The best champions to climb ranked solo queue in LoL Season 11

League of Legends Season 11 has finally arrived, and players from all over the world are starting to climb up the solo queue ladder once again. But which champions are currently best to use in starting the climb? 

With patch 11.1 introduced, Riot has opened up for the ranked ladder once again. Some of the best and most dedicated players are already starting to reach Challenger rank in each region, and some champions have helped them along the way. The meta and balance of the game are still shaky after the big preseason patch was introduced last year, but it’s slowly starting to balance out with hard work from Riot. 

To start out your Season 11 ranked journey in the best way possible, here are some of the strongest champions for solo queue on patch 11.1. 

Aurelion Sol

It is a rare sight that Aurelion Sol is topping the win rate charts, but Season 11 has been great so far for the dragon. Aurelion Sol is currently the best-performing mid laner in the game with a win rate of a whopping 53.81%. He has become a sustained damage monster and many short-range champions are struggling to deal with him. 

Solo queue players and professionals alike are investing heavily into the Imperial Mandate Mythic item, which provides ability power, health, ability haste, and mana regen. All of these are great stats for a champion like Aurelion Sol, who also utilizes the Coordinated Fire passive on the item. Paired up with the Rylai’s Crystal Scepter, Aurelion Sol is able to slow enemies easily, which procs the Coordinated Fire passive. For patch 11.2, Riot is looking to nerf Imperial Mandate which will likely affect the viability of Aurelion Sol. 

Until patch 11.2 hits on January 21, it would be wise to pick up Aurelion Sol to climb solo queue. 

Swain

Swain is currently one of the most versatile champions in the game as he can be played in both the bottom and mid lanes. Swain is rocking some high win rates in both positions, making him a scary flex pick in solo queue. 

The Noxian Grand General is winning 53.99% of his games in the bot lane as of patch 11.1. This is the second-highest win rate of all champions in the game. Looking at the mid lane, Swain isn’t quite pulling off the same numbers, but it is very close. His win rate in mid is at 53.41%, which means that picking Swain will likely never be a bad idea. 

The reason why Swain is so strong is that the healing in the game is still very scary. Swain has both a lot of healing and damage, making him a difficult opponent for marksmen and other squishy champions. By building the Liandry’s Anguish and Zhonya’s Hourglass, Swain already has the two items needed to stay strong throughout the whole game. Swain players can follow these up with more AP or even tanky stats depending on the state of the game. 

No matter what, Swain is a top-tier champion to start out the Season 11 climb for players who queue up for both mid and bot lane.  

Maokai

Maokai might not be the first support that comes to mind but he is currently crushing it in the role. With a win rate of 53.44%, Maokai is the best-performing support in the whole game as of patch 11.1. Some might think that he is just a niché pick who performs well in certain situations, but Maokai is actually the fifth-most picked support as well. 

In general, Maokai has been dominating most of the preseason as a support and now he continues that trend in Season 11. With the Arcane Comet rune and Imperial Mandate Mythic item, the Twisted Treant is a scary poker in the early game and able to enable teammates to do even more damage. Even though Maokai is played as a support, most players are building towards damage rather than pure tank items. 

Even though the Imperial Mandate gets a nerf on patch 11.2, it’s likely not enough to scare Maokai away from the bot lane. 

Olaf

For the jungle position, Olaf is still a champion to fear and is a very simple champion to pick up when climbing. The Berserker has been topping the charts for several patches now and 11.1 is no exception. Olaf is currently sitting at a 53.33% win rate, which is more than enough to consider him overpowered. 

According to the patch 11.2 patch preview, Riot will be toning down Olaf and giving other champions some more space in the jungle. The nerf will consist of a healing amplification reduction to Olaf’s Vicious Strikes (W), which will hopefully make him easier to deal with in a skirmish. Despite that upcoming nerf, Olaf should still be a solid pick to climb the ladder with in patch 11.2. 

How do you carry a solo queue game?

Carrying a solo queue game is getting harder, but is still possible. The most important part is to play towards comfort since that’s what will be the best options long term. Practicing a few specific champions will help you master certain things in the game that can be translated into solo queue games. Carrying a solo queue game single-handedly will also depend on one’s mental state. Having a strong mental state and focusing on your own game will increase the chances of carrying. With that said, always try to participate in teamwork since League of Legends is very much a team game. 

Does LoL rank reset every season? 

Yes, the ranked ladder will reset at the start of every new season. The reset gives players a fresh start, but won’t completely reset since the player’s MMR is still intact. This means that players who finish a certain rank in the previous season will still be matched against similar players. It also means that a former Challenger player won’t have to climb all the way from Silver when a new season hits. The reset that Riot does every season is therefore considered a “soft reset.”