Overview
One of the best champions in the game when you need someone to use an ultimate that makes you think “wait, was that good for us?” Poppy is small in stature but carries a big, big hammer on her back (literally), which she can use to greatly disrupt fights and displace enemy players. She’s a bit unique in that she excels in games where enemies have high mobility! Click here for the latest data on her best builds, including Runes, Items, Summoner Spells, and more.
Keys to Remember About Poppy
Poppy is best picked as a counter to teams with lots of melee engage options -- you can blind pick her, but she's better into other melee supports and teams that have lots of melee champions in general.
Keeper's Verdict [R] has the most value when it's used to split enemy teams in half, but sometimes it's enough to just use it on whoever is diving your carries. It's also great at sending enemy junglers away to prevent them from contesting your jungler with Smite on objectives.
Strengths
She’s an extremely good champion to pick into enemy teams that have a lot of dashes as their main method of engaging on to your team. This typically means teams that have a lot of melee carries or assassins are going to hate Poppy’s existence, as she can interrupt and ground them with Steadfast Presence [W] or simply knock them away with Keeper’s Verdict [R] even if they’re able to circumvent her. Poppy is great at helping your team find fights on your terms, as she can split the enemy or even find picks with her Heroic Charge [E]. She’s a great pick throughout the game and is always going to find value in fights.
Weaknesses
The flipside to Keeper’s Verdict [R] is that sometimes you are going to have a very bad ultimate that can save the enemy team. You might even miss the ability altogether or use it too late. And as a melee champion, she’ll have trouble in lane phase before her ultimate comes online, especially if enemies are cognizant of staying away from walls so as to avoid being pinned by Heroic Charge [E]. Going in with her E is also going to leave you with no way out -- if you use it and don’t pin the enemy, it can lead to them turning the fight around on you.
Game Plan
Early Game: She’s best picked more as a counter than as a blind pick -- you’ll have a much better time against enemy melee supports who are trying to engage on your ADC, as you can disrupt them and then turn the fight around. Against ranged supports, she needs to play safe or look for all-in opportunities whenever the enemy is pinnable against a wall.
Mid Game: You should be looking for fights as you roam around the map at this point -- Poppy is great at joining the fray and should do her best to assert herself. You can either save your allies or force favorable situations with Keeper’s Verdict [R].
Late Game: The plan doesn’t change much from mid game, though you’ll be grouped up with your team more -- Steadfast Presence [W] makes you a very strong peeler, and you should do your best to help keep your carries alive.
