How to win lane as Locke against Gnar · 50.88% win rate (678 Emerald+ games, lolalytics, sampled July 2026) · Matchup data reviewed on patch 26.15
A poke war you enter at 125 range — pay the toll early, then one blink turns his kite into a coffin the moment the nails land.
Track: Gnar's R — GNAR! (90–30s cooldown). Mega all-in near walls — track his rage bar like a cooldown.
Read from Locke's seat: which stage windows this plan plays for against Gnar.
| Stage | Favoured | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Even / skill | Level 1 is even — both trade with basic pokes and no engage tools online. |
| Level 2 | Even / skill | Level 2 stays skill-based as mini Gnar's Q return damage offsets your P chip. |
| Level 3 | Even / skill | Level 3 is even — Hyper (W) and Hop (E) kiting match your gap-close. |
| Levels 4-5 | Even / skill | Levels 4-5 remain a skill poke war with neither side committing. |
| Level 6 | Even / skill | Level 5 into 6 is even until your ult comes online. |
| First item | Locke | First item favours you — Purgatory grounds his Hop, then executes mini Gnar. |
| Two+ items | Even / skill | 2+ items returns to skill as Mega Gnar's stun and bulk let him survive your burst. |
Mini Gnar's Boomerang (Q, 1100 range) and Hyper (W) win the poke war early, so farm safe, keep P Silver Stake chip on — it grows with his missing health — and don't force E Ashen Pursuit into a full Rage bar. Levels 1-2 are pure skill: dodge the boomerang's return hit.
Pooled Emerald+ win rates from Locke's side, sampled July 2026.
The full Locke vs Gnar 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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Locke, slightly — a 50.88% win rate edge over 678 games; execution can flip it.
Mostly — Locke has a small statistical edge (50.88% win rate), but execution decides this lane far more than the pick does.
Not a hard counter — Locke has a slight edge (50.88% win rate), and play quality decides the rest.
Locke runs Electrocute · Sudden Impact · Sixth Sense · Ultimate Hunter · Bone Plating · Second Wind vs Gnar.
Start Doran's Ring + 2 Health Potions and back for Sheen (≈900g) — the Spellblade pattern starts here. Build Lich Bane first, then Shadowflame / Zhonya's (vs dive), with Plated Steelcaps.
Playing the other side? Gnar vs Locke guide →
All Locke top lane matchups →
More Locke top lane matchups: vs Galio · vs Gangplank · vs Garen · vs Gragas · vs Graves · vs Gwen