Mid lane is the role that often breaks the rules in League of Legends. It offers a variety of different champions to play, all from AP mages to AD assassins and hybrid tanks. However, here I’ll give you the top 15 best off-meta mid laners in League of Legends to try out and dominate the lane with.
The first reason why these champions actually work in the mid lane is that they can easily adapt, despite their original role. And second, all 15 of these champions counter many other mid lane picks, so they’re great for surprising your opponent and winning off of that.
In any case, here are my top 15 best exotic and off-meta mid lane picks in League of Legends 2023! Check them out!
Top 15 Best Off-Meta Mid Laners in League of Legends (Exotic Picks)
15. Warwick
We’ll start this list of with Warwick. However, I won’t try to convince you to play Warwick in the mid lane the regular way. It’s simply not exotic enough.
Instead, I want to introduce you to the awesome AP Warwick build!
If you’re not familiar with WW, know that his passive and Q have AP ratios. They’re powerful tools for winning nearly any 1v1 battle, especially against squishy mid laners. So, let me explain!
Warwick’s passive allows him to deal bonus on-hit magic damage that scales with 10% of his AP. And Warwick’s Q does magic damage that scales with 100% of Warwick’s AP. Additionally, Jaw of the Beast has a 120% AD ratio and even takes a percentage of the target’s maximum HP.
With the right runes and items, playing AP Warwick can be seriously OP. This playstyle excels against melee mid laners and AD assassins such as Diana, Zed, and Talon. Warwick can lock his opponent down with R, reduce the damage taken with E, and do massive amounts of damage with Q.
So even if you don’t want to try out the AP Warwick build, WW is still a great pocket pick mid laner to counter the role. However, here’s my recommended build.
Runes
- Dark Harvest
- Cheap Shot
- Eyeball Collection
- Ultimate Hunter
- Celerity
- Waterwalking
Items
- Mercury’s Treads
- Riftmaker
- Nashor’s Tooth
- Demonic Embrace
- Zhonya’s Hourglass
- Rabadon’s Deathcap
Read Also: Top 15 Best Off-Meta Junglers
14. Renekton
If you’ve played League of Legends long enough, you might not be surprised to see Renekton in the mid lane. Back in the day, even pro players would pick Rene to crush some mid lane champion and dominate the lane.
And that’s exactly why Renekton is one of the best mid lane picks in the entire LoL!
Renekton is a counter to all melee mid laners in League of Legends. He’s tankier and has more damage in the early levels. Because of this, Renekton can always play aggressively and dominate champions like Katarina, Twisted Fate, Akali, Zed, and the rest.
There are a few things that really make Renekton an exceptional laner. For example, his W is an auto-attack stun ability on a very short cooldown. He has two dashes through his E and his Q allows him to heal while fighting. And if played correctly, Renekton can always win trades in the mid lane.
The only way to really stop Renekton in the mid lane is to outrange him. Xerath can be a hard counter pick to Rene because he can stay safe and farm from afar. However, if Xerath makes a mistake and comes too close, Renekton can quickly assassinate him.
For this, I recommend you to play the lethality Renekton build instead of the fighter one. It has way more damage and it can one-shot any enemy on the Rift!
Runes
- Press the Attack
- Triumph
- Legend: Tenacity
- Coup de Grace
- Sudden Impact
- Ultimate Hunter
Items
- Mercury’s Treads
- Prowler’s Claw
- The Collector
- Youmuu’s Ghostblade
- Death’s Dance
- Guardian Angel
Read Also: 15 Best Mid Laners for Beginners
13. Ashe
Ashe is one of my personal best off-meta mid lane picks in League of Legends. It’s a champion that I’ve had extreme success in the mid lane, with a few different builds.
The first thing you should know about playing Ashe mid is to take things slowly. Admittedly, Ashe is a weak laner, especially when left alone in the mid lane. However, if you play defensively early on and
Ashe can have an insane amount of poke in the mid lane. With runes like Arcane Comet and Manaflow Band, Ashe’s W can do some serious damage to opponents early on. And depending on how well you use this ability, you can easily poke your enemy out of lane.
Ashe’s first power spike comes on level 6. Once you have your Enchanted Crystal Arrow, I’d suggest you spam-ping your jungler to come to help you out. Almost any scenario where Ashe has her ultimate available is a free kill for your team.
Because of this, I really recommend you to regularly gank other lanes too. With the build below, you’ll have 70+ ability haste and your ulti will be on a 20-30 seconds cooldown. This is honestly broken, but you can take advantage of it today!
Speaking of, playing the standard ADC build for Ashe simply doesn’t work in the mid lane. Instead, you should either play lethality Ashe or even better, the full AP Ashe build!
If you follow this link, you’ll be taken to a complete guide on how to play AP Ashe in LoL. Basically, you focus all your power on hitting your R, which can easily take 50-60% of your enemy’s HP.
Here’s a quick rundown of the runes and items for playing Ashe in the mid lane.
Runes
- Arcane Comet
- Manaflow Band
- Absolute Focus
- Scorch
- Cheap Shot
- Ultimate Hunter
Items
- Ionian Boots of Lucidity
- Manamune
- Imperial Mandate
- Horizon Focus
- Rabadon’s Deathcap
- Void Staff
Read Also: Lethality Ashe Build Guide
12. Fiddlesticks
Next, we have Fiddlesticks. I still remember the first time I faced an OTP Fiddlesticks in the mid lane. It was simply terrifying! This champion is so obnoxious that he can constantly silence you and fear you until you simply give up!
In all seriousness though, Fiddlesticks works fantastically in the mid lane. He’s a ranged champion and he can farm relatively easily during the laning phase. Fiddle can also harass and poke melee mid laners, but he’s also good at fighting ranged mages too.
Once you get to level 6 with Fiddlesticks, the game can officially begin! Hiding behind walls, inside jungle camps, and in brushes is what you need to do with this champion. Fiddle’s ultimate can be the perfect engage for winning 1v1 battles in mid and team fights later on.
Because of this, you need to master the best ganking spots for Fiddle’s ult. Even as mid laner, Fiddle should constantly be on the lookout to catch the enemy mid laner off guard or simply go bot and gank there. That’s how you can exploit this champion’s power and easily win games.
Not ganking and not taking advantage of Fiddle’s ultimate is why many players lose with this champion. So, be aware of it and try to play smartly.
Here’s the recommended build for Fiddlesticks mid.
Runes
- Dark Harvest
- Cheap Shot
- Eyeball Collection
- Ultimate Hunter
- Absolute Focus
- Gathering Storm
Items
- Sorcerer’s Shoes
- Hextech Rocketbelt
- Zhonya’s Hourglass
- Morellonomicon
- Rabadon’s Deathcap
- Void Staff
Read Also: The Best Champions with Fear
11. Teemo
Teemo is another top laner that adapts well in the mid lane. He’s a ranged AP champion with a playstyle mix of a mage and a marksman. And because of that, he can be a great off-meta pick for the mid lane too.
During the laning phase, Teemo isn’t an impressive champion at all. Certainly, you can use Teemo’s Q and auto-attacks to harass melee assassins and get some kills early on.
However, Teemo really struggles against champions that have significantly more range than him. Champions like Lux, Xerath, and Zoe all counter Teemo. He doesn’t have a dash and he can’t reach them
But Teemo doesn’t always need to do that. In fact, once you get to level 6 with Teemo, the game completely changes. You’re no longer required to stay in lane 24/7. Instead, you can roam around and put your shrooms anywhere on the map.
Mid lane offers access to both sides of the jungle, so you can literally cover the map with Teemo’s mushrooms!
Teemo has amazing scaling and he’s one of the best AP champions in late game. His damage is seriously high and with items like Liandry’s Anguish and Demonic Embrace, he can literally slay champions with one or two mushrooms.
Check the build you’ll need below!
And if you want to learn more about how Teemo’s damage works, check this Teemo AP or AD guide!
Runes
- Dark Harvest
- Cheap Shot
- Eyeball Collection
- Ultimate Hunter
- Absolute Focus
- Gathering Storm
Items
- Sorcerer’s Shoes
- Nashor’s Tooth
- Liandry’s Anguish
- Demonic Embrace
- Morellonomicon
- Rabadon’s Deathcap
Read Also: Full AP Lucian Build Guide
10. Rakan
When it comes to Rakan, players don’t often consider him “good enough” for mid lane. But if you’ve been playing LoL for a couple of years now, you may remember seeing Rakan mid lane in pro leagues such as LCK, LEC, and LCS at one point in time.
But in 2023, Rakan is still a beast champion for the mid lane role. And even though his damage isn’t fantastic, he has many tools to outplay and destroy his opponents with.
First of all, Rakan is an extremely mobile champion in League of Legends. He has two dashes, a knock-up, a shield, and a heal, even before level 6. This combination of spells gives him a unique advantage in the mid lane.
For example, Rakan can easily counter champions like Zed in LoL. Any time Zed dashes forward, Rakan can easily dash away to safety. And any time Zed jumps in with Death Mark, Rakan can either knock him up to reduce the damage or charm Zed so he can’t do anything.
In this sense, playing Rakan mid is excellent for adding crowd control to your team comp. You can easily set up ganks for your jungler or gank the other lanes yourself. And you’ll always be tankier than most AP champions in the mid lane.
This is why Rakan is one of the best off-meta mid laners in League of Legends!
The build below can help you increase Rakan’s overall damage and add even more CC. So, definitely try it out!
Runes
- Electrocute
- Sudden Impact
- Eyeball Collection
- Ultimate Hunter
- Absolute Focus
- Gathering Storm
Items
- Mercury’s Treads
- Everfrost
- Lich Bane
- Nashor’s Tooth
- Zhonya’s Hourglass
- Rabadon’s Deathcap
Read Also: Top 15 Best Off-Meta Top Laners
9. Miss Fortune
In a world where Warwick and Rakan can be great off-meta mid laners in LoL, Miss Fortune mid doesn’t sound too crazy, does it?
Jokes aside, Miss Fortune is a great marksman to play in the mid lane. Depending on the matchup, she can really dominate the laning phase and get early advantages. MF has amazing poke potential and burst damage that can slay anyone.
There are two ways to play Miss Fortune in the mid lane. The first is with the full lethality MF build which significantly increases her damage and makes her ultimate the strongest ability in the game.
The second way of playing MF mid is with the full AP build. This is what I personally prefer and it’s tons of fun. AP Miss Fortune can endlessly torture enemies with her E. Her ultimate also scales with AP, so it’s a safe bet.
In any case, I’d suggest you ditch the traditional crit/attack speed ADC build for Miss Fortune. It’s difficult to kite and auto-attack champions like Diana in the mid lane, so you’re better off with lethality or full AP.
These are the runes and items I recommend for playing MF mid. Click here for the full in-depth guide on AP Miss Fortune.
Runes
- Arcane Comet
- Manaflow Band
- Transcendence
- Scorch
- Cheap Shot
- Ultimate Hunter
Items
- Sorcerer’s Shoes
- Manamune
- Liandry’s Anguish
- Morellonomicon
- Rabadon’s Deathcap
- Void Staff
Read Also: Lethality Miss Fortune Build Guide (Master)
8. Pyke
Pyke mid shouldn’t be a surprise to most of you out there. After all, the champion has been a steady mid lane off-meta pick for a few years now. And in season 12, Pyke mid is still a powerful strategy that can get you some easy wins.
If you’re a fan of Pyke and you’d like to try him in the mid lane, there are a couple of things that you must be aware of.
First of all, Pyke doesn’t have a wave clear and he struggles to shove minion waves quickly. One solution for this is to purchase Tiamat or Ironspike Whip so they can help you deal AoE damage to minions.
However, Pyke is very good at setting up kills for his jungler. Because he was initially designed as a support, Pyke has amazing crowd control. He can pull an enemy champion back with Q and stun him with E. This creates the perfect opportunity for a champion takedown.
But the reason why you Pyke mid works well is that he is an obnoxious roamer and ganker, not laner. In other words, Pyke gets access to everywhere from mid lane so he can constantly gank. No matter if it’s top, bot, or the enemy jungle, Pyke can always follow his jungler and destroy the other roles.
Pyke’s R is one of the most broken abilities in League of Legends. And even if you’re behind, you can always use this spell to execute enemies and win team fights.
Runes
- Hail of Blades
- Sudden Impact
- Eyeball Collection
- Ultimate Hunter
- Triumph
- Coup de Grace
Items
- Ionian Boots of Lucidity
- Prowler’s Claw / Duskblade of Draktharr
- Youmuu’s Ghostblade
- Axiom Arc
- Edge of Night
- Guardian Angel
Read Also: Top 15 Best Off-Meta Supports
7. Wukong
Wukong is one of the best off-meta mid laners that I’ve ever played in League of Legends. This champion is so good at countering many meta picks in the mid lane that I recommend you to start playing him immediately!
As a mid laner, Wukong has a few strengths you should know about.
First of all, Wukong is a trickster champion able to outplay many mid laners during the laning phase. His E is a dash that easily lets him reposition while trading. And his W can block can confuse enemies and let him dodge important abilities such as Zed’s R or Twisted Fate’s W.
Second, Wukong has the benefit of building fighter items instead of lethality or AP. Because of this, Wukong will always be tankier than all mid lane champions. And this simply means that he can duel all mid laners, no matter the pick.
And lastly, Wukong is great at late game team fighting! Seriously, Wukong’s R is one of the scariest abilities when it comes to team fights. And if used at the right time, it can single-handedly win games later on.
All in all, I really recommend trying out Wukong mid lane. If nothing else, you’ll have tons of fun dashing around and playing with your opponent’s mind!
Here are the runes and items you’ll need to take.
Runes
- Conqueror
- Triumph
- Legend: Tenacity
- Coup de Grace
- Sudden Impact
- Ultimate Hunter
Items
- Plated Steelcaps
- Divine Sunderer
- Death’s Dance
- Maw of Malmortius
- Black Cleaver
- Chempunk Chainsword
Read Also: AP Twitch Smurf Build Guide
6. Gragas
If you’re a veteran League player like myself, you probably remember that Gragas was actually a meta mid laner back in the day. During season 3, for example, Gragas was so strong that Faker used him to carry many games at the World Championship.
Now in 2023, Gragas is still a hard-carry champion for many players. Despite not being a mid laner anymore, he can easily adapt his playstyle for the role. He is an AP-based champion, so your team won’t have to make sacrifices in the other roles.
What makes Gragas a really good mid laner is his explosive damage and crowd control. Gragas’ Q is a ranged ability that deals a lot of magic damage early on and slows the target. His E is a dash that also deals great damage. And his R can displace all enemies and execute them if Gragas has enough AP.
I dare say that Gragas is a good off-meta mid laner to play against both melee assassins and ranged mages. His kit allows him to easily farm minions and he can even heal after being harassed.
On top of that, Grgas has a truly terrifying all-in as early as level 3. With Electrocute, his W+E+Q combo can almost one-shot an enemy during the first few levels, so make sure you take advantage of that. But Gragas’ damage stays high throughout the game, so he always stays relevant and useful.
Here is a bread and butter build for playing Gragas mid.
Runes
- Electrocute
- Sudden Impact
- Eyeball Collection
- Ultimate Hunter
- Manaflow Band
- Transcendence
Items
- Sorcerer’s Shoes
- Everfrost
- Lich Bane
- Zhonya’s Hourglass
- Rabadon’s Deathcap
- Void Staff
Read Also: The 10 Most Fun Mid Laners
5. Caitlyn
In the fifth place, we have Caitlyn. Cait is one of the strongest off-meta mid laners that you can ever play. And if you’re good at playing marksmen, she can help you carry so many games in solo queue!
The thing I like most about playing Caitlyn mid is that she is an unforgiving bully to almost all mid laners. Caitlyn’s range is very high and you can abuse it to constantly hit enemies with auto-attacks. Her Q is also a long-ranged ability and it does so much damage early on!
And this leads me to my next point – you should play Caitlyn mid exclusively with the lethality build!
If you’ve never heard of it before, Caitlyn with a full lethality build is one of the most broken things in League of Legends. She can easily one-shot an enemy mid laner with a simple Q+R combo, even if they’re on full HP. Combined with the fact that she gets more XP in mid, Caitlyn can comfortably fight anyone on the map and carry games.
Here’s my complete guide on how to play lethality Caitlyn in League of Legends!
But all this power doesn’t come without any weaknesses. Caitlyn is still a squishy ADC and you must play the laning phase carefully. On top of that, you must not get overconfident because even Zed with 0/5 can still assassinate you.
However, if you manage to bypass these negatives, you’ll be unstoppable on Cait mid!
Runes
- Dark Harvest
- Cheap Shot
- Eyeball Collection
- Ultimate Hunter
- Transcendence
- Scorch
Items
- Ionian Boots of Lucidity
- Manamune
- Duskblade of Draktharr
- Axiom Arc
- The Collector
- Serylda’s Grudge
Read Also: Top 5 Best AP Bot Laners
4. Lee Sin
Lee Sin mid is probably one of the most fun things you can play in League of Legends. This champion is great at so many things that it’s really hard to stop him. And in the mid lane, he has a few strengths that allow him to carry games too.
For example, Lee Sin is a mobile champion that can take quick trades and stay safe. This is usually done on level 2 or 3 when Lee can dash in with Q, proc Electrocute, and dash away to safety with W. If you repeat this a couple of times in lane, you open up an opportunity to slay your opponent.
Aside from his mobility, Lee Sin mid has an insane amount of burst damage. Here I’m not talking about his regular fighter build, but his lethality build instead. With enough lethality, Lee can one-shot an enemy champion in a matter of seconds.
This is further improved by the use of the mythic item Prowler’s Claw. With PC, Lee Sin can quickly dash behind an enemy champion, increase his damage done to them, and kick them for extra damage. And unless you’re targeting tanks, this combo should always be enough to take down the enemy.
If you’ve never this champion with lethality items, I’d suggest you check my full guide on how to play lethality Lee Sin in League. There you’ll find more information about how this build works and how you can execute the different combos with Prowler’s Claw.
For now, here are the runes and items you’re going to need.
Runes
- Electrocute
- Sudden Impact
- Eyeball Collection
- Ultimate Hunter
- Trimph
- Coup de Grace
Items
- Ionian Boots of Lucidity
- Prowler’s Claw
- Axiom Arc
- The Collector
- Edge of Night
- Death’s Dance
Read Also: Top 10 Best Mages in League of Legends
3. Kog’Maw
Kog’Maw is another fantastic marksman that can take the mantle of a mage in the mid lane. Of course, playing Kog in the mid role goes much better with the AP build.
So, if you want a champion that can do a crazy amount of magic damage from high range, Kog’Maw should be your first choice!
Kog’Maw is a strong laner, even when paired against dangerous champions such as Zed or Katarina. The reason for this is that Kog can constantly poke enemies and force them out of lane. Since his E ability travels through minions, it’s very easy for him to damage his opponents without getting into trouble.
Another thing that makes Kog’Maw such a great off-meta AP mid laner is his scaling. Kog’Maw has an insane AP ratio on his abilities, especially his Q and E (+70%). On top of that, his R can one-shot a squishy enemy in the late game.
The one weakness that Kog has as an AP mage is his survivability. This champion has no dashes, no shields, and no heals. Left without a support in the mid lane, Kog is often forced to buy items like Zhonya’s Hourglass and Banshee’s Veil.
However, if you don’t mind that and you’d like to play an AP machine gun, Kog’Maw is the pick for you!
These are the runes and items I generally use for playing Kog’Maw mid.
Runes
- Arcane Comet
- Manaflow Band
- Transcendence
- Scorch
- Presence of Mind
- Coup de Grace
Items
- Sorcerer’s Shoes
- Luden’s Tempest
- Seraph’s Embrace
- Morellonomicon
- Rabadon’s Deathcap
- Void Staff
Read Also: 7 Best Mid Laners Against Tanks
2. Soraka
When talking about the best off-meta mid lane picks in League of Legends, I simply have to mention the most broken example – Soraka. Seriously, Soraka may bet the strongest pick on you see on this list for so many different reasons.
First of all, Soraka is an enchanter champion that does an unbelievable amount of damage during the laning phase. Anyone who has faced an AP Soraka mid can tell you that her Qs hit extremely hard. And the best thing about it is that the ability is on such a short cooldown.
Another fact to consider is that Soraka can stop most mid laners from slaying her. Her E is an AoE silence that can also root the enemies in place. This is a direct counter to all mages and nearly all assassins in League of Legends.
And last but not least, Soraka is an invaluable champion to have on your team. She has an almost infinite amount of healing for her teammates. And her ultimate is a global ability that heals everyone on the map.
Soraka’s biggest weakness is the fact that she’s squishy. However, that’s why I recommend playing her with Crown of the Shattered Queen as a mythic item and buying Zhonya’s Hourglass/Banshee’s Veil early on.
Here’s the full build listed.
Runes
- Summon Aery
- Manaflow Band
- Celerity
- Scorch
- Font of Life
- Revitalize
Items
- Ioanian Boots of Lucidity
- Crown of the Shattered Queen
- Rabadon’s Deathcap
- Banshee’s Veil
- Zhonya’s Hourglass
- Cosmic Drive
Read Also: AD Soraka Build Guide
1. Varus
And finally, we have Varus. Varus is the best and the most fun champion that you can ever try in the mid lane. Nowadays he isn’t such a “weird” mid lane pick, but he’s definitely an off-meta example.
What makes Varus such an exceptional champion for mid lane is his range, crowd control, and burst damage. As you know, Varus can endlessly poke enemies with his Q, force them out of lane, and win lane with that strategy.
But Varus can do so much more! Once he gets his level 6, Varus can one-shot the opposing mid laner from 100% HP. His abilities hit so hard that anyone can hardly survive the damage. So if you don’t miss your R and Q, you can always get a kill with Varus.
This is even more true when you play the AP Varus build. Normally, you can go with lethality Varus or ADC Varus. However, the AP build exploits Varus’ W and R, so the damage is honestly unbelievable.
If you’re interested in playing AP Varus, I’d suggest you read my complete guide on AP Varus here. It’s a super-strong playstyle that can help you carry games in all elos.
Here’s the rune page and item build I usually run on AP Varus mid.
Runes
- Arcane Comet
- Manaflow Band
- Transcendence
- Scorch
- Cheap Shot
- Ultimate Hunter
Items
- Sorcerer’s Shoes
- Manamune
- Luden’s Tempest
- Horizon Focus
- Rabadon’s Deathcap
- Void Staff
Read Also: Top 15 Best Off-Meta ADCs
Conclusion
Those were the top 15 best off-meta mid laners in League of Legends 2023!
I’m so glad that the game is in such a state where new and fun builds can always be discovered. The champions you see on this list can all be powerful mid lane pocket-picks if you know how to play them. But be aware there are many more off-meta mid picks that I can honestly recommend.
That said, I’d suggest you browse Runetarium for more guides on off-meta builds for League of Legends. I constantly update the site so you can get new and fun builds every day.
In the meantime, I can recommend this YouTube channel for wacky LoL stuff! Good luck!
