Evil Geniuses are in the final two weeks of the LCS before playoffs. This means patch 11.5 is going to be playoff patch. Since Lock-In, the meta has already shifted. It’s no longer MoonStaff meta. Bot Lane diversity has also increased while Top Lane staples have gotten solid nerfs. With all of this being said, EG and all the other LCS teams need to adapt. Here are some picks fans could possibly see out of EG and why:
Sivir:
Sivir is a weird champ. She always has her niche comp that she works with. Champs with hard engage or disengage. But when paired with other types of comps, she falls apart. There has been a new development though in the Sivir meta. Lethality, the ruiner of the Bot Lane, has came for her. The new build is based on two strong items: Manamune and Duskblade of Draktharr. Of course, like all lethality champs, Dark Harvest is taken.
This turns Sivir from an auto-attack-based champ to the new Varus. Manamune allows players to spam Qs and Sivir’s E makes stacking the tear very easy. The best part about this build is how strong of a response it is into many meta Bot Lane champs. Take for example Aphelios. A notoriously immobile ADC. Sivir is able to punish this with fast and large hitboxes from her Q. Another example is Senna who is shredded by Q. Add all of this on top of how great of a tool her R is, amazing waveclear and great scaling, Sivir is just great.
Teams shouldn’t make Sivir a Kai’sa level prioity pick, but into the right comps, Sivir will shred and eviscerate the competition. On 11.4 Sivir with Dark Harvest is sitting at a 50.34% win rate at Diamond plus. Meanwhile, Lethal Tempo is at 49.62%.
Now how does this apply to Evil Geniuses? Well, frankly, Deftly has already showed his willingness to play a lethality poke lane. Versus Flyquest in Week 4, Deftly played lethality Varus. This isn’t too dissimilar and just another option into the same style of lane. At the very least, if EG don’t play it, teams should be looking into this build and possibly break it out.
Jax:
It’s time Impact. Break. Him. Out.
In a previous article, the point was made how Impact counter picking for once is beneficial to EG. The main reason is that right now, Evil Geniuses are being abused in draft for Impacts unwillingness to counter-pick. This isn’t affecting the lane, but it’s giving teams the comps they want under their own conditions. EG needs to keep them honest and make them fear the counterpick.
On 11.5 Jax is getting a small buff. From 3.38 AD per level to 4.25. Why does something this miniscule matter? The conditions of Top Lane have changed. Renekton and Camille have been nerfed. So with two good Jax matchups who are still high priority being nerfed, Jax becomes stronger. And with this additional small buff, Impact could destroy someone.
To be honest, this is more of an excuse for EG to finally put Impact back on his skin, SKT T1 Jax, and see what happens. Peter Dunn has stated in numerous interviews that he wants to try new ideas and more out there picks for EG. Now it’s time for him to do it.
Jinx:
Another champion for Defly, but another one worth noting. Jinx is a late-game monster who has been rising in priority in other leagues. What’s so great about Jinx is that her range, passive and true hypercarry status set her apart from all champs. If she has a team with good peel, she can frankly just win the game.
The reason EG should be playing Jinx is that they have the third-longest game time of any team in the LCS. As the game goes on, naturally, Jinx gets better. This style also fits Deftly more than Senna. Senna is a slower, less aggressive and less mobile champ. Deftly is a player who likes that agency along with power picks that shred the opposition. That is why he has eight games on Kai’sa and five on Jhin. Furthermore, Jinx received a minor buff on 11.4 increasing her base health by 60 to 610 HP.
Jinx is just a solid all-around pick and if the ADC pool is falling low, Deftly should break it out.
Falling Out of Priority:
Udyr on 11.5 is receiving another nerf to his clear and HP per level. This might be the end of pick/ban tier for Udyr. Frankly, fans should be excited to see some different champions in the Jungle. Another fall from grace is Seraphine. On 11.5 she is getting nerfed really hard, specifically as a support. She will still be a fine “ADC” or Mid Lane, but Support won’t be nearly as strong. This isn’t to say it’s impossible for her to be picked, just lowered in priority.
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