1.16 Hero Tier List

Last changed 04/13/2016 for update 1.16.

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Update 1.16 Tier List: Burn, Baby, Burn!

Another new update, another new tier list. Update 1.16 introduced Alpha, the heartbreaking robot who sends chills down your spine when you hear her lines. There were two impactful item changes. The first was Alternating Current, which enjoyed a large attack speed increase from 40% up to 65% as well as a small CP increase from 50 to 60; however, its passive was nerfed down to just 70% CP every other auto as opposed to 115%. The second was Broken Myth; instead of 7 stacks of 5% crystal damage amplification, it’s now 5 stacks of 7%. This has proven to be a fairly large buff to longer ranged CP heroes. Without further ado, let’s get into it! Notice that this time, instead of doing a paragraph for each hero, we’ve made a graphic detailing the actual list, which is then supplemented by juicy details below. As always, hero names are links to their build pages. Let us know what you think of this new format!

Update 1.16-01

Lane

Vainglorious

Reigning champion of the fold this update is the mighty Skaarfungandr (1). He was a top-tier laner last patch, and with the change to Broken Myth as well as another nerf to Ringo, he’s even stronger than before, poking and kiting all day. Vox (2) follows close behind; with Ringo’s aggressive bullying out of the picture, Vox is now much more likely to scale into his deadly late-game, and the faster Alternating Current gives him more AoE (area of effect) damage than before.

Although Blackfeather (3) did receive a slight nerf in 1.16 to Rose Offensive, he’s still extremely powerful due to his high damage output and stickiness. At the bottom of the Vainglorious tier is Adagio (4) – his kit was reworked to be less powerful when just buffing an ally, but more powerful when buffing himself and smacking a burning target. In 1.16, he’s actually very viable as a standalone carry (particularly with the Alternating Current change), but can still fall back into a buff bot role if necessary, albeit slightly less effective doing so than before.

Simply Amazing

There’s nothing too surprising in this tier. Ringo (5) is still strong in capable hands, but after yet another nerf to Twirling Silver, he trades less favorably in lane and has definitely fallen out of the top tier. Glaive (6) received some nice buffs to put him back in the meta, and has returned as a situational lane pick.

Celeste (7) received some nice buffs this update that Celeste players of olden times have been enjoying, but for the average player, she still suffers the same drawbacks as before. In a very mobile meta, her Core Collapse is less effective than Goop when it comes to both CC and damage, and loading the majority of her damage into the supernova means she is much less effective at kiting than Skaarf. Joule (8) just barely scrapes out of Getting There this update; her damage is great, but she’s a bit clunky for the mobile meta.

Getting There

Well, SAW‘s (9) here.

Jungle

Vainglorious

Glaive (1) has moved way up the list after some moderate buffs. He’s currently a top-tier hero because of just how flexible he is as a jungler – he can snowball aggressively, he can focus on peeling and defending a squishy crystal carry, or he can dive and try to assassinate enemy carries. Skaarf (2) and Adagio (3) are both top-tier junglers for the same reasons they’re top-tier laners: they have great damage and they can kite all day.

Simply Amazing

Reim (4) is at the top of the mid-tier this update because of just how strong he is against melee heroes. Have you played as a melee against Reim?! He’s freakin’ insanely tanky! However, he isn’t quite top-tier because he can practically only be picked after you know who the enemy jungler will be; picking a Reim into a Skye usually ends up being a bad time. Krul (5), slightly less strong than in 1.15 due to his barrier being cut in half, is still looking fairly powerful due to his combination of massive Smite base damage and unique damage debuff. Blackfeather (6), while fantastic in lane, still suffers a somewhat slow early-game in jungle, but most players know how to play around it by now.

Jungle Skye (7) is strong in the right hands, but is still suffering from the 200 Gold increase to Frostburn; SurpriseBirthday once said that FB is Skye, but frankly I’m not too sure if he meant Frostburn or Forward Barrage. Fortress (8) is still a fairly strong pick for a crystal power jungler, though he’s faded somewhat into obscurity because roam Fortress is much more popular. If you get Fortress in Battle Royale, though, build him crystal, and you’ll just win.

Taka (9) is coincidentally another great Battle Royale hero, but fares somewhat less well in real games. The flare delay was a small de facto buff to Taka’s ability to stealth, but Taka still suffers from extreme squishiness, and Glaive is a prime counter to Taka. Rona (10) seems much stronger than she was in 1.15; dumping points into Foesplitter makes her chunk enemies. However, she still seems somewhat unpopular, perhaps due to “Petal syndrome,” where a hero that was previously incredibly weak is still perceived, despite actually being strong, to be weak. Or maybe she’s just still not too strong.

Kestrel (11), who ran amok in the jungle for what seemed like the longest month ever, still hasn’t climbed back up to near her previous standing. However, don’t take her lightly; in the right hands, she can still demolish you with absurd scaling on her Glimmershots. Surprisingly, almost no one has been playing Petal (12), likely because there are just better choices for a CP jungler, and also because her current kit doesn’t really facilitate comebacks. Alpha (13), the newbie in the fold, is an absolute potato early-game. And by potato, I mean potato. She’s awful. Come late-game, though, you better watch out, because she’s nigh unkillable and does crazy damage.

Getting There

Koshka (14) received a fairly hard nerf to her early- and mid-game, and her late-game has always been pretty dang bad. Unfortunately, without a strong early- and mid-game to make up for a potato late-game, Koshka has fallen to bottom-tier. Joule (15) is even worse in jungle than she is in lane. Her early-game damage has never been great, so it’s fairly easy to snowball against her. Ozo (16) is in the bottom tier because of just how unpopular he is. Despite the unimpressive and deceptively simplistic kit, he does have a fairly high skill cap, so it’s entirely possible no one has really bothered to figure out how to play him properly. If you’ve ever played him before, Ozo can be surprisingly bursty, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see a monkey meta soon after some love in the form of hugs and buffs.

Roam

Vainglorious

Touched upon briefly above, Fortress (1) is definitely the top pick for roam this patch, particularly in mid-Elo. His kit lends movement speed to otherwise kitable heroes such as Reim, Glaive, and Krul, and his ability to bleed and burst a target down make him a prime choice for any team wanting to focus a carry down (hint: basically every team).

Coming in hot is Phinn (2). After receiving yet another buff, the river troll has finally crossed into “OP” territory, with many high-tier players complaining about, among other things, the absurdly short cooldown on Forced Accord. His early-game was buffed in 1.16 with a change to the radius of Quibble, making it much easier to land, and boy does it hurt if it lands! Confirming damage onto a target or two at the level 2 fight with a Quibble usually means you win the fight. However, Phinn does still have a fairly high skill cap, and most players can’t play him to his full potential, which is why he’s #2 instead of steak sauce. Sad dad Ardan (3) is still a very capable support with excellent peel, and has several early-game strengths called his fists. Seriously, though, Blood for Blood hurts a lot.

Simply Amazing

Catherine (4) has seen better days. Her silence still makes an incredible impact in teamfights if it lands, but after being a top-tier roam for the last few months, people have learned to block that pesky ultimate. She also doesn’t synergize quite as well with top-tier carries Vox, Blackfeather, and Adagio as much as Ardan does. Roam Adagio (5), in just one update, has dropped from one of the most popular roams to the worst dedicated roam hero. The changes to his kit make him more effective as a standalone carry, but if you’re building Alternating Current on roam Adagio, you’re doing it wrong.

Top Bans

blackfeather adagio_square phinn krul_square

These dudes are by far the most common bans just because of how obnoxious they are to deal with. Blackfeather’s stickiness and damage output makes him a dangerous enemy, Adagio’s just annoying with all those heals and buffs, Krul’s debuffs and damage are a pain, and Phinn’s hooks are irritating as all heck. Every now and then, you might see bans on Skaarf, Vox, and Fortress for obvious reasons, though they’re typically easier to counterplay, so they get fewer bans.

Top Picks

skaarf_square glaive vox_square fortress

Aside from the heroes in the top bans section, Skaarf, Glaive, Vox, and Fortress are the most popular draft picks. They’re all very strong heroes in the current meta, so it’s not hard to see why they’re priority picks. Reim is a priority counterpick; if you see a Glaive on the enemy team, a Reim choice might not be too bad.


That’s all! Be sure to leave us your thoughts on the new format.

To view older tier lists, click here.