Well, I’m pretty sure it’s safe to say we’ve officially settled into Season 10. And I believe, outside of any drastic changes, the meta has made its shift and shows clearly who’s favored and who’s not when it comes to dominating the river and holding control of the ever impactful Dragon Pit.

But, that’s not to say there aren’t some picks that are falling in between the cracks of the meta. And I’m here to present to you today those very picks. They’re sneaky good, great for maining due to a low banrate, but yet they still rock a solid overall win-rate! So, if you’re looking to pull a spicy pick out of your pocket, I’ve got quite the list for you!

1. Maokai, The Twisted Treant

Starting off in the Top Lane, we have a personal favorite pick of mine and that’s Maokai. Folks sleep on Maokai’s potential, but this tree can slap with the best of tanks in Top thanks to his built-in sustain, easy point and click CC, and his respectable base damage. After lane phase, like Ornn, he brings the benefit of a wide zone-control ultimate that helps his team plant a root (Heh..) around neutral objectives. Unlike Ornn though, Maokai’s ultimate is more for peel and disengage and this suits him well since the majority of his kit is better accented through this playstyle.

Look to pick up Maokai if you're a teamfight kind of player. He shines in the hands of those that are unselfish with their playstyle.

2. Kayle, the Righteous

The second pick for Top Lane is one folks may have forgotten about. Kayle was a terror when her rework dropped and this caused Riot to slap her around with nerfs and adjustments. But it seems like the dutiful angel has found her stability, and I believe she looks to benefit from the current meta.

Kayle already hosts a respectable win rate, and that’s largely due to more Tank prevalence in the Top Lane. Kayle can farm safely against tankier champions, and her sustain and life-saving ultimate make it risky business to press aggression against her when forced under turret. Come her level and item spikes, Kayle becomes and unstoppable monster to handle in the sidelane. She shreds tanks and bruisers alike, and when involved in a teamfight, her ultimate can be a big game changer.

Look to pick up Kayle if you’re a more passive player in lane and enjoy a split-pushing playstyle. Because you’ll be in a side lane a lot as Kayle.


3. Shyvana, the Half-Dragon

Moving on to the Jungle, we have the very first Jungler I ever put my hands on, Shyvana. Shyvana falls very much into the Korean playstyle by being a fast clearing and farm-heavy jungler, which isn’t exactly prominent here in the West. But, her impact come level 6 cannot be dismissed.

Thanks to her Dark Harvest Full AP build, Shyvana’s damage, even without stacks, is enough to force squishier Champions away once she lands her Ultimate empowered E. Its burn and lingering AOE also provide a little zone control when moving to contest neutral objectives like Dragon or Baron.

Speaking of Dragon, Shyvana’s passive directly benefits from a focused Dragon playstyle and is amongst the Junglers that can solo Dragon pre-6. So, if you’re a player that loves to counter-jungle, sneak objectives, and pop squishies in teamfights, Shyvana might just fit your style in the jungle.


4. Xin-Zhao, the Seneschal of Demacia

Xin Zhao takes us back to the Western jungler mindset and gives us someone who wants to gank early and often. You’ll want to pick this guy up if you’re a newbie to the Jungle or if you’re someone that enjoys an extremely aggressive playstyle.

Xin’s clear is healthy, his invades are deadly, and his point and click dash and disruptive ultimate allow him to shine in both one vs. one and ganking situations. And if you think that sounds like a simple explanation, you’re right. Xin’s one of the easiest Junglers to pick up and play but still rewards those that are experienced with his kit in tight situations and for those that know his matchups.

Speaking of matchups, you’ll want to play him into Champions like the previously mentioned Shyvana who want to spend their time farming rather than fighting. As mentioned, Xin’s invades are deadly and by utilizing his kit aggressively against these more passive/scaling Junglers early, you’ll not only throw them off beat of their goals, but you’ll also establish dominance over early neutral objectives like Skuttle, Rift, and Dragon.


5. Annie, the Dark Child

Ah, Annie. LS’ favorite pick on every patch. But no really, Annie’s sleeper good right now and you should totally pick her up if you enjoy Burst Mages. Annie’s rise in the ranks comes from her stable lane phase, ability to stifle assassins, and point and click stun which will turn the tide of any river fight. Come level 6, Tibbers provides even more zone control for Annie’s team around neutral objectives and naturally only adds to upfront burst of this little demon fire child.

As an added bonus, Annie rocks two distinct build paths that can favor two different styles of player. The first is a standard Electrocute burst page. It’s simple enough, hit enemies with your abilities and slap them with Tibbers, Ignite, and Electro damage to burst them down. Easy-peasy. The second path utilizes Predator as the keystone and is for players that enjoy roaming more. Thanks to the movement speed buff slapped onto Annie’s E, she’s a deceptively quick roamer. So, you can imagine when you slap Predator boots on her, you get even more deceptive in your approach speed. This keystone turns Annie into a second Jungler and when she goes into the fog you’ll be more paranoid than when a fed TF goes MIA.

Pick up Annie this season if you enjoy a simple yet fun Champion, and like more easily defined in-game goals!


6. Zilean, the Chronokeeper

“Time flies like an arrow and fruit flies like banana.” Spam that voice line and you’ll tilt everyone off the Rift. But really, Zilean’s been lowkey good for multiple patches now and it doesn’t look like Season 10 is slowing him down at all.

Where Zilean lacks in the way of lane presence, he makes up for in his teamfight and zoning abilities. With his double bomb damage and stun, rage-inducing slows and speed boosts, alongside a teamfight changing ultimate, Zilean finds himself to rarely be a wrong pick. But, that doesn’t mean you should pick him into every matchup. Picks like Talon or Diana, who can all-in early, give the old man a bit of a headache. But, if you find one of those mage vs. mage matchups that looks like it’ll be a farm fest, pick Zilean and enjoy scaling and doing an unreasonable amount of damage with only one ability.

Pick up Zilean if you’re a Support player making the transition to Mid, or if you just enjoy a scaling playstyle!


7. Kog'maw, the Mouth of the Abyss

Do you like hypercarries? Do you like shredding tanks? Do like your only form of mobility being Flash? Well, Kog’Maw might be your spirit Champion.

With tanks on the rise from Top and the Jungle, Kog’Maw’s carving out a place in a meta that’s in need of tank shredders. “But Boss! His immobility makes him vulnerable to tanks that can easily engage on him!” And you’d be right in saying that. But, when coupled with a Janna, Nami, or his favorite partner Lulu, Kog’Maw’s a mounted machine gun that cannot be disrupted. After shredding the approaching tank, Kog will shift from machine gun to NBA superstar by dropping 3-pointers on the enemy squishies with his ultimate.

So, pick up Kog if you’ve got an Enchanter player on your friends list. Otherwise, stick to my next pick…


8. Draven, the Glorious Executioner

I can hear the crowds cheering already. Draven’s feast or famine playstyle isn’t for every AD Carry, but he’s certainly one of those picks that can dominate if you invest the time to master his axe-juggling.

Truthfully though, the thing about Draven, is that he fits well with ANY support combo. Does your duo play Blitz and Nautilus? Cool. Draven feasts off of great hooks and early game plays. Does your duo only play Janna and Nami? That’s fine! Shields and heals for Draven amplify his already abusive dueling potential.

Draven just fits in Bot Lane and can make any Marksmen, Mage, Enchanter, or Tank fear for their lives. But... if you are the victim of the dreaded 4v2 Bot (which happens every game by the way), just focus on picking up axes and sneaking in a Champion last hit to catch yourself back up. Like I said, Draven’s feast or famine, and when the famine hits... boy, is it hard to see the light of the victory screen when you’re behind on this Champion.


9. Morgana, the Fallen

I know I’ve mentioned the meta favors Enchanters. And theoretically, it does with tanks rising to prominence across the Rift. But there are three big Champions that every Enchanter hates to play against: Blitzcrank, Nautilus, and Leona. The thing about those picks, though, is that they lose to Morgana.

Morgana might’ve been the most polarizing pick on this list since she falls more into the realm of counter-pick rather than sleeper-pocket pick. But, that status is just what makes her sleeper good right now. The ability to stifle the early game pressure of the big three S-tier supports right now can’t be diminished. And her zone control cannot be dismissed in a meta that favors Champions that supply it.

Pick up Morgana if you’re a player that likes to say, “No.” to hook Champions and enjoys binds that last for an unreasonably long amount of time.


10. Lulu, the Fae Sorceress

I name-dropped Lulu earlier alongside Kog’Maw since they represent one of the most vicious tandems that you can drive in the Bot Lane. But, the thing about Lulu is that she enables any hypercarry to find their stride after their usually weak laning phases.

When coupled with Twitch, Jinx, Vayne, or Kog’Maw, Lulu shines through her ability to shield, peel, and buff these carries to their full potential. And when coupled with more bully or caster-based carries, she does the same only to a lesser degree.

But, the thing about Lulu is she’s going to find someone on her team to enable. And if for some reason, if she can’t enable, she can disable with the best of them. Her polymorph, slows, and clutch ultimate can dissuade any would be divers or assassins, and hopefully provide the needed time for the DPS to start finding its way.

With the likes of Sett, Talon, and Diana floating around, no true ADC would be upset with the Rift’s best purple Yordle at their side.


Well, that wraps us up neatly for this piece! I hope you’ve found a potential pickup from the sleeper picks and I hope they bring you success in your future games! Good luck in solo-queue and have a wonderful day!