Counterplay, and why you're using it wrong

Too often, I see people saying X or Y "has no counterplay", and they are always wrong, to the point where it's started to frustrate me. So now I'm ranting about word choice.

There is nothing that has no counterplay, because counterplay includes everything from counterpicks to itemization to laning to midgame to lategame. Here are some examples:

's ult has no counterplay is something I hear often. Here's some counterplay to it:

-Pick someone mobile or who has good CC so you can peel away from her after she ults onto you. -Be near your team. -Pick characters who are safe in laning phase so she doesn't snowball. -Pick a jungler who can invade her early and put her behind.

Another one i hear a lot is that a fed has no counterplay.

-Don't get caught out by her. -Stay near people on your team who have CC. -Play as though she is always nearby unless you know she isn't. -Don't let her snowball by playing safe early.

-Get a sweeping lens -Pick a caster champion -Pick a ranged champion -Get more sweeping lenses -As a jungler, go tracker's knife so you can buy a sweeping lens

-Respect the stun -Time her flash so you know when it is and isn't up -Time her protobelt -Time all her cooldowns so you know whether or not she can just spam spells to get her stun up -RESPECT THE FUCKING STUN -Why haven't you respected the stun yet?

-Time his ult cooldown -Murder him as much as possible pre-6 -Deny him as much CS as possible pre-6 -Pick someone with good waveclear -Pick someone with good CC

When most people say a champion has no counterplay, what they mean is that they have no outplay, or, in less broken English, they can't be outplayed. Eve, for example, cannot be outplayed. Vi's ult cannot be outplayed unless you're Fiora. Annie's Q stun cannot be outplayed. If she uses it on you, you will be stunned. But that doesn't mean they don't have counterplay. If something had no counterplay, it would be pick/ban everywhere. Kinda like old Kassadin. So stop saying 'counterplay' and start saying 'outplay'. Or don't, and know you're wrong.

Sincerely, some pedantic fuck.