Since the start of MSI 2023, Zeri has always been mentioned as an incredibly strong Marksman champion. Zeri possesses high mobility, significant damage over time, and especially an extremely high attack speed if enough passive stacks are accumulated. Not to mention, Zeri is a champion that can engage in fights very early, making it easier for teams to implement playstyles compared to other Marksmen who require many items and only shine in the late game.
However, even though Zeri is one of the most favored champions, there is another name quietly making waves in the Bot Lane. That is Aphelios – the Marksman champion dubbed “200 years of experience” by Riot and one of the first champions to receive this nickname. In the LCK Summer 2023, Aphelios currently boasts a pick rate of 91.5%, surpassing Zeri’s 74.5%.
Moreover, recently, Riot has “self-released” evidence showing that Aphelios is indeed the champion with “200 years of experience” and is currently extremely unbalanced. Accordingly, in a list of the top 5 plays of the week (highlight of the week), all impressive plays in the Marksman position belonged to players using Aphelios. The only exception was a counterplay with Renekton by Ssumday in the Top Lane.
Witnessing all the highlight plays belong to Aphelios, the audience is also fed up. One comment straightforwardly stated: “As seen, all highlight plays in the Marksman role belong to Aphelios. It seems this champion is balanced enough, so Riot should not nerf Aphelios.” Many opinions also wonder how Riot feels knowing that out of the top 5 plays they themselves selected, 4 belong to Aphelios.
Clearly, at this moment, Aphelios is indeed too strong. High damage, extremely fast attack speed, along with recovery and crowd control abilities. All of these, combined with a high-skill Marksman, is more than enough for Aphelios to become the top choice for the Bot Lane to secure victory.