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After spending years on the sidelines, Udyr has risen to the top once again in League of Legends Season 11.
The Spirit Walker has suddenly started seeing a lot of pro play in the ongoing season as he has been dominating the jungle post patch 11.1. Udyr apparently possesses a simple kit and is not among the champions associated with high-level League of Legends gameplay.
He was highly ignored in professional games, and Riot Games has even scheduled a potential VGU update for him in Season 11.
The recent item rework has benefitted Udyr massively, who is undoubtedly the jungle-king in the current meta. He is now a popular League of Legends pick with a dashing and powerful build-kit.
Why has Udyr suddenly gained popularity in League of Legends Season 11?
There are three main reasons behind Udyr's unanticipated popularity in the current meta. The first and most prominent one is his item rework, the second reason is his recent buffs, and the last is the popular "Moonstaff" combo.
#1 - Item rework
Udyr, over the years, has not been effective in League of Legends due to his unstable build path. He was neither a powerful duelist nor a bruiser. He wasn't even a strong tank, and thus, players had no choice but to ignore him from their drafts.
Items like Trinity Force and Dead Man's Plate that were often used for the Spirit Walker hardly had any synergy with his ability kit. But now, Udyr has Turbo Chemtank, a perfect Mythic item for him. This is a replacement for the finished item Righteous Glory.
Turbo Chemtank has provided Udyr with the tank stats that he has been missing for a long time. The item also gives an extra kick of damage from his Immolate passive and a big speed-up to charge at enemies.
#2 - Buffs
Udyr received a handful of buffs before the start of Season 11. His R- Phoenix Stance was arguably one of the worst ultimates in the game. But buffs to the ability has brought in a massive upgrade to his jungling skills.
In Season 11, Udyr has one of the fastest jungle clears that gives him ample time to run around the bushes and gank.
#3 - The "MoonStaff" combo
The Season 11 item rework has given life to various dormant champions in League of Legends. But Moonstone Renewer is the one Mythic that rose to the top.
Though this was initially meant for the support role, the Mythic item is being picked across multiple lanes, dominating the current meta.
For 2,500 gold, Moonstone Renewer adds on 40 Ability Power, 20 Ability Haste, 200 Health, and some Mana Regeneration for the support champion.
Champions like Seraphine and Orianna, who can build the Moonstaff combo, speed up Udyr, making him even more of a threat. He can now run around the map like a beast.
Udyr has seen a lot of pro play in League of Legends Season 11
All the discussed factors have boosted Udyr's solo queue win rate significantly. According to OP.GG, his win rate has increased from 48% to up to 53% in Season 11.
Udyr's play rate has exploded massively as well, from under 1% to nearly 12%. He currently stands fifth among all the jungler picks in League of Legends.
The recent rise in Udyr's getting picked in the "Big 4" competitive leagues has reflected the Spirit Walker's revival in pro play.
Except once, by French jungler Charly "Djoko" Guillard at the LCS, Udyr had not seen pro play since 2018 till last season. And now, by February 2021, Udyr has been picked 36 times in one stretch in the Big 4 world leagues.
DRX's jungler, Hong "Pyosik" Chang-hyeon, first used Udyr in his LCK Spring 2021's draft against Nongshim Redforce. Since then, Udyr has been a regular in the competitive League of Legends worldwide.
