Greetings, Summoners,
Welcome to patch 8.3, the one where Swain gets a shiny, updated kit. A few champions have been standing out not necessarily because they're the strongest champions, but because they're the most generalist, so we're sharpening their intended weaknesses to give opponents more deliberate counterplay.
Then there's our iconic basic attackers. Master Yi and Tryndamere have been having a rough year, so we're giving them a bit more damage to help them be more relevant. We don’t intend to fix all of their problems this time around, just make them feel less weak.
Finally, we're gnawing at the outliers of mid and marksman rosters. There are a few top picks that outclass the others, and some old favorites who have fallen heavily out of favor.
So grab your Noxian demon arm, remember that the bird is the word, and get out on the Rift and crush your enemies.
GLHF,
Swain's champion update launches with patch 8.3! For more intel on the Noxian Grand General, check these links:
Head to the "Extras" section of the Champion Reveal above for Swain's new splash art!
Q cooldown increased at early ranks.
Azir's early laning strength is keeping other mid laners from having enough early game agency, especially at higher levels of play.
Base armor decreased.
We'd like Jarvan to have clearer weaknesses for his opponents to take advantage of. Dropping his base durability (especially against jungle monsters) should give early duelists a better shot at fighting him.
R base damage increased at later ranks.
The nerfs to Sorcery and Lethality put Jhin in a weaker spot than we'd like, so we're buffing some of his base damage back up.
Passive damage decreased.
Even when she is shut down in lane, Katarina's high base damage helps her leave the laning phase relevant, even in losing matchups.
W maximum health damage decreased at later ranks.
Kog's damage is spiking too hard, even with one item. Less damage from his main basic attack murder tool should force him to rely more on items.
Passive damage increased at early ranks. Passive crit damage increased.
Lucian could use some love, but we want to make sure the majority of it is felt in more traditional bot lane carry oriented builds.
Q mana cost decreased. E active base damage increased at early ranks and bonus attack damage ratio increased.
Though we think Master Yi needs a lot of gameplay improvement, he doesn't need to be so weak in the meantime. We're giving him a bit more damage so he can stop feeling like Mister Yi.
Activating Stopwatch or Zhonya’s now cancels Ryze’s ultimate as though he had been interrupted by crowd control.
When the original decision was made to allow Ryze to use Zhonya's Hourglass to guarantee his ultimate, we were on the fence about this interaction, but it was deemed acceptable because he paid a significant cost to access it. Zhonya's Hourglass either came later in the game, or delayed core items in Ryze's already expensive build. Now that the Inspiration tree has made Zhonya's effect much easier to access, we’re not comfortable with keeping this low gameplay interaction intact.
Q cooldown increased at early ranks.
Like Jarvan, Sejuani is pretty good at everything: She’s a late-scaling tank with good damage and crowd control. She doesn't need such high early game mobility too, so we're dialing back on that.
Base attack damage at later ranks increased. E bonus attack damage ratio increased.
Like Master Yi, Tryndamere could just use some more damage right now.
Q shield now increased by Augment: Turbocharge. R cooldown decreased at later ranks.
In the past, Viktor's strength has been partially defined by his ability to one-shot opponents with Q - Siphon Power plus Lich Bane. We've changed his kit over time to reward him for staying near his enemies for longer, but now he's missing the tools to do so safely. We want to give Viktor players who regularly opt in to a riskier playstyle the tools to survive the punishment they take being up close and personal.
Q Cooldown increased.
Paddle Star’s current cooldown doesn't give opponents long enough windows to take advantage of.
Cleaned up champions' base health regeneration stat to only include half or full numbers.
The Inspiration tree—especially the combination of Magical Footwear and Perfect Timing—was giving too much of a gold advantage, when rune choices should be about what playstyle you want to opt into.
Summoner spell cooldown reduction decreased.
Unsealed Spellbook is supposed to be the keystone for players who want to swap summoner spells and alter their capabilities mid-game. Turns out that much Summoner Spell cooldown reduction is good even if you never swap all game, so we're reducing the amount Unsealed Spellbook gives.
Magical Footwear added to slot, Biscuit Delivery removed from slot. Perfect Timing and Magical Footwear gold contribution towards upgrades decreased. Perfect Timing sell value decreased
In the context of decreasing the amount of gold advantage this tree gives, moving Perfect Timing and Magical Footwear will force players to choose between them. We'll also be reducing the overall gold advantage both runes give individually.
Biscuit Delivery added to slot, Magical Footwear removed from slot
The Hunt of the Blood Moon looms into rotation from 02/08/2018 8:00 PST - 2/19/2018 23:59 PST. Sacrifice Spirits, Demon Heralds, and enemy champions to gain points and the Demon Brand buff, which turns you invisible to hunt down your enemies
Only 20 of the most vicious champions are available for the Hunt (10 of which will be free to play for the game mode only).Free to play:
Happy hunting.
The following skins will be released in patch 8.3:
The following chromas will be released in patch 8.3:
The following emotes will be released in patch 8.3: