Maokai Top Build

Maokai Champion Guide

Role: Tank

Lane: Toplane

The best build for Maokai Support includes Solstice Sleigh, Boots of Swiftness, Trailblazer, Locket of the Iron Solari, and Thornmail. The most effective rune setup consists of Aftershock, Font of Life, Bone Plating, and Unflinching in the primary tree, along with Biscuit Delivery and Cosmic Insight in the secondary tree.

Maokai Champion Abilities

Sap Magic

Maokai's attacks restore 4-12.8% health (depending on level).

Using an ability or being hit by an enemy champion's ability reduces the cooldown by 4 seconds. Being hit by large or epic monster's attacks or abilities reduces the cooldown by 1.5 seconds. P

Bramble Smash

Maokai smashes his fist into the ground, dealing 65 / 110 / 155 / 200 / 245 (+40% of ability power) plus (+2 / 2.5 / 3 / 3.5 / 4% of the target's max health) magic damage and briefly slowing. Nearby enemies are also knocked back. Q

Twisted Advance

Maokai transforms into a moving mass of roots, becoming untargetable and dashing to an enemy. Upon arrival, he roots the enemy for 1 / 1.1 / 1.2 / 1.3 / 1.4 seconds and deals 60 / 85 / 110 / 135 / 160 (+40% of ability power) magic damage. W

Sapling Toss

Maokai flings a sapling, which stands watch for 30 seconds. Saplings chase nearby enemies, detonating on arrival to deal 50 / 75 / 100 / 125 / 150 (+25% of ability power) (+5% bonus health) magic damage and slow surrounding enemies by 45% for 2 seconds. Sap Magic's cooldown is reduced by an additional 4 seconds if the sapling hits an enemy champion or epic monster.

If placed in brush, Saplings instead last for 30 (+1.5% bonus health) seconds and cause a larger explosion, dealing 36.67 / 53.33 / 70 / 86.67 / 103.33 (+23.33% of ability power) (+3.33% bonus health) magic damage over 3 seconds (for a total of 110 / 160 / 210 / 260 / 310 (+70% of ability power) (+10% bonus health) magic damage) and slowing enemies by 45% (+1% per 100 ability power) (+1% per 100 bonus health). E

Nature's Grasp

Maokai summons a colossal wave of brambles and thorns, rooting enemies for 0.75 to 2.25 seconds, increasing with distance travelled, and dealing 150 / 225 / 300 (+75% of ability power) magic damage. Hitting a champion gives Maokai 40 / 50 / 60% movement speed, decaying over 2 seconds. R

Maokai Summoner Spells

Flash

Flash is a location-targeted summoner spell that causes your champion to blink to the location in range of your cursor.

Teleport

Teleport is a unit-targeted summoner spell that blinks your champion to the target allied unit after a few seconds of channeling.

Teleport transforms into Unleashed Teleport after 10:00.

Maokai Runes

Maokai Items

Maokai Ability Order

Maokai Matchups Overview

Strong against

Volibear

Irelia

Malphite

Jax

Renekton

Garen

Weak against

Tryndamere

Illaoi

Kled

Olaf

Gangplank

Irelia

Maokai Tips and Tricks

Before you engage with your W, it’s important to check the positioning of your ADC. Don’t initiate a fight unless your ADC is in a good position to follow up. When roaming across the map, use your E (Saplings) to scout for vision in nearby bushes. You can even place Saplings in the bot lane to provide additional vision control. Maokai’s Ultimate R is particularly useful in team fights—once you engage with it, remember to fall back and protect your ADC by peeling for them.

Best Build, Runes, and Items for Maokai Support

For summoner spells, Flash and Ignite are strong options for Maokai Support, providing both mobility and kill pressure. As for runes, Aftershock is ideal as your keystone, followed by Font of Life, Bone Plating, and Unflinching to give you extra durability and crowd control. Biscuit Delivery and Cosmic Insight in the secondary tree offer sustain and cooldown reduction. Rune shards should be Adaptive Force in offense and Health Scaling in both flex and defense to bolster Maokai's tankiness.

In terms of itemization, start with Solstice Sleigh for early tankiness and utility, followed by Boots of Swiftness to help you move around the map and Trailblazer to ensure greater roaming potential. After these, build Locket of the Iron Solari for shielding, Thornmail for added protection, and finish with Vigilant Wardstone for vision control and durability. For the skill order, prioritize Q, W, and E for maximum crowd control and utility.

Optional Maokai Support Build

An alternative Maokai Support build involves taking Flash and Ignite as your summoner spells. This build also uses Aftershock as the keystone and includes Font of Life, Bone Plating, and Unflinching in the primary tree, with Biscuit Delivery and Cosmic Insight in the secondary tree. Rune shards remain the same with Adaptive Force, Health Scaling, and Health Scaling. As for the item path, Celestial Opposition is a solid first pick, followed by Plated Steelcaps and Locket of the Iron Solari. Finish the build with Thornmail, Vigilant Wardstone, and Abyssal Mask for added tankiness and magic resistance. For this build, focus on W, Q, and E when leveling up your abilities.

Situational Maokai Runes and Items

Depending on the game context, matchup, and enemy composition, you may want to adjust your runes and items. For instance, if you’re up against a magic-heavy enemy, it might be useful to consider items like Abyssal Mask or Spirit Visage for additional resistances. Alternatively, if you face a lot of AD champions, focusing on Armor items like Thornmail or Randuin's Omen could provide more value. Always adapt your build to the needs of the match to make the most of Maokai's utility and tankiness.