Zac and Taric have emerged as the most frequently cited “secretly broken” champions in recent League of Legends community discussions about underacknowledged power picks.
Players repeatedly pointed to Zac’s jungle dominance as feeling particularly unfair in typical games. The blob’s long-range engage angles and sustain patterns punish teams that aren’t prepared for his unconventional gank paths.
The key to Zac’s hidden power lies in composition matchups. He thrives against teams lacking disengage tools or sustained DPS, where he “never dies” while sticking to enemy carries. But he crumbles into specific counters like Poppy’s anti-dash zone, Janna’s peel, or Morgana’s Black Shield.
Taric received similar attention as a potential “200+ elo boost” according to players. Multiple high-ranking players noted the support can single-handedly carry games in Diamond and Master tiers when drafted correctly.
Taric’s strength centers on anti-engage scenarios. When enemy teams run melee-heavy compositions that want to dive in, his invulnerability ultimate and stun shut down entire game plans. The Taric-Kindred ultimate combination was specifically highlighted as oppressive when timed correctly.
Both champions share a common trait: low pick rates mean opponents lack practice playing against them. Players don’t respect their damage output, engage ranges, or teamfight patterns until it’s too late.
The Zilean question
The discussion also revived ongoing debate about whether Riot intentionally leaves certain unpopular champions strong. Zilean became the focal point after players cited a clip from Riot developer August discussing how the time mage could create a “degenerate gamestate” if he became popular.
Some players argued this proves Riot knowingly keeps Zilean powerful because his low pick rate prevents widespread frustration. Others pushed back, noting that “unfun if popular” doesn’t equal “statistically overpowered” and that Zilean’s public winrate data remains unremarkable.
Other champions mentioned as secretly broken included Shen for his global ultimate pressure, Anivia for siege denial, and Janna for her consistent high winrates. But none received the sustained focus that Zac and Taric generated.
