Glory in Navori: 10 decks to play in the new Set (Standard Edition)

A lot has changed in Runeterra this week; we're experiencing the first rotation in the game, which separated it into Standard and Eternal formats.

The Eternal format, in which all cards available in game are also available to play, and the Standard format, which has a rotation of cards, that is, some cards are not available to play. In the latter, most of the official competitive tourneys will be played overall.

You can check out a full list of cards which aren't available to play in Standard format here.

In this article, I've listed a few decks that will be available to play on the first few days of the new set, so you can have your fun in ranked.

I've also listed a few decks that went buy unnoticed by rotation, and might be quite strong. If you're one of those players who enjoy climbing fast early in the season, those lists are for you.

Samira Jack

Samira is here to stay, and this champion seems quite strong. In this list, she pairs up with Jack, who has proved himself to be an extremely versatile champion as well. This deck's idea is to prepare an explosive turn in which you'll play many cards and do numerous actions, this way activating Samira's level up effect, and maybe even rallying.

This list doesn't play as a regular Aggro, because it has combo elements. So, the idea is to be careful in the first few turns and hold your resources, and when you have in your hands all the pieces to combo, that's when you'll play all of your cards.

Samira is your main win condition, as the idea with this deck is to rally with this champion and attack more than once per turn. Jack is useful as a valor tool for this list, and gives you access to the Coin mechanic. Because of him, it is possible to have heavier cards and combos regarding mana cost, because Coins allow you that, and we have, for instance, Riptide Rex and Citrus Courier.

Sett Jack

Sett so far seems to be the weakest of the new champions, but this champion seems to work really well with Jack, as both seem to be made to play together.

The combination of these two card packages which provide support to the new champions is very synergistic. This way, we have a Midrange list full of combat tricks and shenanigans that we had never before seen in Runeterra, much less in these regions.

The idea with this list is to control the enemy board by positioning big units with beefy stats. This way, throughout the match you'll be removing enemy units and hoarding some Coins, until you have enough mana to play a super combo and finish the match.

Your finishers are Nukkle and his buddies Mako and Bull. When one is played on board, the other is summoned on your hand.

When these cards came out, they didn't seem that strong, but the Coin mechanic is outstanding and allows this combo to be viable. Rallying is quite strong, and it seems to be the theme of the first few days of the new set.

Samira MF Aggro

Do you like violence? Fast decks? This deck is for you. This list is full of 1 cost units, and also cards that create 1 cost units, such as Marai Warden.

The idea with this deck is to benefit from Jagged Taskmaster, and buff all your 1 cost units' attacks globally. Knowing that, it is possible to use Daring Demolisher to activate Jagged Taskmaster's effect again and therefore your whole board, and future 1 cost units, will have countless attack points.

Besides this super neat and strong combo with Taskmaster + Demolisher, this deck plays at the speed of a normal aggro, but with a few key details.

Miss Fortune can level up a lot easier as Samira is in the game, and allows the player to rally after playing 6 cards in her level 2 form. This list also doesn't suffer too much from lack of value in hand or draw value, as Samira creates many cards while she's on board, besides having card draw and also numerous units that summon other units.

This list seems quite dangerous, and I highly recommend it for those who want to climb the ranked ladder quickly in the first day.

Jack Jayce

Jayce is on the rise and went by unnoticed by the rotation ban hammer, and guess what, he matches Jack a lot.

The new Bilgewater champion is quite versatile, and allows lists to have a Coin generation engine, with the addition of a very beefy unit on board, Jack himself.

As this Midrange Jayce archetype was already on the rise and remained unaltered by major changes, the support kit Jack brings allows for very heavy combos and plays which before weren't possible to do in a single turn, and are now completely normal to happen in a match.

The deck plays as a regular Midrange Jack archetype, with Slow Burn elements to finish matches, such as Albus Ferros and Shock Blast. Even Riptide Rex shows up as a finisher in case everything goes wrong. This list looks very promising, and definitely Jayce lovers will enjoy the new airs Jack is bringing to this archetype.

Diana Kayn

I'm a Control player, so, I don't identify with aggressive metas, and I know many who read my deck guides and meta analysis are also control lovers. So, this is my gift to you!

This list is me trying to bring the two newest Targon cards, Cosmic Youngling and Falling Star, into the meta. It is a very slow list that benefits from Kayn's cultist package going by unaltered by rotation. This Darkin champion is proficient in healing and controlling the enemy board, and that added to the new Targon healing cards, we have a list that brings the game to late turns as a rule.

Its main win condition is Kayn itself; this champion grows considerably each time its Darkin form, Rhaast, slays a unit. But, if everything goes wrong, you still have The Darkin Lodestone which summons Horazi, which can be a great finisher, and we also have Aurelion Sol for dire situations.

Considering we are going into a very aggressive meta, we can expect healing and removals to start, bit by bit, showing up in the meta as well to answer the fast decks. This Kayn list is my first attempt at answering the meta.

Annie Jhin

Annie and Jhin made it to last season as the most played deck, and come into this season with the new set almost untouched by the Rotation hammer. The list lost a few cards that were part of this archetype. I believe Annie and Jhin are still strong, and I highly recommend playing this list to climb the ranked ladder fast early in the season.

The deck plays very rhythmically, and on curve. At each turn, you'll summon a threat on board against the enemy Nexus, and everything you do is very synergistic with your champions. Gradually, you'll deal damage to your opponent and build your board, until you reach a certain point when your stun skills are removing enemy blockers, and finish the match.

The only real loss this deck might feel is Decimate rotating out, which served as a win condition for this list. But many Annie Jhin players were already bringing only one copy of this card, so, I believe it won't make that much of a difference after all.

Scouts

The Scouts list is possibly stronger than ever. Historically, this archetype performs really well against Aggro metas, and with the arrival of new champions and this list not taking one hit in rotation, this deck is spectacular.

This list benefits from the Scout keyword, which allows you to attack more than once per turn. This way, your whole deck has synergy with this mechanic, even the champions. It is a very aggressive list, even if it is a deck that prefers to trade favorably and play a match controlling the enemy board with challenger units.

The newest additions to this deck are the units Blocking Badgerbear and the spell Form Up!. Now Scouts can't deal with Elusives at burst speed anymore as Sharpsight was rotated out, but they have Badgerbear to solve this issue, without losing a cheap combat trick in the list with the addition of Form Up!.

Another change was the switch from Golden Aegis to Relentless Pursuit, because Aegis was rotated out. Other than that, the deck plays exactly as it played before rotation. I highly recommend this list for those who want to climb fast in the first few days of the new set.

Heimer Jayce

This list, as amazing as it sounds, didn't suffer at all from rotation. Heimerdinger and Jayce were arguably the most consistent list last season.

This deck went through many transformations, as it began being a super slow control list and bit by bit turned into a Midrange which can take on any opponent. At the end of the season, this list was the only control list which could take on Ryze and win against Aggro, and also defeat Midranges! And after almost no cards were rotated out for this archetype, I believe this deck keeps on extremely strong.

This list plays as a solid Midrange. You'll position units with strong stats at each turn, and you'll also have at your disposal removal tools to deal with threats. But, unlike other Midranges, the greatest strength of this list comes in the way it closes out matches.

The strategy is based on Slow Burn elements to finish the game, either with heavy spells or skills regarding mana cost which will deal direct damage to the enemy Nexus. Albus Ferros and Shock Blast are two of this list's main tools to finish matches.

In case you want to play tournaments, I believe this deck needs to be in your lineup. It is the safest list in the whole game in regard to win rate among the meta decks. And considering the more Midrange/Combo meta that will come into Runeterra with the new cards, Heimerdinger Jayce tends to remain strong.

Aatrox Kayn

A classic; Aatrox and Kayn, the two Darkin, had absolutely no cards from their packages rotated out.

This list was a bit left out last season, as it suffered a lot from the nerfs it took after 2022's World Championship, and the meta wasn't favorable to it as well.

But, with a faster meta game and more direct damage being dealt to the Nexus, as Darkins are specialists in healing, the trend is that they come back at full force. Besides that, no Darkin equipment was rotated out, and equipment removal won't be popular in the first few days.

The deck plays slowly; You'll worry about placing valuable units on board which will heal your Nexus, and control the enemy board. Eventually, you'll finish matches with either Aatrox or another Darkin hitting the enemy Nexus.

Considering the meta in this new set, it may be possible that you won't even need to summon the Darkins on board, as healing your Nexus looks like a mechanic that will simply break completely the strategy of new decks.

I believe this deck is also a great option for those who want to play in tournaments in the first few days of expansion.

Jax Ornn

Look, another list that went by unnoticed by the rotation hammer. Keep in mind we had a patch last season which was responsible for bringing this archetype into the meta.

And because of this deck, we had all the Ryze rise to deal with, as Ryze could take on Jax easily. Actually, the whole meta had to adapt to deal with this deck. And it might come back at full force into the game now.

This list is the main course of Legends of Runeterra competitive Midrange goodstuff. I even have an article on here that says, and I quote: "This list is the new Aatrox Kayn, but better and faster", and it really is.

The only real loss this deck might have had was the spell Troll Chant, which was essential for mid-turns in this list. Besides that, nothing has changed. This deck remains incredibly strong, full of tools to deal with the enemy board, and many gigantic units.

This list I'll recommend for players that want to deal emotional damage to folks in the ranked ladder, because it is very hard to face it. If your fun involves ending someone else's fun, this deck is for you.

Well, now you have an idea of what is probably strong, and what we'll see in the first few days of the new set.

I hope this article helped you choose which will be the first list you'll test out in the first few days. In case you liked this content, don't forget to share and comment on social media. See you!