Mage · Jungle · ADC

Karthus counters, build & runes

Karthus, the Deathsinger, is a mage mostly played in Jungle and ADC. In Jungle it has a 48.4% win rate in patch 16.20 and sits in tier D. It excels at area damage, waveclear and sustained damage and is strongest in the late game.

Patch 16.20 · SoloQ

Jungle72%

ADC28%

DTier

48.4%Win rate

1.4%Pick rate

0.9%Ban rate

#53Rank · Jungle

25,296Games

Karthus Jungle most played build

Runes34% of games · 45.5% WR

Dark Harvest · Cheap Shot · Grisly Mementos · Ultimate Hunter
Axiom Arcanist · Gathering Storm

Summoner spells47.2% WR

Exhaust

Smite

Skill order78% of games · 55.5% WR

QEW

Levels 1 to 3: Q · E · W

Starting items43% of games · 48.6% WR

Scorchclaw Pup

Health Potion

Core build17% of games · 52.1% WR

Blackfire Torch

Shadowflame

Rabadon's Deathcap

Boots98% of games · 48.7% WR

Sorcerer's Shoes

Jungle path

Starting on redBlueGrompWolvesRaptorsRedKrugs

Starting on blueBlueGrompWolvesRaptorsRedKrugs

Karthus Jungle counters

Karthus's win rate in the lane matchup

Struggles against

Rammus40.0%220
Bel'Veth40.3%243
Evelynn41.4%263
Sejuani41.5%195
Shyvana42.6%390
Fiddlesticks43.9%246

Beats

Zyra58.0%176
Kindred54.4%294
Jayce54.4%217
Zed54.2%286
Xin Zhao53.4%193
Kha'Zix53.1%831

BTier

53.3%Win rate

0.5%Pick rate

0.8%Ban rate

#23Rank · ADC

9,870Games

Karthus ADC most played build

Runes68% of games · 54.0% WR

Deathfire Touch · Axiom Arcanist · Transcendence · Scorch
Presence of Mind · Last Stand

Summoner spells53.2% WR

Exhaust

Flash

Skill order49% of games · 57.3% WR

QEW

Levels 1 to 3: Q · E · W

Starting items93% of games · 52.8% WR

Doran's Ring

Health Potion

Core build20% of games · 53.2% WR

Blackfire Torch

Shadowflame

Rabadon's Deathcap

Boots99% of games · 53.7% WR

Sorcerer's Shoes

Karthus ADC counters

Karthus's win rate in the lane matchup

Struggles against

Sivir46.0%274
Syndra46.1%76
Kog'Maw46.7%90
Swain46.7%60
Corki47.3%74
Aurelion Sol48.3%58

Beats

Miss Fortune62.8%191
Ashe60.8%181
Katarina59.7%57
Viktor58.6%152
Kai'Sa58.5%675
Ezreal57.7%378

Champion profile

Burst damage2
Sustained damage4
Durability1
Crowd control2
Mobility0
Engage0
Peel1
Poke3

0 to 5 attributes from HeroCoach's Fuente 1 profile, rated from the champion kit and Emerald+ stats.

Power curve

Early

Mid

Late

Game plan

Teamfighting

Excels at

Area damage
Waveclear
Objective control
Roaming

Struggles against

hard crowd control
poke
burst damage

Frequently asked questions

Who counters Karthus in Jungle?

In patch 16.20, the hardest lane opponents for Karthus in Jungle are Rammus (40.0%), Bel'Veth (40.3%) and Evelynn (41.4%). In brackets, Karthus's win rate in that matchup.

Who is Karthus strong against?

In Jungle, Karthus wins most often against Zyra (58.0%), Kindred (54.4%) and Jayce (54.4%).

What is the best Karthus build in Jungle?

The core Karthus build in Jungle is Blackfire Torch, Shadowflame and Rabadon's Deathcap. Keystone: Dark Harvest, with Sorcery as the secondary tree. Skill order: Q > E > W.

Is Karthus good in patch 16.20?

It is tier D in Jungle (rank 53), with a 48.4% win rate, 1.4% pick rate and 0.9% ban rate in SoloQ.

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Global SoloQ stats for patch 16.20. Updated October 17, 2026.