As support, what are the best ways to counter Brand support ?

OneTrickZilian·Dec 19, 2016·3 votes·49,166 views

With shifting support meta I see more regular mages coming as support where in my experience Brand is the biggest threat. I always feel like walking on the edge because Brand don't forgive mistakes. Since I never played Brand myself I don't really know his cons and pros. My biggest problem with Brand is that his AOE don't give much space for maneuvering in a narrow bot lane (his ADC will not miss an opportunity to poke too if I will get exposed by avoiding AOE).

As of now I feel that Zyra is my best option. In case I can't play Zyra, what other champs can go even with Brand ? How to play generic support champs (janna, soraka, etc) vs brand?

Please can somebody give good advice how to counter Brand support?

23 Comments

ÇhåryzårdDec 19, 20163 votes

If you can CC him or poke him down he's very squishy, just gotta dodge his stuff

I main Nami but if you really think you can dodge well enough, you can risk taking Sona for the Q + augmented Q auto combo which will really chunk him, however if you get caught you might die since you're also really squishy

Corporal BDec 19, 20163 votes

As a Brand support main I find that Nami is a very good balance if you want an even lane. She can sustain her team and if played correctly (when I engage and miss) you can counter right back on Brand and he can't do anything. On the other end rather than sustain like others mention fight fire with fire. Velcoz is one of those champions that can punish brand when he goes all in. Zyra is good as well.

Kukan SeishinDec 19, 20162 votes

Poke the adc, the brand has no sustain for their adc, so you do it that way, also I find nami works well for this

OneTrickZilianDec 19, 20163 votes

Sorry, i have to clarify. I play support. How can I poke their adc if Brand is protecting the lane and his adc ?

Kukan SeishinDec 19, 20163 votes

Oh, no poking is the adc'S job mostly, the best you could do is use namis heal to out sustain, your ult to disengage an all in from them, and bubble for specific cc, pairing with Caitlyn or ezreal, people who can out range and poke brand and the enemy adc, is a deadly combo, avoid all ins because of brands r though, it's... Disgusting

LordofEntropyDec 19, 20162 votes

Like a lot of the other mage supports, Brand is squishy and immobile. So the proverbial fight fire with fire works with him. Use another mage like Vel'Koz, Sona, or Zyra and poke/nuke the hell out of them (no sustain) back. Or get in his face relentlessly with like Leona (one E -> AA -> Q -> AA with a bit of coordination with your ADC is going to hurt him badly) , or Karma to shield and speed yourself/ADC on to him.

RákãñDec 19, 20162 votes

I find Leona having a easier time vs brand. Just make sure ti get some good early MR and dive him. Brand is very squishy, so he is easily killed off if you and your adc focus him down. Though Alistar and other bully support plays like Sion can handle him with ease too. A good Blitzcrank grab can shut him down too.

OneTrickZilianDec 19, 20162 votes

{quoted}

I find Leona having a easier time vs brand. Just make sure ti get some good early MR and dive him. Brand is very squishy, so he is easily killed off if you and your adc focus him down. Though Alistar and other bully support plays like Sion can handle him with ease too. A good Blitzcrank grab can shut him down too.

Generally I don't like sustain supports since their significance is falling post lane time. I suppose Leona is one of the best options for my play style to counter Brand while lane'ing. Shame I just don't own her as of yet.

If you would have to chose to focus early game - brand or adc, which it would be ?

LordofEntropyDec 19, 20162 votes

{quoted}

Generally I don't like sustain supports since their significance is falling post lane time. I suppose Leona is one of the best options for my play style to counter Brand while lane'ing. Shame I just don't own her as of yet.

I think she is a lot of fun and is perfect against the very thing you're asking about, those pesky mage supports. With her metric f-tons of CC, she uses Courage of the Colossus very well, adding beefiness in addition to her resistance steroid W.

She does have her problems. She needs to go in to make use of her strength, so if your ADC and/or team are really passive or don't pay attention, you often engage and they all just watch you die cause they don't do anything. And if you are just puttering around in lane, not getting in the other team's face, you're going to get poked down for free as she is melee. Also if she falls behind, she can have a hard time due to the all in play style. But even then because of all her CC and resistance steroid, just go all out tank and you can still be useful.

RákãñDec 19, 20162 votes

Brand, then the ADC. Brand has the better early game. If you get him behind, he won't be much of a problem. While the eventually ADC will eventually farm up and carry the game if they're decent.

Friendly RamDec 19, 20162 votes

my suggestion is braum. You have a ghost and w to hop out (or into) danger while also being able to keep brand on his toes. Janna and the like can work against brand but i find the passive/squishy supports get steamrolled alot easier. Best way to deal with brand support is unfortunately dodging all his spell since they all consume all three stacks of spellthiefs with his passive. Any more specific questions?

FioraWillCarryDec 19, 20162 votes

I have a vivid memory of me playing AD Carry with a Brand support. We got totally shit on by a Leona support. Of course AD Carry is my worst role and my Brand support was braindead so it probably doesn't really help.

InfiniteWarJan 2, 20192 votes

Have we met before [poppy-wink] I shit on brands whenever I get to pick leona into him... Feels good to destroy kids that abuse stupid niche picks like him.

Athenes LuluDec 19, 20162 votes

Just beat him up and dodge everything he throws. As long as they have some damage or a solid all-in, you're good to go.

Yes, it's that simple. At least the big fat AoE has some delay unlike Lux where shit is insta-denote.

PaeonDec 19, 20162 votes

The only thing that you shouldn't be able to dodge when playing against Brand are his point and click abilities. The other abilities to me are easy to dodge especially his ability to stun. Once he misses those abilities go in, and go in hard for about 5-7s. The way to beat him is

Dodge abilities
Poke
Sustain/shielding I use Janna or Nami but that's just me

khorneyDec 19, 20162 votes

soraka janna nami or a very good poke. zyra is usually a good counter to every supp yet she in turn has no counters or strong counters which is why i ban her

Risk of FateDec 19, 20161 votes

Range is going to be your best friend. If you can at least dodge the pillar, you'll be fine for the most part. First item should be item 3190 as you'll need the active if you're caught out in a brand ult.

Sona and Lux are always fantastic options if you're looking to heavy zone them. Nami is another excellent pick as her sustain will more than make up for any damage you'll take. Try to keep a distance between you and your carry and try to harass whenever he tries to get a stun off.

MooshykinDec 19, 20161 votes

If you have a hard time dodging his stuns then Morgana would be a good choice but not well for late game. Karma can be another mage pick. If you want a support support then Nami would be the best in my opinion due to her heal you can also poke with. I highly suggest trying brand when he is free to play so you can understand his kit a bit more, itll be easier to know what he probably is going to do and you can dodge his stuff alot easier. I play a lot of support.