The recent 14.10 patch was a significant update for League of Legends as Riot Games introduced numerous important adjustments. Almost every aspect of League of Legends underwent changes in this patch, from jungle monsters to items, and even the reworks of some champions. This will usher in a new meta that is completely different from the first half of the 2024 season.
However, what has left the League of Legends community utterly astonished is a change that Riot Games did not mention in the official announcement. Specifically, Riot quietly modified the Duskblade of Draktharr so that its passive, which grants 10 Attack Damage, is no longer the only passive. This change allows players to purchase multiple Duskblades of Draktharr and still possess a massive amount of Attack Damage due to the passives stacking.
This seemingly minor change is making assassins and characters who utilize Duskblade of Draktharr extremely powerful. It’s important to note that full Attack Damage items will range from 2500-3200 gold. Among them, the item providing the highest Attack Damage (18 points) is the Youmuu’s Ghostblade priced at 2700 gold.
Meanwhile, with the aforementioned change, just 2200 gold for 2 Duskblades of Draktharr grants a total of 20 Attack Damage. With such high armor penetration at such a low price, champions that can utilize Duskblade will be able to deal immense damage very early on. This also helps players snowball the game quickly and secure easy victories.
In fact, it has been proven that the win rate of the assassin group has skyrocketed since patch 14.10. Notably, champions like Talon and Zed have seen their win rates increase significantly. Even marksmen who utilize this item, such as reworked Corki and Jhin, have also become extremely powerful at this time. Even former World Champion Scout is utilizing this playstyle to climb ranks, which shows just how strong the “new” Duskblade of Draktharr is.
In conclusion, with the changes from Riot, the strategy of buying multiple Duskblades of Draktharr (2-3 items) early in the game is becoming extremely powerful due to the “massive” Attack Damage bonuses. This is set to be an excellent ranking strategy for League of Legends players in the current patch. It is even likely that this playstyle will also appear in professional tournaments in the early weeks of the upcoming summer season.