Welcome to our weekly meta analysis of the Regular Season! Week 3’s meta didn’t differ too significantly from the previous weeks, with Grock and X.Borg still hogging the top pick spots, but there have been some notable changes. Read on to find out more.
Top 5 Picks
| Hero | Pick Rate % | Win Rate % |
| 1. Grock | 78 | 56 |
| 2. X.Borg | 69 | 48 |
| 3. Chou | 57 | 67 |
| 4. Khufra | 55 | 34 |
| 5. Granger | 48 | 46 |
WR = Win rate, PR = Pick rate, BR = Ban rate
Granger’s Dominance
First up, let’s highlight Granger, who’s hovering at a respectable 48% PR and 46% WR.
Week 3’s MVP Unta (from XPAX X-Assins) used Granger to deadly effect in their match vs Notorious Villains, playing Granger perfectly and dealing a LOT of damage, allowing XPAX to claim a 2-0 win over Notorious Villains, who are a pretty strong Singaporean team. Granger’s ranged crit damage niche is really useful, so even with marksmen falling out of the meta somewhat (too much AoE damage) he’s still useful, firing off his Lucky Bullets (passive) and ultimate to deal lots of damage from safety., while dodging (or closing in) using his 2nd skill.
Check out Unta’s MVP video here and the post-match screenshot below to get an idea of his build.
X.Borg & Grock, AoE Damage Buddies
And, with the current meta involving AoE damage and team fights, it’s not surprising that Grock and X.Borg are still picked a lot, especially with X.Borg’s skills and ultimate which can burn down enemies really fast if they dare to stand in his range.
Surprisingly, though, X.Borg’s WR is just average (48%), meaning he’s not exactly OP. Plus, getting picked a lot will also lower his WR, since not every team that picks him can win. Still, his introduction to Mobile Legends has definitely had an impact on the meta.
And Grock, well, he’s a zoning monster, able to split enemy teams with his wall and AoE slow, before knocking them into the air with his ultimate. Without burst/control mages or antitank carries on the enemy team to tear him down before he can reach the frontlines, he’s free to do his work.
Their BR is still rather low, with X.Borg at 36% and Grock at 22%. Nobody wants to ban them, and everybody wants to pick these two meta staples, so it makes sense.
Chou, Kung-Fu Master
What’s interesting, though, is the emergence of Chou and Khufra this week.
Previously in W1 and W2, Chou was banned a lot, but not anymore (#6, at 43% BR)! With heroes like Harith and Diggie picked less, Chou can shine, uninhibited by their crowd control which takes away his ability to weave in and out of fights easily using his dash and blink abilities. Chou is also useful for catching out enemies with his CC and ultimate (which knocks enemies back and allows him to fly to them), meaning he can isolate damage dealers like X.Borg and Granger, then kill them without their team’s protection.
Khufra the Tyrant
As for Khufra, his main role is to be a tank with good AoE CC and anti-mobility tools, especially his 2nd skill (where enemies that blink across Khufra’s bouncing ball form gets knocked into the air), and an ultimate that pulls enemies back.
All his abilities can be used to disrupt movement and cancel skill casts, so he can also counter heroes like Chou with their crazy amounts of mobility. Makes sense that they’re both emerging at the same time, but not necessarily as hard counters to each other (Chou can still dodge around Khufra’s skillshots, after all). Having said that, Khufra is still quite situational, so his BR is really low at only 17%.
Top 5 Bans
| Hero | Ban rate % |
| 1. Kimmy | 71 |
| 2. Terizla | 59 |
| 3. Harith | 57 |
| 4. Kaja | 57 |
| 5. Esmeralda | 47 |
Now, let’s have a look at bans. With Chou gone from the top 5 ban list, his spot has been filled by Esmeralda. Meanwhile, every other top 5 ban remains the same from W2.
Kimmy, Unbreakable
Like before, Kimmy has the highest BR. Again, I’m pretty sure it’s because nobody wants to deal with her annoying ability to fire while running away, as well as her loads of AoE damage (rather unusual for a marksman). Unlike in solo queue or low ranked games where team coordination is rubbish, a well-coordinated team protecting Kimmy is an incredible pain to deal with. She’ll never let you get close, and you end up running in circles, dying as you try to catch her.
AoE is Prohibited
Fulfilling the AoE mage niche, Harith and Esmeralda are both in the top 5 ban list. Although their roles are slightly different (Harith has mobility and AoE damage/CC, while Esmeralda has AoE damage and drains enemy shields), these bans are primarily due to their heavy magic damage. It’s safe to say Esmeralda and Harith aren’t staples in any team comps at the moment (especially Esmeralda’s anti-shield niche which is underused right now) so they can be safely banned away instead of allowing the opponent to pick them.
CC Party
Kaja and Terizla are also in the banlist yet again, as very strong crowd control tanks. It’s interesting how Terizla got banned a lot but Khufra didn’t, since they fulfill very similar roles of AoE CC and an ultimate that stops movement.
But then again, Terizla has much higher damage than Khufra and can execute enemies with his AoE skills, dealing extra damage to lower HP enemies, which makes him a major asset in the current meta, especially when paired with X.Borg and Grock. Lock the enemies in place, open fire with X.Borg’s ultimate, execute them when their HP is low using Terizla’s Revenge Strike (1st skill) and Execution Strike (2nd skill).
Kaja, Soaring Above
As for Kaja, well, he’s a kidnapper, basically, able to stun and drag a single enemy away with his ultimate. It’s a gamechanger, since you can drag the enemy carry or damage-dealer away from their team, like ordering takeaway to be eaten at home.
With an ability like that, which can turn fights around easily if you remove someone like Granger from play, it’s not surprising Kaja gets banned a lot, especially when paired with his other skills that deter enemies from getting close ( lightning bombs, slowing ring, his AoE damage passive)
