Welcome to our patch notes breakdown for League of Legends Season 26.22 (Split 3 for LoL)!
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
Champion Changes
Aurelion Sol (Buff)
- Aurelion Sol’s E damage is increased.
- This will help him while trading and pushing the minion wave into the enemy tower.
- On patch 26.21, they had a 53.5% win rate.
Corki (Buff)
- His Ultimate damage is increased, and his empowered Ult is increased as well.
- It is going to make Corki’s damage post-6 stronger, but I doubt it is going to increase his popularity in the Mid Lane.
- On patch 26.21, they had a 48.1% win rate.
Kayle (Buff)
- Her Q cooldown is reduced. This will help Kayle poke the enemy down or last-hit minions from afar more easily. However, the mana cost isn’t changed, so this buff isn’t ideal.
- Her Ultimate cooldown is also reduced, which is good because it allows her to go for more frequent all-ins, especially in the early game.
- On patch 26.21, they had a 52.7% win rate.
Locke (Nerf)
- Locke’s Q stack bonus damage is reduced, which is going to negatively impact his trading and all-in power.
- His W duration is reduced as well.
- These changes will reduce Locke's all-in power and make him weaker in team fights and skirmishes throughout the game.
- On patch 26.21, they had a 48.1% win rate.
Maokai (Buff)
- Maokai’s Q damage is increased.
- I think that this change will make him a better Top and Jungler, and we might see him being played in the Support role again soon.
- On patch 26.21, they had a 51% win rate.
Mel (Adjustment)
- Mel is receiving a mid-scope update.
- She is getting a variety of base stat changes, most notably her health and mana are lower early, which is not ideal for Mel players.
- Her Passive damage is changed.
- Mel's Q is slower, and the damage has changed, making it weaker overall for poking. However, she can use this spell more often with the cooldown and mana cost changes.
- Her W is the main ability that is reworked. It now destroys projectiles and shields her and her allies, gives her movement speed and will be her main defensive tool.
- For Mel's E, the root duration is changed, the costs are changed, and so is the slow.
- Her Ultimate cooldown is shorter at levels 11 and 16.
- Let’s face it, Mel was in a bad place in the current LoL meta. Let’s see how these changes pan out- they look to be good overall.
- On patch 26.21, they had a 47.6% win rate.
Naafiri (Buff)
- Naafiri’s Q healing is increased.
- Her W bonus AD ratio is increased as well.
- I think these changes will help Naafiri during skirmishes and all-ins in both the Mid and Jungle roles.
- On patch 26.21, they had a 50.4% win rate.
Rumble (Buff)
- Rumble’s R damage per second AP ratio is increased from 35% to 40%.
- This will increase his ultimate’s damage and make Rumble a bigger threat in team fights.
- I wouldn’t be surprised if Rumble is picked more often in the Top and Jungle roles in this patch.
- On patch 26.21, they had a 46.3% win rate.
Shen (Buff)
- Shen’s Q bonus damage against monsters is increased.
- This will improve his jungle clear and help him clear camps more efficiently.
- On patch 26.21, they had a 50.6% win rate.
Smolder (Buff)
- Smolder’s W explosion damage is increased.
- This is going to help Smolder poke during the laning phase and also help him push lanes quicker, which will help with early and mid-game wave clears.
- On patch 26.21, they had a 52.2% win rate.
Thresh (Nerf)
- Thresh’s base AD is reduced, which will negatively impact his lane trading.
- His Ultimate damage is reduced as well.
- While these changes aren't great for Thresh, they won’t affect his pick or play rate.
- On patch 26.21, they had a 51.1% win rate.
Viktor (Buff)
- Viktor’s R AP ratio is increased.
- His health growth is also increased, which will help him throughout the game, especially against strong AP or AD champions in the mid lane.
- On patch 26.21, they had a 49.3% win rate.
Yasuo (Nerf)
- Yasuo’s Q total AD ratio is reduced.
- This will negatively impact Yasuo in the Top, Mid and ADC roles.
- On patch 26.21, they had a 52.1% win rate.
Zaahen (Buff)
- Zaahen’s Q cooldown is reduced.
- This improves his trading and damage output in the laning phase.
- On patch 26.21, they had a 52.1% win rate.
System Changes
Overlord’s Bloodmail
- Overlord’s Bloodmail’s AD is increased from 30 to 40, while its Retribution bonus AD scaling is adjusted based on missing health.
Doran’s Bow
- Doran’s Bow AD is reduced from 8 to 7.
Check out other updates coming this patch:
- Upcoming skin releases
- League of Legends Classic patch notes
- ARAM: Mayhem patch notes
- Arena Mode patch notes
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 on our Discord!