First off, my name is ObiwonKanBloMii :) This is my first guide and I worked hard to make it as interesting and viable so that other players will have a chance to use a really fun champion :) This is the video that made me enjoy playing Xin Zhao also props to CholeraNinja for the amazing video ^.~

Xin Zhao is a really fun and amazing champion. Also his Battle Cry works great with sustain such as or . His damage excels well with the items I have displayed at the top and is nearly impossible to stop when fed :)

Throughout this guide, I will explain as best as I can to show you how to utitlize Xin Zhao in a way that your team will love and enjoy having you as a partner :)

Pros

Cons

I prefer to go 21/9/0 so that I can cause a higher amount of damage mid-late game :) Especially for last hitting :) But I also run 9/21/0 against heavy hitters and to be a tanky ad!

Lately I've been running 21/9/0 and owning top lane :3

I run greater mark of armor penetration, , or and .


Marks: I use greater mark of armor penetration these for the simple fact that you will slice through your opponents armor causing more damage as well as with the 21/9/0 mastery page I run causing an additional 8% arpen with +6 arpen. Works perfect with , and autos.



Seals: Greater Seal of Armorare a brainer, of course you're going to want to these to help tank early on against the OP minions lol and obviously your lane opponent^^



Glyphs: If I'm laning against an AD champ I use Greater Glyph of Scaling Magic Resist and if Im laning against an AP champ I use Greater Glyph of Magic Resist.



Quints I prefer to use Greater Quintessence of Attack Damage over any other ones, mainly to help early-mid game and get those last hits in! Other optional quints could be Greater Quintessence of Movement Speed or greater quintessence of armor penetration.

+

Explanation:

I like taking Ghost because it either helps me close in the gap to activate my + + AA + + then and you should have no problem either getting first kill (depending on the laning opponent) or trading :3

Optional Spells:

is a spell I would take if they have strong ganking champions. It can be used as an offensive or defensive spell :)

is something I would use if I were jungling to help gank a lane or splitpush lanes :)

is only something I would get if no one else grabs it, but I prefer to use something else. Still, its a great spell^^

Passive: Challenge

Xin Zhao challenges his target with his basic attacks and Audacious Charge, reducing its armor by 15% for 3 seconds.

Explanation:

A great passive for a melee champ :3 The % penetration is now applied before the flat takes effect ^.^

Q: Three Talon Strike

Xin Zhao's next 3 attacks deal bonus damage +15/30/45/60/75(+1.2 per attack damage) and reduce his other abilities cooldowns by 1 second each. The final strike also knocks the target into the air.

Cooldowns~9/8/7/6/5 seconds

Cost~30 mana

Range~375

Explanation:

This is the ability that is most used with Xin Zhao and learning when to use this in team fights will make you a formidable ally :3

W: Battle Cry

Passive: Xin Zhao heals himself on every third basic attack by 25/31/37/43/50 (+0.7 per ability power).

Active: Xin Zhao unleashes a battle cry, granting him 40/50/60/70/80% attack speed for 5 seconds.

Cooldown~16/15/14/13/12 seconds

Cost~35 mana

Explanation:

This is Xin's sustain and steroid skill which helps him last longer in his lane against most top laners. If you find yourself getting harassed often by , , and on rare occasions then you can think about putting more points into this ability as you increase the sustain by 6 health points every 3 hits for each point that is invested into this glorious skill :3

E: Audacious Charge

Xin Zhao charges and challenges an enemy. The charge deals 70/110/150/190/230 (+0.6 per ability power) magic damage to all nearby enemies and slows them 25/30/35/40/45 % for 2 seconds.

Cooldown~13/12/11/10/9 seconds

Cost~60 mana

Range~600

Explanation:

This ability helps Xin Zhao close gaps and engage his target to either 1v1, finish off that fleeing injured target or initiate a team fight (preferred not to initiate though). This skill applies your passive to the target enemy so use it whenever possible to get that 15% armor pen placed onto the given target:3

R: Crescent Sweep

Xin Zhao unleashes a sweep around him dealing 125/225/325 (+1.0 per bonus attack damage) physical damage to all nearby enemies equal to a base amount plus 15% their current health and kncoks them back. Xin Zhao gains 15/20/25 bonus armor and magic resistance for 6 seconds for each champion hit.
If a challenged opponent is hit by the sweep, they are unaffected by the knock back.

Cooldown~100/90/80 seconds

Cost~100 mana

Range~375

Explanation:

Using this skill is what turns Xin Zhao from playable to inhumane :D Typically during laning phase, you would use this skill to escape ganks or from an early death. I on the other hand use this ability to secure that kill faster! But it is very important to use this ability with 3 or more enemy champions in the vacinity.

I like to start with Boots and 3 Health Potion or you can start with a Doran's Blade to help with early damage and sustain. Typically on my first time back if I've held out long enough in my lane, I generally rush The Brutalizer or Vampiric Scepter to either help with piercing through a champions armor early game or to help with sustaining in my lane a lot longer than the enemy champion. After I've gotten both of those items, I would finish off my boots by upgrading them to Mobility Boots. Reason is I love going fast! Lol. It's to help rush to an ally in need of help or to avenge that fallen teammate that could not escape in time.

Getting Black Cleaver is a definite must because of the fact that it slices through your opponents armor causing you to do more damage to them.

Ravenous Hydra is also a very good item to get too for the fact that it gives sustain, damage and an area of effect. Does well with the item (Armor penetration + Physical Damage = GOOD)

I chose Frozen Mallet basically because I was tired of champions being able to get away from me lol. Also, the damage and health boost were nice.

Zephyr for multiple reasons :D The attack speed bonus, CDR bonus, attack damage bonus and movement speed bonus! :) Let alone it offers tenacity! Just an all around great item!

Randuin's Omen This item is another great thing to purchase..it offers high armor rating as well as bonus health :) It also has a nice passive & active which are similar to eachother. The passive activates only when an enemy champion strikes you with a basic attack thus causing them to have reduced attack speed and movement speed. The active obviously can be activated whenever :3 but this one only reduces the movement speed. Still this item is good to get for Xin Zhao.

Optional Boots

Mercury's Treads Generally a chosen item amongst most players due to the tenacity it gives to help with enemy champs with large amounts of CC.

Berserker's Greaves are nice to have for that extra attack speed to kill your enemy faster or get the last hit on a minion.

Ninja Tabi are very well used against heavy hitters such as Darius, Garen and Tryndamere.

Ionian Boots of Lucidity I wouldn't recommend these boots but they do help with CDR in your masteries given if you built your Xin Zhao in that way.

Optional Items

Warmog's Armor is a good item to get in case you are feeling a bit squishy but it is a great defensive item nonetheless.

Banshee's Veil If the enemy team has a lot of magical damage and/or has lots of CC.

Bloodthirster If you are coming out on top in your lane or decide you want more sustain other than your 's passive.

Phantom Dancer Personally I find that is a better choice than this but too each their own.

Youmuu's Ghostblade Not a bad item and would have been valid before S3 patch but the new would be a more acceptable choice to pursue.

Hexdrinker is a very decent choice since the fact that it gives you damage and magical resistance in case the enemy team has a quite a few champions who are AP. If you decide to get this, upgrade it into mid-late game.

I prefer to go top lane over jungle with Xin. Reason is because I get easily fed and it's simple to harass my opponent if I'm soloing them or laning with a teammate. I just feel he is more effective as a top laner than anything else. If you are soloing and the enemy team does have a jungler, be sure to buy wards because Xin Zhao does not have a way to escape like most champs do.

~Buy a ward, Save a life!~

Match ups will be added soon, been busy lately and so much needs to be added to this section, be patient Xin users! :D

Your job as the assassin Xin Zhao is to effectively decimate the enemy teams carries while at the same time protecting your own carry or carries with Crescent Sweep. Also do not push any of the heavy hitters/tanks such as Amumu, Malphite, Darius and Blitzcrank near your own carries.

~Created on Dec. 14th 2012
~Applied changes to all chapters (excluding Introduction) on errors - Dec. 15th 2012
~Added "Updates / Things to Add" chapter - Dec. 15th 2012
~Added an "Alternate Build" - Dec. 21st 2012
~Updated original build (substituted Frozen Mallet with Warmogs) - Dec. 21st 2012

~Jungle section (Questionable since I prefer to jungle with others)
~Laning videos of me with Xin Zhao
~Lane Match Ups section
~Ranked Play section (when I get better lol)

I appreciate you taking the time in reading my guide about Xin Zhao. He is my favorite champion and this build has been working out nicely for me ever since I started putting things together randomly for him :) I hope you enjoyed everything that I had to offer and I would be happy to take any and all criticism based on what I have created. Please though, be respectful when commenting for this was my first guide! :3 Thank you all!