Kennen vs Locke Counter Pick

Locke pays for his own tempo, and that decides the matchup. Soul Ignition grants attack speed and movement speed but damages Locke himself, healing part of it back only when the duration ends. Against a 550-range opponent who never has to enter the fight, that self-inflicted cost compounds — Kennen holds 57.5% across 207 games on patch 16.13.1.

The stat sheet is less lopsided than the result suggests. Locke starts with 655 health to Kennen’s 580 and finishes at 2,508 against 2,246, with 32 base armor to 29. What he lacks is late-game armor: 103.4 at level 18, which matters because Kennen’s Electrical Surge and attacks deal mixed damage rather than pure magic. Locke’s 125 attack range forces him to close every time, and his approach tools are readable — Ashen Pursuit teleports before dashing to a target, and Ritual Nails must mark enemies before the bonus damage arrives. Kennen answers by landing a third mark and the stun that follows, usually enough time for Slicing Maelstrom to finish the job. Purgatory executes low-health targets and empowers Locke for each champion it seals, so the practical rule is avoiding extended fights below half health rather than fearing the early exchanges. Neither champion is especially demanding, rated 5 and 4 respectively, and Locke’s 340 movement speed against 335 is too small an edge to change how the trades resolve.