July: Chatting About the Solo Queue Tier List

type='html'>There's been a lot of back and forth on the solo queue tier list lately, which I love! I'm not saying I'm always correct, which is why hearing feedback from you guys is definitely a strong component that moves the tier list day by day.

The tier list is evolving...

So this post is made to address some of the current "scandalous" champions that you guys think are *outrageously* high or pitifully low on the tier list and some Work In Progress (WIP) thoughts on movements.

Post in the comment section if I've missed anything~

Your Demands (Will update to keep in mind)
Move Up: Kha'Zix, Lissandra, Syndra, Ryze, Quinn, Swain, Karma, Rengar, Support Fiddlesticks, Fizz, Shen
Move Down: Wukong, Malzahar, Warwick
Add: Jungle Aatrox, Mid Soraka, Top Nunu, Gangplank Support, Swain Top

Thoughts
Building a tier list takes time. There are over 100 champions to order, and at the rate that champions and meta changes, it'll likely never be 100% accurate. Plus, arguing for your favorite champion is half the fun of tier lists!

I could always make a list purely based off of popularity, but then readers would always be behind the curve on the hidden secret OP champions.

Possible Ordering Methods
The way I see it, building a Tier List can be done through 4 ways:

• Win Rates
• Pick/Ban Rates
• Theorycrafting
• Observational Bias

Since any one of them alone is boring, my list is comprised of all 4 combined, with a heavy weighting towards solo queue win rates. Some of you have brought up that win rates are highly subjective, which I'm not sure what that means -  

Surely observational bias is more subjective than quantifying win rates over thousands of games no? For those of you wondering, yes, I do use LolKing's database whenever I refer to winrates and pick/ban rates. (They're awesome).

Comments on Unusual Champion Choices

Personally, whenever I read a tier list, it's never the FOTM champions that I find interesting, it's always the non-FOTM ones that strike me as "new-and exiciting" and encourage me to try something unique out. Of course I'm always hoping that my little secret that will someday snowball into an upset victory at a major tournament so I could say "you heard it here first!"

Examples:

Rammus - Homeguard boots + Mobility + Powerball + Teleport = Massive ganking speed unrivaled by any other champion.

Jungle Malzahar - Insane ganking power and ranged red buff compensated by a vulnerable early jungle.

Top Lane Kayle - Before Rincent posted his build, who knew that Kayle beat EVERYONE? 

Tier 2 and Tier 3 Champions

You'll sometimes see formerly popular champions drop into Tier 2 or Tier 3...everyone knows that they're strong, nobody wants to go toe-to-toe with them, and nothing they do catches people off guard. The element of surprise is definitely a strong factor in winning, especially in solo queue where players get cocky against non-FOTM champions.

They're viable, but nothing special anymore. *balanced* does not mean weak.

Balance.

FOTM Champions

Meanwhile, I know that I've dropped some popular champions like Lissandra, Syndra, Rengar, and Alistar into Tier 4. I've seen people say:

"You want a tier list? just look at the FOTM champions, those are Tier 1" 

I'm not that lazy.

Even though everyone thinks they're strong and they look strong on paper, considering how much they're played, they should really win over 50% of the time if they're actually strong champions...and they're not even *close* to that, and are instead competing with Olaf to see who can lose more.

Closing

I never shy away from a good argument, and in fact I enjoy it. I might be a little too busy to respond sometimes due to the sheer volume, but I try to do as much as I can and let you guys chat among yourselves on the rest. Just remember, keep it classy and have fun!

- SSJSuntastic, platinum scrub

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