Matchup

Smolder
Smolder
62%
38%

vs

50.0%

over 68 games

Jayce
Jayce
73%
27%
Heavy AD damageHeavy pokeHigh burstSustained DPS

Skill matchup

Build vs Jayce

Build adapted to this matchup

Starting items

Doran's Blade
Health Potion

Core build

Hubris
1vs Tank
Spear of Shojin
2Bruiser
Rapid Firecannon
3DPS

Standard

Ionian Boots of Lucidity
4CDR
Essence Reaver
5DPS

Summoner spells

41272%
42117%

Anti AD

Plated Steelcaps
4vs AD
Guardian Angel
5vs AD

Anti Heal

Mortal Reminder
6vs Hybride

Anti AP

Mercury's Treads
4vs CC
Mercurial Scimitar
5vs AP

Anti Tank

Black Cleaver
5vs Tank
Lord Dominik's Regards
vs Tank

DPS

Essence Reaver
DPS
Infinity Edge
DPS
Endless Hunger
DPS
Hexoptics C44
DPS
100.0% WR2 games
PrecisionPrecision
Fleet FootworkFleet Footwork
Presence of MindPresence of Mind
Legend: HasteLegend: Haste
Coup de GraceCoup de Grace
SorcerySorcery
TranscendenceTranscendence
Gathering StormGathering Storm
Ability HasteAdaptive ForceHealth

Power Spikes

Strength by game phase

Early (0-15)
Mid (15-30)
Late (30+)
SmolderSmolder
JayceJayce
Passive
Neutral
Aggressive

Jayce's abilities

Passive, spells and ultimate

Hextech Capacitor (P)

When Jayce swaps weapons he gains Move Speed for a short duration.

Cooldowns

Cooldowns by spell rank

LevelQWER
316s10s20s
612s10s20s6s
98s10s20s6s
118s10s20s6s
168s10s16s6s
188s10s12s6s

Playing against Jayce

How to counter and exploit weaknesses

1

Dodge his accelerated Q (through the gate): it's his only real poke and it hurts a lot.

2

Jayce scales poorly compared to most top laners — if you survive his laning phase, you'll be more useful in the late game.

3

In melee form, he's vulnerable to poke — force him to stay in melee with engages.

4

His melee E (knockback) can only be used once per switch — once he uses it, he loses his disengage.

Source: op.gg + LTL Engine · Patch 16.9.1 · May 9, 2026