This is a guest article written by Agilio Macabasco from Mobalytics

In this edition of the Mobalytics Coach’s Corner, we’ll be looking at powerful synergies that our experts expect to be contested by teams at Worlds 2017. These combinations will be potent in Solo Queue as well, so try them out the next time you’re duo-ing with a buddy (you can try with strangers too!).

Every year, a meta forms at Worlds due to a combination of patches leading up to it, and strategies that develop during scrims. At Worlds 2016, the meta was dominated by ranged champs like Nidalee, Elise, and Jayce, who focused on ranged initiations - frontlines often only had one anchor tank such as Olaf, Rumble, or Poppy. The bot lane was dominated by pairings like Caitlyn & Karma, Jhin & Zyra, and who could forget the famous surprise pick of ROX Tigers, Ashe & Miss Fortune?

The patches leading up to Worlds 2017 have created a nearly opposite meta, where teams have beefy front lines with multiple tanks, control mages, and hyper carries. This context has set the stage for many of the following synergies:

When tanks are popular, Kallista will always see a rise. The more beefy frontliners there are, the longer those fights will last due to higher health pools, and the prevalence of peel and crowd control instead of high damage. Kalista also excels in this type of meta because she’ll be up against more melees that she can kite and stack her Rend on.

Kalista works well with tanky utility champs like Thresh and Taric. Thresh gives Kalista extra mobility options, incredible peel, and can effectively initiate with her. Taric doesn’t provide mobility options, but has a heal for sustain and can be just as potent as an initiator or peeler. These pairings allow Kalista to have more free rein and safety throughout the Rift. Keep an eye out for this synergy on teams that have playmaking ADCs that want to take engages into their own hands, and/or want to be aggressive in lane phase.

Jarvan was one of the most contested champions in the patches leading up to Worlds. He’s one of the safest early picks in this meta because he can fit nicely into almost any team composition (he’s also a flex between multiple positions). He’s incredibly mobile, can knock-up multiple foes, and sets up extended damage windows for his team with his terrain.

The Demacian Prince is at his best when paired with champs that have strong follow-up engage, such as Gragas, Maokai, and Galio. His chamber makes for a perfect setup for CC that would otherwise be tricky to land.

Gragas and Jarvan would be an optimal pairing due to their combined mobility, disruption, and overall control of the battlefield, but he’s another highly contested champ in pick and bans. If Gragas is taken, Maokai and Galio can fulfill similar roles with their potent follow-up CC that can lockdown multiple foes. Don’t be surprised to see these frontliners leading the way for team comps at Worlds.

Control mages are another result of the tanky meta, the lack of squishy targets makes it harder for assassins to take the stage. One of the most balanced and safest of the Control Mages is Orianna due to her lack of bad matchups. Orianna synergizes well with champions that she can create a delivery system for her ball ultimate.

When matched with Rakan, the two have one of the most powerful two-champ wombo-combo’s in the game. Rakan has the mobility to catch almost anyone from most angles and can be further protected by Orianna’s shield to get in and out. Look to see their huge AoE engage of knock-ups, charms, and pulls to wipe enemies in team fights at Worlds.

One of the classic partnerships since League’s inception, Tristana and Alistar create a formidable duo that can choose to play very aggressively in lane due to their all-in potential, or play passively with a “protect the hyper-carry” style. The duo has the versatility to both peel for themselves, and make plays for their team.

Tristana is one of the few hyper carry ADCs that can fend for herself for windows of time while Alistar roams during lane phase. In the late game, Alistar makes a great bodyguard for the monster that Tristana becomes with scaling. The two can also create a powerful siege in any comp due to Trist’s increasing range and Alistar’s sustaining heals - look for this combo to take the stage for team’s that have proactive Support playmakers (too bad Mata didn’t make it to Worlds this year), and ADCs that can play well independently.

This is sort of our "surprise" pick out of our five synergies...Jungle Ezreal definitely isn’t a fad, he’s become a mainstay in high ELO Solo Queue and is even drawing bans due to his dueling prowess and snowball potential. Combine that with any poke-oriented mid laner like Corki, who has a strong roaming tool like The Package, and you end up with a pair that has a very explosive mid game and can quickly shred towers.

Honorable mentions:

Kog’maw/Twitch & Enchanters

Camille & Sejauni/Galio

Xayah & Rakan

Thanks for reading! To learn more about synergies, check out our in-depth article. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Discord to talk to our coaches and team about what you’d like to see from our next Coach’s Corner.