How to win lane as Alistar against Maokai · 49.72% win rate (2,118 Emerald+ games, lolalytics, sampled July 2026) · Matchup data reviewed on patch 26.15
An engage mirror — whoever's chain starts first finishes first; bait his and start yours.
Track: Maokai's W — Twisted Advance (14–10s cooldown). Point-and-click root — count its cooldown before stepping up.
Read from Alistar's seat: which stage windows this plan plays for against Maokai.
This is Alistar's own plan; across 2,118 pooled games the lane is even.
| Stage | Favoured | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Maokai | Level 1 Maokai's point-click W root and Q poke beat Alistar's telegraphed walk-up. |
| Level 2 | Even / skill | Level 2 trades stay a coinflip on who lands CC first (Skill). |
| Level 3 | Even / skill | Level 3 both tanky supports trade evenly, decided by execution (Skill). |
| Levels 4-5 | Even / skill | First-item exchanges hinge on engage timing rather than raw kit (Skill). |
| Level 6 | Even / skill | Even at 6 single trades don't snowball; outcome is execution-dependent (Skill). |
| First item | Alistar | 2-item Alistar's R durability outlasts Maokai's shorter CC windows. |
| Two+ items | Alistar | Late game Alistar's sustained AoE engage out-fights Maokai's shorter-range CC. |
Maokai contests the early levels well: his W is a point-click root that can lock Alistar or his ADC before the walk-up W-Q lands, and his Q sapling poke chips Alistar as he approaches. In the level 1-2 window Maokai's reliable CC and self-sustain give him the edge over Alistar's telegraphed, mana-hungry engage. His point-and-click root locks you mid-approach, so make him spend it on a step-in you can survive before the real one. Keep the wave close and the brush warded. Once the root is gone, the flip lands cleanly and Trample carries you through the sapling chip on the way in.
Pooled Emerald+ win rates from Alistar's side, sampled July 2026.
The full Alistar vs Maokai 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.
Read the full guide — plans from $1.99/month →🔒 Secure checkout · 💰 7-day money-back guarantee on your first payment · ✋ Cancel anytime
Lane Pass $1.99/mo · All Lanes $3.99/mo · Annual $24.99/yr. Renews automatically — cancel anytime.
Nobody on paper — a 49.72% win rate over 2,118 games makes this a coin flip decided by play, not champion select.
Yes — Alistar vs Maokai is a genuine skill matchup: 49.72% win rate, and the favour swings window to window rather than being set at champion select.
No hard counter either way — the Alistar vs Maokai win rate is 49.72%, an even lane decided by execution.
Alistar takes Aftershock on the Resolve tree with Font of Life, Bone Plating and Unflinching, and Inspiration secondary (Biscuit Delivery and Cosmic Insight) vs Maokai.
Start World Atlas + potions and back for Bramble piece vs sustain duos. Build Locket / Zeke's first, then Knight's Vow path, with Mercury's.
Playing the other side? Maokai vs Alistar guide →
All Alistar support matchups →
More Alistar support matchups: vs Leona · vs Lulu · vs Lux · vs Milio · vs Morgana · vs Nami