As the League of Legends meta continues to evolve and many champions come into the spotlight, others inevitably see a low pick rate in ranked matches.
A League player on Reddit shed light on Annie’s abysmal pick rate in Emerald+ ranked matches, which currently stands at 1.35 percent, making her one of the bottom-five neglected champions in the ranked along with Quinn, Naafiri, Rammus, and Heimerdinger.
“She’s immobile, short-ranged, and has bad waveclear,” the player said, summing up why Annie is falling out of relevance. The champion’s high mana costs on her abilities also make her a demanding champion to play in the early game. In the Noxus season, gaining early momentum is critical to secure feats of strength for the team and get the boot upgrades.
Annie gained popularity in League after being known as an easy-to-use champion in the midlane, also viable in the support role. But multiple nerfs have resulted in players leaving her completely for other meta mid lane champions. Annie support’s pick rate has also dropped due to the nerfs to shield ability, which makes her worse than current meta support picks.
According to Annie mains on Reddit, they’re looking for other alternatives as “It’s so demoralizing fighting for my life to get in range for a Q > W, using my entire mana bar, drawing minion aggro, and spending my pathetic escape tool. One player added that there are better mid lane champions who do way better damage from a longer range while also having escape tools in their kit.
Despite the low pick rate, Annie’s win rate in ranked matches is over 54 percent, but that might be that one-trick Annie players. The experienced players know how to use and use her as a counter. However, most players disagree and request a complete makeover of her abilities.
It makes sense, considering Annie was one of the first six champions designed in 2009 and has the same kit even after 16 years. She received a visual update in 2020, but she needs a better kit that makes her identity concrete and aligns her gameplay with current standards.
