League of Legends may have its worst tank meta ever in Season 2025

Now that 2024 is winding down, we’ve got a peek at what the new year’s massive set of changes will bring. And, if the items that are strong on certain champions don’t get nerfed before then, we’re in for an extremely oppressive tank meta.

For people who have been playing League of Legends a long time, the phrase “tank meta” is a cursed one. Often regarded as one of the most frustrating game states there can be, the idea of a champion who is dishing a ton of damage while taking none can make the game feel impossible to win. Looking at you Chemtank Akali.

In 2025, the tank meta is set to focus on making mid lane mages unkillable. And, if you’re someone who pays attention to high-level mid laners, you may know that the tank meta is already here.

If you’re looking to dominate on the current patch and in Season 2025, here’s what you need to know.

LoL’s worst meta state rears its ugly head

If you know anything about the days of tank Ekko and Viktor top, that meta is back for select mage champions. 2018’s Iceborn Gauntlet has been replaced with 2024’s Iceborn Gauntlet, which is essentially the same item with a few added perks. Tank Viktor coming back almost 10 years after that meta is certainly a strange twist of fate.

Iceborn Gauntlet is a core part of why this build works on mid laners, adding some bonus damage and CC while also providing a wealth of tank stats. The base damage of Viktor’s abilities carries him through, and the bonus mana from Iceborn makes up for the mana you’d typically lose by not buying mage items.

Viktor isn’t the only champion who’s strong with this build, either. League streamer and Leblanc one-trick bobqin has been printing wins with similar tank itemization.

Ahri, Leblanc, Viktor, and Veigar are likely the best mages for tank builds, though that roster is likely to develop and change over time as players explore their options. It’s early days on this meta.

Tank items still work on melee magical champions like Ekko, but you run the risk of getting poked and pressured out of lane early where ranged champions or a direct counter like Galio is much safer.

And, while a few mage champions are already strong with tank items, Season 2025’s changes will only make this a bigger issue.

Tanks set to march upon the LoL meta in 2025

Season 2025 is adding something called Feats of Strength, a set of three objectives that’ll give players access to some special boot upgrades, most of which provide additional tank stats.

However, the twist is that Feats of Strength can only be won by one team. Once a team completes two of three objectives, they’re the only team with access to those boot upgrades. You can check out our early notes on patch 15.1 to see what all these boot upgrades do.

Riot Games

New boots like Armored Advance provide players with a passive shield and bonus tank stats

In other words, if you’re a mid laner that’s already tanky because you built items that bulk you up and give you an early power curve, taking the Feats of Strength buff will only let you snowball harder.

And, with the other team being locked out of these item options, they’ll have an even harder time recovering from losing pressure on the map.

It’s early days on the return of the tank meta, with players still figuring out which mages best take advantage of builds that utilize Iceborn Gauntlet and how to best itemize into certain team compositions.

However, if these items arrive in Season 2025 without changes, we may be in for one of LoL’s worst tank metas ever. That said, it’s not all doom and gloom, as a major battle pass overhaul is set to give players more skins for less money in the new year.