The best ADC with Tahm Kench is the one who can act during the small windows Tahm creates and still play safely when those windows are unavailable. Tahm is a tank/support whose Tongue Lash slows the first unit hit and adds a stack of An Acquired Taste. After three stacks, Tongue Lash stuns an enemy champion and consumes the stacks. That makes lane coordination more important than a generic tier list: the marksman needs to understand when Tahm is threatening a slow or stun, when to hold position for protection, and when a trade is too risky to extend.
Patch 26.18 is the current official patch reference at the time of writing. Its notes do not list changes for Tahm Kench, Ashe, Jhin, Kalista, or Ezreal. That does not establish a permanent ranking for the lane; matchups, player comfort, items, and a future patch can change the answer. The picks below are role-based options built around their listed kits, not win-rate claims.
Best for reliable follow-up: Ashe
Ashe is a clean partner when the team wants simple, visible crowd-control timing. Her basic attacks slow targets through Frost Shot and deal increased damage to slowed targets. Once Tahm lands Tongue Lash, Ashe can keep the target slowed while both players decide whether to continue the trade or back away. Her Enchanted Crystal Arrow also stuns an enemy champion, with a longer stun after a longer travel distance, while nearby enemies take damage and are slowed. That gives the duo a way to start or extend a play from farther away than Tahm alone.
Ashe is not automatically safe because Tahm is in the lane. She has no dash, so she must respect enemy engage cooldowns and keep enough distance to use her slows rather than walking into the opponent’s damage. The pair is strongest when they take short, repeatable trades around Tongue Lash and Ashe’s attack range. Do not fire the arrow only because Tahm is nearby; save it for a target that can be reached, a jungle setup, or a defensive response to an incoming engage.
Best for pick damage and spacing: Jhin
Jhin fits a Tahm lane when the ADC player prefers deliberate bursts over constant attack-speed trading. His four-shot Whisper has a fixed firing rate, and its fourth shot critically strikes with bonus execute damage. Tahm’s slow or three-stack stun can create a cleaner target for Jhin to use a shot, Deadly Flourish, or a later Curtain Call. Curtain Call fires four extreme-range shots that stop on the first champion hit; the shots slow and deal execute damage, so a target who has already been controlled by Tahm may be easier to finish from a safe distance.
The limitation is reload timing. Jhin cannot provide uninterrupted basic attacks in the way a traditional attack-speed carry can, and Tahm cannot make a poor fourth-shot or ultimate angle land. Watch the ammunition state before committing to Abyssal Dive or a Tongue Lash chase. If Jhin is reloading, Tahm may be better off protecting space, holding the wave, or waiting for the next usable window. This duo rewards a player who communicates when they have damage ready.
Best for coordinated all-ins: Kalista
Kalista is the high-coordination choice. Her Martial Poise lets her lunge a short distance when she launches a basic attack or Pierce after a movement command, and she gains bonus damage when she and her Oathsworn strike the same target. With Tahm as the chosen Oathsworn, the pair benefits from calling a single target and attacking it together. That is a real lane interaction rather than a claim that either champion can force every fight.
Kalista can keep repositioning while attacking, which helps her use a Tahm slow or stun window, but it also makes positioning errors more costly. Her Fate’s Call requires a clear agreement with her linked ally, especially around whether the duo is starting a fight or escaping one. Practice the timing outside a ranked game if the ultimate interaction is unfamiliar. Choose this pairing when both players use voice communication or have already played the lane together; otherwise, a simpler marksman is usually more dependable.
Best for a lower-commitment lane: Ezreal
Ezreal is a reasonable choice when the team wants the ADC to play at range and save a mobility spell for danger. His kit includes Mystic Shot, Essence Flux, Arcane Shift, and Trueshot Barrage, and his passive grants stacking attack speed when he hits spells. Tahm can contest space at close range while Ezreal farms and pokes from a more conservative position. If Tahm connects a slow, Ezreal may have a clearer skill-shot target; if the enemy starts the fight, Arcane Shift gives him an independent escape option.
The tradeoff is that Ezreal does not turn every Tahm crowd-control window into the same continuous auto-attack damage as an immobile marksman. He still has to hit spells, manage the wave, and avoid using Arcane Shift aggressively when the opposing engage tools are available. This is a good pairing for a lane that wants to reduce exposure, but it should not be treated as permission for Tahm to roam without considering wave state, vision, and the enemy support.
What Tahm needs from any marksman
Tahm’s lane pattern begins with positioning. Tongue Lash hits the first unit, so an ADC can help by not forcing the support to aim through a full minion wave. When Tahm has built An Acquired Taste stacks, wait for the stun confirmation before investing an important ability. When he has not, treat the slow as a chance to gain a little space or damage, not an automatic all-in. Abyssal Dive can create a threat from an unexpected position, but an arriving Tahm needs a wave state and an ADC close enough to follow.
Defensively, the marksman should state whether they want Tahm to use Devour as a rescue tool or whether they still have a safe path out. A protective ability can change the location and timing of a fight, which is helpful only when both players expect it. Avoid blaming the support for saving you from a position where no safe damage window existed, and avoid asking Tahm to use a long cooldown simply to chase one low-value trade.
How to choose in champion select
- Want simple crowd-control layering: Ashe gives slows through basic attacks and a long-range stun ultimate.
- Want controlled burst and long-range finishing: Jhin rewards a Tahm crowd-control window when his ammunition and angles are ready.
- Have an established duo and want aggressive coordination: Kalista and her Oathsworn mechanic reward focus fire and clear ultimate calls.
- Want range and an independent escape: Ezreal can play a lower-commitment lane, provided the player lands skill shots and preserves Arcane Shift.
- Against heavy engage: prioritise the ADC each player can position confidently on instead of forcing a fashionable pairing.
There is no ADC who is best with Tahm Kench in every patch and matchup. Ashe is the clearest control partner, Jhin turns a clean pick into burst pressure, Kalista offers the most coordinated lane, and Ezreal offers independent spacing. Select the champion whose damage pattern you can actually execute after Tongue Lash connects, then communicate before the lane begins about all-ins, wave position, and defensive Devour use.