Welcome to the Best Maokai Alive

Recently Updated my first build for season 3 YES THAT IS RIGHT NEW ITEMS

Listen to this song while reading: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJbgzyiE4XY


*Maokai can be played so many different ways. I like to normally play him as a Tanky/AP. A good Maokai will adjust his build every game depending on the other team's champs. I will be making several builds for different situations as I have time. My first build I call Support Maokai. We act as a tanky support in this build, but can still drop a lot of AOE DMG.

Quick Hints

Don't spam your E at low levels. I see so many Maokai throw 10 saplings bf they get it to lvl 2. That is a Wast of Mana. Your E does not do enough dmg at low levels to really help. I throw 1-3 saplings until it gets to lvl 2.

Mao has a great combo of spells that ppl never use with him. The beginners one is W,E,R,Q,R (Throw the Sapling (E) so it just hits the champ when it lands but also behind them so when they run away it hits them). This combo can easily take 1/2 of a squishes life. When you drop R you need to make sure you blow it up again while the champ is still in the circle.

When you root a champ I run behind them, wait for them to unroot then drop the Q. This pushes them up the lane to help land your other spells and help your Team pounce on them.



This Maokai build is mostly meant for dominion. I recently updated it to use all the new items. This Maokai guide will make you see how much of a beast maokai is. No other maokai build / maokai guide talk about dominion but he is a legit champ on it.

Ignite This is great to add a bit more Dmg to your combo. Also use it against AD with life steal!!!

Flash Personal favorite. Lets you cover a large distance when combined with W Twisted Advance to catch champs. It is also great for getting out of team battles when your health is almost gone.

Exhaust Can be good, We have slows and roots though so not a great pick.

Mao has a great combo, but you need to be quick to pull it off. First I put my Deathfire to my 1 and changed the key bindings so that it smartcasts. I also change my keybindings to smartcast my q,w,r. I like to keep my E regular so I can see range and AOE.

Key buttons for initiate: W,1,E,R,Q (D ignight). Without smart casting you can't drop this combo fast enough. This combo will kill squshies in 1 combo, Yes one, and man do they not expect that from a Maokai

ARCANE SMASH This is important spell in your combo. You drop this right after an enemy has unrooted. Run behind them and use ARCANE SMASH. Remember the combo WER[Q]..R. Slows them and pushes them up the lane. Also use it when an Enemy is chasing and you need to slow them down.

Twisted Advance Gotcha! This normally will be used to initiate and the first spell in your combo. [W]ERQR. Can be amazing if used well with a team mate. You can use this with Flash to catch those champs who run for it. WQRER

Sapling Toss This is your Skill shot. A ton I could talk about but I will just give pointers for now.
-Don't spam this when you have 1 skill shot it aka lvl 1 and 2. You should have over 50% mana when you get to lvl 3.
-Usually you want to throw it right behind the person, so the tip of the circle lands on them and then the sapling can chase them down.
-Its great for farming minions
-WQR[E]R

Vengeful Maelstrom Real helpful skill if used correctly. It can cause a Ton of AOE damage in team fights. Especially when you add in your Saplings. The cool down is quick, and I will often drop this in my combo to add 200-400 damage. The 20% reduction from damage is very helpful in team fights as well.

This build is focused on helping the team win. You will have a ton of assists, and not many deaths. I normally get a 2-1 in KD with a boat load of assists.

Catalyst the Protector I get this right off the bat. You don't need boots for the first fight in Dominion. This great health, mana, and a nice heal every level.

Boots I grab these when I go back

Rod of Ages I rush this to get as much of the buff as possible. In most Dominion games it will be at full by the end.



Mercury's Treads I normally get these with Mao. It very much depends of build the other team though.

After these the build will change based on the other team.


Abyssal Mask: Reduces enemy MR by 20. This may not seem like a lot, but it is huge against squishy who normally only have 30 MR at LVL 18. This means that they are only blocking 11% of Magic instead of 23%, and that's not just for you that's for the Whole Team.

Frozen Heart: Reduces the attack speed on nearby enemies by 20%. Against a strong AD team or Champ this is so powerfully helpful for your team. The item also works well on Mao, 99 Armor, 20% CD and a bunch of Mana so you can start spamming your E :)

Deathfire Grasp Is awesome on Maokai. Put it in your 1 spot. Use it as soon as your snare them to get a HUGE burst. If you do your combo right (W 1 E R run behind Q Ignite). You can kill most squishes. If they do get away your snare should pop up again in a sec so just chase them down and finish them off. Man do they not expect to get killed in one combo by Maokai. Also great for getting a large chunk of health off of those pesky Tanks.

Sunfire Aegis Great item for Maokai. Health, Armor and some more nice AOE Damage. You do so much AOE Damage in a fight it should be illegal. I will normally get this on him first because it makes him so much more tanky.

Abyssal Mask This can be a great item on Maokai. Since this build does not have a ton of MR (24 from runes 25 from boots) This can be your MR answer. I will normally get this last, but If they are heavy AP I will get this after Deathfire Grasp. If they are crazy heavy AP I will grab [[

The twisting magical energies unleashed by mages during the Rune Wars caused an incredible amount of devastation to the natural world. The League was established to control the use of this magic by confining it to the Fields of Justice. By limiting its use to there, they thought that they could prevent it from doing further harm to the environment. It seemed that they were successful until Maokai came into being. During a League match on The Twisted Treeline, Maokai, an ancient oak that stood above the upper jungle, spontaneously roared to life. Ripped from the natural balance by arcane forces, his sentience was forged in chaos. Before the Adjudicators of the League could step in and suppress him, he slew all six champions participating in the match. The scholars of the Arcanum Majoris took a keen interest in him, as they were eager to discover the secrets of his animation.
Maokai was furious, however. He abhorred the existence that was thrust upon him; he felt it was a corruption of nature. He learned to communicate with people in hopes of finding a way to be returned to his former, true state. Seizing the opportunity, the League offered a trade. They would research a way to revert him so long as he agreed to fight in the League of Legends. Maokai was indifferent to verdicts rendered by the League, but he was eager to punish summoners for their wanton use of magic. He agreed to the terms under one condition: once they learned how to turn him back, they would never animate another tree again. He wears a lantern on the Fields of Justice to set him apart from the other trees, and as a warning to the “animals” that would do him harm.

“I will use this power until I am free of it.”
―Maokai