How to win lane as Locke against Malzahar · Matchup data reviewed on patch 26.15
A stationary spell-battery vs a blink with an execute — survive the poke tax pre-6, then every low-HP recall becomes a Purgatory receipt.
Track: Malzahar's R — Nether Grasp (140–80s cooldown). Point-and-click suppression — never step up solo while his passive shield is intact and R is up.
Read from Locke's seat: which stage windows this plan plays for against Malzahar.
| Stage | Favoured | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Locke | You out-tempo an immobile Malzahar at level 1, so it favours you. |
| Level 2 | Locke | His shield and slow Q can't stop your level 2 aggression. |
| Level 3 | Even / skill | At level 3 your dash beats his lack of mobility. |
| Levels 4-5 | Even / skill | Levels 4-5 stay yours as he can only farm and shield. |
| Level 6 | Locke | At 6 his suppress is answered by QSS/Cleanse, keeping the edge yours. |
| First item | Even / skill | First item lets you all-in through his waveclear before Void Shift resets. |
| Two+ items | Even / skill | Two items in, one suppress isn't enough to save his squishy body — yours. |
Malzahar is a completely immobile scaler — before his DoT waveclear comes online you shove the wave and threaten his face, and a dodged Q leaves him with only his shield. Malzahar has no early mobility and his Q (Call of the Void) is a slow two-line skillshot — walk through the gap, force his passive shield (Void Shift) with a poke, then commit once it pops.
The full Locke vs Malzahar report continues with the mid-game plan, the late-game and teamfight plan, every power spike to play around, and the win conditions for both sides — plus cooldown tracking and the live enemy-jungle tracker inside the app.
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No sample yet — Locke vs Malzahar has no Emerald+ win-rate data for this patch; Locke's plan below claims 3 of the 7 stage windows, so Locke sets the tempo.
Not exactly — Locke's plan claims 3 of the 7 stage windows, so Locke sets the lane's tempo.
Locke runs Electrocute · Sudden Impact · Sixth Sense · Ultimate Hunter · Bone Plating · Revitalize vs Malzahar.
Start Doran's Ring + 2 Health Potions and back for Sheen (≈900g) — the Spellblade pattern starts here. Build Lich Bane first, then Shadowflame / Mejai's (if sealing), with Mercury's Treads / Sorcerer's Shoes.
Playing the other side? Malzahar vs Locke guide →
All Locke mid lane matchups →
More Locke mid lane matchups: vs LeBlanc · vs Lissandra · vs Lux · vs Mel · vs Naafiri · vs Neeko