Solo Queue Tier List Archive: Patch 7.9 (May 7, 2017)

 Hi folks and welcome to the latest Patch 7.9 tier list! This patch showcases massive reworks on the tank class, and Sejuani, Zac, and Maokai have a ton more depth to their kits now. Unfortunately, it looks like Sejuani's the only one reaping massive benefits so far, but the potential on Zac and Maokai's kits seem like they just need a few number tweaks to bring them over the top.

Let's see how they pan out over the patch...

SEASON 7 - PATCH 7.9
FASTEST RANKED LP GAIN TIER LIST

"What Are the Best Champions to Climb With"

This List has been updated, and new versions are available via this link

Preface Chatter

Hi folks and welcome to the latest Patch 7.9 tier list! This patch showcases massive reworks on the tank class, and Sejuani, Zac, and Maokai have a ton more depth to their kits now. Unfortunately, it looks like Sejuani's the only one reaping massive benefits so far, but the potential on Zac and Maokai's kits seem like they just need a few number tweaks to bring them over the top.

Let's see how they pan out over the patch...

Check out the full list below!

As always, don't forget to like the site on Facebook if you haven't already!

The purpose of this list is to pick out the champions that when played, will allow you to climb divisions the fastest by winning more games. This list contains more off-meta and counter-meta placements that do well against popular picks.

If you're looking for a more meta based tier list based on popularity, be sure to check out the FOTM list as well!

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 7.9 Summary

Reworks: Maokai, Sejuani, Zac
Nerfs: Graves, Renekton
Buffs: Ryze

Updates

• Added Sejuani Top
• Caitlyn Marksman moved up, Xayah moved down

Toolkit and Options

Click to toggle champion movement history

Search for a champion:

The Tier List

God Tier List

[Highest Influence | Good In Almost Every Situation | Easiest to Gain LP With]

Mid Lane	Ahri, Annie, Anivia
Jungle	Sejuani, Ivern, Nunu
Top Lane	Fiora, Darius, Irelia, Sejuani
Marksman	Lucian, Caitlyn, Kog'Maw, Twitch
Support	Sona, Lulu, Janna, Blitzcrank

God Tier Rising: Caitlyn (Marksman), Sona (Support)
God Tier Falling: 

Tier 1

[Strong/Preferred Choices | Faster to Learn and Win | Works Well In Solo Queue]

Mid-Lane: Kassadin, Fizz, Katarina, Orianna, Twisted Fate, Vel'Koz, Xerath, Syndra, Talon, Ekko, Ziggs, Taliyah, Yasuo, Zilean, Aurelion Sol, Karthus, Zed, Leblanc

Jungle: Warwick, Kha'Zix, Shaco, Jax, Lee Sin, Graves, Amumu, Hecarim, Vi, Evelynn, Jarvan IV, Xin Zhao, Master Yi, Elise, Gragas

Top: Kled, Renekton, Fizz, Pantheon, Yasuo, Riven, Gangplank, Talon, Jax, Aatrox, Tryndamere, Jarvan IV, Jayce, Rumble, Akali, Gragas, Galio, Swain, Wukong, Kayle, Camille

Marksman: Xayah, Ziggs, Draven, Miss Fortune, Vayne, Ashe, Kalista, Jinx

Support: Thresh, Karma, Bard, Sion, Soraka, Nami, Leona, Zilean, Braum, Alistar

Tier 1 Rising: Bard (Support), Fizz (Top/Mid), Gangplank (Top), Karma (Support), Katarina (Mid), Kha'Zix (Jungle), Lee Sin (Jungle), Miss Fortune (Marksman), Renekton (Top), Riven (Top), Thresh (Support), Yasuo (Top)
Tier 1 Falling: Amumu (Jungle), Leblanc (Mid), Kled (Top), Soraka (Support), Xayah (Marksman)

Tier 2

[Viable/Balanced Choices | Common In Solo Queue | Needs Practice To Get Good]

Mid-Lane: Galio. Lux, Morgana, Kayle, Brand, Jayce, Viktor, Karma, Kennen, Cassiopeia, Gangplank, Swain, Veigar, Diana, Lissandra, Vladimir, Akali, Malzahar, Gragas

Jungle: Nocturne, Kindred, Skarner, Shyvana, Rammus, Rengar, Rek'Sai, Rumble, Wukong, Olaf, Poppy, Maokai, Volibear, Trundle, Pantheon, Udyr, Twitch, Quinn, Nidalee, Aatrox, Sion, Fizz, Nautilus, Ekko

Top: Malphite, Sion, Teemo, Nasus, Nautilus, Singed, Mordekaiser, Quinn, Yorick, Garen, Illaoi, Shen, Kennen, Maokai, Poppy, Olaf, Shaco, Ekko, Graves, Gnar, Rammus, Rengar, Warwick, Lissandra, Vladimir, Cho'gath, Trundle, Cassiopeia, Karma, Urgot, Tahm Kench, Diana, Kassadin

Marksman: Ezreal, Jhin, Sivir, Varus, Tristana, Kennen

Support: Taric, Galio, Zyra, Brand, Rakan, Morgana, Tahm Kench, Vel'Koz, Nautilus, Malzahar, Maokai

Tier 2 Rising: Maokai (Support)
Tier 2 Falling: Malphite (Top), Rakan (Support), Sion (Top)

Tier 3

[Needs Higher Skill or Knowledge Than Usual | Counterpicks]

Mid-Lane: Ryze, Corki, Cho'Gath, Pantheon, Quinn, Wukong, Nasus, Lulu, Mordekaiser, Zyra, Sona, Kog'Maw (AP), Varus, Heimerdinger, Urgot, Ezreal (AP), Azir, Teemo, Jarvan IV, Ezreal (AD), Jhin, Riven, Fiddlesticks, Malphite

Jungle: Zac, Dr. Mundo, Galio, Kayle, Malphite, Diana, Camille, Riven, Talon, Tryndamere, Kled, Mordekaiser, Irelia, Fiddlesticks, Cho'Gath, Tahm Kench, Kog'Maw

Top: Dr. Mundo, Zed, Volibear, Ryze, Vayne, Lulu, Heimerdinger, Xin Zhao, Malzahar, Nidalee, Rek'Sai, Karthus, Lee Sin, Kha'Zix, Vi, Shyvana, Taric

Marksman: Quinn, Corki, Graves, Urgot, Kindred

Support: Camille, Fiddlesticks, Trundle, Annie, Poppy, Volibear, Malphite, Shaco, Shen, Xerath, Veigar, Lux, Gragas, Nunu, Kayle, Kennen, Taliyah, Syndra

Tier 3 Rising: Ryze (Mid)
Tier 3 Falling: Zac (Jungle)

Tier 4

[Low Benefits for Effort Used]

Mid-Lane: Kha'Zix, Nidalee, Master Yi, Tristana (AP), Evelynn, Tahm Kench

Jungle: Nasus, Gangplank, Fiora, Karthus, Shen, Darius, Zed, Malzahar, Aurelion Sol, Taric, Garen, Alistar, Yorick

Top: Blitzcrank, Udyr, Taliyah, Alistar, Nunu, Leblanc, Elise, Braum

Marksman: Twisted Fate, Mordekaiser, Thresh

Support: Miss Fortune, Elise, Pantheon, Teemo, Ashe, Anivia, Lee Sin, Gangplank, Orianna, Yorick, Lissandra, Leblanc

Tier 4 Rising:
Tier 4 Falling: 

Instructions and Caveats:

• Champions in BOLD I will talk about shortly
• Champions UNDERLINED may be over/undervalued, but aren't/haven't played enough for me to make a better judgment.
• Within each tier, the champions are strongest from left to right, but within a tier each champion's strength is relatively close. This is especially true for Tiers 2 and 3 where these champions are ALL highly playable and player dependent on how strong they are in-game.
• Win Rates are important in analyzing each champion's strength but are not the end-all criteria for any champion's position.
• Professional Picks may not necessarily translate into good picks for solo queue ladder, the two have slightly different meta-games and skill levels.
• The creator of this list is diamond, so there may be some personal bias towards higher tier play on certain champions.

Click Here for a description of the tiers

God Tier: These champions are almost impossible to keep down. If your team doesn't make it a priority to shut down these champions and shut them down hard, even if they lose their lane, lose in CS, and it's their first time playing the champion, they can be a massive nuisance for your team. On the other hand, if they're actually good at the champion...that's when it's time to throw in the towel. Tier 1: These champions generally do very well regardless, and have some sort of advantage over most other champions. When they do well, their team does well. Even when they don't do well, their team still has a good chance of a comeback victory by utilizing one or more aspects of their late game utility. Tier 2: This is the Tier of balanced champions where Riot shoots to place their designs. These champions generally do well in their own right, and are very strong picks with a good chance of winning. However, they're not overpowered by any means and do have their weaknesses. Tier 3: These champions can still do very well, but tend to need a little more snowballing to get rolling. Even if they get an early lead, it's still very possible to turn the tides on them with just a mistake or two. They may also have some weaknesses that can be capitalized on. Tier 4: These champions are either underpowered or offer less reward than other champions for the same amount of effort. These champions basically start winning from the get-go or get made fun of for the rest of the game. They need gold to do their job correctly, and if they don't get enough of it, they become sandbags for the enemy team to punch. Chances of a comeback with one of these champions feeding on your team is almost none.

Champion Explanations

• Cassiopeia [Tier 2 Mid] - When Riot first introduced Adaptive Helm, there were a lot of  "R.I.P. Cassiopeia" sentiments floating around the internet. Turns out, most of her damage against enemy teams comes from killing people who don't build tank items anyway, so pretty low impact on her this go-around.
• Karthus [Tier 1 Mid] - I think a lot of players are still sleeping on Karthus. The changes to his Lay Waste [Q] in the previous patch made him much smoother, and allows for Karthus players to land quite a few isolated Q's on enemy targets. This results in quite an oppressive laning phase, and a lot more precision during team fights as well.
• Lee Sin [Tier 1 Jungle] - The largest change this patch for Lee Sin is clearly the re-itemization of Guardian Angel. As a champion that continuously dives into the enemy team to make high risk-plays during the late game but is reliant on his damage to snowball the early game, Lee Sin players are jumping for joy. This item allows Lee Sin mains and would-be mains to remain relevant during the late game and still aim for high-risk plays. Even if they fail, they still deal higher damage to their initial target than before.
• Maokai [Tier 2 Top] - Maokai's rework looks really good on paper, but hasn't panned out so far in practice. His ultimate is just a bit too slow as a primary initiator, and his damage/waveclear is not quite high enough to be oppressive in lane. We'll see how he pans out over the course of the patch, but so far he looks balanced.
• Nunu [God Tier Jungle] - Two words: "Gargoyle Stoneplate".  Nunu was already really good during the course of the last few patches, but now they've decided to introduce an item that increases his health by 100% for four seconds? On the other hand, it does reduce his damage by 40%...who are we kidding, Nunu never dealt any damage to begin with...
• Rakan [Tier 2 Support] - Rakan's struggling a bit in the new patch. His win rate increased from his introduction, but that was expected from a champion with such an overloaded kit. However, the new support itemizations definitely feel like an indirect nerf and he still has no way to reliably proc Face of the Mountain. This results in an unfortunate situation for a champion that likes to dive into the enemy team. Meanwhile, the sustain change on the yellow support item line-up makes it difficult for him to get back into the game if he loses early trades and gets zoned.
• Sejuani [God Tier Jungle/Top] - In a nutshell, the new Sejuani is a BEAST. Her jungle clear is great and her ganks are good, but it's really her passive that's incredibly difficult to deal with. The double stun on her Permafrost [E] and her Glacial Prison [R] make it incredibly difficult to escape once you get CC'd, resulting in a champion that is extremely good at crushing high-priority targets before she can be burst down.
• Sona [God Tier Support] - The new haste buff on the blue gold item at 650 tribute is insanely good on Sona. It allows her to easily weave in and out of battles with minimal danger, and she starts to feel like Janna. When you combine the blue gold item passive with Sona's Song of Celerity [E], she's almost permanently untouchable by skill shots if you're on the lookout for them.
• Thresh [Tier 1 Support] - The latest Face of the Mountain buff is turning out to be incredibly good on Thresh. He is a champion that needs to get tanky, but doesn't have as much in the way of passive stats as melee champions. However, with FoTM's change, he gets a lot more in the way of early free-stats, which allows him to snowball harder.
• Zac [Tier 3 Jungle] - Similar to Maokai, Zac looks really good on paper and the changes on his ult synergize quite well with certain champions like Orianna and Miss Fortune, but it just doesn't play out quite as well in practice. There's a ton of utility on his kit that I really like, but it takes a little too long to activate for the speed and predictability of his moveset.

Disclaimer:

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

Agree? Disagree? Comment below!

If you're looking for a more meta based tier list based on popularity, be sure to check out the FOTM list as well!

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!