During a game, League of Legends various dragons appear on the map. We explain what they do individually and what they are good for.
What are the dragons, anyway? The dragons in League of Legends are neutral monsters that appear in their own dragon camp on the lower half of the map. They are passive until a player attacks them and then attack the player who is closest within their range.
For defeating the dragons, the respective team receives various unique passive buffs, such as more damage to opponents or additional movement speed.
Basics about the dragons
When do the dragons appear? There are a total of seven different types of dragons in the game. During a game, up to three different ones can appear. The first dragon is chosen randomly by the game and appears 5 minutes after the game starts. After a dragon is defeated, the next one appears – always again after 5 minutes. The second and third dragons are also chosen randomly, but among the first three dragons, there can be no two identical dragon types.
Which dragon appears next is visible on the scoreboard. The symbol on the minimap also shows which type of dragon is currently present.
With the death of the second dragon, the map changes. These changes depend on which dragon type appears third. All following dragons are of the same type, and the granted buffs accumulate. The first team to defeat four dragons wins the so-called soul of the respective last dragon type.
The dragon soul grants the entire team additional unique buffs.
The dragon types
How many dragons are there? There are a total of seven different dragon types in the game:
What buffs does the Hell Dragon provide?
Each defeated Hell Dragon grants the team 6% additional attack damage and ability power. The Hell Dragon soul causes an explosion on the enemy with every attack or ability, dealing additional damage.
What buffs does the Ocean Dragon provide?
For each defeated Ocean Dragon, you gain an additional 3% health regeneration of your maximum health. With the Ocean Dragon soul, you regain health and mana whenever you deal damage to an opponent.
What buffs does the Cloud Dragon provide?
By defeating a Cloud Dragon, you gain a 7% resistance to slow effects every time and move faster when you are not in a fight. With the Cloud Dragon soul, you move permanently faster, even in combat. You gain additional bonus speed after using your ultimate ability.
What buffs does the Mountain Dragon provide?
When you defeat a Mountain Dragon, your team gains 9% additional armor and magic resistance every time. With the Mountain Dragon soul, you gain a shield that protects a small portion of your health when you take damage the next time.
What buffs does the Hextech Dragon provide?
Defeating a Hextech Dragon grants you 9% ability haste and attack speed. When you deal damage to an opponent while having the Hextech Dragon soul, they are hit by a chain lightning that deals damage to them and up to three other opponents, slowing their movement speed.
What buffs does the Chemtech Dragon provide?
For defeating the Chemtech Dragon, you receive 5% tenacity and additional healing and shielding power every time. The Chemtech Dragon soul causes you to deal 10% more damage and take 10% less damage while your health is below 50%.
What buffs does the Elder Dragon provide?
The Elder Dragon only appears after a team has won the soul of a dragon. When a team defeats the Elder Dragon, it receives a temporary buff. This buff has two effects: firstly, you inflict a burn effect on opponents that deals damage over a short time when you deal damage to an opponent (in English, DoT – Damage over Time). Secondly, opponents are instantly defeated when you attack them if their health points are below 20%.
The Elder Dragon appears differently than the other dragons, only after 6 minutes have passed since the last dragon was defeated.
Map Changes
Once the second dragon of the match has been defeated, the map changes slightly. These changes depend on which dragon type appears third.
Hell Dragon
The walls at the blue and red buff camps are torn down and the bushes around are burned, as well as the wall of the dragon camp. Additionally, a total of 10 more jumping plants appear on the map.
Ocean Dragon
In the jungle, the bushes thicken and take up a larger area. More bushes grow near the dragon camp and 4 more honey fruits appear on the map.
Cloud Dragon
In the areas around the blue and red buff camps and the dragon camp, wind areas appear. In these areas, all players move faster. Additionally, a total of 6 more vision flowers appear on the map.
Mountain Dragon
In contrast to the Hell Dragon, additional terrain appears at the jungle entrances to the river and in the dragon camp.
Hextech Dragon
Hexgates appear at the exits of the team bases leading into the jungle, as well as near the dragon and Baron camps. The former bring you quickly deep into the adjoining jungle, while the latter transport you across the river into the opposite jungle. In the pictures, you can see what these Hexgates look like, where they are located, and where they take you.
Chemtech Dragon
All neutral plants become enhanced with additional effects. 8 more honey fruits and 14 more vision flowers also appear on the map. The jump plants now catapult you twice as far. Honey fruits grant a small shield in addition to healing and no longer slow you. The vision flowers reveal a larger area and set the health of all revealed wards to 1.
The Chemtech Dragon has just returned in preseason 13 after being fundamentally revised during season 12.
