Zhonya’s Hourglass
Legendary item · Patch 26.21 · numbers from Riot's Data Dragon files, refreshed every patch
Zhonya’s Hourglass stats
- +105 Ability Power
- +50 Armor
Passive and active effects
- Active: Time Stop
- Enter Stasis for 2.5 seconds.
Effect text as written in Riot's game data; for scaling effects, the in-game shop tooltip shows the exact numbers that match your current stats and level.
Build path
Champion guides with Zhonya’s Hourglass
- Katarina Katarina ARAM build
- Fizz Fizz ARAM build Fizz counters
- Twisted Fate Twisted Fate ARAM build Twisted Fate counters
- Orianna Orianna ARAM build Orianna counters
- Heimerdinger Heimerdinger ARAM build
- Vex Vex ARAM build
- Mel Mel ARAM build Mel counters
- Sylas Sylas ARAM build
- Lux Lux ARAM build
- Ekko Ekko ARAM build Ekko counters
- Karthus Karthus ARAM build
- Galio Galio ARAM build
- Kai'Sa Kai'Sa ARAM build Kai'Sa counters
- Kassadin Kassadin ARAM build Kassadin counters
- Veigar Veigar ARAM build Veigar counters
- Kayle Kayle ARAM build
- Kennen Kennen ARAM build
- Fiddlesticks Fiddlesticks ARAM build
- Rumble Rumble ARAM build
- Anivia Anivia ARAM build
- Annie Annie ARAM build Annie counters
- Akali Akali ARAM build Akali counters
- Taliyah Taliyah ARAM build
- Lissandra Lissandra ARAM build Lissandra counters
- Azir Azir ARAM build Azir counters
- LeBlanc LeBlanc ARAM build LeBlanc counters
- Ahri Ahri ARAM build Ahri counters
- Morgana Morgana ARAM build
- Swain Swain ARAM build
- Cassiopeia Cassiopeia ARAM build
- Syndra Syndra ARAM build Syndra counters
- Diana Diana ARAM build
- Neeko Neeko ARAM build
- Nocturne Nocturne counters
- Kled Kled counters
- Zed Zed counters
- Xerath Xerath counters
- Mordekaiser Mordekaiser counters
- Vayne Vayne counters
- Vel'Koz Vel'Koz counters
- Jarvan IV Jarvan IV counters
- Corki Corki counters
- Qiyana Qiyana counters
- Jax Jax counters
- Kalista Kalista counters
- Rakan Rakan counters
- Rell Rell counters
- Akshan Akshan counters
- Rengar Rengar counters
- Ambessa Ambessa counters
- Kha'Zix Kha'Zix counters
- Zoe Zoe counters
- Shaco Shaco counters
- Locke Locke counters
- Camille Camille counters
- Master Yi Master Yi counters
- Blitzcrank Blitzcrank counters
- Miss Fortune Miss Fortune counters
- Smolder Smolder counters
- Ezreal Ezreal counters
- Naafiri Naafiri counters
- Graves Graves counters
- Ivern Ivern counters
- Talon Talon counters
Gold efficiency
| Stat | Amount | Gold per point | Gold value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ability Power | 105 | 20 g | 2100 g |
| Armor | 50 | 20 g | 1000 g |
| Total stat value | 3100 g |
Gold efficiency = stat value ÷ item cost = 3100 ÷ 3250 = 95%. The gold per point comes from basic items of the same patch (for example, Long Sword: 35 g per Attack Damage). Passives and actives are not counted.
Zhonya’s Hourglass patch history
| Patch | Change |
|---|---|
| 14.21 | Effect text changed |
| 14.19 | Ability Power: 120 → 105 |
| 14.2 | Effect text changed |
| 14.1 | Cost: 3000 → 3250 gold; Ability Power: 80 → 120; Armor: 45 → 50 |
| 12.17 | Cost: 2600 → 3000 gold; Ability Haste: 10 → 15; Ability Power: 65 → 80 |
| 11.3 | Cost: 2500 → 2600 gold |
| 10.23 | Cost: 2900 → 2500 gold; Ability Power: 75 → 65 |
| 8.9 | Ability Power: 70 → 75 |
| 6.9 | Cost: 3500 → 2900 gold; Ability Power: 100 → 70; Cooldown Reduction %: none → 10; Effect text changed |
| 5.22 | Cost: 3000 → 3500 gold; Armor: 50 → 45 |
| 5.13 | Cost: 3300 → 3000 gold; Ability Power: 120 → 100 |
| 4.20 | Cost: 3260 → 3300 gold |
| 3.6 | Cost: 3100 → 3260 gold; Ability Power: 100 → 120; Effect text changed |
| 2013 | Earliest record in Riot's Data Dragon (2013); the item is older |
We compare cost and stats patch by patch in Riot's Data Dragon files. "Effect text changed" means the passive or active wording changed in that patch.
Zhonya’s Hourglass is a 3,250 gold Ability Power item in League of Legends with Armor and a Stasis active: 105 Ability Power and 50 Armor in patch 26.21. Time Stop puts you in Stasis for 2.5 seconds, so you can’t be hit or targeted, but you can’t move, attack or cast either. Mages buy it against assassins and divers.
What does Zhonya’s Hourglass do?
Press the active, and your champion turns golden and freezes in place, a statue in the middle of the fight. For those 2.5 seconds nothing can damage or target you. Nothing. Then you’re back, in the same spot, with your cooldowns still ticking.
The value is all in timing. An enemy assassin commits a full combo, you go into Stasis, and their abilities hit nothing or land on cooldown while your team turns around. It also buys time for a teammate’s crowd control to come out, or for a tower to keep shooting a diver. And the Armor? It helps against the same physical damage assassins and fighters that make you want the active in the first place.
The catch is that Stasis stops you too. You can’t run, recall or keep casting, so a well-timed Stasis into a team that simply waits for you is wasted. Riot’s data text doesn’t list the cooldown; check the in-game tooltip for that.
Is it gold efficient?
Close to even, at 95%. The stats are worth 3,100 gold against a 3,250 gold price, so the active costs about 150 gold.
The breakdown, with basic item prices from the same patch: 105 Ability Power at 20 gold per point equals 2,100 gold, and 50 Armor at 20 gold per point equals 1,000 gold. For what it’s worth, an active that blanks a whole enemy combo for a couple of hundred gold is a bargain. Ask any mage who’s been one-shot.
What does it build from?
Needlessly Large Rod (1,200 gold) and Seeker’s Armguard (1,600 gold), then a 450 gold combine. Seeker’s Armguard is often bought early against an Attack Damage mid laner, because it gives Armor and some Ability Power right away. Needlessly Large Rod is the same component that goes into Rabadon’s Deathcap, so the Rod never feels wasted. The finished Hourglass doesn’t build into anything.
How has Zhonya’s Hourglass changed?
It’s one of the oldest items in the game, in Riot’s data from 2013 or earlier, and its price has moved more than almost anything else. The latest entries:
- Patch 12.17: cost 2,600 → 3,000 gold, Ability Power 65 → 80, Ability Haste 10 → 15.
- Patch 14.1: cost 3,000 → 3,250 gold, Ability Power 80 → 120, Armor 45 → 50.
- 14.19 trimmed Ability Power from 120 to 105.
Patch 14.1 made it pricier but much stronger on damage, and patch 14.19 pulled some of that back (it had 120 Ability Power for less than a year). Older patches swung the cost anywhere from 2,500 to 3,500 gold. The full table above has every step, and our LoL items database shows the same history for each item in the shop.
Who should buy Zhonya’s Hourglass?
Ability Power champions who get jumped on by assassins, divers or Attack Damage fighters. Mid lane mages facing an Attack Damage assassin, Ability Power junglers who jump onto the backline, and burst champions who want to go in, empty their kit and then survive the response. Want a simple test? If you keep dying the moment an enemy reaches you, this is the item.
Into a team of mostly magic damage, the Armor is wasted, honestly, though the active still works. Enchanters skip it (gold is tight on supports). If you’re still picking a main position, the guide to LoL roles shows where mages usually end up. In practice, Zhonya’s Hourglass is a second or third item for most mages and a first buy only when the matchup is brutal.
FAQ
How much does Zhonya’s Hourglass cost?
3,250 gold for the full item, 450 of that for the combine, and 2,275 gold if you sell it.
How long does Stasis last?
Time Stop puts you in Stasis for 2.5 seconds.
Can you move or cast during Stasis?
No. You can’t be targeted or damaged, but you can’t move, attack or use abilities until it ends.
What stats does the Hourglass give?
105 Ability Power and 50 Armor.
What does it build from?
Needlessly Large Rod and Seeker’s Armguard.