In League of Legends, the heroine Annie experiences a renaissance. “The Child of Darkness” has been in the game since 2009 and was long considered a typical beginner champion. However, the 13.3 update has now made her a feared pick in the European professional league LEC. She is particularly strong as a supporter, although she was never intended for the role.
Why is Annie considered feared?
- Annie is the only champion in the LEC with a 100% “Pick and Ban” rate during the Spring Split 2023: In every single game of the European professionals, Annie was either banned, completely excluded from the game, or played. The “next champion” Xayah only has 87% (via oracleselixir).
- Annie is used in 2 roles: as a Mid Laner and as a Supporter. However, she was banned in 84.8% of all games from the start.
- When she was allowed to play, she won 2 out of 3 games as a Mid Laner and 3 out of 4 games as a Supporter.
Faker has played Annie only 3 times in the LCK over the years since Patch 4.20 – of course, winning all 3 times:
Patch Makes Annie and Tibbers Not Only Deadly But Also Tough
What Makes Annie So Strong? As dotesports reports, Annie was significantly buffed in Patch 13.3 on February 8. Especially her ability Molten Shield was greatly strengthened:
- Previously, the shield had values of 40/80/130/175/220 (+35% ability power)
- After the patch, the shield is at 60/100/140/180/220 (+55% ability power)
Even her feared bear, Tibbers, now scales with Annie’s ability power, gains more health points and resistances.
What Is the Result? The new “Annie” is much tougher than her previous versions. Her shield makes her a strong supporter in early fights in the bot lane and helps her in the endgame during fights.
Furthermore, she now deals significant damage and still has her friend Tibbers at her side, whom she can send into the fray of battle.
Also, according to Dotesports, Annie has strong synergies with currently popular champions like Zeri, which she can further support with her shield.
Is Annie Really That Strong or Is It Just Fear? No, she apparently is that strong. Annie currently has the highest win rate among all supporters at the Platinum rank or higher.
Will That Stay the Same? No, Patch 13.7 will bring nerfs for Annie and her typical bot lane partner Zeri. Annie’s apparently too powerful shield will be a bit weaker and will be used less frequently.
She is one of the big beneficiaries of the fact that currently, mages are preferred over supporters in the bot lane of LoL:
LoL: Support Champions Struggling for Their Right to Be in the Team
