The biggest meta shift all year is here. What do these changes mean and who are the winners and losers of this patch?
Lane kings and queens are getting dethroned in League of Legends’ patch 14.19, with the biggest patch that came in on Wednesday (25 September).
Aside from multiple changes to a long list of champions, the most important bit are the changes to plenty of items—changes that have shifted the meta significantly compared to the previous patches in the last few months.
Riot says this is to "give players more time to experience their champions' gameplay fantasy" and focus on champions rather than stuff. Riot wants to minimise powerful things and make champion strength less reliant on item misuse.
With that in mind, we’ve simplified how the many item, rune, and champion changes affected the meta and share who the winners and losers of this patch is, along with this patch’s champion Tier list.
Top Lane
OP: Garen, Fiora, Ornn
S: Sett, Darius, Kayle, Nasus, Urgot, Gwen, Kled, Wukong, Tahm Kench, Malphite, Mordekaiser, Cho’gath, Zac, Camille, Cassiopeia, Warwick, Yorick, Shen, Volibear
A: Aatrox, Sion, Dr. Mundo, Singed, Vladimir, Quinn, Ryze, Akshan, Rengar, Olaf, Kennen, Jax, Gragas, Riven, Poppy, Trundle, Tryndamere, Sylas.
B: Aurora, Irelia, Pantheon, Renekton, Jayce, Vayne, Udyr, Heimerdinger, Urgot, Gangplank, Karma, Yone, Gnar.
C: Rumble, K’sante, Skarner, Akali, Yasuo
D: Varus, Smolder, Twisted Fate.
Finally, after so many patches, Sett steps down from the Top Lane throne—with three new OP champions Garen, Fiora, and Ornn.
Some of the most affected champions in this patch is K’sante, who is getting sweeping changes across all his skills. However, we’re not entirely sure how this will affect him overall yet, so we’re keeping his spot in C for now.
Vladimir mains who have been relying on maxing his W may not like some of the changes on the Crimson Reaper.
However, Vlad can still stay in A-tier if players shift to maxing his Q – which historically, has been stronger in terms of win rate.
With many fighter and tank items getting nerfed in this patch, expect to have longer games with lesser blood in the laning phase.
Winners:
- Tanks like Cho’gath, Zac, and Dr. Mundo.
- Champs that stack power over time
- Champs that deal true damage.
Losers:
- Early-game gankers and buliies like Irelia, Renekton, Pantheon.
Jungle:
OP: Amumu, Nocturne, Udyr.
S: Zac, Shyvana, Briar, Viego, Morgana, Fiddlesticks, Rammus, Jarvan IV, Kha’Zix, Shaco, Warwick, Volibear, Xin Zhao, Nunu&Willump, Ivern, Gwen
A: Kindred Poppy, Ekko, Bel’veth, Elise, Wukong, Kayn, Evelyn, Master Yi, Trundle, Hecarim, Talon, Lilia, Nidalee
B: Lee Sin, Rek’sai, Brand, Karthus, Vi, Rengar, Pantheon, Zed, Jax, Graves, Gragas, Rumble, Sejuani, Taliyah, Olaf, Skarner.
C: Zyra, Sylas, Maokai, Qiyana
The jungle’s most OP champs will more or less remain the same, with a few changes in the S and A tiers. Similar to the top lane, fighter junglers will lose some damage, especially at their first item power spike, which means they won’t snowball as easily.
Tanks will benefit from this damage reduction, making them stronger in late-game team fights and giving them more relevance in the jungle.
Winners:
- Tanks that do well in extended fights, like Zac, Shyvana, Rammus and Volibear.
- Scaling champions with utility and ganking opportunities in the late-game, like Briar, Viego, Morgaana and Fiddlesticks.
Losers:
- Champions that rely on early-game snowballing and burst like Lee Sin, Rek’Sai, Vi, Pantheon, Rengar, and Zed.
- Early-game champions that rely on Eclipse, like Nocturne, Hecarim, and Xin Zhao, will find it harder to snowball and maintain effectiveness.
- AP Mages with slower jungle clear. (Zyra, Sylas, Maokai)
Wildcards:
- Elise
Mid Lane:
OP: Sylas, Aurelion Sol, Syndra
S: Vex, Naafiri, Veigar, Viktor, Annie, Galio, Anivia, Casseiopeia, Swain, Neeko, Ahri, Diana, Akshan, Lux, Xerath, Garen, Tryndamere
A: Fizz, Zed, Kassadin, Yone, Malzahar, Malphite, Ryze, Orianna, Taliyah, Twisted Fate, Talon, Hwei, Zoe, Ekko, Yasuo, Vladimir, Akali
B: LeBlanc, Pantheon, Jayce, Karma, Aurora, Nasus, Heimerdinger, Rumble, Ziggs, Brand, Qiyana, Katarina, Irelia
C: Azir, Ezreal, Tristana, Lucian
D: Corki, Smolder, Zeri
The mid lane’s OP queens are finally stepping down with Vex and Naafiri pushed down to S tier, to be replaced by mages Sylas, Aurelion Sol, and Syndra.
Syndra remains a top pick as her key items, Luden’s Echo and Stormrazor, maintain damage output despite losing movement speed and haste. Her damage scales well, making her stronger in longer games.
Mages with sustained fight potential like Anivia, Swain, and Orianna are rising in the meta. Burst assassins (like Zed, Fizz, and LeBlanc) are dropping in effectiveness due to item and damage changes.
And even in pro play, mid-ADC picks will be prioritised less and less, with mages now slowly taking over the meta once more. Finally balance! Mages rejoice!
Winners:
- Champions that excel in extended fights like Aurelion Sol.
- Champions that deal Sustained Damage are more relevant once more, with longer team fights.
Losers:
- Burst champions like Fizz, Zed, LeBlanc.
- Champions that rely on Eclipse and Zhonya’s Hourglass as their core items.
Wildcards:
- Champions that used to rely on Lethal Tempo, like the brothers Yasuo and Yone.
- Swain – hasn’t been popular mid for a while now, but is a big winner this patch because of his tankiness, his sustained damage over time, and scaling all align with the new meta.
Bottom Lane:
OP: Kai’Sa, Jinx, Kog’Maw
S: Sivir, Jhin, Ziggs, Ashe, Seraphine, Lux, Twitch, Karthus, Hwei, Brand
A: Vayne, Nilah, Lucian, Miss Fortune, Swain, Veigar, Draven
B: Samira, Caitlyn, Ezreal, Yasuo, Xayah
C: Zeri, Smolder, Tristana
D: Varus, Aphelios, Kalista
There’s plenty of item nerfs in 14.19 affecting AD Carries, but with Lethal Tempo coming back, some of the bot lane carries that may benefit from it will see an increase in power.
This include Kai’sa, Jinx, and Kog’maw, who all now sit on OP-tier, while Jhin steps down to S tier due to the other item nerfs.
With nerfs to early-game items like Blade of the Ruined King and Kraken Slayer, scaling champions will benefit more from longer games, where they can fully take advantage of their late-game damage and item spikes.
Meanwhile, champions that typically rush The Collector, which is getting a cost increase and losing lethality, will be affected as this will weaken their early-game burst, and with longer game times, the value of lethality decreases.
Winners:
- Scaling champions that may have huge power spikes in lengthier games
- Champions that may benefit from Lethal Tempo
Losers:
- Like most lanes, champions that rely on early-game burst damage will have a hard time due to the nerfs.
- Champions that rely on Statik Shivv and Infinity Edge as their core items.
Support:
OP: Poppy, Senna
S: Soraka, Nami, Xerath, Sona, Janna, Thresh, Vel’koz, Taric, Zac, Milio, Pyke
A: Tahm Kench, Leona, Rell, Galio, Shen, LeBlanc, Shaco, Karma, Blitzcrank, Amumu, Bard, Zilean, Zyra, Lux, Neeko, Rakan, Braum, Seraphine
B: Maokai, Hwei, Sylas, Brand, Camille, Heimerdinger, Swain, Renata Glasc, Yuumi, Pantheon, Teemo, Morgana, Nautilus, Alistar
C: Ashe, Twitch, Malphite
This patch doesn’t target support champions directly, but key support items are seeing changes. Popular items like Echo of Helia, Imperial Mandate, Moonstone Renewer, and Locket of the Iron Solari have been adjusted.
Overall, these changes reduce the power of commonly built support items, but the support meta shouldn’t change much from Patch 14.18. Since ADC items are dealing less damage, enchanter supports will be stronger, while melee supports might struggle with weaker all-in potential.
That said, it’s still Senna and Poppy reigning in OP-tier, and the likes of Soraka, Xerath, Nami, and Thresh will thrive in the current meta.
Winners
- Enchanters: Champions like Lulu, Soraka, Janna, Sona, and Milio benefit from lower ADC damage, making them more durable and valuable in extended team fights.
Losers
- Melee Supports: Champions like Leona, Alistar, and Thresh struggle as their all-in potential weakens with the nerfs to ADC items, reducing overall burst damage.
With sweeping item changes across roles, the landscape of who dominates in the top lane, jungle, mid lane, bot lane, and support has evolved.
Tanks and scaling champions have emerged as the clear winners, thriving in extended fights and longer games, while early-game burst champions and aggressive all-ins have taken a hit.
For now, it looks like slower, more strategic gameplay will be the way forward, rewarding patience and late-game strength over fast-paced snowballing.
For the full patch notes, you can view them all here.