Best Supports to Climb With in 2026
As of this March 2026 essay, support was one of the highest-impact roles. These five champions give tools to carry — engage, healing, or vision — for that dated window.
Dated essay (published 12 March 2026). This is not live 26.18+ ranked advice. For current Emerald+ tiers and builds use U.GG / OP.GG; newest on-site tier snapshot is historical Patch 26.17.
Support is the most underrated role for climbing in solo queue. A support player who controls vision, makes proactive plays, and enables their ADC properly wins games regardless of how the rest of the map is going. These picks make that job as effective as possible.
- 1The most complete support in the game. A well-played Thresh controls bot lane completely — Death Sentence sets up kills, The Box zones in teamfights, and Dark Passage rescues teammates. 51.1% win rate but his ceiling is limitless. Every game you play on Thresh makes you a better support player overall.
- 2The best peel support for protecting carry ADCs. Her tornado, slow, knock-up ult, and shield make her the hardest support to kill around in teamfights. 51.8% win rate and particularly strong against engage-heavy compositions. Her movement speed passive makes roaming and repositioning easy.
- 3One of the strongest supports when ahead. Her triple passive charges give her continuous poke, heal, and speed boost. Her ult Crescendo is a game-winning AoE stun. 51.8% win rate and very forgiving — her passive healing keeps your ADC healthy through trades even when you make mistakes.
- 4The best ADC-amplifying support in this March 2026 essay. Whimsy turns enemies into squirrels, Wild Growth gives your carry an emergency health boost and knock-up, and Help, Pix! shields reliably. Excels at protecting hyperscaling ADCs like Jinx, Smolder, and Kai'Sa.
- 5The easiest engage support to execute effectively. Dredge Line hook, passive root, E slow, and a point-and-click ultimate that knocks up and stuns. Four forms of CC. If you land your Q, you almost always get a kill for your ADC. 51.36% win rate and very forgiving because of his tankiness.
Post-Nerf Picks
Nami and Karma both took nerfs in patch 26.7. Nami's W is less potent into non-AP builds and Karma's empowered shield output is down. Both are still playable — Nami in particular remains an excellent all-around enchanter — but they're no longer blind-pick safe. If you're used to playing them, consider adding Janna or Lulu as alternatives.
The best thing you can do as a support is control vision. Buy control wards every back, sweep the river tri-bush before your ADC walks there, and place a deep ward in the enemy jungle after winning a trade. Vision wins games.