| Tier | Legend Performance in City Challenges in China Performance in Western Non-Regional High-Stakes Tournaments |
|---|---|
| S Tier | Draven 5 Wins / 32 Top 8 5 Wins / 27 Top 8 |
| Tier 1 | Irelia 2 Wins / 19 Top 8 0 Win / 11 Top 8 |
| Tier 1 | Kai'Sa 3 Wins / 6 Top 8 0 Win / 4 Top 8 |
| Tier 1 | Ezreal 1 Win / 2 Top 8 1 Win / 1 Top 8 |
| Tier 1 | Viktor 0 Win / 5 Top 8 0 Win / 2 Top 8 |
| Tier 2 | Rek'Sai 1 Win / 2 Top 8 Nothing |
| Tier 2 | Annie 0 Win / 3 Top 8 0 Win / 1 Top 8 |
| Tier 2 | Fiora 0 Win / 4 Top 8 Nothing |
| Tier 2 | Sett 0 Win / 3 Top 8 Nothing |
| Tier 2 | Sivir 0 Win / 1 Top 8 0 Win / 1 Top 8 |
| Tier 2 | Ahri 0 Win / 1 Top 8 0 Win / 1 Top 8 |
| Tier 2 | Azir 0 Win / 2 Top 8 Nothing |
| Tier 2 | Lucian 0 Win / 2 Top 8 Nothing |
| Tier 3 | Jax Nothing 0 Win / 1 Top 8 |
| Tier 3 | Jinx Nothing 0 Win / 1 Top 8 |
| Tier 3 | Teemo 0 Win / 1 Top 8 Nothing |
| Tier 3 | Miss Fortune 0 Win / 1 Top 8 Nothing |
| Tier 4 | Master Yi Nothing Nothing |
| Tier 4 | Darius Nothing Nothing |
| Tier 4 | Volibear Nothing Nothing |
| Tier 4 | Lux Nothing Nothing |
| Tier 4 | Ornn Nothing Nothing |
| Tier 4 | Lee Sin Nothing Nothing |
| Tier 4 | Rumble Nothing Nothing |
| Tier 4 | Yasuo Nothing Nothing |
| Tier 4 | Renata Glasc Nothing Nothing |
| Tier 4 | Garen Nothing Nothing |
| Tier 4 | Leona Nothing Nothing |
- S Tier: Shapes the current metagame, especially without best-of cards to encourage diversity in non-regional events.
- Tier 1: Expected to make the top cut in most tournaments, and possibly win the entire event. Multiple results across tournaments in both regions.
- Tier 2: Solid performer, often contending for top cut spots, but typically falling short of winning it all.
Results in both regions, or multiple top cut performances in one of them. - Tier 3: A rare top cut appearance showing that legend is capable of competing. However, reliability, or a better option with the same play-style limits the appeal of that particular legend.
- Tier 4: Failed to make at least one Top-Cut over the past two weeks. Will rise in popularity for Regional Tournaments.
Non-Regional Tournament Meta Overview
If you look at every legend's performance, you'll notice Draven is the only one to post a similar performance in both regions. First, this is quite weird considering China held 12 City Challenges against only 6 high-stakes tournaments in the West. Yet, if you consider Non Regional tournaments held in Europe or America are played to win prize money, it suddenly makes sense why the top legend in Riftbound is the obvious pick, and therefore seized most of the top spots.
Then, we also have to account for the play style each region tend to gravitate towards. We already saw it happened during the Origins metagame, with the rise of Annie only happening once tournaments in the United States kicked off. In Spiritforged, the same happened with Draven and several other Chaos legends. The Miracle build, and now the Detonate one as well, are much more popular in the West compared to China.
The midrange list remains a very strong Riftbound deck, but is a bit weaker against the other legends in the game, especially the reactive ones. Kai'Sa and Ezreal in particular, can't really pressure their opponent early in a match, meaning they will have to answer that explosive turn with multiple mighty units able to act immediately.
Overall, the Spiritforged metagame is very much dictated by Draven, even if we look outside Regional tournaments. However, depending which type of Draven is the most popular, the other legends fare differently. In China, the metagame is more control, as this is a valid strategy against a Midrange Draven looking to win showdowns. However, the West preys on those decks, typically unable to answer a miracle turn, but allowing it to happen due to their slower pace. Thus, the metagame in Europe and America features faster-paced legends, while Draven is much more dominant overall, the counter to the more explosive list not being fully figured out, except for a strong start from the Midrange build.
Soon, a new wave of Regional tournaments will happen, with one in Shenzen, China this weekend, plus Lille and Atlanta in April. If some sort of counter was to emerge, it needs to happen soon. Otherwise, we can almost book how these tournaments will go down, except for the war to earn a best-of card on the legends we don't see much of outside regional events.
Tier S
Draven
Performance - China : 5 Wins / 32 Top 8 - West : 5 Wins / 27 Top 8
Without a reward for playing an off-meta legend for the chance of grabbing the best-of card, most players vying to make their tournament trip worth it are playing Draven. In theory, this should lead to a target strategy to be highly efficient. Unfortunately, Draven has too many builds for that to work. Indeed, after the Midrange and Miracle deck fought to figure which one was best, a new challenger has entered the fray : Detonate Draven.
If the units beating you up are about the same, this deck draws so much you can be certain SFD-012, OGN-195, SFD-004 will come out eventually. Thus, the only way to victory is to try to score faster than Detonate Draven can dig through its deck.
Just a warning, this strategy will likely fail if your tournament also features a decent amount of Midrange Dravens, a really solid deck against fast-paced opponents. Plus, there is also Kai'Sa and Ezreal to worry about, both designed to answer the board very efficiently.
Tier 1
Irelia
Performance - China : 2 Wins / 19 Top 8 - West : 0 Win / 11 Top 8
SFD-146 is now a rather common inclusion in Irelia decks, representing a slower, yet more reliable way to develop against decks built on spells. Except for that addition we first saw in Vegas, Irelia is a broken record in Spiritforged. The Blade Dancer is strong enough to be listed as one of the best legends in the game, but very few believe she is capable of winning a huge tournament.
Indeed, she did win two city challenges in China, and easily takes second place when it comes to Top 8 appearances. However, Irelia has yet to win a tournament with more than 128 players in Spiritforged.
Kai'Sa
Performance - China : 3 Wins / 6 Top 8 - West : 0 Win / 4 Top 8
Kai'Sa became the best legend to contain Draven over the four regional tournaments held in China back in January and February. Looking at her results in City Challenges recently, the Daughter of the Void still looks to possess that mix of raw power and solid match-up against the dominant legends in Riftbound.
Well, that's true for Chinese play at least, but might not transfer to the western tournament scene. Indeed, with only four top 8 spots earned over 6 large tournaments, Kai'sa looks like a good, but far from able to contain Draven type of legend.
Arguably, the more explosive the metagame, and the hardest it is for a reactive deck to control opposing threats. There are many more Miracle and Detonate Dravens, or Chaos decks in general in the west, which explains why Kai'Sa might struggle more in that part of the world.
Ezreal
Performance - China : 1 Win / 2 Top 8 - West : 1 Win / 1 Top 8
The Prodigal Explorer is the only other legend, alongside Draven, with a tournament win in both regions over the past two weeks. While there aren't many other results to look at, this confirms Ezreal is a difficult legend to master, yet able to win large events once in expert hands.
The winning list from Bologna, then adapted for Vegas still is the norm among top performers, even for smaller events. As a result, it feels like the only way to progress Ezreal any further is through becoming an expert pilot.
Tier 2
Viktor
Performance - China : 0 Win / 5 Top 8 - West : 0 Win / 2 Top 8
The list from Bologna is starting to become the norm worldwide, and keeps Viktor as a strong performer, at least when it comes to top cut contention. Indeed, even if there is everything in the deck in order to thrive, Viktor does not draw nearly as much as the other competitive legends, especially those in the Chaos domain. As such, even if it can rely on its tokens to constantly have a unit available, Viktor will sometimes run out of cards, fail to find OGN-122 in time, OGN-116 on curve, or OGN-221 to clear the sudden board its miracle opponent developed.
Inevitably, Viktor will lose to a subpar draw, and the later stages of a tournament being Best-of-3 means there are more chances that happens.
Rek'Sai
Performance - China : 1 Win / 2 Top 8 - West : Nothing
Even if the Order domain and OGN-037 point to a value oriented legend, Rek'Sai actually looks to score rather quickly. To be fair, it is about the only way to thrive at the moment, as the Miracle package is simply too strong to be stopped when the draws align. Fortunately, Rek'Sai can build around the Fury Domain to bring some pressure. Her ability, and other value oriented tools will serve as support, making run she doesn't run out of gas.
This seems to do fairly well in China, as Rek'Sai managed to win one of the few City Challenges Draven missed. In the West however, Rek'Sai still lacks the explosive firepower to keep up with the top performers.
Annie
Performance - China : 0 Win / 3 Top 8 - West : 0 Win / 1 Top 8
Without a best-of card to earn, the main reason to pick Annie rather than Draven isn't there, meaning her already scarce presence in Regional tournaments is even more limited in other events.
Yet, this did not prevent Annie from posting at least one top 8 performance in both region, a feat only five other legends accomplished.
While it is not enough to compare Annie to the best legends in the game, it is good to see the Dark Child manage to post a few results without copying Draven's best list. Indeed, while most Chaos legends have defaulted to the Miracle package, Annie keeps playing her signature aggressive play-style, mostly based around the Fury domain.
Some believe raw power early in a match is the only way to beat the Chaos domain, way too strong once it gets going. While that makes sense, it will take Annie more than a few top 8 spots to prove she has part of the answer to this metagame.
Fiora & Sett
Performance - China : 0 Win / 4 Top 8 - West : Nothing
Performance - China : 0 Win / 3 Top 8 - West : Nothing
Fiora looks much better in China than it does in the west, which aligns with what we saw during Regional Tournaments. Indeed, The Grand Duelist ended the first four Chinese regional tournaments with two finals and a Top 8, while her best performance in the West has been a top 64.
The same could be said about Sett, who was a consistent top cut performer in China, up to a top 16 in the last regional tournament. Once in Bologna and Vegas, The Boss lost in Top 128 both times.
Most likely, the slower, more value oriented metagame is preferable for Order - Body legends, who require a bit of time to get set on the board. Plus, there is a lot more of the Chaos domain in the West, another problem Fiora or Sett, as they can't grow a unit's might to get it out of trouble.
Last,
Sivir
Performance - China : 0 Win / 1 Top 8 - West : 0 Win / 1 Top 8
Sivir is consistent across both regions, with just one top performance in each. It is important to note the best performing list in China and Germany were both Miracle builds. It makes sense considering the rise of the Draven Detonate build, who's packing Gear removal in the main deck. Even if you get to draw two cards, not even one game with OGN-160 safe is too much to ask.
Certain cards will change in the future, but expect this archetype to be the norm for Sivir in the second half of Spiritforged.
Ahri
Performance - China : 0 Win / 1 Top 8 - West : 0 Win / 1 Top 8
Ahri does a very good job at keeping every one guessing about her real power. Indeed, the Nine Tailed Fox is far from a threat competitively speaking. However, she always finds a way to snag the occasional top cut, and seems to be able to do it in both regions.
OGN-123 is the very intriguing prospect in recent lists, as the card looks like a potential answer to Miracle turns. Best-Of-1 naturally helps to punish the opponent from carelessly sending units to a battlefield, an error they likely won't commit once they got wiped once. Still, I'm intrigued by Ahri's potential currently, on top of the role OGN-123 could play for Mind legend in future tournaments.
Azir
Performance - China : 0 Win / 2 Top 8 - West : Nothing
Like many other legends on this report, Azir enjoys the slower pace from the Chinese metagame a lot more. Indeed, ever since becoming a control deck with Tokens to score, Azir has been doing better in tournament. However, just like the other reactive legends, you only have so many runes available in a turn, typically not enough to answer Chaos legends explosive patterns.
China rewards value and the ability to never run out of gas, something Azir is pretty good at. The West only uses draw to find specific play patterns, and Azir struggles to answer those, like most other legends in Riftbound.
Lucian
Performance - China : 0 Win / 2 Top 8 - West : Nothing
After Las Vegas, several Lucian players claimed the Purifier had a good match-up against Draven. Looking at the result in the West, with Draven winning almost everything while Lucian didn't even top one event, I'm going to assume they were wrong.
However, this doesn't make Lucian a bad legend. Indeed, the deck is capable of scoring in a rush, which is widely considered the way to play against Miracle currently. Plus, SFD-113 is a fantastic unit in order to avoid showdowns during your opponent's turn, a great way to not allow Draven to leverage its ability.
Tier 3
Jax
Performance - China : Nothing - West : 0 Win / 1 Top 8
Jax is one of the few legends with a terrible track record, but with a knack for the occasional deep run in a tournament. A Skirmish, even one with 100+ players isn't a huge performance to be fair, but combined with a Top 32 in Bologna and a Top 8 in Las Vegas, it shows Jax has some potential.
Now, we need to ask ourselves whether the best list is not played by most, hence the scarcity of Jax strong performances. Or is this list extremely volatile, meaning only one player out of a few dozens will enjoy a streak of good draws.
Jinx
Performance - China : Nothing - West : 0 Win / 1 Top 8
Both the list and the player are familiar for Jinx. Indeed, her best performance since Las Vegas came from Eric Liu who earned the Best-of Jinx with this same list.
The build is as close as possible to a miracle build, with an emphasis on summoning even more units without paying for them with OGN-194 in the mix. Unfortunately, this does not leverage Jinx's ability at all, meaning we are basically playing with a blank legend most of the time.
In regional tournaments, expect this list to once again be close to what will win the best of card, while those vying for the tournament win will simply play Draven.
Teemo
Performance - China : 0 Win / 1 Top 8 - West : Nothing
Regional tournaments made it clear the best way to play Teemo was to play an Ezreal deck with a faster-pace to mitigate the lack of draw. Yet, even if Teemo managed to sneak in Vegas Top 64 cut, everyone knows the Swift Scout isn't a great legend to play at the moment.
In that context, Best-of-1 tournaments are a good way to play uncanny builds, and benefit from our clueless opponent's mistakes.
Miss Fortune
Performance - China : 0 Win / 1 Top 8 - West : Nothing
A top 8 in a City Challenge means the player navigated the Best-of-1 phase of the tournament well, but lost as soon as Best-of-3 matches began. Looking at the list, it feels like a logical outcome, as this list probably won't go far once the opponent knows they only have to worry about SFD-105
Yet, this is the reality of Miss Fortune currently, who probably won't be able to rely on OGN-160 with Detonate Draven now a popular deck. Going forward, the Bounty Hunter will either copy Sivir, or rely on such surprising lists using a fantastic unit when granted ganking, surrounded by plenty of support cards.
Tier 4
Without the incentive for a $10,000 reward, more legends are left behind, with 11 eleven unable to post a Top 8 performance over the 18 tournaments held over the past two weeks. Some definitely do not deserve to be in this last tier, such as Master Yi. The Wuju Bladesman had two solid performances in Bologna and Vegas alongside a good win rate over both tournaments. Unfortunately, the more volatile environment of tournaments with a Best-of-1 format in swiss rounds, or less diversity due to the absence of alternate rewards doesn't seem to suit Master Yi.
For those curious about these legends performance in the most recent regional tournament, likely the best assessment of their current strength, check out our previous Tier List :
Otherwise, you can also have a look at their individual page. There, you will find their best performing lists, alongside a breakdown of their signature cards and synergies.
