Hi, I am a platinum elo support playing in EUW. My passion for thresh began in the beginning of season 4 and I have played over 200 games with thresh in rank since then. I have learned to play this champion through experience and through other great high elo supports that are far better than me. I made this guide so that beginner/intermediate thresh players might be able to learn from this guide and also share their knowledge with everyone!

p.s. I will also be willing to make guides for other supporters if you make a request in the comment box! However you might have to give me some time to get a lot of practice if it is a support I am not good at :)

Here is where you can view my account!: StarLightSupport's profile

So it starts...

Ignite is for your dominance during the laning phase, with ignite's ability to oppress healing effects, it very good against Heal which is what most adcs take. Early game presence means mid game presence which can lead to winning the game.

Ignite also goes well against supporters with healing like Sona, Nami etc




Exhaust is mostly for safety and pealing, if your enemy team has an assassin that is a high risk to your carries like Riven Fiora Rengar Kha'Zix Zed Katarina etc,. It would be a smart choice that looks at the game beyond the laning phase. Be ware, that with exhaust you could potentially be losing some kill pressure in bot lane.

#Tip Exhaust can be blocked by Morgana's Black Shield. So when laning against her take ignite!

This Utility-based mastery gives thresh the ability to maximize his early fighting potential. It also allows thresh to control the bottom lane aggression with the cool down reduction he gets from this mastery.

To add on, I would like to add that having a biscuit is a must-have choice on thresh as it gives the sustain that he needs with being very mana-hungry if you play him very aggressively. I like to be a support that roams a lot and be very active in warding their jungle or ganking mid which is why I don't all in my mastery points in combat. However if you are not used to roaming or don't roam at all, having a defense/offense based mastery would be a better choice than this one.

It is quite possible that sometimes you are unable to win your lane. Thresh shines when he makes those hooks in lane and get your adc the kills, but he also shines when he is able to make plays outside of botlane.

1. Easier said than done, but if you are able to put some autos on the enemy support and the ranged minions you will be able to hit level 2 first where you can go for a kill.

2. Roam when your lane is pushed back to your tower, but make sure your adc is safe.

3. If their support is squishy and you are not confident of hooking their adc ( Vayne Ezreal Sivir), go for the suppport! (Watch out that you are not walking blindly in to minions to pick fights, always think that their jungler might be around.)

Comments:
As your hook gives you a safer distance for you to harass the enemy and negate damage, there will be times when their bot is forced to return to base. THIS is the time when you would check the bushes for pinks, ward deeper (dont go in too deep blindly), and try roam to mid lane. Even if you are unable to get a kill at mid, the pressure you give their mid laner by erasing wards and showing up allows an easier lane for your mid laner.

You could also gank top lane with your jungler, however I do not recommend this unless you are confident of your adc's ability to survive without you. The timing to gank top is going straight top right after going base. Consider this especially if your top laner is low enough and you think they might consider a dive.

Frozen Heart is a good item in team fights that will reduce their AD Carry's damage output. It also provides thresh with some mana which he lacks mid/late game.


Locket of the Iron Solari is an excellent item vs teams that have AOE (Area of Effect) magic damage. Example: Fiddlesticks Annie Amumu Sejuani etc,. However it is not necessary that a team needs two of this item, so if you have already built Aegis of the Legion, but your top laner has finished Locket of the Iron Solari you can build it to Banner of Command


Mikael's Blessing is a good item against teams with a lot of cc, it will give your carry a chance to survive which = more damage dealt. Be sure that you are not stunned when you need to provide your carry with the cleanse. If you have a fed carry that you must save, going quicksilver is decent choice that can apply to many other supports.

However, in the current meta this puts thresh to be a very squishy support which is not very helpful in team fights. Only consider this when you really need that cleanse.


Turbo Chemtank is indeed a good item as it provides thresh with some mana and a speed boost. This item allows your team to disengage or engage whenever you want to. However because this is a core item for some top laners it is not an absolute must and can be replaced with other defensive items.


In all honesty, I think Zz'Rot Portal is a very good choice for any tank/supports, but mostly tanky supports in my opinion. It offers more tankiness than Guardian Angel and an extra helping hand while your team is trying to push towers across the map. Besides the speed boost you have when you are near towers allow you to fly across the map in no time.

Also, I do not think that Guardian Angel is a good item on thresh. Usually the fights won't drag on long enough for you to be able to revive and be useful as it already would have finished in yours or your enemy team's favor. This is the reason why I prefer Zz'Rot Portal as it allows me to stay alive longer in fights or any other defensive items rather than Guardian Angel.


Randuin's Omen is a secondary item against a heavy AD team, where it offers you the armor and health to tank their damage and also activating the item to slow them which will prevent them from having a free path to your carries that works together very well with thresh's ultimate: The Box.

Talisman of Ascension
The speed boost you get from Talisman of Ascension is great and is a very good item if you want to buy it mid/late game for your team to constantly be picking fights. You can also choose to go this item instead of righteous glory. However I am not suggesting that you should start ancient as relic shield provides you with more stability.


I would only recommend thornmail vs. full or very heavy ad teams.


If your role in your team is tilted towards initiating rather than pealing, it is nice to not get stuck by a stun while you are initiating. This also provides you with lots of magic resist.

Here are some things that you can think when casting Death Sentence:

1. When you are trying to Death Sentence from the side try aiming right behind the enemy, they will likely turn around.

2. If you use a movement speed item or Flash you can most likely guess that the enemy will try to use Flash or other escape tools to get away, but they can also simply turn around like they did in number 1. Try to show them early that you can Death Sentence very well, than pressure them to make them move where you want them to!

3. If you use Flash right after casting Death Sentence you are able to pull 3 times instead of the initial 2 times.

If you aren't confident in hitting your Death Sentence try to walk up and Flay first to ensure that your Death Sentence hits. BEWARE not to do this in every situation as the enemy will be able to deal free damage to you as you are walking up to them.

Here are some things you can think when casting Flay:

1. The green lines on that pictures are the ranges indicated by the Flay range. However, Flay actually reaches until the red lines. so It could be smart not to use smart cast and practice Flay's actual range.

2. Most thresh players will Flay inwards than cast The Box, However, that is giving the enemy to flash out of The Box without receiving the slow + damage. Practice flaying your enemies towards thresh's ultimate for a better kill secure.

Here is a skill that really helps defining who thresh really is. Some tips could be.. :

1. Use Dark Passage to check bushes before warding, this will save your life many times.

2. When setting up ganks, try to make a successful hook before throwing that lantern to your jungler. This will help secure kills + follow possible Flashs

3. During team fights, make sure that you are far enough from enemies so that your team mates can use it as a safe jump to escape out of their engages.

This is another great application of how to use thresh's skils. Play Video

Most Thresh players can't resist temptation of the reactivating Death Sentence to go in the middle of the enemy and doing your whole Flay The Box combo. You need to keep in mind however that your carries need protection too. This would mean that you have to think about not following your Death Sentence but still hooking the enemy so that your team can engage, but staying in the back line to Flay enemy engagers away.

Do go in however, when you deem necessary. Just make sure your carries are safe!


Make decisions, make plays, and peel for your team!