Post-Patch Forerunners – Best LoR Decks, 24hs After Patch 4.12

LoR's final patch of 2023 is here – last, but not least: Fate's Voyage: Beyond is the Worlds 2023 patch, and in just one week the best 64 LoR players will compete in the meta that is shaping up right now.

With less than 24 hours since Patch 4.12 landed, let's take a look at which look like the best new decks in Runeterra right now!

Elder Dragon Volibear

It's been a long while since an archetype was this popular. Of every four decks out there, at least one of them is an Elder Dragon Volibear variant right now; you have to go back to Azirelia's heyday or the Sun Disc Craze to find an archetype reaching a play rate of more than 25% of the whole field.

There are tons of Dragon-Bear variations, though, and they are different enough to be considered different decks (even if they share the same two champions), so it's way too early to tell how this tendency will shape up. Sorry showcased yesterday his take on the best Elder Dragon Volibear deck (as a Worlds competitor, Sorry has been testing this expansion since last week), and that's just one of many.

As of right now, the most popular version packs about 21 followers and 13 spells, with a fairly top-heavy curve but with some early plays:

Regions

Freljord
24 cards

Runeterra
16 cards

Rarities

38 400

6

14

8

12

eternal

Mana cost

0

0

3

1

6

2

4

3

6

4

2

5

7

6

12

7+

Champions

6

9

Volibear

3

12

Elder Dragon

3

Followers

21

1

Omen Hawk

3

2

Yadulski Snowdog

3

4

Flamecaller Caprine

3

6

Berserker Ursine

2

6

Cloud Drake

2

6

Iascylla, Figurehead of the Deep

3

7

Rhond, the Magma Serpent

3

10

Heisho, Shell of the World

2

Spells

13

2

Sky Splitter

3

3

Flash Freeze

1

3

Invocation Of Thunder

3

4

Winter's Touch

3

5

Harsh Winds

2

9

Buried in Ice

1

The above Volibear Elder Dragon deck has around 3700 games played since the patch landed (which, for reference, is a crazy huge amount given the context: it's very rare for decks to accrue that much in three days, let alone one). And it's doing fairly well, with a 53% win rate – again for context, not a bad performance in a refined meta, but nothing to write epic poems about during the first few days of a patch.

The second most-played Volibear Elder Dragon deck goes for a lot more spells, and no units costing less than three:

Regions

Runeterra
18 cards

Freljord
22 cards

Rarities

43 400

6

18

11

5

eternal

Mana cost

0

0

0

1

0

2

7

3

6

4

6

5

6

6

15

7+

Champions

6

9

Volibear

3

12

Elder Dragon

3

Followers

14

3

Valhir's Prophet

2

6

Berserker Ursine

3

6

Iascylla, Figurehead of the Deep

3

10

Atakhan, Bringer of Ruin

3

10

Heisho, Shell of the World

3

Spells

20

3

Flash Freeze

2

3

Invocation Of Thunder

3

4

Avalanche

3

4

Winter's Touch

3

5

Harsh Winds

3

5

Wild Mysticism

3

11

Warmother's Call

3

This second version has about 1100 games played since the patch landed (which is quite a bit this early on), and punches quite harder: 56%+.

Gwen Zed

The first rule of New Patch Club is: If it was kicking all sorts of butts yesterday, don't change it.

With not a single spell swapped, Gwen Zed is doing today what was doing yesterday, which is the same as what it was doing last week: punching at a silly 60% win rate, steamrolling the LoR ladder, being the first deck to make it to Masters in the Americas shard, and looking like the best deck overall.

Specifically, Shadows and Seamstress steamroll dragons and angry bears right now.

Regions

Ionia
15 cards

Shadow Isles
25 cards

Rarities

27 000

6

2

17

15

eternal

Mana cost

0

0

9

1

14

2

10

3

3

4

3

5

1

6

0

7+

Champions

6

3

Zed

3

4

Gwen

3

Landmarks

1

3

Opulent Foyer

1

Followers

21

1

Boisterous Host

3

1

Shadow Apprentice

3

2

Greenglade Duo

2

2

Redeemed Prodigy

3

2

Shark Chariot

3

2

The Stagehand

3

3

Moonlit Glenkeeper

3

6

Eternal Dancers

1

Spells

12

1

Mark of the Isles

3

2

Hate Spike

3

3

Death Mark

1

3

Stalking Shadows

2

5

Dragon Ambush

3

Gwen Riven

Then again, where's the fun in bringing the exact same deck as last week?

Above all when you have new toys like Red-Barbed Razormace!!

As another of last week's heavy-hitters, Gwen Riven is finding plenty of success with their pre-patch, Opulent build… but looks like new shiny toys are even better, letting the pair punch above 60% with about 450 games played.

Regions

Noxus
23 cards

Shadow Isles
17 cards

Rarities

27 900

6

5

5

24

eternal

Mana cost

0

0

11

1

9

2

9

3

6

4

2

5

3

6

0

7+

Champions

6

3

Riven

3

4

Gwen

3

Followers

23

1

Blade Squire

3

1

Boisterous Host

3

2

Phantom Butler

3

2

Rune Squire

3

2

Runeweaver

3

4

Red-Barbed Razormace

3

5

Kato The Arm

2

6

Enraged Firespitter

3

Spells

11

1

Mark of the Isles

3

1

Shadow Isles Tellstones

2

3

Might

3

3

Strike Up The Band

3

Morgana Riven

Yet then again, where's the fun in bringing the same partner to the ball over and over again?

Riven shows up as Morgana's first choice when it comes to quality partnerships. Pairings with Mordekaiser or Seraphine are quite popular but thus far very disappointing, whereas Morgana Riven has hit the ground running with a silly 65% win rate across 450+ games.

Regions

Mount Targon
19 cards

Noxus
21 cards

Rarities

26 100

6

3

7

24

eternal

Mana cost

0

0

8

1

12

2

12

3

0

4

5

5

3

6

0

7+

Champions

6

3

Riven

3

5

Morgana

3

Followers

22

1

Blade Squire

3

1

Legion Saboteur

3

1

Solari Soldier

1

2

Rune Squire

3

2

Runeweaver

3

2

Solari Sunhawk

3

3

Lisa and Dolly

3

6

Enraged Firespitter

3

Spells

12

1

Targonian Tellstones

1

2

Shield Vault

3

3

Dark Binding

3

3

Might

3

5

Moonlight Affliction

2

Morgana Galio

Although neither as popular nor as punchy as Morgana Riven, Morgana Galio shows quite a bit of promise.

Regions

Mount Targon
9 cards

Demacia
31 cards

Rarities

28 200

6

4

12

18

eternal

Mana cost

0

0

3

1

12

2

12

3

5

4

5

5

0

6

3

7+

Champions

6

5

Morgana

3

7

Galio

3

Followers

22

1

Petricite Hound

3

2

Durand Sculptor

3

2

Petricite Broadwing

3

3

Mageseeker Junior

3

3

Petricite Charger

3

4

Balen the Benevolent

2

4

Mageseeker Inquisitor

3

5

Mountain Drake

2

Spells

12

2

Guiding Touch

3

2

Magical Fettering

3

3

Dark Binding

3

3

Gentlemen's Duel

3

Morgana Darius

Returning to Noxus, Morgana pairs with Darius for a punchy, low-to-the-ground mix. A somewhat fringe brew (less than 300 games thus far) but with excellent performance.

Regions

Noxus
27 cards

Mount Targon
13 cards

Rarities

25 500

6

3

4

27

eternal

Mana cost

0

0

9

1

12

2

10

3

3

4

3

5

3

6

0

7+

Champions

6

5

Morgana

3

6

Darius

3

Followers

23

1

Crimson Pigeon

3

1

Legion Saboteur

3

1

Solari Soldier

3

2

Imperial Demolitionist

3

2

Ruby-Eyed Conjurer

3

3

Iron Ballista

3

3

Reckless Trifarian

2

4

Red-Barbed Razormace

3

Spells

11

2

Pale Cascade

3

2

Shield Vault

1

2

Transfusion

2

3

Pirouette

3

3

Sharpened Resolve

2

Bandle Jinx

Although it never took off in popularity, Bandle City Jinx did great during the whole of the last patch cycle – and by current numbers, it looks like it will do the same again: this is the deck with the highest win rate right now, when looking at everything with more than 200 games played.

Regions

Piltover & Zaun
22 cards

Bandlecity
18 cards

Rarities

15 600

3

1

9

27

eternal

Mana cost

0

0

12

1

16

2

3

3

9

4

0

5

0

6

0

7+

Champions

3

4

Jinx

3

Followers

25

1

Otterpus

3

1

Yordle Squire

3

1

Zaunite Urchin

3

2

Boom Baboon

3

2

Flame Chompers!

3

2

Maryam, Temple Caretaker

1

2

Squeaker

3

3

Sump Dredger

3

4

Arena Promoter

3

Spells

12

1

Pie Toss

3

2

Electro Harpoon

3

2

Mystic Shot

3

4

Blowback

3

Some Tweaks Required: Mordekaiser Decks

Mordekaiser looks like the runt of the Beyond litter, and has thus far failed to find a suitable partner.

And not for lack of trying, mind you: Pairings with Senna, Morgana, Sion, or Nasus are very popular, but thus far have showcased disappointing performances.

Wrapping Up

New Champs, new cards, fresh new meta so, yeah…

… too early to tell!

Or, in other words: Don't go blowing all your shards and wildcards on crafting anything just yet unless you have plenty of resources to spare, since the LoR meta may look very different in just a few days.

But, having said that, these are the decks that are looking the best right now.

We'll see tomorrow in By the Numbers how things shape up on each ladder once pilots and brewers have some more time to play around and find out!

If you have any questions or comments, or more data you may need, feel free to:

Poke me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/HerkoKerghans,

Or find more writings on substack: https://riwan.substack.com/