Illaoi vs Gnar Counter Pick

Gnar is among the frailest bodies in the top lane: 540 starting health and 1,883 at level 18, against 656 and 2,611. Rage removes his ability to choose when that frailty matters, since Mega Gnar arrives when the bar fills rather than when the fight begins. Illaoi holds 55.5% over 476 games on patch 16.13.1.

In Mini form the plan is obvious: Boomerang Throw from 175 range, Hop out of danger, never stand beside a tentacle. Illaoi’s counter is Test of Spirit, which stops caring about range once the spirit is out — it stands where she wants and echoes damage back to Gnar wherever he has run. In Mega form the roles invert for a few seconds, since GNAR! is a wall stun and Crunch lands with real weight, but that window is also the one where Gnar sits inside tentacle range with 94.9 armour at level 18 against her 120. Move speed reads 350 to 335, and his mixed damage means her 32 magic resist is not irrelevant either. A difficulty rating of 8 against her 4 puts the heavier burden squarely on Gnar, and one misjudged transformation timer usually decides the matchup. Hyper adds bonus damage and move speed while he is small, which is the phase worth extending; Wallop, its Mega replacement, only matters if he is already standing where a 65-attack-damage fighter with 350 move speed wants him.