I'm a Gnar main, and every time I play him I almost always carry. He has great harassment with the new buffs to him, and has great teamfight with his Mega Gnar, especially when it hits late game, so why isn't he more popular? He literally shreds through most top lane champions since a lot of them are melee, wouldn't he be a must pick? halp.
Gnar: Short for Gnarbage. Gnarbage is a failed experimental concept put forth by Riot games. Upon release Gnarbage generated much outrage and backlash among the League of Legends community.
Crippled by a very strict and predictable build path, weak base damage and defenses, an ultimate that is only activateable situationally, and a shallow and annoying personality the initial release of this champion was a disaster. Riot would attempt to balance Gnarbage on multiple occasions but it would end in futility as Gnarbage just cannot be balanced due to numerous errors in his design.
Riot has ultimately given up on the Gnarbage experiment and have given him the Yorick treatment hoping that by ignoring him long enough he will cease to exist.
Gnar is not popular because Gnar does not have an unrivaled fashion sense. Lion cloths are so 2000 B.C. and Gnar just cannot keep up with the latest fashion trends. Gems are in, loin cloths are out.
Gnar is weird. I don't like the feel of him. He's a hybrid ranged/melee like Jayce but Jayce has better and more reliable functionality. Gnar is resourceless as his only redeeming quality. Ranged champions like Urgot, Quinn and Teemo play top lane better. Champions like Mundo, Volibear, and Maokai are more immovable. Champions like Riven, Tryndamere, Jax and Nasus have better carry potential. There's nothing really unique or worthwhile about the champ. He's just above Aatrox in viability in my eyes. I don't play him because there are far better options out there.
The painfully irritating sounds he makes gives you headaches.
I hate Gnar for how predictable he is and how he's not really a tank nor is he a marksman. I guess he is considered a fighter but even that label is a stretch. So because he is neither a tank nor a marksman you have to get someone who is a legitimate tank 100% of the time and your mid laner or jungler needs to be AP.
That and every Gnar I see mucks up their team with their ultimate. Just the other day an enemy Morgana locked up 3 of my teammates and Gnar throws them out of the shackle range. This play cost his team the game. This sort of thing happens all the time. It's gotten to the point where I will dodge every time I see one in my lobby.
Same as Rumble, the new toplane meta with adcs or insane damage tanks isn't that good for him.
I play him jungle.
