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Champs Outside of Top Tier - "Worthless"?

John 13 34·4/16/2015, 12:16:45 PM·1 votes·1,590 views

I just got into LOL a few months ago, and I've been spending some time with as many champs as I can. I like to get a feel for what they can do so I have some idea how to play against them. Along the way I've created an "emotional" attachment to a few - Lux, Karma, Vel'Koz, for instance.

A friend of mine who has been playing longer than I have tells me I am wasting my time with champs like this. His justification is that since we never see them used professionally, they must be fundamentally flawed. Pros being better than everyone else, they would know which champs work best and which to avoid altogether.

My feeling on this is that at my competition level (bronze) just about anyone can be viable. The reason? People in bronze don't have the game knowledge or mechanical skill set that professional players do.

Thoughts on this? I'm not actually looking for confirmation that I'm right or my friend is right. Just some other views on champ selection.

35 Comments

mοno4/16/2015, 12:26:04 PM4 votes

His justification is that since we never see them used professionally, they must be fundamentally flawed.

I think your friend should have a nice friendly chat with Keane from Team Gravity.

All that is important is whether you can play your champ well

The meta is ever-changing. It's simply a matter of who can make what work. That's it. Don't be put off from playing non-meta champ.

Genuwhine4/16/2015, 12:23:24 PM3 votes

any champion can be viable in solo que its up to the player not the champion, sure there are champions that will be stronger but they go up in skill level. for example zeds base skill level will be lower for a noob than for a pro lets say its 45 a really bad player will take him to 20 and a pro takes him to 145. meanwhile a champ like annie has an even base skill level and cant drop off too much lets say 60, a bad player 45, a good player 90. for getting better play easier champions (champs with no skillshots) if you do have the mechanics you can play what you like or what you feel is strong.

stuartk114/16/2015, 12:30:37 PM2 votes

Your friend doesn't fully understand the difference between Solo-Q and competitive play. In solo-Q, not all teams will be co-ordinated. Not everyone will be preparing for each match, or be aware of so many champion mechanics. In Solo-Q, you CAN do well if you are good on a few champions, regardless of whether other people think they are good enough to be played. They're the ones who will do badly against a good player, because they will not be aware of the strengths and weaknesses of any champions that don't turn up in the competitive scene.

Ternt4/16/2015, 1:08:20 PM2 votes

I main Jayce Mid, and people usually flake me for it. Then I carry their asses to victory. So honestly, just play who you like because if you're really good with them and master them, it doesn't matter what the meta is. And on a side note, Yorick was shit until played in the LCS, Viktor was overlooked also, etc. All Champs are viable when played properly, even Bard. Playing off meta champs I think gives you a better chance of winning because most people are used to laning against specific champs. As long as you're not playing champs like Miss Fortune AP mid, then you'll make it where you wanna go.

OmManiPadmeHum4/16/2015, 1:44:13 PM1 votes

your friend is a classic noob who watches LCS strats and tries them in bronze and fails and blames the others.

You are right in that ANY champ in Bronze through....I'd say at least low Gold is viable. Now certain champs are more viable than others when talking about which LANE they should be in because of Mobility, their ways they can GTFO and dragon control.

But for now, play what you like and get yourself to gold with them, THEN start worrying about which champs are stronger than others. He is right in that there are some champs that are "better" in a lane than another...but when you start getting into Plat and higher, you really have to look at team comp too.

TL:DR....Play what you like. You will have much more fun!

GL!

Godhri4/16/2015, 1:53:13 PM1 votes

high or low tier doesn't matter. The champ you choose only matters so far as team composition and countering. Why even low tier? That's because there are smurfs there. The only thing that matters is that you know what you are doing. Course, if you know what you are doing, then some other champions might be favorable simply because they are easy to carry with. Leblanc for example.

warpenguin5554/16/2015, 2:06:29 PM1 votes

Your friend is a moron. Play who you are good with, and if they are play professionally, great, if not, too bad. Tell him i said this too

Raptamei4/16/2015, 2:58:44 PM1 votes

One warning: if your team REALLY doesn't want you to pick something, don't. The morale damage is too high (and you risk getting reported and auto banned or at least having someone toss the game to troll you).

Colgate Gator4/16/2015, 4:50:05 PM1 votes

I generally suggest to play what you like and what you're good at. I've had people make me go mid in Ranked even if I can't play mages for crap and I tell them. "Allright, Irelia mid it is." and they begin raging, I've been most likely reported over that, but it works, I am good at that Champion but I suck at AP mids, so, yeah.

Not wanting to sound like a douche, but at that level, you can bring almost anything and, as long as you know what you're doing, it will work, hell, the same applies all the way to Gold or Plat, even Diamond if you're really good at it.

Sinister Snail4/16/2015, 5:26:16 PM1 votes

There's on more thing I'd like to chip in.

The champs in the top tier change constantly. Rarely will one stay God tier for more than a few months: they either get nerfed, or the meta shifts away from their strengths. Jax, Yasuo, Sion, Katarina, Akali, Riven, Nidalee: they all had their time in the sun, and people played them and won games because they were strong champs. Now they're using whoever's strong now, their champion-specific experience with past FotM no longer relevant.

But you know who's been consistently strong since his release, with his only change since then a 10% width increase on his W? Vel'koz. Not OP, not shit, just strong. And when you spend your time repeatedly practicing one champ instead of switching around to the FotM, you get really, really good at that one.

Champion knowledge and experience beats champion power. I'd rather have my adc be a Quinn main for two years than have picked up Graves a week ago.

Agent20904/16/2015, 5:33:01 PM1 votes

There are people that have gotten to Diamond/Masters and even Challenger playing, almost exclusively, one champion. Champions that are not necessarily "top tier". What matters is how well you know the champion, what their limits are and how to play around their weaknesses.

DatPikachuTho4/16/2015, 12:20:57 PM1 votes

Man, just use who you're good with. You will win more consistently with a champion that you like and have had a ton of practice on than you will by playing someone who is, in theory, OP but you are less skilled on.

Don't listen to the haters.

Jack Peterson4/16/2015, 6:49:23 PM1 votes

You can play all those champs to the highest level of play, and those arent even awful picks that i think there may be some buffs in the future. The lcs is also a who different game picks wise.

ßongs4/16/2015, 12:24:50 PM1 votes

No if you master a champ you'll do fine with them regardless if they are top tier or not

soh1gh24/16/2015, 12:37:40 PM1 votes

don't listen to the sheep play who you want

Alsef4/16/2015, 12:46:33 PM1 votes

i have gotten somewone who carried me 30/0 yorick and he aint really top tier so i mean do what your good at whats the point in playing people who your shit with if you dont enjoy it?