The first game of League of Legends season 13 has just begun, and we're already seeing two major meta changes. Following the preseason changes and the important fighter and ADC item updates, it's now time for yet another transition with the engage support buffs combined with ranged support nerfs.
Given the extensive variability caused by updates over the previous few weeks, we have compiled a list of the best league champions that will be relevant in the next patch. Here are the ten greatest League champions heading into Patch 13.3.
In Patch 13.3, the top ten League champions
Aurelion Sol's Comprehensive Gameplay Update is now available on live servers, and it's already performing well above expectations. This is shown in his play rate: he has the highest number of matches played in his main role (above 200,000), but he also has ranked games registered in his four remaining roles.
A strong win rate (52.02 percent) and a second-highest ban rate (2.2 percent) are indicators that Aurelion Sol is a capable mid-laner. However, there are good chances he will be nerfed soon.
Jhin made a return to the meta after Riot Games changed the crit items. He's one of those champions that loves having Infinity Edge and making it early while also getting the item passive.
Jhin is capable of rushing Galeforce and Infinity Edge while not relying on attack speed like other traditional marksmen. Paired with his strong laning phase and long-range support, he has little to no flaws in this patch: according to U.GG.
Riot decided to include Nautilus in his buffed engage support family, allowing him to get a lot of attention. However, people have noticed the buffs and begun playing him more, with great success.
According to U.GG, he is approaching a 51 percent win rate and the fourth-highest pick rate. What makes him different from other top-tier supporters, though, is his modest ban rate.
Nautilus is the type of champion that works better with specific ADCs because he can synergize their kits to form an explosive duo. As long as these marksmen are meta, he will be a constant presence in the patch.
We can’t forget about Samira, who was one of the great winners of the ADC item improvements, since she now has Immortal Shieldbow and Infinity Edge to earn the crit bonus damage.
Samira used to need to buy three items to become the carry in the mid-game. Now, she only needs two items.
If you add the fact that the best Samira partners are also strong in the meta, then it's a given that she is one of the strongest League champions in the patch. League players are aware of this and have begun banning her. According to U.GG, her 41.0 percent ban rate is remarkable.
Maokai was able to dodge Riot's nerf list in Patch 13.3, and players are now exploiting this.
According to U.GG, he is the most-banned jungler in the game currently, with a worrying 32.7 percent ban rate (Zed and Aurelion Sol have higher ban rates, but they correspond to their main roles). His full ability power build is ideal to carry games in solo queues, and his kit of crowd controls makes his gank setups simple.
League of Legends Patch 13.3 Winners and Losers
Maokai is being pushed as a support with great success. While his support pick rate is low (3.3 percent), his win rate is the second-highest (55.249 percent). Players are slowly realizing his potential as a flex pick across the two roles, making him an even more valuable champion in Patch 13.3.
At the start of the season, Jax received a mid-scope update that strengthened him even further. Now he can get AD and AP items, causing consistent or burst damage depending on the enemy team composition.
Thanks to his passive and the keystone rune Lethal Tempo, he can execute enough attack speed over extended trades. On top of that, he is a great duelist that can defeat almost any champion in one-versus-one situations at any point in the game.
Jax is seen as a solid scaling pick for the team in professional play. In solo play, he is a top-tier bruiser to climb the ladder. Because he didn't receive any boosts, he will continue to be strong in this patch.
Since Rod of Ages was first introduced at the end of season 12, champions that can synergize with the item have increased in popularity. Now that champions like Kassadin have been nerfed, Anivia is the new selection, rising to the top of the tier list of the best mid laners.
Anivia's main reason for being so powerful is her AoE damage: she is capable of carrying mid- and late-game fights with her ultimate and crowd control. As long as she can get safely through the laning stage, which she does most of the time thanks to her passive, she can become an unstoppable force.
Anivia is a 5.4 percent female champion, according to U.GG, meaning she can be played in the majority of the matches. She may however be a great candidate to gain some LPs in this patch.
Elise has reclaimed her place as the Queen of the jungle after years of mediocre performances in both professional play and solo queue.
Elise is the perfect choice in a meta where early ganking is essential to snowballing the game. She can perform repeated ganks as soon as she reaches level three, and she can one-shot people with a rotation of her spells. Her team is therefore harder to itemize against because she has a AP champion.
She will continue to be present at higher Elos, especially at master Elo (48.9 percent, according to U.GG), making her the most banned jungler of Patch 13.3.
Zac and Maokai are expected to be the finest AP junglers to play now that she has been hurt in this patch.
Because not many people have caught up on her yet, Xayah is one of the most underrated picks in the new patch. The Navori Quickblade change allows her to gain a much faster mid-game boost that transforms into a huge increase in her overall damage output.
Xayah is one of the few ADCs that has a self-peeling ability with her ultimate, making her much harder to punish and pick off her attackers. According to U.GG, her play rate has steadily increased (a 1.5 percent increase from the previous patch) and her win rate has risen significantly.
If other ADCs keep getting consistently banned, Xayah will likely see a further increase in number in the following weeks.
Annie is the focus of the new patch. Riot was finally able to bring her to the live servers following a recent cyber attack that saw the developers postpone the release.
Although she hasn't been as successful as Aurelion Sol so far, her stats are far superior to those projected. She has a staggering 56.49 percent win rate internationally, considering all Elos, which is the highest among all the champions in the game (according to U.GG).
She is performing well as a mid-laner, but she is also establishing the second-highest win rate (55.11 percent, according to U.GG) as a support. In the recent era of League, these statistics are unheard of.
The issue will now be whether the champion will receive a hotfix in the following days, or if the balance team believes the matches played are too small of a sample. Regardless of what they will do to her, Annie is expected to be the strongest champion of Patch 13.3.