The best Runeterra decks on ladder right now
Patch 1.2 of Legends of Runeterra brought on perhaps some of the most diverse meta in recent months. While this is without a doubt great for the game, it could be somewhat difficult to figure out what are the best decks for climbing the ladder.
While there are many viable options — which also greatly vary from region to region — these are six of the top lists that have proven to be excellent.
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Veimer Control
The Vi/Heimer Control (or Veimer Control) has been a top deck since Rising Tides launched and there’s no indication it will ever surrender the throne. The outvalue potential that Heimerdinger brings to the table, coupled with the fantastic pressure from the very durable Vi, makes this a killer deck.
Patch 1.2 nerfs did not affect the archetype at all and some nerfs like Deep Mediation’s mana cost increase actually benefit the Veimer Control, generating stronger turrets through Heimerdinger. This is by far the best and most popular deck in Legends of Runeterra right now.
Deep Sea Monsters
The nerf to the champless Burn Aggro opened up the meta for many midrange decks to climb up a tier and Deep Sea Monsters is certainly one. It proved to be the best midrange deck and most popular archetype in the first Patch 1.2 tournaments, but is also a powerful force on ladder.
The deck wins by going Deep (having fewer than 15 cards in the deck), clearing the board with Ruination (if need be) and overtaking the opponent by dropping massive Sea Monster followers. If you like big creatures that hit hard, this is the deck for you.
Kalista Endure
The Endure Midrange lost some of its popularity with the launch of Patch 1.2, but quickly re-emerged as a top deck with a revamped list from Swim. Switching Spiders for Aristocrats (followers with Last Breath effects) and adding Kalista to the mix, this is a powerful midrange/tempo deck that is taking over the ladder.
The new Endure Aristocrats wins by playing Ephemeral or Last Breath units early on, buffing They Who Endure to massive sizes. Once Endure is in play, it usually takes one attack or one Atrocity to finish the game, as its stats will often be in the double digits.
MF/Sejuani Tempo
Another invention by Swim, the MF/Sejuani Tempo is perhaps the most common of the new Sejuani decks, others being the Vlad/Sejuani and the Swain/Sejuani variants.
The deck generates tempo by playing cheap units with high value effects (Jagged Butcher, Omen Hawk, Petty Officer, Island Navigator) and pushing for chipping Nexus damage, powering up Sejuani in the process. Once Sejuani comes in play leveled up, it takes a simple spell like Warning Shot (or something grandiose like Riptide Rex) to frostbite all defenders and open lethal damage.
TF/GP Yoink
The TF/GP Plunder (or Yoink) deck is not one you’ll meet a lot, but in the proper hands, it’s an absolute monster. It’s reached the highest Master ranks and is perhaps one of the most fun decks to play.
The deck generates value by stealing cards from the enemy deck with Black Market Merchant and Pilfered Goods, while simultaneously controlling the board with Kegs and Twisted Fate. It wins with either the stolen cards or a leveled up Gangplank + Riptide Rex combo.
Nox Elusives
The western meta is still partial to the classic I/F Kinkou Elusives deck, but in the East, the Nox Elusives have taken over. The list will be appreciated by fans of the champless Burn Aggro and plays very much the same way — push direct damage with Elusives and Crimson Disciple/Imperial Demolionist and finish with Decimate/attack buff spells.
