Alright, so I decided to give Smolder top a shot today. I’ve seen some folks talking about it, and I figured, why not? It’s always fun to try something new, right?
First off, I jumped into a normal game – no need to ruin anyone’s ranked experience with my experiments. I locked in Smolder, grabbed my usual Doran’s Shield and a health potion, and headed to the top lane. The enemy picked a tanky looking guy, I thought that might be a bit tough, but let’s see how this goes.
Early game was, well, a bit rough, I won’t lie. Smolder’s early damage isn’t exactly mind-blowing. I focused on farming and poking with my Q whenever I could. I tried to stack it up as much as possible, but I also didn’t want to get caught out. A few times I got a little too greedy and had to back off pretty quickly.
Mid-game was where things started to get interesting. Once I got a few items, especially Essence Reaver, Smolder’s damage started to become more noticeable. I found that I could actually start trading blows with the enemy laner. It wasn’t easy, but it was definitely doable. I kept farming, kept stacking my Q, and slowly but surely, I started to feel like I was actually making an impact.
- Started with Doran’s Shield and a health potion.
- Focused on farming and stacking Q in the early game.
- Got Essence Reaver as a first core item.
- Started trading more effectively in the mid-game.
By late game, I gotta say, Smolder felt pretty darn good. My Q was hitting like a truck, and my ultimate, especially with a few stacks, was doing some serious damage in team fights. I wouldn’t say I was carrying the game, but I was definitely holding my own. I helped secure some objectives, got a few kills, and basically just tried to be a nuisance to the enemy team.
We ended up winning the game. It wasn’t a stomp, but it was a solid victory. My final score wasn’t amazing, but it wasn’t terrible either. I learned a lot and definitely found Smolder top is pretty fun.
My Final Thoughts
Would I recommend Smolder top? Sure, why not! It’s not the easiest thing in the world, and you definitely need to play safe early on, but once you get going, it can be a lot of fun. Plus, it’s always nice to throw your opponents off with something they’re not expecting. I’ll probably give it another go sometime, maybe try some different builds and see how it goes.
