Each and every year there are a handful of picks that define the way the game should be played for months on end. Many times these Champions are infamous due to some exploit with an item, or Pros have shown how to abuse synergy with other Champion picks to just steamroll matches. And sometimes, when it comes to the most banned Champions, they simply have a playstyle that just nullifies the concept of fun to a lot of Solo Queue players.

So, today we’re going to break down the top five Champions according to ban rate on u.gg. Now, we’ll be going off of unique presence, so if a Champion is featured multiple times in the top five, we’ll talk about all their roles collectively instead of dedicating them a singular spot so we can cover as many Champions as possible. Anyway, let’s dive right in with League’s most banned Champion as of Patch 13.12 - Milio.

Milio, the Gentle Flame - Support, 39% Ban Rate

With a staggering 39% ban rate as of patch 13.12, Milio reigns supreme in the community’s ire, and this is despite recent nerfs that have taken Milio down a peg or two. This Champion is simply one of the easiest to play Enchanters on the market right now, and he pairs extremely well with Champions like Lucian, Ashe, and Kog’maw to give himself a diverse range of ADCs to be picked alongside.

What’s broken about Milio is the sheer value that he gets from his defining ability, his W, Cozy Campfire. When placed on top of an ally, Cozy Campfire heals, applies Milio’s burning passive, and increases the auto-attack range of whoever is within its range. No ADC worth their salt will complain about extra range and damage, and the heal on this ability combined with Milio’s shields and cleansing ultimate offer all the utility in the world to help protect a Marksmen in nearly every situation.

While his win rate has slipped sub 50% since 13.12, Milio’s ease of execution is likely what keeps him at the top of the Enchanter play rates and keeps him in focus of bans from all lanes on the Rift.

Neeko, the Curious Chameleon - Support, Jungle, Mid, 31.9% Ban Rate

Neeko takes the second, third, fourth slots on the ‘most banned’ list by having flex between Jungle, Support, and Mid Lane with her ban rate coming in at an overall 31%. While Jungle and Support Neeko have a certainly lower playrate that Mid Lane, with nearly thirty-thousand games plus on each role, it’s safe to say the community has found shenanigans they like with Neeko’s new rework and she’ll remain a fixture until Riot decides to nerf her.

Speaking of that rework, that’s really what is shaping Neeko’s place in the meta right now. With her ability to disguise herself as not only Allies, but also Jungle Monsters and Minions now, Neeko’s gank potential is through the roof as she can slip from lane ganks, to Jungle ganks, to misdirections mid fight with her clone, truly the chaos that she can reap on the Rift is just insanely nutty. And this isn’t factoring in all the damage she dishes out once she’s on top of you.

While Neeko Mid is her best role since it gives her lane safety and income, Support Neeko and Jungle Neeko are equally as great at sowing chaos with her roam timers and zone and lockdown potential with her E and Ultimate. If you’re a player that finds it hard to not auto-pilot through your games, Neeko’s a worthy ban at this time.

Kha’Zix, the Voidreaver - Jungle, 30.6% Ban Rate

Kha’Zix feels like he’s been a terror for quite some time now, and it doesn’t look like he’s going to be slowing down anytime soon. Like his counterpart, Rengar, Kha’zix is just one of those Champions that is designed to thrive off of the chaos of Solo Queue. With his isolation damage and ability to get on top of squishy targets quickly before slipping out after they’re dead, there’s a lot to love about what Kha’zix brings to a team.

Kha’zix has seen a lot of success with First Strike rune loadouts alongside a Ghostblade rush which, with its new Mythic Item status, gives Kha’zix that stacking flat damage alongside movement speed that he simply loves to feast from. Through this in with a bounty of CDR options within his item pool, alongside many Top Laners and AD Mids opting for Black Cleaver to assist in his reaving abilities and Kha’s a happy camper in the meta.

Rek’sai, the Void Burrower - Jungle 29.3% Ban Rate

The original Void Queen comes in now on the list occupying a terrifyingly stalwart presence through not only multiple patches this season but since Season 12 where she was always regarded as one of the game’s finest snowball options from Jungle.

Rek’sai’s ability to traverse the map, have high impact ganks, a strong 2v2, and high snowball and dive potential against squishy targets marks her in quite a similar fashion to Kha’zix with an ability to take over the game. However, unlike Kha, Rek also has the potential to go a more Bruiser focused route if her team is lacking in the way of frontline. This flexibility is invaluable as she’s already one of the game’s most blind pickable Champions without this factor, but with her build flexibility between Bruiser and Lethality, she can really shape to each and every game state she encounters. Overall, Rek’sai simply can do everything a Jungler needs to be done right now and then some with her only weakness being her late-game where she tends to stall comparatively to other popular picks like Kha, Ivern, or Kindred. But, in Solo Queue where most games are decided by picks, she’s quite good at hunting down and taking out marks that are traversing through her Jungle unaware.

Zed, the Master of Shadows - Mid, Jungle, 29.2% Ban Rate

Zed like Kha’zix and Rek’sai has benefitted from the item rebalancing that took place this season. Like Kha’zix, First Strike loadouts tend to be Zed’s go-to choice as his Q poke through wave allows him to not only nick in extra damage on his opponents but also gain a bit of extra income towards his defining Mythic Item, Duskblade, which post rework, is probably in one of the most obnoxious states is ever been in thats to its effect to make the user untargetable after a successful kill.

This untargetability combined with the flood of CDR within Assassin item kits allows Zed to zip in, blow up a target, zip out without taking a bit of damage, before zipping back in again once his cooldowns are back up or someone mispositions near one of his shadows. Combine these things with his strength against other popular Mids like ASol, Ahri, Yone, and Katarina, and you’ve got a great Champion to drop a ban on, especially if you’re worried your team is going to have the necessary point and click to lock Zed down before things get silly.

Honorable Mentions - Various Ban Rates

Before we close you out entirely, I wanted to chime in on a run of picks and give a quick ‘why you should ban this’ with each Champion instead of discussing them a bit deeper.

Leblanc: She’s been abusing the new Statikk Shiv in both Mid and Top Lane to a ton of success. The item itself is in line for an early rework, so abuse while you can LB-Mains.

Blitzcrank: Enchanters like Milio and Janna are still popular, despite the resurgence of Tanks and Hook-Champs. Blitz is the God-Hook, so banning him if you play an immobile Champion is a great choice.

Karthus: Karthus holds a 50% win rate in Jungle and Mid, but it’s his Bot Lane presence that’s really stupid. With a staggering 55% win rate in Bot, Karthus Bot is just absolutely nutty and with such a low playrate it’s hard to see Riot adjusting it anytime soon.

Rengar: Mentioned alongside Kha’zix, Rengar is just one of those Champions that can really take over a game of Solo Queue once he catches the smallest of leads. Viable both Jungle and Top, this cat’s worthy of a ban if you value the life of your ADC.

Malphite: Malphite’s been strong for many patches now and it’s all thanks to his simplicity. Seen squishy or team, hit with ult. It can’t get simpler than that. Double in the fact that he matches well against AD Mids like Zed, the Wind Brothers, and a lot of other popular Tops, and Malphites a great choice for bans for AD focused players.

Closing Out

So, there you have it! An evaluation of some of League’s spiciest ban options right now, alongside some honorable mentions. Keep an eye out for what the Statikk Shiv changes there are (if any) as that item seems to be one of the most volatile options going forward and could really dictate the power of picks like Leblanc, Kai’Sa, Quinn, and more going forward. Until next time though, good luck in the final days of your first split push!