Kick-and-lock bruiser who removes one carry from the fight
FighterEXP LaneRoamDeals physical
Chou wins by isolating a single target — The Way of Dragon kicks an enemy hero away from their team, and casting it again chases the target down to bring the kick to 480 (+220% Extra Physical Attack) total, turning a teamfight into a 5-vs-4 in his team's favor. Jeet Kune Do's triple-cast structure and Shunpo's control-immune dash make him one of the most mobile bruisers in the game, with Shunpo resetting every time the third cast lands on a hero.
Difficulty
Hard
Specialities
ChaseControl
Landing the third Jeet Kune Do cast to reset Shunpo, chaining that dash into a directional ultimate, and reading which way to kick a target all require cancel-timing precision most bruisers don't need.
Beaten by
73 hard
Strong into
1
Best duos
10
Builds
2
At a glance
Damage
6 of 10
Durability
6 of 10
Crowd Control
8 of 10
Mobility
9 of 10
Utility
6 of 10
Rated against the whole roster, not against their own class.
When Chou is strong
Attributes
Damage
6
Durability
6
Crowd Control
8
Mobility
9
Utility
6
Strengths
The Way of Dragon knocks one enemy hero clear of their team and the second cast chases them, isolating a carry away from their support
Shunpo grants Control Immunity during the dash, letting him engage or escape through most crowd control on cooldown
Landing the third Jeet Kune Do cast on a hero resets Shunpo's cooldown, letting him chain mobility skills in a single engage
Only Fast punishes any hero who tries to walk away from him, since traveling 5 units before the next Basic Attack slows and shreds Physical Defense
Weaknesses
The Way of Dragon knocks its single target away from Chou, so kicking from the wrong side sends them straight back into their own team
Jeet Kune Do only knocks airborne and only resets Shunpo on its third cast, so he has to spend two telegraphed strikes first and loses both payoffs if the third misses
Below level 4 he can dash in with Shunpo but has no way to remove a target from the fight, making his early laning phase weaker than most exp-lane fighters
Relies on hitting his combo cleanly — without landing skills, his raw stat-check damage is unremarkable for a fighter
Skills
Max Jeet Kune Do first for damage and cooldown, level Shunpo for the mobility and shield, and take The Way of Dragon at every level it's available.
Passive
Only Fast
Buff
After travelling 5 units, Chou's deals 180% damage on his next Basic Attack (cannot Crit), briefly slows the target by 80% and reduces their Physical Defense by 10(+1*Hero Level) for 3s (up to 2 stacks).
Always active — no cooldown
What the terms mean(2)
Physical Basic Attack
Deal Physical Damage to enemies. Triggers ATK Effects and Lifesteal.
Physical Defense
Deduction of Physical Damage taken. Physical Defense will be affected by the enemy’s Physical PEN but not lower than 0. Actual Physical Damage taken = Physical Dam
Skill 1
Jeet Kune Do
AOEMobility
Chou strikes in the target direction, dealing 180 (+70% Total Physical Attack) Physical Damage to enemies hit. This skill can be cast 3 times before it goes on cooldown. On the 3rd cast, Chou also knocks enemies hit airborne. Hitting an enemy hero with the 3rd cast resets the cooldown of Shunpo.
Cooldown
9.5s
What the terms mean(2)
Blink
Movement ability that can pass through obstacles.
Airborne
High level Crowd Control: Prevents a target from moving, and using Basic Attacks and skills. Can interrup
Skill 2
Shunpo
Mobility
Chou charges in the target direction gaining Control Immunity and a 200 (+200% Extra Physical Attack) shield.
Cooldown
5s
What the terms mean(2)
Blink
Movement ability that can pass through obstacles.
Control Immunity
You are immune to enemy CC effects (Suppressed excluded) within the duration.
Ultimate
The Way of Dragon
CCBurst
Chou strikes the target enemy hero with a roundhouse kick at the target enemy hero, dealing them 400 (+200% Extra Physical Attack) Physical Damage and knocking them back. Cast this skill again to chase up the target, dealing a total of 480 (+220% Extra Physical Attack) Physical Damage.
Cooldown
34s
What the terms mean(2)
Blink
Movement ability that can pass through obstacles.
Physical Damage Skill
Deal Physical DMG to enemies. Triggers Spell Vamp.
Signature combo
Jeet Kune Do (three casts to knock airborne) → Shunpo in for the shield → The Way of Dragon to kick the target away, then cast it again to chase and finish.
Chou builds
Core items in buy order, with the emblem, talents and battle spell that go with them.
Standard Bruiser
6,930g total
Default pick into a mixed-damage enemy team, splitting time between EXP lane and roam.
The 'Flicker combo' — blinking in right as a hook or stun lands, or blinking out the instant an enemy ultimate is cast — is the single most common high-elo outplay moment in the game.
Swap in when needed
Immortality — Second life when he's the primary engage for the team.
Dominance Ice — Lifebane's anti-heal and 40/40 Hybrid Defense against heavy-lifesteal or attack-speed carries.
Wind of Nature — Against physical burst that kills him while Shunpo is on cooldown.
Malefic Roar — Against a stacked-defense enemy frontline.
Chou Standard Bruiser build: Tough Boots, then Blade of the Heptaseas, then Hunter Strike, then Queen's Wings.
Roam Initiator
7,210g total
When drafted as a roaming isolation pick instead of a lane fighter.
Petrify's short stun window is enough to force a follow-up teammate combo but not to solo-lock a target — pair it with an ally's burst rather than expecting to win the fight alone.
Swap in when needed
Immortality — Second life to keep engaging after a bad trade.
Dominance Ice — Fortress Shield's stacking Hybrid Defense and Lifebane's anti-heal once he engages onto attack-speed carries.
Wind of Nature — Against a marksman-heavy team punishing him after he commits an engage.
Chou Roam Initiator build: Tough Boots, then Brute Force Breastplate, then Queen's Wings, then Antique Cuirass.
Save the third Jeet Kune Do cast for when you actually need the airborne knockup, since only that cast resets Shunpo on a hero hit
2
Kick fleeing squishy targets toward your own team with The Way of Dragon rather than deeper into the enemy's — the direction is set by your own facing
3
Use Shunpo's Control Immunity to dash through a hard-CC skill on cooldown rather than around it
4
Cast the second half of The Way of Dragon immediately once the target is knocked back, since delaying gives them a window to Flicker or blink out
Chou — common questions
Is Chou good for beginners?
No. His combos are cancel-timing dependent and the ultimate is directional, so a beginner will frequently whiff the third Jeet Kune Do cast or kick a target the wrong way. He rewards significant practice.
What is the best build for Chou?
Tough Boots into Blade of the Heptaseas, Hunter Strike, and Queen's Wings gives him damage, sustain, and durability. Swap to a full tank build with Brute Force Breastplate when he's drafted purely as a roam initiator.
Which heroes counter Chou?
Khufra's Bouncing Ball knocks him airborne mid-dash and Tyrant's Rage stuns him against a wall, Eudora can stun him at range before he closes in, and Phoveus's Infernal Pursuit leaps onto whoever is carrying Sinner's Mark, so no amount of dashing shakes him off.
How does Chou's ultimate work?
The Way of Dragon kicks the target hero away and knocks them back; casting it a second time chases the target down for additional damage, so the follow-up cast is where most of the ultimate's value comes from.
