As a Support 47.63% Win Rate56% Pick RateSwain As a Support Counters: 33 counter champions
Counter RatingCounter rating is an expression of how strong or weak a counter is based on win rate, kills, and deaths, as well as early laning advantages or disadvantages. A higher number means an easier laning phase against that champion.
Counter RatingCounter rating is an expression of how strong or weak a counter is based on win rate, kills, and deaths, as well as early laning advantages or disadvantages. A higher number means an easier laning phase against that champion.
Tips Against Swain as a Support Tips Provided by MOBAFire Guide Authors
Bound04 says “Evil matchup, don't get poked out early, usually just ult him away whenever he ults, but you should be able to beat him at most stages of the game.”
Minima141 says “Swain can create difficult trades through his crowd control and sustained damage during fights. His Nevermove (E) can root targets that attempt to engage too predictably, allowing him to pull them closer and follow up with additional damage. Many Rakan players lose trades by forcing engages while Nevermove (E) is still available.
The lane becomes easier once Nevermove (E) is used or misses. Without his root available, Swain has fewer tools to stop your engage or control the fight during short trades. This creates a short window where Rakan can pressure trades or force favorable engages.
Because Swain becomes much stronger in extended fights once Demonic Ascension (R) is active, short controlled engages are usually more effective than committing to long trades.
• Engage after Swain uses Nevermove (E).”
Joxuu says “You'll just have to dodge Swain E with your mobility and you can disengage well from his ultimate all in with your W/Q slows or mobility boost.
Play around E + Q poke as he'll most likely always respond back with Q so you don't want to stick around for longer trades.”
neekogf says “› bait out his ult [[Demonic Ascension]], and do not engage on him if his ult is up! (big red radius around him; his ult gives him bonus damage and healing per target affected)
› wait until [[swain]] ult is on CD, then you can re-engage.
› don't play in minion wave so he has to decide if he wants to hit wave or do damage to you.
› walk sideways when he tries to E [[Nevermove]] you (E is his root that he pulls out and recasts to pull you back in)”
saucyyyy says “Free, you have to get hit by his E quite alot to lose this lane. You can buffer his E as well. You just outdps him in his ult especially with ignite and cleaver, you outscale extremely hard. ”
Alchemyr says “He wants you to E in so he can yoink you with E and drain you and your ADC. Never be the first one to hard-commit; instead, counter-engage. Let Swain pull your ADC, then W-taunt him off and peel. Consider AP/Poke if your ADC is farming safe (Ezreal, Cait, etc.) so you can shove and roam while they slowly farm.”
Fear The Jester says “Adc dependent, if they cant track the range of his E and dodge it, then it isnt your fault, hard to do but you can place a box far enough behind your adc that it will trigger on his E and itll root the box instead of your adc.”
Quoko says “His sustain and pull make it hard to trade safely, and his crowd control can lock you down for combos. Try to dodge his [[Nevermove]] (E) and poke him when it’s on cooldown. Avoid extended fights and watch out for his [[Demonic Ascension]] (R) in teamfights.”
Nobreav says “
Force Swain's Ultimate to Disengage
When Swain activates his ultimate, use Alistar's W (Headbutt) to push him away from your team, or Q (Pulverize) to knock him up, wasting his ultimate's duration.
Evade Swain's Root and Chain Stun with E (Trample)
Swain's E (Nevermove) applies a root on its return projectile. Use the ghosting effect of your E (Trample) to evade the root and stack up for a stun.”
Zileanaire says “This one's hard to rank because it's always coinflip on whether the player understands how to play Swain or not. He hurts and he's hard to kill I guess but he's not game breaking either. Dodge the E by doing the extremely high level gameplay tactic of walking sideways. Buy anti heal. ”
mUI0g says “The only support that should pose no threat to Xerath. You outrange him and he has low mobility. If you get hit by his E however.... that's due to your poor positioning.”
Aerenax says “Swain is really painful to play against. He pulls you in with his E or any CC that is in your lane, after that he oneshots you and you have a hard time oneshotting him.”
zSharpFire says “Just a big dummy. You have really high damage early game, so you can easily poke him out, just ALWAYS keep an eye for his E. Always take comet and scorch against this matchup. Probably dark seal also.”
Arctic Arrow says “Swain is a major threat due to his strong sustain and crowd control. His Q (Death’s Hand) deals significant damage and his W (Vision of Empire) can snare you in team fights.
Avoid standing too close to him to reduce the effectiveness of his crowd control. Engage when his key abilities are on cooldown, particularly after he uses his ultimate (Ravenous Flock) which can drain your health and deal area-of-effect damage.
Be prepared to burst him down quickly if he overextends, and use your crowd control to disrupt his positioning and mitigate his healing.
Anti heal is a must for obvious reasons!”
xpwnz1337 says “Alistar's counter that's super weak & ADC dependant RN. Skill matchup ( ADC skill mostly)
Counterplay: Rush Mercury's Treads. Play around E CD. You can only burst Swain. To escape demon press Q+W after he root you. Antiheal.”
LA COLORADA says “complicated if your adc is stupid. save your ignite for his ult and sidestep his W and E. shut him down early on, otherwise he can snowball and be pretty scary.”
TnDD says “Swain'in menzili senle hemen hemen aynı. E ile çekilmemeye dikkat et. Ultisini attığında ona R bas ve ondan kaç. Böylece ultisi biter. Verebileceğim tek taktik bu.”
IMANOOBOKOWO says “Dodge his E with W and run him down, be carefull going all in when he has level 6 though try to be near a wall to stun him with your E or wait for him to waste cooldowns( anti heal is a must for obvious reasons)”
Foxirion says “Swain’s high damage and crowd control can pose a significant threat to Nautilus. His ability to pull Nautilus with his passive can disrupt Nautilus’ engages.”
Foxirion says “Swain's crowd control and sustained damage make him a major threat to Rakan, as he can easily lock down Rakan and deal significant damage over time.”
Velkyann says “Your laning phase against him is not very hard. Just try to dodge his E and if he ults keep him away until it runs out and you are good”
MorePierogiVanya says “Whatever you do, don't stand in the backline minions for his claw and always anticipate it. He can turn around an engage, but is fairly weak pre 6.”
Kcmichalson says “[SUP] Swain has a large amount of crowd control aswell as a massive amount of sustain. He's going to be tricky to kill unless your carry is ahead, and if he catches you at a bad time you'll have to burn flash.
Avoid getting hit by his E at long range as it will give him stacks.
He can't really stop you from jumping on his ADC at all, so just engage on his ADC early. Later on, save your ult for his ult and knock him out of the fight as soon as he uses it since he has no mobility to dodge it. ”
Faz18835 says “if you dont fight inside his ult you should win the match, if you just started Veigar make you that you or support get ignite for all-ins.”
veeixin says “Swain, Swain, Swain... Where do I begin?
A tanky mage that has a pull, along with zoning potential.
Well, first and foremost, keep your distance. I know you want to poke, but Swain is able to pull you in if you're caught off guard.
My word of advice is to wait out his cooldowns, especially his pull, and then engage. Synergy with your ADC is especially key when it comes to battling this behemoth!
If you can communicate and pull off a successful W + E combo, your ADC can follow up and deliver attacks.”
Your_ Local_Eldritch_Horr says “Outscales you, poke him down early. Don't let him hook you, get out of his e, don't engage in his ult. ”
Murder Yuumi by Your_ Local_Eldritch_Horr | Yuumi Player
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quecck says “Not so hard pre-6. You can get a lead on him at this time, and mess up his scaling. When he ults make sure your whole team backs off [unless he's stupid weak because you beat the feathers out of him pre-6.] It will last for as long as someone is in his range.”
Thefrenchkefta says “Really annoying because of his E and his poke.
His ult is hard to get out of range if you go in so abuse him early if you can, he is really useless if behind.
One good point is that he has no escape except his flash. ”
Xintero says “Don't get pulled in and you will be good. Buy anti-heal quick, and make sure to ignite him when he ults. Don't feed him and you will be good.”
quecck says “Not so hard pre-6. You can get a lead on him at this time, and mess up his scaling.
When he ults make sure your whole team backs off. It will last for as long as someone is in his range.”
Aerenax says “Swain is a "support" with a lot of damage, crowd control en healing. When playing against him, getting anti-healing is a near must for either you or your adc. For teamfights: if Swain ults you can slow him with Q or R to create distance and let his ult run out. After that you can freely re-engage. ”
Ryecheria says “Typically mage supports have more range and better poke, but you could shield damages from abilities. Make sure to dodge crowd control abilities. If they miss abilities (especially crowd control abilities), look to punish or all-in.
In lane, dodge his E and you can soak damage from his other abilities, mantra e the team to disengage from his ult. Wait for the ult to diminish and the fight. ”
mazewalk says “It is hard to disengage his ultimate because of his E. If you are lucky enough to be far away from him - help your carry with a lantern. During laning phase try baiting his E and Q and punish him for wasting these skills. Thornmail works poorly against swain because he is not an autoattacking character so take Ignite or your AP or AD teammates buy antiheal.”
Shadowcrushers says “
Swain is considered a major match against Soraka for several reasons. Swain's kit and abilities provide him with the tools to effectively neutralize Soraka's healing and sustain, making it difficult for her to fulfill her primary role as a healer. Here's a detailed breakdown of why Swain is a strong pick against Soraka:
Crowstorm (Passive): Swain's passive ability allows him to periodically pull nearby enemies towards him when he deals damage. This is particularly effective against Soraka, as it disrupts her positioning and makes it harder for her to maintain a safe distance from enemies. The constant threat of being pulled in by Swain's passive forces Soraka to be more cautious and limits her ability to position herself optimally to support her team.
Decrepify (Q): Swain's Q ability sends out a wave of demonic energy, damaging enemies and slowing them. This ability helps Swain to poke and harass Soraka, making it harder for her to stay in range to heal her teammates effectively. Additionally, the slow effect can hinder Soraka's mobility, making it easier for Swain to follow up with additional abilities or for his team to engage on Soraka.
Nevermove (W): Swain's W ability unleashes a wave of demonic energy that immobilizes and damages enemies caught within its area of effect. This ability is a powerful crowd control tool against Soraka because it can root her in place, preventing her from using her movement abilities or repositioning effectively. It also sets up Swain's other abilities, allowing him to unleash more damage and potentially secure a kill on Soraka or her allies.
Vision of Empire (E): Swain's E ability sends out a demonic eye that deals damage to enemies in its path and briefly grants vision of the area it passes through. This ability helps Swain to scout for Soraka's position and potentially catch her out of position, making her an easy target for an engage or gank. Additionally, the damage from Vision of Empire can be significant, putting pressure on Soraka and forcing her to use her healing abilities more frequently.
Ravenous Flock (R): Swain's ultimate ability transforms him into a demonic raven, granting him increased health, the ability to drain health from nearby enemies, and dealing damage over time. This ultimate ability is particularly effective against Soraka because it allows Swain to sustain himself in team fights while simultaneously dealing damage to Soraka and her teammates. It also makes it harder for Soraka to outheal the damage being dealt by Swain and his team, effectively neutralizing her healing impact.
Overall, Swain's combination of crowd control, poke, sustained damage, and disruption makes him a major match against Soraka. His abilities counteract Soraka's healing and sustain, limit her mobility, and put pressure on her positioning. By effectively neutralizing Soraka's healing potential, Swain can significantly hinder her ability to support her team and turn team fights in his favor.”
Fear The Jester says “Adc dependent, if they cant track the range of his E and dodge it, then it isnt your fault, hard to do but you can place a box far enough behind your adc that it will trigger on his E and itll root the box instead of your adc.”
Rebaulten says “Very scary lane. They often out trade you at every points of the game and will depend heavily on your botlane counterpart to stay alive in lane.”
support_diff says “Swain has a good cc and damage and almost never uses auto attacks except in longer trades, there is pretty much nothing you can do against him but play safe”
jmp_01_ says “Abuse his weakness. Dodge his E and you should win the trade afterwards as long as you hit your Hook. After level 6 he can become dangerous so try to put everything into the early game. Take Glacial Augment.”
Lunar Empress says “His root, eye, and Q has much better poke damage than you do. He's also much tankier than you. Go Glacial to avoid getting him to engage on you once he gets ult.”
Afnyc says “swain outranges, but skill shot reliant. him landing e determines trade winner; it lands they win, it misses you can win. bait and dodge his snare to push up. hard to kill in tf's, if not fed ignore, if fed ult for disengage”
ShacoSupportAP says “In my opinion Swain is a nightmare (even he isnt that good as a support and not that much picked), especially in low elo. If your adc isnt good, he will get perma hooked by Swain and blame you for picking Shaco Support. When he hits lvl 6 he has almost unlimited sustain.”
Dotje says “This guy is being played support? Wow! He's not bad though. As a decent Nami player he doesn't feel like a threat. Just juke his grab/pull and stun their adc if anybody gets caught. Or even stun Swain when he walks up too close. Before 6 you can quite easily kill him. After that you can kite him really well.”
Aerenax says “Swain is a "support" with a lot of damage, crowd control en healing. When playing against him, getting anti-healing is a near must for either you or your adc. For teamfights: if swain ults you can knock him away to create distance and let his ult run out. After that you can freely re-engage. ”
Toches says “He does a lot of damage prior to level 4 as both support and mage carry botlane
if he lands e he can't pull or you'll stun him
otherwise just stay back and use your stun to get poke dmg, fully disengage when he R, time him out before re-engaging and R'ing.
Consider healcut if he's farming.”
mellorwastaken says “Tricky matchup, if hes paired with jhin or something and your adc is a weak early adc, its really hard matchup so look for roams. Dont channel your Q for too long outside bush if his E is up, and look to punish E cd. Post 6 try to bait his R so for example Q him and disengage with E unless you are ahead and you can 100-0 him in his R (bring ignite).
If he wins lane he can really carry their team.”
iveye says “Swain is easy to bully in lane with just dodging his E, but when he has ult it is high risk to jump on him as you need to rush Grievous Wounds to make sure he doesn't have a chance.”
WhiteLotus says “If he has no E. He is uselees like a Bee. You can rly run him down if you dodge his E. At lvl 6 care about his ult and Ignite him. Same time play this fight slow if you can and avoid his R suck range.”
gizemdeniz says “He can deal a lot of damage with his ultimate and Ahri's shock damage may not be enough. Unfortunately, most players fail to evade his CC. He will be dangerous if you are constantly caught and fail to hit your Qs.”
mazewalk says “Scum. His E can catch you off guard, he has annoying poke, deals good damage and tanks a lot with his ult. Don't feed him, buy antiheal if he's ahead.”
aRhesty says “You are just slightly longer range than him making you safer than most champions from his root. Also, root doesn't stop you from casting Q-E, disengaging and going even on the trade most likely. Don't stand on the minion wave.”
Fenreee says “|||SUPPORT||| Swain is just funny. I honestly recommend giving your ADC a brief explanation on how to play the matchup cuz that's the biggest variable. Swain isn't different from other mages till 6. But to counter his R you need to disengage him. Janna has a pretty easy time doing that if she doesn't get rooted, so as long as your ADC isn't trying to fight the Swain R you should be alright.”
Roltu says “Swain ha sido un problema con thresh recientemente debido a su rework y su manera de aguantar mucho debido a su ulti, asi que prioriza cortacuras y tira el focus hacia el primero si es necesario.”
zotet says “Swain has great CCs that can allow him to deal high damage. He is a very tanky hard-to-kill unit with great aggressive power. Swain is the definition of a scaling character and if he is unable to get kills he is very weak. His ult however can allow him to win duels even when he is behind. He has relatively low range so your main tactic will be to play from afar and keep him behind.”
NotAragami says “He's also a close range mage like you, you can outtrade him though. Make sure you don't get hit by the returning E or you either die or lose your Flash. When he turns ult on, stun him, get out of his ult radius, stack your passive, repeat. ”
OakuMarai says “Edgar Allan Painintheass.
Guardian with celerity.
His E can't root you if it blows up on your minions first. CC his ADC if one of you gets rooted. Stay away from him after 6 if he ults.”
LordZaneLP says “dodge his E and you are fine, dont dodge it and you are dead.
You can try to run on him with glacial and hit your stun, but after 6 i wouldnt recommend that.”
OakuMarai says “only a problem if he gets fed from ADC diff. try not to w him into your ADC post 6, focus on his adc instead. pre-6 feel free to let him meet your ADC up close”
PykEugeo says “Dodge his e and if he grabs you, try not to suffer the whole full combo. Force him if you can get him to use his ultimate .. then grab him and punish him with yours e to stun him, get away from him to make him waste it.
”
DixonTheGuideMaker says “Swain is super squishy and immobile. Good times to trade with him are when he’s walked forward trying to harass. When laning, make sure you’re always stood far back but in front of your Caster Minions. This will make it impossible for him to land his Root Nevermove(E) and CC you. At level 6, his kill pressure and survivability increases. Unless you have the advantage, disengage as soon as he activates his Ultimate Demonic Ascension(R).”
DixonTheGuideMaker says “Swain is super squishy and immobile. Good times to trade with him are when he’s walked forward trying to harass. When laning, make sure you’re always stood far back but in front of your Caster Minions. This will make it impossible for him to land his Root Nevermove(E) and CC you. At level 6, his kill pressure and survivability increases. Unless you have the advantage, disengage as soon as he activates his Ultimate Demonic Ascension(R).”
DixonTheGuideMaker says “Swain’s early game is rather weak. If you’re playing as an early game champion, try to get an early advantage to reduce his scaling. His Root Nevermove(E) will only trigger on the first enemies he hits on its return. Stand near your Caster Minions and walk forwards when he throws it out so the minions get CC’d and not you. At level 6, his kill pressure and survivability increases. Unless you have the advantage, disengage as soon as he activates his Ultimate Demonic Ascension(R).”
DixonTheGuideMaker says “Swain is super squishy and immobile. Good times to trade with him are when he’s walked forward trying to harass. When laning, make sure you’re always stood far back but in front of your Caster Minions. This will make it impossible for him to land his Root Nevermove(E) and CC you. At level 6, his kill pressure and survivability increases. Unless you have the advantage, disengage as soon as he activates his Ultimate Demonic Ascension(R).”
DixonTheGuideMaker says “Swain is super squishy and immobile. Good times to trade with him are when he’s walked forward trying to harass. When laning, make sure you’re always stood far back but in front of your Caster Minions. This will make it impossible for him to land his Root Nevermove(E) and CC you. At level 6, his kill pressure and survivability increases. Unless you have the advantage, disengage as soon as he activates his Ultimate Demonic Ascension(R).”
Babian says “Dodge his abilities and he is the easiest champion to counter. Swain in his R will heal a lot so be careful and get out of his R radius when he uses it.”
Jageiko says “--- As all other mages picks botlane, if this champions is played Support, keep it on this spot, but if it's played as a carry instead of an ADC, you can up it from one to two tier since burst, safety and CC stack are very effective in lane against Poppy ---
Swain will usually survive lane or even win it. But guess what? It wont matter at all.
A lot of players fear facing him in lane since he's even supposed to counter you, but one basic trick allow you to heavily tip the scale of the whole matchup :
Once you have 6, just R whenever he R's. He is so slow when he's ulting that it's almost always a free hit. Just care about his flash and it's basically GG. He now has a negative impact all game long, litterally.
If your ult is on CD, remember basic principles : It's only the return of his E that roots, so it's the only part important to dodge to avoid his combo, ignite or exhaust is pretty nice to get rid of him during a fight.
If you hard focus his ADC he's pretty much useless on his own as a Supp.”
RoseOfInnistrad says “Swain is hard to engage on because he becomes extremely tanky, and he's a potent laner. Whether or not you go engage or peel depends more on the rest of the game, but if it's a neutral game I suggest just going peel with Locket to keep him from hurting your team too much.”
Mindartis says “Any hero who is in some way the opposite of Thresh is a problem.
He doesn't like magic damage, and therefore any support that deals magic damage causes trouble for him.
Also, Thresh gets closer to the opponent, so he is vulnerable against control.”
MultiFaker says “Swain wins. He grabs you and heals to shrug off your poke, grabs your ADC and if they're cringe and still use burst swain chunk your ADC. Best use The Rising Star so you can play for late game”
Godlike Rell says “Your carry must take exhaust and oblivion orb is a must against this matchup. But mosts probably you will win the teamfights which you start at the first place.”
Demonsedge90 says “Swain is a lane bully support who will make things complicated for you. Trying to get farm for your bot lane will take much work since he can use e and pull you towards him and his carry. That can help you in some cases because you stun him back or root him, but you might be in trouble if you are drawn toward him and have no backup. So, play the lane cautiously versus Swain.”
Jabberwoc ky says “He is a major Threat if you just starting on Naut, and don't play is ranged bind... Just wait for him to miss a ranged bind and level 2 do what you do.”
Bella Starlily says “Swain is a champion that is not very strong early but an absolute monster mid game after he gets his burns. If you don't play aggressive early, you're likely going to have issues with him.”
Cordiall says “Swain is a hard lane for Braum. You can block his root with your E, but it guarantees a root/pull on you. He pokes you hard, and can all-in with his R. You CAN beat him, but best to avoid this matchup where you can. Braum's game plan in this lane is, more often than not, just try to survive and let your ADC farm up into the late game.”
hampenguin says “Perhaps the weakest mage with the lowest range. If you mind the E, then he really doesn't do a whole lot until 6 at which point you could burst him with ignite.”
DtNikk says “Swain beats you in lane. Guardian , Putrifier and Relic shield are very good options into this matchup. PRO TIP: If you have a minion behind you when he uses his E, the minion will tank the stun for you”
Saethwyr says “If you're not hit by E you're going to be doing ok on most trades, but he is going to be a problem the longer the game goes on. prioritise getting bot in a solid place and helping mid and jungle with map control.”
Nozul says “Swain é parecido com a Lux em questão de dano e controle de grupo: se você for pego, você morre. É uma boa ideia você comprar corta-cura cedo, por conta da vida que ele recebe por participação em kills, do W e da passiva, além da ultimate. Jogue safe, ele só consegue te matar se você for pego no E, ou em outro controle de grupo (ele pode te puxar um pouco com a passiva).”
TheBlueImperial says “You're pretty strong against him during the laning phase, his only potent ability is his E so when that is down you can freely engage. His R however makes engaging into him incredibly risk and you will need Grievous Wounds as soon as possible against him.”
Discord231 says “Swain antes del nivel 6 no te dará mayores problemas, de hecho antes de la Existencia de la nueva Liandry, jugar contra él era divertido, ahora con su R y la Liandry te obliga a ser muy preciso en tus combos si no quieres morir calcinado. Si tienes un adc de early intenta ganar línea pronto.”
GuanaTv says “Utilize os Leveis de 1 ao 5 para criar uma vantagem na rota. Após isso, procure criar jogadas quando a ultimate de Swain estiver em tempo de recarga!
(Use Levels 1 to 5 to create an advantage on the lane. After that, look to create moves when Swain's ultimate is on cooldown!)”
eiensiei says “Hard lane since you can only walk up to poke when E is on cooldown (and it practically has no cooldown). Play on its range to bait it out then poke as much as possible before it comes up again. If you get hit by it you will most likely die, so Flash it if you have to.”
Twisted Tea Fate says “He's recently been reworked so now he's very tanky, deals a lot of damage, and wins every fight if he has ult. Not much you can do since he out-scales you.”
eiensiei says “Hard lane since you can only walk up to poke when E is on cooldown (and it practically has no cooldown). Play on its range to bait it out. If you get hit by it you will most likely die, so Flash it if you have to. Relic match-up.”
warmfishu says “A mage tank with massive burst damage. Nevermove (E) is a straight line root, which resets W. With his Ravenous Flock (P), he can pull you and deal damage if you are ever immobilized. Vision of Empire (W) is an extremely long-ranged slow and damage that heals and gives Swain health. If he uses Demonic Ascension (R), stay out of range and try to let it time out before you reengage.”
iKonek says “Swain is able to grab you from out of your flay distance, which makes trading with him difficult without being at risk of an all-in. Be very cautious in laning, and look for any openings where the likelihood of counterengage is low.”
Rasta Da Masta says “Ahh yes! Mr. 200 IQ Tactical General himself! You have range advantage, but he has the 2v2 advantage. Look to knock him away if he ults and dodge his E.
Be careful about his lane partner if they have CC since he can pull you and force a fight... which you and your partner will probably lose.”
Korippo says “Very difficult matchup for Yuumi, if not one of her worst. Unfortunately he has a root that also allows him to pull anyone he roots back to him, allowing him to full combo in quick succession without much counterplay. Early game he's going to look to pick with autos and his pull, and mid to late game he has tons of sustain and is generally very hard to deal with. It's wise to rush Chemtech Putrifier here as well, and to play this lane more passively when possible; even without his ADC he can still very much 1v2.”
0Banda says “ Swain played in the support role shouldn't cause you much problems, just be aware of don't getting rooted, if you get rooted its possible for you to get one-shoted. You can focus Swain when trading, but once he gets level 6 you shouldn't focus him anymore, unless his R is on cooldown
Against Swain you should build Morellonomicon around third or fourth item, since once late-game reaches he cures himself a lot. In the runes go as usual, but if there are more champions with CC in the enemy team you can take Unflinching”
Luiscencias says “Deceptively tanky. If he roots you and his ADC follows up you’re screwed. The key against this guy is knowing the exact range of his pull, and getting just close enough that he throws it out but you can still walk back before it catches you.”
Petrotes says “Unless your carry can outdamage them while rooted by his E, swain is bad.
Even if you pokemon him in ult, he still got his big angry circle.”
Biotic says “Fairly hard to play he has tons of damage and even if you lock him down you will not be able to 1 shot him. Build Locket first and scale. I would suggest roaming, he cant really follow and 2v2 seems to be quite hard. ”
KasgoesREEEEE says “his e lasts a while, he has a lot of base damage plus his ultimate is difficult to get out of. as long as you play from the back you should be okay mid game and onwards but he does get tanky over the game.”
Doody_tco says “If Swain reaches level 3 and catches your carry, it will be hard for Yuumi to sustain the damage he deals, so in most cases the carry will die”
Billehz says “You should be able to easily dodge his pull with your w, which allows you to also get a sneaky charm in on him when he doesn't expect it right after you dodge it with the movement speed still on present on you. His ult can be annoying, but if you have ignite and your ult up you should be okay.”
Jaori says “He is very squishy, just like sona. Try to cheese him early. If your carry gets first blood, then it will probably be easy. After 6 he gets kinda tanky and hard to beat if you don't cc him perfectly.”
knif says “Swain's aggressive early is very useful for catching you out. Try to play safe and focus on peeling for your ADC early, and keep careful once he hits 6 since his all-in is kind of scary. If he engages, stun him if he overextends, or his ADC if they're both looking to trade.”
4090409 says “His pass-through E before returning is a PITA since you rely a lot with dancing between minions, similar to Leona in this regard. Be extra careful at 6 onwards.”
SupportTooEz says “I hate this match up so much. Only detach to proc passive if he already used his root, and if your adc is playing kaisa or a short ranged charcter, play to scale with someone else.”
HerYandere says “Rush boots, don't die. Engage on adc first, and post 6 you must have grievous or one of you in the botlane is dying every time you go in.”
ayoshe says “This match up is playable but very risky, as Swain's damage input in combination with his annoying root is almost deadly to squishy supports like Senna. Dodging his abilities is perhaps the best you can do in the early game and try to win trades. You do not win post-6 in lane, as his ultimate heals him for basically everything you deal with. An early Executioner's Calling rush may help.”
DasNerdwork says “Very high poke damage, stacking hp, often played with ignite (which denies your heal) and he gets free engages when you use your grand entrance. Going a bit more on movement speed with early boots to dodge his pull and using ignite to counter his ult can do the trick and help a lot.”
Esoterica says “Swain snacks on immobile ADCS who have no answer for his range and threat. You can easily protect your ADC by engaging him first and baiting out his snare. He is fragile pre-6 and has little on-demand damage without his full combo.
Swain has difficulty peeling for his ADC and relies on playing aggressively. Simply match his aggression and he will be forced to play safe and only poke.”
edkemr says “RUN CONFIDENT RUNES, BUY OBLIVION ORB EARLY.
Swain is a easy matchup for Xerath, you outrange his E and his W is easy to dodge. Still, don't go too nearby him since he has good burst. If your ADC get caught, try to focus him because he's still fairly squishy, or try to zone away the enemy ADC if he's distant.”
Daraysen says “A pretty even match up, watch out for his W when you try to hook, without boots it's gonna be hard to dodge in time, also watch out for fights after level 6 where Swain becomes way more dangerous.”
Dotje says “Swain's root is hard to dodge and makes a lot of damage output possible. You better train how to dodge this, and even then it's hard. Bait it out when you can and try trading after that (if needed)”
KeleiX13 says “Try to bait out his E as not being hit by that one ability will mean you winning lane. Hover at the edge of his E range and poke with your Q. Only auto him when his E is on cooldown. Consider getting Grievous Wounds if he gets ahead in lane for his ult.”
anionPositivo says “Você não vai jogar, é só isso, qualquer engage pode ser cancelado com facilidade por ele e ele da muito dano, jogue safe e espere por ganks ou um 2v1.”
Discord231 says “Swain antes del nivel 6 no te dará mayores problemas, de hecho antes de la Existencia de la nueva Liandry jugar contra el era divertido, ahora con su R y la Liandry te obliga a ser muy preciso en tus combos si no quieres morir calcinado. Si tienes un adc de early intenta ganar línea pronto.”
Levkar says “Get used to his root cooldown. You only get to play the game when the root is on cooldown. You can mess with ulting Swain if you root him.”
LilRidge says “Try to all-in him or his ADC when his (E) Nevermove is down. He can't do much against all-ins once that ability is down.
You will want to roam as much as you can in this lane. Swain has no roam pressure of his own, so you will be able to get multiple leads quickly.
You do not win Post 6, opt to get some Grevious Wounds beforehand”
GamingFrog says “I hate going against this champ on Thresh. He does high damage and has plenty of sustain in longer fights. Try to kill him pre 6 and impact the map a lot.”
The Last Rakan says “Swain pode ser insuportável de lidar, principalmente quando é um main, aqui vale buildar corta cura e resistência mágica, evite tomar seus CCs.”
Rainuu says “Swain is a good matchup for Lillia as his skillshot and damage can be avoided with ease. Make sure to watch out for his ulti however. The healing and continuous can be threat. ”
Ruiner of Fun says “His "skillshot" stun is very hard to dodge and can lock you down longer if he decides to delay it. His all in beats yours. Focus his adc rather than swain himself. ”
Kefochka says “Если Свейн сапорт поймает вас, то скорее всего вы получите очень много урона. Нужно стараться прятаться за своими крипами и играть агрессивно только по вражескому адк.”
Starchase says “Don't detach from your ADC, his damage is very very high, if he hits you with his E you will end up dying or having low hp.
Care about his lvl 6, it's a really big powerspike that gives him the ability to draintank 2v1 situations.
Rush Oblivion Orb and then Mikael's Blessing.
You kinda outscale him.”
Takitsu says “APC Swain: Has a surprising amount of damage and sustain. Avoid fighting swain with his snare or ult up. Grievous wounds is your friend in this matchup. If you or your carry dont have grievous wounds, dont all-in.”
unhben says “He wants to catch you against your wave, but that either makes you play way to far up or way to far back. This sometimes might just be another dodge idk”
losolkos says “A lot of health much dmg big live steal .
You must be very careful try to kill enemy adc first befor 6lv after 6lv dont fight him until he use R and after he use it just run and slow him to make him waste ult.
Grate way to make swain much easier dodge his E its just all when you dodge his E his Q have to smal range to atack you or its dont make big dmg.”
Discord231 says “Swain antes del nivel 6 no te dará mayores problemas, de hecho antes de la Existencia de la nueva Liandry jugar contra el era divertido, ahora con su R y la Liandry te obliga a ser muy preciso en tus combos si no quieres morir calcinado. Si tienes un adc de early intenta ganar línea pronto. ”
unhben says “Scary post level 3 so just dodge out of his E. If your ADC gets caught in it leave them because its not worth giving him early souls pre 6 fights. Kick him away if he starts ulting and be ready to ward hop out of his E range.”
Kadiyarch says “It's hard to combo Swain because if you get in range he can bring you closer to him and you are pretty much dead. If it happens, combo the enemy adc. You can focus him in lane, but never after he get his 6 because you'll not be able to kill him anymore. Safe you ignite to counter his ult.”
Bear Gummies says “Swain really hurts, and if he lands his E, you are more than likely to lose half of your health, if not more, just from that trade. Go Guardian so that he can't instaburst you, and go Ignite so that he can't continuously heal. Consider rushing an oblivion orb and take advantages of the times when he blows his E.”
Jannito02 says “Swain is a bit complicated to lane against. His E is easy to hit, plus can be hittable through minions, and can stun you and pull you to him with his passive, dealing you high damage with his Q and his W. But try to avoid being out of your teammate if he has his E up, and he shouldn't be much problem.”
SanLourdes says “His E can punish you and interrupt your engages if you aren't careful and his W and Q are great forms of poke because of their longer range.”
Gryndall says “This is some sort of mirror. Don't trade with him early. Tell your ADC to play carefull. You MUST land good skillshots or u ll lost. We are reliable on Magic penetration like morolomicon. Don't worry we Autscale him mid/late game. Final tip: after he buys zhonia you must be carefull we don't want cast our ULT into his zhonia. ”
xDopii says “He has decent sustain, damage and CC. As long as you don't get hit by his E, the lane should be pretty easy as he is very immobile and is not really a support.”
EionThePepega says “If he roots and pulls you you're dead. Be ready to level E second if u need to and wait for level 6. Also he's tanky so keep that in mind.”
The Lotus Queen says “Swain's CC and damage combo is highly dangerous, and his spells go through minions. Stay out of his range and rush boots to dodge his spells. Scale to win.”
vnillz says “This might just be personal opinion when it comes to a threat and maybe just a personal threat when it comes to my Nami, but I completely dislike Swain when playing Nami. His grab and pull are very threatening, and after level 6 he will deal more and more damage. All you can do is dodge, dodge, dodge. Harass him as much as you can before laning phase is over.”
Jexeff says “Early on if you avoid his nevermore, he becomes quite useless. If it is down, walk up to him and look for a trade. It is quite simple pre-6. Once he hits 6 you have to be a little more wise about you engagements since his ultimate is quite powerful, especially early on.”
razzyhealer says “Hope your ADC knows how to dodge his claw / grab. Be very careful when trying to proc Bop n' Block against him. Moving left to right can help in avoiding his claw.”
icebombhunter says “Skill matchup. Once you dodge his e you can all in him. Rush mercury. After 6 ult him only if he is really low since his ult doubles his passive and heals him.”
DavideLl98 says “It's very easy for Swain to do a lot of damage to you, especially if you want to approach him to deal damage. Avoid his E in particular, when you see him use this ability and miss, start attacking him. It is important to keep your distance while fighting him.”
fishbully says “ONLY IN SUPPORT ROLE: Swain is really strong and you will lose half of your health if he lands his E. This matchup is not fun to play and because of that I do not recommend going Janna into Swain.”
itizhelia says “He's a pain in the ass since he can pull you back with any type of CC that gets applied to you.
Has a lot of damage and pretty much impossible to kill him post 6.
Learn to dodge his skill shots and punish him for walking up or his ADC whenever you get the chance to keep this match-up in your favor. PS: Rakan is much better support compared to Swain in the Mid-Late game phase.”
m3nto8 says “Swain is rather tanky and he does have a lot of burst, but his E is very slow and he doesn't have a proper way to counter you if you get on top of him.”
Find0 says “Fake walking into the wave to bait his e then all in him. hes very squishy early and you can burst him. Can be difficult to play against from behind
WIN CON IS ALL IN”
Dotje says “You can basically only poke when his E is on cooldown (for 10 seconds). It's really hard not to get caught, make sure to play safe. You could possibly poke with your tornado for spellthief stacks.”
Navn says “If you get hit by E, you're probably in a lot of trouble. And even if you dodge it, if he has a lane partner that can also CC, you're probably going to die. Play very safe.”
CanadaJay says “This is entirely dependent on the Swain. If you can dodge Swain's abilities you should be fine. He is very squishy early without the soul fragment stacks he gets off of his Eye and Pull. A good Swain however is very dangerous.”
Frank6264 says “Este enfrentamiento puede ser muy bueno o muy malo dependiendo del ADC enemigo ya que de meter la e, swain y su carry pueden matarlos con mucha facilidad. Fuera de eso, es un campeon en línea débil ya que sus habilidades son fácilmente esquivables y al principio no puede soportar mucho hostigamiento. Es recomendable siempre no posicionarse entre los súbditos ya que la E de Swain es más fácil de dar en estos casos. Además, el ignite es una buena opción contra Swain por la curación y dependiendo si su ADC puede meter mucho daño en juego temprano o no, recomiendo runas agresivas para el primer caso (ejemplo: Draven).”
Sunedayz says “His skillshot can be a bit tricky to dodge, and would make this matchup even if it wasn't for the fact your R completely counters his R. Don't get pulled and play arounds CDS.”
sssky says “His snare can be very problematic.
If you're good at dodging his abilities, rush a Mortal Reminder, it can completely shut him down in combination with Ignite + E.
Swain isn't that problematic -- it's his Snare that's dangerous.”
jessuva says “Swain has a lot of damage, but his root is real easy to dodge. If he hits you with it, silence him so he can't capitalize off of it. He's tankier than other supports, so he's harder to kill, but he can't buff his ADC at all. All he has in the way of support is his poke pressure. ”
Titans Revenge says “You probably won't kill this support. dodge his grab and survive. Look to use flay to disengage him when he is in ult. Swain is not as popular in the support role as he was earlier, but if you do encounter it, adjust your runes and build accordingly.”
Hceercs says “Swain is extremely hard to kill after he is lvl 6 due to his ult and stopwatch combo. However, he isn't hard to kill before then, just watch out for being snared by his grab, as he actually has pretty high burst damage. At level 1 he also has he E where he grabs yo balls and that shit hurts, like wtf man.”
GMGZ2 says “I hate him so much since he is just so strong, great poke and can pull you in. His R is also very devastating, unless his other body in lane is bad, this lane is usually very tough and in my experience best played waiting for your JG to come gank. Try and set up boxes in bushes to keep the enemy from escaping easily. If you still want to try and be aggressive, try your best to get boxes in the bushes to prevent Swain from sneak attacking. Also, try using Q -> E for damage, sadly this does use a lot more mana but is the only way to do so without usually taking a bad trade. Rarely do I ever get even trades with Swain. Try and use your R during his R and have your clone explode on him. The last advice I can give is to focus poke him, so that he will be easier to take out.”
Wike says “Swain is strong because he can engage with his pull and is actually tanky.. You will have to basically wear him down or he will just takeover in lane. ”
InsaneWind says “Swain can very easily make your engage a bad idea. No matter how out of position he seems his snare and drag can CC you long enough early on to punish any attempt to kill him. You can win fights pre-6 but once he hits 6 if you do not having healing reduction he will kill you every time.”
Jum3h says “ Just juke his grab/pull and stun their adc if anybody gets caught. Or even stun Swain when he walks up too close. Before 6 you can quite easily kill him.”
SnakeTastic says “can poke alot but his w and e isnt too hard to dodge so play a bit safe and try to not give him stacks otherwise he will kinda destroy you in late game”
Kilo Khaos says “Swain is able to grab you from out of your flay distance, which makes trading with him difficult without being at risk of an all-in. Be very cautious in laning, and look for any openings where the likelihood of counterengage is low.”
Zulp says “His pull combo with his ADC does a lot of damage. If you think he's in a bush then don't try to bomb it and try to reveal because you and him have about the same range. ”
Vahlok says “If he goes support, be aware of anything he does. Take advantage of he's not being tank until he builds it. Kill him as much as you can. If he gets 6, play it calm. Ignite is a good option.”
KeleiX13 says “Play safe and use your Q to poke unless he is out of mana. He can easily root and pull you if you jump down to basic attack so watch out for that.”
Wicked Cherry says “Mr I'll-drain-your-health-with-my-ultimate.
He's annoying. But luckily not that often picked. Try not to be dragged by him and run out of his ult after you've thrown Q and E at him, then W'ing your ally to enable them to get out of range as well. He's strong, so get mobility boots and ask for help. ”
TheMistCollector says “[NOT ENOUGH DATA] Don't give him too many souls. You can use your E to escape from his R more easily, other than that you shold be fine”
ShanksMeister says “Not picked often but very hard to lane against, Getting hit by his pull or any form of hard CC is a guaranteed death. Rush tier 1 boots and juke his skillshots. Level 6 all-in the adc.”
Krynomi says “With his E being able to hit you behind minion wave this matchup is pretty dangerous. If he pulls you with his passive itll put you in a really dangerous position.”
Axkuru says “Very Very Even matchup.
Bait his R and then you will be good but if not you will be dead.
Try to dodge everything in his Kit (E,W,R) You can get out of his R when you E out of his Range”
Crippledtoot says “In my opinion the next biggest counter to Malphite support. You can dodge his abilities until level 6 and then he usually beats you in a 2v2. Depends how well you play before 6 to be honest.”
NalgaSensei says “High damage, and outranges you. When playing against and experienced Swain, it's nearly impossible to dodge his abilities and he will completely trash on you in the early game. If you're looking for a champion to ban all the time, this is your guy.”
Maxwhale Plays says “Swain is tricky because it is fairly hard to kill him once he starts getting Stronk but before he is fairly easy to burst with the help of your ADC”
Thats a OOF says “Swain's will E, pull you, W Q and proc Electrocute (If he has it) quickly. His R healing is hard to deal with so ignite him or just tell your team to buy Grievous Wounds and if they are smart they will buy it. But its pretty rare as those monkey idiots will focus on items on damage rather than items on crucial utility. Dodge his E and its easy for laning. His late game scaling is very good. Close out early or he will DEMOLISH your team in fights.”
Akja says “Like with Leona, you have to play smart, try to avoid getting hit by his W since he gains a lot of health and mana from it so poking him and then getting hit is useless.”
GhoastlyGiant9352 says “The new rework on swain has made him an even bigger foe to deal with in the lane faze. and his ult is still hard to deal with when your jungle try's to gank.”
rquoe says “Very annoying to deal with. Swain counters your whole kit, but he's not as dangerous as other engages because he operates at close range. Even then, he outpokes you and can nuke you if you don't dodge his hook (which goes through minions, by the way), so be wary of him.”
HoneyQT says “Can be an issue depending on how good he is. Id say just be careful with his grab. His ult isn't an issue as you can just boop him away with your ult. ”
StormAegis says “Teemo is pretty much dead if hooked or stunned for a good amount of time, so be careful with any matchup of this kind. If you get blocked don't panick, and if you know you'll be dead, try to deal the most damage you can to the weakest enemy around. Sometimes you can secure some kills even when in a death situation like this. If your opponent is alone and not fed, try to avoid him in the early game, but you should be able to 1v1 him with Q and AA and usually win. If you are in danger just Q him, avoid any hooks/stuns and run away with your W. You can use your R behind or ahead to slow the enemies chasing you.”
Tult says “Swain's amount of poke and lifesteal make him a terrifying champion to play against, after level 6 you lose almost every fight no matter what.”
Curmudgeon says “Swain has a lot of CC and healing, allowing him to out sustain your damage in lane and abuse you. This would be a good time to grab your exhaust so you can out last him. Or ignite can reduce his healing, but you can die faster. Your choice! ”
Kefochka says “Умный Свейн поймёт, что без вас ваш союзник крайне слаб и зависим, поэтому весь его урон будет идти по вам. Старайтесь уворачиваться от его умений и поукать своей вешкой.”
marisbroodti says “Bird man is probably the second biggest offender in our threat list, Nevermove and his high early damage are definitely nothing to toy with, and even with Bone Plating and MR runes, he will shred you like paper if you don't respect his range.”
suppdiff says “Immobile, you win all fights pre six with an adc that is not sivir xayah or ezreal. After six, need to be cautious with fights while his ultimate cd is up.”
FabioOoOoOo says “He can catch your adc if he is good but after a while you can kill him after a few trades or if he steps in the wrong spot. Just be careful of his ultimate as it will make him incredibly hard to kill”
Zefirez says “It's a tug of war with Swain - early he owns your ass. He can pull you through minions and unload nasty damage, finished by his adc or himself. Post 6 things get more even as swain hates hard engage and is not yet tanky enough to withstand your full burst.
Later on if he build some defense (especially spirit visage) you won't be able to easily shut him down (especially with ranked ult of his), but he won't be able to easily stop you from destroying his adc.
Also be wary of his W snipes - if you're low health he'll try to surprise you with popping it when you're recalling and looking over item shop screen.
To summarize early game - really beware, don't become his bitch pre 6 so you don't fall behind and can turn the tables.”
Ahpulzz says “A niche support with really strong laning and level 6, but otherwise can't peel for his AD at all. Always watch for his snare, focus his AD, and try to wait for ganks before engaging onto him.”
Ahpulzz says “His damage and range make for a difficult opponent to lane against, but he is heavily reliant on landing his E, Nevermove. You have the opportunity to go aggressive and pillar his ADC back if he misses this. Be mindful when he has his ultimate, as well, as he can tank even more damage than you can.”
cebollaamargada says “este caso es especial: no te dobles con tu adc ni con los minions, para minimizar su ganancia de cargas. mantente alejado, pokeando con Ws y espera a que gaste su E para atacar. Mantente siempre en rango y evita cualquier cofrontación directa en caso de estar en igualdad de número.”
Rasta Da Masta says “Swain is very easy to poke and kite. He has a lot of self healing and disruption if you aren't careful. If you get hit by hard CC, he will yoink you near him.
His W has exceptionally long range but is easy to walk out of. If he uses his ult, try to use W to knock him away from your team.”
Pykings says “Pyke vs. Swain
Early Game: Dodge his [Q] poke and [E] root. He’s tanky but slow.
Mid/Late Game: Focus on squishies. Swain’s ult makes him tanky, so kite him.
Key Tip: Avoid fighting him in his ult zone.”
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As a Support
[26.5] Multi-Seasonal Challenger Rakan Guide | Advanced Concepts & Techniques
by Minima141 | Rakan Player
