Riot Games recently launched an exhilarating new PvP game mode for League of Legends – the 2v2v2v2 Arena! This unique battle arena pits teams of two against each other in a race to be the last duo standing. But with over 150 champions to choose from, which ones perform best on this new playing field? As a Diamond 1 veteran player and analyst, I‘ve extensively tested the meta to determine the top tier champions you should be using to smash the competition and climb the ranked ladder.
A Quick Primer on How 2v2v2v2 Arena Battles Work
For those unfamiliar with the frantic gameplay, here‘s a quick rundown on the 2v2v2v2 Arena mode:
- 4 teams of 2 players fight on a shrinking circular map called "The Abyss"
- Every 45 seconds the playable area constricts, forcing teams into confrontation
- Being knocked or staying outside the ring deals escalating burn damage
- Last team standing wins the round and first to win 3 rounds takes the match
- Augment powers provide bonus stats and effects to customize your champion
The mode emphasizes mechanical skill, champion mastery, communication, and reaction time over strategic macro play seen on Summoner‘s Rift. There‘s no farming, warding or roaming – just raw skirmishing and survival.
Why Scaling Champions With Late Game Power Reach Their Potential
Unlike the average 25-35 minute SR match, 2v2v2v2 games consistently go late game as their drawn out and multi-round structure allows champions to amass levels and items. Carries who need 3-4 items to pop off like Kai‘Sa, Syndra and Senna can reliably reach these crucial power spikes. Their overwhelming damage, range and CC at level 18 make them lethal.
I‘d also throw long-range poke champions like Vel‘Koz, Xerath, Lux and artillery mages in this category – their base damages are so high that magic penetration and raw AP allow them to chunk and execute low health targets across the battlefield.
Enchanter Supports Empower Their Carry Teammates
By far the most dominating duo strategy is pairing enchanter supports like Lulu, Yuumi, Karma and Sona with hyper-carry marksmen such as Kog‘Maw or Vayne. The massive injection of heal, shields, CC, speed boosts and stat bonuses make such marksmen unstoppable monsters.
Even non-traditional supports with healing capabilities like Soraka and Vladimir excel for sustaining a carry teammate. Simply put – enhancing an already powerful DPS champion produces a force that cannot be dealt with in 2v2 skirmishes.
Zone Control Mages Own the Middle of the Map
As the safe zone creeps inward over time, area denial champions like Heimerdinger, Zyra, Teemo and Shaco create immense pressure by blanketing chokepoints with their traps, turrets and hallucinations. Walking into these zones often spells instant death – forcing enemies to burn mobility spells which then allows your team to go for the knockout blow.
I‘d also include persistent AoE DoT mages like Malzahar, Brand, Anivia and space control specialists like Orianna and Viktor as they continuously apply damage and disrupt clustered foes.
Knock ‘Em Out! Displacement Crowd Control Reigns Supreme
Unlike Summoner‘s Rift where picked off players can respawn and return to the action, getting knocked out of bounds in the Arena results in an elimination. This makes displacement CC abilities incredibly potent.
Champions like Alistar, Poppy, Gragas and Vayne who can bump enemies outside the safe zones put opponents in helpless free fall burns. Even a brief knockup from Lee Sin‘s Dragon Kick can be a death sentence in later rounds. Drafting 2-3 displacement CCs on a team is brutality.
Augments Add a Tactical Twist
An underrated factor in 2v2v2v2 competitions are Augments – special enhancements earned through the match that buff your champion in various ways like bonus damage procs, CC extensions or healing amplification.
Smart usage and coordination of Augments can drastically swing 1v1s and teamfights. For example, the Celestial Blessing augment granting a permanent shield on your duo partner must be respected – suddenly making your ADC insanely hard to burst down.
S Tier Champions That Will Carry You To Victory
Based on all the factors mentioned so far, these are the current S tier champions I‘d highly recommend for stomping the Arena brackets:
Annie – Her iconic Tibbers AoE stun and instant cast ranged fire spells provide invaluable set up for berserkers like Master Yi or Yasuo while easily securing surprise knockouts. She‘s effective with nearly any partner.
Ivern – A slippery ranged support who shields allies, snares and knocks up enemies through walls. His Daisy summon pressures dangerous marksmen and provides initiation or disengage tools.
Karma – Ever since her durability rework, Karma has ascended as a top enchanter whose empowered shields and heals provide immense sustaining power for her plus one. Her root, slow and movespeed boost help chase down runners near map edges.
Soraka – The premier healer in League boasts even stronger pots in 2v2 scenarios where incoming damage is heavily telegraphed compared to hectic 5v5s. Her Equinox and Wish silence zones also deny enemies from using crucial escapes and gap closers.
Syndra – I cannot understate how obnoxiously strong Syndra is inside the Abyssal Arena where everyone is crammed together half the time. Her AoE nukes chunk multiple targets while her long range stun sets up easy kills for allies. Syndra can effortlessly carry weak links.
And those were just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to S tier champions in 2v2v2v2s. Others like Kog‘Maw, Twitch and Kai‘Sa paired with supports ruthlessly shred uncoordinated teams.
Meanwhile disruption masters like Alistar and Poppy repeatedly slam careless enemies outside of bounds once the inner circle becomes confined. This focus on knockouts over kills makes them highly drafted.
And I‘d be remiss without mentioning fortified draintanks Swain, Mundo and Vladimir who spec into mass sustain – daring teams to waste cooldowns trying to take them down while their partner wreaks havoc.
Crafting Killer Team Compositions
While any champion can potentially pop off in the Abyss, forming an intentional duo based on synergy dramatically boosts your consistency climbing the ladder.
The classic aggressive marksman with a peeling enchanter reigns supreme as mentioned earlier. Long range burst mages coupled with hard engagement tanks also works wonderfully. Or double bruisers beefed up by Juggernaut augments quickly steamroll low damage comps unable to burst them down.
But part of mastering this novel game mode means experimenting outside traditional picks as odd champion interactions produce surprisingly potent results. For example…
Full AP nuking assassins like Fizz pair amazingly with artillery mages who can keep targets perpetually slowed until dashed on. Lethality stackers like Miss Fortune demolish teams once bullet-tagging supports like Ashe or Senna feed them easy kills.
And while typically viewed as a troll meme build – AP scaling Malphite charging his ultimate to meteor smash hapless victims into nearby walls cracks me up every time! His seismic teammate following up afterwards is just salt in the wound.
The key takeaway is that standard League tier lists don‘t necessarily apply in the Abyss. Unique champion strengths must be considered in relation to the Arena‘s mechanics.
For instance, roaming assassins and early gankers like Talon, Qiyana and Pantheon lose huge value without vulnerable side lanes to snowball off of. And since the Abyss features no jungle, farming carries like Master Yi struggle without their PvE income and rely completely on takedowns.
Final Thoughts
And there you have it – my picks for the top champions you should be playing in League‘s action-packed new 2v2v2v2 game mode. While the meta still has room to develop as players acquire more augment variations, these tried and true selections will undoubtedly carry you to more consistent victories on the climb to the coveted rank one title!
Obviously personal skill, communication with your partner and smart adaptation to enemies picked still outweighs champion choice at the end of the day. But understanding these core mechanics hopefully provides some drafting insight.
Because there are few things more satisfying than bull rushing opponents into blazing arena walls as they helplessly ragdoll to their demise! Now get out there and claim arena supremacy!