By GamGem ResearchLast updated 20 Aug 2026 · 00:00
Swain
the Noxian Grand General
MageSupport
League of LegendsPatch 26.16MidRanked Solo/DuoEmerald+NA43,549 gamesSample data
Role snapshot (Mid)
- 51.2%
- Win Rate
- 8.5%
- Pick Rate
- 8.8%
- Ban Rate
43,549
Games
High
Confidence
Matchup map (Mid) — level 1–18
Conditional build matrix
| vs AP Burst | vs AD Assassins | vs Tanks | vs Sustain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mythic / Core |   |   |   |   |
| Core 2 |   |   |   |   |
| Core 3 | |   |   |  |
| Boots |  |  |  |  |
| Situational |  |   |  |  |
Popular build
20,033 games51.6%Win Rate
Flash
IgniteReliable build
14,371 games50.3%Win Rate
Flash
TeleportHigh observed win rate
5,226 games53.7%Win Rate
Flash
ExhaustRunes
Primary: Inspiration
Unsealed Spellbook
Magical Footwear
Time Warp Tonic
Approach Velocity
Secondary: Domination
Cheap Shot
Grisly Mementos
Shards
+9 Adaptive Force
+9 Adaptive Force
+10-180 Health (based on level)
Skill order
| Q | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| E | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| R | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
Ability details
Ravenous Flock
Swain's ravens collect Soul Fragments that heal him and permanently increase his maximum health.
Passive — never cast
Death's Hand
Swain unleashes several bolts of eldritch power that pierce through enemies. Enemies hit take more damage for each bolt they are struck by.
Cost 40/45/50/55/60 ManaCooldown 7/6/5/4/3sRange 750
Vision of Empire
Swain opens a demon eye that deals damage and slows enemies. Champions hit are revealed and also grant Swain a Soul Fragment.
Cost 60/65/70/75/80 ManaCooldown 22/21/20/19/18sRange 5500/6000/6500/7000/7500
Nevermove
Swain launches a wave of demonic power forward. It then returns to Swain and roots enemies it hits. Swain can then choose to pull all rooted champions closer. This ability has a shorter cooldown during Demonic Ascension.
Cost 50/55/60/65/70 ManaCooldown 12/11.5/11/10.5/10sRange 850
Demonic Ascension
Swain transforms into a demon and drains health from nearby enemy champions, minions, and neutral monsters. Swain can cast Demonflare to decimate and slow nearby enemies with a nova of soulfire. This form is indefinite as long as Swain drains enemy champions.
Cost 100 ManaCooldown 120sRange 650
Scaling — level 1–18
SwainMid average
1918
1918
1918
Counter plan — how to beat Swain
Dodge the primary — its rotation is one skillshot; sidestep it and the rest is chip
Track the roam — it is strongest where the enemy jungler already is
Punish the cooldown — Swain is exposed while its rotation is down
Ward the flank — vision is what turns its best opening into a worse one
Respect the spike — Riot rates the kit 8/10, so a practised player gets more out of it than the average
ARAM performance
- 49.4%
- Win Rate ▼ 0.9%
- 1.8%
- Pick Rate ▲ 5.2%
- 3.4%
- Ban Rate ▲ 0.0%
- Damage dealt
- 94.1%
- Damage taken
- 106.8%
- Healing
- 99.9%
- Shielding
- 107.5%
- Ability Haste
- +11
Best ARAM build
Patch timeline
We hold the rates, not the balance log. What actually changed each patch is in Riot’s own notes.
- 26.16Live now-0.6
- 26.14Sample win rate across this patch-0.4
- 26.11Sample win rate across this patch-0.3
- 26.08Sample win rate across this patch+0.0
- 26.05Sample win rate across this patch-0.3
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Methodology
- Data window
- 512,340 games on patch 26.16, Ranked Solo/Duo, NA. Last refreshed 20 Aug 2026.
- Rank aggregation
- Emerald+ and above, pooled. Splitting further leaves samples too small to separate a real effect from noise.
- Role assignment
- A champion is filed under the lanes it actually plays, not the one class it belongs to — which is why several appear in two.
- Counters
- A matchup, not a tier gap: how this champion does into that one specifically, over that pairing’s own games.
- Minimum sample
- The confidence indicator beside every rate is driven by how much of the window this champion appears in. A low reading means read the figure loosely, not that it is wrong.
- Why a build is not a cause
- The best-scoring build is the one the best-placed players happened to take. Correlation is what a rate can show; it is not evidence that buying those items caused the wins.
- Where the numbers come from
- Names, classes, lanes, abilities, items and runes are Riot Data Dragon. Win, pick and ban rates are derived samples — Riot publishes none of them, and nothing on this page presents one as measured.