How to counter Renekton in League of Legends

Renekton has been one of the most popular top laners for years in League of Legends, and will likely remain a viable pick in both solo queue and professional play. The Butcher of the Sands has a lot of great matchups in the top lane, but oit’s also possible to counter him with the right picks. 

As of season 11 patch 11.7, Renekton only has a 47.87% win rate in Platinum rank and higher after getting a significant nerf in patch 11.6. Despite his poor win rate and nerf, Renekton is still one of the most-picked champions for the top lane. This is likely due to the simplicity of Renekton’s kit and his early-game strength helping to dominate the laning phase. For inexperienced top laners it’s therefore important to know how to shut down a Renekton and counter him right from champion select, as Renekton will likely pop up often in solo queue. 

Here are some of the best ways to counter Renekton and get the upper hand against him. 

How do you counter Renekton in LoL?

There are a few different ways to take on Renekton in League of Legends. Firstly, it’s important to understand Renekton’s own plan. Renekton is an early-game bully in the lane and wants to build a lead through early stages. Renekton in the late game isn’t as strong, so to stay relevant, it’s important to get a lead right from the start. This means that most Renekton players will be aggressive in the lane and try to engage in skirmishes and trades. Allowing a Renekton to dictate the lane can quickly go out of control, so it’s important to try and disrupt his game plan. 

Play to win the laning phase

To win the laning phase, there are a few ways to go. To directly counter Renekton, it’s possible to pick champions that will do even better in the early game. These would be ranged champions that can bully Renekton such as Quinn, Vayne, or Jayce. These champions have good win rates against Renekton in solo queue simply because they can beat him in the lane and shut him down. 

Quinn is the best performer of the three, with a whopping 56,6% win rate against Renekton at Platinum rank and above. The only two champions that perform better against Renekton statistically are Mordekaiser and Darius. 

Play to outscale

The other way to handle Renekton is riskier, but can pay off big in a drawn-out game. It’s possible to counter Renekton by picking up champions that outscale him and try to go even in lane. This won’t win the game instantly, but will slowly choke out Renekton as the game goes on. Renekton is usually strongest during the laning phase, followed up by the mid game. After around 30 minutes, Renekton starts to fall off and has a hard time finding picks in big team fights. 

Having a Cho’Gath, Ornn, or Poppy on the opposing team will become more useful as the game goes on. All these champions aren’t the strongest in lane but have great value in team fights because of their tankiness and crowd control. These are something Renekton doesn’t have much of, which makes him easy to kite and shut down in fights. 

Picking tanks into Renekton is risky and can result in a big disadvantage in the laning phase. It will require great knowledge of the champion and patience in the laning phase. Players who are able to take it slow in lane and farm safely to go even will usually be rewarded in the long run. 

How much does Renekton cost? 

Renekton was released in January 2011 and is one of the oldest champions in the game. Because of his age, Renekton is no longer one of the most expensive champions in the game and can be bought for only 4,800 Blue Essence, or 880 Riot Points.