Solo Queue Tier List Archive: Patch 7.18 (September 19, 2017)

 Hi everyone and welcome to the latest solo queue tier list! This time around it looks like nerfs on all the popular competitive play champions coupled with buffs on some solo queue favorites. As you watch the pros duke it out in the finals keep in mind that professional play and solo queue does have some variation, and what works for them may not necessarily be the best for you...

SEASON 7 - PATCH 7.18
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 everyone and welcome to the latest solo queue tier list! This time around it looks like nerfs on all the popular competitive play champions coupled with buffs on some solo queue favorites. As you watch the pros duke it out in the finals keep in mind that professional play and solo queue does have some variation, and what works for them may not necessarily be the best for you...

Anyway, 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 7.18 Summary

Buffs: Azir, Fiora, Ivern, Lee Sin, Nautilus, Nidalee, Ornn, Rengar, Ryze

Nerfs: Cassiopeia, Elise, Gnar, Gragas, Jarvan IV, Kalista, Lucian, Rakan, Tristana

Updates

• Added Ezreal Jungle

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	Malzahar, Talon, Anivia, Kassadin
Jungle	Sejuani, Cho'Gath, Maokai
Top Lane	Cho'gath, Maokai, Darius
Marksman	Twitch, Kog'Maw, Tristana
Support	Janna, Soraka, Sona

God Tier Rising: Kog'Maw (Marksman),
God Tier Falling: 

Tier 1

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

Mid-Lane: Twisted Fate, Annie, Ahri, Katarina, Aurelion Sol, Vel'Koz, Xerath, Zed, Ziggs, Zilean, Fizz, Orianna, Yasuo, Ekko

Jungle: Kayn, Jax, Warwick, Jarvan IV, Gragas, Rammus, Ezreal, Dr. Mundo, Kha'Zix, Elise, Rek'Sai, Ivern, Shyvana, Nocturne, Vi, Lee Sin, Kindred, Nidalee, 

Top: Jarvan IV, Yasuo, Jayce, Kled, Singed, Fiora, Tryndamere, Riven, Pantheon, Talon, Wukong, Jax,  Kennen, Akali, Swain, Quinn, Sion, Renekton, Kayle, Nasus, Yorick, Camille

Marksman: Xayah, Jinx, Sivir, Draven, Miss Fortune, Vayne

Support: Lulu, Rakan, Blitzcrank, Taric, Alistar, Nami, Karma, Bard, Zyra, Zilean

Tier 1 Rising: Fiora (Top), Jax (Top), Miss Fortune (Marksman), Singed (Top), Sivir (Marksman), Twisted Fate (Mid), Xayah (Marksman)
Tier 1 Falling: Draven (Marksman), Yasuo (Top)

Tier 2

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

Mid-Lane: Taliyah, Syndra, Leblanc, Karthus, Lux, Corki, Morgana, Kayle, Brand, Jayce, Viktor, Karma, Cassiopeia, Gangplank, Swain, Veigar, Diana, Lissandra, Vladimir, Akali, Gragas, Lucian, Galio, Azir, Heimerdinger

Jungle: Master Yi, Nunu, Evelynn, Shaco, Zac, Graves, Xin Zhao, Hecarim, Amumu, Skarner, Rengar, Rumble, Wukong, Olaf, Poppy, Volibear, Trundle, Pantheon, Udyr, Twitch, Quinn, Aatrox, Sion, Fizz, Nautilus, Ekko

Top: Irelia, Garen, Galio, Rumble, Gangplank, Trundle, Gragas, Malphite, Teemo, Nautilus, Mordekaiser, Illaoi, Shen, Poppy, Olaf, Fizz, Ekko, Kayn, Graves, Gnar, Rammus, Rengar, Warwick, Lissandra, Vladimir, Cassiopeia, Karma, Urgot, Tahm Kench, Diana, Kassadin, Aatrox

Marksman: Ashe, Jhin, Lucian, Kalista, Caitlyn, Ziggs, Varus, Ezreal

Support: Thresh, Braum, Leona, Sion, Brand, Morgana, Tahm Kench, Vel'Koz, Nautilus, Maokai

Tier 2 Rising: Ashe (Marksman), Kalista (Marksman)
Tier 2 Falling: Irelia (Top), Jhin (Marksman)

Tier 3

[Needs Higher Skill or Knowledge Than Usual | Counterpicks]

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

Jungle: Galio, Kayle, Malphite, Diana, Camille, Riven, Talon, Tryndamere, Kled, Mordekaiser, Irelia, Fiddlesticks, Tahm Kench, Kog'Maw

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

Marksman: Kennen, Quinn, Corki, Graves, Urgot, Kindred

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

Tier 3 Rising:
Tier 3 Falling: 

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, 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

• Ezreal [Tier 1 Jungle] - In the last few weeks, Ezreal jungle took off to new highs of popularity, and for good reason. He's not stupidly overpowered, but definitely more than viable when it comes to jungling. His jungle path is able to suit a few different variations, which allows him to show up in any given lane for an early game gank.
• Fiora [Tier 1 Top] - After a brief stint in the nerf jail, Fiora is back in action with the revert on her ultimate movespeed change. This revert allows her to reliably proc her ultimate procs to get that sweet burst damage and ultimately the AOE heal. 
• Gragas [Tier 1 Jungle] - Gragas' win rate right now isn't particularly high, mostly because a lot of people pick him up without practicing his combos like good barrel management or his E -> Flash. Otherwise, I think he's still quite a good jungler as long as you're willing to put the time in to learn him. 
• Ivern [Tier 1 Jungle] - Ivern's fallen out of the spotlight lately in favor of more all-in engagement type junglers. However, his peel ability is still superb and I think he's a bit underplayed right now. If you want to main him, feel free as he's rarely banned.
• Kog'Maw [God Tier Marksman] - God'Maw's ascent comes largely at the heels of peel supports being all the rage now. Few support picks go with the all-in approach, and instead rely on peel/sustain supports like Janna, Soraka, and Lulu to win games. Meanwhile, as everyone knows, these three happen to be Kog'Maw's best friends...
• Malzahar [God Tier Mid] - Malzahar in his current state is average in lane, but absolutely oppressive post-6. Some champions needs to snowball early to be effective, but this opens them up to jungle ganks and potential deaths. Meanwhile, Malzahar just has to press his ultimate, drop some dots, and suddenly the tide of the game's completely turned in his favor. His ability to destroy both tanks and squishies is quite good, and as a result, difficult to counter.
• Maokai [God Tier Jungle] - Maokai in his current state is being overlooked for Cho'Gath instead. However, I think he's just as strong if not stronger in some cases than Cho, and his engagement is extremely reliable. If you like big initiation comps, Maokai is a must in your arsenal.
• Miss Fortune [Tier 1 Marksman] - Miss Fortune is currently my favorite marksman. If your auto attacking skills aren't quite up to par at maximum attack speed, Miss Fortune's slower but just as effective lethality builds allow you to still keep up with almost any marksman. Her ultimate is also very straight-forward to use, and when you combine her with Black Cleaver, she can perform her job even if she only gets a few waves of her ultimate off before being CC'd.
• Twitch [God Tier Marksman] - Twitch is the subject of some debate, mostly because professionals tend to avoid him in favor of some self-peeling marksmen like Xayah and Tristana. Meanwhile, in solo queue Twitch is still an absolute monster. If the map isn't well warded, a single flank by Twitch can melt entire teams. Meanwhile, in a given 1v1 fight, usually the first to attack will win. If Twitch's first attack is a critical strike from invisibility, you can probably guess who's probably going to win that one.
• Xayah [Tier 1 Marksman] - Xayah's a fan favorite right now due to her ability to split-push and effectively 1v1 would-be assassins that come looking for her. Her waveclear is also decent, and her burst damage can catch many enemies unaware.

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!