Volibear - League of Legends Champion
Win Rate
50.8%
Pick Rate
4.3%

Volibearvs Karthus

AFighterTank
Patch26.4
Matches1,089,240
LaneAll Lanes
TierAll Tiers
Last UpdatedMar 3, 2026
MethodologyData Methodology

Volibear vs Karthus is a decisive matchup in LoL patch 26.4. Volibear wins with a 67.6% win rate (+35.1%) over Karthus based on 38 games. Volibear holds the advantage in both the early and late game. Below you'll find the best Volibear build, runes, laning stats, and strategies for the Volibear vs Karthus matchup.

Volibear Matchup Breakdown

Use the dropdown to select an opponent and see a detailed breakdown of how Volibear performs against them. You'll get head-to-head win rates, laning stats, the best build and runes for the matchup, and early vs late game analysis — all based on real ranked data.

Compare against an opponent
Karthus - 67.6% win rateKarthus(67.6%)
Volibear - 67.6% win rate in this matchup
Volibear
67.6% WR
VS
Karthus vs Volibear matchup - 32.4% win rate
Karthus
32.4% WR

Who Wins the Volibear vs Karthus Matchup?

Volibear wins the Volibear vs Karthus matchup
Winner
Volibear
Matches: 38
67.6%
Win Rate
32.4%
1.7
CS / min
2.2
727
DMG / min
1,191
12,927
Gold / game
13,009
469
Heal / min
243
1,558
DMG Mitigated / min
509
1.0
CC / min
0.6
82.3%
Early Game WR
17.6%
55.0%
Late Game WR
45.0%

Volibear vs Karthus Matchup Summary

The Volibear vs Karthus matchup is a decisive matchup in League of Legends ranked play. Based on 38 recent matches analyzed, Volibear wins with a 67.6% win rate compared to Karthus's 32.4%, giving Volibear a 35.1 percentage point advantage. Volibear dominates at every stage — from early laning through late game team fights. This consistent advantage makes it difficult for Karthus players to find favorable windows, so team-dependent strategies and avoiding solo confrontations are essential. The most significant statistical gap is in sustain, where Volibear leads by 1,276 HP/min — a difference that heavily influences the outcome of trades and skirmishes. Volibear players can confidently pick into Karthus and play aggressively from level 1. Look to establish lane dominance early through favorable trades and zone Karthus away from CS whenever possible. Understanding these matchup dynamics is essential for champion select decisions and in-game strategy when facing this lane opponent.

Volibear vs Karthus Laning Phase Breakdown

Karthus wins the laning phase against Volibear in League of Legends

Karthus is favored during the laning phase against Volibear, winning 3 out of 5 key stat categories. Karthus holds advantages in farming, damage and gold income, making them the stronger laner in this matchup.

Farming
1.7Volibear
2.2Karthus
Karthus edges out Volibear by 0.5 CS per minute — a moderate farming advantage that adds up to roughly 8 CS over a 15-minute laning phase. This translates to earlier component purchases and slightly faster power spikes for Karthus.
Damage
727Volibear
1,191Karthus
Karthus heavily out-damages Volibear by 463 DMG/min, dominating both short trades and all-in fights. Volibear should avoid extended combat and instead focus on burst trade patterns — short engages followed by immediate disengagement — to avoid letting Karthus's sustained damage advantage take over.
Economy
12,927Volibear
13,009Karthus
Volibear and Karthus generate nearly equal gold per game, with just a 81 gold difference. Neither champion has a clear economic advantage, so gold leads will depend on individual play quality, kill participation, and objective contributions.
Utility
1.0Volibear
0.6Karthus
Volibear provides 0.4 seconds more crowd control per minute than Karthus, offering better gank setup potential and slightly more team fight utility. This CC advantage helps Volibear coordinate with their jungler and control the pace of skirmishes.
Sustain
2,028Volibear
752Karthus
Volibear vastly out-sustains Karthus, healing and mitigating 1,276 more damage per minute. This massive durability gap means Volibear can absorb significant punishment and remain in lane while Karthus is forced to recall. Building grievous wounds early is essential for Karthus, and focusing on burst trade patterns rather than sustained fights is critical.

Best Volibear Build Against Karthus

Plated Steelcaps is the optimal boots choice against Karthus, providing the mobility and stats Volibear needs most in this matchup. The top-performing core items for Volibear against Karthus are Navori Flickerblade, Thornmail and Spirit Visage. This combination gives Volibear an effective balance of damage, survivability, and utility for the matchup. This build performs exceptionally well, achieving a 60.0% win rate across 5 games — well above average and making it the top item path against Karthus. Adjustments may be needed based on team compositions and game state, but this build provides the strongest foundation for the Volibear vs Karthus matchup.

Early Game vs Late Game

Early Game
Volibear
82.3%
+64.7% advantage
Volibear early game win rateVolibear82.3%
Karthus early game win rateKarthus17.6%
Late Game
Volibear
55.0%
+10.0% advantage
Volibear late game win rateVolibear55.0%
Karthus late game win rateKarthus45.0%

Volibear dominates the early game (first 15 minutes) with a commanding 82.3% win rate — a 64.7 percentage point lead over Karthus. This lopsided early game means Volibear can dictate the pace of the lane from level 1, controlling trades, wave state, and river priority.

Volibear is far superior in the late game (25+ minutes), boasting a 55.0% win rate — 10.0 points above Karthus. Extended games heavily favor Volibear, whose kit and scaling make them a dominant force in team fights and objective control.

Volibear holds the advantage at every stage of the game, making this a consistently favorable matchup from lane through late game team fights. Karthus players should look for outplays, team-dependent strategies, and picks rather than relying on scaling to win this matchup.

Best Volibear Runes Against Karthus

Precision rune tree - Volibear primary runes vs KarthusPrecision
Lethal Tempo - best Volibear rune vs KarthusTriumph - best Volibear rune vs KarthusLegend: Haste - best Volibear rune vs KarthusLast Stand - best Volibear rune vs Karthus
Inspiration rune tree - Volibear secondary runes vs KarthusInspiration
Magical Footwear - best Volibear rune vs KarthusJack Of All Trades - best Volibear rune vs Karthus
71.4% WR

Running Precision primary with Inspiration secondary allows Volibear to press their advantage against Karthus, amplifying the strengths that make this a favorable matchup.


Volibear matchup data for League of Legends patch 26.4. The table below shows Volibear's win rate, gold difference, and performance stats against every champion in the current meta. Click any champion name to see a detailed head-to-head breakdown including the best Volibear build, runes, laning stats, and early vs late game analysis for that specific matchup.

Volibear matchup win rates and stats in League of Legends patch 26.4
Opponent
Win Rate
Matches
CS/min
DMG/min
Gold/game
Early WR
Late WR
51.76%3161.163412,60749.3%53.8%
49.49%3001.567612,30452.1%47.1%
52.67%2451.268712,43846.2%58.9%
50.21%2413.591012,86254.9%46.0%
48.93%2333.090311,28452.4%45.0%
42.86%2333.062111,27840.7%45.1%
52.73%2231.673712,42051.9%53.5%
55.30%2184.682712,42950.0%59.8%
50.93%2155.184812,27257.8%46.0%
49.76%2071.266412,50748.8%50.4%
52.88%1921.168011,95850.0%55.7%
52.22%1811.371712,08554.0%50.5%
42.37%1771.458312,26037.7%45.4%
50.00%1686.690912,84155.1%46.5%
54.22%1661.162011,78253.4%55.1%
50.61%1654.895912,88653.0%49.0%
56.33%1596.294112,54364.7%50.0%
54.49%1574.176612,72458.9%50.6%
55.41%1501.371312,53760.3%50.7%
53.10%1461.374913,07352.5%53.6%
45.07%1443.459011,72444.8%45.2%
53.28%1381.267512,33451.6%54.7%
42.34%1374.381112,66748.1%38.8%
50.79%1261.266412,50246.8%54.7%
47.20%1251.370413,10351.9%43.8%
45.53%1231.364511,52950.9%40.9%
50.82%1231.470512,84649.0%52.1%
51.64%1223.582513,06650.9%52.2%
39.50%1191.263311,26938.7%40.4%
43.48%1163.079612,39845.1%42.2%
45.54%1136.083811,52037.9%53.7%
52.73%1104.985611,95252.1%53.2%
54.55%1015.187312,68959.2%50.0%
56.57%993.579612,85656.5%56.6%
41.67%961.270012,43434.1%47.3%
47.37%951.265912,68750.0%44.7%
57.45%941.470712,39258.7%56.3%
54.35%926.791111,62257.1%50.0%
49.44%896.273911,44452.1%46.3%
47.67%876.492612,62250.0%46.4%
48.24%866.31,02312,20753.7%43.2%
47.62%841.165811,76653.2%40.5%
64.63%826.892613,32865.8%63.6%
58.75%806.175112,06365.7%53.3%
44.00%755.388812,28747.4%40.5%
62.67%751.470713,11657.1%66.0%
57.33%756.079712,73267.9%51.1%
54.79%731.479212,44751.4%57.9%
52.05%731.964911,89053.7%50.0%
55.71%711.468812,08358.5%51.7%
43.08%691.373112,21648.4%38.2%
53.62%691.865911,65852.8%54.5%
62.12%676.11,10012,01968.6%54.8%
50.77%651.376114,14355.0%48.9%
60.00%656.181412,49564.7%54.8%
39.06%656.084910,94841.9%36.4%
42.19%641.658611,63436.7%47.1%
50.00%603.771111,51250.0%50.0%
46.67%606.781212,86850.0%44.1%
59.65%586.592712,22757.1%62.1%
44.64%561.158212,28045.0%44.4%
49.09%566.482212,65243.5%53.1%
57.41%556.582912,05654.8%60.9%
52.83%545.393112,93862.5%44.8%
44.23%521.461912,36737.0%52.0%
55.10%491.365812,06250.0%60.0%
56.25%491.668411,66445.8%66.7%
70.21%481.472412,41269.6%70.8%
46.81%475.878712,10655.0%40.7%
70.45%451.369914,58281.8%66.7%
59.09%445.990613,28561.1%57.7%
52.50%405.181913,08368.2%33.3%
33.33%393.358811,19233.3%33.3%
53.85%391.458511,67935.7%64.0%
58.97%391.269712,69360.9%56.3%
55.26%396.782611,66652.6%57.9%
44.74%381.870012,96653.3%39.1%
67.57%381.772712,92782.3%55.0%
34.29%354.380312,69627.3%37.5%
64.71%346.597111,48057.9%73.3%
36.67%301.361412,38647.4%18.2%
43.33%304.679711,57631.3%57.1%
53.57%281.166912,69254.5%52.9%
64.29%286.064811,68763.6%64.7%
40.74%275.670510,83633.3%46.7%
55.56%274.558711,11141.7%66.7%
41.67%242.656710,43035.7%50.0%
52.17%236.168710,63746.1%60.0%
52.17%235.785213,55266.7%47.1%
57.14%211.156311,72560.0%54.5%
63.16%191.973911,62270.0%55.6%
61.11%181.164011,76344.4%77.8%
29.41%171.859811,88025.0%33.3%
41.18%175.064411,70820.0%50.0%
50.00%160.972413,14137.5%62.5%
60.00%155.893012,11666.7%55.6%
46.15%135.467710,49942.9%50.0%
61.54%135.392212,58980.0%50.0%
53.85%131.783713,58740.0%62.5%
45.45%115.259512,20440.0%50.0%
60.00%104.869712,38175.0%50.0%
44.44%94.174011,70625.0%60.0%
44.44%95.970712,67666.7%33.3%
62.50%83.094710,64166.7%50.0%
37.50%84.390513,81733.3%40.0%
50.00%86.055611,45675.0%25.0%
28.57%76.170610,80740.0%0.0%
50.00%64.877112,6420.0%60.0%
50.00%64.654210,84566.7%33.3%
50.00%62.663912,257100.0%40.0%
60.00%56.358012,55950.0%66.7%
60.00%55.458410,818100.0%33.3%
80.00%54.569313,638100.0%75.0%
100.00%56.586014,430100.0%100.0%
60.00%56.187410,66766.7%50.0%
60.00%55.262711,74850.0%66.7%
40.00%53.479914,4210.0%40.0%
20.00%55.560512,9110.0%25.0%
40.00%55.377411,87150.0%33.3%
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Volibear vs Karthus - Frequently Asked Questions

How does Volibear do against Karthus in League of Legends?

Volibear wins the Volibear vs Karthus matchup with a 67.6% win rate compared to Karthus's 32.4%, a 35.1 percentage point difference. This data is based on 38 recent ranked games in patch 26.4.

How does Volibear do against Karthus in the early game?

In the early game, Volibear has the advantage against Karthus with a 82.3% win rate versus 17.6%. Volibear players should look to press their lane advantage through aggressive trades and wave control during the first 15 minutes.

How does Volibear do against Karthus in the late game?

In the late game, Volibear takes over the Volibear vs Karthus matchup with a 55.0% win rate compared to 45.0%. Volibear scales better into team fights and objective contests after 25 minutes.

Who wins the Volibear vs Karthus matchup?

Volibear wins the matchup against Karthus with a 67.6% win rate in League of Legends patch 26.4. The 35.1 percentage point advantage means Volibear is significantly favored in this lane matchup based on 38 games analyzed.

What is the best Volibear build against Karthus?

The best Volibear build against Karthus includes Navori Flickerblade, Thornmail, Spirit Visage with Plated Steelcaps. This build achieves a 60.0% win rate in the matchup. Check the matchup breakdown above for the full item path and build order.

What are the best Volibear runes against Karthus?

The best Volibear runes against Karthus use the Precision primary tree with Inspiration secondary. This rune setup achieves a 71.4% win rate in the Volibear vs Karthus matchup. See the full rune breakdown in the matchup comparison above.

Does Volibear counter Karthus?

Yes, Volibear has a favorable matchup against Karthus with a 67.6% win rate. Volibear strongly counters Karthus in lane based on current patch 26.4 data.

How do I play Volibear against Karthus?

When playing Volibear against Karthus, leverage your statistical advantages by trading aggressively during favorable windows. You have early game priority — look for kills and zone control before first recall. Build the recommended items and runes for this specific matchup for the best results.