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Nami Build Guide by Dotje

Support [13.5] 🌊Dotje's in-depth guide on Nami

Support [13.5] 🌊Dotje's in-depth guide on Nami

Updated on March 8, 2023
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League of Legends Build Guide Author Dotje Build Guide By Dotje 797 24 1,433,794 Views 54 Comments
797 24 1,433,794 Views 54 Comments League of Legends Build Guide Author Dotje Nami Build Guide By Dotje Updated on March 8, 2023
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Choose Champion Build:

  • LoL Champion: Nami
    Support
  • LoL Champion: Nami
    Howling abyss
  • LoL Champion: Nami
    Midlane
  • LoL Champion: Nami
    Adc
  • LoL Champion: Nami
    Jungle
  • LoL Champion: Nami
    Toplane
  • LoL Champion: Nami
    URF (Just a suggestion)

Runes: Basic runepage (Click 1,2,3,4) ---->

1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Sorcery
Summon Aery
Manaflow Band
Transcendence
Scorch

Inspiration
Biscuit Delivery
Cosmic Insight
Bonus:

+9 Adaptive (5.4 AD or 9 AP)
+9 Adaptive (5.4 AD or 9 AP)
+6 Armor

Spells:

1 2 3
Aggressive
LoL Summoner Spell: Flash

Flash

LoL Summoner Spell: Ignite

Ignite

Threats & Synergies

Threats Synergies
Extreme Major Even Minor Tiny
Show All
None Low Ok Strong Ideal
Extreme Threats
Ideal Synergies
Synergies
Ideal Strong Ok Low None

Champion Build Guide

[13.5] 🌊Dotje's in-depth guide on Nami

By Dotje
First time Nami?
Make sure to check out the General tips chapter >>here<<

The basic Sorcery+ Inspiration page is a perfect start (I still use it too but with attack speed)
Build the meta build Imperial Mandate and you'll never go wrong.
Unless you're really uncomfortable, I guess Moonstone Renewer is perhaps a little more relaxed to start with.

Build string to paste in client

Nami's E Tidecaller's Blessing will still proc the items/runes listed below, but will only count once and not all three procs like it did before. So for example, building Imperial Mandate together with an item like Chemtech Putrifier will make your E Tidecaller's Blessing an insane buff for your ally. I'd personally suggest using this on an ally that is most likely to burst someone down.

Since the nerf in 12.17 Nami's E can not proc Electrocute by itself through an ally.
The rune could still be a fun burst to try, since at least one proc of your E Tidecaller's Blessing on an ally will count.

Careful about applying you E Tidecaller's Blessing to an ally when owning Imperial Mandate because this can steal kills! If you do not want to steal kills, don't apply your E on an ally when the enemy is about to die.
˙.˙Hey fellow summoner!˙.˙

Welcome to my guide! This is my very first guide that I will try to update continuously. Before you get started I would like to inform you that:
I'm NOT a pro. Please keep in mind that some of my advice is experience/opinion based!

Everybody has their own play style and opinion, and I try to consider that! Just keep in mind that you have to find out what works for you. And don't assume I know everything or am right about everything! It's also important to consider different playstyles work at different skill-levels.

To get around this now pretty big guide faster you should definitely make use of the navigation bar on the right.
And make sure to hover overin the top right for more information about the item and rune builds!


˙.˙Short about me˙.˙
Drawn by Rosyre https://www.instagram.com/rinzuri/

Hello I'm Dotje I'm 25 years old and I have been playing league for 5+ seasons now.
Playing league for me is about having fun, despite that I managed to hit masters and play on a decent level. I play on the EUW servers and sometimes on NA. I mainly play support because I enjoy enabling my teammates and because I used to always have internet and fps issues. Recently I have been practicing new champions and roles but support is my go to.

I've played Nami for a lot of seasons now and many considered me the best Nami player they know. After my internet and FPS issues got resolved I still love her because you always have a shot on winning with her, especially below diamond. Nami is really fun to play because of her fun, challenging but also flexible kit. Make sure to at least try her out once :)

Recently (march 2023) started working on this guide again after a year break


Recent guide updates (click here to view)
˙.˙The safe blind pick˙.˙

To give you a better insight into Nami's capabilities I listed some pro and cons below.
Nami is a very flexible champion which makes it hard to properly counter her strengths. Her flexibility allows her to fit into most team compositions with preferably one fronliner. Even if you had a bad start she will still have a good shot at winning.
Not everybody knows Nami's true power though and will give up regardless.

Most importantly Nami is fun to play

---Pros---

[+] High mobility
[+] Engage
[+] Disengage
[+] Health sustain
[+] Fits in almost every teamcomp
[+] Can shutdown carry champions
[+] Playable with bad internet/fps
Nami has a lot of mobility thanks to her passive, you can apply it on allies or yourself. This helps with engaging and disengaging as does moving to safety during a trade.
Nami has a bit of everything, and great sustain (except for her mana pool which is fixable) this means she fits every team composition and is harder to counter. Her Q Aqua Prison and R Tidal Wave can be great to shut down carry champions when needed. Because her ultimate is huge, and at least 2 abilities are on-click you can play her with a bad internet connection/fps.

---Cons---

[-] Needs one frontliner to really work
[-] Squishy
[-] Hard to hit skillshot(Q)


Nami really needs a frontliner to properly work, else she can't set up fights or keep her allies alive. It's possible to make it work but, when your team doesn't have a frontliner, they're often just waiting to get caught and die.
Nami is very squishy, in some matchups it's better to go Guardian and Relic Shield. This does make you lose possible lane dominance. You have to really learn how to position if you do not want to feed. The only other bad thing she has is her hard to hit skillshot Q Aqua Prison. You can set up a slow to land this ability, but in a stressful situation it's unreliable.
˙.˙Tips to master Nami˙.˙

When you main a champion you often know a little more about a champion than casual players. This is why I'm adding some champion specific tips in here for people to pick up. Make sure to click on the spoiler at the bottom of this chapter for even more tips.

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤General knowledge﹥˙‧.✰˙‧

  • Don't use your Q for no reason! The best pressure is to hold on to it for the right moment/set up.
    This doesn't mean you should never try to hit a cheeky bubble.
  • In teamfights try to always use your W on an ally for the double heal and movementspeed buff!
  • When trading, try to always use W on the enemy. Doing this will make you instantly heal back the damage they do during this trade. You'll even have a chance to make it double bounce on the other enemy laner for a bit more damage.
  • If you and your adc are getting low in lane you could try to go for the double heal instead. It's most reliable to cast W on your adc when he's in range of an enemy and then walk up to receive the second heal.
  • Hitting your abilities on allies gives them a movement speed buff. Which means your Q Aqua Prison too!
  • Consider not using your W when your ally is ignited, since Ignite takes 5 seconds and your W cooldown is 10 seconds. Ignite will reduce your healing by 40% which could have saved your ally by using patience.

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤Quick tips﹥˙‧.✰˙‧

  • Use E to get around faster (or to get in lane). The mana cost is low enough to regenerate back before using E again.
  • Your W has a slightly bigger range when it's bouncing off someone. This means if you self-cast the ability it will hit slightly further. Same with bouncing it off an enemy or another ally.
  • Use your Q on bushes you're about to facecheck. Your Q reveals an enemy it hits.
  • Try to always sneak in a basic attack especially while trading with W for more spellthief stacks.
  • While peeling an ally from a melee champion, aim your Q for your allies position. This will speed up your ally as well give you a good shot at hitting the enemy.
Advanced tips (click here to view)
˙.˙Support item˙.˙

A support item is a must-have as support, you will lose a lot of gold income and vision control if you don't get one. I recommend Spellthief's Edge for the casual players. Since season 11 Spellthief's Edge is most often the better choice because it grants you more gold, but make sure you're able to proc this. If not, you can safely go for Relic Shield.

Shard of true ice
You buy it as Spellthief's Edge and it upgrades into Frostfang into Shard of True Ice as you gain gold. When you attack an enemy it stacks gold and automatically upgrades into an item that can place wards at 500 gold.
*Make sure to attack the turret when you can as this also grants you gold.
Good pick
vs poke/sustain



Bulwark of the Mountain
Consider this item vs hook matchups or matchups you prefer not trading against. This item helps denying the enemy support gold if they have Spellthief's Edge (by not trading). You also can save your mana for heals and ganks.
*Make sure you try to use all its charges on cannon minions and melee minions for most amount of gold.
Safe pick
vs hook and engage
based champs



˙.˙Boots˙.˙

Always get boots! Consider getting them earlier when you're against a hook lane like Blitzcrank because you are able to dodge and reposition faster. Skipping boots for an earlier item is also a strategy, but it does make you much weaker at roaming.

Boots of speed
Movement speed is important for dodging abilities, getting out of a fight and warding. Though if you are able to survive without them, you could use that gold to finish another item faster.
Good early
vs skillshots

Boots of mobility
These boots are always a good choice because you can roam well, position better, and get your wards down quicker. The boots also give quite some pressure and allow you to dodge better too! People tend to rush these when botlane is miserable because you can help the rest of your team better and quicker.
Good pick
for roaming



Ionian Boots of Lucidity
In the current patches getting these boots is meta. You get a little less movement speed than Boots of Swiftness and Mobility Boots but the summoner cooldown and 20 ability haste is really useful. I love rushing these boots in combination with Cosmic Insight. It's also a good combination with Imperial Mandate because casting more abilities means more procs!
Always
a decent
pick



Boots of swiftness
These boots have always been my favourite. It's now cheaper than Mobility Boots and has a consistent speed buff. This makes it easier to get out of fights and reposition. I also enjoy taking these boots into a Senna with Glacial Augment or Ashe. If you're playing vs a team with a lot/heavy slows it feels pretty great to buy these.
Optional
into slow
teams or lane

Mercury's treads
These boots are a great option when you're playing against a composition with a lot of cc. Getting stunned means you're not able to do anything, or even die. It's best to position a way you won't get hit but there are some champions that are hard to avoid like Leona and Nautilus and not even the pros can dodge everything.
Optional
into cc teams



Plated Steelcaps
I've bought these boots a lot of times on tanks, but on Nami it doesn't feel worth getting. You could consider it when the enemy is full ad and you gathered some HP, but honestly you better get another kind of boots and stack some armor/hp.
Optional
into full ad

˙.˙The mythics˙.˙
You can only choose one of the mythics to fit your build. As the patches go on, every mythic has started to become a viable option but Imperial Mandate stays on top, it helps greatly with snowballing. I sometimes sell Imperial Mandate for another mythic a handful of games because it helps better with teamfights.

Moonstone renewer
This item gives Nami a lot of healing, it sadly doesn't give the mana regen like the old athene's did. But the ability haste and stronger heals are great to have generally. I suggest taking this item when the burst from Imperial Mandate wouldn't matter as much as sustain in fights.
Good with
long lasting
fights

Imperial Mandate
I think this item is the best when your team is snowballing, especially when your team is good lategame as well. The bonus movementspeed and damage are not to be underrated you and your ally become super deadly! Casting E Tidecaller's Blessing on an ally makes them trigger Imperial Mandate! Keep this in mind, it's very strong!
Good with
pick based
team

Shurelya's Reverie
In combination with a good engage this item will be most useful. Now together with the active movementspeed you can speed up an ally with your E Tidecaller's Blessing or Summon Aery. I'd usually get this item for a better disengage or position in fights. It's great with a melee team and versus a melee team.
Good if
team needs
more mobility

Locket of the iron solari
If your team has the better lategame composition I'd go for another mythic item. If your team is not snowballing or needs a little more defence against burst, I'd go for this item. I personally don't think it's worth on Nami right now tho.
The shield also procs Ardent Censer for your team.
Optional
into burst
champs

Everfrost
This item is a viable option on Nami. It gives you another setup for Q and a great way to peel from engage. It's stats are also great making your mana pool huge and your damage grow. Because I find this item more useful as a defensive item I tend not to choose this.
Optional
with glacial
extra peel

˙.˙Optional items˙.˙

To finish up your item build you should always consider what your team needs, the enemy has, or what you need. If your carry unable to do anything due to crowd control, or will potentional be shut down by it, go Mikael's Blessing. Does the enemy team have a lot of healing? Then you can go Chemtech Putrifier. Maybe you need to protect yourself? Getting a Stopwatch is a good idea for an important fight. Even getting Frozen Heart can be a gamechanger. If your team doesn't really need any of this, you don't know what to build or your team needs a bit more power. Going Staff of Flowing Water or Ardent Censer is always decent.

Chemtech putrifier
This item is the ideal antiheal item for a support. It has great great synergy with E Tidecaller's Blessing because it will apply the 40% healing reduction.
Now the 60% heal reduction gets applied when the ally you heal/shield deals damage. It should be easily applied with Summon Aery Font of Life and Moonstone Renewer together with your W Ebb and Flow.
The reason you choose this item over Morellonomicon is because of the mana regen, ability haste and the way the antiheal debuff applies.
Pick this
into heal
champions
or builds

Staff of flowing water
This item gives you and your ally an ability haste and ability power bonus! I think this is a great general item to have. If you use the rune Summon Aery you can also proc this item's passive by using E Tidecaller's Blessing. Font of Life also triggers this item just as it triggers Ardent Censer.
I think this item fits great with Ezreal and Kai'Sa.
Pick this
to empower
ap/cd champs

Ardent censer
This item gives your adc a lot more power. If you have an ap champion in botlane you can rush this item later on as you probably have other champions in your team that can benefit from this. It's easiest to proc this item with Summon Aery but if you went Guardian it will also be enabled by Font of Life. If you're getting Redemption too you can turn around or empower a lot of fights.
Good with
AA majority
teams

Mikael's Blessing
When your carry (doesn't have to be your 'adc') get's shut down by cc it's great to get a Mikael's Blessing this item also empowers your heals by 20% instead of 10% which should not be understimated. The new Mikael's Blessing now also gives a small heal! I also suggest taking this item if you're in need for some magic resist.
Good vs
pick based
cc

Vigilant Wardstone
If you're facing a Twitch, Viego, Evelynn, Shaco or maybe a Teemo it can be important to counter them and their traps with control wards. Buying the Watchful Wardstone will allow you to bring 3 control wards and after an upgrade allows you to place 2 of them too!

Because of patch 11.11 the item gives an increase on most of your stats when you're level 13 and have 20 wards placed. It won't give you the movementspeed anymore but it still gives a fair amount of ability haste when it's upgraded.
Pick for
quick power
and vs
invis champs

Redemption
This item gives a big aoe heal that is really strong in teamfights when placed well. Combined with other healing buffs and Ardent Censer it can give a huge comeback to fights.
Good for
extra heal/shield
power

Winter's Approach
Been testing this item a lot, so far it seems to make you super tanky when it's turned into Fimbulwinter. I enjoy taking this item in combination with Glacial Augment. Make sure to buy this when your tear is already stacked, else it's not really worth it.
Extra mana
and tankiness

Frozen heart
If their comp based on sticky ad champions like Nocturne and Irelia you can consider taking this item to defend the backline. It gives an aoe att speed slow and makes it possible to shut down an ad.
Just keep in mind the passive of Frozen Heart doesn't work on a Master Yi inside his ult. You choose this item over other armor items because of the ability haste it gives. I rarerly buy this item, but it has done it's job whenever I needed it.
Good into
sticky melee
ad champs

Zeke's Convergence
This item's damage scales with AP and HP with means it's fairly viable for Nami.
Only at the moment this item isn't very powerful over Ardent Censer and Staff of Flowing Water. This item does have some understimated upsides though.
It's a fairly safe item to build, it makes you tankier, gives 20 ability haste and it's buildpath is decent unlike Ardent Censer and Staff of Flowing Water
Decent defensive
alternative

˙.˙Whenever you're ahead or think it fits better˙.˙

Whenever you're ahead, or think this fits your comp even better these are some considerable items. It's important to have fun in your games, especially normal games.

Anathema's Chains
If there's one fed carry (like Draven) on the enemy team that prevents you from properly supporting your team I recommend Anathema's Chains. This item will make you a lot tankier, gives ability haste and allows your cc to disable your target longer.

Knight's Vow
This item on Nami seems an alright option. It gives no armor or magic resist but it does give 400hp and a lot of regen.
Because of the change in preseason I'm interested in testing good scenarios for this item. So far I'm not sure if this item is worth it, but testing continues.

Banshee's veil
Againt heavy ap based comp you can consider taking this item. But I recommend taking Mikael's Blessing for the magic resist. If you really need the ability block from this item, or want a little more ap as you get mr, feel free to take this item. Against heavy ap burst I'd still recommend Zhonya's Hourglass.

Morellonomicon
I'd suggest taking Chemtech Putrifier over this one. But if you want more ability power and have good mana manegement, why not. Your E Tidecaller's Blessing on an ally will proc the 40% heal reduction.

Shadowflame
In theorie this item seems really good with Imperial Mandate and AP champions. The item really delays your strength and should be carefully considered. I'm still testing this item.

Rylai's Crystal Scepter
My favourite item to build for fun! This items gives a slow on your W Ebb and Flow which I really like when you're using this ability on your allies to catch someone. It also gives some HP and AP. I do not recommend this item overall but it's fun.

Dark seal
I like getting this item when I'm ahead and in no risk of dying. If you're really far ahead and already have some core items you can upgrade this into Mejai's Soulstealer

Rabadon's Deathcap
We all know why you will build this item, lots of ability power! Try it out, you'll be very scary, and your heals are even stronger!


˙.˙The basic rune page˙.˙
Summon aery
This keystone is the best go-to option on every shield/heal support.
Summon Aery adds more poke to your abilities and basic attacks. It also adds an shield that allows you to proc Ardent Censer and Staff of Flowing Water.
*This rune gets refreshed when you pick up the sprite so it's cooldown is fairly low.
Manaflow band
Manaflow band is unmissable on most enchanter supports.
Nami is a little mana hungry so this is a great way to increase your mana pool when you trade/poke.
Transcendence
It's nice to get ability haste without needing to buy items.
At level 11 you even get 20% cooldown refunds on takedowns!
I think ability haste and cooldown reduction works great on Nami.
If you're feeling confident without this rune Celerity is an amazing alternative that synergises perfectly with Nami's passive.
Scorch
This rune adds that little extra damage you need to become dominant in trades.
Keep an eye on it's cooldown so you time your trades on ideal moment.
Biscuit delivery
This rune makes sure it's safe to lose HP while trading. This means that if you took Spellthief's Edge you're more likely to gain gold.
*Make sure to eat your cookies in a fight (for mana), it has helped me a lot.
Cosmic insight
This rune is a noticable change for your summoner spell and item cooldown.
You're more likely going to escape squishy situations this way.

˙.˙ Tanky and scaling˙.˙
Guardian
This rune gives almost more than double the shield as aery does and it scales with AP and HP.
This rune has a higher cooldown than Summon Aery so you have to use it wisely.
Besides standing near your ally you can also trigger this rune by empowering your ally with E Tidecaller's Blessing and W Ebb and Flow.

Font of life
It's fairly easy for you to trigger this rune. Your E on an ally will make them trigger this rune themselves. While healing they will also gain benefits from items like Ardent Censer and Staff of Flowing Water.
Bone plating
If you're going for a stronger laning phase this rune is what you want. It's very hard to be outtraded with this rune. If you're certain you don't need this rune for your trades, Conditioning is decent alternative, it adds up lategame.
Revitalize
This rune grants more heal and shield power, even more powerful when the target is below 40% hp.
A real life saver!
Manaflow band
It's hard to survive/sustain on Nami without a way to sustain your mana. Presence of Mind is ideal if you still want to trade often.
Transcendence
Valid alternatives are Celerity, Scorch and Gathering Storm. This rune is great to scale with, but depending on what you want in your game you may adapt.
˙.˙ Burst damage˙.˙
Electrocute
Having Electrocute as your keystone requires you to have a bit of synergy with your adc. But also VERY SAFE positioning from you, you're SUPER squishy. Don't take this rune into heavy engage/assasin teams unless you're that confident with your ADC.
Taste of blood
This rune is an amazing tool to win every trade using W. Make sure to keep an eye on it's cooldown to ensure optimal trades.
Zombie ward
This rune also gives bonus AP/AD upon ward kill/assist, and leaves a zombie ward.
*Combined with Ingenious Hunter you can sweep wards for days
Relentless hunter
Being a little more slippery is essential while being this squishy. I personally really like Ultimate Hunter if I assume my ultimate will set up great picks. Depending on your item plan Ingenious Hunter is also not a bad choice.
Manaflow band
It's hard to survive/sustain on Nami without a way to sustain your mana.
Scorch
This rune adds that little extra damage you need to become dominant in trades.
Keep an eye on it's cooldown so you time your trades on ideal moment.
˙.˙ Rune alternatives˙.˙
Presence of mind
This rune used to be really good for a champion like Nami but right now it feels a LOT weaker, it still gives you back some mana when you trade. So now that Spellthief's Edge more worth it again, it's also not bad to take this rune with it.
Cut down
I used to take Legend: Alacrity before but because I started prefering taking attack spead instead of adaptive damage I think it's better to use Cut Down. Taking Legend: Tenacity still is an optional choice.
Ingenious hunter
This rune make sure you always have your Redemption up for every fight. You can also spam your sweeping lens a bit more.
Ultimate hunter
If you do not like Ingenious Hunter this rune is a great option. You're able to cast your ultimate just a bit more often for powerful picks or disengage.

Glacial Augment
Personally I don't feel like Glacial is a reliable rune, but it's at least very fun to try out. It's a decent combination with Everfrost because this item allows another trigger. This rune is powerful in theory, so if you can make it work.. why not?
˙.˙What are Nami's abilities?˙.˙

It's useful to know what your abilities are, and how to use them. There are different ways to use them in different team compositions. So keep in mind to think for yourself. I wrote some utilization tips you should know to get started. (I hope they're not too obvious)
˙.˙Ability sequence˙.˙

The ability order is displayed below, I recommend maxing W Ebb and Flow first, after that I most often max E Tidecaller's Blessing especially now that it procs on abilities too. But if you're great at hitting your Q Aqua Prison you could consider maxing this ability before your E Tidecaller's Blessing because maxing your Q Aqua Prison lowers the cooldown, which makes you able to cast it more often in fights. Maxing your E Tidecaller's Blessing doesn't lower it's cooldown, it just increases the damage.
Ability Sequence
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

˙.˙Surging tides˙.˙


Passive
All allied champions touched by any of Nami's abilities gain 45 (+ 20% AP) bonus movement speed for 1.5 seconds, doubled when touched by Tidal Wave.
Your passive is a bit underrated, the movement speed is very useful in different situations. Use it to get around the map yourself by self-casting E Tidecaller's Blessing, even your Q Aqua Prison is able to speed allies up!

˙.˙Aqua prison˙.˙


Q





Nami sends a bubble towards the targeted area, dealing Magic damage magic damage to all enemies hit, revealing them,and suspending them for 1.5 seconds.

To utilize your Q Aqua Prison the best, you want to use this only when you're confident you'll hit something.
It's often better to rather hold onto your ability than using it without reason.
Situations that give you a better shot at hitting Q can be:
[≋]When you adc is kiting someone
[≋]When slow is applied on an enemy (like with you E Tidecaller's Blessing
[≋]When someone is cc'd by another ability like your R Tidal Wave
[≋]When someone doesn't have vision on you
[≋]When someone is cornered

When you are running away from someone melee, you can often stun them by casting Q Aqua Prison on top of yourself.

˙.˙Ebb and flow˙.˙


W



Nami unleashes a stream of water onto the target champion or herself, which then bounces to nearby unaffected champions up to twice, alternating between enemies, allies and herself.

Ebb and Flow heal power heals allies and deals magic damage to enemies, with each bounce being 85% (+ 7.5% per 100 AP) as effective as the previous one.

You can utilize your W in various ways like:

[≋]Trading using W on the enemy
[≋]Trading using W on yourself while walking up to an enemy (try using the ALT button for this)
[≋]Double heal your allies by making it bounce onto the enemy
[≋]In teamfights you can bounce W onto an enemy to reach an ally out of range

˙.˙Tidecaller's blessing˙.˙


E







Nami blesses the target allied champion or herself for 6 seconds, causing her target's next three basic attacks or abilities to each deal bonus magic damage and slow their target for 1 second.

This ability now counts as your magic damage, this means it will proc the following items/runes:







This is very important, because you can really help a bursty ally getting their kill with this. Your E Tidecaller's Blessing is now also a great tool to steal kills, when you apply this ability on the last attack for a kill.

You could use your E Tidecaller's Blessing to:

[≋]Give movement speed to an ally
[≋]Help an ally kite someone
[≋]Use it as a setup for your Q Aqua Prison
[≋]Get around the map faster (try using the ALT+E for this)
[≋]Empower an ally's damaging abilities.

˙.˙Tidal wave˙.˙


R





Nami summons a tidal wave that surges forth, dealing magic damage to all units it hits, knocking them up for 0.5 seconds and then slowing them for 2 − 4 (based on distance traveled) seconds.

You could use your R Tidal Wave as:

[≋]Follow up to an engage
[≋]Disengage
[≋]Picks, consider using it after you successfully caught someone with your Q






˙.˙Combos˙.˙

There are several combo's with your abilities you can use, here I'll list them. The thing is that you should always consider what's best in every situation.

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤The best way to land your Q﹥˙‧.✰˙‧


->
AA
->


This is possibly the most basic combo, a rule you have to hold on to. Use your E Tidecaller's Blessing on you or your carry, and try to always slow the enemy before you cast your Q Aqua Prison. If you need to do a little more damage you can cast your W Ebb and Flow right after you hit, look at the situation and see if you and your ally needs heals, or just need to do damage.

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤Utilizing your ultimate﹥˙‧.✰˙‧


->


This is the most reliable way to cc someone. Your ultimate Tidal Wave is best used later in a team fight or to peel your carry. It's best cast later in a team fight because people start to usually line up more. The best case scenario is to land a good Q Aqua Prison and then follow up with R Tidal Wave because during this combo the enemy cannot escape. But if you R>Q they have a small window to flash or dash out.

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤Another setup for your Q﹥˙‧.✰˙‧


->
->


Your abilities now get empowered if you cast E Tidecaller's Blessing on yourself which is why it's not a bad idea to slow someone with your W Ebb and Flow. This is also a good setup for your Q Aqua Prison to land.

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤Animation cancel﹥˙‧.✰˙‧


->


This combo is not very functional, but it's interesting how it cancels your W Ebb and Flow animation. This saves a few MS for you to do more. There used to be an ultimate cancel but riot already fixed that bug.
˙.˙Matchups˙.˙

If you're looking for a little more advice on support matchups, this is where you will find some. Remember, I'm not an expert and things can be based on experience. There are a lot of lanes that will be harder or easier depending on how good you are or the enemy is. The threat level will also variate depending on meta, but not in this chapter.

Make sure to click on the spoilers to reveal the text!

Still updating this chapter

Average threat level: Extreme (click here to view)



Average threat level: Major (click here to view)



Average threat level: Even (click here to view)



Average threat level: Minor (click here to view)



Average threat level: Tiny (click here to view)

Info choosing a mythic and runes [outdated]
Choosing mythic (click here to view)
Choosing runes (click here to view)
˙.˙What is the support role?˙.˙

There are mixed opinions on what the support role is supposed to be. But as far as I know is your main objective supporting your teammates to empower, especially the (ad)-carry. You achieve this mainly by:

[≋]Protecting your carry/teammates
[≋]Granting vision control
[≋]Engaging teamfights
[≋]Disengaging teamfights
[≋]Roaming to gank/ward or assist your jungler

Also by:
[≋]Keeping an eye on summoner cooldowns for your teammates, maybe even write them collectively down in chat for your team.
[≋]Keeping a good eye on the map and ping wherever necessary
[≋]Buying supportive items
[≋]Shotcalling for your team


˙.˙Warding˙.˙

A big part of being a support is focusing on vision control. Down here I will try to go over some tips and insight about what vision control is all about. If you want to know more about this I suggest looking up this guide about vision control because it goes super in-depth for every role. Besides all the info you may gather, experience will surely teach you the most.

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤Where do you place wards?﹥˙‧.✰˙‧


Listed below are some general tips on where you need to place wards. Make sure to expand the spoiler below for more in-depth tips about warding in specific situations.

[≋]Ward to get vision over the enemy. A little straight forward maybe. But it's important to know where enemy champions are to know if you can pick fights, contest an objective or even dive an enemy.
[≋]Ward according to the objectives. It's important to gain vision control over the area you're about to contest. This makes it easier for your team to position for a potential fight and harder for the enemy to contest the objective properly.
[≋]Ward the enemy jungle camps. By doing this you know where he's pathing and your team will have plenty of time to react.
[≋]Ward your own jungle camps. Especially when you're playing from behind it's important to cover your own jungle.
[≋]Place wards where enemies will engage from If you're sieging a turret or contesting an objective. Champions like Fiddlesticks, Zac, Rek'Sai and Nunu & Willump can set up powerful engages on your team from odd-places.
[≋]Cover a split-pushing ally or fed ally the enemy team will probably send more than 1 champion to kill this ally. Knowing they are around keeps your ally safer and can allow your team to respond by taking another objective.

[≋]Keep in mind you do not always have to ward where the enemy will be, but more likely will pass. Unless you do not pay attention these wards can be more useful.

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤When do you place wards?﹥˙‧.✰˙‧


Even though you have a lot of free time to place wards, it’s still an art to time your ward placements. You need to make sure the vision is on the right place at the right time so that you have the advantage over the enemy. Here are some things to keep in mind:

[≋]Especially early game you should try not to miss too much xp while going for a ward. It can be a disadvantage to be lvl 6 later than your opponent.
[≋]Don’t leave your carry vulnerable unless your adc is a champion Tristana Ezreal you should make sure your carry is safe. Be ready to instantly walk back to lane if the enemy decides to hard-engage.
[≋]When your jungler is around and possibly invading it’s the best time to place wards. He can back you up, and you can back him up if he plans on making a play somewhere.
[≋]When drake, herald or baron is about to be up and your team is taking control of the river it’s best to go for vision control. You can do it before your team arrives, but you’ll be less safe and the enemy can easily sweep your wards.
[≋]If you’re about to switch trinkets and got an extra ward, just place it wherever. Even if you’re just backing and got an extra ward make sure to place it. Random wards can be very effective.
[≋]Don’t rush dropping your last ward in case you need it mid-fight or for another objective.
[≋]Keep in mind wards last a total of 150 seconds (2 minutes and 30 seconds) Rift scuttler lasts 90 seconds. Think ahead!

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤Do not die while placing wards﹥˙‧.✰˙‧


Oh man.. The amount of supports that die while warding is tragic. If you know when the enemy support is warding you can often catch them off-guard. Make sure you're not that support! Here are some tips:

[≋]Make sure the enemy doesn't know your position! Some notice you leaving lane or have spotted you with a ward. This is why using sweeping lens during warding is really handy.
[≋]Use an ability in a unwarded bush to be safe
[≋]Know where the enemies are! If they just backed it's the safest moment to slip in some wards.
[≋]Try not to place wards alone. Bring an ally with the assistance ping + a ping on your warding item. This is my communication method. Don't be frustrated when you go alone, teammates often have better things to do.
[≋]Do not go for risky wards. If you do, make sure you have an opportunity to escape. It's often better to place a slightly worse ward, as long it grants vision on the enemy's position.
[≋]Not dying>vision. Keep in mind vision control is just an advantage. Just like a 4v5 is. If you're dead you might give the enemy a better advantage than just vision control.

More in-depth tips about warding (new+under construction)

˙.˙Supporting in lane˙.˙


You're also supposed to help your adc in lane. Your role is helping your adc get more farm, and try to get the enemy adc to farm less. You also want to 'win' you lane. I'll cover laning tips in another chapter. But I find it important here to mention how to help your adc control the wave and farm. Here are some tips to cover that.

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤Farming under turret﹥˙‧.✰˙‧

Farming is what your adc does, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't help him doing that. It's helpful, especially when the minions are under turret, to help your adc last hit them. Keep in mind, the melee minions need 2 towers shots and one auto attack to die (so you probably don't want to touch them) and caster minions need 1 tower shot and 2 auto attacks (before your adc bought ad). When you get the hang of this you should try to predict what the wave needs to be killed as optimal as possible. Try to start practising as soon as possible, because your adc will love you.

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤Freezing the wave﹥˙‧.✰˙‧


You probably do not want to attack minions at all, unless it's your intention to push, or get a level up sooner. Freezing the wave is when you try to keep the minions at 1 position. You mostly achieve this by tanking the minions on the spot you want them to crash. And also by last hitting the minions as late as possible, this is what your adc does. Freezing is best when you need to play safe, or withold the enemy from farm by zoning them while you freeze the wave at your side of the lane.

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤Pushing the wave﹥˙‧.✰˙‧


Another option is pushing the wave, you most often want to try this when the enemy is backing, or not present in lane. You do this by killing the minions as soon as possible. Keep in mind your adc still want to last hit them, so you probably should stop hitting them when they're getting low, or getting a lot of aggro by your minions.
Comparing to other players foy my elo, I have different and maybe even less game knowledge to offer.
I’ll give the best tips I can give and return to this chapter a few times as I learn more. This is a very compact version about game knowledge, I simply hope to give you some insight.

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤Before the minions crash in lane﹥˙‧.✰˙‧


League of Legends offers a lot of variety each game, which is why you should always consider your priorities in a game. Before the game actually starts is a good time to think about a few things so you can adjust your runes and mindset. For example:
  • What is my role in this matchup botlane? You need to know how aggressive or safe you can be, and where you should spend your mana on.
  • How can the enemy jungler gank us? There are a variety of jungler than can gank from unique places, or junglers who are easy to read in their clear. Make sure to know where you need to place your ward to properly cover this and play safe accordingly.
  • Should I roam to the midlane? There are some champions that greatly snowball from your help. Getting mid ahead means more pressure on the map so make sure to consider if it’s worth helping. Especially if the enemy mid doesn’t have much mobility.
You often consider this automatically, but to be aware of what's going on you'll have better decision making.


˙.˙Early game˙.˙

In the first waves you should always try to get level 2 before the enemy does, else back off!(level 2 happens when 3 melee and 3 caster minions have died) You can try to hit the minions to help them die faster for this advantage.
When your lane is going well, try to keep track of where the enemy jungler is, ping his starting position. And frequently look at the mini map to help your allies know when to back off.

You basically want to trade, especially if you have Spellthief's Edge. Your sustain is really great and you should use this to have some lane advantage (more HP, XP and a better position). A basic attack could already be good enough, the best moments to try and go for these cheeky auto attacks or trades are:
  • When the adc is about to last hit a minion, because then she cannot attack you (yet)
  • Especially when the enemy is going for a canon minion is a good moment to trade (also because the adc will move perdictable, which can be a good oppertunity for your Q Aqua Prison
  • When the melee support needs to execute a minion for their support item
  • When the enemy wasted their abilities (and should be afraid of you)
It's also great to get spellthief stacks off turret, when my adc recalls I often drop a few auto's off the turret because I recall as well. These oppertunities are also great to get a trade off, remember you don't HAVE to trade. But if you don't the enemy possibly will.


˙.˙Getting into mid-game˙.˙

Just fighting and chasing it not (always) the way to win. You probably want to try and get some objective control. You get this by not fighting recklessly when you are planning on getting one. It's best to back before you do, get some vision control, and try to be in the right position. Especially in the lower rankings your team doesn't always want to take objectives you so nicely set up, which is fine, it's always a good practice. Place some wards, sweep the area and especially don't die while doing that. (so try to take your teammates with you with the assistance ping)

Defensive wards are important too, this way you can defend better or even turn the fight around. When you notice the enemy grouping/going for an objective like a turret. Just place some simple defensive wards to make sure your team can play around it well.
These are great wards for sieging tier 2 turrets and general vision (creator=Picklepants)

Roaming is very important. I sometimes roam at level 2/3 already when something's up in river. When you're getting used to looking at the minimap all the time your response time is a great oppertunity for some free kills and (deep)wards.
You basically want to roam when:
  • Your lane is pushed in
  • When the enemy botlane backed
  • When the enemy botlane is dead
  • Maybe even when your ad died and their botlane doesn't move
  • When you come back from base
  • Whenever you can follow your jungler
    There are more oppertunities, but it comes with experience. Just keep in mind not to miss too much XP and try to protect your ADC with a ward.
˙.˙Finishing the game˙.˙

It's really important to know how to finish a game, especially lower rankings don't know how to do this. Which is why you probably need to take control and type/ping your team to do certain things. Especially in soloQ it's impossible to control your team, so try to point them into the right direction, but make sure to be nice.

There are few ways to finish a game, it's often decided between taking inhibitors, baron or elder dragon. An open inhibitor gives a lot of pressure to allow you to take other objectives like baron/dragon. You can consider going baron after getting an inhibitor, or back instantly to prevent the enemy from getting it. It is also possible, especially in team play, to have your toplaner split push, take inhibitors or end while you put pressure on baron.

If your team is planning on sieging/splitting for turrets, make sure to get vision in between the lanes. Don't force fights, unless you can easely dive the enemy at the moment because of split pressure. Sieging goes slowly, but surely with patience. If people tend to dive, make sure you live yourself, but try and help your team anyhow!

If your team has control over a major objective like dragon(soul), baron or elder dragon. You probably want to get vision control too, take 2 control wards and make sure the enemy has to risk their life to contest this objective. This could also be just a bait by your team. Your vision control in these cases can be the win for the team. Make sure you position a way so you can quickly help the team if someone engages in a fight. But don't hug your team so you are safe, and thus able to help your teammates better.
˙.˙Things to think about˙.˙

STILL UPDATING
When getting into fights it's easier to win them if you know what your priorities are. Once you learn to see these priorities, you will have more control over the outcome.
I am no expert, but I hope this chapter will open up your mind to new things to consider.

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤Ally carry and enemy carry﹥˙‧.✰˙‧


The most important thing to keep in mind is your win condition.
For example: you need to keep in mind if only one ally is powerful enough to carry, you have to protect him with all you got.
If the enemy only has one powerful carry, you need to disable and damage that carry as much as you can.
If there is a fed Rengar you need to place that Control Ward at the right time and be ready to protect his target.

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤Vision and kiting﹥˙‧.✰˙‧


It's also important to have a set-up for your fight.
Vision control is a way to set-up, but this can't always be perfect.
Keep an eye on where the enemies will most likely be, and know what to expect. For example some assasins like Zed and Qiyana could come later in a fight when you're out of position.

It's good to know if your team excels fighting on open places or in the jungle.
When a fight breaks out you don't always have to fully commit to it.
Allow your team to kite towards a position in your teams favor for example: with more vision control or after the enemy dropped their cooldowns.

Make sure to know when you need to play around your teammates, or when they have to play around you. What I try to say with this is that you shouldn't die often by your teammates mistakes.

Never be too stubborn with your knowledge
After all, League of Legends is a team game and it's often better to pick a bad fight as a team, than a good fight without one.

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤Positioning﹥˙‧.✰˙‧


Positioning well kind of depends on what kind of game you have. Some games is can be quite impossible to position well and you will die a lot.

You usually want to make sure you know your job each fight, usually it's sticking to your carry. You want to make sure not to be too close to your carry if you can get caught in potentional dangers.
You have to try staying out of range of danger, but in range to help your team.

Is it more important to stay far back and live or more important to stick by your ally? (as they can protect you too!)

˙.˙Priorities˙.˙

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤Disengage and peeling﹥˙‧.✰˙‧


Some games your team does not want to teamfight, or needs to pick fights at the right moment/location instead.
An example is being in the jungle vs a Qiyana/Anivia/Syndra or other 'zone control' damage champions. Or a teammate is splitpushing, leaving your team weak to a teamfight.

Your R is great for disengaging, it not only speeds up your allies double but also slows the enemy down by a lot.
Shurelya's Battlesong is also a great item to help your team get into a better position right after/before a fight breaks out.

From a better position you'd want to focus on protecting and peeling your allies.
What's often the threat to your adc? And how do you deal with that?

Make sure to keep R or Q if you expect someone to jump onto your carry.
You should also keep an eye on vision control as you reposition, enabling Oracle Lens or placing Control Wards to take away vision can be a small crucial play.

You'll probably get the hang of using E Tidecaller's Blessing fairly quickly. But I want to mention that in some cases, using E on yourself to slow someone may be more useful than using it to speed someone up.

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤Empowering﹥˙‧.✰˙‧


Some games your team may have great snowballers. I would think of Twitch, Jax or maybe even Lucian.
In these games you kill the enemy before they kill you, and often empowering your ally is the way to go here.
You'll often build Imperial Mandate or Shurelya's Battlesong together with Ardent Censer or Staff of Flowing Water.

In these cases it's important to time your abilities right, and be aggressive/instant with following up. Feel free to use your Q/R to mainly give your allies movementspeed.
(you need to focus on helping your team burst enemies)

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤Engaging﹥˙‧.✰˙‧


Personally I don't think Nami is best used as an engager, but she is great follow up. In case you do want to engage you most likely want to try it hidden in a bush or corner. The movementspeed from your R may also be an enabler for your team to engage.
(lower elo+even games)

‧˙✰.‧˙﹤Vision﹥˙‧.✰˙‧


Vision control during a fight can be crucial, even in laning phase. Smart players will use the bushes to avoid damage and placing a ward quickly in these bushes can be gamechanging.
When playing vs a camouflaging or champion that has traps, placing a Control Ward mid-fight will make it easier for you and your team to react.
˙.˙Play for fun!˙.˙
What I think is important is to make sure you enjoy your games. A good mentality gives the best winrate. Nami gives me a lot of joy in this game, mostly because I don't have to worry about hard counters. This champion always gets you a shot at winning, even if you lose early, hold on for lategame!

I hope you enjoyed my guide on Nami, I've put much work into this over time and I absolutely loved making it. I also hope you gained useful knowledge, and if you did, feel free to give this a like and maybe even a comment! I appreciate you reading the bottom part of this big guide.

Please remember this guide is made out of opinion and experience, be nice if you critisize, opinions are fine too! Feel free to ask any questions, because I didn't cover everything.

Drawn by Biyon

Image sources:


StarryHP(Cut image for banners)
Biyon(Conclusion image)
Rosyre(profile picture and intro picture)
Picklepantslol(Ward image)
Chibiterasuchan(General tips image)
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