On the final day of the Nebula NA Qualifiers, 5-costs dominated the lobbies. 1st and 2nd place boards featured an average of 3.75 Legendary units.
If you’re looking to Top 4 in your lobby, head up to level 9 to double your chances of finding those coveted Legendary 5-costs! In the Top 4 finishes, 15 out of the 16 boards were level 9. There was only 1 board (Blaster/Brawler, 4th place) that ended at level 8.
Move aside Jarvan, Bard is my new best friend now!
Today’s winner, Saintvicious, played Bard in every game.
In the 2nd lobby, Bard was played by all of the Top 3, and in game 3, multiple players used their double Neekos on Brother Bard.
Why Bard…? His strength lies in his spell which grants Meeps that can be exchanged for experience at a 1:1 rate. When you are trying to reach level 9 ASAP, Bard can help you get there fast!
Simple math for fast leveling: 1 Meep = 1 exp = 1 gold.
In one particular round, opposing Bards made a total of 22 Meeps! Hopefully, now you can see why playing Bard might be a solid strategy.
Bard can hold also your 5-costs’ items! Shojin/Runaan’s for your Janna or Guinsoo/Blue Buff for your Xerath. Everybody wins!
Naturally, you’ll want to play Bard with your strongest board. Bard is typically found in Protector and Vanguard comps because the longer the round goes, the more the Meeps. Play Vanguard Mystics with Cassiopeia or benefit from the attack speed buff of Jarvan’s Protectors.
Here are some great guides for playing these comps:
Urgot is in, Thresh is out!
In previous tournament days, Urgot sat on the bench, waiting to be pulled in by Thresh. Today he stood on his own and was played in 60% of the Top 2 boards, while Thresh was only seen once. He ate a lot of carries and was used to activate the 4 Protector trait.
Rakan > Xin Zhao
Rakan appeared 10 times in Top 4 boards, while Xin Zhao was only seen 2 times. That’s something to consider when you’re deciding which of the two to play on your board.
Aurelion Sol won in every game.
In this era of AOE disables, immunity is pretty good. Janna’s tornadoes, Ashe’s arrows, and jumping Rakans can’t reach this boss. Many players run Celestial which helps the Starship stay alive longer and dish out sick damage. The longer the fight, the stronger the Sol.
Shojin is a good item.
Put Shojin on Rakan or Ashe for a strong AOE disable, then transfer it to Janna for Tornado Time!
The Top 2 Boards
| Winner | 2nd Place | |
|---|---|---|
| Lobby 1: Trade Sector |
6 Star Guardian, 2 Sorcerer, Dark Star, Protector, Celestial, Mystic, Paragon, Starship Itemized: Syndra, Dark Star Neeko, Star Guardian Xerath, Janna |
4 Dark Star, Protector, 2 Celestial, Mystic, Paragon Itemized: Jarvan, Jhin, Xerath |
| Lobby 2: Dwarf Planet |
4 Mystic, 2 Vanguard, Chrono, Starship Itemized: Cassiopeia, Jayce, Thresh, Asol |
4 Dark Star, Protector, 3 Star Guardian, 2 Mystic Itemized: Jhin, Xerath, Jarvan |
| Lobby 3: Neekoverse |
4 Dark Star, 2 Protector, Sniper, Celestial, Mystic, Starship Itemized: Jarvan, Xerath, Asol |
4 Protector, 3 Star Guardian, 2 Dark Star, Celestial, Mystic, Paragon, Starship Itemized: Janna, Asol, Xerath |
| Lobby 4: Trade Sector |
2 Protector, Infiltrator, Celestial, Mystic, Starship Itemized: Asol, Lulu, Thresh, Neeko |
3 Blademaster, 2 Dark Star, 2 Protector, Chrono, Celestial, Mystic, Paragon Itemized: Xayah, Riven, Jarvan |
Conclusion
5-cost compositions powered by Bard dominated the lobbies, Asol is a good unit, Shojin is a good item, and Rakan is better than Xin-Zhao. Dark Star won only 1 game, so maybe the meta is evolving.
A big congrats to all the semifinalists!
