In the early stages of the 2022 season, the Mid Lane Mage meta is making a return across all professional tournaments. In addition to the dominance of the duo Viktor and Corki, the presence of LeBlanc, Twisted Fate, Syndra, and especially Ryze has been quite noticeable in most matches.
As a pure control mage, combined with good gank potential, Ryze theoretically fits well into the current meta. However, the abysmal win rate of this champion in LCK Spring 2022 has raised many eyebrows.
As of now, Ryze is the third most picked Mid Lane champion in this tournament (21 times), but its win rate is incredibly low (34.8%). Among top Mid Lane players like Faker, Chovy, and Bdd, none have secured a win with Ryze after a total of 6 games. Only ShowMaker has fared better with 3 wins on Ryze, achieving a 100% win rate.
In contrast, Ryze displays a completely different face in LPL Spring 2022. This champion is also the third most chosen (43 times), but boasts a relatively high win rate (58.1%). For Mid Lane champions picked over 10 times in LPL, Ryze’s win rate is only surpassed by Orianna (63.3%).
Notably, top Mid Lane players in LPL are using Ryze very effectively, with players like Doinb, Knight, and Angel all holding a 100% win rate with the Ancient Mage. This has sparked discussions in the online community to understand the reasons behind this discrepancy.
According to Faker’s recent interview, the issue in LCK is not the champion itself but the players: “I think that the biggest problem with Ryze is the mistakes made by players when using him.”
Furthermore, many experts have pointed out that the recent “full tank” itemization for Ryze aligns better with the LPL’s teamfight style than that of the LCK. Weibo Gaming’s Mid Laner – Angel, recently shared this after earning MVP with Ryze in their victory against EDward Gaming: “Ryze is a very strong champion in lane, but his limitation is the short range of his abilities. Therefore, building tank items allows Ryze to engage better in teamfights, thus dealing more damage.”
Clearly, even though the League of Legends meta is similar across tournaments, the unique characteristics of each region significantly influence the outcomes. In the LCK, teams tend to focus on map control, rarely engaging in early skirmishes, preferring to farm towards one or two decisive fights. Ryze is not the type of champion that can create a breakthrough in powerful Dragon or Baron fights. Therefore, no matter how fed he becomes, this champion’s impact is greatly diminished.
Meanwhile, the continuous skirmishes in the LPL provide Ryze with more opportunities to shine with a tanky playstyle. Additionally, this itemization approach allows Mid Lane players in China to take more risks, thus freely showcasing their mechanical skill. The recent devastating performances of Ryze from Doinb, Knight, and others have highlighted this fact quite evidently.
In the near future, Ryze will remain a popular choice in the Mid Lane as there are no significant changes in the upcoming patches. And LCK teams are likely to learn to use this champion more effectively, especially as Ryze’s win rate has shown signs of improvement recently.