Gangplank Counters: Who Beats Gangplank

Updated for patch 26.21. Ability details come from Riot’s official game data for this patch.

Gangplank counters are top laners who dash onto him past the barrels, or who bait out Remove Scurvy before their real crowd control. He’s a 125-range fighter whose lane is a pistol shot, a citrus cleanse, powder kegs that spread his attacks across an area, and a cannon bombardment for his ultimate.

The five picks come from comparing his patch 26.21 ability text with theirs. There’s no win-rate data behind them, only the kits themselves and how they collide.

Why is Gangplank hard to counter?

• Trial by Fire (passive): every few seconds his melee strike sets the target on fire.
• Parrrley (Q): shoots a target, plundering extra Gold for each enemy unit killed. Cooldown 4.5.
• Remove Scurvy (W): eats citrus to cure crowd control effects and restore Health. Cooldown 22/20/18/16/14.
• Powder Keg (E): places a keg; when he attacks it, it explodes and spreads the attack’s damage to enemies in the area, slowing them.
• Cannon Barrage (R): his ship bombards an area, slowing and damaging enemies. Cooldown 160/140/120.

Gangplank isn’t a duelist. He’s a zone. Powder Keg spreads his attack damage across an area and slows everyone inside, Parrrley pokes every 4.5 seconds and pays him extra Gold (yes, the pirate earns more per kill), and Remove Scurvy cleanses crowd control, so the first stun you throw often bounces off. What’s missing from that list? Any way to move. There’s no dash, no blink, no speed boost in Riot’s text. Once you get past the kegs and onto him, he’s a 125-range champion standing still (well, walking), and the only thing he can do about it is eat an orange.

Which champions are the best Gangplank counters?

Irelia

Bladesurge (Q) dashes Irelia to a target and heals her, and the cooldown refreshes if the target is Marked or dies. Minions die near Gangplank constantly, so she has dashes to spare for crossing the keg zone. Flawless Duet (E) sends two blades that stun and Mark anything caught between them, which also resets Bladesurge onto Gangplank. Defiant Dance (W) cuts physical damage while she charges it, and keg explosions spread the damage of his attack. Vanguard’s Edge (R) Marks enemies and leaves a wall of blades that slows. Bait Remove Scurvy with the first stun, and the second one sticks.

Riven

Valor (E) steps forward and blocks incoming damage, which is a shield timed for a keg explosion. Broken Wings (Q) is three strikes, recast in quick succession, each moving her forward and the third knocking back nearby enemies. That’s a lot of movement against a champion with none. Ki Burst (W) stuns everyone around her, and Runic Blade (passive) adds damage to attacks after each ability. Blade of the Exile (R) gives Attack Damage, range and a one-time Wind Slash to finish him. The thing is, Ki Burst is the stun he’ll cleanse, so Riven should save it for after Remove Scurvy is used.

Renekton

Slice and Dice (E) dashes through units, and empowered, it deals bonus damage and lowers Armor. Two dashes, one in and one out, past the keg chain. Ruthless Predator (W) stuns for 0.75 seconds, or for 1.5 seconds with three slashes when he has more than 50 Fury, and Gangplank’s cleanse can only answer one of those per 22 seconds at rank 1. Cull the Meek (Q) heals off everything around him, which helps after a keg lands. Dominus (R) adds bonus Health and generates Fury over time. Honestly, Renekton’s early game is built for exactly this kind of lane, where the enemy has no escape and a cleanse on a long timer.

Darius

Apprehend (E) hooks enemies in an area and pulls them to Darius. Kegs? Skipped. The pull is crowd control, though, so Remove Scurvy can clear what follows. Hemorrhage (passive) makes every attack and damaging ability apply a bleed over 5 seconds, stacking up to 5 times, and Crippling Strike (W) slows the target. Decimate (Q) heals him based on the champions hit with the blade, and Noxian Guillotine (R) leaps to a champion and deals true damage, more for each bleed stack. To be fair, Darius has to get through the kegs first, so the pull timing matters.

Kled

Skaarl takes damage for Kled, which turns a keg explosion into a hit on the lizard rather than the rider (a strange sentence, but accurate). Jousting (E) dashes in and recasts to dash back through the first target, and Chaaaaaaaarge! (R) covers a huge distance, leaving a speed trail and a shield, then rams the first enemy champion in the path. Bear Trap on a Rope (Q) hooks and yanks him if the shackle holds. Violent Tendencies (W) gives four very fast attacks. Kled has three ways to close distance, and Gangplank has zero ways to create it.

How do you play the lane against Gangplank?

• Stay out of keg range. Powder Keg spreads the full damage of his attack to enemies in the area and slows them.
• Bait Remove Scurvy first. It cures crowd control and restores Health on a 22 second cooldown at rank 1, so the second stun is the one that counts.
• Trade when he’s farming with Parrrley. Every shot at a minion is a 4.5 second wait for his main poke.
• Walk out of Cannon Barrage. It slows and damages in an area, and leaving early takes most of the sting out.
• Use dashes to cross, not to approach slowly. He has no movement abilities, so a fast engage reaches him before he sets up kegs.

Which items counter Gangplank?

Armor first, since his attacks and keg explosions deal the damage of his attack. For boots, Plated Steelcaps and their 25 Armor (whether Plating also trims keg explosions isn’t spelled out, so treat that as a bonus if it does). Dead Man’s Plate pairs 55 Armor with 350 Health, and Unsinkable reduces how strong slows are, useful against the keg slow and Cannon Barrage. Randuin’s Omen brings 75 Armor and Resilience, which lowers Critical Strike damage, worth it if he builds crit. Remove Scurvy restores Health, so Wounds have a target too: Bramble Vest or Executioner’s Calling apply 40% Wounds for 3 seconds. Mercury’s Treads give Tenacity against the slows, and if you want every number side by side before buying, our items database has the full stats.

When is Gangplank at his weakest?

Right after Remove Scurvy. It’s his only defensive tool, a 22 second cooldown at rank 1, and without it any stun lands in full on a 125-range champion who can’t dash away. Put simply: make him use the orange, then commit.

He’s also weaker in close quarters. Kegs need time to set up and an attack to detonate, so a champion already on top of him skips most of the zone. Can he keg himself out of trouble? Sometimes, if one is already placed near him. In practice, though, Gangplank wants distance, and dash champions deny him that.

Learning the top lane? The guide to LoL roles spells out why top is the lonely lane and what that means for trading. To find a different champion, open the guide list. His outfits are collected on the Gangplank skins page, and random single-lane games are covered in the Gangplank ARAM guide. Long story short, Gangplank counters get past the kegs and save their stun for after the citrus.

FAQ

Who counters Gangplank the most?

Top laners with dashes who can reach him past his kegs: Irelia, Riven, Renekton, Darius and Kled.

Can Gangplank remove crowd control?

Yes. Remove Scurvy cures crowd control effects and restores Health. Its cooldown is 22/20/18/16/14 seconds by rank.

Does Gangplank have a dash?

No. His kit has no dash or blink, which is why champions who close distance quickly do well against him.

How do Powder Kegs work?

Gangplank places a keg and attacks it to detonate it. The explosion spreads the attack’s damage to enemies in the area and slows them.

How were these counters chosen?

Every counter here gets past the kegs or plays around the citrus, going by the patch 26.21 ability text. No match statistics were used.