Laning as Kog'Maw: when to trade and when to wait
Wave management and trading windows for Kog'Maw, built from its real range, resource and ability costs.
What your range lets you do
500 attack range means Kog'Maw wins by not being where the fight is. Spacing is the whole skill, not a detail of it.
Kog'Maw is mana-gated, which is the real limit on how often you can contest a wave early.
The costs that decide how often you can contest
Icathian Surprise
4 seconds after dying, Kogmaw explodes, dealing true damage to surrounding enemies.
Caustic Spittle
Kog'Maw launches a corrosive projectile which deals magic damage and corrodes the target's armor and magic resist for a short time. Kog'Maw also gains additional attack speed.
Bio-Arcane Barrage
Kog'Maw's attacks gain range and deal a percent of the target's maximum health as magic damage %i:OnHit% On-Hit.
Void Ooze
Kog'Maw launches a peculiar ooze which damages all enemies it passes through and leaves a trail which slows enemies who stand on it.
Living Artillery
Kog'Maw fires an artillery shell at a great distance dealing magic damage (increased significantly on low health enemies) and revealing non-stealthed targets. Additionally, multiple Living Artilleries in a short period of time cause them to cost additional Mana.
The wave decides the trade
Trades are won by the wave before they are won by the champion. Standing in the larger minion wave means taking chip damage for every second the exchange lasts.
Kog'Maw wants to deal damage every second of a fight from behind people who can absorb one, so the good window is the one where the wave is not helping them and your key cooldown is up.
Recall timing
Backing on a shoved wave is free. Backing on a wave crashing into your own tower costs you the next two minutes. It is the most transferable habit in the game and the one that moves a smurf's MMR fastest.
Riot's own notes on playing Kog'Maw
These are the designers' words, not ours — the tips shipped in the client for Kog'Maw.
- Kog'Maw can outrange most champions with his Bio-Arcane Barrage ability.
- Use Void Ooze to set up a perfect Living Artillery.
- Make the most out of your Icathian Surprise.
What the stat line does between level 1 and 18
| Stat | Level 1 | Level 18 |
|---|---|---|
| Health | 635 | 2318 |
| Attack damage | 61 | 61 |
| Armour | 24 | 99.7 |
| Magic resist | 33 | 51.7 |
Movement speed 330 and attack range 500 do not grow with levels — they are the two numbers that stay true all game.
Full KogMaw page — abilities, stats and every skin →