Playing support in League of Legends can be a very impactful yet challenging role. Unlike damage-focused carries, supports rely on utility and vision to enable their team. A common question players have is whether supports can truly “carry” games by having a huge influence on the outcome. While they may not get all the flashy plays, great support players can carry in their own way.
In this article, we’ll explore the different ways supports can carry games through vision control, playmaking, shot calling, and enabling teammates. We’ll also look at champion picks, and playstyles that allow supports to maximize their carry potential. Though they may not top the damage charts, support players have plenty of opportunities to drive their team to victory. A great support can be the difference between a won or lost game.
How to Carry as a Support Player?
The key to carrying as a support is mastering vision control. This starts with itemization – supports should rush Orcale Lens for maximum vision impact. Use wards proactively to light up the map and deny enemy vision. Control objectives like Dragon/Baron by keeping the pit warded at all times. Deny vision on objectives when setting up for a steal. Late game, have a Control Ward ready for major objectives. Don’t just reactively ward, have a plan on where you want vision to enable your team.
Playmaking supports like Thresh/Blitzcrank can carry by aggressively looking for picks. Land skill shots to set up kills in lane or create picks in the jungle. Roam mid to gank the enemy mid-laner. Secure vision in the enemy jungle then lie in wait to hook key targets. Come team fights, use abilities to engage or peel for your carries at the right time. Playmakers have some of the highest carry potential for supports.
Other carry supports like Janna/Lulu enable with shields, heals, and buffs. Shield at the right times to turn losing fights. Use ultimate abilities to disrupt enemies. Itemize for CDR and AP to get buffs on shorter cooldowns and make them more powerful. Support hyper-carries by attaching yourself to them – shield them in fights, ult when they are focused. A skilled enchanter can make their carries unstoppable late game.
No matter what style you play, support carrying requires good communication, positioning, and teamfight execution. Shotcall objectives and coordinate your team. Don’t get caught warding. Position safely in fights yet aggressively when needed. A support carry may not get Pentakills, but they have plenty of ways to drive victory.
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Best Support Champions in Patch: 13.21
With every patch, some support champions stand out as top picks due to their power and synergy with the current meta. In Patch 13.21, several utility and mage supports have risen to the top for their ability to control the lane phase and make plays. Zyra dominates with poke and disruption. Janna enables allies and stops enemies in their tracks. Xerath bullies in lane with his long range. Soraka heals her team to unkillable status. Senna scales hard and optimizes the ADC role. These champions currently have some of the highest win rates as supports. By mastering their kits and capitalizing on their strengths, you can easily carry games from the support role in this patch.
Zyra, Rise of the Thorns
With a win rate over 52%, Zyra is one of the best support champions for carrying as a support right now. She brings high damage and playmaking potential. Her abilities give her great zone control and combos. Her Q – Deadly Spines plants can poke enemies out of lane with their long range. E – Grasping Roots, roots targets for setting up ganks and picks. W – Rampant Growth seeds spawn plants that amplify her damage. Her Ultimate – Stranglethorns knocks up enemies in an AoE, perfect for team fight engages. With her ranged harass and crowd control, Zyra dominates lane phase.
Once she has some AP, her full combo can 100-0 squishy targets. Zyra can carry team fights with her AoE damage and disruption. Her zone control from plants forces enemies to play around her. A good Zyra will dominate lane phase through poke, then transition to picking off enemies and making fight-winning engages in the mid to late game.
Janna, The Storm’s Fury
With a strong 52.6% win rate, Janna is one of the top supporting champions for carrying games in this patch. Her kit enables allies and disrupts enemies, giving her excellent utility. Janna’s Howling Gale (Q) knocks up enemies in a line, setting up ganks or disengaging. Zephyr (W) slows targets, increases Janna’s movement speed, and lets her move through units. Eye Of The Storm (E) gives an ally a powerful shield, enabling aggressive plays. Monsoon (R) channels a massive knockback and heal, used to push away diving enemies.
Janna excels at protecting her ADC through laning phase with shields and peel. In team fights, she can make fight-changing plays by using Monsoon to disengage. A well-timed Howling Gale can set up kills too. Her ability to enable hyper-carries and prevent enemies from reaching the backline makes Janna invaluable. In the hands of a skilled player, Janna has some of the best carry potential as a support.
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Xerath, The Magus Ascendant
Xerath has exploded in popularity recently, boasting a robust 52.1% win rate. His long-range poke and burst give him dominant laning and pick potential. Xerath’s Arcanopulse (Q) shoots out a line of lightning, poking enemies from safety. Eye of Destruction (W) calls down a blast of magic, slowing and damaging foes in an area. Shocking Orb (E) stuns targets, enabling ganks and picks. His ultimate, Rite of the Arcane (R), fires powerful arcane shots at extreme range.
In lane, Xerath bullies opponents with his Q poke and constant mana sustain. Once he has some AP, he can burst down squishy champions in seconds. In team fights, Xerath stays far back, using R to unleash deadly barrages on the enemy team.
Soraka, The Starchild
With her extremely high healing output, Soraka has risen to a 51.9% win rate this patch. She sustains her team to unbelievable levels with her kit. Soraka’s Starcall (Q) rains down stars on enemies, damaging, slowing them, and upon hitting an enemy champion heals herself. Astral Infusion (W) instantly heals Soraka’s target ally, keeping them healthy. Equinox (E) silences and roots enemies in an area after a delay. Her ultimate, Wish (R), instantly heals all allied champions across the map.
During laning, Soraka spams heals on her ADC to win trades through attrition. In mid-late game, she keeps her carries perpetually healthy, allowing aggressive positioning and plays. Wish can turn around lost teamfights. Soraka’s ability to negate poke and sustain her team makes her invaluable. In the hands of a player with good positioning and timing, Soraka can easily hard-carry games through sheer healing power and denial of kills.
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Senna, The Redeemer
With her unique scaling, Senna has risen to a 51.5% win rate this patch. She starts as support but transitions into a heavy damage threat late game. Senna’s Absolution (Passive) lets her stack AD and crit chance infinitely. Piercing Darkness (Q) is her spammable damage and poke tool. Last Embrace (W) roots targets, ideal for ganks and picks. Curse of the Black Mist (E) camouflages Senna, providing stealth for sneaky plays. Dawning Shadow (R) shields allies and damages enemies – great for team fights.
In lane, Senna pokes with Q and scales safely. Once she has items, she becomes a second ADC pumping out constant damage. Her long-range lets her dish out pain while remaining hard to dive.
Conclusion
Support champions in League of Legends have a wide variety of tools to carry games and lead their team to victory. While they may not rack up kill scores, great support players make game-changing plays through vision control, playmaking, shot-calling, and enabling teammates. Supports like Zyra, Janna, Xerath, Soraka, and Senna currently stand out as top-tier picks for carrying ranked games.
By mastering these champions and their abilities to disrupt enemies and empower allies, you can drive wins from the support position. With the right playstyle, positioning, and macro decisions, support mains can climb Elo and prove they are true carries in their own right.
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