Summary
The gaming landscape changed on Jul 28, 2025, when Riot Games releasedLeague of Legends,a free-to-play MOBA that is now one of the most-played games in the world.League of Legendshas managed to stay relevant because Riot does a good job of improving gameplay, and it helps that they keep introducing new and distinct Champions.
The game now has more than 150 Champions, all of whom have a designated role and skill set, but when the game first launched, there were only 17. Many of the original Champions have received updates or reworks to make them more viable, and some have managed to remain largely the same. These Champions may be more than a decade old, but they are all viable to some degree.
Updated July 31, 2025 by George Voutiritsas:Season 14 is well underway, and League of Legends players all over the world are still getting used to the changes made to Summoner’s Rift. Mythic items no longer exist, and several items have been completely removed from the game. A bunch of new items have taken their place though, and some of them are a bit overpowered. Many of League’s original 17 Champions have changed a lot over the course of 14 years, and they all play a bit differently now because of Season 14’s changes. Some of them have become more viable because of the changes, but other members of the original 17 have fallen off because of the removed items and Champion-specific nerfs. New Champions keep being added to League’s roster, and these additions tend to affect the viability of the original 17 as well.
Current Win Rate
52.5%
Master Yi has been a problematic Champion since the beginning, but inLoL’s early days, players could build him AP. This build allowed him to unleash a massive amount of damage, to the point that he could beat almost any enemy in two hits, and he could heal a lot more.
Yi changed in 2013 when Riot decided to rework him, and his kit hasn’t really been altered since. He can still wipe out most of a team with ease, except this time he needs to build lethality and attack speed to do it. He can’t be targeted when he uses his Q, and when he builds a Duskblade, he can turn invisible after getting a kill, which explains why he has a high win rate. Yi’s viability has lowered since the removal of the Duskblade item.
49.9%
Soraka may be a healing Support, but according to the lore, she is actuallyone of the game’s strongest Champions. She received her rework in 2015, and in doing so, Riot turned Soraka into a health dispenser who can now silence and potentially root enemies.
Soraka can heal her allies with her W at the cost of her health, but she can regain health if she hits an enemy Champion with her Q. Her Ult allows her to heal herself and her entire team, and if anyone is below 40% health, they will be healed an extra 50%. If she builds a Warmogs, she can heal teammates without needing to land a Q because the item regenerates health. Soraka has good healing, but several of the more recent Supports provide better healing and shielding.
50.0%
Ryze is meant to be played in Mid, and he has received more reworks than any other Champion because he is constantly overpowered. His Ult is very useful in team fights because it allows him to teleport himself and his teammates a short distance. This permits teams to set up coordinated attacks or escapes.
Last year, Ryze was able to take off more than half of a Champion’s health with a single hit from his Q if he managed to root them first. Ryze has had his damage output nerfed this season, but he can still be played as a tank.
51.8%
Annie has always been a child, and Tibbers has always been her secret weapon. Since the beginning, she has had the ability to stun enemies after casting four spells, and this works especially well when she summons Tibbers, which explains why it isone of the game’s best burst mage Ultimates.
Annie does a lot more damage than she used to, but that is mainly thanks to items. The biggest change to her kit is her E, which casts a shield around her. She can now place the shield on an ally, which means that she is more viable as a Support.
52.1%
Kayle has always looked like an armored angel, but it wasn’t until her 2019 rework that she truly ascended. Her Ult was virtually unchanged, as she is still capable of saving herself or an ally by making them invulnerable for a few seconds. Her W still heals and grants bonus movement speed, but it no longer gives extra Ability Power.
Her E still makes her ranged for a short time, and it still works with her Passive. The Passive really changes things, as it causes her to ascend four times, and each ascended form grants her extra stats, whether it be attack range or bonus damage. With the right attack speed items, she can shred through a team.
47.9%
In 2014, Sion received a full gameplay and visual rework, and to this day, it is regarded as one ofLeague of Legends' best character transformations. Sion’s old Ult gave him 100% attack speed and lifesteal, but his current Ult essentially turns him into an unstoppable battering ram. His old Passive gave him a chance to reduce incoming damage, but now he briefly comes back to life as an enraged zombie.
Last season, Sion could be built full tank and become very hard to kill, or he could take lethality items to obliterate squishy Champions with his empowered Q and shield. In Season 14, Sion is best used as a Tank, and he needs to build the Hullbreaker item. In the late game, a Hullbreaker Sion with enough Passive stacks can practically two-shot full-health Turrets.
49.8%
Nunu became Nunu & Willump in 2018 when they received a rework, and it turned out to be a very beneficial change. His Q still allows him to regain health after biting an enemy unit, and his Ultimate still creates a circle that slows enemies while dealing massive magic damage.
Their E is no longer a point-and-click ability, instead releasing a volley of snowballs that slow enemies. Their old W gave them or an alley a damage buff, but their current ability creates a snowball which enlarges as Willump rolls it. They can be played AP or tank, but he is now a far better Jungler.
There are ahandful of skins that actually give Champions an advantage, and Twisted Fate possesses two of them. Like Sivir, Twisted Fate has had minor changes and a visual update, but other than that, Riot hasn’t changed him. Twisted Fate is quite versatile, which explains why he is picked in professional play.
He can fire three cards with his Q, and his W allows him to throw a card that can either deal extra damage, stun an enemy, or regain mana. His Ult is his best attribute though, as it reveals the location of every enemy Champion, and he can then teleport to a different location after a recast. This Ult makes Twisted Fate a great ganker.
50.5%
Morgana is Kayle’s sister, and she received an update in 2019 as well, but the only things that changed were her appearance and spell effects. Morgana shields herself or an alley with her E, and her Q is a skillshot that produces a lengthy stun. Her W creates a pool on the ground which damages anything that steps on it.
Morgana is a very good Support, and she can deal a decent amount of damage, which means that she’s a viable mid-laner as well. Her Ult can damage and root enemy champions, and it’s a valuable ability to have in a team fight. Morgana benefits from the burning effect of the Liandry’s Torment item, and the slowing effect of Rylai’s Crystal Scepter.
49.6%
Other than a visual update and a few minor stat changes, Sivir has not changed sinceLoLlaunched, and that is because her kit is still viable. Her E is arguably her most useful ability since it gives her a spell shield that negates enemy attacks. Her Q still shoots her crossblade like a boomerang, and her E still allows her basic attacks to hit multiple targets.
Sivir’s Ult is great for initiating fights since she gains bonus attack speed and movement speed for several seconds, and she produces an aura that gives movement speed to nearby allies. Sivir can be difficult to deal with if she builds items like Kraken Slayer and Navori Quickblades – which provide attack speed and critical strike chance.
