“Ascended. Darkin. I am the blade between.”
Zaahen, the Unsundered, has arrived in League of Legends with Patch 25.23, bringing a mix of divine and profane power to the battlefield. A fallen god who once sealed himself within his glaive to prevent madness, Zaahen now walks free, driven by a noble heart and relentless purpose. He hunts his fellow Darkin while battling the corruption threatening Runeterra, fighting an eternal war within himself to rise above all who would bring ruin.
Zaahen’s abilities redefine combat strategy:
Passive – Cultivation of War: Zaahen gains Determination stacks when attacking enemy champions, boosting his Attack Damage. At full stacks, he gains extra Attack Damage and can revive.
Q – The Darkin Glaive: Slashes twice on the next attack to deal bonus damage and heal himself. Recasting allows a bonus damage attack that knocks up the target.
W – Dreaded Return: Stabs in a direction, damaging enemies and pulling them closer.
E – Aureate Rush: Dashes to a location while slicing around himself, dealing area damage.
R – Grim Deliverance: Leaps and stabs downward, damaging enemies and healing for a portion of the damage dealt.
LEAGUE OF LEGENDS ZAAHEN, THE UNSUNDERED DEVELOPER FAQ
SPOKESPERSON: Blake “Squad5” Smith – Lead Gameplay Designer for Zaahen
FAQ:
- What were your goals when designing Zaahen?
With every champion we typically start with goals for the types of players we want to make the champion for – for Zaahen that meant making him into a kind of tougher, top lane melee character. From his lore, we wanted to tie in several aspects that players would enjoy as homage to his background. We took inspiration from Xin Zhao and the other Darkin in the game, and tried to make something that felt like he hit similar notes but at the end of the day was uniquely his own thing.
- What is his intended role and is he playable in any others?
He is intended to be a top laner – but he may be able to jungle as well. Top lane is the primary role we are planning to support.
- How would you describe Zaahen’s gameplay style? Any notable or specific interactions to call out?
Zaahen has a ramping combat gameplay style. The longer that Zaahen is able to fight, he builds up power, until eventually gaining a large spike that lets him take down his opponents or revive from death. One of the biggest aspects to pay attention to, both playing as and against Zaahen, is that his abilities can stack his passive multiple times if he hits several champions. A Zaahen who multi-hits his W, E or R is going to get his full passive much quicker than one only hitting one enemy.
- Do you have any tips for playing as Zaahen?
Pay attention to where your passive is at when making decisions around being aggressive or not. I’ve seen Zaahen players run away too early when they could have kept fighting and gotten full passive and also seen them commit too hard when they couldn’t build the passive and then die.
- Do you have any tips for playing against Zaahen?
Kite Zaahen. He doesn’t have the best sticking power, and if you see him start stacking his passive you need to disengage and wait for the passive to fall off.
- Were there any unexpected challenges or novelty stories you’d like to share when designing Zaahen?
The amount of times that people have brought up the fact that Aatrox lost his revive and Zaahen is getting one is always amusing. Personally though, I believe that Zaahen’s revive mechanics should make the ability much more sustainable compared to Aatrox’s revive that had to be removed.
Since its 2009 release, League of Legends has become one of the most-played competitive games worldwide, offering fast-paced MOBA gameplay and immersive RPG elements. The game continues to evolve with new champions, events, and stories like K/DA, Star Guardian, and Spirit Blossom. League’s champions are also featured across music, comics, spinoff games, and global esports competitions, including the League of Legends World Championship.
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