One secret pick has made it to the top spots, and no... is not Jinx. Found out in this list
The meta took a huge turn last patch. Changes to the jungle and snowball mechanics brought a new landscape of picks to the meta, with ones getting the good hand of the draw while others not having the same fate.
For that reason, this patch mostly comes as a way to balance things out and help tune down a few of the most performing picks (Rammus for instance), while buffing up others (Hecarim comes to mind).
Changes to ADC in Patch 13.21
There are three ADC changes in Patch 13.21, mostly adjustments to one outlier champion (Jinx) and a buff/nerf to two Lethality ADCs (Spoiler: So they don’t use Lethality).
Let’s start with the Jinx changes.
Patch 13.20 saw Jinx’s return to glory in the highest tiers of League of Legends. Get Excited! (Passive) being uncapped led to a few disgusting interactions that made Jinx look like a URF champion more than a Summoner’s Rift one.
Because it was too game-changing, in the right situations, Riot decided to Nerf it
Passive - Get Excited!
- Get Excited Stacks: All takedowns, epic monster kills, and structures destroyed grant Get Excited! stacks and refresh the buff ⇒ Epic monster kills and destroying structures will grant the first stack of Get Excited! and will refresh the buff, but only champion takedowns can increase the amount of stacks Jinx can get
- Stacks Cap: Jinx can now only get 5 stacks of Get Excited!
This change itself will not make Jinx much worse in the tier lists. If you are doing well with her just keep playing!
Patch 13.21 is also bringing down another OP build, and that's Lethality Caitlyn.
In the last patch, her Lethality build blossomed and was dominating high elo games, or more like one shotting carries with just using Ace In the Hole (Ultimate).
To not make Caitlyn return to her previous state of weakness, she’s receiving adjustments so her Crit damage is improved but her Lethality build is tuned down a lot.
Passive - Headshot
- Bonus Physical Damage: 60/90/120% (+ (81.25% Critical Strike Chance) * (100% Critical Strike Damage) ⇒ 60/90/120% (+ (85% Critical Strike Chance) * (100% Critical Strike Damage)
R - Ace in the Hole
- Cooldown: 90/75/60 seconds ⇒ 90 seconds at all ranks Physical Damage: 300/525/750 (+200% bonus Attack Damage) ⇒ 300/500/700 (+170% bonus Attack Damage)
- Bonus Damage from Critical Strike Chance: 0-35% ⇒ 0-50%
To round things up with ADC changes, Varus is getting a small buff to both his Blighted Quiver (W) and Hail of Arrows (E).
This should make his on-hit build improve while not buffing again his annoying Lethality state.
W - Blighted Quiver
- Magic Damage: 7/12/17/22/27 (+35% AP) ⇒ 7/13/19/25/31 (+35% AP)
E - Hail of Arrows
- Slow: 25/30/35/40/45% ⇒ 30/35/40/45/50%
Now moving onto the list.
5. Ashe
The Frost Archer is slowly returning
Last Patch marked the return of hyper carries to the meta, and while Ashe was not part of previous lists, the games being slower-paced and tanks returning to popularity is the perfect mix for the Freljord Queen to make a comeback.
Ashe is one of the most well-rounded ADCs in the game.
Why so? Ashe is one of the safest laners. This is due to the sheer utility of Frost Shot (Passive) slows (Making her impossible to catch her or running away from her), and having one of the longest auto attack range in the bot lane (600).
One that sets her apart is that she's one of the few ADCs who can actually engage in fights and have a say in how to play the game with her Crystal Enchant Arrow (Ultimate).
Recommended Ashe Build
Furthermore, Ashe's DPS with Trinity Force + Kraken Slayer melts champions, especially tanks. Something you want in this meta.
Although she has all of these strengths, Ashe lacks that special something that other picks on this list do have. Still, if you have Ashe on your champion pool, give her a try!
Cons of Ashe
- No mobility (Can be locked down)
- Lacks hexplosive damage compared to other picks
- Learning how to use well your Crystal Enchant Arrow (Ultimate) takes a while
To learn Ashe, check our recommended MOBAFire guides.
To counter, check CounterStats.
4. Ezreal
Ezreal teleports to the 4th spot on this list
One champion that does not care about being locked down is Ezreal, his mobility with Arcane Shift (E) allows him to escape more dangerous situations than your average ADC and also be more aggressive in angles unique to him.
This is only possible for Ezreal thanks to his Mystic Shot (Q) cooldown reduction when it successfully hits an enemy.
Recommended Ezreal Build
And that's why he is so hard to master in the first place. As long as you hit all of your Mystic Shots (Q), Ezreal becomes unstoppable in damage (DPS and Burst) and mobility. Be that Ezreal that stays in the back missing Qs and see how the nexus explodes (Your own).
For that reason, you could argue that he's the best pick in high ELO where players take advantage of Ezreal to the maximum. This list though, is not for high ELO players only...
Why he's 4th in this list? In previous patches, Ezreal was the best pick overall even with the burden of being hard to play but this patch is different.
Tanks are harder to kill for Ezreal, and new picks that succeed at this (Usually hypercarrys) are having a better time on Patch 13.21. Thus, Ezreal cannot be called the best this time.
There's one ADC that has tons of mobility and that can 1v9 as hard as Ezreal. Keep reading to find out.
To learn the Prodigal Explorer, check our recommended MOBAFire guides.
To counter him, check CounterStats to find out about the best picks against Ezreal.
3. Jinx
Too excited in the previous patch, now is on our 3rd spot
There's not much to say about Jinx. She's easy to play and you can pop off like crazy when you get enemy takedowns and activate your Get Excited! (Passive).
Recommended Jinx build
Jinx dropped from the 2nd spot due to her nerfs mentioned previously. But to be honest, she's still one of the best picks, especially in lower ELOs that don't punish as hard her weakness of being immobile.
If you are having success with Jinx and are in a higher tier of play, you may want to check our 2nd spot to round up your pool.
If you want to master the way of Jinx aka Exploding people with your Mega Death Rocket (Ultimate) and 1v9ing. Well, you can check our recommended MOBAFire guides.
CounterStats is your place to find not only champions that counter her in every possible role, but there are tips given by player guides that are found here in MOBAFire. Make sure to check it out!
2. Vayne
Tumbling to the number two spot is Vayne.
Changes in Patch 13.20 benefitted Vayne the most, not only did the extra base stats from starter items help her arrive at the late game more reliably, but the fact that tanks just came back to the meta further improved her spot.
What makes Vayne such a good pick for Solo Queue is her ability to solo carry. Right now, her dueling is unmatched amongst all picks on the list. If she finds an angle it is checkmate for her opposition.
Looking at everything from the perspective of team fights, tanks like Zac or popular picks like Jarvan IV are easy prey for the Night Hunter. Her mobility with Tumble (Q) and stealth with Final Hour (Ultimate) help her navigate any enemy engage flawlessly and deal massive damage while doing so.
Recommended Vayne build
With people finally learning her optimal build path with Trinity Force and maxing Q, she's the perfect pick to climb ranks in League of Legends Patch 13.21.
Cons
- Weak early laning (Much better in this patch)
- Short range (Struggles against the likes of Ziggs)
- High skill barrier (Needs a few games to learn her properly)
To learn the Night Hunter, and demolish some K'Sante's, check our recommended MOBAFire guides.
And as usual, to know who are the champions that counter Vayne, check CounterStats to find out about the best picks and tips against her.
1. Ziggs
Our 1st pick in Patch 13.21 belongs to Ziggs
After buffs back in Patch 13.20, Ziggs has been performing better patch to patch.
The extra Collision radius was just the little push that Ziggs needed for his laning to become unbearable. There's almost no ADC who can match Ziggs's poke and burst in the laning phase.
Pair him with engage supports or enchanters and Ziggs will just do fine. Obviously, if you pair him with Nautilus at six, watch how your full combo deletes anything.
Recommended Ziggs build
There are a lot more positives to play Ziggs. Satchel Charge (W) turret's destruction is great at accelerating the pace of games. The lane control and wave clear provided by both your Bouncing Bomb (Q) and Hexplosive Minefield (E) cannot be matched so you always have priority in lane.
And to top it off, his semi-global ultimate Mega Inferno Bomb (Ultimate) damage is great for team fights in neutral objectives, long-range picks, and he can even snatch Baron Nashor's from enemies.
Now… talking about Ziggs cons, his kit is purely skillshot-reliant, meaning that if you do not hit your stuff... you are kinda useless.
(Be careful against good Vayne players).
Secondly, Ziggs is fragile once you are on top of him. Satchel Charge (W) escape helps a little with that, but good awareness and positioning is a must for Ziggs.
And for the final problem with Ziggs, bot lane players don’t know how to play mages in most cases (You can use this to your advantage). So simply getting used to the different play style could take a while.
"ADC" with the highest Winrate
Despite all of these drawbacks, Ziggs is dominating Emerald+ as the best pick across many regions on Patch 13.21 (Although most people wouldn’t be happy to admit it).
I just won a game first timing him (Don't do this), and actually doesn't feel like you are playing the same game. Ziggs is really broken and you should at least try it out, you'll be surprised.
To learn the Hexplosives Expert, check our recommended MOBAFire guides.
To truly counter him, there are a few picks in CounterStats that may do the job for you.
Honorable Mention
- Samira – She’s been low-key broken for a while and can disrupt some of the slower laners
- Lucian – In Emerald+ in KR, Lucian is having a ton of success, especially when paired with engage supports, the only issue it’s his laning which can feel subpar against the best picks on the list
- Twitch – This pick is on the rise, expect the Plague Rat to gain more traction in the upcoming weeks
