Zoe is one of the few champions in League of Legends that can literally “one shot” you. But bringing someone from 100% to 0% HP in an instant isn’t such an easy thing to do, especially for Zoe.
The Zoe player needs to know how to perform the one shot and which build gives him the most direct upfront damage.
Luckily, I’m here to discuss precisely how to one shot people as Zoe step by step.
Who am I?
I’m a Master Zoe main, and I’ve been playing LoL actively ever since season 3. During my prime, I gained around 426 LP in Master, and I’ve achieved that mainly by playing Zoe mid and support.
And over the thousands of ranked games I’ve played on this champion, I’ve noticed a couple of things about one shotting your opponents.
First, you can’t one shot just anybody on the Rift.
Second, you really need the right items if you want to one shot someone.
Third, you must practice your aiming skills if you want to keep one shotting your enemies time after time.
If you’re a beginner Zoe player and this sounds too difficult for you – believe me, it’s not! If you put a little bit of time and effort into all of these points – you’re going to become a decent Zoe player.
And you’ll be able to carry games by one shotting enemies left and right.
So first, let’s take a look at the one shot build for Zoe more closely and determine the right runes and items you need for the job!
Zoe One Shot Build – Runes
Here is my recommended rune page for Zoe’s one shots:
- Electrocute – a hard-hitting keystone that activates after your regular ability combo and does additional bonus damage.
- Sudden Impact – grants you flat Magic Penetration each time you use Portal Jump forward to deal damage.
- Eyeball Collection – gives you a bit of Ability Power in the early game at no cost.
- Ravenous Hunter – doesn’t increase your damage in any way, but it helps you stay alive longer in a team fight.
- Transcendence – is a fantastic way to additionally lower the cooldown of your abilities, so you can try more one shots per game.
- Gathering Storm – adds bonus AP every 10 minutes, and it really boosts your power of one shotting in the late game.
Why Electrocute and Not Dark Harvest?
You may be wondering – Why shouldn’t I go for Dark Harvest instead of Electrocute? Isn’t it better for one shotting?
Well, yes and no.
Yes, because Dark Harvest does more damage than Electrocute, especially in the late game. And no because Dark Harvest depends on soul stacks.
So what if you play Zoe with Dark Harvest but end up having less than 10 soul stacks? Well, you’ll do less damage than if you’ve taken Electrocute.
Naturally, some games are more active than others. And you can’t always control the way the match will flow. Electrocute is your safer option and will always do a good amount of bonus damage.
True, Dark Harvest does more overall damage, but you need to know how to collect the stacks first.
And if you do – great, go for Dark Harvest instead!
- Read Also: How To Play Zoe Jungle – Guide
Optional Runes
Besides Dark Harvest, you can swap a few other runes too.
For example, Coup de Grace from Precision will give you 8% increased damage against targets below 40% HP.
This is obviously fantastic for doing a one shot as Zoe, so you always pick it if you prefer it more than Gathering Storm.
Here is a list of the best optional runes for Zoe:
- Dark Harvest – requires stacks but gives you a lot of damage in return.
- Arcane Comet – powerful keystone with a lot of one shot potential, especially in the early game.
- Coup de Grace – great for finishing targets.
- Scorch – burns your target for additional damage.
Remember that you don’t necessarily need to change any rune from the basic rune page I provided above.
Zoe One Shot Build – Items
Here is my recommended one shot item build for Zoe:
- Luden’s Tempest – has the highest damage percentage of all other mythic items and it grants 5% Magic penetration per item completed.
- Horizon Focus – makes the enemy you hit with Sleepy Trouble Bubble visible and vulnerable, so you deal 10% more damage to them.
- Lich Bane – increases the damage of your auto-attacks and synergizes with Electrocute.
- Rabadon’s Deathcap – is the highest AP booster in the game and incredibly valuable for doing one shots as Zoe.
- Void Staff – grants all the Magic Penetration you need to amplify your burst damage.
- Ionian Boots of Lucidity – are great for lowering the cooldown of your abilities since you don’t need the bonus Magic Penetration from Sorcerer’s Shoes.
Read Also: The 10 Zoe Tips That Will Get You To Diamond
Optional Items
Here, you may be wondering why I always go for Lich Bane and not other AP items such as Morellonomicon or Zhonya’s Hourglass.
Well, Morellonomicon is a great item, but it’s much more valuable for continuous fighting. Lich Bane makes your auto-attacks really hurt, which is perfect for setting up one shots as Zoe.
And Zhonya’s Hourglass is mainly bought for its active – Stasis, not for doing more burst damage.
However, here are the 3 best optional items that you should consider on Zoe:
- Morellonomicon – lowers the healing of your enemies.
- Cosmic Drive – significantly reduces the cooldown of your abilities.
- Banshee’s Veil – allows you to freely roam the map and look for more Sleepy Trouble Bubbles.
Read Also: The Best Zoe Skin For Climbing In LoL
How to One Shot as Zoe?
If you’re a total Zoe beginner, let me explain the basic Zoe mechanic in a very simple way.
Zoe throws her Q backward – then she throws her Q forwards – and then she jumps forwards with her R to extend the range of her Q. It’s as simple as:
Q backward > Q forward > R forward.
Alright, but how do you one shot someone as Zoe?
Well, all you do is add your Sleepy Trouble Bubble in the mix, but at the beginning of the combo. So it goes:
E at your target > Q backward> Q forward > R forward
Now, this is the most basic combo that you can do on Zoe. And although it can one shot a squishy target, it often leaves them on 10-20% HP.
Why is that?
It’s because it doesn’t trigger the Electrocute proc. If you remember, I mentioned above that you actually need to auto-attack your enemy.
This counts as a “third attack” for Electrocute (after your E and Q) and will activate its damage. And this is also why we build Lich Bane too.
So the ultimate best way to one shot someone like Zoe is:
E at your target > Q backward> Q forward > R forward > Auto-attack
If you play Zoe with Ignite, you should also use it on the enemy. Auto-attacks and Summoner Spells don’t share an internal cooldown.
So when you jump forwards as Zoe, you have enough time to do both things simultaneously.
Using Ignite sometimes determines whether you’ll one shot the target as Zoe or not, so it’s best to press the button.
Read Also: Is Zoe Actually Broken? A Master Player’s Opinion!
Conclusion
Even though you can do many other ability combos on Zoe, the one I explained in this post is your bread and butter for one shots.
Sometimes your W will grant items like Galeforce, which guarantees a one shot. And some games, you’ll be stuck with Turbo Chemtech. So, you’ll need to stay versatile.
Zoe isn’t an easy champion to play either, so make sure you practice her often. There is a big room for improvement here, especially when it comes to timing the actual spells.
But beginner or not, Zoe is a very fun champion to main in League of Legends. I’ve had a blast explaining her one shot potential to you in this post, and I hope I helped you understand her more.
So take this knowledge and go delete some ADC from the Rift!
