Patch 6.2 Gameplay Updates

Hi everyone! The Patch Preview for 6.2 just came out, and we have a lot of new content coming. If you want to learn more about the new theme, Honor System, or watch the Patch Preview, you can check out the links we just shared. We also have a handful of gameplay updates that we want to talk with you about, so let's dive into it! 

NEW CHAMPIONS

David twirled his wand and zapped us into a mystical, magical world. In this patch Aurora will be joining the Rift, ready to help you hop between realms and take down your foes. Bard and Vel’Koz will also be joining the Rift, so we hope you’re ready to collect some meeps and have studied up on your geometry. 

BANDLE RIFT 

It’s almost been half a year since we’ve let the Bandles on the loose and take over our Rift. We’re happy with how the new Rift has played out, but since it’s been half a year, we want to make a few updates. We’ve also been keeping an eye on how games play out and wanted to make some additions and adjustments to Bandle Rift to improve some areas we feel need it.

Oink oink! What’s that? It’s our new Enchanted Piggy! You can find this little piggy roaming around the Dragon and Baron pit in your Legendary Queue matches. We know it will be hard to kill it because they are so cute, but you’ll want to take them down so that you can be rewarded with gold, XP, and of course a cute little Enchanted Piglet that will charge at your enemies’ turrets. We can’t wait to see how this new friend helps shake up your games and set up new sieges.

Our next change on the Bandle Rift will be some brush layouts in PvP and Ranked (not Adventure Modes), especially around the dragon pit. We know how hard it can be as a Support whenever you want to get vision for your team around the Dragon, so these brush changes should make it more clear on the best path to take so you can get better and safer vision for your team. 

With Aurora’s arrival, we also felt that there was room for us to add a dash of mystic, magic, and mayhem to Bandle Rift, so throughout the game some easter eggs will appear. These aren’t just any old easter eggs though, no. These will reward you for your plays, so you’ll get bonus gold for clever wards, make shimmering fish appear that drop coins, or admire a fireworks show if you pop a Blast Cone.

Within the Soulforce Awakening theme, you’ll be encouraged to try out new roles and expand your champion pool, so our goal with these updates to the Rift was to make it a better experience to play overall but also to encourage you to feel like you can grow while trying out new roles and champions.

GAMEPLAY UPDATES

We have an array of gameplay updates this patch that we can’t wait for you to queue up and play! The first update is based on the feedback we have heard from you about the beginning of games. A lot of you have shared with us that those early stages can drag out just a smidge too long, and we get it. We want to get you back into the action and teamfights faster. So to help with that, we’re tweaking turret plates, they will now come down with elemental drake spawns. We’re also going to be having Baron spawn earlier so that he won’t have as big of an impact during the late game like he does now. And lastly, we’ll be adjusting the outer turrets’ resistance and enhanced minion waves, which will help speed up the laning phase overall. We’re excited to launch these updates and believe they will help you get out of the lane faster and into the fight quicker. As always, we’ll have the full number changes in our launch Patch Notes for 6.2 and will keep a close eye on how these changes perform once they are live.

This patch, we also took some time to look at enchantments. We know most of you skip them or just default to purchasing Zhonya’s, and hey, we don’t blame you all for that. In fact, we get it, not only does Zhonya’s make you sparkle (who doesn’t love that?), it also is an impactful enchantment, whereas the rest of them don’t pack a punch. So, we’re overhauling the entire system. Every role will now have role-specific options that will make your playstyle. Goredrinker will help fighters looking to take those risky 1v3s (looking at you, Irelia mains) or Galeforce giving all marksmen mains a way to swiftly exit the fight while getting some extra damage in. Whatever your playstyle, you’ll want to choose your enchantments now, rather than skipping them in your build.

In addition to enchantments, we wanted to give marksmen a little boost this patch. One of those boosts will be the new item, Soul Transfer. This is a brand-new item designed to help you push back against tanky frontliners and flip the fight in your favor. Every time you crit, you’ll summon a phantom clone that mirrors your attack style. Your foes will quiver in fear from all the damage you’re doing. We’re also adjusting a wide range of AD and crit items. You’ll see us merge some of the overlapping effects and give each item a clearer identity. Bloodthirster will now cover sustain and survivability, Infinity Edge will hit harder when you commit to an all crit build, and Essence Reaver will deliver burst and movement after every skill-based strike.

And last but certainly not least, back in Patch 6.0, we introduced Galio’s Aegis. A new way to reward you when you play well in a lost game. This only ran as a limited event, so that we could gather your feedback. This was a feature that was popular, so we are bringing it back in Patch 6.2 permanently. Stay tuned to our upcoming Patch Notes for more information. 

CHAMPION REWORKS

This patch we’ll also be launching two reworks, this time to some Mid Lane classics. Galio and Swain will both be getting some slight changes to their kit. Galio is a burst mage right now, rather than a tanky mage your team needs. We’re leaning more into him being the magical shield for your allies, so the scaling on his Shield of Durand will be updated to reward you for building Galio tankier.

Swain, on the other hand, is getting an upgrade to his power. We want him to overall deal more damage when he activates his Demonic Ascension, so we’re amping up the clarity and power of his ult. It will hit harder and sharper, and your foes will truly feel your wrath.

To pair with the array of new items for marksmen this patch, we also refined some of our most iconic marksmen: Varus, Ashe, Zeri, Vayne, and Miss Fortune. Each champion will have targeted updates that will bring what makes them unique to the forefront. We’ll be improving survivability for crit-based builds, opening up more room for mechanical expression, and making sure their signature strengths hit harder. Whether you’re shooting an Icy Arrow across the map or tumbling around in that 1v5, these iconic moves will feel even better this patch. 

ATUNE AND FIND YOUR INNER STRENGTH 

That’s all from us for now, but be sure to stay tuned for the Patch Notes for the full list of changes and numbers! Once Patch 6.2 launches, please send us your feedback and hype clips, we’ll see ya on the Rift!