Chou sits at 44.9% win rate in S39 ranked, which tells you he's already struggling without extra help. But "struggling" doesn't mean "harmless." A Chou player who knows his combos still wrecks unprepared matchups, especially in the EXP lane and during pick-phase setups.
The real problem isn't Chou's damage. It's his Shunpo immunity window. During Skill 2, Chou becomes CC-immune, which means your average stun-and-kill approach fails at the worst possible moment. His combo loop also dumps targets into his ultimate's launch window before you can react. If you don't respect these mechanics going into draft, you will feed him kills.
The five counters below work specifically because they either ignore his immunity window, prevent his blinks entirely, or punish him during the one phase of his kit that has zero protection.
For a full breakdown of how Chou's combo chain works, the Chou Advanced Combo Guide covers his mechanics in depth. Understanding what you're countering makes the matchup data below more useful.
#How to Read Chou's Weakness
Three clear windows to exploit:
- Pre-Shunpo: Before he activates Skill 2, he has no immunity. Hard CC here interrupts the entire combo sequence.
- Ultimate Phase 2: The second kick of The Way of Dragon can be interrupted by CC if you land it between the first and second hit.
- Post-combo: Chou has a dead zone after burning all three skills. He's mobile but he's also committed. Punish him here.
Chou also cannot use his ultimate inside bushes. A minor but real tactical note at Mythic level.
#Matchup Data: Chou's Worst Counters
| Counter Hero | Chou Win Rate vs Them | Primary Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Phoveus | 42% | Passive punishes every blink Chou uses |
| Minsitthar | 45% | Ultimate fully suppresses all Chou dashes |
| Khufra | ~46% | Bouncy Ball blocks Chou's Skill 1 and Shunpo |
| Kaja | ~47% | Suppression ultimate bypasses Chou's immunity window |
| Melissa | ~48% | Ultimate zone hard-denies Chou's entry |
Chou's overall win rate against these five is consistently below 48%, which in the EXP lane is a significant deficit.
#The Top 5 Chou Counters in MLBB 2026
1. Phoveus
The hardest counter on the list. Phoveus's passive, Demonic Force, stacks charges every time a nearby enemy uses a blink skill. Chou uses Shunpo (Skill 2) as a core mechanic in literally every trade. That's a free charge every few seconds.
With three stacks, Phoveus's ultimate teleports him directly onto Chou mid-blink, dealing amplified damage and resetting the trade in his favor. Chou's kit is built around repositioning. Phoveus turns that into a liability.
The matchup breakdown: Chou wins 42% of games against Phoveus. That's not close. At Mythic level, a skilled Phoveus player will track Chou's Shunpo cooldown and bait combos to activate the passive faster.
Key point: Don't ban Phoveus when Chou is available on the enemy team. Force the matchup.
2. Minsitthar
Minsitthar's King's Calling ultimate deploys a zone that prevents all blink skills inside it. Not slows them. Prevents them. Chou's Shunpo is a blink. His ultimate's repositioning is movement-based. Inside Minsitthar's ring, Chou is a melee fighter with no escape tools.
This is a 45% win rate matchup for Chou. The numbers hold because Minsitthar's Skill 1 (spear pull) also counters Chou's Jeet Kune Do (Skill 1) by pulling him back before the third hit connects. Two points in his kit directly shut down two points in Chou's kit.
Key point: Minsitthar works as both EXP lane and roamer counter. The ultimate is equally effective in teamfights where Chou tries to dive the backline.
3. Khufra
Khufra's Bouncy Ball (Skill 1) has a specific interaction with Chou that most players know but don't fully use. When Chou attempts to dash through Bouncy Ball's active area, he gets bounced and stunned instead. This directly interrupts Shunpo and Jeet Kune Do's dash component.
In teamfights, this makes Khufra a passive deterrent. Chou has to time his dashes around Bouncy Ball's cooldown rather than commit freely. His entire combo timing falls apart when he can't Shunpo on demand.
Khufra's Tyrant's Rage ultimate also provides a follow-up CC chain after stopping Chou's entry, which is enough to burn him down before he recovers.
Key point: Position Khufra between Chou and your backline. The threat of Bouncy Ball forces Chou to play around the tank instead of the squishy carries.
4. Kaja
Kaja's ultimate, Divine Judgment, is a suppression effect. Suppression is the one CC type Chou cannot immune through his Shunpo. He can use Skill 2 before Kaja grabs him, but if Kaja lands the grab, Chou is locked in place regardless of any other button he presses.
This makes Kaja one of the few roamers who counters Chou purely through mechanics rather than mobility or zoning. You don't need to out-damage Chou. You need to grab him at the right moment, and your carry finishes the job.
The timing window for Kaja's ultimate is generous. Chou's approach pattern is predictable: Skill 1, Skill 2, Ultimate. Kaja's grab activates after the short Skill 2 dash window, right when Chou commits to his position.
Key point: Pair Kaja with a high-burst marksman or mage. Kaja doesn't kill Chou. He sets up the kill, which is a more reliable system than trying to 1v1.
5. Melissa
Melissa is the gold lane answer. Her ultimate, Muddy Waters, creates a circular exclusion zone that knocks back any enemy who enters it. Chou's ultimate attempts to dash in and launch the target. Melissa's ultimate physically prevents him from reaching her.
The key detail: Chou's Shunpo immunity does not make him immune to the knockback from Melissa's ultimate. His CC immunity covers crowd control status effects. The knockback from Muddy Waters is treated as displacement, not CC, so it bypasses his immunity window.
Result: Chou dashes toward Melissa, activates his ultimate, gets pushed out of range before the launch hits. His combo ends with no damage dealt and a 12-second cooldown wasted.
Key point: Activate Melissa's ultimate after Chou uses Shunpo. If you use it too early, he waits out the duration. The matchup requires timing, but it's straightforward once you've seen the mechanic once.
#Counter Items That Support These Picks
These items reinforce your counter regardless of which hero above you're playing:
| Item | Effect on Chou |
|---|---|
| Antique Cuirass | Reduces Chou's physical attack per stack on hit |
| Winter Truncheon | Active CC immunity, useful to dodge Chou's combo timing |
| Immortality | Forces Chou to commit a second time after a failed kill |
| Wind of Nature | Physical immunity burst; counters Chou's burst window on marksmen |
| Blade Armor | Returns damage on physical hits; punishes his close-range combo |
#Draft Priority: When to Pick Each Counter
Chou's impact is front-loaded in draft. He's a flex pick that goes EXP lane or roam depending on composition. Your counter strategy needs to account for which role he ends up in.
- EXP lane Chou: First-pick Phoveus or Minsitthar. Both win lane and scale well into teamfights.
- Roaming Chou: Kaja or Khufra. Both provide enough CC to neutralize his pick-off potential in teamfights.
- Solo queue (gold lane): Melissa. Simple, consistent, and doesn't require team coordination to work.
At S39 Mythic and above, Chou appears primarily in the EXP lane given his 44.9% win rate in roam. The laning matchup matters more than it did two seasons ago when he was a priority roamer flex.
For a full picture of the current EXP lane ecosystem, the MLBB Fighter Tier List S39 has the full breakdown on which fighters are actually worth picking right now.
#Frequently Asked Questions
Does Purify work against Chou? Yes. Purify removes the knock-up and knock-back from his Skill 1 and ultimate. It's the best battle spell against Chou for squishy heroes who can't naturally dodge his combo. Pop it during his Skill 1 chain before the ultimate lands.
Can Chou immune Kaja's ultimate with Shunpo? No. Suppression cannot be removed or blocked by CC immunity. If Kaja's Divine Judgment connects, Chou is locked regardless of which skill he activates.
Is Chou strong in Season 39? No. 44.9% win rate puts him firmly in D-tier. He's not banned and rarely first-picked at high ranks. However, he still punishes unprepared matchups in mid-to-low Mythic, which is why understanding his counters remains relevant.
Why doesn't Melissa's ultimate get bypassed by Shunpo? Chou's Skill 2 immunity covers CC status effects: stuns, slows, pulls. Melissa's knockback from Muddy Waters is classified as displacement, which operates on a different system. The immunity window does not protect against it.
What lane does Chou usually play in S39? Primarily EXP lane. His roam pick rate has dropped significantly since his nerf reduced his one-shot potential. In current meta, you're more likely to face him as an EXP laner than a roaming initiator.