Although the League of Legends community has been busy addressing the issue of toxicity, the game and meta is still changing in response to previous patches. As a result, Riot Games is ready to deploy a new update to shake things up after the second ranked split began recently. While no drastic changes are happening, several key adjustments could shift the balance of power for current top picks.
After Patch 10.9 rolled out several weeks ago, a few champions found their way back into the meta because of direct buffs or stayed there because of indirect changes to items and their competition for several months. In 10.10, the balance team will be fixing several picks that are too reliably strong and buffing others who are struggling to compete in their current state. With over a dozen champions receiving some change this patch, there are many buffs and nerfs to break down.
To start, Annie will be getting a small damage reduction increase on her E shield and Tibber's damage aura will hurt more after being summoned by her R. With past nerfs all but removing Irelia's presence, the latest buff will increase her E's base damage at all ranks. Similarly, Nidalee is getting a scaling AP ratio buff on her Q to help her out against other junglers later on. If successfully used, Sivir's E will restore more mana at all ranks for blocking a spell. Soraka is getting an increase to her Q's base damage and W's health cost reduction if rejuvenated. Twisted Fate's base AD and armor are going up while his R's mana cost is being cut down. Finally, Udyr's base movement speed will be slightly faster.
For nerfs, Diana's presence in the midlane has resulted in a decrease of her high base AD and health. Likewise, Katarina is receiving a scaling AP nerf to her passive daggers. Kayn, who benefited the most from 10.9's changes, is getting a slight nerf to his Rhaast form's spell vamp. Kled's Q cooldown will be increased during the early game so other top laners have more chances to trade back. As one of the top ADCs right now, Miss Fortune is getting a nerf to her W's movement speed increase. As a tank with a strong early game, Maokai's base mana is slightly going down while his Q's mana cost is being increased. Lastly, Taric base health growth and the bonus armor from his W passive are being lowered because of his role in funnel comps.
While all these League of Legends changes could have effects on certain matchups, no nerfs have the overall potential to push champions out of their lanes or the meta since damage isn't being touched early on. At the same time, Soraka and Nidalee could see more play with the improved ability to heal or do more damage respectively in the mid and late game. However, the clear winner is Twisted Fate who is receiving the stats needed to deal with melee assassins and will be able to roam and make plays with less mana than he needs right now.
Since Patch 10.10 is arriving May 13th, players will be able to test out all the changes very soon. But unless the meta shifts drastically, it's unlikely any of these champions will become contested picks in summer pro-play. Otherwise, those who need a break from normal matches will be delighted to hear that the Pulsefire 2020 event starts on May 14th and brings back the beloved URF game mode.
League of Legends is available on PC.
Source: League of LegendsÂ