Varus vs Xayah ADC Matchup Guide | LaneStomp

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Varus

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ADC

Xayah

Varus vs Xayah

Confidence highUpdated Jun 7, 2026

Overview

Varus wins by punishing Xayah's last-hit attempts with charged (Q) poke and (E) slows before she sets feathers.
Xayah needs feather setup and (R) for safe trades; Varus should deny this by controlling wave and spacing.
Varus controls lane priority early with poke, forcing Xayah to choose between CS and taking damage.

Trading pattern

Step forward to auto and detonate blight stacks when Xayah is locked in last-hit animation on low-health minions.
Use (E) to slow Xayah when she steps forward for CS, then follow with quick (Q) poke if support threat is low.
Avoid charging (Q) if (R) is available or her support controls brush and can punish your step forward.

Danger windows

Avoid charging (Q) when (R) is up, as she can dodge poke and punish your immobility.
Respect (E) root when walking through her feather lines, especially if enemy support is ready to follow.
Do not punish last-hits if enemy support controls brush or is positioned to immediately trade or engage.

Early game

Use early waves to thin minions and create angles for charged (Q) without risking engage range.
Punish Xayah's cannon and caster minion last-hits with (E) slow and auto attacks only if enemy support is out of position.
Avoid charging (Q) when enemy support threatens engage; hold poke for safer windows after level 2.

Power spikes

Level 6 (R) adds pick threat and peel; hold (R) to punish Xayah's engage or to peel her root.
First completed damage item increases poke damage, enabling safer pressure and better objective control.
Use item spike to crash waves and pressure plates before dragon fights, forcing Xayah under tower.

Win conditions

Convert poke damage and wave pressure into recalls and plate gold to gain item leads.
Use (R) pick threat combined with support follow-up to force Xayah off the wave before dragon setups.
Maintain lane priority to deny Xayah safe feather setups and scale into mid-game teamfight DPS windows.