Around a month ago, we reported that League of Legends developer Riot Games was “pretty close” to launching the upcoming rework of everyone’s favourite homicidal purple doctor, champion Dr. Mundo. Well, that time has now arrived. The studio has just unveiled the new and improved Madman of Zaun, so we’ve got a complete gameplay and visual overhaul to check out in detail.
With Mundo being one of the game’s very first 40 champs, his abilities have naturally been somewhat simpler and more pared back than those of many later additions (cough Apehlios cough). But, we can expect to see that change to an extent with the new Dr. Mundo, starting with his passive.
Now called Goes Where He Pleases, Dr. Mundo’s passive pivots away from just a simple health regen effect each second to one that’ll need him to act a little more tactically. The ability sees him resist “the next immobilisation effect that hits him, instead of losing current health and dropping a chemical canister nearby. Dr. Mundo can pick it up by walking over it, restoring a portion of maximum health and reducing this passive’s cooldown”. He’ll have to be wary, though, as “enemies moving over the canister destroy it”.
Additionally, though, the passive still gives Mundo increased health regen based on his maximum health, so there’s more of an extra layer of effect than an outright change. This should add some all-new spice into the mix of Mundo’s ability kit, as there’s an extra element offering bigger health rewards with quicker turnaround times (thanks to that reduced cooldown) there for the taking if you can pull it off – but there’s a new layer of risk, too, which should make for some exciting new play.
Infected Bonesaw (Q) has changed slightly less notably from its previous iteration, Infected Cleaver (though ‘bonesaw’ is undoubtedly more chilling than ‘cleaver’. Shudder). Going forward, the ability works as follows: “Dr. Mundo throws an infected bonesaw, dealing magic damage to the first enemy hit based on their current health and slowing them”. So, it looks like his Q is getting a slight nerf of sorts, as there’s now no health cost refund involved, but it sounds like it’ll still pack a heck of a punch.
Heart Zapper (W), has changed a fair bit from the Burning Agony Mundo mains will know, though the core premise stays the same: Mundo will batter his own health for a time for a big, damage-dealing payoff. Now, the champ will electrocute himself for a few seconds, handing out persistent magic damage to enemies nearby, and he’ll store a chunk of the damage he takes as grey health.
When the effect’s duration is up, he deals a burst of magic damage to nearby enemies and then heals his grey health if he manages to hit any enemies (though this healing gets reduced if he only hits minions or monsters). The ability can be recast if you’re keen to end its effects early. It’s a little more complex than the previous iteration, which – like Mundo’s reworked passive – introduces a new skill and chance ceiling, but a bigger payoff on success, which should help make him a more tempting choice for new Mundo players, and a rewarding one for long-time mains.
Lastly, we’ve got Blunt Force Trauma (E) and Maximum Dosage (R), which tie more into the good doctor’s lore than the previous abilities, Masochism and Sadism. First, Mundo’s E now breaks down into a passive and active effect, with the first matching up with Masochism’s primary effect: “Dr. Mundo has bonus attack damage, increasing based on his missing health”. But, for the active, we lose the headbutt in favour of a more, er, ‘medical’ solution: Mundo instead slams his foes with his medicine bag like a battering ram, dealing physical damage which is based on his missing health. If the enemy then dies they get swatted away, dealing E’s minimum damage to enemies they pass through.
Dr. Mundo’s new ultimate builds on Sadism’s self-buffing, with the doc pumping himself full of chemicals to instantly restore a percent of his missing health, and get a portion of his maximum health restoring over a longer duration. All the while, he gains bonus move speed and attack damage. So, while there’s a little more lore coming into play, the effects are largely similar to his previous ultimate, so it should still prove a dependable way to get the fighter champ raging around in powerhouse mode when it’s most needed.
Beyond gameplay, there’s of course the visual side of Dr. Mundo’s rework. As lead producer of champions Ryan ‘Reav3’ Mireles joked last month, “man, this champion has a lot of skins”. But, they look pretty darn fantastic, going by the splash art now unveiled. As you can see in the gallery below, we’ve got updated skins for the following on the way:
- Classic Dr. Mundo
- Corporate Mundo (Legendary skin, costing 1920 RP)
- Rageborn Mundo (costing 975 RP)
- Pool Party Mundo (costing 975 RP)
- El Macho Mundo (costing 1350 RP)
- Toxic Dr. Mundo (Legacy skin, costing 520 RP)
- Mr. Mundoverse (Legacy skin, costing 520 RP)
- Mundo Mundo (Legacy skin, costing 975 RP)
- Executioner Mundo (Legacy skin, costing 520 RP)
- TPA Mundo (Legacy skin, costing 750 RP)
- Frozen Prince Mundo (Legacy skin, costing 1350 RP)
Starting with the champion’s classic skin, we can see the good doctor’s taken on a far more sinister, moody tone, similar to the Volibear rework we saw last year. Sure, his enormous, drooling turquoise tongue is still a prominent feature of his maniacally grinning mug, but Mungo version 2.0 also boasts new features like glowing fuschia and gold bolts strapped to his biceps (replacing that syringe previously poking out of his shoulder) and that new bonesaw, of course. Yikes.
Meanwhile, the Corporate Mundo overhaul updates his ’80s shirt-and-tie business look to a full-on pinstripe suit and power tie, with a big, gaudy gold watch and dollar sign badge to complete the ensemble. Legacy skin Toxic Mundo likewise evolves from a forlorn, sackcloth and sandals outfit to a far more powerful, bionic interpretation with the overhaul. Similarly boasting glowing purple and brassy spaulders – this time, with pipes of magical substance punched into his Hulk-like green arms – new-style Toxic Mundo bears a gnarly gas mask and serrated steel sword.
It’s a similar story across all of the new skins – not only is the splash art brought into League’s modern art style, it pivots Mundo from the cartoon-like to the downright fearsome. Seriously, compare Executioner Mundo’s look à la 2021 to his older splash. Gulp.
As for in-game, Mundo still continues to lumber forward across the rift, bonecutter raised high, as fans of the fighter champ would hope and expect. But, his overhauled VFX and classic skin look far sharper than before, with his new (smarter) VO ringing out as chaos unfolds.
Even the lore has been changed up. Dr. Mundo’s been given an updated background bio, which folds in a point Riot made last month about the new-style champion being a “shade or two smarter than current Mundo”, which we can expect to come through in his new VO, too. “Utterly mad, tragically homicidal, and horrifyingly purple, Dr. Mundo is what keeps many of Zaun’s citizens indoors on particularly dark nights,” the new bio reads. “Now a self-proclaimed physician, he was once a patient of Zaun’s most infamous asylum.
“After ‘curing’ the entire staff, Dr. Mundo established his practice in the empty wards that once treated him and began mimicking the highly unethical procedures he had so often experienced himself. With a full cabinet of medicines and zero medical knowledge, he now makes himself more monstrous with each injection and terrifies the hapless ‘patients’ who wander near his office.” Gulp.
Compared to the good doctor’s previous bio, Mundo’s backstory – tragic and terrifying in equal measure – comes through much more clearly, and really marks out his place as one of League’s most dark and dastardly champs, always on the lookout for some new, er, ‘patients’ to test his tricks out on, which ties nicely into his gameplay.
Dr. Mundo will arrive with the game’s next patch, 11.12, Riot has announced on Twitter. However, we do know that Dr. Mundo’s legacy skins will be temporarily available for purchase while patches 11.12 and 11.13 are live. For now, be sure to check out our League of Legends patch 11.11 notes to see what’s coming to the live game later this week, and keep an eye on our site for more on Dr. Mundo’s rework, as we’ll have patch notes detailing his new abilities and stats in full when they hit the testing grounds.