Patch 9.21 notes — League of Legends

Hi. Happy post-10-year! Did you get to catch the team's stream? We loved getting to answer your questions, play with some of you, and work on fixing some bugs that you outlined on the Boards. Thank you for interacting with us on that very special day. We hope you enjoyed all the amazing things coming to League of Legends soon, including the preseason changes we've been alluding to for the past couple of patches. The bulk of our time is going into preparing for the Rise of the Elements gameplay update, but some notable work going live this patch includes follow-ups to the champions that received bigger changes in 9.20. From all the past, present, and future writers of Patch Notes, thank you for making the last 10 years awesome. Here's to another 10 years of dumb jokes, obscure references, and "CTRL+F , no results?" comments!

Hanna "shio shoujo" Woo

Mid-Patch Updates

11/01/2019 URF Update

No balance changes in this update, but we have some news for all you Golden Spatula wielders! We know that some of you were unable to play URF on the day it first turned on so we're extending it by one day! URF will officially turn off on November 9, 2019 at 7:00PM PT. We hope you've been enjoying it as much as we have!

10/30/2019 URF Balance Changes

As promised, we'll be reacting more quickly to out-of-line champions during this iteration of URF! These changes are meant to bring a few of the highest and lowest win-rate champions towards the middle.

Champions

CAMILLE +10% damage dealt & -10% damage taken ⇒ +5% damage dealt & -5% damage taken CASSIOPEIA -22% damage dealt ⇒ -15% damage dealt & -10% healing FIORA Unchanged ⇒ -10% damage dealt & -5% healing KALISTA +20% damage dealt ⇒ +10% damage dealt KATARINA +15% damage dealt & -10% damage taken ⇒ +10% damage dealt & -5% damage taken PYKE -10% healing ⇒ -5% healing RAMMUS +10% damage dealt & -10% damage taken ⇒ +15% damage dealt & -12% damage taken

Runes

DARK HARVEST 20-60 base damage & 25% bonus AD ratio ⇒ 10-50 base damage & 20% bonus AD ratio

10/28/2019 URF is now live!

We’re bringing back URF as a one-time experiment to celebrate League’s 10-year anniversary. From now until November 8, jump into cannons, wreak havoc, and rapid fire it up on Summoner's Rift. As promised in the /dev article on Nexus, we've implemented some balance changes, similar to the way we did them in ARAM earlier this year, to keep the games snappier and less "solved."

Champions

Due to our extended testing window on PBE, we’ve been able to utilize a similar balancing approach to ARAM for URF, dialing in the approach specifically for the champions that really pop off. We’ve tried to make sure we adjusted champions in ways that do not hamper their classic URF patterns, while also not invalidating other champions as reasonable options. The changes below are the adjustments made from how each champ normally is on Summoner's Rift.

AATROX +25% damage dealt & -25% damage taken AHRI -8% damage dealt AKALI +15% damage dealt ALISTAR +5% damage dealt & -10% damage taken ANIVIA +15% damage dealt & -10% damage taken AURELION SOL +10% damage dealt & -10% damage taken BARD +20% damage dealt & -10% damage taken BRAUM +10% damage dealt & -25% damage taken CAMILLE +10% damage dealt & -10% damage taken CASSIOPEIA -22% damage dealt CORKI +10% damage dealt DARIUS +10% damage dealt & -10% damage taken DIANA -5% damage dealt ELISE +10% damage dealt & -10% damage taken EVELYNN +20% damage dealt FIZZ -5% damage dealt GANGPLANK +15% damage dealt GAREN Eliminated the ability to stack spin casts & -10% damage taken GNAR +10% damage dealt & -10% damage taken HEIMERDINGER -10% damage dealt ILLAOI +5% damage dealt IRELIA +5% damage dealt & -10% damage taken IVERN +10% damage dealt & -15% damage taken JANNA -8% shield strength JAYCE -5% damage dealt JHIN +20% damage dealt KAI'SA -5% damage dealt KALISTA +20% damage dealt KARTHUS -15% damage dealt KASSADIN +5% damage dealt & -10% damage taken KATARINA +15% damage dealt & -10% damage taken KAYLE -5% damage dealt & -10% damage taken LEBLANC +10% damage dealt LEE SIN +5% damage dealt & -5% damage taken LEONA -3% damage dealt MALPHITE -5% damage dealt MALZAHAR -15% damage dealt MAOKAI -5% damage dealt MASTER YI -10% healing & -10% damage dealt MORGANA -8% damage dealt NOCTURNE -5% damage dealt NUNU -5% damage taken ORNN +10% damage dealt & -25% damage taken PYKE -10% healing QIYANA +5% damage dealt & -10% damage taken QUINN +15% damage dealt RAKAN -10% shield strength RAMMUS +10% damage dealt & -10% damage taken RIVEN -10% damage taken RUMBLE -10% damage dealt & -10% shield strength RYZE +2% damage dealt & -5% damage taken SEJUANI -10% damage taken SHACO -12% damage dealt SONA -5% damage dealt & -5% healing & -5% shield strength SYLAS -5% damage taken SYNDRA -5% damage dealt TAHM KENCH +25% damage dealt & -25% damage taken & +10% healing TALIYAH +15% damage dealt TALON -5% damage dealt TEEMO -5% damage dealt THRESH +10% damage dealt & -10% damage taken UDYR +10% damage dealt & -15% damage taken VEIGAR -5% damage dealt VEL'KOZ -5% damage dealt VLADIMIR -8% damage dealt WUKONG -5% damage dealt XAYAH -12% damage dealt YORICK -10% damage taken ZAC -15% damage taken ZED -10% damage dealt ZILEAN +20% damage dealt ZOE +10% damage dealt

Systems

To keep URF fast, we want objectives that are powerful and threaten the end of games. That being said, older iterations of URF would end too quickly once these objectives were taken. Additionally, turret plates are great for rewarding even small amounts of lane aggression in normal SR, but the tunings for that game mode often under-rewarded the risk it takes to hit turrets in URF, especially due to the speed at which enemies arrive back in lane. We’ve reduced the risk to get early plates, and we’ve dramatically increased the reward to make these a more interesting strategic option. Changes below are the system's values in this iteration of URF.

ELDER DRAGON SPAWN Elder Dragon will spawn at 9 minutes ELDER DRAGON BUFF DURATION 120 seconds (base) & 180 seconds (empowered) TURRET PLATE HEALTH 500-1500 based on the plate TURRET PLATE GOLD 300 gold

Runes

We wanted to take a minimal change approach to runes, and tried to bring down only a few runes that really distorted the options last time URF was live. Similar to the system changes, the adjustments below are what they are now in this URF iteration.

TRANSCENDENCE 15% CDR at level 10 & 0.5 adaptive AP/0.3 adaptive AD for every 1% CDR overcap GATHERING STORM Gains Adaptive Force every 6 minutes

10/23/2019 Waterwalking Bugfix

Waterwalking

BUGFIX Champions will now properly activate Waterwalking at every part of the river, not just at the entrances

Patch Highlights

Bewitching Miss Fortune, Count Kassadin, and Witch's Brew Blitzcrank will be available on October 24, 2019.

Champions

Garen

E base damage per spin decreased.

Nerfing Garen after his changes in 9.20. While this change might look large, we've kept the ratios the same, so it shouldn’t feel like a huge nerf.

E - Judgment

BASE DAMAGE PER SPIN 8/12/16/20/24 ⇒ 4/8/12/16/20 DAMAGE RATIO PER SPIN 0-8.2 (levels 1-18) (+32/34/36/38/40% attack damage) (unchanged)

Kayn

Q damage increased; Rhaast's modified damage ratio increased; bonus damage to monsters decreased.

Both of Kayn's forms are underperforming right now, so we're adjusting his damage to give him a bit more oomph against champions, regardless of which form you choose.

Q - Reaping Slash

DAMAGE 60/80/100/120/140 ⇒ 75/95/115/135/155 RHAAST MODIFIED DAMAGE 0.5 total attack damage ⇒ 0.55 total attack damage BONUS DAMAGE TO MONSTERS 55 ⇒ 40

Kog'Maw

Base stats rounded up. Q and E base damage increased.

Right now, Kog'Maw's E does not feel rewarding to cast, even when it lands successfully. Rather than decreasing the costs on his E's or other abilities' early ranks, we're upping their value so that Kog'Maw’s kit still has a risk vs reward element.

Base Stats

Roundin' MANA 322.22 ⇒ 325 MANA REGEN 8.676 ⇒ 8.75

Q - Caustic Spittle

BASE DAMAGE 80/130/180/230/280 ⇒ 90/140/190/240/290

E - Void Ooze

BASE DAMAGE 60/105/150/195/240 ⇒ 75/120/165/210/255

Lulu

E shield and damage increased later.

Lulu's transition into the mid-game could be better. We want Pix to offer more to fights and for players to make choices that are more worthwhile as Lulu scales.

E - Help, Pix!

SHIELD 80/115/150/185/220 ⇒ 80/120/160/200/240 DAMAGE 80/110/140/170/200 ⇒ 80/120/160/200/240

Maokai

W cost flattened; damage increased. R root duration increased.

Maokai is underperforming across all levels of play and needs some help to keep up with his would-be lumberjacks.

Q - Bramble Smash

BUGFIX Maokai will no longer damage nearby targets if he's begun casting Q - Bramble Smash right before dying

W - Twisted Advance

COST 60/65/70/75/80 ⇒ 60 at all levels DAMAGE 50/75/100/125/150 ⇒ 70/95/120/145/170

R - Nature's Grasp

ROOT DURATION 0.6-2.4 seconds (based on distance traveled) ⇒ 0.8-2.6 seconds (based on distance traveled)

Master Yi

Phantom Hits now proc Double Strike and apply Double Strike stacks.

Passive - Double Strike

PHANTOM HIT BUGFIX Master Yi's Phantom Hits (from Guinsoo's Rageblade) will now properly proc Double Strike and apply Double Strike stacks

Pyke

Base health growth decreased. Passive Grey Health from damage decreased.

When Pyke gets ahead, he takes advantage of the situation without any real risk, killing off folks left and right and becoming near-impossible to take down. He should still have trouble escaping after an assassination, even if he's doing very well. And if he makes a second pass at a kill, he shouldn't be at near full life.

Base Stats

HEALTH GROWTH 100 ⇒ 90

Passive - Gift of the Drowned Ones

GREY HEALTH 30-81% (levels 1-18) of the damage he takes from enemy champions ⇒ 25-50% (levels 1-18) of the damage he takes from enemy champions

Shaco

W box duration decreased.

Shaco landed in a strong spot after 9.20, so we're doing some light touch-ups to address specific concerns about his lane presence and early jungle power.

W - Jack In The Box

BOX DURATION 60 seconds ⇒ 40 seconds

Sona

Follow-up QoL change and passive bugfix for the adult woman.

General

RESOURCE BAR When her Passive - Power Chord is ready, Sona's resource bar will now change color based on her current active aura PASSIVE BUGFIX Sona's abilities no longer fail to generate Passive - Power Chord stacks immediately after an empowered attack

Viktor

Base stats rounded up. Q damage increased.

Viktor is a little weaker than we expected after the changes last patch. We're going light on the follow-up, since we know people are still getting accustomed to him. We're also including a bugfix that already happened in a mid-patch update in 9.20, since we weren't able to widely message it out at the time!

Base Stats

Roundin' HEALTH 528.04 ⇒ 530 ATTACK DAMAGE 52.04 ⇒ 53 ARMOR 22.72 ⇒ 23

Q - Siphon Power

DAMAGE 50/65/80/95/110 ⇒ 60/75/90/105/120 BUGFIX Now properly buffs Viktor's shield when augmented

W - Gravity Field

SFX BUGFIX Gravity Field's SFX is no longer noticeably louder when using it against more than one enemy

Warwick

Q damage ratio increased later. W bonus attack speed increased.

Warwick is falling behind the pack, especially when he maxes his Q before his W. We want him to still have the option of maxing out one over the other based on the situation, but they should both be on a more equal footing.

Q - Jaws of the Beast

DAMAGE RATIO 6/6.5/7/7.5/8% of the target's maximum health ⇒ 6/7/8/9/10% of the target's maximum health

W - Blood Hunt

BONUS ATTACK SPEED 50/65/80/95/110% upon attacking a Blood Hunted target or an enemy unit below 50% of their maximum health ⇒ 70/80/90/100/110% upon attacking a Blood Hunted target or an enemy unit below 50% of their maximum health

Bugfixes

When Kindred casts W - Wolf's Frenzy, Wolf now properly attacks enemies in range when she is not attacking anything
When walking over a Rift Scuttler Speed Shrine, champions will now have a Revealed Eyes marker over them
Enemies spotted by Ashe's E - Hawkshot will no longer have the vision Eyes above their heads until the end of the game
Qiyana's R - Supreme Display of Talent VFX no longer desynchronize with its effects and they properly follow the outline around terrain all the way through from the enemies' perspective if it is cast in Fog of War
Heimerdinger's R - UPGRADE!!!'s tooltip no longer mentions that his E - CH-3X Lightning Grenade's slow is improved to 80%
Only champions can pick up Eye of the Herald. Dashing as Yasuo through it with R - Last Breath or having the living shadow from Shadow Assassin Kayn's W - Blade's Reach stand on it will no longer have those non-champion entities pick it up
When Sylas Hijacks Nidalee's ultimate and uses her Q - Takedown, he'll now properly do damage with it
Aurelion Sol's R - Voice of Light's VFX are no longer globally visible in Fog of War
Neeko can once again select herself to deactivate her disguise, putting it on a 2-second cooldown
Kled will no longer lose his untargetable status when dismounting near turrets/walls