How to win lane as Smolder against Aphelios · 52.37% win rate over 3,590 Emerald+ games · Updated 2026-07-27
| Stage | Favoured | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Aphelios | Aphelios's level 1 gun pairing out-trades your unstacked Q auto damage. |
| Level 2 | Aphelios | At level 2 his second gun and ammo economy still beat your poke. |
| Level 3 | Aphelios | Level 3 Calibrum roots and Severum sustain win his extended trades. |
| Levels 4-5 | Aphelios | Through 4-5 his rotating guns keep out-DPSing your low-stack kit. |
| Level 6 | Aphelios | At 6 Moonlight Vigil plus his guns beat your weak early ult and stacks. |
| First item | Smolder | Your first item plus climbing stacks flips the DPS and range advantage to you. |
| Two+ items | Smolder | With 2+ items your stacked Q and R out-scale and outrange everything he has. |
Aphelios starts stronger: his opening gun pairing out-damages your zero-stack Q, so respect the level 1-2 window, hug your minions and only step up to secure CS or land a safe W poke when his guns are on cooldown or the weak color.
The full Smolder vs Aphelios report continues with the mid-game plan, the late-game and teamfight plan, every power spike to play around, and the win conditions for both sides — plus cooldown tracking and the live enemy-jungle tracker inside the app.
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Playing the other side? Aphelios vs Smolder guide →
All Smolder bot lane (adc) matchups →