FOTM Ranked Solo Queue Tier List (High Elo) ~ Patch 6.20 (October)

The purpose of the FOTM list often confuses people, and I think it's time to really hone in on what my focus for this one is. This is a list that focuses in on what champions you should pick up and learn if you want to be like the big boys up top. In order to crack the pro scene, players expect you to be able to play the champions they like best in their team compositions.

SEASON 6 - October - PATCH 6.20 FOTM RANKED META TIER LIST

"PLAY LIKE A PROFESSIONAL"

Preface Chatter

The purpose of the FOTM list often confuses people, and I think it's time to really hone in on what my focus for this one is. As many of you know, professionals and high impact streamers often define the meta.

Therefore, certain champions start to fall by the wayside, which is what the main tier list aims to find, often resulting in the majority of people disagreeing, and I am fine with that as long as we can discuss civilly.

Meanwhile, this list is not a "sheep" list, but instead a list that focuses in on what champions you should pick up and learn if you want to be like the big boys up top. In order to crack the pro scene, players expect you to be able to play the champions they like best in their team compositions.

Although most of us will not reach that point, we still want to try, and so this list is being redefined more as a list that applies to players who are not simply looking to climb the ladder, but instead to reach the very top.

Check out the full list below!

The purpose of the "Flavor of the Month" ("FOTM") list is to show which champions are popular in today's metagame in terms of pro picks and high Elo choices.

If you're looking for the division climber solo queue tier list, be sure to check it out via this link!

For a list of champions with the highest *potential* in the game without regard to difficulty or team synergies, check out the list of strongest potential champions in each position!

Be sure to check out our new Optimal Champion Bans by Division Listing!

Patch 6.20 Summary

Buffs: Cho'Gath, Nunu, Taliyah
Nerfs: Jinx
Tweaks: Ashe, Vladimir

Toolkit and Options

Click to toggle champion movement history

Search for a champion:

Updates:

• Kled Jungle removed
• 10/10: Rumble/Poppy Top moved up

The Tier List

God Tier [High Priority Picks]:
Mid-Lane Gods: Yasuo, Zed, Ahri, Syndra, Leblanc
Jungle Gods: Zac, Lee Sin, Hecarim
Marksman Gods: Jhin, Lucian, Ezreal, Caitlyn
Top Lane Gods: Kennen, Yasuo, Riven
Support Gods: Soraka

God Tier Rising: Caitlyn (Marksman), Ezreal (Marksman), Kennen (Top), Syndra (Mid)
God Tier Falling:

Tier 1 [Meta Picks]:
Mid-Lane: Lux, Viktor, Orianna, Annie, Katarina, Fizz, Twisted Fate, Veigar, Ekko, Brand, Malzahar, Vel'Koz, Cassiopeia, Aurelion Sol, Lissandra, Anivia, Gangplank
Jungle: Kha'Zix, Graves, Nidalee, Vi, Evelynn, Elise, Rengar, Gragas, Skarner, Sejuani, Nocturne, Amumu, Shaco, Xin Zhao, Master Yi, Ekko, Fizz, Jax
Marksman: Vayne, Jinx, Miss Fortune
Top Lane: Darius, Irelia, Gangplank, Malphite, Fiora, Poppy, Gnar, Illaoi, Yorick, Rumble, Renekton, Jax, Ekko, Shen, Kled, Pantheon, Teemo, Tryndamere, Jayce, Wukong.
Support: Thresh, Janna, Braum, Blitzcrank, Alistar, Tahm Kench, Bard, Nami, Sona, Karma

Tier 1 Rising: Aurelion Sol (Mid), Skarner (Jungle), Tahm Kench (Support), Vel'Koz (Mid), Xin Zhao (Jungle),
Tier 1 Falling: Darius (Top), Janna (Support), Thresh (Support), Yorick (Top)

Tier 2 [Crowd Favorites]:
Mid-Lane: Kassadin, Ryze, Vladimir, Diana, Morgana, Zilean, Taliyah, Xerath, Karma, Azir, Kennen, Akali, Swain, Ziggs, Jayce, Talon, Varus
Jungle: Rek'Sai, Fiddlesticks, Diana, Volibear, Jarvan IV, Kog'Maw, Wukong, Malphite, Shyvana, Olaf, Rammus, Warwick, Udyr, Kindred, Trundle, Pantheon, Malzahar,
Marksman: Ashe, Kog'Maw, Tristana, Sivir, Draven, Twitch, Varus, Kalista, Corki
Top Lane: Nasus, Vladimir, Garen, Olaf, Trundle, Swain, Ryze, Fizz, Maokai, Volibear, Hecarim, Sion, Tahm Kench, Cho'gath, Rengar, Jarvan IV, Kayle, Dr. Mundo, Graves, Akali, Lissandra, Singed, Nautilus, Malzahar, Zac, Quinn,
Support: Brand, Leona, Morgana, Annie, Lulu, Taric, Zyra, Zilean, Nautilus

Tier 2 Rising: Zilean (Mid)
Tier 2 Falling: Ashe (Marksman), Kog'Maw (Marksman), Leona (Support), Morgana (Support), Nasus (Top), Rek'Sai (Jungle), Twitch (Marksman), Vladimir (Mid/Top)

Tier 3 [Playable]:
Mid-Lane: Kayle, Karthus, Lulu, Zyra, Cho'Gath, Pantheon, Corki, Jhin, Quinn, Heimerdinger, Galio, Ezreal, Kog'maw (AP), Nidalee (AP), Gragas, Mordekaiser, Urgot,
Jungle: Maokai, Twitch, Rumble, Nunu, Quinn, Poppy, Kayle, Aurelion Sol, Dr. Mundo, Cho'Gath, Taric, Tryndamere, Tahm Kench, Nautilus, Sion, Aatrox, Taliyah, Nasus, Shen, Darius
Marksman: Quinn, Graves, Urgot, Kindred, Kennen
Top Lane: Taliyah, Rammus, Gragas, Cassiopeia, Lulu, Xin Zhao, Heimerdinger, Aatrox, Aurelion Sol, Diana, Nidalee, Lee Sin, Rek'Sai, Zed, Shyvana, Kassadin, Mordekaiser, Warwick, Udyr, Kha'Zix, Karma, Vi, Master Yi, Viktor, Talon, Azir, Urgot
Support: Trundle, Vel'Koz, Poppy, Malphite, Veigar, Shen, Lux, Sion, Kennen, Nunu, Gragas

Tier 3 Rising:
Tier 3 Falling:

Tier 4 [Not Amused]:
Mid-Lane: Jarvan IV, Kha'Zix, Wukong, Malphite, Teemo, Riven, Tahm Kench, Tristana (AP), Elise, Fiddlesticks, Sona, Evelynn, Leona, Soraka, Janna
Jungle: Leona, Zed, Fiora, Riven, Gangplank, Blitzcrank, Alistar
Marksman: Twisted Fate, Mordekaiser
Top Lane: Vayne, Elise, Galio, Braum, Alistar, Nunu, Soraka
Support: Taliyah, Galio, Fiddlesticks, Xerath, Teemo, Volibear, Kayle, Maokai, Anivia, Gangplank, Nidalee, Orianna, Yorick, Elise, Lissandra, Ashe, Leblanc

Tier 4 Rising:
Tier 4 Falling:

Instructions and Caveats:

• This tier list details which champions are most popular in today's current metagame, for better or for worse. Selecting a high popularity champion and doing mediocre is always favorable to selecting a low tier champion and doing mediocre for team morale.

Click Here for a description of the tiers

God Tier: These champions are common bans and are likely perceived as being "overall extremely strong/broken". They have very obvious and/or flashy skills that make them appear stronger than other champions. You'll likely see these champions picked early on if they're not banned.

Tier 1: These champions are the ones you'll see in the majority of your games and are good to familiarize yourself with as you'l be battling against them a lot.

Tier 2: These champions are relatively strong and have historically been picked more often than other champions. They may have been nerfed at one point at another, but are still perceived as strong in their current states.

Tier 3: These champions aren't quite as popular as the rest of the champions in the first 3 tiers, but picking them one at a time isn't going to cause much of a concern on your team. However, if you have a team of 5 of them your teammates are likely to feel a bit uneasy about your chances of winning in solo queue.

Tier 4: Selecting these champions will likely cause a rift between you and your teammates, who will proceed to flame you if you fail your lane. Exercise caution when selecting these champions, as team morale often plays a big part in victory or defeat.

Champion Explanations

• Brand [Tier 1 Mid/Tier 2 Support] - After a decent number of picks on the world stages, players now remember the sheer damage output that Brand can dish with relatively little in the way of items. His utility with Rylai is also exceedingly annoying, and he is getting picked up quite a bit more often now. However, his low mobility keeps him from becoming too popular, especially since the Koreans prefer Ryze in a similar damage role.
• Evelynn [Tier 1 Jungle] - Evelynn is usually a solo queue Goddess, wrecking havoc on unsuspecting enemy players. Currently, players are picking up Hextech Protobelt on her with great success. Her burst is greatly amplified by the item, and she can pounce on unsuspecting enemies with ease as well as initiate via massive damage.
• Kennen [God Tier Top] - Anybody watching the championships can see that playing against a good Kennen is not something that you want to deal with. As a result, he is being banned more than ever for his high burst damage and insane mobility. More on that in this FOTM article.
• Nidalee [Tier 1 Jungle] - Similar to Kennen, Nidaleee has shown up extremely often across all regions for her powerful gank strength and good synergy with poke compositions. Even when she gets nerfed out of the meta, die-hard Nidalee fans always make her work. If you are looking for a long-term champion, Nidalee is a great pick-up. 
• Nocturne [Tier 1 Jungle] - Players are picking Nocturne more and more lately, and that is simply a result of Jhin's exceedingly high popularity. Not only does Nocturne's ultimate prevent Jhin from properly aiming his sniper shots, but it also allows Nocturne to quickly dash in from long range while Jhin is standing immobile.
• Riven [God Tier Top] - Riot's attack animation cancelling changes resulted in an extremely powerful Riven combo. Already one of solo queue's favorite damage queens, this only increased her popularity further.  
• Ryze [Tier 2 Mid] - One of Korea's favorite damage dealers, where he places on this list is largely determined by the region that you play in. His win rate is not very high across all regions, but his damage potential is extremely good and his ultimate can result in extremely potent plays with good coordination.
• Skarner [Tier 1 Jungle] - After a few early picks in the championship, Skarner's finally getting some loving. His slow are extremely potent against low mobility champions, but Quick Silver Sash still takes away a lot of his potential. 
• Tahm Kench [Tier 1 Support] - Don't bench the Kench, he's making an extremely strong showing lately. One of the tankiest supports alive, his devour ability is extremely good for saving allies from near death while crowd-controlled. However, he is not picked up too often for solo queue simply because of the coordination necessary to play him well.

Disclaimer:

• The purpose of this list is for discussion and to provide a starting point for hero selection.

Agree? Disagree? Comment below!

Looking for older versions of the FOTM Tier List?

Check out prior versions via this link!