Riot Games has released a preview of the changes coming in next week’s League of Legends update, LoL Patch 26.22.
The update will see a lot more champion balance changes, as well as the release of the new K/DA Firestarter LoL skins.
And before explaining the upcoming changes, lead gameplay designer Matt ‘Phroxzon’ Leung-Harrison paid tribute to LoL Worlds 2011 champion Lauri ‘Cyanide’ Happonen who passed away aged 31.
“On top of being an incredible player, he was a super funny guy, and many of his quotes are legendary. He will be missed.”
Mel Midscope Rework
Arcane star and Noxian midlaner Mel is getting a midscope rework when LoL Patch 26.22 releases on November 4.
Riot is finally removing the projectile reflect from Mel’s signature move, Rebuttal.
“When we released Mel, we intentionally went for a new ability that was pretty ambitious,” Phroxzon admitted.
“We like to try to push the boundaries with new champions and mechanics to give players new puzzles to solve with each release.
“After being on Live for a while, it’s clear that many players feel that Mel’s reflect was too frustrating to play against.”
Now, Mel’s W will instead block projectiles, like Yasuo’s Windwall, while also shielding and increasing the movement speed of nearby allies.
Phroxzon says Riot tried to find a way to keep the reflection but couldn’t, and apologised for that:
“We know this is disappointing for Mel players and we’re sorry we couldn’t uphold this end of the contract with you all.
“That said, we hope this will allow Mel to be balanced at relatively higher resting power levels and be more effective for Mel players.”
Balance Changes Planned for LoL Patch 26.22
Here are all the balance changes coming in the next update:
- CHAMPION BUFFS
- Aurelion Sol
- Corki
- Kayle
- Maokai
- Naafiri
- Rumble
- Shen
- Smolder
- Viktor
- Zaahen
- CHAMPION NERFS
- Locke
- Thresh
- Yasuo
- CHAMPION ADJUSTMENTS
- Aurora
- Mel
- Renekton
- SYSTEM BUFFS
- Overlords Bloodmail
- SYSTEM ADJUSTMENTS
- DBow v DBlade
Phroxzon gave extra context to the Doran’s items changes:
“Doran’s Bow has been a bit too strong relative to Doran’s Blade, especially at higher levels of play. So we’re looking to balance out the relative tradeoffs of the items a bit.”
What do you make of these planned balance changes? Let us know on the Insider Gaming Discord.
Meanwhile, Team Liquid shockingly eliminated Anyone’s Legend from LoL Worlds 2026. And for even more Insider Gaming delivered directly to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter.
An esports journalist for nine years with a focus on LoL Jack has written for national newspapers, interviewed major names, and driven people mad with puns. He's most proud of…
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