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Recommended Items
Runes:
Resolve
Inspiration
Spells:
Ignite
Flash
Items
Ability Order
An Acquired Taste (PASSIVE)
Tahm Kench Passive Ability
Threats & Synergies
Threats
Synergies
Extreme
Major
Even
Minor
Tiny
Show All
None
Low
Ok
Strong
Ideal
Extreme Threats
Ideal Synergies
Janna
Her peeling makes your job extremely difficult. If you can isolate her, do your best to make a pick, because she will ruin your day if you let her.
Synergies
Ideal
Strong
Ok
Low
None
Introduction
Tahm Kench is a personal favorite, as he's undeniably one of the best people at protecting his ADC. While other supports may be able to push assassins away or polymorph other threats, none of them can Devour their carry, protect them within their own tanky body, and make them untargetable. Besides playmaking potential rivaled by few with his Devour, he can deny kills more efficiently than most other champions.
Pros:
+ Easy engage/disengage
+ Amazing peel + Extremely tanky + Damage scales with HP + Strong 1v1ing + Good playmaking/roams Tahm Kench has some of the best peeling potential in the game, and can save allies in situations where no amount of shielding or peel besides literally picking them up and out of danger would do the trick. His Devour is an amazing playmaking tool, and can be used to both engage as well as escape. |
Cons:
- Long cooldowns early
- Damage cancels ult - Not mobile - Needs An Acquired Taste to Devour - Very kitable - Might ult into bad situations While Tahm Kench has a lot of strong traits, he is susceptible to being kited and having incoming damage cancel his ult's channel. His lack of mobility without landing a Tongue Lash makes chasing difficult, and his ult can backfire if not positioned well, which can you and/or an ally to die. |
Exhaust is a great defensive spell, and considering how much you want to peel, this just furthers your ability to. It's slow can be the difference between you landing a Tongue Lash and following up for a kill, or someone getting away. It's also good to bring against champs with high AoE damage or burst ( Katarina, Lissandra, etc.), and can alone win you fights if you decrease the enemy carries' damage. |
Ignite is a more offensive spell to bring into lanes where you can be aggressive, or when threats in lane or post-lane will have a lot of healing ( Sona, Soraka, etc.). While it may provide more kill pressure considering you can peel with your Devour, you should still be cautious when being this aggressive. Save it for an all-in and use it before the enemy laner pops their Heal, to ensure a kill or extra burnt summs. |
Flash is taken by virtually all champs, and Tahm Kench can use it quite well. While you are unable to use Flash with an enemy Devoured, you can still use it if you have an ally in your stomach. This can allow your teammates to save their flash when trying to escape, or when trying to engage. |
R > Q > W > E
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An Acquired Taste (Passive): Tahm Kench's passive is relatively simple. He gains bonus damage on his autoattacks based on his health, and upon getting 3 stacks of An Acquired Taste onto an enemy, his Tongue Lash will stun and his Devour can be used on the target. Getting 3 stacks onto an enemy can be difficult, as you need to land 3 autos/ Tongue Lashes for it to work. Comboing will be explained in the Combos, Tricks, & Things to Know section. |
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Tongue Lash (Q): Tahm Kench's Q is simple, but versatile. Its slow can be used to peel while escaping, as well as to slow targets you are trying to chase or make a pick on. When using the ability however, you are rooted, meaning if you don't successfully land it, they will gain distance on you. It's a useful tool to poke in lane, and it will be off cooldown and do more damage as you max it first. It scales only with AP, but it does enough base damage and is good utility, so it isn't required to invest in it's scaling. |
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Devour (W): This ability is what makes Tahm Kench unique. It's an improved Dark Passage, as you can pick up targets that are stunned, rooted, or otherwise unable to move. When in your stomach, your allies are in a stasis, unable to be damaged (expect by damage over time effects, such as Ignite), and allow you move at an increased speed towards enemies. This can also be used on walls, allowing you to pick up allies over the drake pit or the walls of the enemy's base if they have no escapes. In the case of picking up enemy champions, you can only pick them up for half as long as an ally or minion, but they take max health magic damage (which also scales with AP, but is in the same situation as Tongue Lash). This can be used against tanks to do high max health damage, as well as to disable enemies and take them out of the fight for a short time, allowing your team to briefly fight with an enemy out of the picture. It can be cast on minions as well, allowing you to shoot them as projectiles at enemies, but this isn't recommended because it gives the enemy a window to engage where you can't Devour them or an ally. |
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Thick Skin (E): This ability makes Tahm Kench's already impressive tankiness even more oppressive. Firstly, grey health he receives from damage comes back as health, meaning that he will restore a percentage of the damage he takes from poke in lane over time, with the percentage increasing the more upgraded the ability is (which allows for extremely quick health regeneration late game when combined with Warmog's Armor). It's active turns the grey health into a shield, meaning when maxed, you can turn 90% of your health into a shield for 3 seconds. This especially good for tower diving early, as you can tank extra turret shots while allowing your carry to dish out damage. |
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Abyssal Voyage (R): Arguably one of the best playmaking tools in the game, this allows Tahm Kench and an ally to travel across the map, making it just as versatile as a Twisted Fate's Destiny. This has multiple uses, both being aggressive, passive, or defensive. It can be used to roam mid or to an objective (offensive), to return to lane after backing or roaming (neutral), or to escape an incoming gank or after invading (defensive). Learning how to properly manage Devour (both it's timing and positioning) are essential parts in learning how to utilize Tahm Kench to his full potential. In terms of synergy, it has two special interactions. You can have an allied Kalista use Fate's Call on an teammate, allowing you to bring 3 people in your ult, as well as having an allied Shen use Stand United on you right as you leave the location where you originally casted Devour. These can be used to bring multiple allies into a fight, allowing for strong engages if executed properly. |
Primary Tree: Resolve
Resolve is your go-to, supplementing Tahm Kench's tanky playstyle. Resolve will allow for an enormous health bar level 1, and allow you to make good use of your Thick Skin early in the game. I'll compare the differences of keystones/runes, and which suit Tahm Kench best. As an added note, if you want to do the Glacial Augment build vs. teams without a lot of peel, that build is Glacial Augment/ Magical Footwear/ Biscuit Delivery/ Approach Velocity and Bone Plating/ Revitalize.
Key:
Not Viable
Considerable
Best Choice
Key:
Not Viable
Considerable
Best Choice
Keystone
Grasp of the Undying is more suitable for a Top Lane Tahm Kench. It isn't too good in lane as you'll rarely get empowered autos off with their support peeling, and you'll be poked down if you attempt to. While it does increase your survivability in teamfights a bit, it isn't the most optimal choice. |
Aftershock isn't too hard to proc, but it isn't as useful as it would be on other supports. The only things it will proc on is an Tongue Lash with 3 stacks of An Acquired Taste, or a Devour. The damage will prove useful in lane, but it's hard to engage and land this damage onto multiple enemies during teamfights. |
Guardian is great on Tahm Kench, because of its synergy with Devour. When Devouring an ally, if an enemy attacks you, not only does it speed you up to assist in your escape, but it mitigates the damage you take, as well as shielding your carry from any DoT effects they are suffering (such as Ignite). An essential keystone for protecting allies, which only further improves your peeling capabilities. |
Demolish is good for taking towers and allows you to siege better, but it does diminish your supportive and defensive capabilities. You'd be better off bringing other runes which are more suited to the role you are playing. |
Font of Life is good, as it applies to un-empowered Tongue Lashes, allowing for your and your ADC to both hit them, resulting in a one-sided trade and healing for your carry. If they try to counter engage on the trade, you already have a stack of An Acquired Taste on an enemy, and will likely have Devour up if the trade goes bad. Overall it allows for sustain and powerful trading, so use it to improve your trades if need be. |
Bone Plating is an undoubtedly strong rune, and it's prevalence on Tahm Kench is for good reason. Decreasing overall damage means more health to use with Thick Skin, and the ability to diminish the combo abilities of supports you have a hard time against like Brand makes your life a lot easier during laning. |
Conditioning makes for good post-lane defenses, allowing for you to gain free armor and MR and increase your total of each. This is good against teams where both types of damage will be relevant threats, but it does leave you prone to extra damage in the lane, so be wary of leaving yourself vulnerable in the early game. |
Second Wind is a good deterrent for poke-heavy lanes, allowing you to not get bullied out of lane as easily. This should only be brought into lanes where the amount of poke would make you chances of winning substantially lower, as other options such as Revitalize are strong contestants for your middle Resolve rune slot. |
Chrysalis has good synergy with Tahm Kench, as more health in lane means better usage of your Thick Skin. While Second Wind is better vs. poke matchups, this rune is more helpful with overall tankiness and some helpful damage after laning rather than sustain. |
Overgrowth is an okay choice on Tahm Kench. Boosting your max health means being tankier, as well as having increased damage on all your abilities that scale with health is nice, but the downside is that roaming becomes more difficult, as you are missing out on minion deaths which improve your passive. Try to remain by allies who are farming in order to keep your max health increasing (don't leech too much XP however). |
Revitalize makes for a powerful rune, boosting virtually all of your restorative abilities. It improves your Relic Shield's Spoils of War passive, and your Thick Skin shield. A very good pick into a lane where the enemy has heavy sustain you need to match, and adds on to your defensive capabilities once you purchase Locket of the Iron Solari. |
Unflinching isn't that useful, as you can only utilize it every few minutes with your Ignite/ Exhaust/ Flash. It has uses both offensively and defensively, but with how long it takes to be used, there are more consistent options. Make sure to buy Ionian Boots of Lucidity if you choose this rune to make it usable more often. |
Secondary Tree: Inspiration
Inspiration solidifies your strengths as a support, empowering your ability to engage and peel, while providing sustain, protection, and a myriad of other utilities to help you in lane. While there may be decent runes in other trees, they aren't as central to your support role as Inspiration is.
Hextech Flashtraption is an interesting choice, as you can use it to get over walls and eat an ally over the wall (if it's short enough), saving their flash or other mobility spells. If you're worried about roams occuring and needing bonus mobility in the jungle or other places, this may be a relevant option. |
Magical Footwear is a good option, as in combat movement speed is an important stat on Tahm Kench. This will save you gold on boots, and will allow you to move faster with enemies or allies devoured. Even without many takedowns, you'll still be in a good positioning to roam with your Devour around the time you actually get your Slightly Magical Boots. |
Perfect Timing isn't too good as you'll never build buy Zhonya's Hourglass/ Guardian Angel. If you are planning to buy Gargoyle Stoneplate, you may want to bring this (it helps with execute/burst ults in and post-lane). While the stasis may protect you from these ults, it's still only useful in very specific situations ( Jinx, Ezreal, etc.). With how tanky you are, people will try to focus your carry, and putting yourself in stasis instead of peeling won't end well for them. |
Future's Market allows you to access items a little bit faster, and further snowball a lead if you're able to hit powerspikes sooner. This is useful, but not as much for Tahm Kench as his power spikes aren't as impactful as a carry or other roles' would be. |
Minion Dematerializer isn't helpful, you don't need it and it will only detract from your kit. It could be used in conjunction with Devour to do good damage to Super Minions, which could be a good counter to a siege comp if your team possesses sub optimal waveclear (but it's not really necessary). |
Biscuit Delivery provides decent sustain, and ensures your Thick Skin will always have a decent amount of grey health to work with. The mana restoration isn't as useful as you won't be out of mana unless you have an exceptional long periods between backs. If you are going against lanes you are confident you can win however, you may not need this rune. |
Cosmic Insight isn't a bad pick, the CDR means you can poke more often with Tongue Lash and utilize your other abilities more often. The main downside is missing out on Approach Velocity, which is a core rune to being effective at saving allies or engaging on enemies. |
Approach Velocity is excellent on Tahm Kench, as you can move faster towards enemies you have slowed/stunned with your Tongue Lash, providing an easier follow up Devour. Furthermore, it also helps you get to teammates who are CC'd faster, so you can quickly Devour them and bring them to safety. This is a must take virtually every game, and can be the difference between saving a life or securing a kill. |
Time Warp Tonic is an alright choice, giving you even more sustain from Refillable Potion and the biscuits granted by [[Biscuit Delivery]. While it does help, this should only be taken vs. heavy poke matchups where the sustain is vital to your success in the laning phase. |
Utility Items
Tankiness, vision, and supplemental to achieving your 40% CDR cap, Eye of the Aspect will be built often. It's a well rounded item providing everything you need, and is going to be your core for the majority of your time as Tahm Kench. It's alternatives are explained elsewhere. |
Locket of the Iron Solari is by far one of the best items for tank supports, and especially so on Tahm Kench. You already utilize health to scale your damage and provide more tankiness, and improving the shield this item provides is just a bonus. You'll be getting this virtually every game. |
Tahm Kench is already able to help key targets escape from otherwise death with his Devour, including CC'd targets. However, due to the cooldown, comps with high amounts of CC may be able to continually lock down your team. You can't bring a picked up ally to safety if you yourself get CC'd, so use this to help your team escape CC-oriented comps. |
It's active is good for both offensive and defensive utility, as well as having good base stats to supplement your kit. Mana for more Tongue Lash poke, armor, CDR, and health are all crucial things to improve. Even in the event of you running away, the slow can still be used to buy time for you or an ally to escape. |
A decent amount of tankiness coupled with this item's passive makes Tahm Kench have even more ridiculous map pressure. Being able to push a side wave and drop a Banner of Command allows your team a temporary number advantage while the enemy team clears the minion, meaning you can use Devour to force a fight where your team has the numbers advantage. |
A great item for keeping high-damage output carries alive, redirecting damage and healing you so long as they continue to put out damage. You get the max efficiency of it since you're melee, and it still provides good stats (CDR, armor, etc.). I build it often, and it's a must if you have either a high damage carry ( Twitch, Kog'Maw), or if the enemy team has good sustained damage/burst. |
Tank Items
The best item for a support to gain health, and the ultimate sustain machine, this item is a very common pick for Tahm Kench. Besides immense health to help scale your passive, it also provides CDR to contribute towards you trying to reach 40%. Its passive, Warmog's Heart, allows you heal from almost dead to full health in seconds, meaning you can tank towers while sieging, allowing minion waves to build up. |
A great item to pick into teams with more than one member using critical strike chance. Tryndamere, Yasuo, Gangplank, Kindred, and Graves are all people who will likely use crit. chance outside of the bot lane. Reducing multiple enemies damage by 20% just for using crit. chance makes you much more durable against their main sources of damage. The Cold Steel passive and active slow also allow your team to more easily land skillshots or CC, making teamfights easy if you use your slow properly. |
A simple item, but still effective into certain comps. Like Randuin's Omen and Thornmail, it has the Cold Steel passive. However, this one is an aura, meaning that you don't need to be attacked for it to work, it works just by standing near an enemy. This is a good pick into champs who don't use Runaan's Hurricane and wouldn't normally proc your Cold Steel passive. The 20% CDR, mana, and armor are all also very nice stats. |
CDR, health, and MR already make this item a good pick into AP heavy comps. However, it is a niche pick, and is more suited against champs with low cooldowns who spam the same abilities. Cassiopeia, Ryze, Evelynn, and Taliyah are examples of champions who warrant this item. It's also works well against champions with pets attacking you ( Azir's soldiers, Malzahar's voidlings, etc.), as well as DoT ( Singed, Teemo, etc.). |
A good item to choose if you're the sole tank and need to soak up a lot of damage. It provides a balance of armor and MR, making it a decent choice into teams with a mix of damage types. You should be careful when you use its active however, as if certain champs have current health damage ( Blade of the Ruined King for example) or missing health damage ( Jhin 4th shot), you may cause the enemy to do MORE damage. |
This item doesn't have that much synergy since you don't have a lot of lifesteal or healing, and it won't empower any shields. It does have good stats though, providing MR and health/health regen. for tankiness, as well as contributing CDR. If you do buy Warmog's Armor it does help with the passive from it, but you tend to stay away from this item outside of those circumstances. |
A good pick into any heavily AA-based team comps, or those with a lot of sustain. You can pick up its component Bramble Vest early in lane if you're worried about ADCs who get an early Vampiric Scepter, or have sustain supports ( Nami, Soraka, etc.) helping them trade. It also has the Cold Steel passive, meaning it's a good pick against champions who have high attack speed and range ( Twitch/ Kog'Maw). |
Armor and health alongside a new buffed passive puts this item back into circulation. Being utilized more for it's bonus minion damage in the top lane, it has now been reverted to its previous state, allowing for more damage overall but less damage to minions. If you're taking this item, you may consider maxing Devour first, as you can keep the enemy in your stomach and suffering the passive damage for longer. |
An item that makes chasing and peeling much easier, using it's passive MS bonus to provide easier engages. Also, it's Crushing Blow passive provides a 50% slow at max momentum, making get picks even easier. Health, armor, increased MS, and a slow make it an attractive item for many situations. Consider getting tenacity Mercury's Treads/ Unflinching or slow resistance Boots of Swiftness to avoid losing too much momentum if CC'd. |
A more offensive item which empowers your ability to fight alone. This allows you to have a secondary slow besides your Tongue Lash, making you a much stickier threat. It is more common when Tahm Kench is played in roles besides support, but it could be viable in very specific situations, such as utilizing it's AoE slow to combo with other laners. |
A cross-between utility and tankiness, but when bought on Tahm Kench it's more for tank stats. There are much better alternatives to this item, and it is hard to use your ultimate to activate the item's passive. However, if you bind the conduit to an ally besides your ADC and were to ult into the enemy team (albeit risky and not rewarding), this would be the item to run. |
Another item like Iceborn Gauntlet, which provides strong 1v1 potential. This synergizes well with your passive, providing health to scale your bonus damage, as well as using your other health items to improve Titanic Hydra's bonus damage. This makes for very painful auto attacks, doing a mixture of magic and physical, meaning it's very hard to itemize against you. |
Boots
Boots of Swiftness - In-Combat MS Good for in-combat MS, allowing you to move faster when using your Devour (either with the 95% slow, or the MS boost from carrying an ally). It also gives you slow resistance, making it a strong pick into teams that lack a lot of hard CC. Ninja Tabi - MR/Tenacity A good pick against heavily CC-reliant teams, especially if getting locked down while peeling or disabled while engaging make your job too difficult. Boots of Swiftness already provide slow resistance, so only buy these in serious circumstances. Mercury's Treads - Armor/AA Resistance A good choice into teams with a lot of AD, or team comps that rely exclusively or heavily on auto-attacks ( Jax, Jinx, etc.). It can also counter champs like Jhin or Gangplank who rely on single autos or abilities to do massive damage. |
Build paths are a very dynamic factor in games. What you need to build will very heavily game to game, and even in each game, there are different paths you may go down depending on how threats to you and your team change over the game. Obvious choices, such as Adaptive Helm for AP, low-CD mages, and Randuin's Omen for heavy reliance on crit. chance are static, but how you make your way to building those items is what will be focused on here.
1st Back: Targon's Brace (and an Oracle Lens once your Sightstone passive is up), Boots, and Control Wards
Rush: Finish Eye of the Aspect, Boots of Swiftness (or defense boots if needed), and basic defense items for items you plan to ( Aegis of the Legion for Locket of the Iron Solari)
Finish: Locket of the Iron Solari, engage ( Turbo Chemtank) or defensive ( Knight's Vow) items
Pick items based on the enemy composition: Randuin's Omen, Adaptive Helm, Thornmail, etc.
If ahead, trying to get early boots to roam and get vision, or a Turbo Chemtank to force fights and further extend your lead. Be sure to ward in case the jungler or mid come to try and shut you down.
If behind, get items to protect your carries and allow them to scale, and make sure to buy Cloth Armor/ Null-Magic Mantle based on what damage threats there are to ensure they don't get more fed. Stock up on Control Wards, and clear vision to keep the enemies from pushing too hard until you have time to make your comeback.
Usual Path:
Start: Relic Shield + Refillable Potion1st Back: Targon's Brace (and an Oracle Lens once your Sightstone passive is up), Boots, and Control Wards
Rush: Finish Eye of the Aspect, Boots of Swiftness (or defense boots if needed), and basic defense items for items you plan to ( Aegis of the Legion for Locket of the Iron Solari)
Finish: Locket of the Iron Solari, engage ( Turbo Chemtank) or defensive ( Knight's Vow) items
Pick items based on the enemy composition: Randuin's Omen, Adaptive Helm, Thornmail, etc.
If ahead, trying to get early boots to roam and get vision, or a Turbo Chemtank to force fights and further extend your lead. Be sure to ward in case the jungler or mid come to try and shut you down.
If behind, get items to protect your carries and allow them to scale, and make sure to buy Cloth Armor/ Null-Magic Mantle based on what damage threats there are to ensure they don't get more fed. Stock up on Control Wards, and clear vision to keep the enemies from pushing too hard until you have time to make your comeback.
Warding is your biggest responsibility when playing support. Vision control is extremely neglected, and will lose you games if not performed properly. Making notes of what spots are the most common jungle and ganking routes will allow you to ward efficiently, while simultaneously allowing you to clear enemy wards at these same ideal spots.
Key:
Control Wards
During Laning
When Taking Drake/Rift/Baron
When Roaming
When the Enemy is near Your Base
When You're Near the Enemy Base
Control Wards
During Laning
When Taking Drake/Rift/Baron
When Roaming
When the Enemy is near Your Base
When You're Near the Enemy Base
During Lane
The majority of Control Wards you place depend on which side you are on. These spots can be used offensively, and can be swapped with normal wards from your Stealth Ward or Sightstone if the enemy jungler/mid aren't invading/roaming often. The other Control Wards closer to mid lane are more for defending your mid laner from roaming, and allow them to place their own Control Ward near the top lane (these vary however, so arrange this with your other laners accordingly). If the enemy is abusing bushes, you can bait them in for engage by placing a Control Ward in your bushes. This can also be done when your jungler is coming in to prevent them from being spotted while getting in position. You can place wards behind Drake Pit or in the enemy tri-bush to spot ganks in advance, as well as keep tabs on the position of the enemy jungler. When draking, place them in locations where the jungler can use mobility spells to quickly swoop in and attempt a Smite steal. Finally, when roaming, place Stealth Wards where the enemy is most likely to countergank, so you can back off without risking them turning the gank.
Post-Laning
In the mid to late game, your goal with vision control will become more broad than monitoring nearby objectives and preventing ganks. You'll need to have vision on objectives before they spawn, meaning you should try to leave a Control Ward near an upcoming Drake/Rift Herald/Baron. The reasoning for the warding around Baron/Rift pit is the same as the Drake pit, to prevent incoming junglers from Smite stealing. The blue/purple dots switch based on what team you're on, but provide you vision into your jungle if the enemy is baiting you to contest an objective, or allow you to have vision if they attempt to gank or collapse on you while sieging. Many of the blue/purple/green spots can be swapped out for Control Wards, you should always have one up, and spares in your inventory. Besides denying vision, utilize your Oracle Lens when roaming or taking objectives to deny the enemy information on what's going on. (Note: If you are draking and you've dropped a Control Ward on an objective, do not destroy and revealed Stealth Wards, as it gives the enemy team vision on who is attacking it.) The green dots are more for mid-game, preventing the enemy from surprising you while trying to take towers, while the blue/purple are once objectives have been taken. Make sure to utilize the "safety line" rule when warding defensively.
The diagram below shows a safe and easy to follow warding method. Control Wards are dropped on a line, running from the outermost turret (symbolized by green circles) in each lane. Beyond this safety line, Stealth Wards (symbolized by the green dots) can be placed on your side of the jungle. Even if you cannot safely control this part of the jungle, you are still able to keep tabs on enemies and where they are. This allows you to keep control of what territory you still hold, even if you are being pushed back. By responding to tower dives and rotations or seeing them before they occur, you can deny the enemy a lot of their sieging power.
The Safety Line Rule
The diagram below shows a safe and easy to follow warding method. Control Wards are dropped on a line, running from the outermost turret (symbolized by green circles) in each lane. Beyond this safety line, Stealth Wards (symbolized by the green dots) can be placed on your side of the jungle. Even if you cannot safely control this part of the jungle, you are still able to keep tabs on enemies and where they are. This allows you to keep control of what territory you still hold, even if you are being pushed back. By responding to tower dives and rotations or seeing them before they occur, you can deny the enemy a lot of their sieging power.
Sivir
A strong laner, who can easily proc her Press the Attack after you slowing an enemy with Tongue Lash. Her Spell Shield provides another method of peeling, and her ultimate, On The Hunt, gives you a MS boost to chase kills. A kit which has good synergy, both offensively and defensively.
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Lucian
A mobile laner with strong poke ability, who can kite well and get a lot of autos off in a trade. His Relentless Pursuit gives him an extra way to dodge CC, and chase kills after a Tongue Lash. Besides excellent follow up, his ultimate, The Culling, will continue after you Devour him, allowing you to easily turn engages.
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Kalista
Another champ with great synergy, Kalista is able to kite efficiently and fill the enemy with spears. Kalista will favor long trades, as will you, meaning you should tank as much damage as possible with Thick Skin while she prepares her Rend. She can also use Fate's Call on you while you have an enemy Devoured, effectively allowing you to kidnap an enemy and bring them back into your team/tower.
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Kog'Maw
Relying on a majority of his abilities being skillshots, your Tongue Lash combined with his Void Ooze making an efficient slow combo, meaning you can follow up with a Devour and he can land Living Artillery shots very easily. He also can make up for Kog'Maw's lack of escape.
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Varus
Another champion utilizing a 3-hit passive, your soft CC allows him to easily attain 3 stacks of Blighted Quiver, before popping them with another ability. Besides both of you having good poke in lane, his Chain of Corruption allows you a free Devour on an enemy laner, and your Tongue Lash will keep enemies in danger during teamfights later on.
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Jhin
With more utility from Jhin, your engages become much simpler and easier to execute. A well placed Tongue Lash provides an easy to land Deadly Flourish, guaranteeing a Devour, making for a lethal combo. Like Kog'Maw, Jhin is very susceptible to assassins/burst., but you can easily protect him from these threats.
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Miss Fortune
Her Double Up makes for good poke, and your Tongue Lash provides ample opportunities for her to land them on slowed targets. Also, her Make it Rain slow means you can get in range for a Devour combo, which can be followed up on by Bullet Time if available. A very strong combo, and if well protected in teamfights, she can burst down any threats.
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Combos
Laning Poke/Engage
This combo is for procing your 3 stacks of An Acquired Taste as soon as possible, while working in autos for extra damage. Only one of the autoattacks in parentheses needs to be performed. If you aren't able to walk up for the first auto, you can get 2 in after landing your Tongue Lash (with assistance from your carry's CC if possible).
Roaming Ult Engage
Another combo which may be altered, using your Devour to enter behind the enemy and Tongue Lash to slow them is fairly standard. If anyone else has burst, they can finish the job. If not, you can Devour the enemy and bring them back into your team, with supplementary auto's and Tongue Lashes as necessary.
Teamfighting
Teamfighting is a much more complicated procedure, and there's no solid combo you can give. For this reason, there's two distinct playstyles you can utilize (which will vary based on enemy threats). The way you play throughout the game may vary, so don't lock yourself into one playstyle. Adapt based on how the game is going, and fill the role you need to in teamfights.
Offense Kench
This is a fighting style in which you'll be using Tongue Lash to keep enemies in the line of fire, as well as using Devour on key damage dealers on the enemy team in order to secure your team a temporary numbers advantage. This should be used when there are not major burst threats to your backline, and synergizes well with items like Gargoyle Stoneplate and Frozen Heart, where you get the most effectiveness by being in the enemy team. If you have other champs like Swain, Shen, who thrive off being in the center of combat, use your Devour to place them where they'll be the most effective. |
Defense Kench
This is more a passive and peeling playstyle, where you want to focus on denying enemy assassins or burst mages the capabilities to one shot your backline. You can bait out enemy ultimates, such as a Zed's Death Mark, then eat your carries before they're bursted down. Work in Tongue Lashes while running to slow down incoming threats. Don't keep people in for too long, as when they're inside you they aren't doing damage in teamfights. This playstyle relies on peel and burst denial, meaning items like Locket of the Iron Solari, Mikael's Blessing, and Knight's Vow will shine the most. |
Champion Synergy & Tricks
In the following video, I illustrate the ways in which you can employ certain little-known tricks that could, in the right situation, turn a fight or secure a kill. Keep these in mind based on who you're laning with, and how they can be used and when. Be cautious however, as the enemy could expect you to perform these, and turn it or outplay you.
I hope you found this guide useful, and are able to apply it to improve your performance as Tahm Kench. If you find any errors or have questions, let me know and I'll respond accordingly.
This is my second guide, in which I used jhoijhoi's Guide to Making a Guide for proper formatting and design. If you like this guide and are trying to expand your champ pool, I urge you to check out my Thresh Guide.
Thank you for reading, and good luck as Tahm Kench. :^)
This is my second guide, in which I used jhoijhoi's Guide to Making a Guide for proper formatting and design. If you like this guide and are trying to expand your champ pool, I urge you to check out my Thresh Guide.
Thank you for reading, and good luck as Tahm Kench. :^)
V. 1.0.0 (12/8/17) - Vanilla guide.
V. 1.0.1 (12/9/17) - Updated general settings, not posted correctly. Fixed an issue in the Synergy with your Carry section.
V. 2.0.0 (6/1/18) - Added Sion, Kai'Sa, and Pyke to the matchup section. Updated Cheat Sheet for removed items and new items. Changed Overgrowth to Revitalize, Font of Life to Bone Plating, Conditioning to Chrysalis, and Magical Footwear to Biscuit Delivery. Added Chrysalis, Bone Plating, and Time Warp Tonic to the Runes Reforged section. Removed Mirror Shell, Iron Skin, Celestial Body from the Runes Reforged section, Ruby Sightstone, Timeworn Face of the Mountain, and old support items from the Items section, and the Sweeping Lens from the cheat sheet, Build Paths section, and Warding section.
V. 1.0.1 (12/9/17) - Updated general settings, not posted correctly. Fixed an issue in the Synergy with your Carry section.
V. 2.0.0 (6/1/18) - Added Sion, Kai'Sa, and Pyke to the matchup section. Updated Cheat Sheet for removed items and new items. Changed Overgrowth to Revitalize, Font of Life to Bone Plating, Conditioning to Chrysalis, and Magical Footwear to Biscuit Delivery. Added Chrysalis, Bone Plating, and Time Warp Tonic to the Runes Reforged section. Removed Mirror Shell, Iron Skin, Celestial Body from the Runes Reforged section, Ruby Sightstone, Timeworn Face of the Mountain, and old support items from the Items section, and the Sweeping Lens from the cheat sheet, Build Paths section, and Warding section.
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