to tilt them this way.
I love playing Nilah with Zilean because she can also protect him with his W which works kind of like a wind wall.
Recommended Items
Nilah is a champion that also benefits from movement speed (because she’s melee), so building Shurelya’s Battlesong is a smart move for Zilean.
Additionally, you can purchase Chemtech Putrifier to combat the healing on the enemy team and allow Nilah to take the opponents faster.
Read Also: Top 7 Best Supports for Nilah
4. Ashe
In the modern League of Legends, Ashe doesn’t have too many favorable matchups as an ADC. And that’s why she’s played way more as a support. However, Zilean does fix many of Ashe’s problems, so let’s go over them.
First, Zilean’s E gives Ashe much-needed movement speed which helps her trade more effectively early on, as well as kite better in the late game.
This movement speed goes very well in combination with Ashe’s slow. On one hand, she gets to move faster than her targets. And on the other, she lowers their movement speed with her attacks, creating an even bigger speed gap.
But Ashe’s slow is also helpful for Zilean. Each time Ashe casts her Volley, Zilean can quickly drop the Q-W-Q combo and stun the enemy duo.
Moreover, when Ashe hits an enemy champion with her R, Enchanted Crystal Arrow, Zilean can extend the duration of the stuns with his double bomb. The synergy works vice versa and Zilean can be the one engaging first.
So, even though Ashe is squishy and immobile, Zilean can protect her with his Chronoshift and speed her up so she can escape her enemies. This is the true strength of the duo.
Recommended Items
Even though there aren’t too many specific items for supporting Ashe, I’d really want you to get Chemtech Putrifier on Zilean. It’s just very useful in combination with Ashe who can keep weaving auto-attacks with Zilean’s bonus movement speed.
Read Also: The Best Supports for Ashe
3. Twitch
Twitch and Zilean have been a winning combination since the early days of League. This is mainly because Zilean allows Twitch to play the game exactly the way he wants to, which is difficult for the enemy team to often stop.
For example, Twitch always engages in invisibility. And while he’s camouflaged, Zilean can speed him up with E to allow him to surprise the enemy team. This is very important in the mid and late game when Twitch usually stalks the mid lane and collects kills from unsuspecting enemies.
Twitch isn’t the most aggressive ADC in the early game and the laning phase is usually calm. He can always engage with the strategy mentioned above, but he doesn’t have to. Instead, Zilean should be the one poking the enemy team and denying them access to Twitch.
From level 6 onward, winning teamfights with this duo is actually pretty easy. Twitch can position himself from a nice angle, spraying the enemy team with his R. And when the enemy team collapses on him, Zilean is there to save him with his R.
This can be a very challenging duo to stop, no matter the champions you’re playing. So, give it a shot!
Recommended Items
In combination with Twitch, I really like playing with Imperial Mandate on Zilean. The item gives you every stat you need, but it also allows Twitch to deal more damage when you stun a target with Zilean’s double bombs.
So, try it out!
2. Kog’Maw
Kog’Maw is one of those ADCs that exclusively likes to play with enchanter supports. Zilean is one of his best partners because he helps him become a hyper-carry in the mid and late game.
Early on, Kog’Maw mostly farms and there’s really nothing except CSing that matters for him. Trading is left to Zilean who should poke the enemy team with Q bombs if nothing just to keep them away from Kog’Maw’s farming.
Once the mid game kicks in and Kog has one or two items in his inventory, he becomes a machine gun. Zilean’s job here is to constantly speed him up with his E and cast R as Kog is about to do.
As you know, Kog’Maw’s passive allows him to deal damage even after he dies. And in combination with Zilean, who can also resurrect him, it’s difficult to stop Kog from dealing damage.
The cool thing about Kog’Maw is that his damage doesn’t depend on large cooldowns. Instead, it mostly comes from his basic attacks empowered by his W. And so, he’s always ready to fight as soon as Zilean gives him the bonus movement speed.
Recommended Items
Supporting Kog’Maw with Zilean means that you should pick up Summon Aery as your keystone but also build Ardent Censer at some point.
Ardent Censer grants bonus attack speed and on-hit damage which definitely buffs Kog’s potential to carry the game.
1. Karthus
If you’re not an AD-only player, Karthus APC is what you should spam if you want to climb in LoL. This champion is simply bonkers, strong from level 1 and with amazing scaling for the late game.
Karthus and Zilean have tons of synergies. For example, Zilean can speed Karthus so he can continually hit the enemy champions with Q casts. On the other hand, both champions can apply slow effects which help them land skill shots.
But the biggest synergy between Karthus and Zilean is the fact that Zilean can resurrect Karthus who can also deal damage after he dies. This way Karthus gets to live 3 lives instead of 1 which makes the game incredibly difficult for the enemy team.
Early on, Zilean and Karthus can poke the enemy team and force them out of lane. Both champions deal insane amounts of magic damage and they both build only AP items.
In the mid and late game, Zilean can help Karthus reach the middle of the battlefield so he can make the best use of his passive after he dies. That’s why Zilean’s E should only be reserved for Karthus.
Recommended Items
As mentioned above, both Karthus and Zilean should focus on getting as much AP as possible.
However, Zilean should also build Staff of Flowing Water. This item will increase Karthus’ ability power and ability haste, making him a better champion overall during fights.
Read Also: 6 Best Synergy Supports for Karthus
Conclusion
Unlike many other supports, Zilean has the privilege of being a useful pick in all possible matchups. This is because if nothing else, his ultimate can make such a huge impact in late game teamfights.
However, if you want to carry games from the bot lane with this champion, the 7 picks on this list will help you do so!
