The new League of Legends champion revives the strongest part of Aatrox's old kit and mixes it with Xin Zhao's
If you remember when Aatrox could revive himself, the new League of Legends champion Zaahen brings that mechanic back. As a support main, I dread facing top laners—especially Aatrox, who always finds a way to stay relevant in the meta with his insane kill potential. His presence alone can crush my Janna, Senna, and confidence alike.
So, imagine my reaction when I saw Zaahen. Combining Aatrox’s relentless melee pressure with Xin Zhao’s stacking damage style, he already looks terrifying. Then you notice his passive includes a revival, and it’s enough to make any player consider uninstalling the game.
Lead gameplay designer Blake “Squad5” Smith describes Zaahen as a “tougher, top lane melee character” that’s “inspired by Xin Zhao, and other Darkin in the game. We tried to make something that felt like he hit similar notes but at the end of the day was uniquely his own thing.”
Zaahen’s skillset features dashes, pulls, and double strikes, closely mirroring Aatrox’s design on paper. Yet, it also integrates Xin Zhao’s stacking attack concept and even reintroduces a revival mechanic reminiscent of Anivia. Smith finds the inclusion of this ability somewhat ironic, considering Riot removed Aatrox’s revive passive back in patch 9.
Author’s Summary
Zaahen revives Aatrox’s iconic self-resurrection and merges it with Xin Zhao’s aggressive mechanics, creating a new, fearsome top-lane threat.