Ahri Joins LoR as the Pinnacle of the New Ionia Recall Archetype

Ahri is the last champion of the Magic Misadventures expansion, coming to Legends of Runeterra as an Ionia champion. Ahri will be available in-game alongside other new characters Kennen, Pantheon, and Rumble on December 8th.

We’ve seen a lot of support for a Recall synergy deck in Ionia, supplemented with Kennen and other cards from Bandle City. This has been an archetype in the making since Beyond the Bandlewood, with Tail-Cloak Matriarch. Ahri is the final piece of the puzzle that brings the deck significant power.

Ahri is the high synergy card that the tempo recall deck needed. As a Quick Attacking, aggressive unit, she has the most unique and complicated attack trigger. Her wording “attack strike” means that she couldn’t swap and then Recall if she were used in a strike spell. She can only do her Recall switcheroo trick on attacks, which is a way to keep things fair.

Recalling 6+ Units is a hefty level up, but there’s more to it. It can count for Recalling enemy Units as well as friendly ones, which is doable with cards like Homecoming and the new Quicken, we can expect to reasonably recall some units enough to get the level up.

Ahri’s Level 2 form turbo charges the Recall synergy. Her making the Recalled ally cost 1 less, we somewhat mitigate the tempo lost by returning them to our hand. This, followed by her gaining Elusive and constantly doing the swap effect means we can get some particularly profitable attacks (as we saw in the preview video).

Charm, Ahri’s Champion spell is the first Vulnerable effect in Ionia. It allows her to Recall a certain ally then give the right enemy Vulnerable for her to Quick Attack into, all without passing priority.

Windsinger is an incredibly powerful, but heavily costed card for the Recall archetype. Minah Swiftfoot is a unit that also Recalls when played, so having a cheaper effect that can also Recall allies is a welcome inclusion that will find uses in toolbox or controlling decks.

Sai’nen Thousand-Tailed is an incredibly powerful card. 6 Mana, draw two, and a team buff on a body is something we’re encouraged to Recall. However, I think a deck like this is the perfect top end in Poppy Zed, as it serves as a card refill and a team buff on the later turns when they may want to close the game in addition to a Rally.

Ahri is an incredibly powerful, and incredibly niche card that can generate a lot of value and combo potential if played well alongside Kennen or Yasuo. She’ll be one to refine in the early days of the Magic Misadventures meta.

Ahri, her support cards, and all the other cards in the Magic Misadventures expansion are ready in the RuneterraCCG deckbuilder, ready for your first meditations on a Recall deck. Stay tuned to RuneterraCCG.com for the Ahri Theorycraft article, our breakdown of the update, and new decks to try on December 8th.