Ashe Noxus is an old midrange archetype that aims to take board control with big units and protect them with Frostbite spells and other combat tricks. In the past this deck was played with Sejuani
, but on release, LeBlanc
looked to be a great addition to the list.
With a plethora of Frostbites and big units with 5+ attack, this deck can easily level up Ashe
and LeBlanc, as well as meet the requirement for Reputation to trigger.
Throughout many previous patches, Ashe LeBlanc has received new cards and had old cards buffed, and it is getting to the point where it's a viable pick in the meta. While this deck does not have a high playrate on ladder, it can be used to counter one of the most prominent decks of the format, namely Bard Illaoi, while holding its own against Kai'sa decks.
22 cards
18 cards
31 000
General Mulligan Strategy
This section is for people who are in game while reading the guide or just want a quick breakdown of the Mulligan. Details about each card will be explained in the Card Breakdown section of the guide.
Always Keep – Avarosan Trapper
, Omen Hawk
, and LeBlanc
Against Aggro – Icevale Archer
and Trifarian Gloryseeker
Sometimes Keep – Ashe is good to keep if you already have two “Always Keep” cards in hand and you are not against Aggro. Trifarian Gloryseeker and Culling Strike
are good to keep for removal against important units, like for example Azir
.
Other cards should not be kept in most matchups.
The Ashe LeBlanc Deck: Card Breakdown
Our Champions: Ashe and LeBlanc
Ashe is one of our main win conditions. Our deck can level up Ashe extremely easily.
Since you will usually have a board with big units, a leveled-up Ashe with some Frostbite spells can make several of the opponent’s units unable to block, which allows you to push a lot of damage and potentially win the game.
If the opponent does not have any Slow-speed responses, Crystal Arrow
from Ashe (level 2)
can Frostbite most of their board and allow you to push damage and win the game. With Crystal Arrow, you are able to Frostbite an enemy, and all other enemies with three or less Health – and if you attack with Ashe, enemy units with zero Power won't be able to block. When using this card, make sure to target the enemy with more than three Health if there is one. Crystal Arrow also allows you to draw a card, so you can also use it as a last resort if you need to look for a card.
LeBlanc is a great unit to put early pressure on the opponent, as well as a potential win condition if you are able to level her up.
LeBlanc’s Mirror Image
has many great targets in our deck to copy and win the game, including Incisive Tactician
, Ashe, and Captain Farron
.
If the prior targets do not threaten enough damage to win the game and you need to get more value for the long-term game plan, copying Trifarian Assessor
, and Avarosan Hearthguard 
are good options.
Avarosan Trapper
Avarosan Trapper is one of our best early-game units and great to play on round three. You want to ensure you play this card as soon as possible since the Enraged Yeti it creates in the deck provides more value the earlier it is drawn.
The Enraged Yeti is a one-mana 5|5 unit that counts as a draw for Trifarian Assessor, helps level up LeBlanc, and also trigger Reputation.
Buffing Units
These units are here to grant more stats to other units. Omen Hawk early can help your units take better trades, as well as survive potential removal spells, such as Pokey Stick
. For example, an early Omen Hawk buff on LeBlanc can prevent her getting removed by Mystic Shot
.
Avarosan Hearthguard is good as it buffs your whole deck. This allows Trifarian Assessor to count herself to draw a card, as she will have five Power.
These buffs not only help units survive longer, but the Power buff allows them to speed up LeBlanc's level-up, trigger Reputation faster, and push more damage overall.
Frostbites
These cards are meant to allow your units to take favorable trades, as well as level up Ashe.
Icevale Archer is a great early-game unit to punish development on the opponent’s Attack Token. It is worth keeping against Aggro, and also useful in the late game to freeze big units, especially ones that have Spellshield.
All of these cards are not only used for your units to take favorable trades, but can also be used as a finisher with Ashe (level 2), as comboing multiple freezes can make most of the opponent’s board unable to block.
Removal
Trifarian Gloryseeker and Culling Strike are used to remove your opponent’s key units. For example, Azir is a great target for both of these.
These cards shine specifically in this deck because they can combo well with your Frostbite cards. Trifarian Gloryseeker can be saved, since without a buff she usually only has one health, and a Frostbite can allow Culling Strike and Reckoning to remove any unit in the game.
Reckoning is great to help you finish the game, as most of your units will survive, and it will often be a fatal board-wipe for your opponent.
Card Draw
Sometimes, midrange decks can run out of units before they can finish the game, so draw is essential.
Trifarian Assessor is one of our best cards, as it allows us to oftentimes draw three or more cards when she is played.
Whispered Words is usually a two-mana draw two in this deck, so it is great to refill your hand later in the game.
Finishers
These cards help you end the game through Rally, or in the case of Captain Farron, Overwhelm and direct Nexus damage with Decimate
.
Since many of our units have 5+ Power, it is insanely easy for us to gain the Rally from Trifarian Training Pits. If we have Ashe or LeBlanc on board, it can also be played in the midgame to pressure the opponent.
Incisive Tactician and Captain Farron are extremely strong finishers and can combo with a Mirror Image from LeBlanc for even more damage.
One big difference between these finishers is Captain Farron can win the game on his own if you have dealt enough damage to the Nexus prior to round 8 or 9, but the other two cards usually need more of a board to win the game.
Other Spells
Three Sisters is a great flexible card that allows for multiple Combat Tricks, or even an Entomb
to push damage – remember that, if an Overwhelm attacker is being blocked, and you remove the blocker, then the Overwhelm unit will strike the Nexus for full damage.
Troll Chant is amazing to prevent damage and help your key units to survive.
Tech Options
This deck has many cards that can be teched, so I will not go through them all in this guide, but these are some options.
Avarosan Sentry and Babbling Bjerg
can be used as alternative draw options.
Harsh Winds and Rimetusk Shaman
can be used to progress Ashe’s level-up, as well as finishers when Ashe is on board.
Elixir of Iron and Sharpened Resolve
are solid combat tricks to save your Key Units.
Kato The Arm can be used as an alternative five-drop to give Overwhelm to other units and push for lethal.
Ashe LeBlanc's General Gameplan & Matchup Tips
This is a midrange deck that aims to take board control with big units, and use Frostbites, as well as other combat tricks, to protect them. With board control and big units you are able to draw many cards from Trifarian Assessor, and eventually end the game either with a Mirror Image combo from LeBlanc, Captain Farron, or most commonly, a big attack with Ashe (level 2).
Kai'Sa Demacia - Slightly Unfavored
Try to force trades and apply pressure early to keep their board narrow.
Flash Freeze + Culling Strike is usually the only combo that can remove Kai'Sa
on round five, as Icevale Archer gives them an action to apply Spellshield to Kai'Sa with either Supercharge
, or Belvethi Elder
and Second Skin
.
If they use Ancient Hourglass
to save her, she will be at zero Power on round six, allowing you to use a second Culling Strike, a Reckoning, or try to Challenge her with a buffed Trifarian Gloryseeker – however, they could have buffs like Sharpsight
to survive the attack or Rite of Negation
to prevent the Reckoning, but sometimes you need to hope that they do not have it since you cannot play around every card in their deck.
If all else fails, be ready with Spells to survive the Kai'Sa attack and attempt to end the game with Ashe and Rally, or force the opponent to trade their own Kai'Sa on the next round.
This matchup becomes much harder if they are playing Sivir, as she is an extra threat that is hard to deal with due to Spellshield. Icevale Archer is great to stall in this matchup, since his Frostbite goes through Spellshield, and Trifarian Gloryseeker can trade with their Sivir.
Bard Illaoi - Favored
The Illaoi Bard matchup being favored is one of the main reasons people play Ashe LeBlanc.
Keep their Tentacle
weak and force them to trade with your big units. Trifarian Gloryseeker can freely trade with Watchful Idol
and Esmus, Breath of the World
. Culling Strike is big in this matchup, as Illaoi
needs four Chime
s to survive, and even if she gets them, you can still Frostbite her and then use your removal.
Try to save a Troll Chant or Three Sisters for Ashe, or wait until she is leveled or buffed, as a Tentacle Smash
will remove her if she has three Health. Riptide Sermon
can also remove Ashe, but your deck can produce multiple big threats other than Ashe that the opponent will have a hard time dealing with.
Twisted Fate Teemo - Unfavored
This matchup is really hard. You want to try to save as much Health as possible and try to deny Plunder if you can.
Icevale Archer is great in this matchup to prevent early aggression. Troll Chant is a great card to prevent Double Up
, as well as allowing you to take favorable trades, but it is not worth keeping in the Mulligan.
Mulligan for early game units and only keep Ashe if you have a good hand.
Annie Jhin - Very Unfavored
This is similar to Twisted Fate Teemo, as you want to try to save as much Health as possible.
Always play for Nexus Health, and only keep Ashe in the mulligan if you have a good hand.
Try to look for Icevale Archer and Avarosan Trapper. Trifarian Gloryseeker is also a great keep, especially if you are attacking on even rounds, as Annie
has zero Attack and she can be Challenged for free.
Culling Strike works on most of their units, but it usually costs more mana than they pay to play them.
Beware of Solari Sunhawk
and The Stagehand
, as they can stun your blockers. Try to have Frostbite cards ready just in case.
Thralls - Unfavored
In this matchup, you need to apply pressure and try to close out the game around round six, when they get their Thralls out. LeBlanc, Avarosan Trapper and units buffed by Omen Hawk are great for this.
Culling Strike can kill Lissandra
, but she can get her Attack buffed with Fury of the North
.
If they are about to get multiple Frostguard Thrall
s out in a Round, try to have Frostbites up, as well as Culling Strike or Reckoning.
If you only have the Frostbites, use them to stall and set up for lethal on your next attack. It can sometimes be worth it to take some damage from the attack and save the Frostbites if you have Ashe (level 2), as it can prevent more of the opponent’s units from blocking.
If they have mana up for Buried in Ice
, you may be forced to open-attack, as you will often lose the game if they play this card and you cannot redevelop.
In Closing
With that ends my guide for Ashe LeBlanc. Unfortunately, Bard Illaoi is one of the only Favorable matchups for this deck in the current meta, as most of the other popular decks are even or unfavorable.
However, as Bard Illaoi is extremely popular still, Ashe LeBlanc can be a great choice for tournaments if you are constructing a lineup that wants to target Bard Illaoi.
I hope this article helped you to understand how to play this archetype better, and if you have any questions, let me know – Here are some of my socials:
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