Riot Games recently released a YouTube video on balancing champions in League of Legends. In the video, they stated that their goal is to bring all champions in the game on the same power level. The reason behind this is that Riot wants us to be able to play all champions, regardless of the current meta or patch. And while this is all great, the reality is quite different.
Since the beginning of LoL, there have been strong and weak champions. And especially with the last couple of seasons, the truth is that some champions will simply always be better than others. Take Akshan or Samira, for example. These champions have double the number of passive and active abilities than some of the earlier champions, such as Tryndamere or Poppy. And as a result, they can simply do more in the game!
So today, we’re going to take a look at the 5 worst champions in League of Legends in season 12! We’ll consider their champion design as well as their current state on Summoner’s Rift. But we’ll also take a look at their overall win rate and performance in the solo queue and competitive play.
Let’s begin!
1. Singed
Season 12 of League of Legends completely reinvented the top lane meta. It introduces items like Stridebreaker and Goredrinker, which provide not only provide active damaging effects but also mobility (Stridebreaker). And champions like Garen, Fiora, and Darius became nearly unbeatable with their high burst damage and tankiness.
This and the general damage buff in LoL (now the damage output is higher than ever) made Singed one of the worst champions in the game. Singed is a champion that excels in a slow-paced game that is controlled by a tank meta. All of his damage comes from his poison, which is a damage over time effect.
In order for Singed to be viable, he has to disable enemies from running away. However, this is way too difficult now because the mobility in LoL is also at its highest. And most of the time, Singed ends up being a useless member of the team that’s always running around not really achieving anything.
But that’s not all! In reality, Singed is a very old and very simple champion. And he currently struggles with the same thing that plagues most early-day League champions – people simply know how to play against them! Even in gold or silver elo, players know to never run behind Singed. And even if they do get thrown back, they simply walk away from his poison.
And this makes it nearly impossible for Singed to carry games!
Also read: Best Supports for Ezreal
2. Poppy
Poppy is another top laner that struggles to find her place in the current meta. None of the mythic items do much for her, except adding a bit of damage to her attacks. Additionally, her ability kit is focused on fighting in melee range, with an ultimate that’s practically useless in solo queue.
But the biggest issue with Poppy is that her champion design doesn’t really fit the modern League of Legends. If you take a look at her abilities, you’ll realize that none of them can do anything of significance, especially in team fights. Initially, Poppy was designed to be a mobile tank that blocks attacks and pushes enemies back. But that was in the old League, where champions didn’t fly across the map with unbelievable speed!
Nowadays, Poppy even struggles to keep up with the enemy top laner. She doesn’t deal nearly as much damage as Sett or Irelia, for example. And her tankiness can be broken by items such as Kraken Slayer or Void Staff. As a result, Poppy ends being an angry little Yordle that only runs around and slams her hammer on the minions.
Riot definitely needs to implement some new mechanics to her tool in order to make Poppy work! Otherwise, she will stay one of the worst champions in League of Legends in the years to come!
3. Teemo
Speaking of yordles, Teemo is the next champion we should feel sorry for. Although he has the reputation of Satan around the Summoner’s Rift, he hasn’t been seen that much lately. The reason is that Teemo has nothing unique to offer and no strengths that would justify his weaknesses.
For starters, Teemo has only 2 active damaging abilities – Q and R. The Q is a simple point-click spell that also blinds the target, which we admit is useful against AD champions. However, his ultimate, although a fun ability, is unreliable in any realistic scenario.
So, Teemo wins in only one situation – if enemies are constantly stepping on his mushrooms. But placing mushrooms isn’t always easy, especially if your team is on the back foot. Entering your opponent’s jungle just to set up traps so enemies might step on them is often a waste of time. Not to mention that players usually get more than one sweeper against Teemo, just so they can clear the mushroom field.
So putting your LP at such a risk is a big no-no for many League players. And they will obstinate from playing Teemo until Riot Games either change his kit or buff his damage significantly!
4. Sona
In the early days of League of Legends, Sona was one of the most popular champions in the game. She ruled the support meta by having all necessary tools for the job – damage, heal, speed, and stun! Her simplistic kit has remained the same over the years, with slight improvements here and there. However, the game itself has changed dramatically and is no longer fit for Sona’s tools.
But let’s explain why Sona is no longer the carry support she once was.
First off, all of Sona’s basic abilities share the same range, which is relatively short for an enchanter. Additionally, the Q, W, and E spells share a slight recharge timer. This means that you cannot activate them all at once but rather one after the other. It might not sound like much, but other supports and mid laners don’t have this problem!
On top of that, the width of Sona’s ultimate is small, which makes it challenging to stun a single champion. It was pretty useful back when enemies didn’t have so many escape tools available to them, but now it’s simply useless. And the same can be said for her passive, which requires Sona to be in auto-attack range.
With the introduction of Seraphine to League of Legends, Sona became a surplus on the Summoner’s Rift. Despite all the memes, Seraphine is really the new and better version of Sona. Riot Games are now teasing us with news about reworking Sona, so maybe this mute but melodic lady will escape the list of the worst champions in LoL yet again!
Also read: Jaximus – The Ultimate Skin Review
5. Kalista
In case you were wondering, Kalista is widely regarded as the worst champion in League of Legends. However, this isn’t entirely true. Yes, Kalista is the absolute worst champion in LoL, but only in solo queue. And she is the perfect example of how a champion can be terrible in one type of play while simultaneously be one of the best picks in another. And there is a reason why Kalista is so good in the hands of the professional players!
You see, Kalista was designed from the start to be a heavily contested pick in professional matches. Her entire kit is built around an organized team play and not the chaotic environment of solo queue.
For example, Kalista’s ultimate requires you to bind yourself to an ally. You can then use this ability to pull back that ally, so he can knock up enemies after that. In most solo queue cases, Kalista’s R is the source of inting and flaming between teammates. You simply need communication to make her work, which isn’t the case here.
If we could describe Kalsita, we would give her the “hyper-carry” adjective. When a pro team locks in Kalista, they usually draft the rest of the composition around her. Champions like Lulu, Braum, or Orianna are often present, or anyone else that can protect Kalista. But no one in solo queue cares about your pick!
As a result, Kalista is often the loser in the bot lane. And because of these reasons, players usually hate when she’s picked in their team. Maybe things will change in the future, but right now, Kalista is the worst among the different champions in League of Legends!
Conclusion
We hope you don’t main any of these champions because we don’t think they’re going anywhere up the ladder! That is except for Sona, who might end up being slightly better.
As far as the other champions in League are concerned, many of them are weak but not as much as these 5. Some champions can be substantial if they’re piloted by experienced players. And some excel in particular matchups.
But keep in mind that this doesn’t mean that you can’t make Kalista or Singed work in solo queue. You simply need to play a lot harder to succeed with them than with champions such as Caitlyn or Garen. So good luck and have fun!
