Oh boy, oh boy, Father Riot has left some wonderous treats under the patchtree for all the League of Legends playing boys and girls today. In addition to more details on the upcoming PROJECT skins, the patch 5.16 notes have gone live, introducing the previously announced juggernaut changes to the game. Beyond what was said there, even more balance changes, item updates and reworks have been revealed.
We’ll start with the notes. More important than anything else is that mace-wielding, soul-stealing superhero Mordekaiser has managed to keep his proposed changes that turn him into not only a guaranteed highest level machine but a dragon-controlling siegeworks. Letting you take control of the second most powerful neutral entity on the map is exactly the headline change Riot are looking to implement to keep these samey-feeling melee damage dealers distinct.
Most of the other juggernauts retained what was put forward for them too, meaning you’ll be seeing a lot more of Garen, Mordekaiser, Skarner and Darius out there in the next few weeks. On top of those changes, new items were introduced specifically designed for these characters. Top of the pile looks to be Sterak’s Gage which lets a character ‘hulk out’ whenever they take a certain amount of damage, granting them a shield and vastly increased output of their own.
It has also been announced that the World Finals taking place across October will be ran on Patch 5.18. This gives Riot two patches worth of tuning to make sure Worlds isn’t a broken mess. Or, more importantly, if it is it’s fun to watch. Details on the format for the tournament have also been revealed.
Meanwhile for the upcoming skins, the weapon profiles of each node have now been revealed on the teaser site. Leaguer minds than mine have identified them as follows:
- Bottom-Right: Lucian’s Guns
- Upper-Right: Leona’s Shield
- Upper-Left: Fiora’s Sword
- Bottom-Left: Zed’s Blades
The top most entry is still up for debate, and at least in my opinion points towards a new champion. It also bears resemblance to a possible Master Yi skin, or even the lizard wizard Renekton. Place your bets in the comments.