How to win lane as Maokai against Yone · 52.58% win rate (1,280 Emerald+ games, lolalytics, sampled July 2026) · Matchup data reviewed on patch 26.15
W-root his combo — sustain, knock him back.
Track: Yone's E — Soul Unbound (22–10s cooldown). He snaps back when it ends. Root in it.
Read from Maokai's seat: which stage windows this plan plays for against Yone.
This is Maokai's own plan; across 1,280 pooled games the lane is leaning Maokai.
| Stage | Favoured | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Yone | He has a working Q-poke and W-cleave at level 1 while you have a single ability and no combo, so he owns the opener. |
| Level 2 | Maokai | Completing W+Q lets you Twisted-Advance him mid-step and root-Smash before his E-Rewind matters — you bully him here. |
| Level 3 | Maokai | Your root-and-poke trade plus Sap Magic healing out-grinds his W second-hit chunk through levels 2-3. |
| Levels 4-5 | Even / skill | Even stretch: you keep landing W-Q but Soul Unbound is 22s at rank 1 and repositions him, so neither runs the other down. |
| Level 6 | Even / skill | Fate Sealed pulls everything it hits toward him and out-spikes your slow wall, so hold your root until after his ult. |
| First item | Even / skill | Sunfire Aegis plus Sap Magic makes you lane-stable and even against a pre-crit Yone if you root before he stacks W. |
| Two+ items | Yone | Two-item crit Yone with E-flip and R knockup kites your single root and out-DPSes your flat damage — he out-scales you hard. |
Level 1 belongs to him — you have one ability and no combo while Mortal Steel and Spirit Cleave already work, so just last-hit and don't get clipped. The lane flips at 2-3: the moment you complete W-Q you can Twisted-Advance onto him as he dashes in, root him, and Bramble-Smash him back before Soul Unbound is a factor — Sap Magic heals back what Spirit Cleave chunks. Drop a Sapling on the wave so he cannot free-farm the cone.
Pooled Emerald+ win rates from Maokai's side, sampled July 2026.
The full Maokai vs Yone 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.
Maokai, slightly — a 52.58% win rate edge over 1,280 games; execution can flip it.
Mostly — Maokai has a small statistical edge (52.58% win rate), but execution decides this lane far more than the pick does.
Not a hard counter — Maokai has a slight edge (52.58% win rate), and play quality decides the rest.
Maokai takes Grasp of the Undying on the Resolve tree with Demolish, Second Wind and Overgrowth, and Precision secondary (Triumph and Legend: Haste) vs Yone.
Start Doran's Shield + Health Potion and back for Executioner's Calling (≈800g) — cuts his healing. Build Heartsteel (the HP engine) first, then Thornmail / Spirit Visage, with Plated Steelcaps.
Playing the other side? Yone vs Maokai guide →
All Maokai top lane matchups →
More Maokai top lane matchups: vs Warwick · vs Wukong · vs Yasuo · vs Yorick · vs Zaahen · vs Zac