Control Ward

Control Ward is the vision denial item in League of Legends: 75 gold in patch 26.21 for a consumable that places a ward which grants vision, reveals enemy Stealth Wards and traps, and shows camouflaged enemies walking through it. It gives no stats, does not build into anything, and is the only item in the shop that lets you remove enemy vision rather than just add your own.

What does a Control Ward do?

Two jobs at once. It sees for you, like any ward, and it exposes what the enemy has hidden: Stealth Wards, Teemo mushrooms, Jhin and Caitlyn traps, and camouflaged champions such as Evelynn, Twitch and Rengar in a bush. Revealed wards can be attacked and killed, which is the part that matters.

Unlike the free Stealth Wards from your trinket, this ward is visible to the enemy, so it is not a hidden camera but a claim on a piece of the map: either they come and kill it, which takes time and tells you where they are, or they leave it and give up vision of that area. Put simply, 75 gold buys you the right to make the enemy jungler walk somewhere. Is that cheap? For the information it produces over several minutes, extremely, which is why high-ranked players buy one on nearly every recall and low-ranked players famously do not (the gap in wards bought per game between ranks is one of the oldest statistics in the community).

Is it worth 75 gold?

Our efficiency table shows 0% because the item has no stats to price, and that number means nothing here. The relevant comparison is with what 75 gold buys otherwise: about three and a half minions, or roughly a fifth of a Long Sword.

Against that, a ward that kills the enemy’s vision of Dragon before a fight, or reveals the Evelynn who was about to walk into your lane, is worth far more than a fraction of a component. Thing is, the value is only real if you place it somewhere that matters and if it survives long enough to see something; a ward dropped in a random bush and killed thirty seconds later is 75 gold gone. The sell value is 30 gold, which nobody has ever collected on purpose.

Who buys it, and how often?

Everyone should, and supports and junglers do. A support places one in the river bush or tribush on the first recall and replaces it whenever it dies; a jungler carries one for objective setups, dropping it at Dragon or Baron a minute before the spawn. Laners buy them less than they should, and honestly the single best habit a climbing solo laner can pick up is adding one to every recall from the second back onward.

How many per game is normal? For a support, five to ten; for a laner, two or three is already above average in most ranks. Mid laners who play against assassins get a disproportionate return on theirs, because a ward in the raptor-side bush reveals the Zed or Talon who was about to roam, and a laner who sees a roam coming can ping it, which turns 75 gold into a saved bot lane.

How has the Control Ward changed over the patches?

It entered the data in patch 6.22, replacing the older Vision Ward with the 2017 preseason, and since then the record shows four entries, in patches 6.24, 7.4, 8.23 and 14.12, all of them changes to the effect wording. The price has been 75 gold throughout. Funny enough, that makes it one of the few items that has never been directly buffed or nerfed; Riot adjusts vision through trinkets and sightstones instead, and leaves the ward itself alone. Every other consumable has the same patch-by-patch record in the LoL items database, and most of them look just as quiet.

Where should you place it?

Where the enemy wants vision and you want them not to have it. Before Dragon or Baron, the pit itself or the bush closest to the enemy’s approach. In lane, the river bush for a support, the bush between mid and the raptor camp for a mid laner, the tribush for a top laner on the side the enemy jungler lives. Deep in the enemy jungle only when your team is ahead and can protect it; a lonely ward behind enemy lines is a gift. And if you are still learning which positions carry the vision load, the guide to LoL roles explains what supports and junglers are expected to do, and the Control Ward is at the top of both lists.

Control Ward or Stealth Ward?

Both, for different things. A Stealth Ward from your trinket is free, invisible and temporary, so it is your eyes. The Control Ward costs gold, stays until an enemy destroys it, and removes enemy eyes, so it is your hands. A good player refreshes the first on every trinket charge and places the second wherever the next fight will be, and neither one replaces the other.

FAQ

How much does a Control Ward cost?

75 gold in patch 26.21. It sells for 30 gold.

What does it reveal?

Enemy Stealth Wards, traps and camouflaged champions inside its range, while also granting normal vision of the area.

Can the enemy see it?

Yes. It is visible to the enemy team, and they can attack and destroy it.

Does it have stats?

No. It is a consumable with no stats and no upgrade path.

When was it added?

In patch 6.22, replacing the Vision Ward. Its price has not changed since.

Who should buy them?

Every role. Supports and junglers buy the most, but laners who add one per recall get the biggest improvement for the gold.