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Swain
Patch 16.2.1
SupportDifficulty
Medium
Strength
Early
Mid
Late
Win Condition
Stack early to reach a critical mass of HP, then force teamfights around objectives where can hit 3 or more targets simultaneously. You win by being an unkillable frontline that the enemy cannot ignore or escape.
Playstyle
A drain-tank battlemage who thrives in the center of chaos. You aren't a burst mage; you are a raid boss who wins by outlasting the enemy and building permanent health through stacks.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths
- +Infinite scaling maximum health via Soul Fragments
- + allows you to stay in fights indefinitely as long as you are in range of enemies
- +Global scouting and zone control with to support teammates from afar
- +Reduced cooldown on during makes you a CC machine in teamfights
Weaknesses
- -Extremely reliant on landing to start trades or sustain
- -No mobility tools; if you are caught out of position, you have no escape
- -Heavily countered by Grievous Wounds which significantly reduces your healing
- -High mana costs and long cooldowns in the early game leave you vulnerable
Abilities
Your health scaling engine. Every time you hit or the return of , you collect a Soul Fragment. These heal you and permanently increase your HP. In lane, prioritize landing these over raw damage to build your late-game tankiness.
Your main damage source. It functions like a shotgun; it pierces through all enemies, but deals significantly more damage if multiple bolts hit the same target. Use at point-blank range against divers for maximum impact.
This is your map awareness tool. It has a massive range. Use to check bushes, stop enemy recalls, or help your jungler with a slow from across the map. It also grants a Soul Fragment for every champion hit.
The projectile only roots on the way back to you. Aim for the max range or slightly behind the enemy so the return hit catches them instantly. Once rooted, you must manually reactivate to pull them toward you.
The ultimate teamfight tool. It stays active as long as you are draining an enemy champion. Use the second cast (Demonflare) to slow enemies who are trying to escape your radius. Don't use Demonflare too early unless you need the burst to finish a kill.
Teamfight Role
Frontline Drain Tank and Disrupter
Position yourself in the heart of the enemy team with active. Use to lock down priority targets and to split the enemy backline from their frontline.
If your own backline is being dove by an assassin, use and defensively to peel for your ADC instead of diving the enemy.
Combos
The Standard Trade
→ Pull → →
Root the enemy with the return of E, pull them into your W (which will be guaranteed while they are rooted), and finish with a point-blank Q as they are slowed.
The Long-Range Catch
→ → Pull →
Drop W behind the enemy to force them to step toward you. This makes landing the return of significantly easier since their movement path is restricted.
The Raid Boss All-In
→ → Pull → → → (Demonflare)
Activate R first to gain the HP drain and reduced E cooldown. Use your rotation to keep them trapped inside your ultimate's radius for as long as possible before finishing with the Nova.
The E-Flash Surprise
→ Flash → Pull →
Cast E, then Flash forward just as the projectile starts to return. This changes the return angle and can catch enemies who think they are safely out of range.
Power Spikes
| Spike | Why |
|---|---|
| Level 3 | You have access to your full basic rotation, allowing you to finally begin stacking reliably. |
| Level 6 | is a massive power spike that allows you to win 1v2 scenarios if the enemies commit to a fight inside your drain. |
| Level 9 | is maxed out, giving you significant consistent damage and much better waveclear for mid-game rotations. |
| Level 11 | Rank 2 and lower cooldowns across your kit make you the primary threat in objective teamfights. |
| Level 16 | Final rank of and accumulated stacks make you incredibly difficult to kill without a coordinated focus-fire. |
Tips & Tricks
- • cooldown is drastically reduced while is active; use this to spam roots in large fights.
- •Use to scout the enemy jungler at their camps; it provides vision and can even steal a buff or grant you a stack.
- •The pull on can drag multiple enemies if you root more than one person with the explosion.
- •If an enemy is recalling, use on them from long range to cancel it and force them to stay in lane.
- • pierces through units, so use it to poke the enemy champion even if they are standing behind their minion wave.
- •The explosion at the end of 's return path has a small radius; aim it at minions near the enemy to root them unexpectedly.
Common Mistakes
- ✕Popping Demonflare too early→You lose the slow and consistent drain, often allowing enemies to simply walk away from you and end your ultimate prematurely.
- ✕Fishing for when you have low mana→You will run out of mana quickly and be unable to cast when a real fight breaks out.
- ✕Ignoring stacks in the early game→You will be significantly squishier in the mid-game and get bursted down before can heal you.
- ✕Using purely for damage in lane→You lose your best tool for scouting ganks and providing global utility for your team.
- ✕Overestimating your tankiness without →Swain is relatively fragile without his ultimate's drain; walking into melee range without it will result in a quick death.
AI-generated guide • Patch 16.2.1 • Cached