Legends of Runeterra received a major update with the Season of Fortune arriving in Patch 1.4. One of the biggest changes to come with the update is an entirely new competitive mode, the Gauntlet Mode.
While Gauntlet Mode aims to be a competitive mode where deck restrictions occur (with the second Gauntlet confirmed to be a Singleton format), the first one is just a standard deck building format, so you can use your usual ladder decks.
The rewards for competing in Gauntlets are unique icons that players can flaunt, with one icon awarded for participating and one for achieving seven wins within the format. In addition to this, players also get bonus experience which contributes to their region roads and weekly chests.
The rules to succeed in Gauntlet mode are similar to the limited format, Expedition Mode. This means that your Gauntlet runs either when you get seven wins, lose twice in a row at any time, or lose once after achieving six wins. Since deck building rules are no different than the standard ladder, that means any deck you take through shouldn’t have too many polarized match ups. This is because the amount of varying decks you can face in the ladder can vary more than usual when compared to ladder.
The best decks to succeed in this first gauntlet are popular decks you can play well. In addition to this, knowing which decks are popular, and how to tailor your decks to counter them better, will help you find success. An example of the former is looking at recent decks streamers have found proven success with and piloting them to win more than 50 percent of your matches. A good example of the latter is this Homebrew Fiora Zed list (Deck Code: CEBQCAQABEAQCAQJBAAQAAIJB4NB2KZNGYBQCAQAA4AQCAAKAIAQEARRAEBAEAAFBI).
A major component to why this homebrew deck was successful was that it could target a popular deck on the ladder that has had a wealth of appearances in Gauntlet, Noxus Elusives, and tech cards that trivialize the match up like Single Combat and Radiant Guardian.
Players have until June 30 to claim seven wins before the Standard Gauntlet goes away in preparation for the Singleton Gauntlet that will appear July 3.
