Support champions in League of Legends tend to either be AP enchanters or AP mages. The first ones have more utility and are generally more defensive. But the second category is all about doing damage and overpowering their opponents.
Yes, there are great AD supports too but they often lack the burst damage and the safety that AP mages offer. And if you’re the type of player that wants to control the laning phase in the bot side, an AP support is what you should definitely play.
In this post, you’ll find 10 such pick recommendations, each of which has unique strengths and tools. My advice for you is to try and test them all, just so you see what works best for you.
That said, let’s go over the best AP supports in League of Legends!
These Are the 10 Best AP Supports in LoL:
10. Heimerdinger
If you’re a seasoned LoL player, the idea of playing Heimerdinger support is probably still new to you. In the past, this champion was an excellent mid and top lane pick, but he does work as a support too.
Besides damage, Heimerdinger also brings a lot of utility to the bot lane. He’s especially powerful when he rushes Rylai’s Crystal Scepter as a first item because the additional slow makes his turrets much more useful on top of it being a helpful effect for his ADC partner.
Speaking of Heimerdinger’s turrets, they are incredibly powerful when it comes to poking the enemy bot laners early on. Heimer can stack them in the bushes (to avoid ruining CS for his duo) and prevent the opponents from entering them.
Heimerdinger is one of the strongest supports during the early game and you must play him very aggressively. Since you don’t have shields and heals for your ADC, your job is to pump as much damage as possible and be a menace to the opposing duo.
One unique thing you can do with Heimerdinger is you can completely outplay the enemy jungler after level 6. You can do this by spawning a big turret with your R and fighting around it.
The damage this turret does is more than most champions can take. And it will help you win the 2v3 fights.
Recommended items:
- Rylai’s Crystal Scepter
- Liandry’s Anguish
- Morellonomicon
9. Annie
Annie was one of the first mid laners that transitioned over to the support role once they became too “weak” for their initial role. But when she did that, she became a powerhouse in the bot lane!
Annie might not have the same lane control as other AP mages, but she does offer one of the highest burst damage combos in the entire game. Her passive fits that combo fantastically well and she has all the right tools for winning the team fight before it even breaks out.
As Annie support, you want to manage your passive well and always have a stun ready for when the enemy duo engages. And unless you’re the aggressor, you want to keep them away from your ADC and threaten them with your damage and CC.
After level 6, the game becomes much more fun for you. Annie can pick up an Oracle Lens and hide in one of the bot lane bushes. This allows her to use her Tibbers to catch one or both enemy bot laners and quickly burst them down. Her ADC only needs to assist her with damage.
When it comes to partners, Annie synergizes the most with champions that can instantly follow up on her engage. This includes marksmen like Kai’Sa and Tristana, but also APCs like Ziggs and Karthus.
Recommended items:
- Luden’s Tempest
- Shadowflame
- Rabadon’s Deathcap
Read Also: 7 Best Synergy ADCs for Annie Support
8. Anivia
I’m sure that most of you don’t regard Anivia as a proper support champion. Yes, she’s an incredibly strong control mage in the mid lane, but all of her abilities work very well in the bot lane too.
As a support, Anivia offers two key things – crowd control and damage. Her ability kit is full of slows, stuns, and interruptions that really annoy the hell out of ADC mains. And on top of that, Anivia can 1v1 most marksmen when she gets her first item, so she’s a menace too.
For example, Anivia’s quick level 3 combo consists of disrupting the position of the enemy ADC with W and forcing them to walk into a specific spot. Then, Anivia can stun them with Q and quickly cast E for extra damage. This also procs Electrocute and the damage is insane!
If you can master this combo on an Anivia support, you can win more than 90% of the matchups. Anivia’s range is great and there’s nothing the enemies can do to stop her.
So, what this does is that it alleviates a lot of pressure from Anivia’s bot lane partner. It gives them the freedom to farm and scale while also giving them lots of free kills to collect.
After level 6, Anivia becomes much more menacing because of how well she can control the pace of the laning phase. She can activate her ultimate and completely zone out the enemy duo, forcing them to Recall or wait under their turret.
Recommended items:
- Everfrost
- Seraph’s Embrace
- Zhonya’s Hourglass
7. Swain
If you like the idea of playing a battle mage in League of Legends, a ranged champion that deals massive amounts of magic damage while holding his ground against melee champions, Swain is the pick for you.
Swain has a dominating presence in the bot lane. His ability kit is designed in a way to give him as much advantage in close combat as possible and he constantly forces the enemy ADC and support into trading with him.
However, the tricky part is that Swain can heal himself when he successfully hits his E and W while also having higher resistances and health numbers than most marksmen and enchanters in the game.
On the other hand, since Swain pulls all the attention on himself, this leaves his ADC free to deal all their damage. That’s why Swain is really deadly in combination with Jinx, Lucian, and Draven, champions that can instantly one-shot you if you focus your abilities on Swain.
In the mid and late game, Swain provides enough diversion and peeling for most ADC picks. He’s the frontline that keeps enemies away from you and as long as he does that, the game is easy to win.
Recommended items:
- Rylai’s Crystal Scepter
- Jak’Sho, The Protean
- Demonic Embrace
Read Also: 5 Best Synergy Supports for Swain APC
6. Lissandra
Lissandra serves a similar purpose as Anivia when it comes to the support role. She’s not a traditional pick for the bot lane but she does bring so much utility and damage to the table.
For starters, Lissandra’s Q can slow down enemies while also poking them. You can use it through the minion wave although you should be careful not to ruin the CS for your partner.
On the other hand, Lissandra’s W is an AoE root that helps her keep enemy champions in place. You typically use it in combination with the E (another spell that applies a slow effect) when you dash into melee range.
However, Lissandra’s biggest advantage as a support is that she can 1v1 the enemy ADC or isolate them for assassination after level 6. With her R, Frozen Tomb, unlocked, no marksman is safe and they need to play extra carefully in order to avoid Lissandra.
Your job as Lissandra support in the mid and late game is to clear the enemy vision, wait for a favorable opportunity to jump on the enemy carry and drop up all your damage and CC onto them. This is bound to turn the fight into 5v4 and let your team win it.
Recommended items:
- Everfrost
- Zhonya’s Hourglass
- Shadowflame
5. Vel’Koz
For many of you, Vel’Koz is a standard AP support pick that often dominates the bot lane and ends up carrying the game. He does require a bit of mechanical skill and precision since all of his abilities are skill shots.
But if you can aim Vel’Koz’s Q properly, you can absolutely crush any matchup in the bot lane. No matter how much healing and shielding they have, no one can withstand a repeated Vel’Koz Q for a long time. This ability does a lot of damage and has a really low mana cost, so you basically spam it all game long.
Vel’Koz is a pretty safe pick because of his big range. He doesn’t need to enter short range combat and all of his damage can be applied from a safe distance.
This may not sound like much, but there’s a reason why Vel’Koz is such a useful counter-pick to so many engage supports such as Leona, Alistar, and Pyke. His E allows him to predict their dashes and the rest of his spells let him deal true damage.
Vel’Koz’s job throughout the match is to apply as much poke damage as possible. And as soon as an opportunity for execution arises, he can do so by activating his R and melting down even the tankiest of tanks in League of Legends.
Recommended items:
- Luden’s Tempest
- Horizon Focus
- Rabadon’s Deathcap
Read Also: Top 10 Most Fun Supports in League of Legends
4. Zyra
Zyra is arguably one of the most annoying champions to play against, especially as a marksman. All she does is spawn plants that harass enemies left and right, which is precisely why she’s so effective at winning the bot lane too.
Zyra is the embodiment of the poke support playstyle. Her entire kit is designed around punishing the enemy laners for overstepping and playing too aggressively for their own good.
For example, Zyra’s E is a skill shot that travels through minions, roots all enemies it touches, and triggers the nearby seeds if there are any. Its damage is high and the enemies are forced to play carefully since they can’t even hide from it behind the minion wave.
But Zyra can also spawn plants with her W + Q combo which often catches opponents unawares.
Once Zyra unlocks her ultimate, Stranglethorns, it’s really difficult for her enemies to do much. She can basically hide in a bush and wait for the enemy ADC to walk by, catch them, and assassinate them before they even realize what’s going on.
In the late game, Zyra’s damage potential is extremely high thanks to all the anti-tank items she builds. She’s a great champion to consistently perform on and I can’t help but recommend her!
Recommended items:
- Liandry’s Anguish
- Demonic Embrace
- Morellonomicon
3. Xerath
Xerath is another AP mid laner that fits incredibly well in the support role. His specialty is damage and he has lots of it!
Xerath’s playstyle revolves around poking enemies day in and day out. He can do so from level 1 with his Q or W spells, both of which have extremely long range and deal high AoE magic damage.
When Xerath decides to score a kill, the best way to set the stage up is to aim his E. This ability stuns the first target hit and the duration of the stun is based on the distance it traveled. So if Xeraths stuns the enemy ADC from a safe distance, the kill is pretty much guaranteed.
Many players don’t fully utilize Xerath’s passive (especially in lower elos) because they forget to periodically auto-attack the minion wave or the enemy champions. This restores a portion of his mana which directly makes him one of the best poking champions in the early game.
When you unlock Xerath’s ultimate, you can start impacting the rest of Summoner’s Rift. His R isn’t global but it does have a great range. And if you pay attention to the map, you can easily score a few kills with it on the mid lane or the surrounding jungle.
One thing you have to remember about Xerath is that all of his spells are skill shots and he does require skill and mastery. So, don’t forget to practice him a bit before you jump into ranked matches.
Recommended items:
- Luden’s Tempest
- Horizon Focus
- Rabadon’s Deathcap
Read Also: 7 Best Synergy ADCs for Xerath Support
2. Brand
Brand is one of my personal favorite champions in League of Legends and he’s one of the strongest supports when it comes to carrying games. His damage is often too much for most enemies to bear, so they end up losing to him.
Although Brand is an aggressive support early on, he also fits team comps that focus on scaling and carrying in the late game. This is because Brand’s damage is largely based on how tanky the enemy team is, so he always stays relevant, no matter the stage of the game.
The way to apply pressure with Brand during the laning phase is to cast his W whenever the enemy ADC tries to CS. You can also use his E to spread the fire from the ranged caster minions which you can then combine with Brand’s Q to stun your target and deal extra damage.
In the mid and late game, Brand’s job is very simple. He must find an opportunity to use his R well, to spread it on as many enemies as possible and wait for his passive to melt them down. Brand’s damage is really helpful for his entire team, so he’s a useful champion to have on your team overall.
Brand’s best bot lane partners are also aggressive ADCs that can fight immediately after Brand stuns a target. Damage is the key aspect of this champion and it’s the only way he carries games in solo queue.
Recommended items:
- Liandry’s Anguish
- Demonic Embrace
- Rylai’s Crystal Scepter
Read Also: 7 Best Synergy ADC Picks to Play with Brand Support
1. Lux
Out of all traditional and off-meta AP support champions you can play in the bot lane, Lux is the best overall. She almost has no weaknesses and if you know how to take advantage of her kit, you’re going to win most of your matchups without a problem.
For starters, Lux is simply fantastic when it comes to poking. Both her Q and E are fairly long-ranged abilities that also have CC effects attached to them. Lux’s E slowed down all enemies in its area while her Q can root up to two enemies at once.
When it comes to setting up a kill, a single Q cast can do the job. Depending on how advanced you are with this champion, you can mask her Q in different ways. For example, you can cast it toward a ranged caster minion to also affect the enemy champion that stands behind it.
But that’s not all. Lux is also amazing when it comes to protecting her ADCs thanks to her W. This is an AoE shield that you can improve with supportive AP items as well as runes such as Shield Bash, Revitalize, and even Guardian.
And finally, Lux’s best ability is her R, Final Spark. It’s another long-range spell that deals huge amounts of damage and lets Lux secure so many kills in the bot lane.
Lux’s most basic combo for assassinating enemy champions is Q + E + R + E, which guarantees a one-shot if you’re ahead. It’s a fun way of dominating your opponents, so make sure to give Lux a shot.
Recommended items:
- Luden’s Tempest
- Horizon Focus
- Shadowflame
Read Also: The Best ADCs for Lux Support
Conclusion
In my opinion, the AP supports have an advantage over the AD supports in multiple different aspects.
For example, AP champions are generally ranged and therefore safer for beginners. On top of this, the AP supports on this list offer more utility and damage while the AD supports are tankier and can absorb more damage.
In any case, I’d advise you to give all these 10 champions a try and see what works best for you. You never know, you might find your next main!
