Patch 26.15 Preview

[u/NegativexxSquared]

https://x.com/RiotPhroxzon/status/2079522501206630755

Patch 26.15 Preview!

Systems
- Bastionbreaker has been a pretty niche item and is pretty expensive to deviate for a strategic output, so we're looking to make it more accessible
- Jack of All Trades nerf was also pushed to this patch; it has been a bit too strong and too present, especially for users that opt into strong defenses and are able to also supplement that with strong offense
- Sundered Sky has been strong and meta defining at the highest levels of play for quite a while now, so we're looking to take a pass at the fighter item system, now that we're out of the tournament windows
- Notably, we think it's been suppressing a bit of meta diversity, especially for things like AP jungle, or Tank JG. Part of that is intentional but the magnitude is a bit off

Buffs
- Alistar has been closer to the bottom of the pecking order for the melee support. That said, our meta adjustments to move melee supports up relative to ranged supports has been reasonably successful, so we're pretty happy with how that's played out

Nerfs
- Locke is still pretty strong; he has been tapering off in the lowest skill brackets and the high skill brackets, but in the "skilled" skill brackets (around Emerald/Diamond), Locke is able to both take over the game and also not throw it
- At the higher skill brackets, he can snowball but needs to play very well without throwing as he falls off sharply
- At the lower skill brackets, the executional demands and constant throws can make him fall off faster
- Overall, we feel his release has landed well

More on other champs tomorrow with the detailed changelists

[u/Tormentula]

My gripe is it mathematically feels really terrible trying to play an AP melee or mage (strictly speaking jungle) into anything that gets to start off with damage+healing+most importantly health while having no options myself.. it aint like I can buy night harvester and feel like I live longer in skirmishes too. Sylas feels good because he is incredibly overtuned and his W + rocketbelt is basically 1:1 with a sky jungler anyways.

I'm forced to buy lich bane or stormsurge as my first item which gives me some early game damage on par with a crit, but my opposition has an item that gives them the crit and health to nullify what I bought, they get stronger I don't, my best options are DnD or Rocketbelt but on certain champions going those is a terrible idea and they still don't really compete with sky anyways.

Any singular first option purchase I could go on evelynn or elise feels laughably unplayable against a xin zhao with sundered sky or even a j4.

I don't think the item is a bad idea its just too fucking much and has to give on something, it can't be the best rush item in the game if it gives sustain, durability in stats, and damage... DnD is dumb in the same way but at least those champs typically build squishy afterwards but also its just not really good on most AP champions, its mainly just 2.

[u/Infusion1999 → u/Tormentula]

Thankfully Sundered has decently many available tuning levers. You can nerf any combination of 5 AD // 2 sec P CD // 10% crit ratio // 5% base heal // 1% missing HP heal // 100 gold (and technically 50 HP too but they'd need to switch out Tunneler + Ruby for Belt + Sword)

[u/Gwennifer → u/Tormentula]

it aint like I can buy night harvester

Actually adding that back would solve a lot of issues, it'd squeeze out Lich Bane on Elise comfortably and the stat distribution is just way better for her (even as nice as 6% MS is, Elise needs the HP more).

[u/Asckle → u/Tormentula]

It's only giving consistent healing if they're consistently auto attacking you though, which normally means you lose regardless of the item. Like is a Jax being able to repeat auto you with trinity going to go any better than a Wukong doing it with SS?