This is my second guide on Mobafire, so I hope I've done a better job! Xin Zhao. Well what can I say? He's probably one of the best DPS champs out there, and can really lay hurt on just about ANYONE and is also quite flexible against the opposing team! Seriously one of my favorite champs, one of the first ones I learned to use, and is quite noob-friendly! So.."Let's get down to business~!"

Pros

Amazing DPS
Great ganking ability all throughout the game
Can be very tanky
Relatively low cooldowns on abilities
Solid jungler due to passive

Cons

Can be harassed very easily
Not the fastest champ

Not much else really bad with Xin Zhao, as he is a solid choice in any situation. When first playing Xin Zhao, I asked my friend how to play him. He gave me the most apt description of him I've heard: "So basically, you run in and **** **** up." Well said, my friend.

Let's start off with the Summoner spells:
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The Good
- Always a great summoner spell, good with almost any champ. Adds to your chasing capabilities, especially useful with that annoying and his ult. Can't go wrong with this.
- Same said with Ghost. Allows you to chase well, as well as get you out of any sticky situation.
- Also a great spell. Especially if you're near a wall, you can Flash through the wall for an easy getaway.
- ANOTHER good spell to use on Xin. You really can't go wrong if you do choose this one, I mean it adds on to your DPS, so why not?
These four spells can be interchanged with each other, but just make sure you at least have Ghost or Flash in there as an escape!
NOTE* Is also a surprisingly good spell, and very underused and underestimated.


Everything else is bad. End of story.

As you can see, I went a 21/0/9 split, very standard for an offensive-minded champ like Xin Zhao. Gives that extra boost to allow Xin to help gank before the minions spawn. Nothing much else to say.

As long as you choose a 9-9-9-3 setup of runes that consist of the following, you should be fine:

Attack speed
Critical chance
Attack damage
Armor penetration

Your main skill, this is what makes you able to gank so well. Three charged strikes, with the third one hitting your enemy into the air? It's amazing. It allows trailing teammates to catch up and make face with the enemy. You should definitely max this out first, as it also helps you farm very easily and decimate neutrals with no problem.

A great skill, but you only really need one level of this, and it'll last you a while. The passive attack speed boost is very nice, however it's the active that really helps. Double the passive boost, and for each auto-attack landed, the rest of Xin Zhao's ability cooldowns reduce by one second! It really helps get that ult off cooldown faster, and allow you to spam more abilities! A great ability to use when attacking a tower too.

Your initiating skill, a great skill to start ganks with. Don't forget that it also has a bit of an AoE at the end, so it's not bad for clearing low HP waves of minions faster! The slow at the end of the ability allows you to suddenly catch up and use the rest of your abilities! Great ability to use near your own tower, so that you can slow your opponent within tower range!

An AMAZING ability, just read the description! Deals a good base damage plus a certain percentage of the remaining health of the enemy! AND the armor and magic resistance boost is a plus too! I'll explain later when to use this in the "Combo" section, but it makes you very tanky!

When starting off:

A solid item, allows Xin to stay longer in the lane. Can't go wrong with this. I like this over because of the added survivability in those early-game ganks are crucial.

Core
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A must on Xin Zhao. Enhanced movement speed as well as the attack speed bonus only contributes to Xin's DPS.
NOTE*: Boots of Lucidity can be a viable option if you feel that you've packed enough attack speed runes, and you want more CDR.
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Everything that Xin Zhao needs. Phantom Dancer isn't necessary early to mid-game, as the Zeal gives you a decent enough boost.
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I also feel that this is a MUST on Xin Zhao, as you can see the damage boost is nothing to sneeze at. And the passive is also great, which allows Xin Zhao to deal even more damage. Once you get this, clearing minion waves will take no time at all, which leaves you more time to gank!
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SUCH A GREAT ITEM ON XIN ZHAO ADJFKDJF. Yes. The attack speed bonus and damage aren't great, but it's the active ability on Ghostblade that really allows Xin to completely tear through anyone. 50% attack speed boost is tremendous, and especially when going after those tanks, it completely WRECKS anyone. And the added CDR is great too, more spamming of the abilites :D

Situational:
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MOAR DAMAGE AND CRIT? Why not? If you know you're going to win, but want to see that crit damage go up to 800, then go for it. Most damage in the game without stacking, IE is a solid choice for Xin, really allows your DPS to skyrocket.
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If there's an AP-heavy team, then by all means, get this. A cheaper option to Banshee's Veil, and for Xin Zhao, a solid fit.
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If you need more HP for a phsyical-heavy team, then Frozen Mallet is a great choice. A hefty amount of HP added, and even a nice damage bonus to boot, you can't forget about the added slow to your auto-attacks, which only makes your chasing abilities that much better.
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Again, great against a physical-heavy team. Since you'll be tanking a lot of damage anyways, might as well send it right back at 'em! A great combo with Frozen Mallet for that added survivability.
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In my opinion, an item that is very good, and makes Xin extremely tanky. The added HP regen is great, and the active is amazing too. Attack speed and movement speed are reduced within a radius, and if combined with the Ghostblade's active, you will completely shred the other team apart.

IF YOU MUST
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The reason that I paired these two is that they go hand in hand. The synergy is amazing, as Warmog's gives you that ridiculous HP boost while Atma's gives you more damage depending on your HP, plus MOAR CRIT! But I find that this combo doesn't give you as much damage as what I said earlier.

Here's the general combo that you should be looking for every time you engage looking to get a kill:
-> -> ->

My reasoning behind this:
There's no question that your E ability, Audacious Charge is your initiating ability. Why use your ult so early, you may ask? Because of the damage it deals is dependent on how much HP the opponent has left. So if you start off early with it, it'll do much more damage. Plus the added armor and magic penetration for each champ you hit will make you harder to kill. Then you follow up with your Q, Three Talon Strike for intense damage, and finish it all off with your W, Battle Rage, which will allow you to finish up your enemy while getting your CDRs on your Three Talon Strike and Audacious Charge, so that you can use them again if need be!
ALSO! If using Youmuu's Ghostblade and Randuin's Omen, be sure to use that right after you use Audacious Charge! The added attack speed and their decreased movement and attack speed will allow you to make face even harder. If that's even possible.

With this combo, you should be able to take out anyone, no matter how much HP they have or how much armor. If using Ghostblade and Randuin's, you're going to need them on your 1 and 2 hotkeys, for that easy access! Because forgetting to click them may be the difference between letting them get away, or killing them, so it's crucial that you learn to use active items.

And that's about it. Xin Zhao is incredibly good as a DPS-carry, however isn't a pure DPS-carry like Ashe or Ezreal, and can be adapted into a tanky DPS, one that'll completely tear a new one for the other team! Hope you enjoyed it! :D