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Trundle Counters: Who Beats Trundle

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

Trundle counters are champions who fight him from range, dodge his bite, or cut his healing. He’s a melee fighter with 175 attack range who heals off dying units, gets stronger standing in Frozen Domain and steals Health, Armor and Magic Resist with his ultimate, so ranged poke and Grievous Wounds hurt him most.

Our five picks come from reading the kits side by side. No match statistics were used, just what each ability does to his (no tier lists, no stat sites).

Trundle counters: Trundle, the Troll King, splash art

Why is Trundle hard to counter?

  • King’s Tribute (passive): whenever an enemy unit dies near him, he heals for a percent of its maximum Health.
  • Chomp (Q): a bite that deals damage, slows briefly and saps some of your Attack Damage. Cooldown 3.5 seconds.
  • Frozen Domain (W): turns an area into his ground, where he gets Attack Speed, Move Speed and increased healing from every source.
  • Pillar of Ice (E): a pillar of impassable terrain that slows enemies around it.
  • Subjugate (R): steals a percent of one target’s Health, Armor and Magic Resist, and the amount doubles over 4 seconds. Cooldown 120/100/80.

Close and long. That’s the fight he wants. Every minion that dies beside him tops him up, the domain boosts that healing, and Chomp comes back every three and a half seconds to keep shaving your damage. What’s the weak spot? He has to walk to you, and nothing in his kit is a dash, so the pillar is his only real tool for catching someone who keeps their distance.

Which champions are the best Trundle counters?

Teemo

Teemo stands 500 units away and hits from there, which is a long walk for a 175-range troll. Blinding Dart (Q) blinds the target for its duration, and while it lasts, Trundle’s basic attacks miss. Toxic Shot keeps poisoning him on every attack, and Move Quick lets Teemo run off the domain instead of fighting on it. Annoying matchup for him (and for anyone, to be fair).

Quinn

Quinn has 525 range and a kit built around staying out of reach. Blinding Assault (Q) hinders his vision, Vault (E) dashes to him, briefly interrupts him and drops her back near max range, and Harrier marks add bonus physical damage to her first hit. Short trades, then gone. Trundle can’t keep up with that without landing a pillar.

Fiora

Riposte (W) parries all incoming damage and disables for a moment, then stabs back, and it stuns if the thing she blocked was an immobilizing effect. Time it on Chomp and his slow and AD sap both bounce off. Her Duelist’s Dance passive heals her when she strikes the weak point it reveals on him, so she can trade into his sustain instead of losing a slow grind, and Grand Challenge (R) heals her again on the finish.

Gwen

Hallowed Mist (W) is the problem for him. Gwen can only be targeted by enemies who enter the mist, and Subjugate is a targeted ultimate, so he has to walk in after her to use it at all. A Thousand Cuts scales with the Health of whoever she hits. Thing is, his ultimate gives him extra Health to work with, and her damage scales right along with it.

Jayce

Jayce gets to choose the range. In Cannon Stance, Shock Blast (Q) fires an orb that damages everything around it, and the Acceleration Gate boosts both the orb and his Move Speed. When Trundle does close in, Thundering Blow (E) knocks him back out of melee distance. Poke from range in lane is something Trundle can’t trade back against, honestly.

How do you play the lane against Trundle?

  • Fight off the domain. Frozen Domain only buffs him while he stands on it, so pull trades away from the circle.
  • Don’t let minions die next to him when you can help it, because King’s Tribute heals him for each one.
  • Respect Chomp. A 3.5 second cooldown means he gets several bites in any long trade.
  • Keep a dash for the pillar. Pillar of Ice is impassable terrain, and without a way past it you’ll get slowed and caught.
  • Save Grievous Wounds for the moment he drops Frozen Domain.

Which items counter Trundle?

Grievous Wounds comes first, since healing is half his kit. Executioner’s Calling gives 15 Attack Damage and applies 40% Wounds on physical damage to champions, and it costs only 800 gold. Mortal Reminder and Chempunk Chainsword are the full versions for AD builds. On a tank, Bramble Vest and later Thornmail (75 Armor, 150 Health) apply Wounds whenever he attacks you, which against a fighter who has to attack constantly is close to free. Mages can go Oblivion Orb into Morellonomicon. Plated Steelcaps also help, reducing incoming damage from attacks by 10%. One warning for tanks, though. Subjugate steals a percent of your Armor and Magic Resist, so stacking resists gives him more to take. Our items database lists every option, and if your champion builds crit, Infinity Edge has the full price breakdown.

When is Trundle at his weakest?

While Subjugate is down. It’s a 120 second cooldown at rank 1, which is two full minutes, and without it he can’t drain your Armor, Magic Resist or Health during a fight.

He’s also weaker anywhere he can’t sit on Frozen Domain for long. A fight that moves, through a jungle entrance or across a river, takes the Attack Speed and healing buff away the moment he steps off it.

New to top lane and not sure where these champions usually play? Our guide to LoL roles sorts that out. Every Trundle skin is on the Trundle skins page. ARAM games with him? The Trundle ARAM guide explains how the troll changes when there’s only one lane and no way back to base. In practice, good Trundle counters keep him off his domain, cut his healing and make him walk the whole way.

FAQ

Who counters Trundle the most?

Ranged top laners like Teemo and Quinn, plus Fiora, Gwen and Jayce, whose abilities either blind him, parry his bite, block his ultimate or keep him at range.

Does Grievous Wounds work against Trundle?

Yes. His passive heals him when nearby enemy units die, and Frozen Domain increases his healing from all sources, so Wounds cuts a large part of his sustain.

What does Trundle’s ultimate do?

Subjugate steals a percent of the target’s Health, Armor and Magic Resist, and the amount stolen doubles over the next 4 seconds. Its cooldown is 120/100/80 seconds.

Should tanks build Armor against Trundle?

Some, yes, but Subjugate steals a percent of your Armor and Magic Resist, so pair resists with Health and Grievous Wounds rather than stacking only Armor.

Is this list based on win rates?

No. Each Trundle counter here was chosen by comparing ability text from patch 26.21. We don’t use win-rate data.