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League of Legends patch 9.13 introduces Qiyana and new Teamfight Tactics mode

By Matthew Liebl

Riot Games
Riot Games /
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League of Legends patch 9.13 rolled out today, marking the arrival of Qiyana, the newest champion, along with the Teamfight Tactics game mode.

League of Legends patch 9.13 has arrived and with it comes the long-awaited game mode, Teamfight Tactics. For those unfamiliar this is Riot’s take on Auto Chess, the latest game genre sweeping the industry.

Teamfight Tactics is “a round-based strategy game that pits you against seven opponents in a free-for-all race to build a powerful team that fights on your behalf.” The new mode makes use of League of Legends’ robust roster of champions as you draft a team and then strategically place them on the map where the battle will unfold automatically.

While you don’t control the champions during the actual match, your initial positioning will impact how they move, attack and cast spells during battle. Like standard League of Legends matches, though, there is a deep strategic aspect to TFT, including an emphasis on team comp and positioning. You’re even able to deploy multiple champions with shared traits to unlock combat bonuses and super versions of themselves. The goal is to win team fights and outlast your fellow opponents.

While Teamfight Tactics is technically live with patch 9.13, the new mode is still in beta, so you may still experience bugs.

The other major highlight of patch 9.13 is the arrival of the newest champion, Qiyana. The Empress of the Elements is a highly mobile AD burst assassin who “draws power from her environment to set up royal plays.”

She’s one of the more unique champions to enter the Rift as her abilities actually change depending on the nearby environment in which she casts them. For example, her ultimate, Supreme Display of Talent, causes a shockwave near any river, brush or wall hit by it that deals explosive damage and briefly stuns nearby enemies.

Related Story. Qiyana, Empress of the Elements, abilities revealed. light

Patch 9.13 also contains the usual champion buffs and nerfs. Illaoi, Ornn, Sylas, Syndra and Tristana are among the champions who have been buffed, while Karma, Pyke, Sejuani, Sivir and Sona were hit by the nerf bat.

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Illaoi’s changes modernize the champion while making him feel “a lot better to play and stronger in general,” according to Riot. Ornn has had his Volcanic Rupture damage ratio slightly increased and Sylas has had a bit of power restored to give him a better late game. Tristana’s changes should encourage more aggressive play and Syndra has only had her mana growth increased slightly.

Pyke was hit pretty hard with nerfs this go around, with Riot particularly targeting his solo lane ability. In order to compensate for his strong anti-harass tools, Riot has nerfed his wave-clearing ability.

Sona is another champion that was a big focus this patch thanks to her win rates in solo queue. Basically, she’s become an incredibly powerful bot lane duo. “To be clear, we’re not explicitly trying to kill Sona + XX bot lanes: Even if she were a standard bot carry, she’d still be deserving of a nerf on multiple fronts,” Riot explained.

https://twitter.com/LeagueOfLegends/status/1143745704520630273

The full notes for patch 9.13, including changes to items (Essence Reaver, Randuin’s Omen and Rod of Ages), can be found here. Some non-gameplay related additions with patch 9.13 include the arrival of some Arcade and Battle Boss skins ahead of the Arcade 2019 event.

What do you think of the champion changes made in League of Legends patch 9.13? Sound off in the comments below!

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