Choosing champions in League of Legends to climb the ranks has always been a concern for gamers throughout the game’s development. Champion selection can be divided into two types: picking a favorite champion or choosing one that fits the meta. Today, we will take a look at 5 champions that are making a comeback and dominating all servers worldwide.
5. Lulu
Our top 5 is Lulu, a very special support in the League of Legends arena. Lulu can both attack and defend, heavily relying on the gameplay and mindset of the player. Although this champion seems easy to play, effectively utilizing her is not straightforward.
With the two strongest supports in the previous version, Nami and Bard, being nerfed, and tank supports starting to weaken, Lulu suddenly rose to prominence and has become extremely popular among League of Legends players worldwide. Lulu is very strong in the mid and late game, not weak in damage and early game protection, but she is frail in terms of “survivability,” making the early game the hardest phase for her. If not played carefully, players can easily get snowballed in lane when falling too far behind.
Lulu can start with any gold-generating item. The most important item for Lulu is the Staff of Flowing Water; other notable items include Redemption, Athene’s Unholy Grail, Mejai’s Soulstealer, etc. If you have the right mindset and skills, poke with Lulu in the early game, and later just spam buffs for your team. Currently, Lulu has about a 52% win rate, which is very impressive.
4. Maokai
Maokai is showing signs of being nerfed soon due to being too strong. The reason Maokai is strong is due to many champion and item adjustments by Riot that favor him. First, Bami’s Cinder and Sunfire Aegis have been buffed, essential items for Maokai. Second, physical damage bruisers and primary marksmen have been nerfed continuously, enhancing Maokai’s laning and combat capabilities significantly compared to before.
Therefore, although weak in the early game due to low damage skills, inadequate tankiness, and weak healing capabilities, Maokai is more comfortable than before, building essential items and charging into the enemy team like a god in the mid and late game. In the mid and late game, Maokai is incredibly tanky thanks to his robust body, numerous annoying crowd control effects, and healing abilities despite his average damage. Currently, Maokai has a win rate of 53.5%, the highest among top laners after a period of being absent without a trace.
3. Viktor
Viktor stands in the third position on this list. He was overlooked by players for a relatively long time when the Staff of the Mage was nerfed, and the trend of Semi AP Viktor Top disappeared. However, Viktor is experiencing a strong “comeback” recently and has entered the ranks of strong mid lane champions.
Strangely, Viktor has not been buffed recently, yet he has become stronger due to the meta changes from Riot. If you pay close attention, champions dealing damage yet still durable, such as Olaf, Trundle, Wukong, Sett, or pure tanks like Maokai, Ornn, are currently very strong. Viktor is a champion that can counter them with sustained damage and mobility from his Q, Siphon Power. Therefore, even without buffs, Viktor is beginning to showcase his power recently.
What’s scary is that Viktor in the hands of skilled players is quite formidable, so players need to be cautious of this champion in ranked games. Currently, Viktor boasts a win rate of up to 51%, which is fantastic for players who enjoy carrying their team as a primary damage dealer in the mid lane.
2. Kayn
Our number 2 is Kayn, a champion that has been buffed countless times by Riot. Kayn has been buffed through at least 7 consecutive patches, an unimaginable number from the publisher known for “making movies better than making games.” In the recent 10.9 patch, Kayn received significant buffs to both his Q and W abilities, transforming him from an average champion into a quite strong one in the League of Legends arena.
Kayn has two forms: Shadow Assassin and Darkin. Shadow Assassin allows Kayn to deal more burst damage, but Riot hasn’t adjusted much in that direction. Currently, the Darkin form is more favored due to its lower-risk playstyle and itemization that is both strong and high in damage. Kayn Darkin leverages lifesteal as power with the new Death’s Dance item, which suits him perfectly. So if you are confident in your skills and want to play aggressively, go for the Assassin; if you prefer stability and safety, the Darkin form is much more suitable for you.
Kayn currently has a win rate of up to 51.5%, a very impressive figure for a jungler following so many buffed patches. In fact, many players even take this champion to lane instead of just jungling.
1. Graves
Our number 1 is Graves. Graves was once very strong about 1-2 years ago, having a win rate of up to 55% before being heavily nerfed and disappearing afterward. Then, Riot buffed him in a few patches, but Graves was still unable to make an immediate comeback. The reason was that Graves’ key item, the Galeforce, had its mechanics changed, and the physical damage fighter meta became too strong due to the emergence of Conqueror and Spear of Shojin combined with Death’s Dance.
It wasn’t until now that Graves began to regain strength as physical damage fighters weakened, marksmen were continuously nerfed, while strong junglers like Trundle and Olaf were countered by Graves. This is the perfect balance of timing, location, and synergy. Furthermore, League of Legends players always enjoy using Graves as he is a very strong champion for carrying the team from the jungle position, often farming a lot and quickly, boasting high minion counts and being a champion that deals substantial damage while remaining resilient in the mid and late game.
Graves has two playstyles: burst damage or sustained damage over time. Burst Graves is very strong in skill but also much easier to die compared to tanky Graves, utilizing the power of Void Staff, Youmuu’s Ghostblade, and Cloak of Agility to deal burst damage, which requires high skill from the player. If players are not confident with burst Graves, a Semi AD build is the second option with items like Black Cleaver, Infinity Edge, and Death’s Dance. Currently, Graves has a win rate of 52% and is one of the top team-carrying champions in the jungle position.