The League of Legends mid-season patch is almost here, and so are a whole bunch of big champion updates.
The mid-season updates will almost definitely ship in Patch 7.9, according to Andrei “Meddler” van Roon, League’s lead gameplay designer. That means we’re getting very close. League is currently on Patch 7.6, and since there are usually around two to three weeks between patches, we’re about a month-and-a-half to two months out from this year’s biggest patch so far.
There should be at least three champion updates shipping in Patch 7.9, and each update will be on par with the assassin updates back in November. Each update’s goal is to bring more skill, challenge, and reward for playing some of League’s vanguard tanks.
Sejuani
We already covered the goals of Sejuani’s update in detail, but let’s do a quick recap.
1) Boring
Sejuani is a very uninteresting champion to play. When you dash in as the boar-rider, you can get away with mashing spell keys in no particular order and watch your enemies slowly take damage just by being near you. The update aims to add some fun to Sejuani’s kit.
2) Identity
Sejuani is a cavalry rider that charges into battle on a giant boar while wielding a comically large flail, but she doesn’t feel nearly as badass to play as it sounds like she would be. The update aims to make her feel like a badass woman riding a giant boar, leading her allies into bloody war. Area-of-effect buffs for her allies, damage reduction, and more overall damage may be in Sejuani’s future.
3) Ultimate needs to be less important
Somewhere, CLG jungler Jake “Xmithie” Puchero is weeping tears of joy. Sejuani’s power revolves way too heavily around her ultimate ability. The update aims to dial back the power on her ultimate while raising the significance on her regular abilities. She should feel more rewarding to play, even when her ultimate isn’t ready.
Zac
We covered the goals of Zac’s upcoming update already, but we’ll get into it quickly here.
1) Goo who?
Zac is a giant blob of sentient goop, but he doesn’t feel gooey enough. Other than his slingshot, he could stand to feel gooier. Expect more stickiness in Zac’s updated kit.
2) Not really a vanguard tank
Zac’s kit makes him more of an AP bruiser than a vanguard tank. Vanguards should be nigh-unkillable monsters that don’t deal much damage but disrupt the enemy line better than any other champion could. Aside from his ultimate and slingshot, Zac isn’t really disrupting anything. More knock-ups, knock-backs, and knock-knock jokes may be in Zac’s immediate future.
3) He doesn’t really have a Q or W
Zac’s identity as a champion revolves around his Slingshot (E) and Let’s Bounce! (R). After he leaps into the fray from afar, he basically just smashes his Q and W as they come off cooldown to slowly deal damage to those around him. His Q and W don’t feel like they have a real impact, and the update aims to change that.
Maokai
Maokai may be the only champ on this list that is way too powerful. His update probably won’t make him weaker, but it should make him harder to play. We covered Maokai’s update in more detail recently as well.
1) Snoozefest
Much like Sejuani, Maokai is dreadfully boring to play. A guide to his playstyle could be summarized by saying, “Use Twisted Advance to lock down a target, and then headbutt your keyboard.” Maokai’s update should make him a more entertaining pick.
2) More identity crisis
Sejuani doesn’t feel like the badass she should be, and Zac doesn’t feel very gooey. Maokai is no exception to this identity crisis in League. He is a tree possessed by angry spirits aimlessly roaming the lands, but he plays like a dead stump. Hopefully he’ll actually feel as creepy as he should when the update rolls around.
Full details on the champion updates
Riot hasn’t said officially what these champions will have in their new kits, but there was a leak posted on Reddit that included some details of their new spells, as well as a whole host of new skins, a new champion, and more. When it was posted, not many people believed the leak was credible, but the champion teaser that Riot shared yesterday seems to confirm the champion mentioned in the leak. If it’s the same champion, the rest of the leak may be credible as well—including the information on these tank champion updates.
Are you excited for the mid season update? You should be! It has the potential to turn three very boring champions into exciting options. Now if only Riot could fix Mordekaiser’s pizza feet.
