LoR Meta Report – Patch 3.17 Week 2 – Best Ladder Decks – Seraphine Out of Control

It’s time for Patch 3.17 week 2 Meta Report! The Darkin Saga: Domination brought three new champions (Seraphine, Vayne, and Varus) who all found success in different archetypes. However, some might have seen too much success.

Unlike last week, we now have a lot of Master data to look at and get a grasp of how the meta shaped up, which decks are the best, and the new anti-meta decks that are on the rise.

Sources: The 440k matches of data from October 18 to October 24 are from LoR Meta. The data is based on Platinum, Diamond, and Master rank matches. I also used Runeterra.AR for more Master rank stats on low play rate decks.

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Most Popular Archetypes

• Ezreal Seraphine is at the top! The deck has an insanely high play rate of 14% in Platinum+ while holding a 53.2% win rate in Platinum+ and 54.42% in Master.
• Once both leveled champions hit the board, it’s extremely difficult for most decks to deal with the burn the archetype can deal.

• Rumble Vayne is the second most played deck. The deck holds a 53.1% win rate in the Platinum+ rank. In Master rank, however, it is struggling; its win rate has dropped to 49.52%. It seems as if players got used to Rumble’s play pattern, and it’s become easier to shut down their combo play.

• Zed Vayne sees an increase in play rate, landing it in the top 3 most-played decks. The archetype has a 53.1% win rate in the Platinum+ rank. It has a good matchup table, beating a lot of the popular decks on the ranked ladder, and only has a bad matchup against Seraphine Ezreal, Twisted Fate Swain, and Fiora Vayne (PZ).

Vayne Gwen’s play rate and win rate have dropped since last week. It was the most-played deck early on in Patch 3.17, but with the popularity of Seraphine decks, the archetype was pushed back and dropped down to the top 5. In terms of win rate, the deck has a 51.3% win rate in Platinum+ but a 47.27% win rate in Master.

It makes sense that Gwen Vayne lost its popularity. A quick look at the matchup table shows an awful matchup experience against most of the meta decks. Only has an even matchup with Seraphine Ezreal (NX).

Seraphine Viktor has been quite popular in different regions. The most popular ones are the Ionia and Shadow Isles versions. Both versions have been competing to prove which one is the best. The Shadow Isles version has an edge over the Ionia one against Ezreal Seraphine (NX) thanks to Quietus.

Moreover, players have started favoring the addition of Karma to the list. She proved to give the deck a better late game, even pumping the win rate of the deck up to 58% in Master rank!

The Bandle City version comes in as the third most-played version. It doesn’t quite have as high of a play rate as the other two versions, but it does hold a 54.46% win rate in Master rank. It focuses more on value generation with the help of Curious Shellfolk and sets up an elusive win condition with the buffs from Glorious Evolution.

Pantheon Vayne has been performing well on the ranked ladder as it does well against Seraphine Ezreal (NX) and other Demacia decks. It’s currently hovering around 53%-54% in Platinum+ and Master ranks.

The archetype struggles against aggressive decks and is slightly unfavored against the new Zed Hecarim that recently howed up on the ranked ladder.

• The new rising deck, Zed Hecarim! The archetype has shown up on the ladder recently, taking advantage of the new Opulent Foyer to set up an Ephemeral attack and gain Hallowed stats.
• Zed Hecarim has a 50.6% win rate in the Platinum+ rank. However, in the Master rank, that win rate drops down to 49.72.

• Varus Pantheon is remarkably holding a positive win rate even though it has an unfavored matchup against a lot of the decks in the meta. The archetype beats down on Demacia, which is probably why the deck is holding a 53% win rate in Platinum+ rank. It does though struggle against Ashe Leblanc and Seraphine Ezreal (NX).

• Jax Vayne has around a 54% win rate in both the Platinum+ and Master ranks. The deck has proven to perform well against all Seraphine decks, making it the best choice for an anti-meta deck.

• Both Miss Fortune Twisted Fate and Annie Jhin have been doing outstandingly well in Platinum+, holding 55.7% and 54.60% win rates, respectively.
• The decks look to prey on Demacia archetypes before they’re able to set up a solid board. At the same time, the nature of aggressive decks allows them to sneak wins against Ezreal Seraphine (NX).

• Twisted Fate Swain is struggling on the ranked ladder. The deck was once the most played on the ranked ladder but now has dropped to a 45.75% win rate in Master.
• Miss Fortune Swain has been gaining popularity. This version focuses more on early aggression, which makes it harder for Seraphine decks to keep up. The archetype has a 58% win rate in Platinum+ and 56.43% in Master rank.

Ashe Leblanc returns, but with some changes to its list. The new Ashe Leblanc uses Equipment units to its advantage, along with Brutal Skirmish to strike down units. Unfortunately, Ashe Leblanc still can’t hold a win rate above 50% on the ranked ladder.

However, the archetype shines in the tournament scene. The ability to ban a Seraphine deck lets Ashe Leblanc focus on beating down the favored matchups.

Katarina Gwen continues to perform decently on the ranked ladder. Its win rate hovers around 51% in both Platinum+ and Master ranks.

The combo deck Akshan Seraphine barely holds a 50% win rate. The deck adopts a completely different play style than the popular Seraphine decks. Focusing more on synergizing Seraphine with Walord’s Hoard, which can take a while to set up.

Ezreal Seraphine (SI) is the newest version of a burn Seraphine deck. The archetype has an edge against Seraphine Ezreal (NX) due to Quietus’ capability to kill champions.

The archetype has a below 50% win rate in Platinum+ rank. However, at Master rank, that win rate goes up to 54%.

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Closing Words

The meta feels dominated by both Vayne and Seraphine. Seraphine decks specifically have been out of control with the value generation. However, a nerf to Seraphine decks will most likely mean that Vayne decks will take over the ranked ladder. We will probably see a plan to tone down both champions in the upcoming patch.

This is it for this week’s Meta Report. I’ll see you at the next one!