LoL Patch 13.21 is here and with it one of the last updates of 2023! There is one thing that every League of Legends player is eager to know: Which champions are the strongest? No matter if you're fighting on Top, Mid, Bot Lane, Jungle or Support: This is our ranking!
Each League of Legends Patch, we will introduce the best champions to you, that will help you win on your favorite lane. Are tanks still dominating the top lane? Which bot laner disposes of the enemy team the quickest? Here you'll find the five top performers in League of Legends, including all tips and tricks to master them... or how to get rid of them!
The Worlds meta is set into stone and Preseason 2024 is inching closer and closer. But instead of taking the foot off the pedal, the Riot devs are eager to bring more changes to the game. Another heap of adjustments came with LoL Patch 13.21 – but how do they affect our champion meta?
LoL Patch 13.21: The Best Champions For Every Lane
Coming up, you'll find the best pick for each position at the moment. We'll introduce every champion to you and explain why they are so strong at the moment. You'll find out how to play them, but since you won't be able to pick the best champions all the time, we'll also show you how to counter them in the most effective way.
1. Top Lane – K'Sante, the Pride of Nazumah
A new challenger appears in top lane meta and it's none other than K'Sante! Who would've thought, but the proud warrior from Nazumah finally managed to become the best that top lane has to offer, after being in the dumps pretty much since his release – at least in Solo Queue.
Why is K'Sante so strong at the moment?
The reason for that is the mini rework that Riot rolled out with LoL Patch 13.20. The devs pretty much tweaked every single one of his abilities, both the base forms and the "All Out" forms. They put on the finishing touches with the most recent patch, releasing some bug fixes and tooltip updates.
How To Play K'Sante
Even after his rework K'Sante isn't a particularly easy champ to learn, let alone master. The fact that he is so incredibly mobile as a tank, can be a bit confusing and hard to adjust to. Still, if you manage to pull off a good laning phase, you can unlock his full potential!
In laning phase, your Q is by far the most important ability when looking for trades. Q3 knocks enemies towards you, so you can use it to keep an opponent from getting away, or to throw him into your tower's range.
K'Sante's ultimate is the ability with the most playmaking potential. It takes a lot to get it right, though. With it, you're knocking an opponent in a target direction, even throwing them over walls! You need perfect timing and good awareness to pull it off.
With his ultimate, K'Sante is changing from his tank into his bruiser form. This means that he'll deal more damage, but also be a lot less durable.
How To Counter K'Sante
You'll be able to play safe against K'Sante if you let him push as far as possible. This way, you'll never be in any danger since he will not be able to land a good ult without going for a reckless tower dive.
Generally, it takes a lot to beat K'Sante in a 1v1. It's best to only go for the kill if you can rely on your teammates' support. Only champions with a lot of mobility and kiting potential have a good chance to beat K'Sante when going up against him alone.
Best K'Sante Alternatives on Top Lane
In case K'Sante got banned or you're just not a big fan of him, here are a few other good options:
- Garen, the Might of Demacia
- Let's be real – you can't really go wrong with Garen. A simple kit, a passive ability that gives you great sustain. Add a few buffs to his core items and you've got a great pick.
- Malphite, the Shard of the Monolith
- Still one of the best top lane champs, especially in low and mid elo. A simple kit, combined with great 1v1 capabilities and a great ultimate for initiating teamfights!
2. Jungle – Briar, the Restrained Hunger
Started from the bottom, now we here! That Drake line certainly applies to Briar. Immediately after her release, her win rate was in the dumps. At some point, it even dropped to the mid-thirties. A sub-par power level combined with a unique play style just isn't a great combo.
Why is Briar so strong at the moment?
Only a few days after her release Riot felt the need to act and released a hotfix for Briar. Not only that, but she also received a whole lot of changes and bug fixes with LoL Patch 13.19. Over time, players also were able to learn more about Briar and her unique abilities and mechanics.
How To Play Briar
Incase you missed it: Briar is a really UNIQUE champions. Sure, I guess you can label every single LoL champ as "unique" but with Briar, there are two important reasons for it: She has a unique ability (Blood Frenzy) and no base health regeneration. That alone makes her play style feel unfamiliar, but also really refreshing!
She has some powerfool CC abilities in her kit that should allow you to succeed to some degree in almost every gank. The most important thing with her, though: Keep an eye on your W and E cooldown! Your W makes you go into a "self-berserk" state, in which you can't control who you attack. Only by using your E, a knockback, you'll be able to regain control.
Briar can be a lot of fun, and she's a great champion for teamfights. Still – her Blood Frenzy can be your demise pretty quickly, say, if you pursue an opponent that is able to reach a tower or his teammates. This is why you should only go into Blood Frenzy if you have your E available to snap out of it.
How To Counter Briar
I guess I already told you in a way: If you're on lane, try to reach a tower as quickly as possible and make Briar meet her maker! She's also quite vulnerable if she's acting alone, since she needs to rely on her team in most situations. Always act together to kill her before her team is able to help her.
Best Briar Alternatives in Jungle
In case Briar got banned or you're just not a big fan of her, here are a few other good options:
- Jarvan IV, the Exemplar of Demacia
- Same as with Nocturne, J4 has been a jungle powerhouse since the mid-season update. Phenomenal engage, especially after hitting level 6, and just a great all-around bruiser.
- Maokai, the Twisted Treant
- A useful addition to almost every team comp: Maokai has a strong map presence, can act as a great frontliner and initiate teamfights by using his ultimate.
3. Mid Lane – Vex, the Gloomist
If there is a champion on Mid Lane that you could call "OP" at the moment, it would certainly be Vex in our eyes. No matter which rank you are in, this little Yordle can strike big fear in her enemies!
Why is Vex so strong at the moment?
This is mainly because of the buffs Vex received in LoL Patch 13.17. Her Q damage was increased, her W cooldown lowered, and there was a very helpful quality-of-life change for her ultimate ability. This is what catapulted Vex straight to the top of the mid lane meta.
How To Play Vex
Thankfully, Vex isn't very complicated. Maybe this is one of the reasons why there are so many people having a great time playing her at the moment. Still, there are a few things to keep in mind. For one, there is her passive, which is able to grant each of her abilities a fear. You'll see if that fear is available by looking at the display below her HP bar.
Use this fear to win your trades. Vex has great burst damage, which obviously hurts most, if your opponent can't strike back immediately because of the fear. Even if you're being attacked, Vex has some viable countermeasures. Her W ability not only grants her a shield, but also damages enemies close to her.
In team fights you should utilize the range of your Q and your ultimate. As soon as you've unlocked your ultimate, your roaming power drastically increases. Use it to help out your side lanes whenever you can.
How To Counter Vex
Champions that do not have a lot of range usually struggle quite a lot against Vex. Your best shot will be to pick a champ that also has quite a strong poke or some effective crowd control in their kit. Cassiopeia is a good choice for example. With her Miasma, she has a great counter for Vex's ultimate.
Vex Alternatives on Mid Lane
In case you're not a huge fan of Vex, or if she got banned, here a few other good options:
- Zed, the Master of Shadows
- Only if you dare! Zed may be incredibly complicated and he requires a lot of practice, but once you've got the hang of it, he can be absolutely lethal!
- Orianna, the Lady of Clockwork
- Once again a solid option on mid lane, since she received some buffs in Patch 13.17. Excels especially in team fights.
4. Bot Lane – Jinx, the Loose Cannon
Jinx was one of the lucky champions that received a buff with LoL Patch 13.20. Her passive was adjusted to allow its effect to stack, and her ultimate was improved significantly. Riot restrained her a little bit with Patch 13.21 by capping her max passive stacks to 5.
Why is Jinx so strong at the moment?
The buffs she received are the main reason for her recent surge in win and play rate. Full build her ult cooldown can go as low as sub-30 seconds. I don't know about you, but I'm not too thrilled about potentially having a Jinx rocket hit me straight in the face every thirty seconds...
How To Play Jinx
As most of her ADC colleagues, Jinx's time to shine is the late game. She does bring a lot more utility than other ADCs, though. She can switch between two different weapons, whereas one of them uses mana while dealing splash damage at increased range, and she also has a slow (W) and a great zoning tool (E).
It's best you don't take too many risks in laning phase. Only go after kills if you're dead certain you can score them. If Jinx falls behind too far over the course of the game, you'll miss out on her amazing late game power spike!
If you manage to keep up or even get ahead, the whole enemy team will be at your mercy. Jinx's damage output will be through the roof! Thanks to her passive ability she can hunt down fleeing enemies like almost no other champ. Thanks to her Ultimate, she can even snipe champions from across the map!
How To Counter Jinx
In laning phase, you should only take aggressive trades when her E is on cooldown. This is pretty much the only escape Jinx has – she is quite immobile. In general, your best chances at success are during the early game when she is still pretty weak.
Jinx Alternatives on Bot Lane
In case you're not a huge fan of Jinx, or if she got banned, here a few other good options:
- Vayne, the Night Hunter
- Vayne also profits off the anti-snowball measurements Riot took. The longer a game takes, the more powerful she'll be!
- Jhin, the Virtuoso
- Never really sub-par in solo queue, but the Stormrazor buffs from Patch 13.18 got Jhin back into top tier!
5. Support – Bard, the Wandering Caretaker
One of the most interesting and entertaining support champions out there finally gets his time to shine! Bard was forgotten for a long time, but now he's back! No other champion brings as much roaming power and map control as this friendly companion.
Why is Bard so strong at the moment?
Riot has rolled out some "adjustments" for Bard in LoL Patch 13.18. We put that in quotation marks, since the adjustments are effectively buffs for him. Bard's passive was adjusted in a way that the movement speed buff he gets from his chimes now stays for much longer. His W was also adjusted, which means he can now carry two healing shrines at the same time, and they also power up way quicker.
How To Play Bard
Bard is a really unique champion, which is especially true for his abilities. His Q is definitely his best offensive tool. With it, you can stun not just one, but two enemies simultaneously, but only if you connect to another unit or to terrain. The healing shrines from your W should always be placed under your tower or on your escape route.
His E and his passive are the most important tools for roaming the map. This is Bard's biggest strength. Make sure your bot laner can stay safe and go for a journey around Summoner's Rift! The chimes Bard can collect not only grant mana, but also stack movement speed. Use this to exert map control by warding or ganking a lane. Use his E-portal to find an unusual engage angle or to escape quickly.
Bard's ultimate will always be absolutely crucial, whether you hit your intended target or not. Timing his ults correctly is incredibly important, since they can have great impact – but also in a negative way. "Tempered Fate" is pretty much an AoE Zhonya's. You can put every object into stasis, which means that if you hit an ally that was about to go for a kill, the situation can quickly turn sour.
How To Counter Bard
Bard's roaming potential can also turn the game to your advantage. If you're certain that Bard is currently on a roam, try to do everything to punish the enemy bot lane and kill the ADC. In mid and late game you should be wary of not standing too close together because of his Q and R.
Bard Alternatives on the Support Position
If you're not a big fan of Bard, or if he's getting banned, there are a few other good options:
- Zyra, Rise of the Thorns
- Zyra has recently received a mini-rework with some QoL improvements, and they were really effective!
- Rakan, the Charmer
- While his sweetheart Xayah was nerfed, Rakan is still one of the strongest supports out there! His versatility is what makes him such a great pick.
There they are, the best League of Legends champions in LoL Patch 13.21! Don't worry if these champs were banned, there are still a lot more great picks out there. We're eager to see how the meta will keep developing in 2023 and the 2024 preseason.
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