League of Legends Patch 14.3 Buffs and Nerfs

The new League of Legends season began earlier this month, and numerous changes were made to improve the game heading into the new year.

Players were most excited about the item rework that removed mythic items from the game because they made champion builds one-dimensional and predictable. Riot Games also added items for the new season, including many Ability Power (AP) items for mages to build. Lillia, Brand, and Karma are three strong characters that utilize the new AP items well.

A new AP item made some AP assassins too strong, making the game difficult to enjoy for non-tank characters. Akali is a priority pick across all major regions in professional play due to an AP item called Stormsurge, and the champion has found success in the LPL. This item allows Akali players to deal large amounts of damage early and kill non-tank champions with little counterplay.

Attack damage assassins are also top-tier within the current meta because of the strength given to lethality items this season. Specifically, Rengar is a strong pick because he can build Profane Hydra to boost his damage and reduce his ability cooldowns.

These lethality item changes made attack damage carries (ADCs) prioritize lethality within their builds, so Jhin and Varus have been picked more often. However, there are still some ADCs that rely on Critical Strike Chance in the meta, such as Xayah and Lucian.

The new items have also created another tank meta, as players have found it is much harder to kill tank champions this season. Kaenic Rookern is a prevalent item that is built by most tanks, so the new patch will nerf it.

New ADC champion Smolder will be added to the game tomorrow January 31, which will allow players to test new champion combinations in the bottom lane. Smolder is similar to Aurelion Sol and Syndra, as his abilities become empowered by generating stacks. ADC players will be interested to see the strength of Smolder upon release, and they will attempt to learn new mechanics within their role.

League of Legends Patch 14.3 Changes

Here is the list of changes transpiring on Patch 14.3 next week.

Champion Buffs:

• Nidalee
• Pyke
• Wukong
• Zeri
• Ziggs

Champion Nerfs:

• Azir
• Brand
• Karma
• Lillia
• Rengar
• Trundle

Champion Adjustments:

• Aurelion Sol
• Yorick
• Corki
• Illaoi
• Maokai
• Zyra
• Shaco

System Buffs:

• Guinsoo's Rageblade
• Essence Reaver
• Luden's Companion
• Malignance
• Archangel's Staff/Seraph's Embrace
• Rod of Ages

System Nerfs:

• Collector
• Kaenic Rookern
• Youmuu's Ghostblade

System Adjustments:

• Item Proc Damage
• Statikk Shiv
• Stridebreaker