How to win lane as Olaf against Kennen · 54.85% win rate over 505 Emerald+ games · Updated 2026-07-27
| Stage | Favoured | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Even / skill | Kennen has no escape and dies to first contact — land Q, walk up and auto before his energy poke even starts. |
| Level 2 | Kennen | Level 2-3 is his poke peak: double Q shurikens plus W mark procs chip you from a range you can't yet punish. |
| Level 3 | Even / skill | With Q-slow plus E true damage you can answer his poke, but his shuriken chip keeps it a coin-flip on who's healthier. |
| Levels 4-5 | Olaf | Your W-omnivamp out-sustains his Q/W poke and the Q-reset slow lets you stick and trade short — you out-grind him here. |
| Level 6 | Kennen | Without R up he can't peel, but the moment he lands his AOE stun on your step-up he kites you and his level-6 spike edges it. |
| First item | Even / skill | Bramble/Black Cleaver plus W sustain is your most oppressive point — perma-slow and walk him down through every poke. |
| Two+ items | Olaf | His teamfight ult and Zhonyas matter late, but in the straight lane you still dive him with Ragnarok and E him through it. |
Kennen has no escape and dies if you ever touch him, so the early game is all about landing Q. Hit the axe through him as he steps up for a CS, then walk on top while the slow holds and trade an auto — at Level 1 you win that exchange easily. The catch is his energy poke: from 2-3 he chips you with double Q shurikens and W mark procs that you can't punish from range, so don't sit in shuriken range farming. Pick up your thrown axe to refund the cooldown and keep the slow ready for the next step-up.
The full Olaf vs Kennen 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? Kennen vs Olaf guide →
All Olaf top lane matchups →