Reference
Scaling Codex
Season 16 late-game team-fight tiers from Vambient's Scaling Codex — who to end with, who to stall for, and build-dependent exceptions.
The Scaling Codex · Season 16
Champion scaling reference
Late-game team-fight power at full build — not early snowball, side lane, or solo-queue win rate. Use it at draft and every objective after: end this now, or survive into this.
Pair with The Perceptive Jungler for reads and win conditions, and The Adaptive Jungler for macro scaling discipline.
How to read tiers
- S—Best late
- A—Great late
- B—Okay late
- C—Bad late
- D—Very bad late
- F—End early please
SBest late· 22 champions
AmbessaS · Best lateCan effectively win a game solo once she gets her ability haste rolling. Unrivaled team-fight pressure with her ultimate and ability weaving.
ApheliosS · Best lateLong range, huge flexibility, very strong scaling, and damage.
Aurelion SolS · Best lateInfiniteInfinite Stardust scaling gives him unmatched late-game range, plus an AoE displacement ultimate with very high damage, mobility, and crowd control.
AzirS · Best lateGame-changing ultimate, top-tier target access, and range with a game-changing turret placement ability.
GangplankS · Best lateOne of the global-ultimate exceptions. All abilities scale massively with more damage items.
JannaS · Best lateUtilityMovement speed and AoE knockup. One of the best late-game supports since movement speed is incredibly oppressive at full build.
JinxS · Best lateVery top tier. AoE rocket damage hits the entire enemy team, and her range is quite high at full build.
KarthusS · Best lateGlobal-ultimate exception. Very strong late game and forces the enemy team to itemize against him.
KayleS · Best lateOne of the best true late-game scalers. Very good ultimate ability with strong range, AoE, and utility.
KindredS · Best lateInfinitePermanent range stacking plus a game-changing ultimate. Lamb's Respite only gets more decisive as death timers grow, since one saved carry can swing the fight.
LuluS · Best lateUtilityGrouped at the very top with Janna. Massively impacts a game by enhancing one carry and providing polymorph and knockup.
OriannaS · Best lateOne of the top scaling mids. Game-changing combo ultimate with teammates puts her near the very top.
RyzeS · Best lateTop-tier damage and tankiness combo along with a game-changing ultimate.
SennaS · Best lateInfiniteInfinite scaling range, damage, and utility, grouped with Aphelios and Jinx for very high range and impact. The 26.13 changes trimmed her damage and farming pattern, but ally-fed souls and her defining range and utility hold up in coordinated fights. Bottom of S.
SeraphineS · Best lateUtilityVery strong late game. Similar to Lulu but rated a touch better with a team shield and heal, along with a game-changing AoE ultimate charm.
SmolderS · Best lateInfiniteInfinite scaling on his damage. One of the best scaling champions in the game, similar to Senna.
SonaS · Best lateUtilityPossibly better scaling than Janna. Very good AoE ultimate stun as well as AoE healing, AoE speed boosts, and AoE damage amplification.
SyndraS · Best lateVery long-range scaling, strong ability ratios, and a very long-range stun that is oppressive in late-game fights.
TwitchS · Best lateHuge range and damage ratios. Can solo-delete an entire team in a very short amount of time.
ViktorS · Best lateBeginning of S tier. Very long-range poke damage and a game-changing ultimate that grows stronger over time.
VladimirS · Best lateIncredibly strong late game. Can delete entire teams while being invincible under his pool and moving freely with his combo, while also healing his entire HP bar.
XerathS · Best lateVery strong late game. Long range and map-wide ultimate. The only drawback is mobility.
AGreat late· 33 champions
AniviaA · Great lateWall utility, strong AoE CC, and sustained AoE damage with full AP make her excellent in coordinated team fights. Her range is sufficient at max build.
AsheA · Great lateHer permanent AoE slow is always-on peel and kiting, and her ultimate is a premier long- range engage that coordinated teams turn into picks. Personal damage is the lowest of the marksmen at full build, so her placement rests on utility and not raw damage carry output.
AuroraA · Great lateGame-changing ultimate damage, strong in endgame fights.
Bel'VethA · Great lateInfiniteBottom of S or top of A. Ability-haste and attack speed monster in the late game with infinite attack speed scaling from her passive. I think tanky build later on is very good because you still have a lot of damage output and you can do a decent amount of tanking too.
CaitlynA · Great lateGreat late game, but loses some early trap and ultimate power. Not quite the highest range in the game.
CamilleA · Great lateGreat late game with her mobility. Ultimate is game-changing as it locks down a single target for the team to focus.
CassiopeiaA · Great lateGreat game-changing ultimate and solid utility.
FioraA · Great lateSplit-pushExceptional dueling and percentage-HP true damage, but primarily a split-push threat. Less effective in coordinated 5v5 objective team fights where her targets can be protected.
GarenA · Great lateBuild-dependentFull-AD Garen melts entire teams while being very fast and tanky. Strong scaler with this specific build.
GravesA · Great lateBuild-dependentFull AD crit build. Serious damage, but somewhat squishy and able to be bursted down.
GwenA · Great latePlaced right next to Camille. Very strong scaling. Can be CC'd and kited somewhat in team- fight situations.
HweiA · Great lateGrouped with Lux and Aurora as a strong scaling mage with decent utility and long-range options. Damage is slightly weaker than that of the true S-tier mages.
Jarvan IVA · Great lateVery strong late game. Damage scaling and team-wide utility hold up until very late. Ultimate is incredibly game-changing against flash-less targets.
JaxA · Great latePatch-dependent. Currently near Jarvan's tier. Counter Strike and stun combo change a lot about his kit.
Kai'SaA · Great lateBuild-dependentAP build has very strong late-game ratios and range. AD build falls off slightly in team fights.
KarmaA · Great lateUtilityDowngraded from initial S once Serpent's Fang counterplay is considered. Team-wide shielding becomes less valuable when enemies build Serpent's Fang.
KassadinA · Great lateStrong contender. Requires skill due to lack of CC and range. Can run out of mana and is susceptible to getting CC'd himself.
KatarinaA · Great lateAssuming optimal play, rated great due to team-wiping pressure with both AD and AP builds. Skill-dependent.
RhaastKayn (Rhaast)A · Great lateRed form. The sustain bruiser that stays relevant in coordinated fights. Q and W shred plus healing let him keep fighting after he commits, unlike most one-way divers.
LuxA · Great lateLong range, does not have to commit to plays. Very good utility with Q, W, and E. Solid choice for endgame fighting.
Master YiA · Great lateCan delete entire teams solo when building correctly. His ultimate damage steroid scales quite well.
MelA · Great lateGood damage and utility. Suffers from a slightly lower range but makes up for it with damage.
MilioA · Great lateUtilityRight below Janna. The range buff is very powerful but highly dependent on team composition. Can be an S-tier scaling pick in the right team compositions.
OrnnA · Great lateUtilityThe only true team-scaling tank. Masterwork upgrades permanently raise the whole team's power, so he scales through his teammates, not his own damage. Can approach S depending on composition.
RivenA · Great lateOne of the top bruisers right now. Great scaling on all abilities.
ShyvanaA · Great lateGreat, though falls off slightly towards very late in the game.
SivirA · Great lateSpell shield is very oppressive, and AoE damage is excellent, but she does not quite hit the absolute ceiling of the S tier because of range issues.
SylasA · Great lateGreat team fighting ability and can steal game-changing ultimates from supports. Too conditional on enemy ultimates to be true S tier.
TristanaA · Great lateLong-range scaling, but not infinite scaling. Good steroid with Q and packs a punch at max items.
VeigarA · Great lateInfiniteInfinite scaling via stacks, cage CC, and a large damage execute with his ultimate. Struggles with range late game and can be kited.
YoneA · Great lateBuild-dependentNew AD Crit build scales much better than the old bruiser version. Damage and mobility both improve significantly late because of attack speed scalings.
YuumiA · Great lateUtilityBetter than first impressions. Needs a hyper-carry partner and can reach S-tier with the right carry to attach to. .
ZileanA · Great lateUtilityBomb damage, AoE stuns, massive slows, ability rewind, and the Guardian Angel ultimate make him excellent in coordinated late-game fights.
BOkay late· 47 champions
AatroxB · Okay lateMediocre early, decent mid, scales up to a point, then plateaus. Anti-heal counters his healing.
AhriB · Okay lateStrong early and mid-game. Lacks finishing damage late, and range issues start to show.
AkshanB · Okay lateStruggles late due to short range and a conditional revive mechanic that becomes harder to use as the enemy team groups up.
BrandB · Okay lateDecent late-game damage. Mini-Karthus. His spread damage requires landing abilities in almost melee range.
CorkiB · Okay lateStrong damage scaling on abilities, but too meta and patch-dependent for a stable A-tier placement.
DianaB · Okay lateSame issue as Ahri and Annie. The close-range mage problem becomes a severe issue late.
EvelynnB · Okay lateInvisibility helps, but if seen, she is completely removed from the fight.
GalioB · Okay lateBuild-dependentTank-utility Galio brings a global engage-and-peel ultimate and a long AoE taunt, real value in coordinated fights, and a fit for the buffed Imperial Mandate. The AP one-shot build scales worse once Banshee's Veil and QSS come online. Highly patch-dependent and can become A-tier if it’s the right game for it.
GragasB · Okay lateDecent late game with full AP build, but very flash-dependent. Countered by Banshee's Veil and range.
IreliaB · Okay lateFull damage bruiser build produces high R ability pressure, but she is conditional on dash resets. Highly dependant on hitting a high value R button on enemy team.
IvernB · Okay lateUtilityEnchanter-style enabling of carries is okay until enemies one-shot Daisy and build Serpent's Fang.
JayceB · Okay lateDecent with full AD build. The range is a bit lacking, and no game-changing ultimate.
JhinB · Okay lateLimited by a lack of tank shred options. Cannot attack faster to kill targets, which becomes very tough late game.
KalistaB · Okay lateStacking damage through her E and her game-changing ultimate makes her better than C- tier in coordinated fights.
KennenB · Okay lateStrong CC but range-limited. Similar situation to Annie, but with better range and utility.
KledB · Okay lateGame-changing team ultimate, but can be kited later on.
LeBlancB · Okay lateStrong until late but conditional poke-only value.
LilliaB · Okay lateGame-changing ultimate similar to Kennen's, but can be kited later on, and lacks great damage.
Miss FortuneB · Okay lateHer late-game ceiling is one channeled, interruptible ultimate. Without it, she has short range, no damage steroid, and no self-peel.
MorganaB · Okay lateUtilityDecent enchanter-adjacent support in the early to mid game. Ultimate ability becomes underwhelming later on.
NamiB · Okay lateUtilitySlightly better than Morgana in team value with the ultimate, but does not provide the same shielding and healing as top-tier supports.Can move up to A tier on an enchanter favored patch but currently not great at endgame fights.
NasusB · Okay lateSplit-pushInfiniteQ infinite stacking is immense, but he gets kited badly in coordinated 5v5 fights. Primarily a split-push threat, however, he does scale infinitely, so in theory, very strong late if the game goes long enough for him to stack Q.
NeekoB · Okay lateHigh variance. Similar to Kennen with a game-changing ultimate, but only if she can get on top of the enemy team.
NocturneB · Okay lateOne-way trip problem. Must commit fully to engage with no reliable disengage tool. His ultimate is game-changing, but he himself is easy to focus.
Nunu & WillumpB · Okay lateBetter than expected, but hard to play correctly. Suffers from the same target-access issues as Rammus late. His attack speed steroid for ADC is very good, making him B instead of C.
QuinnB · Okay lateGreat at picking people off in the side lanes, but team fighting is not her strong suit. Tends to trade one for one at best in endgame fights.
RakanB · Okay lateHigh-variance engage, squishy, and outshone by ranged supports. But his AoE charm plus dash-to-ally mobility is really good teamfight value, and he can reposition rather than fully commit. Bottom of B.
RellB · Okay lateGets outranged and kited later as a tank. Difficult to land the game-changing ultimate. Still baits flash later on at least.
Renata GlascB · Okay lateUtilityConditional and hard to pull off. Not enough damage amplification for the team compared to
SionB · Okay lateInfiniteBuild-dependentInfinite HP scaling helps, but HP alone is not great in the late game. Full AD Sion scales better depending on the current build viability.
SorakaB · Okay lateUtilityAnti-heal items hurt her too much. The silence is awkward at the endgame, where champions can outrange her.
TeemoB · Okay lateOkay-ish late game, but requires team setup around objectives to function in team fights with shroom set-up.
TryndamereB · Okay lateSplit-pushRelegated mostly to split-push duty. Outscaled in 5v5 due to vulnerability to crowd control.
Twisted FateB · Okay lateGlobal vision-granting utility carries his value, but his damage becomes lackluster in the endgame.
UdyrB · Okay lateDecent tankiness. Q shred keeps him relevant against tanks, but susceptible to getting kited with no reliable crowd control.
UrgotB · Okay lateSplit-pushWants to be split-pushing in a side lane. Peel-back Bruiser Urgot in team fights is not bad, but there are better scalers.
VarusB · Okay lateMiddle of the pack. The top variant of Varus is more viable than the bot lane variant but depends on patch for late game teamfights.
VayneB · Okay lateB tier. In theory, percentage-HP true damage is elite. In practice, she is outranged by every ADC in S and A tier, gets poked out before she can close the gap, and has no reliable escape when team fights spread out. Range is the single biggest scaling factor for ADCs.
Vel'KozB · Okay lateDecent poke range extends his presence late game. Very skill-based champion though.
ViB · Okay lateDecent utility with ultimate. Highly risky if the team is not coordinated, but good if the team is good. Depends on the patch a bit for this champion.
ViegoB · Okay lateNeeds to get snowballing. Somewhat conditional on the quality of enemy champions a little bit as well.
WukongB · Okay lateOkay-ish late game. Much weaker than the old one-shot version of Wukong that we once had.
XayahB · Okay lateBetter late-game kit than Lucian. Feather mechanics provide reliable damage, and her E gives her disengage tools that Lucian lacks. Ultimate is decent for peeling back as well but not great for chasing.
YasuoB · Okay lateOkay-ish late game. Target access remains an issue, but Windwall is pretty decent.
ZeriB · Okay lateStrong when enabled: a hypermobile, infinite-range kite carry once she ramps. Zeri+Yuumi combo brings this champion up one tier.
ZoeB · Okay lateOkay-ish late game. High skill ceiling champion that requires a lot of mechanical prowess to be decent in the late game. Tends to get melted instantly in fights because she has to be close by to burst.
ZyraB · Okay lateZyra is like Karthus except with a bit more utility but less damage overall. Depending on patch this champion can move up or down one, currently sits at B in Season 16.
CBad late· 42 champions
AnnieC · Bad lateFlash-dependent target access. Banshee's Veil and QSS hard-counter her entire kit. Her window to impact team fights is narrow and predictable.
BraumC · Bad lateStart of the bad-late tanks. Shield does less and less as the game goes on.
BriarC · Bad lateOutscaled and kited very easily. Good Briars can drag out their advantage a bit longer.
Dr. MundoC · Bad lateBad, like most tanks. Melts to shred items however, in the case that the enemy team does not draft any shred, this champion becomes unanswerable, similar to a Sion, Maokai, or any other massive tank option.
DravenC · Bad lateLoses impact later on a bit more than other ADCs. Lacks range. .
EkkoC · Bad lateVery conditional engage, susceptible to getting CC’d and burst down before any ultimate or Zhonya’s can be cast.
EliseC · Bad latePick-potential champion. Not great in extended teamfights and is very hard to play in the end-game teamfights.
EzrealC · Bad lateHybrid builds improved his late-game staying power. Better than his old pure AD builds in terms of scaling. Endless hunger (new item) is quite good on him, but it depends on how good the player is at using him. It is very easy for Ezreal to be completely useless.
FiddlesticksC · Bad lateExtremely team-dependent. Very conditional and he is easier to spot than Evelynn. If spotted, this champion becomes useless and very easy to one-shot.
GnarC · Bad lateBad late compared to other top laners. His ultimate is too conditional and teams can easily play around it, as well as his range is a bit too short. He kind of does nothing later on unless the team can capitalize on his windows properly.
HeimerdingerC · Bad lateRange becomes an issue later on, and his kit is a bit awkward to land reliably.
K'SanteC · Bad lateVery good mid-late game scaling. Builds full tank, then deals massive damage as an assassin-tank. Falls off towards the endgame fights, though.
SAKayn (Shadow Assassin)C · Bad lateBlue form. The early and mid-game assassin with a one-way dive that falls off once fights become full 5v5. Lacks a bit of range and is hard to burst through Guardian Angel.
Kha'ZixC · Bad lateStruggles with priority targets in late game teamfights, targets aren’t likely to be isolated anymore.
Lee SinC · Bad lateDamage build keeps him relevant, but his output falls short of true higher-tier scalers. Better suited to mid-game windows.
LeonaC · Bad lateSame tank issues as the rest of this group.
LissandraC · Bad lateLow-range AP mage issue.
LucianC · Bad lateUltimate loses impact. Short range as well.
MalphiteC · Bad lateBanshee's Veil can hard-counter him. Very team-reliant, but solid as a tank option or a counterpick.
MalzaharC · Bad lateBad late once enemies hold QSS or Banshee's Veil.
MordekaiserC · Bad lateSame issue as Malzahar, very tough to beat enemies with QSS.
NilahC · Bad lateRange issue. Grouped near Draven. Lacks impact later on.
OlafC · Bad lateSame target-access issue as Aatrox without the AD-build upside. Can be kited. Crit Olaf can scale a bit better into the late game, though.
PantheonC · Bad lateHe loses impact later on as an engage champion, and his global ultimate becomes less impactful as well.
PoppyC · Bad lateSimilar range and tank issue later on, low range but does have a somewhat better ult.
RammusC · Bad lateNot too great late despite the CC, suffers from the tank issue.
SamiraC · Bad lateClose to Miss Fortune but not as strong. Struggles with target access and range issues later on.
SejuaniC · Bad lateFalls off as tanks do. Similar issues to Rammus and Nunu. Only the tank build is really viable.
SettC · Bad lateBruiser Sett scales okay into the late game, but struggles with target access, similar to other bruisers.
ShacoC · Bad lateHe’s not as good in the late game as Kayn is.
ShenC · Bad lateLoses lane-dominance value. Shielding from ultimate also becomes a bit of a low-value global ability in teamfights.
SwainC · Bad lateAP drain tank. Kited later but functional until mid-late. Does not deal enough or tank enough at endgame.
Tahm KenchC · Bad lateBad late. Similar tank issues.
TaliyahC · Bad lateGlobal-adjacent ultimate fades late. Suffers from range issues as well as an awkward slow- moving combo.
TalonC · Bad lateGrouped with Zed-style assassins, very tough to play in the endgame teamfights as he is quite squishy and can be one-shotted or CC’d mid-combo.
TaricC · Bad lateUtilityUltimate can be kited around and disengaged from. Slow to impact fights.
ThreshC · Bad lateInfiniteUtilityVery conditional hook-reliant champion, has some decent other utilities but nothing too great in the endgame.
VexC · Bad lateStuck committing fully. Cannot disengage like Kassadin.
VolibearC · Bad lateBad. Can be kited and outranged.
YorickC · Bad lateSplit-pushRelegated to split-push duty. Weak in team fights as he can get focused down without being able to fight back.
ZacC · Bad lateDoes not scale well. Grouped near Amumu and his engage options are too slow and awkward.
ZedC · Bad lateScales similarly to Talon. His assassination abilities are too slow to impact the game and he is susceptible to getting CC’d out and one-shotted.
DVery bad late· 14 champions
AkaliD · Very bad lateVery hard to play out late. Lacks CC and target selection and is also very squishy with most meta builds being full AP.
AmumuD · Very bad latePretty bad late game. Easily countered by QSS and Locket-style items. He also gets outranged and out kited and he doesn’t have alot of damage on him.
BardD · Very bad lateWeak scaling. W loses usefulness late and R is very hard to hit and also quite conditional. Recent nerfs have hurt him even more.
BlitzcrankD · Very bad lateEntirely hook-dependent. If he hits a hook on a priority target, he is an S+ Tier champion. If not, please ban.
HecarimD · Very bad lateBad late. Very kiteable once he commits and anti-heal generally wrecks him. This is an end early champion if not for how well people generally play him in higher elos.
MaokaiD · Very bad lateSame issue as Malphite. Slightly better as a tank than AP, but he suffers from the tank issue without having an instant ultimate. His saplings become useless later on as well unfortunately.
NaafiriD · Very bad lateAssassin with no escape from AoE abilities because she has to commit full combo to do damage later on. Zhonya's and Guardian Angel completely neutralize her assassination attempts.
NautilusD · Very bad lateSame bucket as Malphite. Gets focused and deleted, ultimate is easy to kite away from at endgame fights.
NidaleeD · Very bad lateNot much late-game value aside from heal for allies. Spear damage is tough to hit and not very reliable. Typically gets engaged on later on and dies fairly easily, or gets ignored because she has no way in the fight without getting one-shot.
QiyanaD · Very bad lateSpell shields or Zhonya’s are very common late-game items. One-way trip with no reliable escape from AoE abilities.
RengarD · Very bad lateClose to Rek'Sai. One-way trip problem. One-tricks can make him look good because they get good at doing a one-shot combo when very ahead. In a coordinated team environment, that is even, he is not too good.
SingedD · Very bad lateDoes not deal enough damage or tank enough to justify a role in coordinated late-game fights.
SkarnerD · Very bad lateUltimate easily flashed or dodged. Tank issue.
TrundleD · Very bad lateFeels really bad late. Pillar loses value against ranged comps.
FEnd early please· 7 champions
Cho'GathF · End early pleaseStandard tank is D tier. The AP one-shot variant plays completely differently and is far more functional late.
IllaoiF · End early pleaseBottom of the old D tier. Kited easily and enemies can move out of her ultimate fairly quickly.
Kog'MawF · End early pleaseFull AP is the only build evaluated here. AD Kog'Maw falls off hard. AP Kog'Maw is S tier. THE DISCIPLINED JUNGLER Knowing where a champion sits is not about which to play. It tells you the only thing that matters at the draft and at every objective after: whether your game plan is to end this now, or to survive into this. disciplinedjungler.com
PykeF · End early pleaseOne of the worst late-game champions on the list, he is extremely squishy and ultimate has less value as the game progresses.
Rek'SaiF · End early pleaseStandard build is C tier. A Titanic Hydra and Spirit Visage sustain build pushes her toward the top of B by allowing repeated front-to-back fighting rather than relying purely on assassination.
RenektonF · End early pleaseFull AD. Standard Renekton is C at best. AD Renekton is stronger in extended fights but still lacks a game-changing ultimate.
WarwickF · End early pleaseGets kited out extremely quickly and has no range. Ultimate is easy to interrupt as well because he is on the front lines. Must end early, so this champion usually enjoys permanently fighting for kills and objectives. Champions that change tier with build.