• Log InLog In
  • Register
Liquid`
Team Liquid Liquipedia
EDT 08:26
CEST 14:26
KST 21:26
  • Home
  • Forum
  • Calendar
  • Streams
  • Liquipedia
  • Features
  • Store
  • EPT
  • TL+
  • StarCraft 2
  • Brood War
  • Smash
  • Heroes
  • Counter-Strike
  • Overwatch
  • Liquibet
  • Fantasy StarCraft
  • TLPD
  • StarCraft 2
  • Brood War
  • Blogs
Forum Sidebar
Events/Features
News
Featured News
[ASL22] Ro24 Preview: Siren's Call8[ASL22] Ro24 Preview: Summer's End9Serral wins HomeStory Cup 2915Serral wins Maestros of the Game 244ByuL, and the Limitations of Standard Play3
Community News
Official StarCraft website teases new content ahead of BlizzCon?85Stellar Fest TWO the Moon (Dec 16-20)9Weekly Cups (August 24-30): Patches' balance mod takes over3New 3v3 BGH Ladder (and more) on ShieldBattery!41Weekly Cups (August 17-23): Zerg dominate the week6
StarCraft 2
General
Nexon wins bid to develop StarCraft IP content, distribute Overwatch mobile game SC4ALL: II Winner Will Earn a Spot at HSC 30! Weekly Cups (August 24-30): Patches' balance mod takes over Balance hotfix patch 5.0.16b (July 16) September World Ranking: herO leads, Serral climbs
Tourneys
2026 GSTL Announcement Sparkling Tuna Cup - Weekly Open Tournament Stellar Fest TWO the Moon (Dec 16-20) IntoTheTV X SOOP SC2 League : Weekly & Monthly SC2 INu's Battles#20 [BO.9]
Strategy
[G] Having the right mentality to improve
Custom Maps
Nexus Wars 2021 GUIDE [M] (2) Industrial Park
External Content
Mutation # 541 Binary Choice The PondCast: SC2 News & Results Mutation # 540 Dodge This Mutation # 539 Thunder Dome
Brood War
General
BW General Discussion Official StarCraft website teases new content ahead of BlizzCon? BGH Auto Balance -> http://bghmmr.eu/ New 3v3 BGH Ladder (and more) on ShieldBattery! Gypsy to Korea
Tourneys
Brood War in Budapest ! WORTEX 2026 BW Finals Small VOD Thread 2.0 KCM Race Survival 2026 Season 3 [Megathread] Daily Proleagues
Strategy
Odyssey Mineral Stack Saturation Replay Review Process - What do you do? Game Theory for Starcraft Fighting Spirit mining rates
Other Games
General Games
Nintendo Switch Thread Diablo IV EVE Corporation [Maplestory Hardcore] Let's Play~!! General RTS Discussion Thread
Dota 2
Official 'what is Dota anymore' discussion
League of Legends
[TL LoL EUW IHs] Teemo shall perish TSM pausing esports and CLG Dead
Heroes of the Storm
Heroes of the Storm 2.0
Hearthstone
Deck construction bug
TL Mafia
TL Mafia Power Rank TL Mafia Community Thread NeO.D_StephenKing vs This Guy From 1 Million Dance
Community
General
Artificial Intelligence Thread Things Aren’t Peaceful in Palestine US Politics Mega-thread Canadian Politics Mega-thread UK Politics Mega-thread
Fan Clubs
MarineLorD Fan Club The Creator Fan Club The ShoWTimE Fan Club
Media & Entertainment
Movie Discussion! Anime Discussion Thread
Sports
Football (Soccer) Thread TeamLiquid Health and Fitness Initiative For 2023 MLB/Baseball 2023 NBA General Discussion
World Cup 2022
Tech Support
Computer Build, Upgrade & Buying Resource Thread
TL Community
The Automated Ban List Northern Ireland Global Starcraft
Blogs
F* the Children and Get Off …
TrAiDoS
Dreaming of BW patches (mod…
c3rberUs
Regacy Esports: The Bh…
regacyesports
LOCKPICKING NOOB
LUCKY_NOOB
Customize Sidebar...

Website Feedback

Closed Threads



Active: 6026 users

[Champion] Swain - Page 3

Forum Index > LoL Strategy
Post a Reply
Prev 1 2 3 4 5 9 10 11 Next All
ptrpb
Profile Joined March 2011
Canada753 Posts
May 20 2011 20:27 GMT
#41
So I need some help playing Swain, mainly just exactly HOW to play him. I understand his combo and I build him as most guides suggest but I get targetted in team fights and generally get shat on because I'm under farmed.
Yesterday I was in a duo lane, it was Chogath + Swain (me) vs Mordekaiser and Sona and I couldn't do much without wasting my mana pool to absolute zero, then when I hit level 6 I was so underfarmed and zoned that I never recovered.
So I guess the issue is, how2earlygameSwain?

I have the Northern Frontier skin, so it's an obligation to me that I become godly with him.
MBAACC | SG | shit at fighting games
NeoIllusions
Profile Blog Joined December 2002
United States37500 Posts
May 20 2011 20:42 GMT
#42
Swain needs solo. His spells cost a lot so he needs just about every last hit to keep his mana up with his passive. If you're going to lane bot, try Brand.
ModeratorFor the Glory that is TeamLiquid (-9 | 155) | Discord: NeoIllusions#1984
Tooplark
Profile Joined October 2008
United States3977 Posts
May 20 2011 21:23 GMT
#43
Step 1: get a solo
Step 2: be careful with your mana. Only harass when they can't break Q tether easily and BOTH Q and E are up.
Step 3: become good at last-hitting minions
Step 4: get mp5/lvl blues or yellows (OR right now just rush philostone)
WHAT POW'R ART THOU WHO FROM BELOW HAST MADE ME RISE UNWILLINGLY AND SLOW
Ruken
Profile Blog Joined April 2009
United States858 Posts
May 23 2011 05:34 GMT
#44
Swain officially one of the only champs that can beat rigged as revolver vlad in lane.
MIK Terran
El Hombre Lobo
Profile Joined May 2011
United States24 Posts
May 24 2011 16:49 GMT
#45
Swain is not easy to play unless you solo. I suggest to not auto attack. League of legends is about teh micro. U MUST MICRO HARDER
lolwut?
ManBearPig
Profile Blog Joined July 2007
Belgium207 Posts
May 31 2011 16:47 GMT
#46
Did I miss anything or is there a 3 page Swain thread without anyone mentioning skilling order?
Btw I think Hotshot is going something like 1 or 2 philostones -> cata -> RoA -> deathcap ?
SHr3DD3r
Profile Joined March 2009
Pakistan2137 Posts
May 31 2011 16:53 GMT
#47
Its in the OP....
And I don't really think getting philo stones on AP carries is really viable. But on Swain it sounds like it would be really useful. (Manahog that he is).

Hit them hard! Hit them low! - Forever a Bisu Fan!~!
Tooplark
Profile Joined October 2008
United States3977 Posts
May 31 2011 17:13 GMT
#48
On November 19 2010 14:01 Tooplark wrote:
Skills: R>E>Q>W wins lanes against anyone who has to get close to you or who you have to get close to. Take a point in W as you feel appropriate. Max EW if you can't get good Qs ever. Max EW in a duo lane if you're partnered with someone with a good slow or stun.

WHAT POW'R ART THOU WHO FROM BELOW HAST MADE ME RISE UNWILLINGLY AND SLOW
Craton
Profile Blog Joined December 2009
United States17303 Posts
May 31 2011 18:39 GMT
#49
On June 01 2011 01:47 ManBearPig wrote:
Did I miss anything or is there a 3 page Swain thread without anyone mentioning skilling order?
Btw I think Hotshot is going something like 1 or 2 philostones -> cata -> RoA -> deathcap ?

Yes, he opens Faerie Charm, hp pot x6, mana pot x2 and then builds it into a Philo. The idea is to never leave the lane.
twitch.tv/cratonz
godemperor
Profile Joined October 2010
Belgium2043 Posts
Last Edited: 2011-08-20 16:17:51
August 20 2011 16:17 GMT
#50
I recently played swain on a friends account, he was a lot of fun, but do you think he is viable at higher elo play (1500) cos I rarely see swain on ranked games. He is on tier 2 on elementz tier list, but like half of the champions are on tier 1. Recently got my 10 friend referral, thinking about buying him with the RP.
crate
Profile Blog Joined May 2009
United States2474 Posts
August 20 2011 16:32 GMT
#51
On August 21 2011 01:17 godemperor wrote:
I recently played swain on a friends account, he was a lot of fun, but do you think he is viable at higher elo play (1500) cos I rarely see swain on ranked games. He is on tier 2 on elementz tier list, but like half of the champions are on tier 1. Recently got my 10 friend referral, thinking about buying him with the RP.

Every champ is viable at 1500.
We did. You did. Yes we can. No. || http://crawl.akrasiac.org/scoring/players/crate.html || twitch.tv/crate3333
Qualm
Profile Joined December 2009
721 Posts
August 20 2011 16:34 GMT
#52
On August 21 2011 01:32 crate wrote:
Show nested quote +
On August 21 2011 01:17 godemperor wrote:
I recently played swain on a friends account, he was a lot of fun, but do you think he is viable at higher elo play (1500) cos I rarely see swain on ranked games. He is on tier 2 on elementz tier list, but like half of the champions are on tier 1. Recently got my 10 friend referral, thinking about buying him with the RP.

Every champ is viable at 1500.

Frankly, every champion is viable in Solo Queue.
godemperor
Profile Joined October 2010
Belgium2043 Posts
August 20 2011 16:42 GMT
#53
On August 21 2011 01:34 Qualm wrote:
Show nested quote +
On August 21 2011 01:32 crate wrote:
On August 21 2011 01:17 godemperor wrote:
I recently played swain on a friends account, he was a lot of fun, but do you think he is viable at higher elo play (1500) cos I rarely see swain on ranked games. He is on tier 2 on elementz tier list, but like half of the champions are on tier 1. Recently got my 10 friend referral, thinking about buying him with the RP.

Every champ is viable at 1500.

Frankly, every champion is viable in Solo Queue.

Thats great to hear, just bought him, swain so much fun! Anyways would you recommend getting a frozen heart on him, since he is a fairly tanky caster who relies on staying close and needs a lot of mana.
Tooplark
Profile Joined October 2008
United States3977 Posts
Last Edited: 2011-08-20 17:39:31
August 20 2011 17:39 GMT
#54
Hourglass should cover your armor needs and the active is amazing on Swain.
Tear/Cata should cover your mana needs and build into more useful items on Swain.
Cooldowns aren't really the limiting factor on Swain, and you should always have blue buff which gets you to 40% cdr with masteries and blue elixir.
WHAT POW'R ART THOU WHO FROM BELOW HAST MADE ME RISE UNWILLINGLY AND SLOW
Cloud9157
Profile Joined December 2010
United States2968 Posts
November 10 2011 22:47 GMT
#55
Just had the most boring lane ever.

Swain vs Vlad. You can probably already guess, but there was only 1 kill (came close to killing him a few times) done by me thanks to the help of GP's ult.

Then I didn't even go back till around 15/20 minutes in. Had 4.8k gold and went straight for RoA and Sorc boots.

After I killed him, the lane went back and forth forever. We both sustain so well. Ran into mana problems a few times, but I usually got back to 1/2 if not mostly full.

My tower didn't even go down the entire game, about 35 minutes total before they surrendered.

Swain OP?
"Are you absolutely sure that armor only affects the health portion of a protoss army??? That doesn't sound right to me. source?" -Some idiot
57 Corvette
Profile Blog Joined July 2010
Canada5941 Posts
November 10 2011 22:56 GMT
#56
On November 11 2011 07:47 Cloud9157 wrote:
Just had the most boring lane ever.

Swain vs Vlad. You can probably already guess, but there was only 1 kill (came close to killing him a few times) done by me thanks to the help of GP's ult.

Then I didn't even go back till around 15/20 minutes in. Had 4.8k gold and went straight for RoA and Sorc boots.

After I killed him, the lane went back and forth forever. We both sustain so well. Ran into mana problems a few times, but I usually got back to 1/2 if not mostly full.

My tower didn't even go down the entire game, about 35 minutes total before they surrendered.

Swain OP?


Swain vs Vlad is def a boring lane, but if you can land your W before he pools and unload your combo, it shouldn't be too hard. Once he hits level 9, it is basically a farming contest, but if you can get a kill or two before that it is no problem.

W>E>Q>Ignite>R> Walk with him until he is dead or the tower forces you back
Survival is winning, everything else is bullshit.
Alaric
Profile Joined November 2009
France45622 Posts
Last Edited: 2011-11-10 23:07:26
November 10 2011 23:05 GMT
#57
Depends. I know I build to be a little obnoxious (and ask to get ignited) with RoA sorcs into Will/SV, which makes me a bit frail in the first teamfights, where I generally get burst down fairly quickly. Then I get Will, some charging on RoA, one or two more levels, and once they can't get me down in a single burst I mainly try to bait them to chase me (spells on CD but the ult helps contributing and not dying) so the rest of my team focus them.
What I found is that most of the time people still try to burst me after I become really hard to kill, wasting their potential to pin someone down. If you can't burst Swain and he's not fed, just ignore him for higher priority targets, since it takes so long if he survives the engage phase.

He's really weak against other casters early though, I find. Low range, need to autoattack to make torment win trades or be efficient damage-wise (so you take aggro to harass), and ranged champs are hard to keep in Q for full. He's a better solotop against gap closer champs, but I don't see many people accepting to send an AP top.
Cant take LMS hipsters serious.
spinesheath
Profile Blog Joined June 2009
Germany8679 Posts
November 10 2011 23:07 GMT
#58
And here I thought that Swain shuts Vlad down pretty hard at early levels...
If you have a good reason to disagree with the above, please tell me. Thank you.
Haemonculus
Profile Blog Joined November 2004
United States6980 Posts
November 10 2011 23:42 GMT
#59
Swain wrecks vlad hardcore in my experience o.o;
I admire your commitment to being *very* oily
mrgerry
Profile Joined September 2008
United States1508 Posts
November 11 2011 01:11 GMT
#60
Swain v Vlad is heavily a matchup in swain's favor. Sadly, Vlad has been nerfed so many times that he's a pretty rare sight. Swain has some of the strongest harrass early levels while Vlad's sustain isn't anything special nor is his damage. So you just patiently wait for him to go in for that creep kill then eq auto like the nasty birdman you are then watch his hitpoints go away. As long as you get your cata in a fairly early timing window this early advantage will last for awhile until he gets his spellvamp and MR. Then you will sit there with your blue farming away and he will keep farming away.

And Rugfeeder is a liar, Frozen heart is a boss item on swain =)
Prev 1 2 3 4 5 9 10 11 Next All
Please log in or register to reply.
Live Events Refresh
OSC
12:00
Masters Cup 151 Open Qualifier
Liquipedia
Sparkling Tuna Cup
10:00
Weekly #145
ByuN vs GgMaChineLIVE!
herO vs TBD
ByuN467
CranKy Ducklings368
CranKy Ducklings SOOP74
LiquipediaDiscussion
[ Submit Event ]
Live Streams
Refresh
StarCraft 2
ByuN 488
StarCraft: Brood War
Britney 46137
Bisu 3585
Zeus 2069
Shuttle 1475
actioN 721
Hyuk 614
firebathero 379
Pusan 281
Soulkey 272
Mini 258
[ Show more ]
Hyun 185
Killer 165
hero 69
JYJ 61
910 59
Sea.KH 53
Hm[arnc] 52
NaDa 45
Bale 43
Barracks 34
soO 34
sSak 29
Yoon 28
Sharp 26
HiyA 23
Aegong 20
SilentControl 13
Free 13
Noble 7
Dota 2
Gorgc3800
qojqva1289
resolut1ontv 169
Pyrionflax147
Counter-Strike
x6flipin327
kRYSTAL_100
Super Smash Bros
Mew2King77
Heroes of the Storm
Khaldor254
Other Games
singsing2321
B2W.Neo937
XaKoH 190
Organizations
Other Games
gamesdonequick1067
BasetradeTV90
StarCraft: Brood War
lovetv 10
[ Show 9 non-featured ]
StarCraft 2
• AfreecaTV YouTube
• intothetv
• Kozan
• IndyKCrew
• Migwel
StarCraft: Brood War
• BSLYoutube
• STPLYoutube
• ZZZeroYoutube
League of Legends
• Jankos1784
Upcoming Events
Shopify Rebellion Sundays
2h 34m
Mixu vs TBD
Spirit vs TBD
Clem vs TBD
Patches Events
3h 34m
OSC
11h 34m
Afreeca Starleague
21h 34m
Soma vs Shuttle
BeSt vs Rush
WardiTV Weekly
22h 34m
Monday Night Weeklies
1d 3h
Afreeca Starleague
1d 21h
Leta vs ggaemo
Jaedong vs Queen
GSL
1d 22h
PiGosaur Cup
2 days
Kung Fu Cup
2 days
[ Show More ]
Replay Cast
3 days
The PondCast
3 days
KCM Race Survival
3 days
Escore
4 days
IntoTheTV X SOOP
4 days
CranKy Ducklings
5 days
Sparkling Tuna Cup
6 days
Liquipedia Results

Completed

Proleague 2026-09-02
PiG Sty Festival 8.0
Light Tournament 2026

Ongoing

KCM Race Survival 2026 Season 3
K-JUNGMAN
ASL Season 22
Super Anchor Qualifying S3
CSL 2026 AUTUMN (S22)
Acropolis #5
Acropolis #5 - TRS
RSL Revival: Season 6
Calamity Invitational
Big Dog Cup 2026 Div 1
BLAST Open Fall 2026
Esports World Cup 2026
Esports World Cup 2026: LCQ
BLAST Bounty Summer 2026
BLAST Bounty Summer Qual
Stake Ranked Episode 3
XSE Pro League 2026

Upcoming

Escore Tournament S3: King of Kings
Blizzard Classic Cup 2026
Acropolis #5 - GSA
Acropolis #5 - GSB
Acropolis #5 - GSC
SC4ALL II: Brood War
HSC XXX
Stellar Fest 2: Lunar Cup
SC4ALL II: StarCraft II
Kung Fu Cup 2026 Grand Finals
RSL Offline Finals
BLAST Rivals Fall 2026
IEM Beijing 2026
Stake Ranked Episode 5
PGL Masters Bucharest 2026
1win Private Club #2
Thunderpick World Champ. '26
ESL Pro League Season 24
Stake Ranked Episode 4
1win Private Club #1
Logitech G Play Connect 2026
SL StarSeries Fall 2026
FISSURE Playground #3
TLPD

1. ByuN
2. TY
3. Dark
4. Solar
5. Stats
6. Nerchio
7. sOs
8. soO
9. INnoVation
10. Elazer
1. Rain
2. Flash
3. EffOrt
4. Last
5. Bisu
6. Soulkey
7. Mini
8. Sharp
Sidebar Settings...

Advertising | Privacy Policy | Terms Of Use | Contact Us

Original banner artwork: Jim Warren
The contents of this webpage are copyright © 2026 TLnet. All Rights Reserved.