win.gg
Win.gg League of Legends How to play League of Legends’ newest champion Gwen

How to play League of Legends’ newest champion Gwen

Author Icon
William Davis Published 16/04/2021

Gwen has finally made her entrance in League of Legends as the newest champion and players are hungry to play her on Summoner’s Rift. 

The Hallowed Seamstress was revealed only a few weeks back and since then, players have had the chance to test her out on the Public Beta Environment (PBE). Now that she has made it to the live servers, players will have to figure out the best way to play the new skirmisher and start to climb the ladder. Right from the start, it looks like Gwen will be strongest in the top lane but that might change as Gwen and her kit is explored further. 

While the perfect way to play Gwen is still getting figured out, there is no doubt that she will be able to cut through opponents on Summoner’s Rift and potentially be a new headache for top lane players to go up against. Here’s a look at how to play Gwen. 

How to play Gwen in LoL

Gwen is a champion that relies on quick combos and correct positioning. As an ability-power skirmisher, Gwen isn’t the beefiest champion out there and will be vulnerable to burst combos or crowd control. This means that Gwen has to choose her fights carefully and only jump in when the timing is perfect.

Playing Gwen in big team fights can be difficult and will often require patience to find the right spot to enter the fight. If Gwen gets a good flank onto the enemy backline or waits until big cooldowns are blown, she can enter a fight and turn it around on its head. 

Starting from the early laning phase, Gwen doesn’t want to play scared. Gwen wants to engage in skirmishes and be a bully in the lane, but not without considering potential ganks or bad trades. When moving in for a trade on Gwen, make sure to have Snip Snip! (Q) fully stacked. If this ability is stacked up and hits the opponent in the center, Gwen is almost guaranteed to win out on the trade. 

After gaining a few levels, Gwen can start to pull out quick combos that many tanks or bruisers can’t keep up with. Start out by using Skip’n Slash to get in range of the opponent and start dishing out damage with its empowered attacks and Q. While completing the combo, Gwen can pop Hallowed Mist (W) to gain extra armor and magic resist to win the trade. Hallowed Mist will also enable Gwen to get away while dodging attacks, especially against ranged champions. 

When hitting level 6, Gwen will gain access to Needlework (R) and be a real threat in skirmishes and even team fights. When using Needlework, Gwen wants to auto-attack the champions in between casts to get maximum damage output. Needlework applies Thousand Cuts (P) and will help Gwen chunk through enemies with bonus on-hit magic damage.   

How to build Gwen

Gwen is an ability-power champion that relies a lot on auto-attacks. This is fairly unusual for an AP champion, so Gwen’s build will likely include items that many players aren’t used to. 

For the first item, Gwen wants to get a mythic item. The best option so far will be Riftmaker, which provides Gwen with ability power, ability haste, and omnivamp to empower her kit. The Void Corruption passive on Riftmaker is also a great fit for Gwen, as she will build up extra damage the longer she damages an enemy champion. This has great synergy with her Snip Snip!, which also needs time and continuous attacks to stack up. 

For boots, get Sorcerer’s Shoes for extra penetration. Right after, Gwen wants to go for her second item where Nashor’s Tooth is a great option. As mentioned earlier, Gwen relies a lot on auto attacks and on-hit damage and Nashor’s helps with both of that. Gwen can also go for more aggressive burst-heavy items such as Hextech Rocketbelt and Luden’s Tempest, but those choices will likely require a lead to pay off.  

Later on in the game, Gwen can go for Lich Bane to get even bigger empowered auto attacks. With Lich Bane as a third item, Gwen will be very squishy and easier to focus down so it is with high risk. For a safer route, Zhonya’s Hourglass is the way to go with a potential follow-up of Banshee’s Veil as a fourth item. To round out the build, go for either Rabadon’s Deathcap or Void Staff. 

Runes to use on Gwen

The rune options for Gwen aren’t as straightforward as with many other champions. So far, there are a few options for viable keystones when playing Gwen. This gives Gwen players even more flexibility depending on which lane Gwen is played. 

It’s expected that Gwen will be seen in the top lane most often, where the Conqueror keystone is the most logical choice. With Conqueror, Gwen will be able to take part in skirmishes as she is designed to do. Against beefy opponents, Conqueror will help Gwen chunk through resistances while sustaining. 

In more aggressive matchups, it’s also viable for Gwen to pick Press the Attack. With this keystone, Gwen will be able to trade effectively with quick auto-attack combos. For the secondary rune tree, Gwen can go a defensive route with Revolve or be even more aggressive and take the Domination tree.  

Space Groove Gwen 

What role is Gwen? 

Right from the first reveal of Gwen, it was clear that Riot Games wants to work with Gwen as a top laner. As Gwen hit the PBE, it was also clear that she fits perfectly in the top lane as an ability-power skirmisher. Gwen’s damage and mobility make her a nuisance against tanks and even bruisers. There is a chance that Gwen can work in the jungle or mid lane in certain matchups, but she will likely need more time on the live servers for players to figure out the best fit.  

Is Gwen out in LoL?

Gwen was released to the League of Legends live servers on April 15, only a few days after Riot introduced patch 11.8. Gwen arrived with a Space Groove skin and a special Space Groove Gwen icon. The newest champion can be bought for 7800 Blue Essence or 975 RP.

William Davis
About William Davis

View full profile
Read Also
Top Esports beats Team WE in the LPL, qualifies for MSI 2026 Esports Betting
Top Esports beats Team WE in the LPL, qualifies for MSI 2026 Wasif Ahmed Against all odds, Top Esports faced Team WE in the LPL upper bracket final. Both teams fought over a spot for the Mid-Season Invitational that everyone expected Anyone’s Legend, Bilibili Gaming, or JD Gaming to claim. In the end, TES paused WE’s Cinderella story as they beat them 3-0. Before this series, World Elite had defeated two LPL powerhouses in BLG and AL. Against TES, though, they suddenly lost all ...
G2 Esports complete comeback against Karmine Corp to win LEC Spring 2026 League of Legends
G2 Esports complete comeback against Karmine Corp to win LEC Spring 2026 Hannan Mundia After a fairly smooth split, G2 Esports emerged victorious in the 2026 LEC Spring split grand final by making a comeback against Karmine Corp. The 2026 LEC Spring split has finally concluded. With spots at MSI and the Esports World Cup on the line, every professional European team gave it their all to get as far as they could. While most teams fell quickly, Karmine Corp and G2 Esports managed ...
G2 Esports vs Karmine Corp 2026 LEC Spring: Best odds, picks Esports Betting
G2 Esports vs Karmine Corp 2026 LEC Spring: Best odds, picks Hannan Mundia The 2026 LEC Spring split is about to conclude, with G2 Esports and Karmine Corp facing off one last time to see which team qualifies for the Esports World Cup. While both teams have done well to make it to this LEC split’s grand final, only one team can be crowned the victor. With a direct ticket to the EWC on the line, there’s a strong chance that G2’s dominating ...
MKOI vs Karmine Corp 2026 LEC Spring betting preview: Best odds and picks Esports Betting
MKOI vs Karmine Corp 2026 LEC Spring betting preview: Best odds and picks Hannan Mundia Two LEC spots are open for this year’s Mid-Season Invitational, and MKOI will battle against Karmine Corp to determine which team grabs it. The ongoing LEC Spring split is almost done, and only three teams remain. While G2 Esports has already established itself as the strongest so far with a guaranteed spot in the grand final, Movistar KOI and Karmine Corp will battle it out on the big stage for ...
LCK 2026 Road to MSI: Teams, format, and schedule League of Legends
LCK 2026 Road to MSI: Teams, format, and schedule Hannan Mundia With the LCK 2026 Rounds 1-2 complete, the qualified teams will battle it out in Road to MSI. With two spots for the 2026 Mid-Season Invitational and one spot for the 2026 Esports World Cup on the line, here’s everything to know about the LCK 2026 Road to MSI. Six teams have qualified for Road to MSI, but only two MSI spots are available for this region. While powerhouse teams ...
KT Rolster vs T1 2026 LCK Season Rounds 1-2: Best odds and picks Esports Betting
KT Rolster vs T1 2026 LCK Season Rounds 1-2: Best odds and picks Hannan Mundia KT Rolster and T1 will face off in the last week of 2026 LCK Rounds 1-2 to potentially improve their starting position at Road to MSI. KT Rolster and T1 have both had their moment to shine in the ongoing 2026 LCK split. With one week remaining, the two teams will battle against each other for a chance at acquiring second place and starting with a significant advantage in the ...
EWC officially heads to Paris for 2026 as early reports confirmed Esports Betting
EWC officially heads to Paris for 2026 as early reports confirmed Michael Hassall The Esports World Cup 2026 will take place in Paris, France from July later this year as per an new announcement by the EWC organizers, the Esports Foundation. Revealed in a post on their official social media, and an accompanying release and blog post, the announcement confirmed earlier speculation that the event would move location due to the “regional situation” around Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Here’s the info: The Esports World ...