Locke vs Taliyah Counter Pick

Taliyah writes her escape plan into her passive. Rock Surfing grants movement speed near walls and Weaver’s Wall builds a very long one she can then surf, so this mid matchup often turns on whether a fight happens in open ground or against terrain. Locke wins 53.1% over 703 games on patch 16.13.1, a margin narrow enough that the choice of ground genuinely matters.

Her defensive numbers are the softest part of the kit: 550 health and 18 base armor, rising to 2,318 and 97.9 at level 18, against 655 and 32 rising to 2,508 and 103.4. Locke’s damage is physical, so that 18 is under pressure from the first level. Her reply is distance, 525 attack range against 125, plus Threaded Volley, which lets her keep casting while moving and leaves Worked Ground behind. Unraveled Earth is the specific trap, since its mines stun anyone who dashes through them and Ashen Pursuit ends in a dash, while Seismic Shove can throw him straight back out afterward. Both are rated 5 for difficulty, and the deciding factor is whether the approach is timed to the minefield being on cooldown rather than to a full mana bar. Away from a wall she moves at 330 against 340, so the speed advantage belongs to him, and their base attack damage is identical at 58, which leaves the difference entirely in who reaches whom.