Legends of Runeterra Patch 1.4: Full notes and updates

A second balance change is dropping tomorrow in Legends of Runeterra with the start of The Season of Fortune, introducing a new mode, rank adjustments to Master, and a bunch of personalizations. 

The Season of Fortune will launch with a minor rank reset and a number of changes to key cards in LoR. Players can also compete in the new Gauntlet Mode and purchase some neat customizations in the store. A major adjustment was also made to rank at the Master tier level, creating a more positive environment in Ranked. 

Gauntlet Mode

A new limited-time game mode, Gauntlet, will launch in LoR on June 26. At time of writing, there doesn’t seem to be an entry for Gauntlet. Players who compete in it will earn a special icon and those who achieve seven wins are rewarded with an exclusive Gauntlet Conqueror icon. 

The first Gauntlet will feature Standard Constructed with Singleton rotating in on July 3. Gauntlet formats last four days (Friday to Monday), rotating formats on a weekly basis. 

Season of Plunder Ranked rewards

Ranked will be disabled until June 24 at 12pm CT. All players will receive ranked reward icons based on the rank they finished in. At the start of the Season of Fortune, players will drop to a new rank with a minor reset. 

• Master accounts will drop 800 LP (eight divisions).
• Diamond and Platinum accounts will drop 750 LP (seven divisions + 50 LP).
• Gold and Silver accounts will drop 675 LP (six divisions + 75 LP).
• Bronze and Iron accounts will reset to Iron IV.

Master tier LP adjustments

Rank in Master tier was previously based on MMR only. But it’s being updated to an LP system that factors in “your MMR, your opponent’s MMR, and how much LP you have compared to other players in Masters,” according to the LoR team. This new system will essentially eliminate “camping” in the top-ranked spots of Mater tier. It will also reward players who play consistently and have higher win rates. 

Players also won’t lose mass amounts of LP with a loss since the values are centered around 20 LP, with a maximum of 25 and a minimum of 15. All Master tier players will reset to Platinum four during a reset regardless of the amount of LP earned in the previous season. 

Patch 1.4 buffs and nerfs

Several balance changes are taking place in the LoR 1.4 update that focus on Epics, the Freljord region, and cards that have “steal” effects. The LoR team even changed the “steal” effect to a new Keyword, Nab. Rather than pull from the top of the deck like before, Nab draws from the bottom of the deck. A full breakdown of the new Nab Keyword can be found here. 

Champions

Darius (level 2)

• Health increase from five to six.

Anivia and level 2 Anivia

• Cost decreased from seven to six.

Braum

• Cost increased from three to four.
• Power increased from zero to one.
• New text: The first time I survive damage, summon a Mighty Poro.

Braum (level 2)

• Cost increases from three to four.
• Power increased from zero to two.
• Health decreased from seven to six.

Units

Genevieve Elmheart

• Power increased from four to five.
• Health increased from four to five.

Basilisk Rider

• Health increased from two to three.

Captain Farron

• Text change to “ When I’m summoned, create three Decimates in hand.”

Poro Herder

• Cost reduced from four to two.
• Power decreased from three to two.
• Health reduced from four to three.
• New text stating “When I’m summoned, draw a Poro if you have a Poro ally.”

She Who Wanders

• Added Keyword: “Regeneration.”

They Who Endure

• Cost increased from six to seven.

Ren Shadowblade

• Cost reduced from eight to four.
• Power decreased from six to three.
• Health reduced from four to three.
• New text that says Quick Attack Strike: Create a Shadow Fiend in hand. 

Jae Mederda

• Cost reduced from eight to six.
• Health decreased from six to four.
• Power reduced from six to four.
• New text that says “ When I’m targeted and survive, draw one.

Escaped Abomination

• Health decreased from four to three.

Dreg Dredgers

• Power decreased from two to one.

Petty Officer

• Health increased from one to two. 

Black Market Merchant

• Health decreased from two to one.

Yordle Grifter

• Nab: Draw a non-champion card from the bottom of the enemy deck.

Spells

Aurora Porealis

• Cost decreased from seven to six.

Mind Meld

• Cost reduction from eight to seven.

The Harrowing:

• Cost reduced from 10 to nine. 

Unyielding Spirit

• Spell speed change from Burst to Fast.

Super Mega Death Rocket

• Cost reduced from two to one. 

Card text clarity

In response to players consistently asking the LoR team for more consistency within the text on cards, a number of changes are taking place in the 1.4 update. 

• Various usage consistency (“fleeting,” “I see,” “create,” “shuffle”).
• Swapping “next round” to “next round start” to clarify exact timing.
• “Enemies” vs. “the enemy Nexus” consistency.
• Swapping written-out numbers to digits where possible.

Rules text was adjusted on over 30 cards in LoR that included units, spells, and champions:

Arena Bookie | Avarosan Trapper | Back to Back | Bloodsworn Pledge | Brightsteel Formation | Brothers’ Bond | Chief Mechanist Zevi | Chump Whump | Concerted Strike | Double Trouble | Final Spark | Jinx (level 2) | Lee Sin (both levels) | Lux (level 2) | Magnum Opus | Pick a Card | Plunder Poro | Pool Shark | Powder Keg | Sapling Toss | Sejuani (level 2) | Senna, Sentinel of Light | Shen (both levels) | Shen’s Stand United | Stand United | Super Mega Death Rocket! | Tall Tales | The Leviathan | The Undying | Twisted Fate’s Pick a Card | Twisted Fate (level 2) | Vi.

Personalization

Customizations in the LoR 1.4 update include a new Lee Sin game board, a Von Yipp Guardian, three new card backs, three additional emotes, and a bundle for the first time in the digital card games history. 

Lee Sin Iron Will game board

Highlighting features found in Ionia in conjunction with Lee Sin personalizations, the new game board is available in the LoR store for 990 Coin. 

Von Yipp Guardian

Von Yipp might be a devious experimenter but it’s apparently easily distracted by a laser pointer, likely being controlled by Professor Von Yipp. The Von Yipp Guardian is priced at 590 Coin. 

Card Backs

There are three new card backs coming with the 1.4 LoR update: The Blind Monk (Lee Sin), The Tidal Trickster (Fizz), and The Bounty Hunter (Miss Fortune). Each card back is priced at 490 Coin. 

Emotes

A total of three new emotes that feature Vi, Fizz, and Cithria are also being added. Emotes are priced at 190 Coin each. 

Lee Sin bundle

For the first time, LoR now has a bundle available for purchase. The Lee Sin bundle includes his Iron Will game board, the Blind Monk card back, and an exclusive Lee Sin icon for a total price of 1,332 Coin. 

Expedition archetype changes

Adjustments made in Expeditions are meant to help out struggling archetypes while toning down those that are overperforming. Balances in Expeditions allow players to experiment without feeling pushed towards a certain archetype to achieve seven wins. Struggling archetypes heading into the 1.4 update include Fishbones, Scrapheap, and Spell Slingers. Overperformers include Afterlife, Disruption, and Noxian Might.

The LoR team also made improvements to the consistency of tri-region drafting by “reducing the chances you’ll see Wild Pick options from archetypes that aren’t confined to those regions.”

All changes made in Expeditions can be found here.

Vault cap and bot account bans

Since bonus capsules were offered past Level 13 of the Vault, an increase of bots have appeared, attempting to exploit the system. In response, the LoR team is capping bonus capsules at Level 25 and aggressively banning accounts using bots. 

Tweaks and fixes

• Teemo level-up effects polished.
• Players will no longer always act first in Play vs AI matches.
• Added some under-the-hood safety measures so players can creatively format deck names without potentially causing crashes.
• Fixed an issue where Arena Battlecaster would sometimes become invisible when attacking.
• Fixed an issue where Vi would sometimes not have appropriate buffs when copied by Dusk and Dawn.
• Fixed an issue where a card back could become stuck over the center of the board and block player actions.
• Fixed an issue where Stand Alone wasn’t displaying a gold highlight when its requirement was met.
• Fixed an issue where players would sometimes be unable to target certain units or interact with specific game elements.
• Fixed an issue where the Play options on Petty Officer would sometimes display rarity gems.
• Fixed an issue where Boosted XP rewards would display incorrectly when completing multiple quests and earning a daily PVP bonus after a single match.
• On iOS, fixed an issue with excessive iCloud usage.
• Fixed an issue where Expeditions pick options could sometimes go missing.