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.
Best LoR Decks for the Standard Ladder
These are the most popular Standard LoR archetypes according to the Mastering Runeterra Meta Tier List:
Sources: MaRu's data (which samples Plat+ players)
Overall LoR Ladder Trends – Standard
And they are back! Miss Fortune
, Quinn
and their Scouts have shown that their performance last week was no fluke – arguably the strongest LoR deck right now, and not too far from also being the most popular, it is by far the biggest news this week.
By the way: all facts and figures in this article are for the LoR ladder – if you're looking for your weapons of choice for the upcoming Runeterra Open, check Sorry's Top 6 Lineups for the Standard Runeterra Open.
Juggernauts – Best Legends of Runeterra Decks for the Standard Ladder
Decks in this category have at least 3000 games played in the last three days, and good to great winrate – as far as current numbers go, these are the best LoR decks in the Standard ladder.
Darius Gnar
With the exact same list as last week (Darius
Gnar
looks like one of those decks that are spawned fully solved) and with 4500 games played during the last three days (down from 7600 last week), Darius Gnar's play rate has decreased but still remains the most-played specific decklist in the current LoR meta.
And also one of the punchiest, with an excellent 55%+ win rate!
These overwhelming champions are feeling the pressure from Ashe LeBlanc and Scouts, against which they are the underdogs. But they crush most of the other popular options: Janna Nilah, Janna Teemo, Caitlyn Teemo, Lurkers and the Poro King all get crushed under Darius Gnar's heel.
The fact that it beats Janna Nilah makes Darius Gnar an interesting choice for the upcoming Runeterra Open.
Further reading: Darius Gnar Deck Guide
23 cards
17 cards
24 000
Janna Nilah
Only a few games behind Darius Gnar, Janna
Nilah
is poised to add the "Most Played Deck" title to the "Most Played Archetype" crown that it already possess – although with Scouts breathing down its neck, it's not easy to say if it will make it!
At any rate, brewers and pilots seem to have nearly solved Janna Nilah (which used to have a fairly different build before the current patch), with just tiny differences in the spell ratios by sometimes cutting one Heavy Metal
to add a copy of Tidal Invocation
.
29 cards
11 cards
30 800
On the ladder, Nilah Janna utterly demolishes Ashe LeBlanc and is probably the cause of the latter's dip in play rate. It's also excellent against Lurkers and Shen Jarvan, but it crumbles against Darius Gnar, gets run over by Caitlyn Teemo, and is at a slight disadvantage against Miss Fortune Quinn.
In Tournaments, Nilah Janna is the deck to consider. As Sorry writes, "The current meta has been heavily dominated by Janna Nilah, which means it's essential to build a lineup with Janna Nilah in mind. You can bring decks capable of beating Janna Nilah or simply ban the popular deck and focus on beating the other two decks in the opponent's lineup."
Further reading: Nilah Janna Deck Guide
Miss Fortune Quinn, aka Scouts
Speaking of the devil…
… if you're itching to bet your shards on which will be this patch cycle's strongest deck, that would be Miss Fortune Quinn: second most popular archetype, third most played specific deck (nearly 4000 games in the last three days) and a crazy 58%+ win rate, the highest performance from among all decks showcased today.
And, as last week, its matchup spread looks excellent: Miss Fortune Quinn destroys Teemo decks (be it Caitlyn Teemo or Janna Teemo), consistently beats Darius Gnar and Lurkers, and has an edge against Janna Nilah and Ashe LeBlanc.
The only two strong decks with good odds to beat Miss Fortune's bunch are Galio Volibear and, above all, Shen Jarvan.
28 cards
12 cards
31 300
Heavyweights – Strong LoR Decks for the Standard Ladder
These decks have between 1800 and 3000 games in the last three days – solid heavy-hitters for your LoR laddering needs!
Ashe LeBlanc
Ashe
LeBlanc
has dropped quite a bit in play rate (it was one our Juggernauts last week) but remains an excellent choice for the current Runeterra ladder: nearly 2500 games played in the last three days, punching at around 55%.
Pilots have agreed on Ashe LeBlanc's best deck (there were two slightly different versions last week), which would be this one:
17 cards
23 cards
28 900
Janna is a sharp thorn on Ashe LeBlanc's thigh – Janna Nilah in particular is close to an auto-lose matchup by CCG standards (odds for Ashe LeBlanc are around 25% in this matchup), with Janna Teemo also being problematic.
On the other hand, Ice Queen and Black Rose demolish what remains of Jack Sett, have the upper hand against Darius Gnar, beat Caitlyn Teemo, and are roughly even against the new Scouts menace.
The Poro King, sometimes featuring Yuumi
His Fluffiness is still alive and kicking – and with two different brews!
The best version right now pairs His Fluffiness with 
Targon and invites Yuumi
for the ride, and showcases a 55% WR across 1600 games in the last three days:
28 cards
12 cards
24 000
This version is a bit disfavored against the Darius Gnar, Ashe LeBlanc, and Scouts. While that's not a great place to be in this meta, all those matches are still winnable; and The Poro King
Yuumi is favored against Caitlyn Teemo, Lurkers, and Shen Jarvan.
The other of His Fluffiness' versions is the classic Freljord build with the King going lone champ:
31 cards
9 cards
24 800
Playrate and performance are a bit lower than for the Yuumi version, although not by much – but matchups against the current Juggernauts are much worse (with Scouts and Darius Gnar in particular being horrible), so it seems His Fluffiness would be wise to pair with the sticky kitten.
Teemo Janna
Until last week, one could have reasonably wondered which was the best Janna deck, but this week it seems clear: Teemo
Janna is still an excellent deck (with an excellent 55%+ win rate in about 1700 games) but against the current field Nilah Janna seems better.
In particular, Teemo's version is much worse against Scouts: Nilah Janna has an uphill-yet-still-winnable matchup while Teemo Janna just gets steamrolled by Miss Fortune's crew. The Teemo version is also hopeless against Darius Gnar, and has a lousy time against Shen Jarvan (while the Nilah version dominates the Shen Jarvan matchup).
It's still a very strong choice of the Runeterra ladder, but if you're here to updraft, Nilah Janna may be the way to go.
Further reading: Teemo Janna Deck Guide
9 cards
31 cards
36 800
Struggling: Kayle Yuumi, Karma Sett, and Jack Sett
Kayle Yuumi has gained a lot of popularity in the last three days and, for the record, is not a bad deck – just not spectacular, and if you go by cold, hard numbers, undeserving of its spike in play rate.
Sett
started this patch with the right foot… but both of his most popular brews are deflating: Karma Sett has dropped a bit below the 50% winrate mark, and Jack Sett has done the same by a lot.
Punching Up – Standard LoR Decks Doing Great
Standard LoR decks with between 900 and 1800 in the last three days – we're sailing into small data samples here, so pilots beware!
Teemo Yuumi
Did I not tell y'all not to sleep on Teemo Yuumi?
Second highest winrate from among all decks showcased today, and it's been doing amazing since last patch. Also one of the weirdest, freshest new brews we've seen in quite some time!
Luckily for you, sleepyheads, Leer has you covered with a fresh-off-the-oven Teemo Yuumi Deck Guide. Don't sleep on this one!
23 cards
17 cards
33 300
Caitlyn Teemo
Well… looks like the best part of this patch's puffcap season is over. But not entirely over just yet!
Caitlyn
Teemo has dropped sharply both in play rate and win rate, but can still put up a fight. It's an excellent choice if you hate Janna Nilah's guts, although you do get lousy odds against Ashe LeBlanc, Darius Gnar, and above all a horrible matchup against Scouts.
Further reading: Teemo Caitlyn Deck Guide
13 cards
27 cards
26 900
Pyke Rek'Sai, aka Lurkers
The tide seems to finally have turned against Pyke's crew – a 52% win rate across 1300 games in the last three days is nothing to be ashamed of, but on the other hand is a far cry from what Lurkers enjoyed in the previous few metas.
Having all three Juggernauts as disfavored matchups is definitely not a comfy place to be!
Further reading: Pyke Rek'Sai Deck Guide
15 cards
25 cards
26 400
Shen Jarvan IV
Shen
Jarvan IV
keeps flying a bit under the radar, as it has done in previous patch cycles. Its play rate has even dropped from about 1600 games played last week in a three-day window to just about 1200 this week – yet its winrate keeps above the 56% mark, with good odds against Ashe LeBlanc, Darius Gnar, and Lurkers.
And, cherry on top, Shen Jarvan is one of the very few decks that can give Scouts a bloody nose.
Shen Jarvan's only weak spots are Janna Nilah and The Poro King Yuumi – a very well-positioned deck in the current LoR meta!
22 cards
18 cards
26 100
Galio Volibear
Galio
Volibear
is quietly and silently regaining lost ground – pushed close to the fringes of the LoR meta by the recent patch, stone statue and big angry bear have improved their win rate this week to nearly 56% (up from 54% last week) and remain a very good choice for your climbing needs.
And it's another of the few decks with a positive edge against Scouts, meaning that Galio Volibear may become one of the few roadblocks to Miss Fortune's dominance.
Further reading: Galio Volibear Deck Guide
29 cards
11 cards
30 500
Fizz Yuumi
Completely out of nowhere, Fizz
Yuumi sneaks into our Punching Up category, and with great performance to boot: 55%+ in the last three days. A bit soft against Scouts and Darius Gnar, but looks very solid against Janna Nilah.
24 cards
16 cards
27 500
Your Mileage May Vary
If none of the above floats your boat, here are a handful of more fringe options that are doing well on the Standard LoR ladder – sample sizes are small, though, so tread carefully!
Jax Ornn
Jax
Ornn
is hanging in there – it's very welcome news for weapon master and forge god that Teemo decks and Ashe LeBlanc are on the downswing as of late, and Jax Ornn is not afraid of Scouts.
24 cards
16 cards
25 100
Jinx Kennen
Jinx
Kennen
is the hot new thing on the fringes!
These two were quite the sensation back when Return-o Wrench
was a thing. Now, after ditching the nerfed tool, they seem to have found their stride and are one of the hardest-hitting off-meta decks.
28 cards
12 cards
25 900
Annie Jhin
Annie
Jhin
is another old deck putting quite the show right now, and have been putting good numbers since last week – blazing brat and bullet buff have faded from Standard since rotation took away a good chunk of their good cards, but perhaps the recent round of nerfs to other decks will allow them to catch up?
25 cards
15 cards
27 500
Akshan Pantheon
To round up today's selection, yet another well-known brew making a return – Akshan Pantheon briefly shined a bit during the previous meta, and seem to find the current field promising.
20 cards
20 cards
31 400
Wrapping Up
As the Runeterra Open approaches, Nilah Janna seems to be the deck to beat in the Tournament scene – but, on the LoR ladder, Scouts looks right now as the most firm candidate to wear the "Best LoR Deck" crown this patch.
We'll see next week what the best players bring to the Open, and how that shakes things up!
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.
