League of Legends 16.1 Patch Notes Breakdown

Welcome to our patch notes breakdown for League of Legends Season 26.1 (Demacia Season)! Like every season, there are tons of changes coming on this patch, so this guide will be pretty long.

Let’s break down all the new changes in LoL coming this week.

We recommend following along with the official patch notes since we won’t be listing all the specific stat changes, but rather focusing on the impact of the changes and the champions updated place in the current meta.

If you’re wondering how these changes will affect the meta, check out our LoL champion tier list!

Buffs, Nerfs, and Changes

Role Quests

Each role now has a role quest related to the role you’re playing. Once you have met the criteria and completed the quest, you’ll get a reward.

Top Lane

• To unlock: earn 1200 points.
• Takedowns: 15.
• Minions: 2.
• Turrets: 50.
• Turret plates: 40
• Epic monsters: 30.
• Points earned are doubled in the top lane.
• Reward: Gain TP as a bonus summoner spell. If you already picked TP, you get a shield after using TP, 600 bonus XP, increased XP from all sources, and an increased level cap!

Jungle

• To unlock: earn 35 points.
• Gain 1 point for each treat fed to a jungle pet.
• Reward: Upgraded Smite with bonus gold and XP from jungle camps, and extra movement speed in the jungle.

Mid Lane

• To unlock: earn 1350 points.
• Takedowns: 25.
• Minions: 2.
• Turrets: 50.
• Turret plates: 40.
• Epic monsters: 30.
• Points are doubled in the mid lane.
• Reward: Gain t3 boots and an empowered recall. Read the Items section for the boots!

Bot Lane

• To unlock: earn 1350 points.
• Takedowns: 15.
• Minions 1.5 per minion.
• Turrets: 50.
• Turret plates: 40.
• Epic monsters: 30.
• Points are doubled in the bot lane.
• Reward: 300 gold, increased minion gold, and you can get a 7th item (your boots will be moved into a 7th slot).

Support 

• To unlock: earn 800 points.
• Deal damage to champs or turrets and kill minions near allies. Points are doubled in the bot lane.
• Reward: The Support item will be upgraded, you’re given a bonus item slot for Control Wards, and the cost of Control Wards will be decreased.

Gameplay Changes

Here are all the related changes to the game that will impact ranked and normal draft.

Feats of Strength (removed)

• The quest at the start of the game is being removed, so no more boot bonuses.

First Blood Changes

• First Blood now gives a bonus of 100 gold. This will help you snowball quickly.
• First tower grants a bonus of 300 gold. This will help you snowball quickly.

Crit Strike

• Crit strike damage is increased to 200% now. Which will have a knock on-affect for many champions. As a result, many ADCs, in particular, have changed, which we will discuss in detail later.

Faelights (new feature)

• These spawn across the map, and when warded, grant bonus vision and range.
• There is 1 near each base gate, 1 in each island brush and 1 in each river wall in the river.
• These wards will help to spot the enemy, help with split pushing and will be crucial for your team in order to stay safe!

Vision Changes

• In addition to Faelights, Steal Wards cooldowns are changed, Oracle Lens duration is increased, and the respawn timer for Scryer’s Bloom is adjusted. 
• All these changes will help your team place more vision and deny vision, and it will be vital for all players to play around their trinket cooldowns. 

Homeguards

• Homeguards now stay on until you reach the outer turret, which is increased to the furthest minion push after the laning phase. This change will help you get back to lane quicker. 

Turret Changes

• Icons for turrets are changed.
• Turrets now have crystalline overgrowth. After 90 seconds, the turrets begin to accumulate Overgrowth. Attacking them deals extra damage.
• Melee minions deal more damage, and minion and ranged champs no longer deal reduced damage to turrets.
• Turret Plating is no longer removed at the 14-minute mark, but they now give less gold. So you can get full turret gold + full plate gold now, which is great for the snowball.
• The outer turret now starts losing gold, armour, and MR every minute between the 11th and 15th minute marks.
• Inner turrets now have turret plates and no longer gain bonus resistance after the 15-minute mark.
• Inhib turrets now have turret plates, their resistances are changed, and they will be harder to kill overall.
• Nexus turrets can now respawn at 40% max health; their resistances have been changed, but they should be easier to destroy.

Minions

• Minion respawn timers are reduced, so you’ll need to adapt your wave management accordingly! Cannon minion waves also have 1 less ranged and melee minion on each wave, too. 
• They are quicker, their damage is changed, and overall, it’s going to take some time to get used to the changes for minions. To be honest, there is still a lot of maths involved in the minion changes, but the key points have already been highlighted.

Omnivamp

• Riot will be adding Omnivamp items back into the game. As such, they’re changing how it functions so it is similar to life steal.
• Omnivamp now applies at 100% value, reduced to 33% from pets, DoT abilities, and AOE spells against minions (think Vladimir’s sustain being changed because of this).

Game Start Time

• Gold now starts generating at 1:05 instead of 1:40.
• Minions spawn at 30 seconds rather than 1:05. So make sure you’re ready to play and don’t go AFK while the game loads!
• Murk Wolf, Blue Sentinel, Red Brambleback, and Raptor Camps now spawn at 55 seconds, so there is no time for Junglers to take a quick bathroom break!
• Krug and Gromp Camps spawn at 1:07, so Junglers will need to adapt their jungle routes accordingly.
• Scuttle Crabs now spawn at 2:55.
• The Baron spawns at 20 minutes rather than 25 minutes like before.
• Remake and early surrender (due to AFK) are much shorter now.

Monster Changes

It feels like it’s only been 5 minutes since Atakhan was added to the game, but now Riot is removing him. This will impact objective control during the mid-game, and teams will need to react accordingly. Riot is also making changes to Dragons, the Rift Herald, Void Grubs and the Baron.

Atakhan

• Atakhan is being removed.

Elemental Drakes

• Riot is changing the health of elemental dragons and changing their defensive stats as well. 
• Mountain Drakes have increased HP instead of the bonus defensive stats.
• Dragon Vengeance damage is changed.
• They are rewarding Junglers and teams who group and take the Dragon by giving increased localised XP, which will help Junglers who take a little longer to take the Drake early. This will help them not fall behind as well if the Jungler decides to solo it.
• I think that these changes are justified, and I especially like the XP they provide. It will be really helpful for those tank Junglers who can’t take it quickly like Maokai or Malphite.

Elder Dragon

• Elder Dragon’s defensive stats are changed ever so slightly (including health, MR and armour).
• It gives less global gold and gold for killing it, which does impact late-game team fights, as you may not get enough gold to get your final item from it, which isn’t great.
• I feel that this change isn’t that dramatic, really, and it won't make or break a game like some of the other changes.

Void Grubs

• Riot is changing the Void Grubs to make them less snowbally. They only give XP to those who kill them, not to the whole team.
• They are changing their armour, MR, and health, as well as how much damage they do.
• They are less rewarding overall and do not award global gold or XP.
• Riot has stated they want to stop teams from grouping to take them, and instead want lakers to solo them. I'm not sure how I feel about this, so only time will tell, really.

Rift Herald

• The Rift Herald now has lower base armour, MR and health, but scales a lot over time, making it harder to kill the longer it goes on.
• It gives less XP, but the range is increased, which will be beneficial for champions nearby.
• It deals more damage to non-champions, which will hurt champions like Elise, Heimerdinger, etc., who have pets.
• However, its damage is up, which will help with securing objectives more effectively.

Baron Nashor

• The Baron will remain as strong as ever, making it more of a key ability for finishing the game.
• It now spawns earlier, at the 20-minute mark. 
• It gives less gold, but more XP.
• It will be quite hard to solo it, and you’ll need more champions to secure it, as it has armour and MR shred again.

Jungle Changes

Like every year, Riot is changing the jungle…

• Red and Blue buffs will no longer be global after the 25-minute mark, meaning people who need them in the late game (mid-laners and ADCs) will need to take them themselves.
• Smite deals more damage in the later ranks.
• Junglers take lessdamage from non-epic monsters, which is great for Junglers or players who are not very good at the role.
• The minimum and max heal on kill is increased.
• The pets damage and heal is increased, which will help you when clearing the jungle and taking the epic monsters and objectives around the map.
• The 3 jungle items' first and second evolutions are changed. It has been reduced from 20 to 15 and from 40 to 35. This will help those junglers who focus more on ganking rather than power farming, and it will also help you players who struggle to find the balance required between farming and fighting. Overall, this change will make the jungle role easier.

Champion Changes

Akshan (changed)

• Passive damage ratio has changed.
• Q damage is increased, while the AD ratio is reduced.
• His E damage is decreased, but the scaling is better.
• Finally, his Ultimate damage ratio is doubled.
• I don’t know if these changes will make him a higher pick, but he will be more annoying to play against if you’re a melee champion.
• On the previous patch, Akshan had a 50.5% win rate in Plat+.

Aphelios (changed)

• Calibrum AD ratio is reduced.
• Onslaught, Duskwave and Sentry all have their damage changed, and AD ratio reduced.
• Moonlight Vigil's crit damage is increased.
• Aphelios isn’t that strong right now, and his individual weapon bonuses are nerfed. His Ultimate, however, is buffed, so his damage output will increase in those level 6 fights. I don't think these changes will significantly increase his play rate.
• On the previous patch, Aphelios had a 50% win rate in Plat+.

Ashe (nerf)

• Ashe’s base AD and AS have both been reduced. This will make her weaker during the laning phase.
• Her Q crit is down, and her W AD ratio is reduced.
• I think these are definitely going to drop her down from S tier, as she will be significantly weaker.
• On the previous patch, Ashe had a 51% win rate in Plat+.

Caitlyn (changed)

• Her Passive crit is changed, which will help with trading and fighting the enemy.
• However, her Ultimate crit damage is changed. This will make it harder for her to execute enemies with her Ultimate.
• I still think she will be a fantastic ADC.
• On the previous patch, Caitlyn had a 48.9% win rate in Plat+.

Cassiopeia (buff)

• Her base movement speed is increased.
• She can now buy boots, and gets extra movement speed when she buys movement speed items.
• I think this will make Cass better in the Mid and ADC roles. Expect her to remain a top pick in both roles.
• On the previous patch, Cassiopeia had a 50.9% win rate in Plat+.

Corki (nerf)

• His W damage per tick is reduced.
• While this isn’t ideal, I don't think it’s going to make much of a difference to him, as his W is used to engage/disengage and doesn’t really do much damage anyway.
• On the previous patch, Corki had a 48.2% win rate in Plat+.

Draven (nerf)

• His AD growth is reduced.
• His W bonus attack speed is also reduced.
• I don’t think this will make much of a difference to Draven players, as his damage hasn’t been nerfed that much and his attack speed change isn’t that bad either. He will still remain a great ADC.
• On the previous patch, Draven had a 50.3% win rate in Plat+.

Elise (changed)

• Elise’s Q damage cap is now reduced vs monsters, and it now scales with 90% AP.
• Her W in Spider form also now scales with AP, but deals reduced damage as well.
• I don’t think this change will have a massive impact on her jungling ability, and she will remain roughly the same as she is now.
• On the previous patch, Elise had a 52.2% win rate in Plat+.

Gangplank (nerf)

• His Passive scaling is changed, his Q crit strike is nerfed, and his E damage is reduced.
• These changes will severely inhibit his laning phase pressure and make him a weaker split pusher during the mid and late game.
• These nerfs will make him weaker overall.
• On the previous patch, Gangplank had a 49.7% win rate in Plat+.

Garen (nerf)

• Garen’s E critical damage ratio is reduced. This will make his AD build and crit-dominant builds less potent.
• On the previous patch, Garen had a 50.2% win rate in Plat+.

Graves (nerf)

• His ammo crit damage is reduced slightly.
• On the previous patch, Graves had a 50.2% win rate in Plat+.

Jax (changed)

• Jax now gets an additional 1.5% attack speed per stack at level 19.
• This will help him in those late game fights.
• On the previous patch, Jax had a 49.8% win rate in Plat+.

Jhin (nerf)

• Jhin’s basic critical strike damage ratio is reduced slightly. He will still be a pretty good ADC regardless of this change.
• On the previous patch, Jhin had a 50.2% win rate in Plat+.

Jinx (nerf)

• Her base attack speed growth has been reduced slightly, but this change won't really be too noticeable. 
• Jinx’s Ultimate min and max damage are reduced, and the AD ratios are also reduced. While these changes might not seem to be impactful, the Jinx R nerf will make a difference in those late-game team fights where she could pick off a kill.
• On the previous patch, Jinx had a 51.1% win rate in Plat+.

Kindred (nerf)

• Her W monster damage cap is now 200 instead of 300. It will slow her clear speed a little.
• On the previous patch, Kindred had a 51.1% win rate in Plat+.

Lucian (buff)

• Like many other ADC champions, his base attack speed and damage are both nerfed. 
• His Q damage is changed, and so is his AD ratio.
• His Ultimate crit strike is changed per bullet.
• Overall, this is a buff to Lucian. It might not feel it, but he will be stronger in the ADC and Top roles. We might even see him back in the Mid Lane, too.
• On the previous patch, Lucian had a 49.8% win rate in Plat+.

Miss Fortune (changed)

• Her Q crit damage is down. This will impact her burst damage and poke in lane, and it will mean her Q will be less potent in lane. This is not a good change for MF, but great for anyone playing against her.
• Her Ultimate damage is changed. I think Riot are trying to take the power out of her laning and poke, and wants her to be a stronger team fighter instead.
• On the previous patch, Miss Fortune had a 51.5% win rate in Plat+.

Nilah (changed)

• Her base attack speed is reduced. This will impact her trading ability and CSing skills during the laning phase.
• Riot is changing her Q. The damage is changed, and it gives less armor pen. Nilah usually uses her Q to poke with in lane, but it’s going to be less impactful during the laning phase when you’re versus tank Supports like Blitzcrank or Alistar.
• Her Ultimate mana cost is also increased by 20. 
• On the previous patch, Nilah had a 52.1% win rate in Plat+.

Quinn (changed)

• Quinn’s Passive damage is increased at all ranks, and the AD ratio is changed. So this will impact her in the Top Lane. 
• As a melee champion, these changes will not be fun to play against, as her poke will be really high in lane!
• On the previous patch, Quinn had a 52.8% win rate in Plat+.

Rengar (changed)

• Rengar’s abilities are rescripted.
• His Q damage is changed, and the crit portion has been removed. He is going to be a bit weaker than before, and he will not be able to one-shot enemies like before.
• On the previous patch, Rengar had a 48.4% win rate in Plat+.

Samira (changed)

• Samira’s Q damage is changed, and the crit strike damage is increased.
• Her Inferno Trigger (ultimate) damage per shot is increased, which will help in those all-ins, but the AD ratio is reduced. She will be just as strong as before in those fights, though, so don’t worry if you love Samira.
• On the previous patch, Samira had a 50.5% win rate in Plat+.

Senna (nerf)

• Her base crit strike damage is increased, but the ratio is reduced. This nerf will impact both the Support and ADC Senna, unfortunately. I expect her not to be as strong as before, and not to pick up as much.
• On the previous patch, Senna had a 49.8% win rate in Plat+.

Shaco (changed)

• His Backstab bonus AD ratio is reduced by 5%. This will make him weaker in those assassination attempts. However, his Q Backstab crit is increased by 5% to make up for this.
• On the previous patch, Shaco had a 50.6% win rate in Plat+.

Sivir (nerf)

• Both Sivir’s Q AD ratio and crit chance ratio are nerfed. This will impact her laning and poke. She will also not clear waves as quickly as her Q is her main spell to fast clear in the mid game.
• On the previous patch, Sivir had a 50% win rate in Plat+.

Smolder (nerf)

• Smolder is receiving a nerf to his Passive Q bonus damage. This will make him weaker overall, but it is more of a late-game nerf. This spell is also getting its crit strike chance ratio reduced, like many other ADCs. 
• I still think Smolder will be a top-tier ADC, regardless of these changes.
• On the previous patch, Smolder had a 50.5% win rate in Plat+.

Tristana (change)

• Her E damage is changed, and the damage and crit ratio are also changed. I think these changes will impact her in those all-in skirmishes with the enemy laner. It may also reduce her split-pushing power.
• On the previous patch, Tristana had a 51.2% win rate in Plat+.

Tryndamere (change)

• His Q has changed to now give up to a certain amount of missing health. I think that this change is actually better and will help in those trades. However, time will only tell if this is a good or not change for Tryndamere players.
• His W slow is reduced. This will make Tryndamere’s all-ins in the Top Lane worse, and him in the Jungle role a lot weaker when ganking.
• On the previous patch, Tryndamere had a 49.1% win rate in Plat+.

Twitch (nerf)

• Twitch is hit by the attack speed and attack damage growth reduction, like many other ADCs. However, as Twitch is also a Jungler, this will impact him in that lane as well.
• His Q bonus attack speed is reduced. This will make him weaker (in both roles) when trying to fight the enemy, and it will also reduce his pushing power, as Twitch players tend to use Q to help take objectives.
• On the previous patch, Twitch had a 50.2% win rate in Plat+.

Viego (nerf)

• Viego’s Q crit strike is nerfed, and so is the crit ratio.
• His Ultimate AD ratio is also reduced.
• These changes will make Viego a weaker Jungler in the new season, and I expect some players will give him up or heavily change his build path.
• On the previous patch, Viego had a 49.9% win rate in Plat+.

Xayah (nerf)

• Her E damage is changed, and the AD ratio is reduced, and the crit strike is reduced. These are nerfs overall, even though the damage per feather is increased. She will be weaker in those 1v1, 2v2 and 5v5 fights.
• On the previous patch, Xayah had a 50.2% win rate in Plat+.

Yasuo (changed)

• His Passive crit strike damage is now reduced by 10%. This will impact him in the Mid, Top and ADC roles.
• On the previous patch, Yasuo had a 49.4% win rate in Plat+.

Yone (changed)

• His Passive crit strike damage is now reduced by 10%. This will impact him in the Mid and Top roles.
• On the previous patch, Yone had a 47.3% win rate in Plat+.

Yunara (nerf)

• Her Q bonus attack speed is reduced. This is going to reduce her chances of turning around those exchanges and bursting her opponents down. This will make her weaker in the ADC role overall.
• Yunara’s W damage is also reduced. While this nerf isn’t ideal, it isn’t a big issue for her W, as this is more of a utility spell to slow the enemy down.
• I think Yunara will still be a good ADC, especially when she is paired with a utility Support like Lulu or Nami.
• On the previous patch, Yunara had a 47.7% win rate in Plat+.

Zeri (nerf) 

• Zeri’s W AD ratio is reduced. This isn’t ideal, but a lot of the time, this is used as a utility spell as it applies a slow. 
• Her E damage and AD ratios + crit strike are nerfed, which again isn’t ideal, but this is a utility spell as well as it’s a dash.
• Finally, her Ultimate damage is reduced at all ranks.
• I think this is quite a big nerf to Zeri, especially the Ultimate nerf. Many ADCs didn’t receive a nerf like this, so I don’t think she will be as good moving into the new season.
• On the previous patch, Zeri had a 49% win rate in Plat+.

New and Re-added items

Actualizer

• Item Recipe: Lost Chapter + Blasting Wand + 1050g = 3100g.
• It provides 90 AP, 300 mana, and 10 ability haste.
• Its active empowers your mana, making your spells cost 100% more mana, but you gain increased damage, healing and shielding, and your ability cooldowns are decreased.
• This item would be good on Ryze.

Bandlepipes

• Item Recipe: Kindlegem + Cloth Armor + Null-Magic Mantle + 500g = 2000g.
• It provides 200 health, 15 ability haste, 20 armor and 20 magic resistance.
• Its Passive grants Fanfare, which gives you extra movement speed whenever you slow or immobilise an enemy champion. You and your allies will gain bonus attack speed when you’re affected by Fanfare.
• This item would be good on any Support who has slows or CC tools, such as Nautilus or Nami.

Bastion Breaker

• Item Recipe: Brutalizer + Serrated Dirk + 863g = 3200g.
• It provides 55 attack damage, 22 lethality and 15 ability haste.
• This item has 2 Passives. The first empowers your abilities to deal bonus true damage, and the second grants you sabotage, which you get from killing an enemy. While you have sabotage active, your next basic attack vs. an epic monster or turret deals extra damage.
• This item would be good on Kha’Zix and Qiyana, as it is an assassin item and is good for Junglers.

Dusk and Dawn

• Item Recipe: Sheen + Blasting Wand + Kindlegem + Dagger + 300g = 3100g.
• It provides 300 health, 70 ability power, 20 ability haste and 25% attack speed.
• Its Passive empowers your next auto-attack after using your ability. This is best used on champions with low cooldowns and who auto-attack a lot.
• This would be good for Jax and Gwen.

Endless Hunger 

• Item Recipe: Caulfield’s Warhammer + Pickaxe + 1075g = 3000g.
• It provides 60 AD, 5% omnivamp and 20% tenacity. 
• It has 2 Passives, the first giving ability haste that scales with AD, and the second that provides omnivamp for 8 seconds after an enemy dies.
• This item would be good on Aatrox or Ambessa.

Fiendhunter Bolts

• Item Recipe: Zeal + Scout’s Slingshot + 850g = 2650g.
• It provides 40% AS, 25% crit chance, and 4% movement speed. It is one of the few items in the game outside of boots that provides movement speed!
• Its first Passive gives 30 Ultimate ability haste, which would be good for any assassin like Zed or Talon. 
• Its second Passive empowers your next 3 basic attacks after using your Ultimate, which means it is great for all-ins and finishing moves.

Hexoptics C44

• Item Recipe: Pickaxe + Noonquiver + Long Sword + 275g = 3000g.
• It provides 50 AD and 25% Crit chance.
• This item is for champions who rely mostly on auto-attacks to get kills or deal damage. It would be good for ADCs or ranged champions like Jinx and Quinn. 
• Its Passives increase your range after getting kills, and increase your damage output depending on range.

Hextech Gunblade (Re-added to the game)

• Hextech is to be re-added to the game.
• Its Item Recipe is: Vampiric Scepter + Hextech Alternator + Amp Tome + 600g = 3000g
• It gives 80 AP, 40 AD and 10% life steal.
• The first Passive gives spell vamp, while the active shocks the target, slowing them and dealing damage. 
• It could be good for AP champions such as Syndra or Ahri (in theory).

Luden’s Echo (Re-added to the game)

• This item replaces Luden’s Companion.
• Item Recipe: Lost Chapter + Hextech Alternator + 450g = 2750g.
• It provides 100 AP, 600 mana and 10 ability haste.
• Its Passive gain stacks that can be consumed to deal additional damage to targets.
• This item will be good for mages who want to deal burst damage, such as Ahri, Xerath or Lux.

Protoplasm Harness

• Item Recipe: Kindlegem + Giant’s Belt + 800g = 2500g.
• It provides 600 health and 15 ability haste.
• It’s Passive gives you additional health and a heal when you fall below 30% max health. It also increases your size and gives you extra tenacity and movement speed to help you in fights and skirmishes. It can be helpful in helping you escape or close the gap in a fight.
• This item will be good on tanky champions such as Dr Mundo, Sion and Zac.

Stormrazor (Re-added to the game)

• The Recipe is BF Sword + Cloak of Agility + Scout’s Slingshot + 700g = 3200g.
• It gives 50 attack damage, 20% attack speed and 25% critical strike chance. 
• Its first Passive generates stacks while you attack and walk around the map, while its second empowers your next auto and gives you extra movement speed.
• It will be good for ADC champions like Jhin.

Whispering Circlet

• The Item Recipe is Forbidden Idol + Ruby Crystal + Tear + 850g = 2250g.
• The item gives you 200 health, 300 mana, 8% heal and shield power and 75% base mana regeneration.
• Its first Passive increases your healing and shielding power.
• The second Passive grants charges. Giving your ally a shield, heal or using any ability on them will consume a charge and grant additional mana. When you’ve gained 360 bonus mana, it transforms into Diadem of Songs.
• This item will be good for champions like Sona or enchanters who rely on Tear.

Diadem of Songs 

• This item automatically transforms from Whispering Circlet.
• It provides 200 health, 1000 mana, 8% heal and shield power and 100% base mana regen.
• It has 2 Passive, and both of them empower your healing and shielding. 
• This item would be good on utility Supports such as Nami and Sona.

Item Changes

Aegis of the Legion

• This item has been removed from the game.

Armored Advance

• This item is no longer obtainable through the Feats of Strength quest, but is obtained through the mid-lane role quest instead.
• The amount of movement speed is reduced, the armor is reduced, but the shield strength and duration are both increased. It will be a great pick-up for any Mid Laner.

Chainlaced Crushers

• This item is no longer obtainable through the Feats of Strength quest, but is obtained through the mid-lane role quest instead.
• The amount of movement speed is reduced, the magic resistance is up, and the shield strength and duration are increased. This item will be great versus teams or champions with lots of AP and burst, such as Syndra.

Crimson Lucidity

• This item is no longer obtainable through the Feats of Strength quest, but is obtained through the mid-lane role quest instead.
• The amount of movement speed is reduced, which gives less ability haste, but the summoner spell haste is increased. This can be a good option if you don’t need armor or MR.

Doran’s Blade

• Life Draining Passive is removed, but it now has 2.5% Omnivamp. It will be good for people who love to trade with the enemy, and will be better for aggressive ADCs like Draven or Lucian.

Essence Reaver

• The recipe has changed to Sheen + Caulfield’s Warhammer + Cloak of Agility + 350 gold. It is now built with Sheen, so it gains Sheen's passive, which empowers your abilities. ER also gives less AD, but more ability haste. 
• It no longer restores mana on hit. 

Gunmetal Greaves

• This item is no longer obtainable through the Feats of Strength quest, but is obtained through the mid-lane role quest instead.
• The movement speed is reduced, but it now provides 5% lifesteal. I expect this item to be an option for those AD assassins or AD mid-laners.

Horizon Focus

• The item recipe has changed to 2x Fiendish Code + Amp Tome + 600 gold.
• It has received a nerf of 50 AP, but now deals 10% increased damage to champions who are revealed by Hypershot.

Infinity Edge

• The cost is increased by 50 gold. It gives 10 more AD, but crit strike damage is reduced. It will still be a core item for basically all ADC champions, even with this change.

Lord Dominik’s Regards

• The cost of LDR has increased by 200 gold. It also gives less armor pen, which kinda sucks unfortunately, as the more pen the better. It now, however, has a new passive that deals bonus damage based on the enemy's health. 
• Unsure how I feel about this item. It will still be a core pickup for ADCs, especially against tanks or heavy frontline enemy comps.

Luden’s Companion

• It is removed from the game.

Mortal Reminder

• The cost is reduced by 300 gold. 
• The amount of armor pen it provides is reduced by 5%. Again, it’s not ideal to see an armor pen item nerf, but it does cost a little less money.

Redemption

• It no longer provides health, which will be bad for utility supports like Janna or Lulu, but it now gives AP, which does help champions like Janna and Lulu.

Spellslinger’s Shoes

• This item is no longer obtainable through the Feats of Strength quest, but is obtained through the mid-lane role quest instead.
• The movement speed is reduced, but it now grants magic pen. This could be the go-to option for mages like Syndra or Ahr, and it will help you versus tanky champions too.

Sundered Sky

• It gives more AD, but the crit damage is reduced. The cooldown is also increased.
• I am not sure about these changes; time will tell how impactful they will be, but I am sure it will still be a core item for many splitpushers.

Swiftmarch

• This item is no longer obtainable through the Feats of Strength quest, but is obtained through the mid-lane role quest instead.
• It gives slightly more slow resistance, which could be good versus team comps with a lot of CC/ mobility spells like Janna, Lulu, Anivia, and Cass.

Tear

• Tears can now stack. You can have more than 1 Tear item in your inventory at any given time.

Muramana

• The mana it provides is increased to 1000.

Fimbulwinter

• The mana it gives is increased to 1000.

Unending Despair

• The build path has changed to Chain Vest + Kindlegem + Ruby Crystal + 800g = 2800g.
• It now gives more armor, but no MR. It does give an additional 5 ability haste, which is good for tanks who actually use their abilities a lot like Malphite or Maokai.

Umbral Glaive

• The cost is increased by 300 gold, making it a quite expensive option for champions like Pyke and Kha’Zix.
• It gives more AD, more lethality, and more ability haste. It also empowered your next auto-attack when you’ve been out of vision for some time. 
• I think these changes are pretty good, honestly.

Yun Tal Wildarrows

• Yun Tal is having the price increased by 100 gold. It gives less AD, but more attack speed.
• I think it will still be a core item for many ADCs, but it will be stronger on all-in champions rather than champions who just harass occasionally.

Zeke’s Convergence

• Now has a passive that gives 15 ultimate ability haste. This could make it a better option for champions that need some defensive stats but also use their ultimate quite frequently. Maybe it is a new option for Nami or Lulu?

Rune Changes

There are not many rune changes this time around, but expect Riot to change this in the near future.

Demolish

• Now every 3rd basic attack will deal extra damage. This change will help those split pushers and the tank Supports who might take the resolve tree, such as Dr Mundo, Fiora or Blitzcrank.

I highly recommend you read the offical patch notes as there are other changes to the game including ARAM, Swiftplay, ARAM Mayhem, Matchmaking changes, loss prevention and discussions on the end of season rewards.

Thank you for reading. We hope you enjoyed this patch breakdown. How do you feel about this patch? Let us know in the comments. As always, if you have any questions, find us in our Discord!