In Mobile Legends Season 42 (Patch 2.2.16, September 2026), the five heroes most worth a ban slot in ranked are Hirara, Eudora, Belerick, Paquito and Gloo — that is the shape the live ranked ban-rate data has settled into about eleven days after the Season 42 revamps landed. The important part isn't the list, though. It's why those five, and why the heroes everybody instinctively wants to ban — the ones that look terrifying in one bad game — are usually a wasted ban.
You get one ban in a solo-queue Ranked draft (two in the higher pick-ban formats). Spending it on the wrong hero is one of the quietest ways to lose a game before it starts. This guide gives you the current first-ban shortlist, the honest reasoning behind each, and the traps that cost people their ban slot — all anchored to the live patch, with the sources shown so you can see where the trackers disagree.
Quick answer: the Season 42 first-ban shortlist
- Hirara — highest ban rate in the game (~63% in ranked). A jungle assassin with damage and mobility that's genuinely hard to punish. The safest single ban.
- Eudora — burst mage that deletes a squishy from range with no windup you can react to. Warps how the enemy drafts their backline.
- Belerick — the tank/roam ban. Not flashy, but a persistent presence in the roam contest at high ranks.
- Paquito — still a top-five ban after his Season 42 rework. The revamp was mostly visual; his burst-and-mobility fighter pattern survived.
- Gloo — high ban rate for a tank; a sticky, splittable frontline that ruins teamfight positioning.
How to use it: ban the hero your lane or your team can't deal with, not the scariest name. If you're a hard-carry jungler, Hirara first. If your comp is squishy and you have no frontline peel, Eudora. This is a ranked/solo-queue picture, not pro pick-ban — see the method note below.
Everything here applies to the Original Server, Patch 2.2.16 (live since 16 September 2026). MLBB re-balances every three to six weeks and the Season 42 revamps reshuffled the meta on day one, so re-check in-game if you're reading this a patch later.
How ban priority actually works in Mobile Legends
Ranked draft in MLBB uses a ban-and-pick order. In standard solo/duo Ranked from Epic upward, each team bans a set number of heroes before picking; the exact count scales with rank, and the highest-tier and tournament formats use the wider ten-ban pick-ban structure you see in MPL. The heroes below are framed for the everyday solo-queue ban you actually get, not the pro format.
A ban does one of three jobs:
- Removes a hero you personally can't beat in lane. This is the most valuable ban for a solo climber.
- Removes a hero that warps the whole enemy draft — a flex pick or a hero so strong it's a "pick or ban."
- Protects your own comp's weakness — if your team has no frontline and no peel, banning the best dive threat is worth more than banning a stronger-but-slower hero.
The mistake almost everyone makes is banning by fear — the hero that stomped them last game — instead of by ban value. A hero with a 60% ban rate is being removed because a wide slice of the playerbase agrees it's a problem; a hero you're scared of that nobody else bothers to ban is usually a hero you can simply draft around.
The Season 42 top-5 bans, and the reasoning
Here is the current shortlist with the live ranked ban rate reported by community stat trackers on Patch 2.2.16, and the specific reason each earns a slot.
Hero — role — ban rate — why
- Hirara — jungle assassin — ~63% ban rate — the default ban. Introduced as hero 133 in June 2026, Hirara pairs real burst with escape tools, which is the exact combination that's frustrating to punish in solo queue: you commit to a kill, she's already gone. She sits at the top of the ranked ban charts across every server slice, which is as close to consensus as MLBB gets.
- Eudora — mid mage — ~58% ban rate — the anti-backline ban. Eudora's appeal is brutal simplicity: a full combo can delete a marksman or support before they finish reacting, from a safe distance, with a stun in the chain. She doesn't need a skin-tier player to be effective, which is exactly why she's banned so consistently. If your team is squishy and immobile, this is your ban.
- Belerick — roam tank — ~52% ban rate — the quiet roam ban. Belerick isn't a highlight-reel hero, but he's a durable, disruptive frontline that's persistently contested in the roam slot at high ranks. He shows up high on the ban charts precisely because he's low-skill-floor reliable.
- Paquito — EXP-lane fighter — ~48% ban rate — the one the revamp didn't fix. Paquito got a Season 42 rework, but it was a visual and skill-optimization pass, not a mechanical rebuild — those went to Masha and Bruno. His ban rate barely moved. If you were banning Paquito in Season 41, keep doing it; the Paquito rework left the threat intact.
- Gloo — tank — ~36% ban rate — the sticky-engage ban. Gloo's stickiness — the way he latches onto and splits a target from their team — keeps him a repeat ban across balance passes. A ban rate that high on a tank tells you players find him genuinely un-fun to play against.
A note on the numbers: these ban rates come from ranked-match stat trackers reading roughly the last seven days of data across all servers on Patch 2.2.16. They are solo/duo ranked figures, not MPL pro pick-ban. Treat the order as a strong prior, not gospel — and read the next section, because the editorial tier lists and the raw data don't fully agree.
Where the tier lists disagree — and why that matters
If you read three MLBB "who to ban" articles this week you'll get three different lists, and that disagreement is the honest story of this meta. Here's the split as of late September 2026:
- The live ranked data (seven-day ban rates, Patch 2.2.16) puts Hirara, Eudora, Belerick, Paquito, Gloo on top.
- Editorial creator lists from earlier in September — written on the pre-Season-42 patch — elevated Guinevere, Ling, Kaja, Eudora, framing Guinevere as a "mandatory ban in two roles."
- The problem: the live data doesn't back Guinevere as a ban at all right now — her actual ranked ban rate is around 3%, despite the "mandatory two-role ban" framing some lists still carry over from Season 41.
The lesson isn't "the creators are wrong." It's that a hand-written tier list reflects one strong player's read at a snapshot in time, often on the previous patch, while ban-rate data reflects what a whole server is actually afraid of now. When they conflict, trust the live data for your solo-queue ban and use the editorial reads for how to play against the hero once it's on the field. And always check the patch date on any list you read — a "September 2026" headline can still be sitting on Season 41 content.
The three heroes people over-ban (save your slot)
This is where most wasted bans go. These heroes feel ban-worthy and aren't, per the current data:
Novaria. She looks oppressive — global vision, poke, a slow — but her real ranked ban rate is around 4%, and the community read is consistent: she's a squishy target who is "easily sidestepped" and only a menace in the hands of a strong player who's already snowballing. As one player put it, if you're melee sustain or a duelist marksman she's hard to catch, but "doesn't mean you gonna focus on her." A skilled Novaria is dangerous; a random-queue Novaria usually isn't worth your only ban.
Aulus, Argus and Aldous. These three got buffed in Patch 2.2.16 and are strong by win rate — genuine sleeper picks (Aulus sits near the top of the win-rate charts). But their ban rates are tiny: roughly 3% for Aulus, 2% for Argus, under 1% for Aldous. That gap between "high win rate" and "low ban rate" is the signature of a hero that's strong but not oppressive to face — you counter them by drafting and playing well, not by spending a ban. If you main one of them, enjoy the free power; if you're deciding a ban, they're not it. (For what the buff actually did, see our Aulus build guide.)
Whatever just beat you. The single most common bad ban is the hero from your last loss. If nobody else on the server is banning it, that's your signal that the hero is beatable — the answer is a counter-pick or better positioning, not your ban slot.
How to choose your ban by comp, not by fear
A quick decision tree for your solo-queue ban:
- You're the jungler / hard carry: ban Hirara. She contests your role and your tempo directly.
- Your team looks squishy with no peel: ban Eudora (or the strongest burst mage available) so your backline survives to the mid-game.
- You have no reliable frontline and expect to get dived: ban Belerick or Gloo to take away the sticky engage.
- You're on the EXP lane and hate the matchup: ban Paquito and lane in peace.
- You genuinely don't know: default to Hirara. The highest ban rate in the game is the lowest-regret ban.
Ban priority is also a climbing tool, not just a draft mechanic — the faster you stop wasting bans, the faster your rank moves. If you're grinding toward the top, our guide on reaching Mythical Glory covers the ladder these bans feed into, and the current Season 42 tier list shows which heroes to actually pick once the bans are locked.
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FAQ
Who is the best hero to ban in Mobile Legends Season 42? On Patch 2.2.16, Hirara is the single best default ban — she carries the highest ranked ban rate in the game (around 63%) because her mix of jungle damage and mobility is hard to punish. If you're unsure which hero to remove, Hirara is the lowest-regret pick. Beyond her, the current top five are Eudora, Belerick, Paquito and Gloo.
How many heroes can you ban in a Mobile Legends ranked game? It depends on your rank and mode. Standard solo/duo Ranked from Epic upward gives each team a set number of bans that scales with tier, while the highest ranks and tournament drafts use the wider ten-ban pick-ban format seen in MPL. For most climbers the practical question is how to spend the one or two bans you get — which is what this guide is built around.
Should I ban Paquito after his Season 42 rework? Yes, in most matchups. His Patch 2.2.16 rework was a visual and skill-optimization pass, not a mechanical rebuild — the full kit reworks went to Masha and Bruno. His ranked ban rate stayed around 48%, confirming the threat survived the update. If your team can't handle a mobile burst fighter, he's still worth the slot.
Is Novaria worth banning in Season 42? Usually not. Despite looking oppressive, her ranked ban rate sits around 4%, and she's widely considered easy to sidestep and heavily skill-dependent — a squishy target who is only a real problem when she's already snowballing. Unless you know the enemy has a strong Novaria player, a counter-pick beats spending your ban on her.
Are Aulus, Argus or Aldous ban-worthy after the 2.2.16 buffs? Not currently. All three were buffed in Patch 2.2.16 and are strong by win rate, but their ban rates are tiny (roughly 3%, 2% and under 1% respectively). That's the mark of a hero that's powerful to play but not oppressive to face — you deal with them by drafting and playing well, not by banning.
Why do the ban tier lists I read disagree? Because they measure different things. Hand-written creator tier lists reflect one player's read at a moment in time, often on the previous patch, while ban-rate data reflects what a whole server is actually banning right now. On Patch 2.2.16 the data favors Hirara/Eudora/Belerick/Paquito/Gloo, while some earlier-September editorial lists still push Guinevere and Kaja — heroes the live data no longer supports. Always check the patch date on any list, and trust live ban rates for your solo-queue decision.
