Rell is an iron-clad engage support who can dismount to become the tankiest champion in the game during fights. Her W charge initiates fights, Q stuns follow-up, and R holds the entire enemy team in place. She excels at hard-engage compositions.
Abilities
Skills Overview
P
Break the Mold
Passive
Rell's Attacks and Abilities deal additional magic damage and steal Armor and Magic Resist on hit.
Armor and MR stolen from broken items via abilities stacks on you — the more you fight, the tankier you become during combat.
Q
Shattering Strike
Projectile · Stun
Rell deals magic damage to units in a line, breaking their shields and stunning them.
CD: 11/10.5/10/9.5/9 · Cost: 50
Q stuns if it hits while you're dismounted. Best used immediately after W dismount knockup for extended CC.
W
Ferromancy: Crash Down
Mount/Dismount · Charge · Knockup
Mounted: Rell Dismounts, crashing down in her armor, Knocking enemies up and gaining a large Shield. While dismounted, she gains Armor, Magic Resist, Attack Speed, and Attack Range, but is Slowed.Dismounted: Rell forms her Mount, gaining a burst of speed and Knocking Up the next enemy she attacks.
CD: 10 · Cost: 40
Mounted W is a fast charge that knocksup. Dismounted W is a slower engage that also knocksup. Use mounted W to close distance, then Q stun for extended CC chain.
E
Full Tilt
Shield · Tether
Passive: Rell gains out of combat Move Speed.Active: Rell and an ally gain ramping Move Speed, doubled toward enemies and each other. Her next Attack explodes, dealing magic damage.
CD: 14/13/12/11/10 · Cost: 40
E shields both you and a tethered ally. The tether can pull in enemies if they move too far away — position to exploit this.
R
Magnet Storm
AoE · Pull · Disrupt
Rell explodes in a magnetic fury, violently Pulling nearby enemies toward herself. Then Rell constantly Drags nearby enemies toward herself for a short while, dealing magic damage over time.
CD: 120/100/80 · Cost: 100
R pulls all nearby enemies toward you and holds them. Activate when enemies cluster during a teamfight — they can't escape during Magnet Storm.
Skill Leveling Order — Max W first, then E, then Q · R at 6 / 11 / 16
| Level | Q | W | E | R | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | W — mounted charge for level 1 | ||||
| 2 | Q — stun combo online | ||||
| 3 | E — shield and tether | ||||
| 4 | Level W | ||||
| 5 | Level W | ||||
| 6 | R — Magnet Storm unlocked | ||||
| 7 | Level W | ||||
| 8 | Level E | ||||
| 9 | W maxed ✓ | ||||
| 10 | Level E | ||||
| 11 | R rank 2 | ||||
| 12 | Level E | ||||
| 13 | E maxed ✓ | ||||
| 14 | Start leveling Q | ||||
| 15 | Level Q | ||||
| 16 | R rank 3 | ||||
| 17 | Level Q | ||||
| 18 | Q maxed ✓ |
Itemization
Recommended Builds
Starter Items
Targon's Buckler
Melee gold generation — you're always in melee range after W engage.
400g
Refillable Potion
Sustain through the aggressive early game.
150g
Core Build
Plated Steelcaps
Armor and auto-damage reduction — essential vs ADC-centric comps.
1100g
Locket of the Iron Solari
Team shield during your engage window — activate before W charge.
2200g
Evenshroud
MR reduction on CC'd enemies amplifies your whole team's damage against targets you hold with R.
2500g
Frozen Heart
Attack speed slow + armor. Enemies fighting you deal less damage.
2500g
Situational
Thornmail
Grievous wounds vs healing-heavy comps.
2700g
Fimbulwinter
Slows on your CC chain — great for holding enemies during R.
2600g
Warmog's Armor
Massive HP for taking massive damage during your engage.
3000g
You are the tankiest support in the game when built correctly. Stack armor and MR equally — your passive steals resistances from enemies you hit.
AP Core
Zhonya's Hourglass
Armor + stasis — use after W engage to be invincible while your team follows up.
2600g
Ionian Boots of Lucidity
CDR for more frequent W and R usage.
950g
Rylai's Crystal Scepter
R becomes a permanent slow with Rylai — enemies truly cannot escape Magnet Storm.
2600g
Locket of the Iron Solari
Team shield utility even in the AP build.
2200g
AP Rell with Zhonya's is a niche but effective strategy — W engage, use Zhonya's at the end of the charge, your team collapses while you're invincible.
Runes
Resolve Primary
Aftershock
Triggers on W knockup — massive resistances during your engage window, perfect for a champion who dives the enemy team.
Font of Life
Every CC ability marks targets for allies to heal from — you have constant CC during R.
Conditioning
Free resistances at 12 minutes stacking on top of your passive resistance stealing.
Unflinching
Tenacity when low HP — crucial for completing your W charge and R combo even under CC.
Inspiration Secondary
Magical Footwear
Free boots at 12 minutes — saves gold for tank items.
Cosmic Insight
Item and summoner CDR — more frequent Locket actives.
Shards
Ability Haste · Armor · Health
Gameplay
How to Play Rell
01
Early Game
Level 2 W Charge for First Blood
- Rush level 2 — W mounted charge into Q stun at level 2 is a kill threat on most lane matchups.
- E tether to your ADC gives both of you a shield — use it proactively before trading.
- Dismounted form is tankier but slower — only dismount inside the enemy when you're confident of the trade.
- Your passive steals resistances on combat — the longer the trade, the tankier you become.
- Avoid extended fights against poke supports at level 1 — your kit needs to be engaged to shine.
02
Mid Game
Engage Every Fight with Mounted W
- Dragon and Baron fights are your strongest moments — W into R pins the whole enemy team.
- Coordinate with your jungler for W engage on river skirmishes.
- After a successful fight, stay mounted for the fastest movement toward objectives.
- Peel your ADC by tethering E to them and standing between them and divers.
- Your W has two forms — use mounted W for gap closing, then dismount and use it again for a second knockup.
03
Late Game
Hold Their Team in R for Your Carries
- R in a chokepoint where enemies can't scatter — dragon pit and baron pit are perfect.
- Time Locket shield BEFORE using W charge — your team gets the shield while you're in transit.
- Keep the tether on your ADC with E throughout teamfights — the shield keeps refreshing.
- Aftershock triggers during R — you become nearly unkillable while holding the enemy team for your carries.
- Never use R on just one enemy. Wait for 3+ targets before activating Magnet Storm.
Teamfighting
How to Teamfight as Rell
Rell teamfights revolve around landing W charge on multiple targets, then activating R to hold them in place while your team deals damage. The combination of W knockup and R pull gives your team multiple seconds of free damage on clustered enemies.
1
Pre-Fight — Mount Up and Charge
Before engage
01
Activate Locket before starting your W charge — your team gets the shield during the engage.
02
Target a cluster — W charge through 2+ enemies if possible for the group knockup.
03
Ping your charge path so your team knows where to follow.
Don't charge into a 1v5 without your team right behind you. Rell's W and R both require your team to follow immediately — a solo engage just feeds kills.
2
Engage — W Charge, Q Stun, R Pull
Fight opening
01
W charge through the enemy frontline to reach their backline — knockup on arrival.
02
Q immediately after W for extended stun on the target.
03
R as enemies cluster around you — Magnet Storm pulls them all toward you.
04
Stand your ground — your E tether keeps your ADC shielded while you absorb damage.
3
Aftermath — Hold and Peel
Mid-fight
01
Q any diver on your backline during R — the stun stops them reaching your carries.
02
Re-mount when safe — mounted form allows faster repositioning between fights.
03
Use E defensively if your ADC is being focused — tether and shield them.
Evenshroud reduces MR of CC'd enemies near you by 15% — stack this with your R to amplify your whole team's magic damage on everyone caught in Magnet Storm.
Tips & Tricks
Advanced Mechanics & Hidden Tech
Advanced mechanics for Rell.
Basic
Mounted vs Dismounted
Mounted Rell is faster but squishier. Dismounted Rell is tankier with more powerful abilities. Mount up to travel and disengage, dismount inside enemy clusters for maximum tankiness during R.
Basic
Double W Knockup
W has two uses: one mounted, one dismounted. Use mounted W to charge in, then dismount-W again for a second knockup on the same target. This creates a 2-second CC chain before Q stun.
Intermediate
Zhonya's W Combo
Activate Zhonya's at the END of your W charge — you become invulnerable as you land in the enemy team. Your team collapses while you're in stasis, and you emerge to follow up with Q and R.
Intermediate
E Tether Pull
The E tether pulls enemies inward if they walk too far from you. Position yourself between enemies and your ally — the tether acts as a soft CC pulling enemies back toward you.
Intermediate
R Timing in Objectives
Use R in objective pits where enemies can't walk away from the pull. Dragon and Baron pit walls contain enemies during Magnet Storm — they cannot run, only try to kill you.
Advanced
Passive Resistance Stacking
Your passive stacks armor and MR with each ability hit during combat. In extended teamfights, you become progressively tankier — sometimes it's worth staying in a bad position longer because you're gaining 20+ armor and MR per ability.
Advanced
W Charge Angle
Charge W at an angle to pass through both the frontline and backline — knocking up all of them. A perfectly angled W through 3 enemies sets up an immediate 3-man R.
Basic
E Shield Priority
Always keep E tethered to your ADC, not yourself. The shield on the tether target is the most important part of E — your ADC staying alive matters more than you staying alive.
Matchups
Counters & Matchups
Rell struggles against poke and disengage. She excels in engage vs engage matchups and against immobile ADCs.
Click any matchup to expand tips & how to play against them
Loses Against
Janna's R knocks you back and completely cancels your W charge mid-engage. She outdisengages everything you do and her shields prevent your burst from sticking.
Bait Janna R by faking an engage, then W charge when it's on cooldown. Her R has a 150-second cooldown.
Lulu polymorph stops your W charge and prevents you from using Q or R. Her Ult prevents executes on her ADC — you cannot kill what you engage on.
Focus Lulu first to remove her utility, then engage onto the ADC. Take Ignite to burn her shields.
Caitlyn permanently zones you away with traps and her range prevents you from ever engaging safely during laning phase.
Rush through jungle with W charge to engage from unexpected angles. Don't approach from lane in the Caitlyn matchup.
Wins Against
Sona is squishy and has no reliable escape from your W charge. You kill her before she can react with power chord.
W charge onto Sona immediately — she cannot survive the W knockup into Q stun into ADC follow-up.
Soraka's silence doesn't stop your W charge and she's too squishy to survive your all-in. Kill Soraka first every engage.
Always target Soraka with your W charge — her team gets no heals and she dies in one combo.
Brand's damage is fire-based and you laugh at his abilities with your stacked MR from passive. You can dive him freely.
Don't let him stack Blaze passive — engage aggressively before he gets 2 hits on you for the stun.