What are the most balanced champions for their respective role?

Eedat··18 votes·3,158 views

With all the talk of "X champion is broken" I want to have a discussion on which champions you feel are balanced! Which champions do you think Riot did a good job creating? Of course, this is just my opinion. Feel free to share who you think is the most balanced in the comments!

Lets start with:

Top: Nasus I know a lot of people are going to disagree, but I feel Nasus is very balanced. He has a very obvious power curve of being pretty weak early game while having a strong late game power. He is easily harassed off his stacks early game which in turn delay his power spikes. He doesn't have stupid high base damages that are going to shred you even when he's behind. He doesn't get 10 free dashes. As a matter of fact, he gets no gap closer or hard CC. This gives him clear strengths and weaknesses in team fights. He can be kited without him being able to spam gap closers to catch you. If he wants to get to your carries, he has to walk to them.

Mid: Orianna She has always been the pinnacle of balance for me. She has a OK laning phase with only medium range harass. Her moved are telegraphed heavily by the positioning of her ball which gives you time to react. She has a shield and a movement speed buff for some survivability on an immobile mage, but no free dash if she positions herself poorly. She has great team fight potential and encourages team work in game and in champ select via the 'ball delivery system'. Overall has defined strengths and weaknesses and is punishable for positioning poorly.

Jungle: Amumu He has a decent clear, decent pre-6 ganks, and great post-6 ganks. His mana costs are pretty balanced which doesnt let him survive for infinity in the jungle. He doesn't do insane amounts of damage, but still can contribute a lot to his team. His awesome ult is balanced around a relatively long cooldown and mediocre kit. He doesn't have 5 extra abilities tacked onto his standard 4 abilities. To summarize, does decently in the laning phase and is more of a team player for mid-late game. Can use his ult to either engage the enemies, or peel for his carries.

ADC: Twitch I think Twitch is a good example of what balance should be. He has an escape without having a get-out-of-jail-free dash. Good positioning is rewarded by pumping out a ton of damage with his ult, while bad positioning is punished by most likely dying. He doesn't get a spammable stealth or insane move speed resets to band-aid his bad positioning. His 'snowball' relies more on sneaking around to other lanes to help other members on his team out, as opposed to getting 1 early kill then smashing his lane opponents' face in for the rest of the game. Overall a team player that is punished for bad positioning while being rewarded for good positioning.

Support: Lulu Lulu is more or less everything you want from a support. She offers a lot of utility while not having crazy high base damages. She isn't going to chunk you for half your HP while building no AP. I think with some changes to Spellthief's Edge she would be a top tier support again. She offers great utility without oppressive damage. She gives survivability without giving a free escape. All around what you would want from a support.

Again, this is just my opinion. Feel free to state yours in the comments!

147 Comments

Shroom Junkie20 votes

Darius Shyvana Annie Vayne Thresh :3

Only Play Darius3 votes

All of those champions have a history of severe balance problems.

Darius in particular is an egregious offender in regards to gameplay that is only fun for player of said champion and just his presence sucks the fun out of the game for everyone else including his own team.

Thresh on release was the undisputed greatest support in the game, and despite getting nerfed to hell and back he's still a Tier one pick in solo queue and competitive.

DrNova15 votes

The joke and your head are at seperate heights insufficient for meeting, with the joke being at a much higher altitude.

darapier1716 votes

Talon because he can still delete people if used correctly late game but does not have resets and his gap closer has a long cd. Also he is aa oriented and can only kill squishies because he gets shut down hard by armor

Eedat10 votes

I agree, Talon is about as balanced as it gets for assassins

Saixos3 votes

Honestly IMO Nidalee is the most balanced assassin. If she is going to kill you, you need to be low already or she needs to poke you down first. She needs to land a telegraphed skillshot for her combo, and she has no real safety net if she goes in. Everything she does is quite telegraphed and you know what she is trying to do most of the time and have ample time to react, while Talon will oneshot any squishy without them being able to do anything in response if he gets a slight lead.

Eedat11 votes

I don't think so as she's an assassin with a heal, spammable gap closer/escape, great poke, and great seiging. Half of her kit doesn't even require any mana

Xela Syab2 votes

I kinda disagree on this one, if he has a team with a lot of cc or initiation he can delete squishy champions before any decent reaction time.

Keevalroy8 votes

AatroxVolibear Nasus Top Fiddlesticks Maokai Zac Jungle Anivia Velkoz Syndra Mid Ashe Sivir Twitch ADC Bard Nami Sona Support

I want to put Ahri in here for a healthy and balanced champion, but even though I don't necessarily feel a sense of "that's bullshit" when I die to her, let's be honest: she's incredibly strong and too safe with the random movespeed added to her Q. If that goes, her damage is lowered a bit, and the % amp gets put back onto charm, maybe things would be different, and people wouldn't hate her safety as much.

Squarefighter1 votes

Aatrox has a lot of balance issues really, he's just not really strong enough for his problems to be very noticeable. Same for Nasus.

Everyone else is about right tho.

Keevalroy1 votes

Sion might have been a better choice now that I think about it.

Squarefighter1 votes

Aye. Sion main here so I'm definitely biased, but Sion is a joy to play as and against with a low skill floor, high skill ceiling, good matchups and bad ones. He has so much potential from sheer base damages but is adequately gated by having some of the most telegraphed abilities in the game.

Melledoneus1 votes

It's hilarious to watch Riven mains cry about your damage when you max Q and wait for the right moments to chunk them with it.

Squarefighter1 votes

I mean I think I can say that I'm a pretty experienced and pretty good Sion, and honestly he can be such a monster in lane sometimes, after about 10-20 games you almost never miss a Q because you learn when you can get a guaranteed hit off. It really does hit harder than almost anything level 1 and level 4.

Melledoneus1 votes

Oh yeah, the timing is key. Although it's pretty difficult to get anything done in zombie mode when all these champions have CC and mobility.

Squarefighter1 votes

Zombie mode is generally pretty bad past about level 3, yeah. In very rare cases it can be good (Braum is your best friend) but it's usually pretty frustrating to get hit with one slow and then become entirely useless. One good thing about it tho is that it allows me to cheese the enemy blue/red buff pretty well, I do that nearly every game.

Decrit2 votes

honestly, top picks are just really weak :P Aatrox and Voli are mostly feast or famine, either they win the gear check or they do not, and even in the case they are not optimal.

I agree on Nasus, even tought falls more on the weak side of things to me.

Keevalroy1 votes

I look at it like this: if you get beaten into the dirt for the entire early game, obviously something went wrong and you're being punished for it. The outcome at the end of the game tells the story for what happened early, and I consider that healthy. You're punished heavily (some may argue too heavily) for errors while rewards are given to people that know what they're doing.

What I dislike about a lot of the modern kits is that because they're so overloaded with random shit tacked onto them for the hell of it, it gives them tools to overcome any obstacle and recover from any deficit regardless of how poorly you were doing. Champions like Yasuo can get the shit kicked out of them in the early game, but once he gets Shiv and IE, it's like he was never behind at all. That's not healthy; you played the early game poorly, and therefore you should be punished for it and struggle to recover without help from your team. You shouldn't be able to fall back on your welfare kit to match the laner who's been annihilating you for the last 15 minutes.

Decrit1 votes

Honestly i think that there should be a way to come back from a lost game: sure, you have to be punished, but i want a game playable from start to finish. If you add too much stat-intensive skills you end up having a stat-check champion - that offers very few counterplay and creative play and leaves everything to engaging and hitting stuff.

Yhere are edge cases, as always, but overall that' s the way how i like it.

I add: yasuo is the case of a snowbally champion, like Akali, and even tought the story behind him is complex to me has a satisfying and healty power curve. I say balanced, but it might be a little OP ( which is a matter of balance).

Pika3102 votes

You do realize you only listed 1 single support with 3 carbon copies of each other in declining order of viability, right?

  • Bard sees professional play, sometimes.
  • Nami has potential to be picked into very certain situations.
  • Sona is the laughingstock of League. A hilarious joke in the worst way.

As for Ahri, she's not in a good place right now. Something to do with being nerfed half a dozen times this season without any compensation. She doesn't have enough damage to be an assassin, but her range is far too short as a mage. She's stuck in-between two roles that she can't fill, which sadly is where Rito wants her to be...

The Tilted King6 votes

if you dig deeper into roles more than just lanes. I do have a contribution.

Most balanced imo Assassins: Talon medium base damage to survive in lane against most other mid laners, but not so high to the point where one rake is gonna chunk early game without investment. E is a targeted gap closer that not only leaves him vulnerable, but makes him commit to a trade or an assassination. Ult can only be used for escaping after a kill, or getting one. positioning poorly is punished HARD. while positioning well is rewarded.

hmm. ill think of some others. I think as far as tanks go...maybe leona or maokai(?)

Eedat5 votes

Talon is definitely the most balance assassin. He actually has to commit to his target and gets no freebie escapes

Ralanr4 votes

Pantheon no escapes.

AMYS GRAVE1 votes

i would argue that any assassin's balance is very sensitive to small-ish numbers adjustments easily becoming either completely dominant or completely useless based on their fine tuning. ATM talon seems pretty balanced, but that could change.

Only Play Darius6 votes

Wukong Udyr Orianna Draven Nami

Riot please enable champion portraits on mobile.

Mimy3 votes

Kennen is pretty balanced.. He does decent amounts of damage, but i find it impossible to destroy someone quickly unless I take advantage of their mistakes.

Olaf for jungle. He may be scary coming out of the jungle but I feel if Im prepared for him, he's not as scary as he may seem. but he still holds a powerful presence.

Ziggs mid. Does decent damage like kennen but if a person is smart they can dodge his abilities and easily get away He does do more damage then others but he is an APC.

KogMaw Although he is realitively stong and with W has long range. He has no real escapes and has some of the lowest movement speeds for ADC. If you don't position well you can easily get caught.

Sona Decent poke, a not too overbearing heal, a speed boost, and a stun. Has poor wave clear but she is a support.

WinBoat3 votes

Ziggs Zigg's isn't really balanced in lane. Sorry to break it to you. He is probably the most safest pick in the entire game literally outside of maybe Azir, Heimerdinger. He can literally stand at his turret, and just clear minions and be hitting you at the same time. How is that balanced? He also has a global ult to make things crazy.

Luckily, while he isn't balanced in lane, he does balance out in team fights sorta at the end for being so squishy, but none the less still annoying for what it's worth.

Mimy4 votes

His ult isn't global. it's just very long ranged. like Xerath.

just because he's a safer pick.. doesn't make him "Broken" He cant spam his abilities to CS.. he is pretty mana hungry if played like that..

while he isn't balanced in lane, he does balance out in team fights sorta at the end for being so squishy

And you yourself just proved he's pretty balanced..

WinBoat2 votes

He's not balanced in lane phase. Obviously, we know other champions like that. I ALMOST NEVER EVER lose mid with Heimerdinger. Coming late game, he works out.

That unbalanced start can tilt the game for the other team tho, even force them to surrender. Zigg's can just spam his abilities, when he gets level 6, his mana up keep will be fine if purchased the right items at that point.

Mimy2 votes

How do you even compare ziggs to heimer? o-o

You wanna know someone who's broken midlane Ahri Yasuo Ekko Lux

I'd rather face a ziggs then any one of these..

Saianna3 votes

Overlord: Teemo Was OK, had to be nerfed because reasons.

Squarefighter1 votes

Shroom arm time buffs next patch tho

Mathbalnase2 votes

Correction: Shroom arm time nerf revert next patch, maybe

GastonBarnacles1 votes

REALLY? OMFG IM HAPPY AS A TEEMO MAIN. I'm fine with mushrooms lasting only 5 minutes if they just reverted the W change. Now if youre damaged your ms drops to the standard slow teemo ms. The old teemo w always had the ms boost passive up and could speed up more if using the active. This game has so many mobile champs and ms items for bruisers that the nerf to his w is real bullshit.

Mathbalnase1 votes

I'd be fine with losing the MS when taking damage if the CD on the active wasn't so bloody long for a simple mobility boost with no other benefits.

Ralantha3 votes

Trundle in the Jungle :)

Ralanr1 votes

That needs to be a song!

Ralantha2 votes

{quoted}

That needs to be a song!

Trundle in the jungle, we got clubs and smites, We got everything you want We'll get to smashing everything in sight We got gromps and krugs and wolves Whatever you might need To kill a Master Yi who split pushes and shoves

Trundle, in the jungle Watch him chomp you at the knees, knees He wants to watch you bleeeeeeeeed

How's that so far?

Ralanr1 votes

Yes.

Lady Hammerlock2 votes

i love amumu just with liandries he can still melt people

imo Kassadin for mid lane he is how mobile assassins (ap assassins )his extreme mobility is offset by high mana costs,very mediocre laning phase,terrible bases with the ability to kill stragglers like back line adcs

ExecutorDill2 votes

My BALANCED LIST:

Top: Sion Beefy But Slow. Hits hard but has slow AA speed and windup on Q. Telegraphed gapcloser on Ult that is hard to steer. Has good teamfight presence. Is strong in the right hands and even strong on a good team.

Jungle: Vi TelegraghedGap Closer. Strong engage. Good Damage. Good Teamfight presence. She isn't super movile, super bursty, super tanky, or a buttload of gamechanginly hard/versatile CC. Yet she is a decent pick with a good power curve.

Mid: TIE Xerath Malzahar Xerath All his damaging abilitues are telegraphed allowing opportunity to dodge them. Charge time on Q, No Targeted Abilities. Immobile. Strong Damage, Good utility, waveclear, good mana sustain mechanic and Sniping potential.

Malzahar Delay on Q, AoE ability that is ignored without assitance by ult. Mostly Damage over time Oriented. Better at picking off targets than spread out dmg. Immobile. Strong Utility, Massive Damage Potential. Superb 1v1 against most champs. Tank Shreader. Little tanky minion thats does good damage (even more so on AD Malz). MultiKill potential with E. Mana Regain mechanic.

ADC: Jinx Telegraphed CC. Immobile. Some waveclear outside ult. Mana hungry early game. Great Damage.

Support:Soraka Time Delay Ground targeted CC. Health Costs. Very Squishy. Great Self and Ally Sustain, great roamer. Awesome global heal ulti.

GastonBarnacles1 votes

Omfg you just named cancer for everything except top.

ExecutorDill2 votes

Maybe your just bad. I agree mal can be cancer to lane against once he hits lvl 6, but most of his damage is single target, and some hard CC like stun, taunt, knockaways etc. will cancel his ult. 1 call from you jungler a few times to shut him down and he can do much.

TheI3igDaddy1 votes

Stopped reading at Jinx.

She's not mana-hungry and her fucking passive makes her mobile as shit if she so much as gets an assist.

Vayne, Jinx and Trist are warping bot lane right now. Don't you tell me she's balanced.

Raid Boss Morde2 votes

Just going to completely disagree with Nasus being balanced. Him as a champion is just too toxic. You have to end the game early to win against him, and if you don't you lose.

"Shut him down early" - Doesn't mean anything after 40 minutes....

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