How to win lane as Zac against Maokai · 65.75% win rate over 73 Emerald+ games · Updated 2026-07-27
| Stage | Favoured | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Maokai | Maokai's sapling poke and passive heal beat you at level 1. |
| Level 2 | Maokai | At 2 his sustain keeps refilling faster than your blobs. |
| Level 3 | Maokai | His W root at 3 gives him free trades you can't answer. |
| Levels 4-5 | Maokai | Through 4-5 his heal-and-poke grind stays ahead. |
| Level 6 | Maokai | He holds the sustain edge right up to ult timings. |
| First item | Even / skill | At 6 your R matches his engage, leveling the lane to skill. |
| Two+ items | Even / skill | Late, both are utility tanks — impact is even and skill-based. |
Maokai wins the early sustain war — his saplings (W poke) plus passive healing top him off faster than your blobs regen, and once he has W (Twisted Advance) at 3 he can root you for a free sapling trade. Don't fight into that; farm at range, respect the root by holding E, and soak harass with your passive.
The full Zac vs Maokai 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? Maokai vs Zac guide →
All Zac top lane matchups →