Champion Guide

Smolder Guide

By LoLSuggest

ADC

Smolder is one of the strongest scaling marksmen in the game. Dragon Practice gives him a stack whenever he hits an enemy champion with an ability or last-hits a unit with Super Scorcher Breath, and all of his abilities deal bonus damage based on his stacks. Super Scorcher Breath is a point-and-click fireball that gains an explosion at 25 stacks, extra fireballs at 125 stacks and a true-damage burn that executes low-health enemies at 225 stacks. Achooo! is a long-range skillshot that damages and slows, Flap, Flap, Flap lets him fly over terrain with a burst of speed while firing at nearby enemies, and MMOOOMMMM! calls his mother to breathe fire in a huge line, slowing enemies in the centre and healing him if it passes over him.

Recommended Setup

Our recommended Smolder build

Our recommended runes, summoner spells and items. Compare build win rates on the stats page.

Items

Starting Items

Core Items

Situational Items

Start Doran's Blade and a Health Potion, and buy Sheen or Caulfield's Warhammer early. Essence Reaver is a must-buy first item, even before boots, followed by Gluttonous Greaves and Black Cleaver, then Spear of Shojin for ability haste and health, Rapid Firecannon for movement speed and range, and Guardian Angel for safety. A crit version goes Essence Reaver, Infinity Edge, Rapid Firecannon, Lord Dominik's Regards, Guardian Angel and Endless Hunger. Run Deathfire Touch with Nimbus Cloak, Celerity and Gathering Storm, plus Cash Back and Cosmic Insight; Fleet Footwork with Triumph, Legend: Haste and Cut Down gives more sustain and safety in poke-heavy lanes. Take Flash with Barrier in most lanes, Exhaust in disengage lanes, Cleanse against heavy crowd control, or Teleport in farm lanes. Max Q, then W, then E.

Runes

Primary Tree

Secondary Tree

Summoner Spells

Skill Max Order

Strengths

Massive late-game scaling: at 225 stacks his abilities deal true damage and execute.
Long-range abilities and huge area damage in teamfights.
Flap, Flap, Flap lets him fly over walls to escape or chase.

Weaknesses

Weak early game; he needs to farm stacks safely before fighting.
Immobile and very vulnerable to crowd control when Flap, Flap, Flap is down.
Lane bullies like Draven, Caitlyn and Lucian make his early game hard.

Laning Phase

In the laning phase focus on two things: efficient farming and accumulating Dragon Practice stacks. Use Super Scorcher Breath to secure several minions at once rather than one, occasionally poke with Achooo! for extra stacks, and keep Flap, Flap, Flap for escaping or a confirmed kill, especially when you do not know where the enemy jungler is. Missing a few minions is fine if it avoids a bad trade that forces you out of lane. Freeze near your tower to stay safe and set up ganks, and push only when you have an advantage or need to reset.

Mid & Late Game

Take your tower early, then move to mid lane to siege and skirmish while you keep stacking; entering late teamfights with at least 225 stacks is like having a permanent Elder buff. In fights, let your tanks engage first and fight front to back, position slightly farther back than a normal marksman and hit the closest target, since you melt tanks too. Save MMOOOMMMM! for a kill, objective control or disengage rather than using it whenever it is up, and aim Achooo! and your ultimate where enemies will be. Farm side lanes only with vision and near walls you can fly over.

Key Tips

Track your stack milestones; when you are close to the next one, play safe and farm.
Achooo! is a great zoning tool even when it misses.
Cast MMOOOMMMM! so it passes over you to heal yourself.
A living Smolder keeps stacking; surviving is worth more than a little extra damage.

Matchups