How to win lane as Talon against Malzahar · 54.07% win rate over 1,413 Emerald+ games · Updated 2026-07-27
| Stage | Favoured | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Talon | Malzahar has no level-1 dash or escape, so your step-up threat puts you ahead. |
| Level 2 | Talon | At 2 your W slow lets you commit before his shield matters, keeping you ahead. |
| Level 3 | Talon | Level 3 gives you a full burst combo that outraces his voidling damage, so you lead. |
| Levels 4-5 | Talon | Through 4-5 his popped Void Shift leaves repeated all-in windows in your favor. |
| Level 6 | Talon | At 6 he'd rather hold R for the jungler, so you can bait or dive it and stay ahead. |
| First item | Talon | First item still one-combos him whenever his R is down, keeping the edge yours. |
| Two+ items | Malzahar | Two items in his point-click R suppression plus Zhonya's flips the duel to him. |
Malzahar is a farming immobile mage with no early dash, so the first levels are yours — he can only push the wave and pray you don't step up. Don't clip his Q (Call of the Void) silence and don't tank E (Malefic Visions) ticks, but otherwise walk him down. He wants to shove and freeze you off; deny that and you starve his lane.
The full Talon 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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Playing the other side? Malzahar vs Talon guide →
All Talon mid lane matchups →