Developer Riot Games released the first notes for the pre-season 2016 for League of Legends . However, with the World Championship final approaching, they do not want to focus too much on these notes and thus only announce a couple of the upcoming changes.
As the last “major” change in League of Legends, Riot Games modified items with ability power and updated bruiser champions, the so-called juggernauts.
Now, focusing on improving item categories and certain champion groups, the pre-season 2016 period, which is the time between the end of the current and the start of the next season, is about updating various AD carries and their special items.
The goal, according to Riot Games, is to give champions more “uniqueness” to adapt them for specific situations or opponents. The focus is on how the shooter is played and how he is used by the team. Champions like Ashe (Global Stun), Sivir (increased movement speed), or Miss Fortune (Wombo Combo) are taken into account.
Update: The changes to the AD carries have been outlined and presented by Riot.
Changes to Items to Ensure Carry Variants
Riot is aware that as a shooter, one always chooses the items that provide the most damage. For this reason, these items should now be updated so that one can specialize in:
- being strong alone and seeking duels,
- being a “skillful magician,” or
- being a kind of “siege machine and tower destroyer”.
Thus, you can adapt your items situationally, for example by playing as a split pusher.
The Masteries Will Also Be Revised in LoL
The current masteries are to be changed so that there are clear differences when distributing points. It’s not just about making “mathematical fine-tunings” but rather game-changing skills.
Each mastery tree will be divided into 3 levels.
- In level 1, there are masteries that are not game-changing but still “good”.
- Level 2 provides a significant boost to the champion.
- The skills at level 3 are so strong that they are called “key masteries” because they significantly change the play style.
Currently, these masteries are still being refined. According to Riot Games, the following skills are conceivable:
- Causing enemy champions to bleed for a portion of ability power or attack power over a certain time in addition to damage, or
- Temporarily increasing movement speed after dealing a particularly high amount of damage to an opponent.
It is clear that these masteries will have a strong influence on what your play style will be in the future.
Changes to Wards and Support Items
With the pre-season 2016, Riot Games wants to build on the last changes to the vision system and pays special attention to ensuring that the entire team in League of Legends is responsible for vision in the game and that this vision is even more dynamic than before.
For example, upgrading the trinkets will be free, and second-level support items can be transformed into strong active items or space-saving upgrades for the sight stones.
No More Invisible Wards in LoL!
One of the biggest changes will be the removal of purchasable invisible wards. Teams should rely more on their pink wards or blue trinkets to gain vision control. Wards placed by the yellow trinket will leave behind “remnants” when destroyed so that one can discover where and how the opposing team gained vision.
This will certainly have a significant impact on gameplay and will likely be an adjustment at first.
Starting Items Will Also Be Revised!
To ensure that starting items have a greater influence on gameplay, they will be divided into two categories:
- “Starting Strength Items”
- “Sustain Items”.
The future starting items will use the Doran’s set (blade, ring, and shield) as a base, which can be expanded with various options.
For example, the item “Cutlass” provides less defensive properties than Doran’s Blade but gives additional gold after a certain number of minion kills.
No More Mana Potions!
The changes to the so-called sustain items will begin with healing and mana potions. To ensure that healing potions are not purchased by everyone at the start, but only by champions who truly need sustain to survive the early game, these will be made more expensive. To still provide sustain later in the game, refillable potions (and new upgrades) will remain available.
Mana potions will be completely removed to avoid giving too much advantage to champions without mana management from buying a mana potion. However, mana regeneration will also be adjusted.
Goodbye Empty Baron Nashor Pit – Hello Herald!
So that top laners do not feel isolated and lonely in the first few minutes before Baron Nashor appears, a new monster named “Herald” will now wait for you in the Baron Nashor pit during the first 20 minutes of the game before the well-known Baron appears.
What exactly Herald is in LoL will be revealed by Riot later. For now, it is only known that defeating Herald will provide a “single target improvement focusing on strength at the beginning of the game and pressure in lane”.
These were just the major changes Riot Games is planning for the pre-season 2016. More details will come after the World Championship.
All news will, of course, be available again at Mein MMO, just visit our LoL page.
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