FOTM Ranked Solo Queue Tier List (High Elo) ~ Patch 8.1 - January

 Season 8 is almost here, and the champion pools are starting to stabilize...we're seeing a lot of Ezreal and Leona domination, and Zoe is shaping up to be the new Yasuo of Season 8. That's great news for you Yasuo mains, now we just need to find four other champions players hate more than your favorite roaming swordsman!

SEASON 8 - January- PATCH 8.1
FOTM RANKED META TIER LIST

"PLAY LIKE A PROFESSIONAL"

Preface Chatter

Are you ready for what your opponents will bring to the table during their initial try-hard splurge in Season 8? Make sure you're prepared to face off against champions like Vayne and Zed, because that's what they'll be playing. Be sure to visit the ban list to figure out what to take out of the game, and check out the full FOTM list below!

The purpose of the "Flavor of the Month" ("FOTM") list is to show which champions are popular in today's metagame in terms of pro picks and high Elo choices.

If you're looking for the division climber solo queue tier list, be sure to check it out via this link!

For a list of champions with the highest *potential* in the game without regard to difficulty or team synergies, check out the list of strongest potential champions in each position!

Be sure to check out our the Optimal Champion Bans by Division Listing!

Patch 8.1 Summary

Buffs: Brand, Evelynn, Graves, Skarner, Syndra

Nerfs: Heimerdinger, Kayle, Zoe

Toolkit and Options

Search for a champion:

Updates:

• Added Vayne report
• Strongest Champions When Mastered updated

The Tier List

God Tier [High Priority Picks]:
Mid-Lane Gods: Zed, Yasuo, Zoe, Katarina, Malzahar
Jungle Gods: Lee Sin, Kayn, Kha'Zix
Marksman Gods: Vayne, Ezreal, Jhin
Top Lane Gods: Yasuo, Gangplank, Riven, Camille
Support Gods: Thresh, Janna, Lulu

Tier 1 [Meta Picks]:
Mid-Lane: Orianna, Azir, Fizz, Ahri, Vladimir, Kassadin, Lux, Xerath, Twisted Fate, LeBlanc, Ryze, Ekko, Veigar, Syndra, Brand, Anivia
Jungle: Evelynn, Jarvan IV, Shyvana, Warwick, Sejuani, Master Yi, Rengar, Rammus, Xin Zhao, Jax, Graves, Shaco, Udyr, Nidalee, Vi, Elise, Camille
Marksman: Draven, Tristana, Miss Fortune, Xayah, Varus, Caitlyn, Twitch
Top Lane: Nasus, Ornn, Illaoi, Fiora, Darius, Jax, Teemo, Gnar, Shen, Vladimir, Jayce, Maokai, Irelia, Garen, Malphite, Renekton, Akali, Singed, Pantheon, Yorick
Support: Blitzcrank, Leona, Nami, Alistar, Rakan, Soraka, Morgana, Braum, Bard, Brand

Tier 2 [Crowd Favorites]:
Mid-Lane: Cassiopeia, Talon, Diana, Taliyah, Morgana, Corki, Akali, Vel'Koz, Jayce, Gangplank, Annie, Viktor, Ziggs, Karthus, Lissandra
Jungle: Twitch, Zac, Skarner, Hecarim, Riven, Pantheon, Kindred, Amumu, Gragas, Rek'Sai, Nocturne, Cho'Gath, Maokai, Wukong, Diana, Ekko
Marksman: Jinx, Lucian, Ashe, Kalista, Kog'Maw, Sivir
Top Lane: Urgot, Cho'Gath, Sion, Tryndamere, Jarvan IV, Kled, Rumble, Poppy, Rengar, Trundle, Tahm Kench, Kennen, Kayle, Dr. Mundo, Aatrox, Wukong, Ryze, Heimerdinger, Udyr
Support: Karma, Sona, Taric, Tahm Kench, Zoe, Shen, Zyra, Lux, Xerath, Miss Fortune, Teemo

Tier 3 [Playable]:
Mid-Lane: Aurelion Sol, Galio, Lucian, Karma, Heimerdinger, Zilean, Swain
Jungle: Ivern, Fiddlesticks, Aatrox, Dr. Mundo, Tryndamere, Nunu, Trundle
Marksman: Corki, Quinn
Top Lane: Swain, Ekko, Galio, Mordekaiser, Olaf, Quinn, Talon, Nautilus
Support: Zilean, Vel'Koz, Nautilus, Veigar, Fiddlesticks

Tier 4 [Rarely Seen]:
Mid-Lane: Kayle, Fiddlesticks, Gragas, Kennen
Jungle: Olaf, Volibear, Poppy, Aurelion Sol, Quinn
Marksman:
Top Lane: Lissandra, Gragas, Karthus, Volibear, Nunu
Support: Annie, Sion, Nunu

Instructions and Caveats:

• This tier list details which champions are most popular in today's current metagame, for better or for worse. Selecting a high popularity champion and doing mediocre is always favorable to selecting a low tier champion and doing mediocre for team morale.

Click Here for a description of the tiers

God Tier: These champions are common bans and are likely perceived as being "overall extremely strong/broken". They have very obvious and/or flashy skills that make them appear stronger than other champions. You'll likely see these champions picked early on if they're not banned.

Tier 1: These champions are the ones you'll see in the majority of your games and are good to familiarize yourself with as you'l be battling against them a lot.

Tier 2: These champions are relatively strong and have historically been picked more often than other champions. They may have been nerfed at one point at another, but are still perceived as strong in their current states.

Tier 3: These champions aren't quite as popular as the rest of the champions in the first 3 tiers, but picking them one at a time isn't going to cause much of a concern on your team. However, if you have a team of 5 of them your teammates are likely to feel a bit uneasy about your chances of winning in solo queue.

Tier 4: Selecting these champions will likely cause a rift between you and your teammates, who will proceed to flame you if you fail your lane. Exercise caution when selecting these champions, as team morale often plays a big part in victory or defeat.

Champion Explanations

• Alistar [Tier 1 Support] - Alistar in his current form is incredibly strong and helps to fill the roll of traditional tanks that were replaced by bruisers in the top lane and jungle. His crowd-control abilities and dive potential are stellar, and the only thing that's preventing him from being super-overpowered is the fact that Vayne is the top marksman in the meta right now. Once the percentage-based true damage stops being so popular Alistar should steamroll over the rest of the marksmen with ease.
• Camille [God Tier Top] - Ever since the Tiamat changes and a switch to the Arcane Comet Keystone, Camille became very popular in the top lane. Trades feel skewed in her favor, and her waveclear/dueling abilities are above average. 
• Camille [Tier 1 Jungle] - Along with the bump up in top lane play, Jungle Camille suddenly became "a thing" in Patch 8.1. I'd say she's not bad in jungle, but certainly not something that's "broken". A good Camille player can do some damage, but a mediocre one will find it difficult to get good ganks off.
• Evelynn [Tier 1 Jungle] - The Evelynn buff this patch was really more of a bug fix, but she's been on the rise since patch 7.24 when they fixed her Allure [W] magic resist shred and impoved her passive warning for the user. Ever since players moved away from tanks and into bruisers, Evelynn's been very good at deleting enemy champions before she can be caught. The reduced magic resist during the preseason has also been beneficial for her damage.
• Gangplank [God Tier Top] - Kleptomancy is incredibly good for Gangplank, and very satisfying to play. As a result, his rise to popularity has been fueled by his simple strategy and reduced experience needed for timing his barrels ever since the removal of cooldown runes.
• Leona [Tier 1 Support] - After the Leona nerfs, her damage has slid drastically. She's still very good, but just no longer a faceroll win like she used to be. If you enjoy playing her, she's actually not banned much anymore. This could be your new main for Season 8.
• Orianna [Tier 1 Mid] - As ranked Season 8 winds up, expect to see a lot more Orianna players coming out of the woodwork. She's incredibly good at team fighting, safe during laning phase, and has the ability to solo the majority of enemy laners. 
• Sivir [Tier 2 Marksman] - Sivir excels in metas where bot lane is difficult to survive for marksmen. Ever since the relic shield meta started, bot lane has been incredibly easy to survive and thus favors mobile hypercarries instead.
• Udyr [Tier 1 Jungle] - Udyr's making quite a comeback lately, and although his kit isn't the favorite for mobility-loving players, a small niche group do enjoy split-pushing to "open da gatez".
• Xerath [Tier 2 Support] - After a brief stint as the crown favorite to play along-side Jhin, he's been replaced by peel supports now that hypercarries are back in the mix.
• Vayne [God Tier Marksman] - Vayne in her current form is incredibly strong as a result of how safe bot lane is for marksmen. She can farm to her heart's content without worrying about dying tragically early game. This results in a powerhouse mid to late game that can snowball the team no matter how behind they are.

Disclaimer:

• The purpose of this list is for discussion and to provide a starting point for champion selection.

Agree? Disagree? Comment below!

Looking for older versions of the FOTM Tier List?

Check out prior versions via this link!