Biggest Deck Nerfs/Buffs in Legends of Runeterra 2.5.0 patch

The Legends of Runeterra 2.5.0 patch drops on March 31 and hopes to balance some of the most powerful cards in the game with a total of 21 card balances. Several champions were hit with some notable nerfs, including Fiora, Aphelios, and the dreaded Twisted Fate.

Biggest changes in Legend of Runeterra’s 2.5.0 patch

Riot Games took a look at the top-performing decks used in Platinum, Diamond, and Master ranks, and then those decks that have a 3%+ play rate or a 50%+ win rate in a specific time period. These are decks like Trundle/Lissandra Control and Fizz/TF Burn, ones that players encounter and lose to (or win with) frequently. Twisted Fate is getting a fairly big nerf, not only changing his level-up requirement but also the cards that help accelerate Fizz/TF Burn’s lethality. Riot is bumping up Twisted Fate’s level requirements from having the player draw 8 cards to 9. The aim is to give opponents an extra turn or two to deal with the card-slinging champion before he starts dominating the match. Two other Fizz/TF Burn staples were hit with nerfs: Pick A Card and Wiggly Burblefish. Pick A Card dropped the number of fleeting cards players can draw and reduced the cost from 3 to 2. Before the nerf, Pick A Card gave players too much card advantage at too little of a risk. Wiggly Burblefish also saw a nerf, although not nearly as impactful. Riot reduced its power from 3 to 2 while keeping its cost-reducing ability intact. While the Fizz/TF Burn deck may be slowed down once the patch drops, don’t expect it to be going anywhere soon. Thanks to its consistent card draw and evasive units, it’ll likely remain one of the strongest decks in the game.

Other top-performing decks to get nerfed

Fizz/TF Burn isn’t the only deck taking a hit in the Legends of Runeterra 2.5.0 patch. Zoe/Aphelios Temple, Trundle/Lissandra Control, and Fiora/Shen Midrange saw key cards getting updates to balance their power. Fiora–a champion that frequently jumps between overpowered and completely balanced–is getting her health nerfed from 3 to 2. The hope is that decks with less targeted removal will have a better chance of catching Fiora unprotected. Trundle/Lissandra Control decks are facing changes to the Concurrent Timelines + The Dreadway + Commander Ledros combo. Reducing The Dreadway’s cost from 9 to 8 means that Commander Ledros can no longer be transformed into the ship. Without it, the life reducing skill that Ledros triggers when it enters play won’t have its damage doubled. No more OTKs for Concurrent Timelines, for now. The last deck that is facing a major update is Zoe/Aphelios Temple. Specifically, Aphelios is seeing a huge increase in the cost of his Moon Weapons. Each Moon Weapon’s cost increased from 2 to 3, slowing down Apehlios’ ability to outrace other aggro decks. The Veiled Temple was nerfed as well,  and no longer grants a +1/+1 bonus when a second spell is cast. Instead, the Temple gives +1/+0, giving opponents an easier time dealing with buffed units. The Legends of Runeterra 2.5.0 patch goes live on March 31, so anyone looking to sneak in a few more matches with these decks will have to play quickly.