Prepare for protected midrange and trash recursion

Yi belongs in S because 22 Top 8s and 2 wins are exactly what the best deck in the room should look like. The field has seen this shell over and over, and it still struggles to answer the same nasty question every round: can you beat one defender through open interaction? If the answer is no, Discipline, En Garde, Punch First, and Defy let a tiny battlefield turn into a scoring turn or a combat blowout.

I keep Kennen second because 15 Top 8s and 2 wins are an S-tier resume, just not a cleaner one than Yi's. The Lightning Rush and Fizz plan can turn the trash into another spell chain, while the Hook branch threatens a completely different cheat turn. Preparing for one angle does not always cover the other, and that is a real reason this deck keeps reaching late rounds.

Eleven Top 8s prove that Irelia's core works, but 0 wins keep it out of S. Reusing the same attacker or utility unit can turn one move into several actions and make combat math change with every card. Opponents can still break the turn by answering the key unit or forcing Irelia to spend Power before the ready chain begins.

One win and 4 Top 8s are enough to take seriously, especially when Spinning Axe and Switcheroo can reverse a combat the opponent was counting on winning. The second-card packages add another way to ready a threat and press the same turn. Draven stays below S because its strongest lists still split between heavier removal and second-card pressure, and neither branch has matched the repeat finishes above it.

Ezreal earns this spot because 10 Top 8s and 1 win back up one of the meaner control plans in the format. Bellows Breath, Stupefy, Wages of Pain, Gust, and Fizz let the deck keep clearing units, replaying key spells, and denying a normal rebuild. The broadcast evidence on August 2 fits that picture too: the Irelia side was pushed down to topdecks, which is exactly what this deck is trying to do.

Six Top 8s show that the conquest engine can carry Rek'Sai deep into a tournament, but 0 wins keep it below the decks that have already closed an event. Once the first battlefield falls, Rek'Sai turns the top of the deck into more cards that can be played right away, which makes every follow-up attack harder to map.

Two wins and 10 Top 8s prove that Kai'Sa can close events, not just extend games. Replay effects let the deck use the same removal spell or shutdown unit twice, which can erase the opponent's best turn. It stays in A because that control depends on drawing the correct answers and sequencing them before the opposing board gets too wide.

One win and 5 Top 8s prove that cheap Gear into Sand Soldiers is a real tournament plan. Once the token count builds, Azir, Sovereign can pull those bodies into one concentrated attack. Azir stays below the higher A-tier decks because an opponent who interrupts the Gear setup or checks the token battlefield before Sovereign attacks can leave it without a clean finish.

Five Top 8s and 2 wins are enough to make Rengar a real tournament threat. Thrill of the Hunt and the cheap unit suite let Rengar turn one body into another trigger, another buff, and sometimes another conquest before the opponent gets stable. I still keep it low in A because the successful lists are asking for different support cards, so the stock build is not fully settled.

One win and 7 Top 8s show there is real substance here. Once the rune engine is online, Nasus starts playing a different game from the rest of the field, with bigger damage spells and refreshed runes letting it double-spell or defend two battlefields in the same turn. The rank stays modest because those payoffs arrive later than the pressure decks above it.

Dazzling Aurora lets Sivir ignore the small exchanges and play the next unit from the deck without paying its cost. Elder Dragon is the best hit, and that threat earned 2 Top 8s. The spell cannot choose what it finds, and the non-Aurora lists use different plans, so the deck is not consistent enough for A.

Diana's 2 wins and 3 Top 8s prove that its spell-and-movement turns can close an event. The core can reposition units, change combat math, and keep drawing through Hwei. It stays in B because the lists still disagree on the finishing package, making the deck less repeatable than the leaders.

LeBlanc's 3 Top 8s and 0 wins confirm that it is a real tournament deck rather than a cute value pile. The deck earns respect because Sacrifice, Mirror Image, and Karthus create loops that can take over a game without ever needing one giant payoff card. That is strong enough for B tier, but not strong enough to sit with the decks that turned pressure into trophies.

Jayce remains relevant because Dazzling Aurora can skip straight to Elder Dragon or another expensive threat. That forces opponents to keep broad Gear removal available. The deck still has 0 wins and 0 Top 8s, and its chosen-Champion split has not produced a clear best build, so it stays in B instead of moving up.

Viktor's 3 Top 8s and 0 wins came from a deck that drags players into bad trades instead of racing them. Cull the Weak, Hidden Blade, and Bellows Breath break up small boards, then Viktor turns those deaths into more material through Recruit tokens or off-turn value. Both major branches can reach that grindy game, but neither has converted often enough to sit above the better finishers.

Lillia's 3 Top 8s and 0 wins say this is not a one-week trick, but also not a deck that has finished the job. The field has to respect how quickly Temporary Sprites turn into surprise Showdown math and extra material. That is enough to hold B tier, while the missing win keeps it out of the upper tier.

Mel's 1 win and 2 Top 8s came from a control deck that gets ahead once its spell discounts start mattering. Applied Researchers and Shock Blast let Mel change combat and removal math for less than the cards should cost, while Stupefy and Ravenbloom Student keep the early turns from falling apart. The ceiling is good enough to win an event, but the finish volume is still too thin to move her higher.

Volibear's 1 Top 8 and 0 wins came from a Dragon ramp deck that gets scary once its first expensive threat sticks. Gentle Gemdragon, Kadregrin the Infernal, and Elder Dragon all change combat in a hurry, and Relentless Storm helps bridge into those turns. The problem is getting there often enough. It can spike a bracket, but the full window still looks too inconsistent for anything higher.

Miss Fortune stays here because the shell still has to prove it can survive long enough to cash in Dazzling Aurora. The payoff is clear: Aurora into Elder Dragon or another expensive hit can flip the board immediately, and Miss Fortune gives the deck a movement angle after that threat lands. But with 0 wins and 0 Top 8s, this is still a deck to know about, not a deck to center your gauntlet around.

Annie stays here because the sequencing shell makes sense even though the results are still missing. Stacked Deck into Noxus Hopeful creates a cheaper second play, Ride the Wind turns Traveling Merchant into card filtering, and Annie, Stubborn gives the deck a way to buy back a key spell. It is a real tempo script. It just has 0 wins and 0 Top 8s right now.

Lucian's 1 Top 8 and 0 wins came from an Equipment deck that keeps asking the same question: can you stop the first attacker from doing the job twice? Purifier, Lucian, Merciless, and Relentless Pursuit all let one equipped unit conquer, ready, and threaten another action. That line is good enough to reach final tables, but not yet good enough to trust every week.

Vex's 1 Top 8 and 0 wins came from a shell that is miserable to attack into once it is already set. Vex, Apathetic punishes new units entering her battlefield, while Defy, Discipline, and Gloomist reward the player for holding the line. That is enough to punish sloppy aggression, but not enough yet to push Vex out of C tier.

Kha'Zix's 1 Top 8 and 0 wins came from one very specific kind of turn: isolate the right enemy, win that fight, and turn it into XP plus more pressure. Void Assault, Punch First, and Grim Resolve all point at that one battlefield moment. The trick is good enough to steal games, but the full tournament record still says opponents can survive it often enough.

Fiora's 1 Top 8 and 0 wins came from a deck that can turn one combat trick into a scoring turn. Punch First, Riposte, Rampage, and Kayle all threaten to push a unit over the Mighty line, which means Grand Duelist and the chosen Champion can switch on mid-combat. The payoff is real, but the list still has to show it can string those fights together over a full event.

Fire Below the Mountain turns Gear into restricted Power. Forge God uses the same Gear to grow into a threat, while Blacksmith searches for another piece. That engine gives Ornn a distinct resource advantage, but 1 Top 8 and 0 wins show that it has not produced repeat finishes.

Lux's 1 Top 8 and 0 wins came from a big-spell control deck that becomes much harder to fight once its spell-only Energy starts paying for real cards. Progress Day, Promising Future, and Time Warp give Lux a true late-game payoff, not just more setup. The issue is speed. The deck still spends too many early turns getting ready for a metagame this punishing.

Ambessa's 1 Top 8 and 0 wins came from a midrange shell that wins by making one big unit pull double duty. When Ambessa or another empowered threat enters the right battlefield, the same card pressures the score and breaks up the opposing board. That is enough to matter, but the deck still has not shown the repeat finishes of the better midrange choices.

Leona stays on the board because the shell has a clean battlefield identity. Stun an enemy, turn that into a buff with Radiant Dawn, then spend that buff on Call to Glory or a larger combat swing. The deck clearly knows what it is trying to do. It just has 0 wins and 0 Top 8s, so the payoff still has to prove itself.

With 0 wins and 0 Top 8s, the tier question is pretty straightforward. The deck has a coherent plan and opponents cannot completely ignore the XP thresholds, because once they turn on, the whole board gets more efficient at once. But the snapshot shows the early turns costing too much time for too little immediate pressure.

Akali asks opponents to respect every open movement effect because Stellacorn Herder can draw again, Jhin, Murderous Artist can add resources, and either chosen Champion can punish a careless Showdown. The sealed three-star window produced 0 wins and 0 Top 8s, so those explosive turns have not carried Akali beyond D tier.

A ready Darius, Trifarian forces the opponent to account for another large unit after the first card has already developed the turn. That threat earned 0 wins and 0 Top 8s in the sealed window, leaving Darius in D tier until the second-card plan proves it can repeat under tournament pressure.

Opponents have to respect Renekton, Rage Fueled because his attack can deal 2 to every enemy unit at that battlefield before combat. The plan delivered 0 wins and 0 Top 8s, and D tier reflects how rarely that threat became a complete tournament strategy.

A stocked XP pool lets Poppy draw with her Legend or ready a key unit through Blood Rose, which gives opponents a real reason to challenge her holds. The sealed results contain 0 wins and 0 Top 8s, and the available build does not justify moving that payoff out of D tier.

Pyke stays here because 0 wins and 0 Top 8s are the honest record for a bounce-and-burn deck that still gives up too much tempo to execute its best turns. Fizz can replay key removal, Matriarch can bring back another cheap Play effect, and Bloodharbor Ripper can turn a unit into future resources. The problem is that those resources usually arrive later, and Vendetta has punished that delay hard.

Any block against Vi must account for the possibility that 3 excess damage will ready another unit after the conquest. The sealed field gave that pressure 0 wins and 0 Top 8s, so the follow-up plan remains in D tier.

Production Surge, Ferrous Forerunner, and Danger Zone give Rumble enough bodies and scaling to threaten a battlefield from apparently modest material. That setup produced 0 wins and 0 Top 8s in the sealed window, so the deck remains in D tier.

Yasuo, Windrider threatens a point without needing a conquest once he moves for the third time in a turn, so every open move effect changes how an opponent must defend. The deck recorded 0 wins and 0 Top 8s, leaving the movement strategy in D tier.

Death Mark threatens to create a Clone that attacks for Assault 4, while the banished unit empowers Zed for another hand filter. Opponents still held the deck to 0 wins and 0 Top 8s, which places the setup in D tier.

Jax, Unmatched lets Brutalizer or Guardian Angel appear at Reaction speed, forcing opponents to play around unseen Equipment in every combat. The shell earned 0 wins and 0 Top 8s in the sealed window, so that combat advantage remains in D tier.

Spiderling density makes Teemo, Strategist's defense dangerous and can threaten The Grand Plaza's alternate win, while the Hidden-value branch has more flexible cards. Together, those approaches produced 0 wins and 0 Top 8s, so Teemo stays in D tier.

Nine-Tailed Fox reduces an enemy attacker by 1 Might, and Ahri, Inquisitive can shrink another enemy at the same battlefield when she attacks or defends. That defensive tax produced 0 wins and 0 Top 8s, leaving Ahri in D tier.

Curtain Call is especially dangerous because its base 4-Energy cost qualifies both Virtuoso and Jhin, Meticulous Killer before any Repeat cost is paid. The spell-control plan still produced 0 wins and 0 Top 8s, and the alternate unit-heavy build did not use the Legend's spell payoff, leaving Jhin in D tier.

Jinx stays in D with 0 Top 8s and 0 wins. The preserved list still gives the deck a clear identity: discard to ready Jinx, Rebel, grow her for the turn, and turn that same discard into another body or another Rocket cast. That is enough to know what the deck is trying to do, but not enough to treat it as a real tournament priority.

Showstopper and Arena Bar build threats that The Boss can save, while every conquest readies the Legend for another rescue. The package produced 0 wins and 0 Top 8s in the sealed window, so the rescue plan remains in D tier.

Keeper of Masks entering under Renata Glasc, Industrialist creates ready Reflection tokens, and Chem-Baroness can turn the following hold into Gold. The plan earned 0 wins and 0 Top 8s, so Renata remains in D tier.

Friendship can grant +4 Might when Bird, Cat, Dog, and Poro are all represented, and Brush adds another Might to each matching unit at that battlefield. The menagerie produced 0 wins and 0 Top 8s, leaving Ivern in D tier.

Shen stays in D because 0 wins and 0 Top 8s are exactly what you expect from an exact-two-unit defense that is clever but brittle. Disciple of Shen, Hand Hammer, Shadow Dash, and Ki Barrier can make one battlefield very hard to attack cleanly, but the whole formation weakens as soon as one body leaves or a third body joins. It is a precise engine in a format that keeps forcing messy fights.