Forget Smolder, Riot has already teased the next LoL champion

Riot Games introduced Smolder on Jan. 4, making him the next champion in League of Legends. And while the hype around this cute yet dangerous little dragon is enormous, the developers have already revealed hints about the following champ release.

“After Smolder, players can expect a Vastayan, solo-laning, mid-range mage as the next champion,” Riot’s official press release reads. Smolder himself is expected to go live in Patch 14.2, given he’s joining the PBE servers on Jan. 9, a day before Patch 14.1 drops. Therefore, if we’d have to guess when this Vastayan champion will go live, we’d shoot for possibly around Patch 14.6.

Aside from the fact that they’re a Vastayan, mid-range solo mage, there is hardly any solid information about the next champ after Smolder. In October 2023’s Champion Roadmap, Riot shed some light on the “Vastayan solo laner not too far away in the alpine forest of the Freljord.” At the same time, it was said “her passion led her to travel, discover, and investigate across her home. She has a natural ability to see what others think is not there.”

In Runeterra’s lore, the Vastaya are a chimeric race that shares both human and animal characteristics. Vastayan champions already in League include Rengar, Ahri, Neeko, Nami, Wukong, and our beloved bot lane romantic duo, Xayah and Rakan.

If we were to daydream, we’d say this upcoming champion is likely a mid laner. This position is mostly associated with mages in the game, especially since she’s said to be solo-laning. She could also turn out to be a top laner or a jungler, though that would seem unlikely. On the other hand, Hwei, the champion who recently joined the roster, is also a mage who’s viable in the mid lane, but he’s also playable in the AD carry and support positions.

Either way, we expect more official information about the upcoming Vastayan champion to be launched after Smolder’s release, which should happen with Patch 14.2 on Jan. 24. Until then, we have nothing else to do than speculate and wait patiently for more details on the second new champ of 2024.