Tanks are generally a good class to counter every type of enemy damage, be it AD, AP, or true damage. But despite countering everything, AP champions can still be hard to deal with somehow, even as a tank.
Luckily, some champions simply do a great job against magic damage. Here are my top 5 best tanks against AP champions that I came to appreciate from my experience playing in Master elo.
Check them out.
1. Mundo
Mundo is the best tank you can play against AP champions, and he is also one of the strongest tanks for playing 1v1s in a side lane.
Mundo has:
- Top-notch healing
- Amazing sustain
- Fun gameplay
My top trick when playing against heavy AP champions is to build Spirit Visage and Adaptive Helm. These two items make it feel like I have a cheat activated. The amount of damage AP champions do to me becomes insignificant.
Combined with R, these two items give around 300 magic resistance, which is more than plenty. I would recommend playing Mundo with these two items any time you encounter an enemy team full of AP carries. You will have a huge advantage from the start.
As Mundo says himself, he goes where he pleases. Once you have this build, you will be able to run around and chase enemy carries into the ground.
Read Also: Top 10 Best Tanks in League of Legends
2. Maokai
Maokai is another great champion against AP picks, he is most commonly played as support, but he can comfortably be played as a top laner and jungler too.
Maokai is great for:
- Engaging
- Disengaging
- Dealing damage
Maokai has great base stats and natural resistance. He can easily engage in fights and focus down enemy AP carries. For enemies, it simply does not pay to focus on him, as he is really hard to kill.
Since Maokai has a really high damage output, he presents a serious threat to enemies. He can force enemies into submission and allow his team to win fights easily.
Maokai also has a great laning phase against AP champions. He can easily out-heal much of the damage they do with his passive, and he can set up great ganks with his W and R.
3. Galio
Galio is another famous face in the scene against AP champions. He is one of the go-to picks for tank mains who dislike AP enemies.
Galio has a number of strengths:
- Great map presence with his R
- Great against AP champions
- Amazing CC
Everything about Galio makes him a great AP counter. He has plenty of resistance with his kit and spells, and he can play a game in a way that makes AP champions useless. He can simply ignore their attacks, push the lane and roam.
Read Also: The Best Items Against AP Champions
4. Cho’Gath
Another legendary AP champion counter. Cho’Gath is distinguished by his unlimited scaling and great amounts of HP.
He also has the following:
- Great sustain
- Great wave clear
- Decent CC
The main thing that makes Cho’Gath one of the best tanks against AP champions is his copious amount of HP. The HP increases each time you kill a minion, monster, or champion with his R.
This makes Cho’Gath one of the champions with the most HP in the game, in most games. Since AP champions are mostly countered by HP, it is clear why Cho’Gath is a great choice against them.
Additionally, his kit is great for getting near carries and protecting ally carries. A well-stacked Cho’Gath can casually walk up to enemies, silence them, knock them up with Q, and delete them with his R.
5. Sion
Much like Cho’Gath, Sion’s selling point is the amount of HP he can acquire. His passive increase his HP each time he kills a minion.
Here are some quick reasons why you should consider playing Sion:
- Great map presence with R
- Bunch of HP
- Bunch of CC
- Fun playstyle
Sion has a great kit against the AP champions. He can stack much HP by farming well, and then it is game over for enemies. He can use his R to quickly move around the map and infiltrate enemy backlines.
Once he is in the face of enemies, he has many tools to make them suffer. His Q is for knocking up opponents, E for slow them, and a shield that makes him much more durable. Not to mention his passive, which makes him undead for a few good seconds.
Overall, I would highly recommend playing Sion. Unlike other tanks I mentioned, he has a much more fun playstyle which is his main selling point.
Read Also: Best LoL Champions Without Hard Counters
Conclusion
Tanks are great for countering all forms of damage, but countering AP can be a little hard sometimes. For me, it seems like the magic resist technology is not there yet. Anyhow, a great way to counter AP champions is by picking great anti-AP tanks.
My top 3 picks in terms of strength would be Mundo, Maokai, and Galio. But personally, I enjoy playing Sion and Cho’Gath more, as I simply find them to be more fun.