Top 7 Best Assassins in League of Legends (Season 12)

League of Legends offers various Champion classes to choose from. There’s your Bruiser, Marksman, etc. But one of the most popular classes (if not the popular) are Assassins. 

But what are Assassins, anyways?

Assassins are a Champion class that specializes in quick and easy kills. They are vital for taking out essential enemy targets, i.e., the ADC. Assassins have high burst damage, and if you’re wondering which Champions are the best at burst – check out our 7 Best Burst Champions in League of Legends article for just that. 

They can kill enemies that even have larger health pools. A good example is Zed, whose Ultimate – Death Mark – deals more damage the more you attack the Champion marked. This allows him to deal massive amounts of AD to even the tankiest of targets. 

In this list, I’ve compiled the 7 Best Assassins in the game currently. This class only seems to be expanding both in terms of Champion number and strength. The new itemization system in League buffed this class extensively. In all truthfulness, it overpowered them severely. Most in this list deserve a nerf as they are unbalanced in more ways than one.

But, without further delay, let’s begin. 

7. Evelynn 

Evelynn is a Champion that relies a lot on prowling the map. Her passive allows her to go completely invisible after hitting level 6. She will lurk around lanes and the river, looking for an easy target. She can then use her W to stack up an easy to proc charm and follow up with an engage for damage galore. 

She is one of the fastest-killing Champions in general, with her R being one of the better executes in the entire game. It deals bonus damage to low-health enemies and creates a gap between you and your target, allowing for some very easy ins and outs. 

There are currently no ways of countering invisibility in League (other than control wards, which are easy to destroy). She does have proximity around her, meaning she will appear if she does get too close. But by then, it is often too late. 

Also read: Best Janna Skins

6. Fizz

This fishy maniac is revolting. I say that because I simply hate laning against him. 

I know most of you will understand what I’m saying. As soon as he hits level 6, he’ll engage you with an R-E-WQ combo that hurts you both in the game and emotionally in real life. 

What adds icing to the cake is the fact that he becomes untargetable when under his E. The only thing that will damage him in this state is Ignite and other over-time damage sources. 

His mobility is broken, as he can engage quickly and get out just as fast. In the late game, when he stacks up a lot of Ability Power and Ability Haste, he’ll be torturing your squishier teammates. He is one of the strongest AP Champions in general, and if not dealt with in the early game, he will definitely come back to haunt you later on. 

5. Katarina 

Katarina has a reputation in League of Legends. And not exactly a great one. 

She is known for her constant resets and non-existent cooldowns. Pair that with mind-numbing damage numbers, and you’ve got Katarina. She is a lethal, fast, and hard-hitting AP Assassin. Though not that hard to lane against, Katarina can play it safe until she buys a few items. At this point, she will become tough to deal with.

Her usual playstyle revolves around roaming Bot to pick up easy kills to speed up the already fast snowball. Beware of her around levels 6 and 7, which is the usual moment she starts roaming. Denying her farm and XP is a good tactic in the early game to keep her at bay.

Recruit your jungler to camp Mid for a few minutes. Play it safe and bait her in. Killing her a few times early on can really change how things are. You will most likely force her into roaming to get back into the game. Be sure to follow and maintain her disadvantaged position. 

4. Pyke 

Originally envisioned as an AD Assassin Support by Riot, this Champion almost immediately broke off from the mold they put him in. Riot has desperately tried to keep him in the bottom lane. However, this proved futile, and Pyke Mid can be a dominant and dreaded Champion. 

Pyke strives best when ganking, coming out from the dark, and dishing out heavy and fast AD. If he happens to be wounded during fights, he can retreat into the darkness to heal back up with his Passive. 

Pyke can go invisible using his W, though not as well as some other Champions. Indicators will show up around Champions that can make them cautious about your presence. If Pyke does go unnoticed, he can engage with incredible speed. He can stun with his E and then use his low cooldown Q to do good damage.

Apart from his Q and E, Pyke lacks damage sources that aren’t basic attacks, making on-hit items like Duskblade of Drakkthar necessary. 

His R is the real deal. It immediately kills enemies under a threshold and gives him (and his assisting allies) extra gold for each kill. 

He can get fed easily with just a few quick kills with his Ultimate will make him a beast that rules the early to mid game. 

Also read: Best On-Hit Items in League of Legends

3. Kassadin 

Kassadin is secretly one of the most broken Champions League has ever had. And what does Riot do about it? You guessed it – Nothing. 

With the right build, he can pierce through Tank’s defenses with such ease that you’d actually wonder if there was any reason to pick the Tank in the first place. His W shreds through HP, and his Q and E are just sugar on top. 

Kassadin’s infamy comes from his Ultimate–Rift Walk. This spell is a glorified flash (with <2s cooldown) that deals insane damage. Despite the high mana cost (640 at max stacks), your build will more than likely make you use the spell almost infinitely. It alone can one-shot low HP enemies, and rarely can anyone live through your entire R W E combo. 

The Presence of Mind rune is the one I most recommend on this Champion—Pentakills incoming. 

2. Kha’Zix

Kha’Zix is one of the more dangerous jungler Assassins in League of Legends. He can jump out, close gaps, and obliterate you with a Q-Basic combo. 

His R grants him invisibility (which seems to be a reoccurring theme in this list). His passive gives him bonus damage on his next attack if he goes invisible. You can see the connection. 

With his R, he can just waltz into your lane uninvited, Isolate you and then use his Q and Basic attack to finish you off. 

There is not much else to be said about this Champion. He is mobile, dangerous, and intimidating to see on the enemy team. His early, mid and late games are all terrific, and it will take a lot of mental strain to keep your ADC alive for long enough. 

A classic pick off Champion, Kha’Zix is really the better option currently out of him and Rengar.

1. Zed

Some of you probably suspected Zed’s supremacy in this list after I mentioned him above. 

This Champion can be disadvantaged, underleveled, with half an item, and still manage to eviscerate your HP. Zed is more than blatantly overpowered. His kit grants him passive damage, a shadow to blink to; his notorious Death Mark is there; he has it all. 

You can never escape Zed, and in every game with Zed, you’ll see the entire enemy team build Zhonya’s and Guardian Angels. These two items are most likely the only natural defense against Zed. He becomes less dangerous when his Ultimate is not up. Beware that his Cooldown in the late game is likely about 10-20 seconds. Insane, I know.

As I said previously, his Death Mark will allow him to stack up damage on even the tankiest of enemies. He can literally deal thousands of damage to Champions if they have a big enough health pool to withstand his initial attacks. 

Zed used to be an early game Champion that would thrive off of killing easy targets and fall off during the late game when people built more defense. Not anymore. The new itemization systems, and the meta changes, made Zed an apex predator. 

He is an Assassin that remains on top of his game from beginning to end. 

Also read: Best On-Hit Champions in League of Legends

Conclusion

Both AP and AD Champions make for excellent Assassins, as listed above. These are by no means the only ones in the game, just those that, in the current meta, we believe are the best. 

More than likely, your favorite Assassin is not on this list. Let us know which one is your favorite and why you’d include them here over the ones already named. I also apologize to the Rengar fans out there for choosing Kha’Zix. The Assassin world is wild and volatile. Don’t miss out on information by regularly checking our site for more League of Legends lists, articles, and guides. 

Let us know everything you think. We always love to hear from you.