Arena of Valor continues to make waves in the mobile gaming landscape since its inception in 2016. The game has spawned numerous iterations of local and international tournaments, a testament to its worldwide popularity, and such tournaments have then brought to the limelight certain players who fans associate with the terms ‘the best’ or ‘making the game look easy’.

Despite their reputation as the best of the best, top AOV players generally have a few heroes they are comfortable with using in tournaments. Usually, these pros demonstrate their proficiency through excellent combos and different builds. If you are interested to know who some of these comfort picks are, here are ten of them that you need to know.

Lu Bu

Inspired by the mighty spear-wielding general from Chinese literature, Lu Bu starts this list for being an effective jungler and Slayer laner overall. He is a good hero as seen in various esports tournaments because there is no need to use complicated combos when you use him. Additionally, you rely more on his sustainability in dishing out damage and durability of a warrior which is further boosted by his lifesteal ultimate.

Richter

Richter is a warrior who is more commonly used as a support due to his ability to be immune from damage as well as his ultimate which provides high-powered peeling of his opponent’s HP. A heavily contested hero, Richter can usually be seen in tournaments as either a first ban or first pick due to the utility he provides as an initiator. Opponents are left helpless once he dashes out from the bush and pops his ultimate on them.

The Joker

The Clown Prince of Crime is either picked by esports players as a counter for long-range marksmen or as someone who can damage opponents from afar. Joker’s laning strategy is also what made him a tournament staple, made effective by shooting through minion waves and pushing towers with ease using his second ability which grants him immunity from damage and a slightly boosted movement speed. Joker’s ultimate, meanwhile, deals burst damage for any unfortunate soul who happens to inhale his lethal laughing gas.

Wonder Woman

Another representative from the DC Comics universe, Wonder Woman has become a comfort pick for pro players who either want to use her as a jungler or support. Wonder Woman’s Lasso of Truth either enables her to close her distance to a target or pull them in for the killing blow while her ultimate grants her and nearby allies a shield and a movement speed boost aside from a brief stun on her enemies, a skill truly befitting an icon of empowerment.

Lorion

A mage hero released this year, Lorion has become meta-relevant as soon as he became available for players all over the world. What made him a highly contested hero is his mobility and area damage that quickly and easily whittles down the HP of enemies within his range. His ultimate is also hard to deal with if you don’t have your support around since it will leave you at the mercy of your opponents while you’re airborne.

Zip

Considered by many as the most annoying hero in AOV, Zip previously held the unofficial title of being the most banned hero in esports tournaments because of his crowd control and repositioning skills. Zip’s learning curve is high but pro support players take advantage of his poke stun as well as his ability to swallow his allies or minion waves to manipulate team fights and laning strategies.

Elsu

Elsu is the marksman who has the highest possible range in the game since he is a sniper. His weapon of choice means he doesn’t have enough attack speed to kill an opponent as quickly as he can but he makes up for it by having a high damage output no matter how tanky the opponent is. Obviously, pro players use Elsu while hiding in the bush after planting wards and taking their time to extend his range and snipe enemies off.

Aoi

One of the most difficult assassins to use in AOV, Aoi swings across the map using her claw to hold onto obstacles and jungle efficiently. Her grappling abilities don’t serve any particular use in team fights but her normal attacks and two other abilities more than make up for it. Even going up against her one-on-one is difficult due to her excellent mobility which is why esports players try to choose her whenever possible.

Hayate

Hayate is another meta marksman in AOV’s competitive scene who can deal continuous poke damage with his first ability. Pro players choose Hayate not only because of his damage output but also for his dash ability that allows him to dodge attacks. Hayate can also return to team fights immediately using his ultimate that bombards opponents with his kunai knives, dealing massive damage to anyone within range.

Raz

Raz is another difficult hero to master as he dashes into enemies as part of his normal attack. Pro players choose Raz as an excellent counter mage or a first pick due to his mobility, burst poke damage, and repositioning capabilities. His second ability can be used to face check bushes while his normal attacks and other skills can isolate opponents for the kill.

Whether you are playing casually or competitively, using these heroes will impress your friends once you get the hang of them. These heroes have proven themselves to be versatile no matter how many changes in the meta there are, simply because esports players see them as the most practical options to win games and esports tournaments, regardless of the skill cap needed to pull combos off. However, players are still reminded of the importance of synergy among teammates so that a hero’s skills can be maximised all throughout the game.

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