LoR: 5 Ways to Play Neeko in Standard

Today, we'll talk about one of the most charismatic champions in the entire game: Neeko!

I brought you 5 different ways to play with her; they're extremely viable for the ranked queue, as well as grassroot tournaments.

Let's see them, from the most classic list to the newest brew!

This archetype is extremely popular among casual players, but it also stood out a lot in the last competitive season of 2023, at the World Championship.

This list was incredibly competitive, and also one of the most important decks at this tournament. Now, in 2024 with the new rotation, this is the most upgraded version. Because The Poro Parade came along, this archetype no longer struggles with losing gas all of a sudden, and this was one of the greatest issues Neeko decks had.

As this list plays cards every turn, respecting its own mana curve, players usually run out of cards quite fast. The Poro Parade is a great card because it creates units in your hand, and helps you keep a good pace until the end of the match.

Cards like Handy Harness, Ultrasoft Poro, and Crested Lionhawk are relatively new and modern for this archetype; they greatly impacted this deck after the new rotation came along.

Neeko was one of the champions that most benefitted from the new rotation, and, as a result, she is very popular on the ranked queue. A few of the reasons behind this are the fact her decks are simple to play and also quite fast, so they're excellent to climb ranks without many issues.

After the new rotation came along, Elder Dragon archetypes took over the ranked queue even more than last season, and quickly became the most popular archetype in this season post-rotation. Neeko Elder Dragon strays away from the model regular Elder Dragon decks play in. It puts a really straightforward idea to practice with a list that doesn't use any spells and focuses on just playing units.

This deck is great to play against other Elder Dragon lists because it is faster than them, even more so because it plays strong units as early as turn 1. So, you'll dominate the board much earlier than your opponent, and stop them from turning the game back around.

This deck is just a bunch of the "good cards" both of these champions include in their Origins. This mixture is surprisingly competitive, and full of synergies and inner combos.

Additionally, it is also a Warden of the Tribes list, which is their main win condition. I'll highlight cards like Horned Swarmcaller and Cithria the Bold, which are extremely strong in the current meta, and many times carry this deck on their back.

This version is maybe the most fun and complex list out of all the Neeko decks that exist.

The Neeko Shurima archetype struggled a bit after the new rotation because many incredibly strong cards in this list are no longer in Standard. We're talking about Forsaken Baccai and Xer'Sai Caller, which Predict cards and greatly improve the deck's consistency. They also interact with Neeko directly.

However, you can still build a great list like this with what's left in Standard.

Unlike other Neeko decks, this deck's alternative win condition is Xolaani, which, besides summoning a Cultist unit when her bearer dies, is a Darkin, which adds two extra subtypes to Neeko's level up. And there's more: Xolaani is a "premium" 7/7 unit that costs 6 and has Overwhelm. The fact she forces you to sacrifice an ally to play her on the board isn't a problem because her stats make up for it.

You can also use Rite of Negation in this archetype to surprise your enemies.

And lastly, you'll have Azir and Nasus, which have two subtypes each - Ascended and Bird and Dog, respectively. This will level up Neeko in no time.

Just like we use only one copy of Elder Dragon in the decks with it, this version of Neeko's archetype abuses her origin to get all the Birds you need in a single deck. Taloned Strike grants all birds +1/+1 globally, so nothing is more fair than adding Neeko to this list, as she lets you build decks with all the Birds in the game.

The most important cards in this list are Royal Shimmerwing and Swiftwing Lancer, which will practically carry the entire archetype. Your champions are also critical because you'll buff your units with Garen and stop attacks and heal yourself with Morgana.

This list also has 3 copies of Solari Sunhawk, which, on its own, ends any offensive attack, regardless of the turn you play it. And lastly, the greatest finishers in this deck are your copies of Ferocious Fluffs.

This list might be the weakest of all 5 in this list because it had 0 registered games in the last few months, besides not at all popular. It probably needs more refining as well. Still, it deserved a spot on our list because it is a Neeko deck. I encourage you to test it out and upgrade it on the ranked queue!

As we don't have many aggressive archetypes right now, this Neeko Noxus list came up. It focuses on Overwhelm and Burn, with many aggressive units.

This version is, without a shadow of a doubt, the fastest one of all, and is really similar to old Pirate decks. You'll play your units on curve and, when you need to, you'll use your spells. You'll give your units Overwhelm and deal damage directly to the Nexus to deal even more damage on your offensive turns.

This deck also has a new equipment card, which so far was a bit forgotten: Blighted Battleaxe, by far the best card in terms of how many stats it gives you for how much mana it costs. We also have Red-Barbed Razormace, which really matches this plan and deals damage to the Nexus directly because of its Curse.

However, the star of this deck is Decisive Maneuver, which returned to the meta after 4 years. It is a great option to stun units offensively and also guarantees a lot of stats to your units.

This list is quite strong, and is currently one of the best-performing decks on the ranked queue. It is a great new idea that is very efficient against Elder Dragon decks and practically the rest of the meta.

If you read this far, thank you! I hope you enjoyed reading this article.

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