Note: This is an older article.
For the most recent data, check the latest LoR Best Decks article, or our Meta Tier List!
Howdy, and welcome to our weekly selection of the best decks in the Legends of Runeterra meta!
As explained in the Technical Note at the end of this article, we'll first take a glance at a snapshot of our LoR Meta Decks Tier List, which sorts archetypes (that's to say, the aggregate of all decks with the exact same Champions) by popularity, and then we'll dive into the data to check how individual decks perform, to showcase the best LoR decks.
During the current patch cycle, both LoR formants (namely Eternal and Standard) have their ranked ladders active. Given that Eternal is the focus of the Runeterra Open and has a lot more games played, we'll check that format in the first half of this article, and take a look at Standard in the second half.
Best LoR Decks for the Eternal Ladder
These are the 6 most popular Eternal LoR decks according to Mastering Runeterra Meta Tier List:
Sources: MaRu's data
Overall LoR Meta Trends – Eternal
With the reveal season for Legends of Runeterra's next expansion, Fate’s Voyage; Onward, in full swing, and with the Runeterra Open just behind us, we find ourselves with a nice zero-to-hero story. As it turns out, Peace was not overselling their creation, and what last week was just a very fringe deck is today's new powerhouse: Elise
Gnar
.
And not just on the Eternal LoR ladder – both Gamov, the Runeterra Open EMEA winner, and ABG ChinosTCG, the Americas winner, brought Elise Gnar to the top, along with Zoe Viktor Samira Seraphine.
Eternal Juggernauts – Best Legends of Runeterra Decks for the Eternal Ladder
Here we showcase Runeterra meta decks with more than 2100 games in the last three days – the well-tested options for your Eternal ladder climb!
🔥Blazing Hot! – Elise Gnar
This patch's rag-to-riches story, Elise Gnar was a fringe brew last week and is now a powerhouse both on the tournament and the ladder meta: a silly 60%+ win rate across over 5000 games, this is the deck you want to pilot if you're in a hurry to climb the Eternal ladder.
Its matchup spread is bewilderingly good, with solid odds against Zoe 
Piltover & Zaun decks, Akshan Samira, Zoe Samira, Jax Vi and Rumble Vayne.
Grab it while it's hot!
30 cards
10 cards
30 300
⭐Rising Star – Viktor Zoe
Viktor has brought a trick from Zaun, and Viktor
Zoe
plus Sump Monument
keeps gaining traction: was already a great deck last week, but its success in the Opens has pushed Viktor Zoe's playrate even higher (more than 3000 games in a three-day window this week, up from 2400 last week) while smacking at 57%.
6 cards
34 cards
32 100
Akshan Samira
Suave Rogue and Desert Rose remain a great option in this Eternal LoR meta – their play rate has decreased quite a bit, but they remain on of the most popular decks in Runeterra (there's even a Standard version, although it's just a middling deck in that format) and exhibit a 56% winrate across 2300 games.
Akshan
Samira
is excellent against all Zoe decks (giving the former a lot of targets, given how popular the latter are), and is not too troubled by Elise Gnar. And while quite the underdog to Fiora Galio and Draven Jinx, those two decks seem on the decline in popularity.
Further reading: Akshan Samira Deck Guide
4 cards
36 cards
27 000
⭐Rising Star – Rumble Vayne
This would be this week's rags-to-riches story if Elise Gnar hadn't stolen all the spotlights, but Rumble
Vayne
's climb is still nothing short of amazing, leaping from fringe deck to Juggernaut status in just one week.
Like Akshan Samira, Rumble Vayne brutally bullies Zoe decks, while also giving Jax Vi a bloody nose. And although it's unfavored against Elise Gnar and Fiora Galio, they are still winnable matchups.
30 cards
10 cards
26 100
Eternal Heavyweights – Strong LoR Decks for the Eternal Ladder
These decks have between 1000 and 2100 games in the last three days – solid choices for the Eternal LoR ladder.
Jax Vi Timelines
No longer the scariest deck in Eternal but still very solid, Jax
Vi
packs a 54% punch with its play rate decreasing to 1400 games in a three-day window (down from 2500 games last week).
Jax Vi can reliably beat Samira Zoe and demolishes Galio Fiora, but has a harsh time against Elise Gnar, Viktor Zoe, and Rumble Vayne – not an ideal spot to be in the current LoR meta.
19 cards
21 cards
32 800
Formidable Fiora Galio
Galio
Fiora
has lost a bit of ground in the playrate department, which is a bit puzzling given it maintains a crazy 57%+ win rate – it does have a couple of rough confrontations against Elise Gnar and Jax Vi, but overall has a very solid matchup spread and great performance overall – it's hard to say why pilots are abandoning this brew.
Further reading: Formidable Fiora Galio Deck Guide
6 cards
34 cards
30 600
Draven Jinx
Returned to its rightful place among the best decks in Runeterra, and at the very top of Sorry's power ranking, Draven
Jinx
maintains a rocketing 55% win rate – but is among the victims of Elise Gnar's rise, in what is quite the lopsided matchup.
Still, a great deck to climb the ranks if you enjoy go-wide strategies with a dash of burn!
17 cards
23 cards
26 300
⭐Rising Star – Jayce Lux
Just a fringe option some days ago, and not too good at that, Jayce
Lux
has found its stride and leaps into our Eternal Heavyweights this week, with a bit more than 1000 games under their belts and a 55% win rate.
They are awful against the new Juggernaut, but can reliably beat all Zoe decks, Jax Vi, Rumble Vayne, Akshan Samira, and Fiora Galio, making it a great matchup spread as long as you don't run into spiders.
27 cards
13 cards
24 300
Punching Up – Eternal LoR Decks Doing Great
Runeterra decks with between 500 and 1000 games in the last three days – we're sailing into small data samples, yet all decks here have quite a few games under their belts.
Annie Ezreal
Annie Ezreal was not a fluke – one of last week's newcomers, the Ravenbloom pair has deflated in play rate but increased in performance, now hitting above 54% (up from a modest 51% win rate last week).
20 cards
20 cards
26 600
Samira Zoe
With a few tweaks, the best Samira Zoe deck has improved performance to nearly 54% (up from 52%+ last week, and after not being a good deck in weeks prior).
It does have this week's most common red flag (dies horribly if bitten by spiders), but still a very solid deck overall.
37 cards
3 cards
25 500
Your Eternal Mileage May Vary
If none of the above floats your boat, here are a handful of fringe options that are doing well – sample sizes are small, though, so tread carefully!
Samira Seraphine
In spite of its stunning performance in the Runeterra Open (it was part of the same lineup that won both the EMEA and Americas Open), and unlike the other two decks from said lineup (namely Elise Gnar and Viktor Zoe), Samira Seraphine
is just an okay, but fairly fringe, ladder option.
Still a playable brew, but unless you are a die-hard Seraphine fan (which are legion, admittedly), there are probably better options to choose from today.
27 cards
13 cards
25 600
Pirates!
Yeah, I know, these articles are a broken record when it comes to Pirates, but well, it's our duty to highlight decks that folks are still sleeping on, despite the fact that Pirates have been a great option since day one this patch.
20 cards
20 cards
25 900
Annie Jhin
See "Pirates" above.
No, really: this is by now certainly due to a lack of "shiny-new-toy-ness", but if you want to climb fast, and above all if you've piloted Annie Jhin before, it's been another great option since day one.
28 cards
12 cards
22 000
Kalista Nocturne Mistwraiths
Another of last week's newcomers that looks like not-a-fluke: Mistwraith
s with triple The Harrowing
on top keep grabbing the LPs!
38 cards
2 cards
27 100
Best LoR Decks for the Standard Ladder
These are the 6 most popular Standard LoR decks according to the Mastering Runeterra Meta Tier List:
Sources: MaRu's data (which samples Plat+ players)
Overall LoR Ladder Trends – Standard
Once again the Standard meta presents fairly familiar faces, but a well-known, pesky scout has made a dashing return to the top: a bit of out nowhere (it was just a fringe deck last week) Teemo
Elusives will likely end up being the best LoR deck this Standard patch cycle!
Standard Heavyweights – Strong LoR Decks for the Standard Ladder
These decks have between 1000 and 2100 games in the last three days – like solid choices for the Standard LoR ladder.
🔥Blazing Hot! – Teemo Elusives
Well, well, well… looks who's back with the most-played and most-potent list. After three weeks of Lurkers and Heimer Jayce dominance, Teemo is back on top, with a silly 60%+ winrate for the best Teemo Elusive decks, in close to 2000 games.
And it's quite the surprising return: the pesky Scout vanished from the Standard LoR meta following the nerfs to Sump Monument, but Teemo went back to his Elusive s tricks, and here we have him again now: from a fringe deck last week, to the hottest hotness right now!
If you want to go for a last-push climb on the Standard LoR ladder, this is probably the deck to bring!
Teemo Elusives demolishes Heimer Jayce and Akshan Samira, has a big edge against Lurkers and Fizz Samira; its only problem is with Nami Samira.
19 cards
21 cards
24 800
Heimer Jayce
Tweaking their formula once again (Heimerdinger
Jayce is one of the most flexible decks in LoR's history), Professor and Student remain a very solid Standard pick to end Heart of the Huntress with, although its matchup table is not stellar right now: they ruin Galio Udyr's day and have a slight edge against Poro decks, but they are the underdogs against Samira Fizz, Lurkers, Akshan Samira and Ekko Jinx.
Further Reading: Heimer Jayce Deck Guide
9 cards
31 cards
28 000
Pyke Rek'Sai, aka Lurkers
Like Heimer Jayce, Pyke
Rek'Sai
was left untouched by the last round of nerfs and has been an excellent performer this patch cycle; as a matter of fact, this may be one of the best LoR metas in all of Lurkers' history, and the best Lurker deck is ending it with a superb 55% win rate with the exact same as last week (and pretty much all patch), which we can consider solved by now.
Pyke's crew does have a fairly big problem against Teemo Elusives, though, but that seems to be their only popular weak spot right now.
Further reading: Pyke Rek'Sai Deck Guide
15 cards
25 cards
26 400
Ekko Jinx
The best Ekko
Jinx deck keeps gaining traction and is, after Teemo Elusives, the other newcomer to our Standard Heavyweights category, with about 1200 games played and punching above 55%.
Ekko Jinx is not too troubled by Teemo Elusives (the pesky scout has just a tiny edge over the Zaunites), and can reliably beat Fizz Samira and Poro decks while being roughly even against Lukers and Heimer Jayce.
If Teemo Elusives is not your cup of tea and are looking for a different deck for a speedy climb, Ekko Jinx is probably it.
22 cards
18 cards
31 400
Punching Up – Standard LoR Decks Doing Great
Standard Runeterra decks with between 500 and 1000 games in the last three days – we're sailing into small data samples, yet all decks here have quite a few games under their belts.
Jagged Fizz Samira
Losing a bit of punch and playrate, but still with a very good 53%+ winrate in close to 900 games, Fizz
Samira remains a very solid choice – like it has been for ages now; these two really have a knack for pulling themselves up after nerfs to their deck!
They have a huge edge against Poro decks and dominate the confrontation against Lurkers and Heimer Jayce – but Fizz Samira has a truly awful time when confronting Ekko Jinx and Teemo's elusive crew, so keep that in mind if you're planning to pilot this jagged brew.
25 cards
15 cards
32 000
Frozen The Poro King
And, yes, His Majesty is still alive and kicking, and it looks like they will be the sole Heart of the Huntress champion to end the Standard meta with a popular, playable deck. The pairing of His Majesty with Freljord and Ingvar the Younger
has made the trick – although cooling off on the play rate department, The Poro King
still punches at 53%.
His Fluffiness has a really hard time against Galio Udyr and Samira Fizz, and even worse time against Ekko Jinx, and is slightly the underporo versus Lurkers and Heimer Jayce… but, lo and behold, He stills thrives in the Standard LoR meta!
31 cards
9 cards
24 800
Your Standard Mileage May Vary
If none of the above floats your boat, here are a handful of fringe options that are doing well on the Standard LoR ladder – sample sizes are small, though, so tread carefully!
Nasus Veigar
The return of Vault Nasus last week seems to have been a bit of a fluke – it has dropped sharply both in play and win rate, so while still a playable deck, it's probably not the best option to end the season with unless you already have practice with the deck.
25 cards
15 cards
32 500
Senna Veigar
While his partnership with Nasus has cooled off quite a bit, Veigar
has been doing quite well with Senna
and a return to the heart of the Darkness
.
23 cards
17 cards
28 500
Nami Samira
For those looking for something a bit different, here's a fringe option that seems very, very good against Teemo Elusives: Nami Samira.
28 cards
12 cards
34 700
Wrapping Up
And thus Heart of the Huntress draws to an end! If you are going for a last-push climb either in Eternal or Standard, the above decks are your best choices for a climb before the LoR ladders reset.
As it's our duty to remind folks whenever a season draws to a close, do keep in mind that we have new Champs and cards coming to Runeterra next week, and depending on how impactful they are, the LoR meta is going to be very different – if you are short on shards and wildcards, you may want to wait until the dust settles before crafting a new deck.
I hope you've enjoyed today's selection of the best decks in Runeterra, and good luck out there!
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/
Technical Note – About overall archetypes and specific decks, and what we mean by "LoR best decks"
Most data sites (including our LoR Meta Tier List, and our meta stats page) and articles like Leer's Legends of Runeterra Meta Decks Report sort LoR meta decks by archetype ("Archetype" being the aggregate of all decks in LoR with a specific champion combination) – that's also how matchup tables are shown in pretty much all data sites.
In this article, we'll sort these decks by the best specific decklist for each archetype. And, whenever we talk about LoR decks in general, or best Legends of Runeterra decks in particular, we'll always be referring to specific lists (while reserving "archetype" to denominate the aggregate of all decks with a particular champion pair).
And, since in each archetype some decks fare better than others (and sometimes the difference is quite noticeable), we'll broadly group the best LoR decks in arbitrary categories by the number of games played in the data samples we check:
- Juggernauts: LoR decks with more than 2100 games – these are the best tried-and-true, top meta decks in Legends of Runeterra at the time of writing.
- Heavyweights: LoR decks with between 2100 and 900 games played – other excellent choices, with large enough samples to confidently say, "Yeah, this works."
- Punching Up: LoR decks with between 900 and 400 games played – we're entering the Land of Small Sample Sizes here, but as far as numbers go, these decks can put up one hell of a fight into the current LoR meta.
As a rule of thumb, LoR decks with a win rate (WR) above 52% catch our eye; above 53% are eye-widening, and anything with a WR over 55% is exceptional.
Sources: Legna's LoR data website, Mastering Runeterra Meta Tier List, and our LoR meta stats page.
Where does this data come from?
Directly from Riot (via Riot's API) – in other words, all the numbers in this article are "from the horse's mouth," so to speak.
Liver, our wonderful coder and unsung MaRu 🐐 (also in charge of designing the website) makes Riot's data automagically appear in our meta tier list and meta stats page, and all-around LoR 🐐 Legna shares his data (from the same source, although following a different set of players) with us too.
