How to win lane as Locke against Karma · 48.95% win rate over 1,710 Emerald+ games · Updated 2026-07-27
| Stage | Favoured | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Even / skill | Even at level 1: her Q poke trades against your farm, neither dominates. |
| Level 2 | Even / skill | Level 2 stays a skillshot duel around her Inner Flame. |
| Level 3 | Even / skill | Through level 3 her E shield offsets your new dash, keeping it even. |
| Levels 4-5 | Even / skill | Levels 4-5 hinge on Mantra-cooldown play, no clear edge either way. |
| Level 6 | Even / skill | Level 6 stays even as her fresh shields answer your first R attempt. |
| First item | Locke | Your first-item R Purgatory execute beats her non-CC ult and fragile body. |
| Two+ items | Even / skill | Late reverts to skill as her enchanter shields and speed peel your all-in. |
Early lane is a skill test around Karma's Q Inner Flame: her mantra'd RQ chunks and her E shield-speed lets her disengage your approaches, but she's fragile and immobile beyond that. Dodge her skillshot Q and the poke war stays even through the first few levels.
The full Locke vs Karma 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? Karma vs Locke guide →
All Locke top lane matchups →
Also played in: Mid Lane