League of Legends patch 9.21 is here, along with a new line of skins with a Halloween theme. Several champions have received nerfs due to being above the average power level. A few champions that see little play, especially on the competitive level, have received buffs to increase their chances of being viable. There are also a few interesting bugs that were addressed in this patch. The following is a rundown of patch 9.21, and how it will change the game.
Image Courtesy of Riot Games
Garen and Shaco felt a bit too strong following the release of their mini reworks. The nerfs they have received in patch 9.21 should significantly decrease their power level.
Garen’s damage from his E, Judgment was too high to fight against for most top lane champions. With the addition of the conqueror proc to his E, the healing and true damage stacks almost instantly. This rework shifted Garen’s build to be more damage focused, making Trinity Force and Phantom Dancer core items. The nerfs he has received in patch 9.21 are fairly minor, only removing some of the base damage from his E, but they should still affect his gameplay, and make it easier for enemies to find counterplay.
Shaco’s jungle clear speed was incredibly quick following his mini rework. Players were able to immediately clear the Raptor camp with just boxes by placing four down and starting Red Buff. This meant that he would be able to reach level three after Krugs and gank early. Lowering the duration of his W, Jack in the Box, means that he can no longer instantly clear the Raptor camp at the beginning of the game. This nerf will make his jungle clear speed comparable to other jungle champions. The mini rework he received still provides strong improvements to his kit, so he should still see plenty of play moving forward.
Image Courtesy of Riot Games
Lulu, Kog’Maw and Kayn have become somewhat forgotten, especially in competitive play. Riot Games is addressing this issue in patch 9.21 by providing significant buffs to these champions.
Kayn has received a buff that will benefit both his red and blue transformations. The damage on his Q, Reaping Slash, is being increased by 15 at all levels. This should significantly improve Kayn’s effectiveness and improve upon his weakness in the early game. The bonus damage against monsters has been decreased by 15 to compensate for this buff.
Lulu has seen very little play, as new support champions continue to outclass her. She provides great utility and Crowd Control, but has fallen out of favor for champions like Rakan, Yuumi and Morgana. The damage and shield on her E, Help, Pix!, has been increased to help her scale better into the teamfight stage. It’s still unclear whether she will see more play because of this buff, but Lulu mains can be excited that their champion’s weaknesses are being addressed.
Kog’Maw has received a damage buff to his Q, Caustic Spike, and his E, Void Ooze. While these buffs will greatly increase his damage output in lane and in teamfights, they still don’t address his major weakness. Kog’Maw has fallen out of favor due to how immobile he is as a champion, and how easy it is to dive onto him. Champions like Kai’sa and Ezreal are much safer picks that can dish out comparable damage to Kog’Maw.
Image Courtesy of Riot Games
Riot Games has released a new skin line alongside patch 9.21 to celebrate the upcoming holiday and League of Legends’ 10th year anniversary. These skins for Miss Fortune, Blitzcrank, Kassadin and Annie all look incredible, and are a great way to show some Halloween spirit on the Rift.
This rundown of patch 9.21 just highlights some of the major changes, but there are several more minor changes and bugfixes that can be found here. Pyke received a nerf that should take away some of the safety he has from grey health, and allow teams to punish him for his mistakes. Maokai, Viktor and Warwick have also received buffs in patch 9.21.
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Featured photo from Riot Games
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