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Swain Build Guide by FalseoGod

AP Carry Art of War, an in-depth Swain Guide (Season 7)

AP Carry Art of War, an in-depth Swain Guide (Season 7)

Updated on April 13, 2017
9.2
130
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25
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League of Legends Build Guide Author FalseoGod Build Guide By FalseoGod 130 25 3,228,023 Views 295 Comments
130 25 3,228,023 Views 295 Comments League of Legends Build Guide Author FalseoGod Swain Build Guide By FalseoGod Updated on April 13, 2017
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1
Dragoleonix | December 20, 2017 6:49pm
Season 8 update? I would love to see your opinions since I also love playing Swain and he's my favorite.
1
LuxIsMyCrush (13) | July 17, 2017 2:34pm
and versus an ad midlaner like talon or zed what must be deffensive items?
1
Linnysoup | July 10, 2017 4:00am
I love your build and I'm now using it but late game I have a huge mana regen problem. Anything you think I can substitute in the build to help with this?
1
FalseoGod (316) | July 11, 2017 4:07am
The guide is somewhat outdated, but I think the item you're looking for is Morellonomicon. All you need is one assist and your mana goes through the roof again ;)
1
Void Spirit | June 14, 2017 6:32am
Could you please do a video explaining how freeze the lane with swain?

Comment has been deleted

1
FalseoGod (316) | May 5, 2017 5:15am
I still need to update this. New Banshee's seems pretty sick.

The issue here should be Bruisers picking up the Helm. Tanks are less damaging now overall (unless they mix it up) and Swain's R ignores damage reduction for the healing. I don't think the Helm will be of any use to squishies regardless, so we'll have to see how obnoxious this item is on Juggernauts/Bruisers :/
1
Void Spirit | May 5, 2017 6:04am
I have 2 question about this item:

1.- If I first use Decrepify (Q) against the enemy, and Immediately after I use Torment (E); Does Adaptive Helm block the damage of both Abilities or just Decrepify (Q)?

2.- Does Adaptive Helm have Cooldown?
I mean, I use Decrepify (Q) against the enemy, This item blocks the damage for 4 seconds, but Immediately after those 4 seconds I use Torment (E), Does Adaptive Helm block the damage of Torment (E)?
1
reichtor | April 12, 2017 4:54pm
This is hands down one of the best guides I've seen for Swain, maybe even for any champ. Dead on for every single point and the explanation of general mechanics was insightful. Thank you for taking the time.
1
FalseoGod (316) | April 13, 2017 2:28am
I'm very thankful for your comment! There was a lot of love and work put into this guide and seeing it being appreciated is always great :)
1
Void Spirit | March 13, 2017 5:55pm
Hello, how can I root an enemy (with w: nevermove) inside the area of Q: Decrepify?

Could you upload a .gif or something?
1
FalseoGod (316) | March 14, 2017 2:40am
I'm not sure I understand the question? You want to know if there's a trick to hitting W on someone who has Q on then?

I'll check if I have footage to make a gif, but there's really no trick to it, it's mostly prediction that's facilitated by the Q slow. You need to see the way they're walking, place Q accordingly to slow them and almost immediately cast W.
1
Void Spirit | February 7, 2017 12:47pm
I have seen several high elo players who buys the The Dark Seal & Refillable Potion in the first recall. They sell them at mid game.

What do you think about of this?
1
FalseoGod (316) | February 7, 2017 5:34pm
Personally never seen it but it makes sense. I get refillable if I have the spare gold and the Dark Seal does seem like an interesting option along with Doran's since it gives you raw mana sustain for your ult rather than focusing on regen, which shouldn't be a problem.

I'll playtest it but am glad you brought it up!
2
Void Spirit | February 7, 2017 7:16pm
I forgot to mention that JemKebaba (apparently #1 Swain) Always buys those items.

You can check it out
First click on "View Match" then "more details" to see the Item Purchase Order
http://www.lolking.net/replays?summonerName=JemKebaba&platform=TR1&lks=all&duration=all&champion=50&champion_rel=either&matchup1=all&matchup2=all&search=1
1
Void Spirit | February 6, 2017 5:45pm
Hello, what do you think about Tear of the Goddess in Swain?
1
FalseoGod (316) | February 7, 2017 1:43am
Hey there!

Tear of the Goddess is extremely hard to fit into Swain builds. Although he can stack it at a decent speed (not amazingly fast like Ryze or Cassiopeia), Tear is ideally a rush first item so you can stack as fast as possible. The problem with this is that what you REALLY want to rush ASAP is Rod of Ages (RoA), and delaying either will create many issues:

- Delaying RoA will mean you get stats later, making you less tanky. Besides, Tear of the Goddess doesn't actually provide you with laning power, only with some sustain through ult upkeep. It also makes you less of a threat in lane unless you go tear - Blasting Wand - catalyst. If you do this, you'll be less tanky due to delaying the HP from catalyst;

- Delaying Tear means you will have it stacked much later into the game. It is also still a dead item in your inventory for a while, because Swain's ult mana cost is cumulative, which means that extra mana will be melted faster. Getting more AP would make you heal more and deal more damage.

- The only possible "fix" for this would be to get Tear and rush the hextech item that builds from catalyst. My issue with this build is that Archangel will eat away at a precious item slot and you will be less tanky (not to mention that the hextech item is more expensive than RoA).

Assuming this question comes from having issues with mana on Swain during skirmishes, my advice is to ALWAYS demand blue buffs and, if you REALLY want a mana item, you may consider getting a Lost Chapter after Rod of Ages, finish Zhonya's Hourglass and then finish Morellonomicon which, along with your passive, gives you absurd amounts of mana on kill and assist.

Do understand that morellonomicon means you'll need to forgo Spirit Visage, making you considerably less tanky. Ideally, you should learn to manage Swain without any mana providers asides from RoA, especially because from midgame onwards you have less issues on that department.

Finally, on a sidenote, I do get Tear of the Goddess + ap support item + refillable pots on ARAM if I get Swain. Then I follow it up with RoA and Zhonya's.
1
Void Spirit | February 7, 2017 2:16am
Thanks for answer :)
1
Void Spirit | February 5, 2017 8:41am
Hello, what do you think about Spell vamp quintessence in swain?
1
FalseoGod (316) | February 6, 2017 2:02am
It's what I'm here for ;)
1
FalseoGod (316) | February 5, 2017 2:22pm
Hello! Well, I don't think it's worth it mathematically because it is reduced by the damage from R and W, and the more AP you have the more damage and healing from R you receive.

They are decent in lane because you keep casting Q to harass + farm but once out of it they lose effectiveness (Q will apply over time AND if people leave it'll stop applying, W and R apply less). Overally, they're just a decent lane gimmick but fall flat out of lane.
1
Void Spirit | February 5, 2017 6:27pm
Thanks for answer :D
1
WhatsLeft4Dead2 (6) | December 9, 2016 12:22pm
What do you recommend building on Swain if against a Hybrid Fighter like Jax or Mordekaiser?

The reason I'm asking is because I recently face a Mordekaiser & took a very LETHAL amount of damage after he got a single kill out of our Mid Laner, which in turn, allowed him to 2 shot ADC's & 3 shot Myself & other tanks during the final stages of the game. I tried optimizing & re-optimizing my build to suit my style & taste but nothing seemed to Stop Mordekaiser from dropping me like loose change.

The build I went with:



I'll admit, kiting around him with a full team at my back made this build great, Zhonya's Hourglass saved my hide a few times, but when he catches me solo with his Ultimate, Kiting almost seemed impossible, Zhonya's Hourglass didn't stand for anything, & Ignite didn't make a difference to how much he healed and how much damage got mitigated into his Shield either.

His build:
1
FalseoGod (316) | December 10, 2016 5:01am
Well the thing with mordekaiser is that he is supposed to deal ******ed damage when he gets in range, and so does jax. Both require you to Zhonya's just at the right time so as to heal back some while your team kills them. If they're getting in range, don't be afraid to simply stop on your tracks and W on top of yourself. I mean, I could've told you to try and replace liandry for Rabadon since you'll heal more with your ult, but other than that it's 100% about gameplay and your team realizing they have to help wit the peel. If they aren't, just get yourself a visage for extra CDR and tankyness (instead of Rylai's), they jump you, you cc them, kite, cc, kite. Morde should never be able to keep up with Swain's kit without a Rilay's of his own really.

Jax is more complicated and he should be 1v1'ing you late game, unless he built really poorly. But with bruisers and fighters like Fiora, Riven, Yi, Jax, etc, there's only so much you can do by yourself. You should be drawing them in and your team killing them while you tank.

I'd say Rylai's is great vs 2+ bruisers that can dive your team and your team doesn't have many options, otherwise I'd replace it with more AP or Visage.
1
WhatsLeft4Dead2 (6) | December 10, 2016 2:24pm
The Mordekaiser made it clear that he was trying out different builds since He felt Rylai's Crystal Scepter didn't work for him anymore. The issue is that no matter how hard I tried to walk out *Repeatedly tagging him with my W*, he could catch right back up to me without taking damage because he was able to maintain his Shield the whole time. "My minions clearly were an issue for shield regen".
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