In an effort to ‘hone in’ on the proposed patch 12.14 changes posted yesterday, League of Legends lead designer Matt Leung-Harrison has today tweeted out which champions are receiving buffs/nerfs. They state that the design team will also be “pulling the teleport changes”, instead opting to focus on stability for the rest of the season.
Riot’s proposed teleport nerfs received an overwhelmingly negative response, with some esports team analysts even going as far as saying that this change would lessen the importance of the top lane to the point of almost obsolescence.
The bulk of the information given by Matt Leung-Harrison concerns Gangplank; his early laning phase was too strong, and Riot wants to lessen that whilst also taking some of the focus away from hitting his explosive barrels. The changes shift some of the more consistent damage to Gangplanks Q ability, but also still biasing him towards a critical-chance build for maximum damage with his full kit.
Another post sees a list of Champion changes, most of which are currently a mystery. One change noted was a buff to Patheon in the jungle position, with his PBE build having recently received an increase to his monster damage – 70% > leag120% on his Comet Spear (Q) ability. This may just be enough to shift Pantheon from his seemingly default support position, much to every ADC’s delight I’m sure.
Honing in on changelists for Patch 12.14.
We're pulling the Teleport changes and are focusing on stability for the rest of the season. Expect smaller patches as we head towards the end of the year (outside of World's patch).
Healing and Pro Play lists are in earlier posts. pic.twitter.com/1tBG0rX3v8
— Matt Leung-Harrison (@RiotPhroxzon) July 19, 2022
In terms of Champion nerfs, Zeri appears to be in the firing line yet again. She is struggling to find a place in regular Summoner’s Rift, with a lot of her changes being dictated by pro play. Seraphine (specifically bot) is also receiving a nerf; Matt doesn’t state exactly what this is but she seems particularly oppressive at the moment, with her healing and shielding as well as being able to output an inordinate amount of AOE damage.
This may be the last time we see large changes implemented before Worlds, with the Lead Designer stating to ‘expect smaller patches’ until the end of the year. We can usually expect to see Riot’s full patch notes around 24 hours after one of these previews, so there isn’t long to wait to see exactly what their plan is.