So I mostly play ADC in Honor of Kings, and I am currently at Grand Master. I do play mid lane mages as well from time to time, so I have a decent idea of what works in the current HoK meta. This HoK Mid Lane tier list is based on my own experience, so it is obviously going to have some personal bias in it. That said, I think most mid lane players will agree with the majority of what I have put here, and where you disagree, I would love to hear it in the comments.
Table of Contents
My Criteria for Ranking Mid Lane Mages in HoK
Before getting into the rankings, here is what I am looking for in a strong mid laner. A good mid lane mage should have solid wave clear so you can maintain lane pressure without falling behind. CC is really important in the current meta since it helps your team in fights and also gives you some way to defend if the enemy starts sieging your towers. Good damage is obvious, but I also value mages that can still contribute even when they are not ahead. A character that completely falls off when behind is a big negative for me.
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Honor of Kings Mid Tier List
| Tier | Characters |
|---|---|
| S | Nuwa, Haya, Garuda, Yixing |
| A | Angela, Mai, Wang Zhaojun, Shi, Xiao Qiao, Yuhuan, Gan and Mo, Lady Zhen, Kongming |
| B | Ziya, Mozi, Shangguan, Milady, Daji, Flowborn Mage |
| C | Gao, Diaochan, Heino, Sima Yi, Liang, Zhou Yu |
| D | Dr Bian |
Best Mid Laner in HoK
Nuwa
Nuwa is probably my favorite mage on this list. She is a genuine monster in the late game, and her CC is one of the most annoying things to deal with. She can teleport around the map, which makes her rotations really flexible, and she holds lanes well even when you are behind. That last point is something I really value in solo queue because not every game goes smoothly early.
The reason she is S tier for me is the combination of CC, map presence, and late game scaling. She does have two drawbacks though. First, she relies on her team to follow up since her damage and CC are annoying but not always enough to kill someone alone. Second, she takes a while to scale so your early game needs to be patient. Despite that, she is still the most consistent mage in mid right now for me.
Haya
Haya is one of the strongest mages in the game at the moment. In a proper coordinated five versus five, she has her counters, but in solo queue, where team coordination is not always great, she can really exploit that. If Haya catches an ADC, that ADC is almost certainly dead. Even when you cannot get to the backline, you can strip away the frontline tank and leave the enemy team exposed.
Garuda
A lot of players would put Garuda in A tier and I completely understand that. He has no CC which is a genuine weakness. But for me the combination of his long range, his constant poke, his strong wave clear, and the fact that he can defend well even when behind makes him S tier in my eyes. He can frustrate enemies from a distance without ever having to put himself in danger. In solo queue that level of safety and consistent output is really valuable.
Yixing
Yixing is a strong pick right now mainly because of how well he fits into most team compositions in the current meta. He has CC, decent damage, and just synergizes well with a lot of the characters people are running right now. He might not be the flashiest pick on this list but he is one of the safest and most consistent, which is exactly what you want in mid lane.
A Tier
Angela is a really interesting placement. The reason she is high is because if you are a one-trick Angela player you can make her look incredible. Her early game damage and wave clear are ridiculously strong and if you use that to rotate and pressure other lanes you can set your team up nicely for the late game. The main issue is that she struggles against high mobility characters who can dodge her skills, especially her ultimate which is her main burst tool.
Mai has everything you could want from a mage, good burst, CC, ambush quality, and the ability to dive the backline. The reason she is not S is that she really needs skilled hands to make an impact and she struggles hard from behind. Her wave clear is also slower than most top tier mages.
Wang Zhaojun is a really solid pick, great CC, fast wave clear, and her ultimate is excellent for stopping enemy pushes. Shi has strong CC and a great ability to catch people off guard which makes her very viable right now. Xiao Qiao has a bit of everything including area damage, burst, CC, and good wave clear. The only reason she stays in A is that she is quite squishy with no real escape and suffers against heavy dive comps.
Yuhuan is a controversial placement and I know many will disagree. She is not popular but in the right hands, she is genuinely really strong. Gan and Mo is the long-range king. If the enemy team has no hard dive and is trying to play from distance, he will make their life miserable. His poke and wave clear are both excellent. He drops in dive heavy comps though.
Lady Zhen plays similarly to Wang Zhaojun and the placement reflects that. Kongming has great mobility and strong burst which makes up for his lack of CC. He can also be played in jungle and honestly performs better there, but in mid he is still a solid A tier pick.
B Tier
Ziya has good CC and poke damage but is extremely squishy with almost no escape. If you get caught once you are basically dead. Mozi feels more like a support than a true mid laner to me, which is why he sits in B rather than higher. Shangguan can take down a backline with ease but is not the strongest pick in the current meta overall. Milady is probably the most annoying tower pusher in the game. She can melt towers even without minions which makes her a real headache, but her team fight is weak and in high level play enemies simply will not leave lanes open for her. Daji is the solo queue queen. Her passive lets her rotate super fast which alone is a big advantage in solo queue, and if she catches you off guard with her stun into burst combo it is nearly a guaranteed kill. In competitive she gets countered more easily but in ranked solo queue she is really strong.
C Tier
Gao is in C because he lacks CC and in the current heavy CC meta that really hurts him. He works well when ahead but if you fall behind it is very hard to make a comeback. Diaochan is a controversial pick. She has decent damage and sustain but no CC and she wants to fight on her own terms inside her circle. Enemies can bait her ultimate and walk out, and she gets countered easily by high CC characters.
Heino is flexible, can be played semi-tank or glass cannon, and his poke is strong in extended fights. But in the current fast-paced meta, he just does not perform as well as he should. Sima Yi is more of a jungler than a mid laner to me and performs much better there.
Liang actually has the most CC of any mage on this list, which sounds great, but his damage is so low that he stays in C. He is useful defensively when the enemy is sieging, but the lack of kill pressure keeps him here. Zhou Yu feels underwhelming this patch. Good wave clear, but overall impact throughout a game is just really low right now.
D Tier
Dr Bian has decent mobility and a reasonable clear, and his sustained damage is fine. But he really lacks burst damage, and in the current meta where burst and CC dominate, he just does not perform or get picked in higher tier games. There is not much else to say. He is the weakest mid lane pick right now in my opinion.
