Out of 15 games of Rakan I've lost 13. Why?

Combat Comrade·4/26/2017, 2:53:02 AM·3 votes·981 views

excluding the first couple games it took to get used to him. Im feeling seriously bad man. Not only am I tilted but I dont understand why I am losing anymore. Ive becoming pretty good at accessing when to play aggro and when play passive with my adc and I personally dont feel like I stuggle in the laning phase with him. Right now he just feels so weak I feel like janna (and I hate janna) just there for CC. cooldowns are soo long after my little combo theres nothing else I can do to help and this feels especially true in mid and late game teamfights. Idk Im desperate I really have so much fun playing him but I dont want to suck this much

18 Comments

Sugar Momma4/26/2017, 2:56:20 AM1 votes

Rakan is the ONLY ranged support who has to get into melee range to CC enemies. This places you in harm's way much more than you should be for a squishy support (even melee supps, however, are generally able to CC enemies from range).

You also have pitiful damage, the only supports who do less dmg than Rakan are Taric Janna Soraka and each have unparalleled ability to protect/buff their teammates whereas you have a rather weak shield and situational heal.

PureSilvrr4/26/2017, 3:31:33 AM1 votes

What account are these games on? Maybe I can look at them and try and give you advice?

Dominick Destine4/26/2017, 3:45:26 AM1 votes

I played him once... when I realized he's actually ranged and cannot use relic shield's passive PLUS only gets 3 gold per strike but retains limitations of melee combat, I decided to never play him again.

LostFr0st4/26/2017, 3:51:37 AM1 votes

You should watch a few of your own replays. That should shed light on it.

A big thing with him is planning your way out before you go in. It's easy to forget and go too deep. ~~He eggs you on too.~~ Since he goes in so much, consider not buying item 3117 ; they'll get you killed more than not.

item 3109 and item 3174 feel great on him too. Idk if I like item 3107 since he's a colossus champ; if he was a good Windspeaker champ it'd be different, item 3190 is probably better on him.

lilpokfluf4/26/2017, 11:11:21 AM1 votes

It's probably less your skill playing him and more the experience supporting. That's usually why people think supports less impactful, probably cause they aren't doing it right

EinarUlfar4/26/2017, 11:42:12 AM1 votes

Rakan

Masteries: A lot of Rakan users are relying on pouring heavily into the Resolve mastery tree (Right/Tank tree). I personally prefer investing heavily in the middle tree for the +Mana Regen and Windspeakers' Blessing. This way, if any skrimishes break out early (when Rakan is NOT strong), I can simply blow my spells as I choose. Atop this, Windspeakers gives me a stronger Heal + Shield for protecting my carry.

Runes: Not sure what most people are running on Rakan for his runes. I personally just use my ADC/AD runes. AD/ASPD/AR/MR; with a good chunk of ASPD for harass (SO nice with Xayah) and lowering my Passive's shield's cooldown.

Laning: Play safe early. I do a lot of pacing around / re-positioning with Rakan ESPECIALLY if the enemy support is CC-heavy. I start with E(shield). Q is too short a skillshot for me to begin with (and can be blocked by minions), and Lv.1 W is useless to me without an escape tool. At level 2, I'll grab W(knock-up). On any enemy duo that doesn't have a very strong Lv.2, I'll go in for the knock-up and shield out if my ADC is in range to harass/trade. For the rest of the laning phase: Watch your cooldowns, keep the wards up, engage hard when ADC is healthy + wards are up + your cooldowns aren't up. Should do considerable damage and get away nearly unscathed (If not, the ADC should).

Mid-Late Game: Your get-away is largely dependant on another player(big thing for Rakan) being in Shield range, so if you're ever alone, try to not be alone for long. Assuming your carry performs well or at the least, decent enough to make a difference later, try to be with them often. That said, don't be afraid of creating an optimal opportunity for your team in the mid-late game. Your Ultimate is EXTREMELY powerful and game-changing (can also use your other skills whilst ulting), so use it wisely and preferably when you expect some serious follow-up. The cooldown isn't massive for the impact it has.

Side-notes: For poke-heavy lanes, I personally run Refillable Potion so any forced Recalls don't leave me blowing the little bit of Gold I have.