Thresh is one of the most iconic support champions in League of Legends. Of course, you’ve seen him in those prediction montages where his hooks turn the tides of battle when he predicts enemy flashes with it and catches them, leading to a takedown. Clean plays where he lands a hook, flashes towards a faraway teammate and gets them with his lantern to secure a kill.
There are many playstyles for Thresh. He initiates a winning team fight or peels the enemy ADC so potently, leading to a fast-growing ADC snowball. Regardless of playstyles, Thresh is a grand champion with lots of CC and slow with relatively significant damage, making him dangerous for 1v1’s. With that in mind, let us take an in-depth look at the 5 best ADC champions you can pair him
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1. Lucian
Lucian and Thresh might be sworn enemies in the main lore of league of legends. Still, in the summoner’s rift, they are an overwhelming duo. They make for a tremendous hyper-aggressive lane that dominates 2v2 fights at any point of the game. Thresh’s low cooldown CC and slows can easily lock enemies, while Lucian’s dashes and animation cancel quickly demolish enemies locked down by Thresh.
How to Lane With This Duo
Both being grand early game champions, they dominate the lane even at level 1. Thresh constantly threatens enemies with his hook that can be quickly followed by Lucian’s Q. Look for fights in the early game as they are both unbeatable when it comes to early game fights. Thresh can also dish out incredible damage with early game stats if he starts with an E. Item builds are pretty much standard. Doran’s blade or Tear of the Goddess and Steel Shoulder guards for Thresh.
Mid Game Playstyle and Item Builds
Mid-game is crucial for this duo because Lucian’s damage falls off at this point if he doesn’t get a lead in the laning phase. If Lucian has a lead, look to rotate to different lanes and help them push their respective towers. High mobility is crucial to have for this duo. That is why Thresh should rush building a Shurelya’s Battlesong so they can perform great ganks. Lucian would have already built his Mythic item depending upon his enemies. If enemies are squishy, he can build Galeforce for a highly aggressive approach. If assassins are present, however, Lucian should look to build an Immortal Shieldbow.
Late Game Playstyle and Item Builds
Lucian’s total item build depends on the enemy team composition. Although he has a general build that works most of the time, he should still adjust if certain enemy champions are present. Lucian should build anti-armor items like Black Cleaver and Lord Dominik’s Regards so he doesn’t fall off on damage. However, his general build is Galeforce + Navori Quickblade + Blade of the Ruined King, which is excellent for all types of enemies.
Also read: Best ADCs to Pair With Vel’Koz
2. Draven
When paired with Thresh, the usual playmaker of the duo is not the ADC but Thresh the support himself. A hook followed by a flay and an ult makes an enemy extremely vulnerable. Usually, all the ADC has to do is kill the enemy that was caught. Thresh has severe damage from his skills, so a Draven who has a straightforward tactic can easily burst enemies down. Once an enemy is caught by Thresh, it is usually a guaranteed kill for Draven as enemies won’t be able to run away from a high-ability haste Thresh.
Early Game Playstyle
Item’s really do not matter that much in the laning phase as the stats in one starter item really ain’t that much. So, the team composition is usually the deciding factor for early game fights. With Draven’s severe damage and Thresh’s hook, a kill really is guaranteed, especially when Thresh has an ignite or an exhaust. This is also the most crucial point of the game for this duo. Suppose Draven manages to secure 2 or more kills in the laning phase. In that case, he is guaranteed to snowball very fast as he quickly out damages most ADC in the game.
Mid Game Playstyle and Item Builds
If Draven manages to secure kills in the laning phase, both of them should look to engage enemies more often. Draven can build an early Duskblade if most enemies are squishy and kill enemies every time he gets a chance to. They can roam the enemy jungler together and look for a pick on the enemy jungler. Suppose they manage to establish vision on the enemy jungle camp.
In that case, they can quickly shut the enemy jungler out of the game. Enemies usually won’t engage a Thresh Draven duo because of their high kill pressure, so you can go back and forth from the enemy jungle camps back to tower pushing. Establishing lane dominance in the bot lane would also make it easier to secure dragons.
Late Game Playstyle and Item Builds
By now, Draven is probably substantial, and it doesn’t matter if he got an early game lead or not. His damage becomes insane at this point of the game, given that he builds the right items. Whatever item build Draven goes for, he should always have 1 or 2 lifesteal items with him. Thresh also needs to have high ability haste because this is his principal value for this duo. Draven doesn’t really need that much peeling, but he needs initiation abilities. Thresh’s low cooldown hooks and flays can easily roam the entire map and find kills or security objectives. Watch out for enemy assassins, though, as they may focus on Draven.
3. Caitlyn
Caitlyn has an exciting kit that prevents enemies from getting near her. She has a trap that CCs enemies and lets her deal bonus headshot damage. She also has an E that slows enemies and makes Caitlyn jump back. With this self-peeling potential of Caitlyn, Thresh can look to roam the other lanes so their teammates can also have a lead.
They can also do one exciting combo together, and it depends upon Caitlyn’s trap placement. It is easy to walk around and dodge Caitlyn’s traps when you are faced with a Caitlyn. But when she places it well enough, followed by a thresh hook and flay, it gets more complicated.
Early Game Playstyle
Caitlyn can easily poke enemies with her long-range, and controlling the lane is usually straightforward with Caitlyn alone. Thresh can extend this passive lead by landing his hooks on the enemies. Once Thresh catches one enemy with his hook, Caitlyn should look to trap under the enemy as they get pulled by Thresh. This is an easy strategy to guarantee an early kill or burn both summoner spells of the enemy champion.
Cull or a Doran’s Blade works excellent for Caitlyn, depending on the enemy composition. If the enemy bot duo has great engagement like Leona and Lucian’s duo, Caitlyn should look to play passive and farm, so she needs to build a cull. Doran’s blade, however, works excellent in general, so it really is up to the player.
Mid Game Playstyle
One of the oldest builds for Caitlyn is a Stormrazor Rush, and it still works great to this day. The slow on the initial hit of Storm razor greatly complements Caitlyn’s long-range. Once enemies are slowed by Stormrazor, Thresh will be much easier to hit his hooks and secure a kill. This item also gives crit chance, damage, and attack speed, making it a tremendous mid-game item. With Caitlyn having storm razor, the duo can play either aggressively or defensively. Either way, they can still secure kills with their combo.
Late Game Playstyle and Item Builds
If there are enemy assassins, Thresh’s build should be focused on items that peel Caitlyn. Items like Knight’s Vow and Locket of the Iron Solari are an excellent buy for Thresh. He should also transition from aggressive support to protective support. He should stay beside Caitlyn all the time. Caitlyn can already kill enemies with her long range and doesn’t need initiation that much anymore. Late-game team fights are very chaotic, especially when the enemy team has backline access. Thresh should look for a great position before the fight erupts so he can quickly get Caitlyn out of trouble with his lantern.
Also read: Best URF Items in League of Legends
4. Twitch
Twitch is an excellent ADC that can demolish entire teams in the late game. All he needs is a wall to stand before him to hit all of the enemies with his ult. Thresh is great for him as he can be the shield that Twitch needs. Twitch doesn’t really need an excellent set from his support. He can kill enemies on his own because of his invisibility and slowness.
Early Game Playstyle
Twitch should look to build a cull in the early game so he can earn bonus gold. Doran’s blade is not an excellent build for him in the laning phase as his kill pressure is weak. He would also need to be protected by Thresh most of the time and completely forget about engaging enemies. Although some matchups allow them to play aggressively, playing safe in the early game is the safest option.
Mid Game Playstyle
If Twitch manages to avoid multiple deaths, he should have a mythic item built by now. A Kraken slayer is usually great for Twitch because of his High attack speed, meaning he can often proc its effects. A Lethal tempo on Twitch will go a long way with this item. Kraken Slayer also allows Twitch to catch up to the mid-game damage outputs of most ADC champions.
Thresh can build a Shurelya’s Battlesong mid-game, and he can use this to find kills for Twitch. Going invisible just before appearing on the map should be the primary tactic of Twitch. Suppose an enemy is present, with Thresh beside the invisible Twitch. In that case, he can proc the speed boost of the item and surprise the enemy with their combo. Farming ADCs usually becomes the victim of this tactic.
Late Game Playstyle and Item Builds
The late game is where Twitch truly shines. He quickly out damages entire teams with his ult, primarily when he builds a Runaan’s Hurricane. He can quickly spread his passive on all enemies and burst them with his E. If Thresh manages to keep Twitch safe long enough, Twitch can demolish the entire enemy team. Be careful, though, as teams who know how to deal with situations will avoid team fights and look for a pick on Twitch instead. So avoid farming in places where your teammates cannot reach you on time.
5. Kalista
Both coming from the shadow isles, this duo works excellent when you know what you are doing. Playing Kalista can be pretty challenging with her passive and mediocre damage output. But with Thresh’s low cooldown hooks and flays, Kalista can shine with her ramping-up damage. The longer Kalista fights, the stronger her damage gets because of her passive. It would also be easier to initiate fights with Kalista’s ult and Thresh’s flay combo. Once enemies get hit with Kalista’s ult, Thresh can easily lock them all down with his flay and ult.
Early Game Playstyle
Make sure that you avoid fights at all costs, as Kalista is pretty much useless in the early game compared to other ADC champions. This means Thresh should focus on using his abilities to protect Kalista instead of engaging enemies. However, they can both poke with Kalista’s Q and Thresh’s E passive damage, but that’s pretty much it when it comes to damage. A death on Kalista should be highly avoided, as this would lock her out of the game because she can’t scale well when she is behind.
Mid Game Playstyle and Item Builds
Once Kalista finishes her mythic item and attack speed boost, they can now start looking for fights. Thresh’s hook and flay allow Kalista to stack spears on the enemy champion. Thresh’s lantern also helps Kalista position better. Kalista should look to build an early Runaan’s hurricane, so it goes along with her hail of blades or Lethal tempo. An essential lifesteal item would also help Kalista make the fight longer in the mid-game. Thresh can also build an early Zeke’s convergence for added slow and damage bonus for Kalista or a Knight’s Vow to peel for her.
Late Game Playstyle and Item Builds
A clean can be performed by this duo in the late game with both of their ultimates. This is an excellent way for Kalista to stack her spears on multiple enemies using her passive and Runaan’s. By now, she already has an incredibly high attack speed so stacking her passive is faster. Thresh can now look for engages with his hook instead of focusing on peeling Kalista with them.
Final Thoughts
Thresh is incredibly aggressive support because his skills have a low cooldown. He is also great at peeling ADCs with his flay and lantern. Just make sure to adjust your playstyle depending on what team comp you are facing, along with your item build. Thank you so much for reading my content, and I hope you enjoyed it as I invest time and effort in making these articles. I hope this article helps you in your future games summoner, GLHF, and see you on the rift.