The item “Radiant Virtue” is currently responsible for many won matches in League of Legends. Thus, the mythical item is immensely strong – but is hardly used. And the lower the rank, the fewer players build the item. What actually makes it so strong?
What is this item? “Radiant Virtue” is one of the strongest items in LoL that hardly anyone plays. The item was introduced with patch 12.22 on November 16, 2022.
Radiant Virtue is a mythical item, of which you can only carry one. However, such an item comes with unique effects and is usually particularly powerful.
What makes the item so strong? Even the stats of Radiant Virtue are impressive. You receive:
- +20 Attack Speed
- +400 Health Points
- +30 Armor
- +30 Magic Resistance
- +100 Health Points for each legendary item you carry (mythical passive)
Radiant Virtue is already an effective item that significantly strengthens its bearer with its stats. What makes it so valuable, however, is the ability to decide a team fight. This comes through the passive effect:
- whenever you use your ultimate, you “transcend” for 9 seconds
- this increases your health by 10%
- at the same time, all allies around you gain 20 Attack Speed for basic abilities and are healed every 3 seconds for 2 to 4% of your maximum health
A clip from the professional scene shows what difference the item can make:
The developers are already considering adjusting Radiant Virtue and are monitoring how the item develops (via Twitter). So far, however, there are no signs of a nerf.
Especially characters like Zac or Skarner derive great benefit from the item, as they can further strengthen their already strong defense and provide a buff to their entire team while they tank at the front.
Zac is even ranked 1 in win rates on top and mid lane as well as support and 3rd among junglers across all ranks (via u.gg). Radiant Virtue itself has a win rate of 59.5% in Europe West (via poro.gg) – but hardly anyone uses it.
Only 3.1% of players use Radiant Virtue
Looking at the list reveals that only 3.1% of players even build Radiant Virtue. A closer look at the usage can be found on the statistics website LeagueOfGraphs, where it can be seen: the lower the rank, the less the item is built.
- From Iron, only 1.7% of players build Radiant Virtue
- From Gold, it is already 2.6%
- In Master and above, 5.6% of players build the mythical item – it even ranks 5th here
One of the most famous LoL professionals is Faker. See the living legend here in portrait:
Why does hardly anyone use Radiant Virtue? A precise reason why only a few players use Radiant Virtue is hard to pinpoint. However, there are a few possible explanations:
- With 3,000 Gold, Radiant Virtue is quite expensive – some players may simply be unable to buy the item in a shorter game.
- Other items are better for personal stats. Those who are the “carry” themselves do not build Radiant Virtue.
- Radiant Virtue requires a lot of coordination and teamwork, relying on the fact that your team wins a fight – this tends to happen more at higher ranks.
Additionally, champions on which Radiant Virtue is strong are already played infrequently. Zac, for example, is mostly played in the jungle and ranks only 11th here with a 6.5% pick rate.
Want to take off in Season 13 and play yourself into the higher ranks? Here are some tips:
LoL: The best champions for every role at the start of Season 13
