Swain
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Excellent (9/10)
High Investment Required
Epic Relics
Rare Relics OK
Paid Relics
Swain is overwhelmingly regarded as one of the strongest champions in the game, capable of trivializing the hardest content. While his immense power and straightforward strategy of targeting the Nexus make him highly effective, players disagree about his fun factor. Some find his ability to effortlessly clear boards incredibly satisfying, while others feel his gameplay becomes too predictable and uninteractive at maximum investment.
Turn 1 Nuke
Deals 5 damage to the enemy Nexus at game start, instantly activating Plunder and providing early sustain.
Reduces Swain's cost by 1 and grants him stats, allowing for a much earlier deployment.
Triggers multiple cannon barrages upon play, dealing massive damage and accelerating his level-up condition.
Strategy
This is widely considered Swain's optimal build. Swain's Raven Army guarantees a Plunder trigger at the start of the game, which activates Packed Powder's cost reduction.
This allows you to play Swain as early as Turn 1. Upon hitting the board, Riptide Battery unleashes a barrage of damage, often leveling Swain up immediately and stunning the enemy board. This combination provides an overwhelming early-game advantage that most encounters cannot recover from.
Maximum Mana
- Ensures early Plunder activation and provides Nexus healing at the start of the game.
Refills regular mana upon leveling up and provides the necessary stats to activate Starforged Gauntlets.
Grants an extra starting mana gem, accelerating Swain's deployment.
Strategy
This setup accelerates Swain's game plan by providing a massive mana advantage. Starforged Gauntlets grants an extra starting mana gem, while Swain's Raven Army ensures early Plunder activation.
When Swain levels up—often on the same turn he is played—Jayce's Hextech Battery completely refills regular mana, enabling a continuous barrage of spells to control the board and burn the Nexus.
Spell Burn
Provides early Nexus chip damage and helps with card draw, addressing one of Swain's minor weaknesses.
Generates Destiny Cards; the Red Card synergizes exceptionally well with Swain's board-clearing capabilities.
Amplifies all spell and skill damage, turning Swain's arsenal into devastating spells.
Strategy
This build shifts the focus away from Swain as a unit and turns the deck into a pure spell-burn engine. By cutting units and drafting damage spells, victories are often secured without ever needing to play Swain himself.
Deck of Destiny's Red Card becomes a highly effective board wipe, especially when combined with Swain's 6-star constellation power. Big Guns ensures that every spell cast deals maximum damage to the enemy Nexus.
Zoe Specialized (10-Star)
Zoe Specialized
- Provides essential early Nexus damage and refills spell mana upon playing Swain.
- Crucial for ensuring spells deal at least 1 damage through the heavy damage reduction of the Zoe encounter.
- Reduces Swain's cost and provides scaling stats based on Nexus damage.
Strategy
Swain faces significant challenges in the 10-star Zoe adventure due to her Tough Nexus and damage reduction mechanics, which severely slow his scaling. Big Guns is absolutely critical here to ensure your pings bypass the plating and deal at least 1 damage.
Prioritize control in the early game to survive until Swain can be played. Look for powers that synergize with spell damage, such as Elemental Winds or Perfection, to maximize your spell value and overcome the encounter's defensive mechanics.
Budget Plunder
Reduces Swain's cost by 2 when Plunder is activated.- Stacks with the first Stash, reducing Swain's cost by a total of 4.
Causes Swain to strike the enemy Nexus upon play, triggering his effects immediately.
Strategy
For newer accounts lacking Epic relics, this build relies on activating Plunder through cheap spells or units to drastically reduce Swain's cost.
Once Plunder is triggered, you can play Swain for just 1 mana. The Curator's Gatebreaker ensures that the moment he hits the board, he strikes the Nexus, advancing his level-up condition and applying immediate pressure.
Other Relic Options
An excellent alternative for early deployment. It damages your own board to reduce Swain's cost, which simultaneously advances his level-up condition.
Deals damage to all units upon play, helping to secure Swain's level-up and triggering his board-wide stun effect.
A strong budget option that pings the enemy Nexus whenever a unit dies, synergizing perfectly with Swain's level 2 stun mechanics.
Offers guaranteed direct Nexus damage and extra mana, which is highly beneficial for Swain's spell-heavy game plan.
Highly effective in spell-centric builds, providing the rerolls necessary to consistently draft powerful damage spells and synergistic powers.
Swain's relic flexibility is high, but he heavily favors relics that either reduce his cost or amplify his spell damage. Avoid relics that focus purely on unit combat stats.
Constellation
Swain possesses one of the most powerful constellation upgrade paths in the game. While his base deck is functional, his star powers transform him into an unstoppable force that scales exceptionally well with spell damage. He is highly recommended as a primary target for Nova Crystals in the Noxus region.
Crush the Weak
Your first spell or Skill each round deals 1 extra damage for each 5 Health the enemy Nexus is missing.
Collateral Damage
+1 Starting Mana. When a unit dies, deal 1 to the enemy nexus.Review
His early star powers provide consistent Nexus damage and board control, though they can be entirely neutralized by encounters featuring the 'Tough Nexus' modifier.
Crush the Weak II
Your first three spells or Skills each round deal 1 extra damage for each 5 Health the enemy Nexus is missing.Review
This power significantly amplifies his skill and spell damage. It is a crucial upgrade that allows his early spells to act as massive damage sources against the enemy Nexus.
Raiding Party
When you damage the enemy Nexus, grant the top ally in your deck +1|+1.Review
Grants 'Raiding Party'. While the stat buffs are a helpful bonus, his true power at this tier comes from the 'Star of Discovery' node, which adds 'Pyromantic Wake' to drafted spells, drastically increasing his damage output.
Manaflow
Game Start: Get a mana gem.Review
The extra starting mana is vital for alleviating his high base cost, allowing for smoother early-game deployment and spellcasting.
Demonic Ascension
When you damage an enemy with a spell or Skill, deal the same amount to all other enemies as well.Review
This upgrade fundamentally changes his gameplay, turning every damage spell into a devastating board wipe. It scales with missing enemy Nexus health, allowing him to bypass traditional mechanics and defeat even the highest-health bosses in a few turns.
Gameplay Tips
- Prioritize Direct Nexus Damage
Swain's primary win condition is burning down the enemy Nexus. Focus your drafting and gameplay on spells and skills that deal direct damage, rather than trying to establish a dominant board presence through unit combat.
- Leverage Missing HP Scaling
Swain's abilities scale incredibly well against enemies with high health pools. In adventures like Twisted Fate or The Vault, his damage output increases dramatically as the enemy Nexus loses health, allowing him to bypass traditional mechanics and win through sheer brute force.
- Draft Spell-Focused Support Champions
Avoid pairing Swain with support champions that rely heavily on unit combat. Instead, look for champions that offer cheap, direct damage spells or spell-synergy to accelerate his level-up and maximize his constellation powers.
- Beware of Tough Nexus Modifiers
Adventures or encounters featuring the 'Tough Nexus' modifier can significantly slow down Swain's early game by mitigating his small pings. Prioritize drafting larger burst damage spells or powers that grant 'Impact' to overcome this hurdle.
- Utilize Stuns for Board Control
Even if you are focusing on Nexus damage, do not underestimate the defensive power of Swain's stuns. Cards like Pirouette can neutralize massive enemy threats for just 1 mana, buying you the time needed to assemble your lethal spell combos.
- Avoid Gloom Synergy
Do not draft powers or relics that apply 'Gloom' (such as Vex's mechanics). Gloom replaces damage rather than dealing it, which completely prevents Swain's damage-triggered abilities and 6-star power from activating.