Special thanks to the r/wildrift community for helping make this article series happen.
Wild Rift’s mid lane is one of the strongest roles in the game. Mid lane has the most roam potential out of all lanes, besides jungle, because it is placed in the middle of a rather small map.
The meta in patch 1.0a still revolves heavily around the ADC’s damage output, which is why assassins are doing well. As counters to ADCs, their job is to go in, kill the ADC and get out.
Alongside assassins, the mid lane meta features area of effect damage carries. As arguably the most balanced lane in the game, mid lane matchups in landing phase are largely one versus one skill-based. Each pick has its own viable strengths and weaknesses.
Zed is one of the strongest mid laners. Thanks to the auto-targeting system, aiming his Qs using the shadows is easier. The distance covered by his ultimate and living shadow goes quite far, which allows him to close in gaps with ease. His kit allows him to instantly burst the enemy squishies and get out.
In proportion to League of Legend’s Zed, Wild Rift’s Zed can cover much larger distances.
As an assassin, Akali performs similarly but relies on the cover of her shroud to hide. Her early game burst damage is one of the strongest in the game. Her damage surprises the enemy, and she becomes un-targetable after assassinating the enemy, lurking for another opening.
Image Courtesy of Riot Games
Orianna pick is very valued in the game thanks to her area of effect skills. The clump up nature of the champions during team fights in Wild Rift gives very good opportunities for Orianna’s ultimate, which is a huge knock up dealing massive damage.
Yasuo also performs well, especially when picked with Malphite and/or Braum. His ultimate allows for longer knock up times, which is a very valuable asset in Wild Rift. Not only is his crowd control very beneficial, but Yasuo’s windwall has massive utility. As the wall blocks all projectiles, this can nullify an ADC, which shifts the course of a team fight.
The mid lane champions all have a counter. For Zed, a Zhonyas renders his ultimate useless. Akali can be countered with crowd control. Orianna plays terribly against assassins.
There are other viable mid lane picks, such as Ahri, Graves and Twisted Fate. Each pick offers great utility for their team, be it roaming potential, damage, or even crowd control.
Stay tuned for more meta-analysis that will compare and contrast picks and further discuss itemization issues in Wild Rift.
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