Sylas’ win rate was in the dumpster so Riot gave him a hotfix

Every time Riot releases a new champion, it seems to follow a formula: After a brief warming-up period in which players get to know their kit, their win rate goes through the roof. That make sense. Riot wants to sell champions, and nobody wants to play a champion that sucks.

But so far, that hasn’t happened for the latest champion, Sylas. After getting released this week, his win rate has remained in the tank. The good news is that a lot of players are trying him in both solo lanes as well as in the jungle. The bad news is that he’s terrible in all roles. So Riot followed the standard script and gave him a hotfix buff:

The reasoning behind the buff is that people are picking up his kit pretty well and have figured out how to chain his abilities together. Since his win rate remains low, the solution isn’t to change the kit itself, but rather to give him more damage. And while adding damage to the game can be tricky, in this case, he probably needs it. According to League stats site Champion.gg, Sylas is the worst champion in the game, and it’s not even close.

The other reason that damage makes sense is that his most impactful ability, his ult, is highly conditional on which champion he uses it on. If he’s not able to steal a high-damage ability, he can lack teamfight potential. So giving him more punch on his basic attacks and other abilities is a good start.

So those that want to try League’s newest, and possibly hottest, champion, take heart. The hotfix went out yesterday, so the extra damage is already in the game.