Karthus vs Ashe Counter Pick

Ashe outranges Karthus by 150 units, 600 against 450, and still loses the pairing 57.8% of the time across 384 games on patch 16.13.1. Attack range decides auto-attack trades, and Karthus does not trade with autos. Lay Waste is a delayed blast placed on the ground, and it deals increased damage to isolated enemies — the exact state a marksman enters when she steps up to fire Volley.

Frost Shot makes the exchange worse for her. Every attack slows, but her critical strikes deal no bonus damage, so her output is steady rather than explosive, and at 325 movement speed she is ten units slower than he is. Karthus can stand inside Defile, accept the slow and let area damage do work that 59 attack damage cannot match before her items arrive.

Two details keep it honest. Enchanted Crystal Arrow stuns longer the further it flies, and Requiem needs three uninterrupted seconds of channelling, so a single arrow cancels the payoff. Hawkshot also gives her vision of the ground he wants to fight on. Beyond that, 610 base health and 104.2 armor at level 18 are the wrong resistances against magic damage, and Karthus reaching 2,490 health means she cannot burn him down inside one Ranger’s Focus window.