In a matchup where you and your bot laner dominate- you should take Ignite . Otherwise in any other matchup where you aren't sure, Exhaust is the way to go.


Aftershock - gives you the engage tankiness you need. If you plan to play risky and make plays happen you will need this rune.

Guardian - gives you survivability in and out of lane. Take it if you plan on playing passive and going for the late game tank you want to be. Still doesn't prevent you from playmaking.

Bone Plating - gives you much needed tankiness in the laning phase and beyond. Helps to deal with enemy poke.

Conditioning - as a boring tank you must take this rune to keep you going strong for the late game where you will be tanky as all hell.

Second Wind - take only if you are in a hard poking lane, it's just not worth giving out early kills just for hope you will be able to be a hard tank later.

Unflinching - a perfect fit for you to counter enemy CC.

Hextech Flashtraption - if you start on the top side of the map this rune can help you especially with ganking mid lane through raptors. Even if you aren't top side you can still take the rune, it gives you hard play making potential if you use it right.

Magical Footwear - a more safer rune if you don't trust your Alistar skills or play making skills whatsoever.

Biscuit Delivery - gives you sustain throughout the laning phase. Even if you aren't dealing with a lot of poke you might still use the biscuits. Just try playing more aggressive and the biscuits will cover for any mistakes you've made or unneeded poke you've taken.

Approach Velocity - if you aren't in a hard poking lane which requires the biscuits as a second secondary rune choice, then you should take this instead.

When playing Phase Rush Alistar always take Exhaust as your second summoner spell.



Phase Rush - solves the problem all Alistar players a struggling with- the E stun after your W->Q combo. After you do that combo press E immediately and that will proc your Phase Rush . From then on you have to maintain pace with the enemy you want to stun as you stack up. The great thing is that it doesn't really take much out of your tankiness and it gives you a whole new level of playmaking. You can use it offensively like I already mentioned or defensively - do the combo and use your bonus Movement Speed to get away. It's great- you should try it and use it.

Nullifying Orb - a desperate call for help versus hard poking Magic Damage laners such as Brand, Karma and Zyra. If you don't trust yourself staying alive around them, take it.

Nimbus Cloak - gives you more Movement Speed that you can use to your advantage. I advise you taking it unless you need the Nullifying Orb . Just like your main rune you can use this offensively and defensively. Keep in mind that your ult doesn't only give you extra tankiness but works as a Cleanse .

Manaflow Band - if you don't need the Nullifying Orb and don't feel sure about how you would handle Nimbus Cloak , then take this rune. It's safe and helpful with your mana sustain, making you more dangerous for the enemy team.

Celerity - the more Movement Speed, the better. This rune is a key part of your build so go with it every time.

Waterwalking - since the other two options are not as useful, pick this one. Again, it gives you Movement Speed which is key but also gets you faster to mid lane when roaming.

Bone Plating - gives you much needed tankiness in the laning phase and beyond. Helps to deal with enemy poke.

Conditioning - as a boring tank you must take this rune to keep you going strong for the late game where you will be tanky as all hell.

Second Wind - take only if you are in a hard poking lane, it's just not worth giving out early kills just for hope you will be able to be a hard tank later.

Hextech Flashtraption - gives you even more playmaking ability. You can use it as an engage tool, to make picks or escape sticky situations.

Biscuit Delivery - with these runes (Sorcery Primary;Inspiration Secondary) you lack sustain in lane so the biscuits will do just that.

I've played a few Ranked games with this build and won most of them so ye.. you can use it in Ranked.

Always take both Flash and Teleport as your summoner spells.



Grasp Of The Undying - good in most melee matchups where you can use it often. Gives you bonus magic damage as well as a heal and permanent health gain.

Aftershock - good in a ranged or hard melee matchup. You will be using it more often than Grasp Of The Undying . Gives you extra tankiness when you engage and apply your combo. While your E is stacking and your circling around your enemy, the damage you're taking is reduced greatly as well as it gives you some more damage when the aftershock effect ends.

Bone Plating - gives you much needed tankiness in the laning phase and beyond. Helps to deal with enemy poke.

Second Wind - gives you much needed sustain during your laning phase especially because you buy Doran's Ring first instead of Doran's Shield.

Revitalize - works great with your passive and Second Wind rune. To get the most out of it count the stack on your passive and use it as often as possible (via lane minions and your CC combo).

Triumph - a really important rune that gives you back 12% of your Max Health when you kill or assist killing an enemy champion. It might save you from a turret shot or just help you get back into a team fight.

Legend: Alacrity - your bonus Attack Speed is really important when you're trading with your opponent. When doing your combo you will want to auto your enemy as much as possible and this rune helps you do it for crazy amounts of damage for a ''support'' champion.

Legend: Tenacity - if you are in a hard lane where Attack Speed won't help you out and if the enemy team has a few champions with hard CC, then you pick this rune with Triumph.

Coup De Grace - if you are in a hard lane where Attack Speed won't help you out but the enemy team lacks hard CC you should get this rune along with Triumph . It will greatly help you out with trading with your enemy and even give you a kill potential in lane.

DO NOT USE THIS IN RANKED.. YET

Always take Flash as the first summoner spell. The same goes for Teleport. Once 6 minutes have passed you can Recall and Teleport back to lane. Poke your opponent if able to and when you feel like you will be able to kill them- swap out the Teleport which is on cooldown for an Ignite . If your jungler is calling for a gank you can take Exhaust . If you need to chase someone down the Top lane, Ghost is a good option. Also if you need to escape a bad situation like an enemy Warwick or Nunu & Willump speeding towards you then Ghost might just save your life.



Unsealed Spellbook - lets you swap out your summoner spells for new ones out of combat and also lowers their cooldowns.

Hextech Flashtraption - if you are premade with a good jungler or your playmaking skills are just that good you should take this rune. It's kind of risky but it can get you into team fights and give you a pick on someone or help you escape. That's a real man's rune.

Magical Footwear - a safer option from this rune branch. It's free 300g after all.

Biscuit Delivery - great sustain in lane. It also is powered by your next rune choice which will be:

Time Warp Tonic - with your Corrupting Potion and Biscuit Delivery, it only makes sense to take the Tonic. Not only does it empower your biscuits and potions but it gives you 5% Movement Speed! This should be noted because this Movement Speed bonus is really important.

Triumph - a really important rune that gives you back 12% of your Max Health when you kill or assist killing an enemy champion. It might save you from a turret shot or just help you get back into a team fight.

Coup De Grace - bonus damage output and kill potential. With your aggressive runes, it's exactly what you need to deal some real damage.