Top 5 Heroes to Ban in Season 40 and Here’s Why

 Have you ever been in a draft pick and been unsure which hero to ban first? Or perhaps you’ve just banned randomly because you didn’t know which hero to ban? If so, you’re not alone. The ban phase is one of the most crucial moments in a ranked match. Many players still go through it without a clear strategy, whether due to a lack of focus or simply not knowing which hero to ban.

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In Season 40, the meta hasn’t changed much from the previous season. Some hero bans remain the same. Many heroes are on the ban list because some of them have received buffs that make them overpowered and difficult to counter.

Banning the right hero isn’t about which heroes you dislike, but about eliminating the biggest threat before the enemy picks them.

In this article, we’ll discuss one by one five heroes are priority bans in Season 40 and why they’re on this list, as well as when you should prioritise bans depending on the draft situation.

Gloo – Tank – Ban rate 72.26% - Win rate 55.86%

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Gloo is the hero with the highest ban rate in Season 40. That 72% number is not without reason. His skills are designed to torture the enemy. With an ultimate that can glue to the enemy and deal continuous damage, it’s almost impossible for Gloo to die whilst gluing to the enemy with his ultimate.

What’s frustrating is that the more you cast skills at Gloo whilst he’s using his ultimate, the more your teammates will suffer and eventually die. His win rate of 55.86% despite a low pick rate (0.60%) also proves that whoever manages to use him almost always wins because the enemy is overwhelming in facing him.

Marcel – Support – Ban rate 69.61% - Win rate 51.33%

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Marcel is a new hero released in Season 40. He immediately became one of the top two most-banned heroes. This is something that rarely happens, even for extremely powerful new heroes; his ultimate has a stasis mechanic that can freeze all units within a certain area, including flying projectiles.

In the right team, with good coordination, a single use of Marcel’s ultimate can turn the tide of a teamfight that was on the verge of defeat. Interestingly, a win rate of ‘just’ 51.33% is enough to prove that he truly requires solid teamwork to be truly effective.

Sora – Fighter/Assassin – Ban rate 58.77% - Win rate 51.79%

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Sora has made it into the top 3 bans because of one thing that’s most hated in the drafting phase. This hero is too flexible to be placed in three different roles, such as the gold lane, the exp lane or the jungle. He can act as a tank who’s hard to kill, or he can become a burst assassin when he uses his ultimate to one-shot a carry in a matter of seconds.

Enemies never really know which version of Sora they’ll be facing until the game is already underway. That’s where the real danger lies when Sora is played correctly. It’s easier to ban him early on than to prepare a counter for two playstyles at once.

Freya – Fighter – Ban rate 43.86% – Win rate 50.68%

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Freya is always on the priority ban list, even though she’s been nerfed in the latest patch. Her base skills are simply too overpowered to be left alone. She’s one of the fighters who’s quite difficult to counter in a 1v1 on the exp lane.

Her ultimate provides both damage reduction and healing, so when faced with her, she becomes even more aggressive. At high ranks, letting Freya get away means your team will face difficulties in the exp lane. However, this isn’t the case if you face Freya using a hero that can counter her.

Estes – Support – Ban rate 39.95% - Win rate 53.59%

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Estes has the highest win rate among these five heroes. And that win rate is no mere coincidence. If your team has Estes and the enemy lacks sufficient anti-heal capabilities, teamfights can drag on forever, or your team will always remain at full health. This is because Estes’ support healing is incredibly powerful.

His constant healing prevents the carry from being killed instantly in teamfights, and his ultimate can heal all allies within a close-range radius at once.

In Season 40, which is already packed with healing compositions in every ranked match, letting Estes live means you’ll need to prepare at least two anti-heal items—or be prepared to lose in a war of attrition if your team isn’t strong enough.

The right bans are the first step to victory

These five heroes aren’t banned without a reason. Data and the experience of thousands of players have proven this, but effective bans aren’t always about following trends; rather, they should be based on team composition and the strategy to be employed.

You can use this list as a guide, not a set-in-stone rule. Winning the draft phase is the first step towards victory in the game. Good luck pushing your rank!