Nautilus is a dominating support in League of Legends. His sheer presence allows him to control the bottom half of the map since level 1, so he’s an effective pick for climbing in solo queue. And the ADCs I’m going to talk about here make him even more so.
Nautilus synergizes the most with aggressive laners and ADCs that can quickly follow up on his engage. Since Nautilus can chain CC a target since level 2, he needs an ADC that can unleash huge amounts of damage right away.
However, this isn’t always a must. Note that Nautilus also goes well with a few mages or off-meta ADCs. For example, Cassiopeia and Veigar are both great bot partners for Nautilus. But I’m not going to focus on them here.
That said, let’s explore the 5 bets ADCs/marksmen for Nautilus in League of Legends!
The 5 Best ADCs for Nautilus in LoL
5. Tristana
One of the first champions that come to mind when thinking of Nautilus in the bot lane is Tristana. She goes very well with him and you must try her out.
First of all, Tristana has great follow-up damage for Nautilus’ crowd control. And that’s the biggest benefit for Nautilus during the laning phase.
For example, each time Nautilus catches an enemy champion with his Q, Tristana can immediately jump and place a bomb on the target’s head.
You may not know this, but the actual damage that Tristana and Nautilus can squeeze out is huge, even on level 2. This is because Nautilus can hold a target immobilized for a couple of seconds (Q and passive) so Tristana has enough time to fully detonate the bomb (4 hits).
Key Synergies
- High burst damage
- All-in potential from level 2
- Great kiting in team fights
And so, the whole laning phase of Tristana and Nautilus should be pretty aggressive. You and your partner should always look out for opportunities to catch the enemy ADC or support, especially if they’re squishy like Sona or Seraphine.
Additionally, Tristana and Nautilus can always roam around and help their jungler when he needs aid. If you control the bot lane but the enemy players don’t want to fight you, it’s always a good option to secure the Dragon or gank other lanes.
And believe me, Tristana and Nautilus can do that so well!
4. Draven
If you want a really aggressive playstyle that can break the bot lane in the first 5 minutes, Nautilus and Draven is the combo for you and your duo!
Draven has a very rapid laning phase. Since most of his damage comes from his Q-enhanced auto-attacks, he’s comfortable at trading since level 1. This also suits Nautilus who has amazing early game crowd control too.
So, when Nautilus is with Draven, he can try to hook an enemy champion even on level 1. Draven’s damage is actually unfair early on, so first blood is an easy thing to do here. One thing that can help you out is to build lethality on Draven, but that’s up to your preference.
The great thing about Nautilus is that he can keep enemies away from Draven even in late game team fights. This is very important because Draven is an immobile ADC (besides the movement speed) and needs as much help as possible in that aspect.
Key Synergies:
- Aggressive playstyle and dominating presence in lane
- Draven can kite for days with Nautilus by his side
- Nautilus keeps enemies immobilized for Draven so he can deal damage freely
As I mentioned at the beginning of this guide, Nautilus’ biggest strength is crowd control. He can keep targets stationary but he lacks the damage to take them down. Unless Nautilus builds full AP that is.
So, Draven’s damage is always high as long as he doesn’t go 0/5 in the lane. And with a slight advantage, you and your partner can carry games by engaging with Nautilus, rooting and knocking up enemies left and right, and simply letting Draven auto-attack freely.
That’s the magic of this duo!
Read Also: Top 7 Best ADCs for Pyke
3. Nilah
Ever since we first saw Nilah’s League of Legends champion spotlight, we immediately thought that she’d be the perfect partner for Nautilus in the bot lane. And it turned out to be true!
Nilah and Nautilus hold one of the highest win rates in the bottom lane. They work together very well and have a great way of winning their games. Here’s how it works.
First of all, thanks to Nilah’s passive, she and Nautilus can always get level 2 before their lane opponents. This is very important because Nautilus can surprise-hook their enemies before they expect him to, and Nilah can double-dash in order to deal damage.
On the other hand, Nilah’s passive has another fantastic effect – Nilah can receive a small shield whenever Nautilus shields himself with his W. No other ADC in LoL benefits like this from Nautilus’ shield, so it’s a great way for Nautilus to keep Nilah protected.
Besides this, Nautilus often goes for items that help out Nilah when it comes to surviving team fights. For example, Locket of the Iron Solari is another shield that can keep Nilah safe. And Knight’s Vow lets you transfer some of the incoming damage from Nilah to Nautilus.
Key Synergies:
- Amazing all-in with Nautilus’ hook and Nilah’s dashes
- Nilah can ulti multiple champions after Nautilus’ engage
- They can absorb damage and easily reposition during a fight
During the laning phase, Nautilus and Nilah are actually pretty decent. There aren’t too many matchups that can shut them down as long as they’re careful. This is partly because these two champions can shield themselves and easily escape danger and partly because they can always engage and overwhelm their opponents with CC and damage.
So, you and your friend should definitely try out Nilah and Nautilus in the bot lane!
Read Also: Top 7 Best Supports for Nilah
2. Kalista
If you’re looking for a solid duo that can always perform well no matter the matchup, Nautilus and Kalista might be the champions for you.
Kalista and Nautilus don’t have the strongest laning phase. In fact, the early game should be focused on protecting Kalista while she’s farming and only engaging when the jungler comes to gank.
Once the mid game kicks in, Kalista becomes a monster. She’s able to hop around and dodge a lot of the incoming damage. Side by side with Nautilus, Kalista can dish out huge amounts of damage to all 5 of the enemy players because Nautilus can keep all of them away from her.
Kalista usually builds items Runaan’s Hurricane, so her gameplay affects everyone!
Key Synergies:
- Great kiting potential with Nautilus’ CC and Kalista’s jumping
- Kalista can save Nautilus by pulling him with her ultimate
- Nautilus can always engage with Kalista’s R and knock everyone up
One of the coolest things you can do with these two champions is to use Kalista’s R – Fate’s Call in combination with Nautilus’ crowd control.
For example, when Kalista pulls Nautilus, he can jump in the middle of all enemy champions (essentially doing Malphite’s R). When all enemies are airborne, Kalista can start dealing damage while Nautilus is applying knock-ups and roots left and right. This gives her enough time to slay all enemy champions, so it’s a great strategy to 2v8 matches in LoL!
Just don’t forget to link yourselves at the start of the game!
Read Also: The Best Synergy Supports for Kalista
1. Samira
And the ADC that has the best synergy with Nautilus in League of Legends is Samira! She’s a fantastic champion for carrying games and benefits the most from Nautilus’ CC. Here’s why.
Samira’s passive – Daredevil Impulse allows her to not only dash to immobilized enemy champions, but also to extend the duration of airborne effects.
In other words, each time Nautilus knocks up an enemy champion with Q or R, Samira can right-click them and keep them airborne for longer. Of course, this effect also deals damage, so it’s just an amazing way to synergize both of these champions.
Key Synergies:
- Samira improves Nautilus’ CC with her passive and benefits a lot from it
- Samira can protect Nautilus with her W and block key spells
- Nautilus can set up the perfect team fight for Samira
Nautilus’ and Samira’s synergy is very strong during the laning phase. They can be as aggressive as they need to, depending on the matchup at hand. And if Nautilus hooks an enemy (including the jungler), Samira can immediately get in range and overwhelm them with damage.
The great thing about Samira is that her ultimate has the same cooldown as a regular ability. And thanks to Nautilus’ CC, Samira can easily combine her spells and quickly reach an S grade. This lets her become an AoE monster
On the other hand, Nautilus’ build of Locket of the Iron Solari and Knight’s Vow gives Samira great defensiveness, especially later on. Normally she goes for Immortal Shieldbow, but the extra shields are really helpful.
All in all, playing Samira and Nautilus in the bot lane is super fun and I really recommend it for you and your friend!
Here are the best Supports for Samira
Read Also: The 5 Best Synergy Supports for Cassiopeia APC
Conclusion
If you don’t agree with the 5 ADC picks on my list, you’re free to experiment for yourself. Obviously, different combos with Nautilus will be better depending on the current patch. But Tristana, Draven, Nilah, Kalista, and Samira are the best ADCs for Nautilus regardless of that.
That said, I hope you liked this guide and found it informative.
Good luck my friend!
Read Also: Top 5 Best ADCs for Taric in LoL (Synergy Explained)
