Happy launch week! Overall, the vibe coming out of PBE phase is generally positive. Most players agree that PBE stayed fresher for longer than in Set 11 Inkborn Fables. We think this is because the traits and units themselves feel very fun. This is possibly the most fun reroll carry roster we have had in quite some time. Lots of infinite scaling, hero augments, and fun ability play patterns exist across every unit cost. 5 Costs are slightly on the underwhelming side if you’re looking for the raw flash and pizazz of something along the caliber of Dragonlord Irelia or Maestro Jhin, but they are effective and more splashable than previous sets.
NEW SET MECHANIC: CHARMS
Charms are the big talking point among the competitive circles. Specifically, how warping they can be in Stage 2 and Stage 5+. Gold management will be a huge skill tested this set. The better you are, the more late game charm options you can roll for which can swing several placements. As a general rule of thumb, focus on economy charms early and combat charms late. Here’s our current suggestion for how to approach charms:
Stage 2
-As a general recommendation, we always suggest taking 0g charm options or anything that nets you gold.
-The only exceptions would be things that polymorph your unit to be 1-tier higher. Sometimes this can straight up ruin your early game.
-Minor Wish is often going to lead to combat strength but there’s a possibility you get economy benefits.
Stage 3-4
-Buy charms if they are relevant and don’t cost you too much economy
-If you are on a win streak, it may be correct to check if you’re due for a charm and roll to get stronger. Sometimes this may require you to dip below an econ threshold but if it’s a combat charm that maintains streak, it will be worth.
Stage 5+
-Every 2 shops now contain a charm. Roll for combat every turn you can unless you’re trying to push levels.
-Try to avoid going to true zero gold because you’ll be so poor that you only can buy charms every other round.
-Avoid going to level 10. Feels very fake this set. You’d rather roll on 9 and buy charms + upgrades.
Strongest reroll comps
S tier: Kassadin, Syndra/Cassio, Kogmaw/Jinx, Nunu Hero
A tier: Veigar Mages, Nilah/Akali, Galio Hero, Blitz Hero, Elise Hero
B tier - Ezreal, Warwick, Katarina, All other Hero augments (except Lillia, she is terrible)
The rerolls we would recommend to start is the 2-cost centerpieces of Kassadin Multistrikers, Syndra/Cassio, and Kogmaw/Jinx. This gives you 1 reroll comp of each major tree (AD, AP, Melee) as well as a high chance to win the lobby if you cap them high enough.
The cool thing about these reroll comps is that they also have variations and backup gameplays in case things go wrong. For example, in Kassadin Multistrikers, you can reroll Akali alongside Kassadin, but if you’re in a spot where you pick up a lot of Ashe, you can also play Ashe 3 and have her hold Kalista items. Or in Kogmaw, if you’re much likelier to hit Jinx 3, you can go to 7 and roll for Jinx and another 3 cost like Waking instead of staying on 6 for Kogmaw and Honeymancy. That’s all to say — reroll is much more dynamic this set. Frodan joked multiple times that he may defect from being a 4-cost lover and become a reroll main this set.
The other reroll comps are more niche and situational, but good if you know how to unlock their potential.
Out of all the hero augments, Nunu hero augment performs the best in the data. However, we are big fans of Deja Vu Galio. You can play Galio in a couple of setups such as Vanguards, Portals, or Arcana, and find success. Plus it’s very satisfying to see the crazy Rageblade stacks.
4 Costs
S tier - Karma, Fiora
A tier - Varus, Gwen, Kalista
B tier - Ryze, Olaf
Karma is the most flexible 4 cost to play around since you only need the core 4 Chrono to build from. She is also a good emblem holder (Witchcraft is best) and can hold several artifacts well. Her versatility is only matched by Fiona who is essentially the AD melee version of her. Fiora’s traits are nice but not mandatory to have her have high impact. Her items are also much more dynamic and open than Karma, who needs Blue Buff and Morello nearly always.
Kalista and Varus are strong but need specific requirements. For Kalista, Guinsoo’s Rageblade is a must otherwise she can’t keep up with the pace of fights. Even in 7 Multistriker you’d prefer Kalista to have Rageblade. Varus needs to have great AD items and strong frontline/traits activated. He is quite similar to Kaisa Trickshot from Set 11 Inkborn Fables in that you always want 4 Blaster if possible. Gwen can be extremely powerful but she is harder to play. It can be tricky to position her and Sugarcraft can sometimes be difficult to navigate due to its 1st-or-8th nature.
Ryze is a super fun unit but he performed inconsistently on PBE. They did bug fix a couple of his items like Nashor’s Tooth which may open up itemization. It was believed that you could play Ryze with Rageblade but maybe more options exist now. Olaf did get a buff before the set went live that was significant so it’s likely he will be stronger than anticipated on everyone’s projected tier lists. It wouldn’t be surprising if Olaf somehow was one of the better carries but it’s nearly impossible to say what the ideal build is currently.
We anticipate the low-hanging fruit of strong reroll comps, AP 4-costs, and high verticals to be the most played things on ladder. So if you’d like to explore meta counters, we recommend taking the AD line and learning Kalista / Varus variations by prioritizing Last Whisper slam first. This will allow you to stay open and play either carry instead of committing with Rageblade like everyone else. Also you can still choose to reroll if you have a LW on a carry like Kogmaw or Ezreal and pick up more copies before your level 8.
Anytime there is a meta with lots of Rageblades, Eternal Winter or Chill effects jump up in value. If you do ever find yourself in a spot with that item, whether randomly generated or picked, make sure to position same side as the enemy carry to slow them down.
We’ll keep an eye out for anything else popping up as potential anti-meta options but we need the foundation meta to finish establishing first.
What Items Should You Be First Slamming?
Unsurprisingly, Guinsoo’s Rageblade is going to be a very VERY popular item this set. So be very careful with what you choose to do with bows and rods. Things like item augments to give you those components or fix your items may be a higher priority.
Sunder is much harder to obtain this set. There is no Irelia splash late game. The unit that can do it is Twitch but he is quite weak and difficult to splash. However, because Rageblade is such a high priority for lots of comps, Last Whisper may be awkward to slam for AD comps. Tanks are pretty good again (notably Neeko at 3 and Nasus at 4), so we recommend exploring more Evenshroud again this set.
Shred is less difficult to attain because of Syndra’s raw power level and there are more augments that give shred such as High Voltage. It is still crucial for any AP comp to have Shred, but if you’ll have more outs than the AD line to get them if you’re in a pinch.
Anti-heal can be teched in via Dragons. For any Shapeshifter board, if you’re playing Shyvana and Smolder, you don’t have to build any anti-heal. Katarina and Rumble also Wound with their abilities so have more splash options there.
This all goes based on upgraded 1 and 2 cost units. We aren’t accounting for 3-cost in opening boards because they add too many situational conditions. Playing all 1* variations of these boards is considered a bad opener even if you have the right unit/traits.
Best - Eldritch (Ashe 2 with Rageblade), Portal (Zoe with AP), Shapeshifters (Shyvana 2 with items very good)
Good - Multistrikers (Kassadin 2 excellent item holder), Witchcraft (Zoe Poppy cheap and effective), Honeymancy (All good cheap item holders)
Every other unit/trait combo is much weaker but if you have upgrades for them, feel free to open with that.