A few days ago, member of the League of Legends game design team – Riot Phlox shared the most notable changes for patch 12.6 on Twitter. The most significant change in this update is the removal of the item “Gust of Wind” replaced by the new rune “Treasure Hunter.” This new rune will essentially provide increased gold upon defeating enemy champions (up to 5 stacks). Additionally, the reduction of lifesteal on some items is also quite noteworthy.
However, upon closer examination of the changes in patch 12.6, experts believe that this update is quite pointless and does not impact the tournament meta or solo rank. For instance, in a recent livestream by former C9 coach – LS, he even stated that in the next 4 patches (including the official update for MSI 2022), they would have no impact whatsoever.
LS: “Do you think the changes in 12.6 will affect the solo rank or tournament meta? The answer is no, nothing has changed here and the meta remains the same. And then we have 4 more pointless patches like this added to the game in preparation for MSI 2022. I really can’t stand this, what the hell is happening with LoL?”
People need to understand that the learning and practice process of LoL players does not depend on whether a champion gets buffed heavily or is ignored after being nerfed. Players usually choose champions they have previously played when the meta champion gets nerfed. For example, if Aphelios and Jinx are no longer strong, players will revert to Caitlyn, Miss Fortune, Kai’Sa… those champions that were recently in the meta.
And then look at this patch, champions are only buffed a little, similarly with nerfs. Look at the item changes, most are just a 2% reduction in lifesteal. So how can players be motivated to learn new champions, and how can the meta change? Everything will just become as boring as it was a month ago. Thank you, please provide a significant patch before MSI in 2 months so everything can change.
Indeed, looking back at the updates of LoL since the beginning of season 12, most have been small changes and there hasn’t been a truly significant patch at all. The biggest change Riot has made in season 12 was removing the Chemtech Dragon because it faced too much backlash and did not create balance in gameplay. Additionally, Riot’s changes usually stop at giving champion A a little more health per level or skill B reducing 5-10 damage per level.
Clearly, during the past spring season, players actively playing LoL to the audience themselves have grown weary of matches where champions keep appearing repeatedly. A prime example is in the Marksman position, where Aphelios and Jinx always face off against each other. Maintaining a stable meta is good, but if Riot continues this way for too long, LoL will become quite boring, both in terms of gameplay and viewing tournaments.
