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Playing Against Tahm Kench
SupportPatch 16.2.1
What They Do
A massive tanky warden who pokes with and protects carries with . He uses to engage from out of vision and to soak up impossible amounts of damage.
Abilities (What to Watch For)
| Ability | What You'll See | What It Means For You |
|---|---|---|
| Fish icons appearing over your character | At 3 stacks of , his will stun you and he can use to swallow you. | |
| A long-range tongue flick | His main poke. It slows and heals him. If you have 3 stacks of , this ability stuns you instead. | |
| A circular indicator on the ground | He dives and knocks up everyone in the circle. This is his primary engage and escape tool. | |
| A grey bar over his health and a temporary shield | He stores damage taken as grey health. He can activate it to get a shield or wait to heal a portion of it back. | |
| He swallows a champion whole | If he eats an ally, he gives them a massive shield. If he eats an enemy (requires 3 stacks of ), he suppresses and damages them. |
Respect
- !3 stacks of →Once the fish icon turns red, he can stun you with or kidnap you under his tower with .
- !Bush-casted →If he casts this from fog of war, you get significantly less warning time to dodge the knockup circle.
- !Early poke→The base damage is high and the heal keeps him healthy. Getting hit by consecutive shots will force you out of lane.
- !Tower diving at Level 6→He can walk under tower, take aggro, and use to save his ADC or to tank 5+ extra shots.
Punish
- +is on cooldown (21-17s)→He has no other mobility. If he misses his dive, he is extremely vulnerable to being kited or ganked.
- +shield is active→The shield decays very rapidly. Do not waste your high-damage abilities on the shield; wait 2 seconds for it to disappear.
- +Standing behind minions→ cannot pass through minions. Stand inside your wave to make him unable to poke, heal, or stack .
- +Early laning phase→Before he gets items, his doesn't heal much. Poke him early to force him to use the shield defensively.
Laning Tips
- •Always keep a minion between you and him to block —it's his only way to interact with you at range.
- •If you see the circle, dash or walk out immediately; the knockup is long enough for him to guarantee a hit.
- •Rush Boots of Swiftness or buy early Tier 2 boots to help sidestep and outrun his stacking.
- •Don't take extended trades. He wants to hit you three times to activate his effects; short bursts are better.
- •Buy Executioner's Calling or Oblivion Orb early to cut down his healing and passive sustain.
- •If you are the support, save your CC for when he tries to use to escape; you can cancel the channel.
Teamfight Warning
- ⚠Don't blow all your ultimates on his ADC while is up—he will just eat them and negate your entire combo.
- ⚠Serpent's Fang is a must-buy for AD assassins/carries to deal with his massive and shields.
- ⚠In jungle chokepoints, his can hit your entire team. Stay spread out to minimize his engage impact.
- ⚠If he eats your carry with , focus him immediately; he is slowed while carrying an enemy, making him an easy target.
- ⚠Watch for his stacks on your frontline; if he eats your tank, your backline is completely exposed.
AI-generated counterplay guide • Patch 16.2.1 • Cached