Bruiser build for durable first entry: Xin Zhao must be able to cross the first screen, condemn a poorly covered target, then stay alive long enough for his team to truly profit from the chaos created. The cleaned build must therefore protect access as much as post-contact presence.
Three builds, one right answer per draft. The advisor reads the five enemies (and your allies) and names who triggers what — the same rule as the Draft MVP sheet and Ask Nexus.
Best Xin Zhao build (Jungle): Sundered Sky › Black Cleaver › Spear of Shojin › Blade of the Ruined King › Guardian Angel, boots Plated Steelcaps, keystone Conqueror. Three variants and when to pick each are below.
Standard build maximizing damage output. Use on neutral matchups or when ahead.
15,400 total cost
Nothing dominates on the other side: the standard build maximizes your damage.
Open this draft in the tool →Anti-resist build for tanky enemies. Choose when multiple enemies build armor/magic resist.
15,600 total cost +200gSustain build leaning on heal/omnivamp to win prolonged duels.
15,100 total cost -300g
Scores out of 10: where this champion sits against the whole roster, phase by phase. The strip shows its own power ramp level by level — it does not compare across champions.
Your hardest matchups in this role, and the item from your situational list that answers each one.
Poppy
Divine Sunderer
Very durable
Rammus
Stridebreaker
Highly mobile
Jax
Death's Dance
Physical damage
Nilah
Chempunk Chainsword
Recurring healing
Same advisor in the Draft (the MVP sheet applies it to your real draft) and in Ask Nexus, which explains the choice. On counters pages: the variant to take against each counter-pick.
Foundational item core, without recent situational additions — kept as a base for understanding the kit. For the up-to-date build, see the section above.
Xin Zhao wins through tempo, not scaling. Build maximizes dueling and survivability to convert engages into kills or objectives.
Long Sword
Proc Sheen on the Q Three Talon Strike, burst in combo
anti-shield for break through the protections after engage
Slow + penetration for stick after the E-Q engage
Plated Steelcaps
Mercurys Treads
Stasis
3 attaques Q Three Talon Strike stack Conqueror ultra-quickly in any fight.
The third-Q knock-up procs the shield mid-gank — you dive, you knock up, you soak.
Reduces incoming damage after his knockup Q to maintain his pressure in fights.
Accumulated HP to be hard to kill during his ganks aggressive.
E (Audacious Charge) dash triggers penetration physical on each engage.
Goredrinker
Quicksilver
The ultimate transforms Xin Zhao: he no longer only creates contact, he can decide which part of the fight exists. Around first objectives, Crescent Guard lets him enter deeper, isolate a target, or block the enemy response long enough to secure the kill.
This is his conversion spike. His ganks become more threatening, his river duels faster, and objectives fall more cleanly. At this timing, Xin Zhao should force the map: dragon, Herald, counter-gank, or prepared dive, not simply farm while waiting.
