League of Legends power rankings through Jan. 29

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Every week, we look at each team in the five major regions and rank the teams according to how they are performing. For the first time in our rankings, SK Telecom has dropped out of the top 10. Echo Fox is 4-0 and continues to climb. It's a mad, mad League of Legends world.

Nos. 1-10: World contenders

Nos. 11-20: Playoff contenders

Nos. 21-30: Middle of the pack

Nos. 31-40: Struggling

Nos. 41-52: Bottom of the barrel

World contenders

1. KINGZONE DRAGONX

Record: 3-1| League: LCK | +/-:+2

What a difference a week makes. With Kim "Khan" Dong-ha back in the top lane, Kingzone DragonX are a completely different team. Although this meta has been defined by scaling hypercarries in a double Relic Shield bot lane setup, series wins have been decided by how well teams play around top lane, Teleport and spreading pressure on the map. Kingzone excels at playing through topside when Khan is on the Rift, and mid laner Gwak "Bdd" Bo-seong has been more in sync with Han "Peanut" Wang-ho. Even Moon "Cuzz" Woo-chan and Kim "Rascal" Kwang-hee returned this week and looked strong.

2. KSV

Record: 3-1 | League: LCK | +/-: -1

After a harrowing series against the Afreeca Freecs, it's not surprising to see that KSV dropped a match this week. The shocking part is that this loss didn't come against Afreeca, which is on the bubble of becoming one of South Korea's best teams, but against Kongdoo Monster. A disrespectful scaling draft in Game 1 and the team's inability to deal with Lee "Edge" Ho-seong's Zoe handed KSV their first loss of the split. After KSV's example, look for LCK teams to pay more attention to Zoe in Week 3. As for KSV, it's still the second-best team in the LCK, contending for first, even with Kang "Haru" Min-seung getting starts over Kang "Ambition" Chan-yong.

3. KT Rolster

Record: 3-1 | League: LCK | +/-: +2

It took over a year and six failed attempts, and the victory didn't come in an LCK or Worlds final like KT would have liked, but the superstar lineup that was formed specifically to beat SKT finally did just that this past weekend. Later in the week against bbq, it seemed like a weight had been lifted from the players' shoulders. Consistency will now be the key for KT, especially with such a strong field of LCK teams.

4. EDward Gaming

Record: 3-1 | League: LPL | +/-: +2

Despite a closer victory over Oh My God than was expected, EDG are once again poised to take over the LPL. With Relic Shield stymying EDG's preferred playstyle of smashing through the bottom Tier 1 turret before 10 minutes, the team has turned attention to the top side. Returning top laner Jeon "Ray" Ji-won's strong performances on Cho'gath and Maokai and jungler Chen "Haro" Wen-Lin have been just as important to EDG as their young, prodigious AD carry, Hu "iBoy" Xian-Zhao.

5. Snake Esports

Record: 3-1 | League: LPL | +/-: +12

Snake's one-dimension playstyle and inconsistency since its inaugural LPL split in 2015 have made it difficult to trust top laner Li "Flandre" Xuan-jun & Co., but this Snake lineup looks strong and confident in the current meta. Flandre's flexibility (he has even seen success with the flex Ryze top), jungler Lê "SofM" Quang Duy's early pathing, and mid laner Zeng "Guoguo" Jun-Li's steady improvement have made Snake a force to be reckoned with.

6. Afreeca Freecs

Record: 2-2 | League: LCK | +/-: -4

This was a rough week for the Freecs. Prior to this "super week" of LCK matches, Afreeca were rated highly due to its victory over KT Rolster combined with Kingzone DragonX's loss. Although it was quickly dispatched by Kingzone in the first series of the week, the Freecs looked strong against KSV, nearly pulling out the 2-0 upset. Game 3 of that series wasn't close, but Afreeca rebounded against the ROX Tigers later on in the week with a 2-0 victory. This, combined with the KSV close loss, puts them ahead of its 2-2 LCK brethren. Going forward the key for Afreeca will be continuing to integrate new top laner Kim "Kiin" Gi-in.

7. Team WE

Record: 3-2 | League: LPL | +/-: +1

The sight of Xiang "Condi" Ren-Jie back in the jungle position for Team WE against Vici Gaming and FunPlus Phoenix was a welcome one. Despite dropping the first series of the week 0-2 to Snake, WE bounced back (no Zac puns intended). By Game 3 against FPX, they looked a lot more like the WE of 2017, capitalizing on FPX mistakes in teamfights.

8. Invictus Gaming

Record: 3-1 | League: LPL | +/-: +3

A large part of being a good team is beating the opponents that you are expected to beat. Invictus Gaming did just that this past week with wins over Topsports and fellow first-place team JD Gaming. For now, iG have unlocked top laner Kang "TheShy" Seung-lok on carry picks like Jayce and Gangplank, which has worked out well for them. In the East Region with up-and-coming competitors like JDG and Suning alongside the staple Royal Never Give Up, Invictus Gaming is the top of its group.

9. Jin Air Green Wings

Record: 2-2 | League: LCK | +/-: +1

There are two qualities that follow the Jin Air organization without fail, regardless of roster. The first is the longest average game time in the league. The second is an ability to knock off perceived stronger teams, only to falter to weaker ones. This week Jin Air easily dispatched MVP as expected, but were tripped up by bbq Olivers, which until this series had looked far less coordinated and cohesive. Mid lane could be a problem for Jin Air in the future, especially if, like KSV, it underestimates the power of Zoe.

10. Echo Fox

Record: 4-0 | League: NA LCS | +/-: +10

Fortitude? Check. After two weeks in the NA LCS, there are few holes you can spot for Echo Fox. The team has had a tough schedule to begin the season, and it remained perfect through four games, running wild with a fun, attack-oriented style in the first three games before showing off its resilience on Sunday in its comeback win against Team SoloMid. The team has come together faster than any other in North America, and there is still a higher ceiling this team can reach if things continue on this trajectory.

It's too soon to crown Echo Fox as the team to finally take down the TSM empire of three straight titles, but Rick Fox's club is playing better League of Legends than any other team in North America at this moment.

Playoff contenders

11. Misfits

Record: 3-1 | League: EU LCS | +/-: +5

Misfits has finally arrived in the LCS, and what a treat it has been to watch it tear opponents apart. With efficient execution in team fights and in objective takedowns, the squad has all but made its loss against G2 Esports irrelevant, almost accidental. After subjecting H2K Gaming to a Zoe-empowered attrition war with slow, methodical takedowns culminating in a Baron Nashor ace (and a swift win afterward), the team thwarted Vitality's attempt at doing the exact same as it capitalized on team fight opportunities empowered by Steven "Hans Sama" Liv's prowess (10/0/7 KDA combined in two games).

12. SK Telecom T1

Record: 1-3 | League: LCK | +/-: -5

This is the first time in Power Rankings history where the question isn't "Where does SKT fit in the Top 10?" but rather, "Is SKT a Top 20 team in the world?" Lee "Wolf" Jae-wan was noticeably on the bench this week against the stronger jungle talent of KT's Go "Score" Dong-bin and Kingzone's Moon "Cuzz" Woo-chan and Han "Peanut" Wang-ho. The losses aren't Kang "Blank" Sun-gu's fault, but more of the same problems -- lack of an ability to play through the top side of the map -- that have led SKT to this position.

13. BiliBili Gaming

Record: 3-1 | League: LPL | +/-: +6

This roster always struggles against its former sister team, a trend that continued this week when EDward Gaming made fairly quick work of BLG, even after BLG had a strong performance against OMG one series earlier. BLG's use, or abuse, of Teleport makes them a strong contender in the current meta.

14. JD Gaming

Record: 4-1 | League: LPL | +/-: +15

The East Region hasn't been defined by LPL staples like Royal Never Give Up or Invictus Gaming as much as its two rising stars of JD Gaming and Suning Gaming. The two met in a close 2-1 match at the start of Week 3 with JDG emerging victorious thanks to smart map movements and coordinated play. JDG (and Suning, for that matter) are both prone to overly optimistic teamfight initiations, but JDG's play setups are strong, and talented carries like Zhang "Zoom" Xing-Ran and Zeng "YaGao" Qi. Kim "doinb" Tae-sang is hardly missed.

15. Cloud9

Record: 3-1 | League: NA LCS | +/-: -1

Losing to Echo Fox lost C9 a shot as the top-ranking NA team in the Global Power Rankings, but a big bounce-back win against the 100 Thieves to end its undefeated season has solidified the new-look C9 as the second-best team in the region after four games. The team's additions in the offseason haven't negatively affected the team, and a sixth-straight trip to the World Championships and the club's first domestic championship in three years should be legitimate goals for C9 this year.

16. Vitality

Record: 3-1 | League: EU LCS | +/-: +5

If there is one word that can define Team Vitality in the start of the spring split, it would be "refreshing" -- much as Daniele "Jiizuke" Di Mauro's appearances on the rift have been so far, thanks to heavy contributions from Berk "Gilius" Demir. However, the team showed glaring signs of inexperience for the first time, failing to execute a siege composition's game plan due to reckless team fights decisions.

Vitality's inexperience further highlights its potential; with threats in all three lanes, and a jungler who has been able to leverage winning matchups into victories, the team has a radiant future ahead of it. Should it gain in efficiency and game knowledge, it would certainly contend against Misfits on the long run.

17. J Team

Record: 2-0 | League: LMS | +/-: +16

Machi skyrocketed up through the LMS ranks this week with wins over AHQ e-Sports and Hong Kong Attitude, but it's J Team and world-class mid laner Chu "FoFo" Chun-Lan that are still the top team in the LMS for now.

18. bbq Olivers

Record: 2-2 | League: LCK | +/-: --

If the ROX Tigers are a team that know who it is and how to draft around that, bbq are the team with better individual talent but haven't figured out who they are yet. We've seen some flashes of greatness from bbq that have been undone by a lack of coordination or team synergy. It's only natural that bbq would start off a bit slower since they added two important components, Kim "Trick" Gang-yun and Lee "IgNar" Dong-geun. With the improvements shown by the team this past week, the future is looking brighter for bbq.

19. ROX Tigers

Record: 2-2 | League: LCK | +/-: +5

The ROX Tigers know who they are. This isn't a bad thing, and have drafted well to cover weaknesses, bringing Corki and Galio to the forefront of the evolving LCK meta through mid laner Kim "Lava" Tae-hoon. More surprising has been their ability to play through the top side of the map by putting Heo "Lindarang" Man-heung on carries and leaving AD carry Gwon "Sangyoon" Sang-yun on hypercarry cleanup duty in teamfights.

20. Kongdoo

Record: 2-2 | League: LCK | +/-: +5

Kongdoo Monster, a Top 20 team in the world? What is League of Legends coming to? With half of the LCK tied at 2-2 in series, Kongdoo are the worst of the .500 teams, but know how to play around their weaknesses fairly well. Jungler Oh "Raise" Ji-hwan has been strong in organizing Kongdoo's early game, and Lee "Edge" Ho-seong is shaping up to be the best Zoe player in South Korea.