Champion Guide

Thresh Guide

By LoLSuggest

Support

Thresh is a flexible playmaking support with a very high skill ceiling. Damnation lets him collect souls from enemies that die nearby, each granting armor and ability power, since he gains no armor from levels. Death Sentence hooks the first enemy hit, stunning and tugging them, and can be recast to dash to them; Dark Passage throws a lantern that shields him and an ally, who can click it to be pulled to Thresh; Flay sweeps his chain to knock enemies back or forward and slow them; and The Box raises spectral walls that heavily slow the first enemies who break them. He can save teammates, lock down single targets or control whole teams.

Recommended Setup

Our recommended Thresh build

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

Items

Starting Items

Core Items

Situational Items

Start World Atlas and a Health Potion, and buy tier 2 boots or components such as a Ruby Crystal, Cloth Armor or Null-Magic Mantle on your first backs; switch to Oracle Lens as soon as your support item gives wards. Solstice Sleigh is the best general quest reward, giving you and a nearby ally health and speed after you crowd-control an enemy; Celestial Opposition is better defensively or when you are the main frontline. The default build is Ionian Boots of Lucidity, Locket of the Iron Solari, Knight's Vow, Redemption and Bandlepipes. Frozen Heart is great against auto-attackers, Thornmail against healing, Abyssal Mask or Kaenic Rookern against magic damage, Mikael's Blessing against long crowd control, Zeke's Convergence for cheap resistances, and Protoplasm Harness when you must be the frontline. Run Guardian with Font of Life, Second Wind and Overgrowth, plus Biscuit Delivery and Cosmic Insight; Aftershock with Bone Plating and Unflinching suits engage lanes, and Glacial Augment with Hextech Flashtraption fits double-ranged lanes and dive comps. Take Flash with Ignite, Heal when you are outranged, or Exhaust against assassins. Max Q, then W, then E.

Runes

Primary Tree

Secondary Tree

Summoner Spells

Skill Max Order

Strengths

Flexible kit that supports engage, peel and saving allies with the lantern.
Death Sentence picks off targets, and Flay can cancel dashes.
Strong scaling defences through souls.

Weaknesses

Very high skill ceiling; he takes a lot of time to learn.
No sustain in lane, so long-range lanes are hard.
Mage and poke supports such as Zyra, Brand or Lux can keep him from engaging.

Laning Phase

Learn the enemy's dodging patterns and aim your hook where they like to move. If the enemy has Cleanse, hold Ignite until after they Cleanse your hook. Place the lantern in the direction your teammate is running so it is easy to click and hard to block with a ward, and use it to check brush or vision over walls. Against short-range bot lanes, put an extra point or two in Flay for stronger attacks. When your wave crashes under the enemy tower, you have about 30 to 50 seconds to reset, poke, threaten a dive or roam before the wave comes back.

Mid & Late Game

Thresh thrives in the fog of war: ward well, catch enemies as they rotate between lanes, and roam with your jungler. In fights, use the lantern to reposition teammates for peel or follow-up, hook priority targets, and Flay to cancel dashes and peel divers off your carries. Collect souls throughout the game, about five per level, to keep up your armor and lantern shield.

Key Tips

After a hook, cast The Box during the stun, then Flay the enemy into a wall for a massive slow.
Guardian triggers on an ally you shield with the lantern from range.
Against dashing champions like Kha'Zix, hold Flay until right after the hook ends to cancel their escape.
Allies can teleport or dash to the lantern, and it blocks enemy movement like a unit.

Matchups

Matchups and synergies

Our picks for difficult opponents, favorable lanes and strong allies. Compare matchup win rates on the stats page.