After a brief break, we’re back with a new patch breakdown! The League of Legends patch 9.16 was released on August 13, and it might be one of the most impactful patches of the season. Let’s see how the top LoL patch 9.16 changes will affect Solo Queue and pro play!
Pantheon Rework
One of the most uninteractive champions in the game—Pantheon—has finally received a rework! Riot Games focused on granting players more ways to express their skill while preserving the champion’s identity of a spear-wielding warrior. The W and R are similar to how they used to be, although both spells feel much better to use.
Meanwhile, Q transformed into a skill shot, and E grants invulnerability against enemies and turrets in the target direction. Last but not least, Pantheon’s passive empowers his spells, making him exceptionally deadly in trades and all-ins. You can learn more about the Pantheon rework in the official gameplay preview.
Azir Late Game Nerf
It’s no secret that Azir has been dominating the mid lane meta. Riot is trying to address this by removing some power from his late game. With that, the Conquering Sands [Q] cooldown was increased by 2 seconds at max rank, meaning that Azir will have a harder time chasing his enemies in teamfights. Still, we can’t help feeling that this nerf doesn’t hit hard enough, so Azir won’t be disappearing from the mid lane anytime soon.
Corki Base Stats Nerf
Corki has also been having a field day in the mid lane. However, things will get way more difficult for the flying yordle, as League of Legends patch 9.16 brought down his base attack damage from 60 to 55. To make matters worse, the attack damage growth stat was bumped down from 3 to 2.5. These nerfs might not seem that impactful at first glance, but numbers tend to add up—especially if you’re dealing with an auto-attacking marksman like Corki.
Ezreal Scaling Nerfs
Ezreal is one of the safest marksmen in the game, so it’s not exactly surprising that he’s become a staple of competitive bot lane. Riot Games is looking to remove some of that security by increasing the Arcane Shift [E] cooldown from 19-13 seconds to 25-13 seconds. That’s not the only Ezreal nerf either. The Mystic Shot [Q] AP ratio was reduced from 0.3 to 0.15, meaning that Ezreal players will have a harder time incorporating AP items into their builds.
Jax Gets More Jumps
Jax has always been a weird champion to evaluate. On one hand, his kit is incredibly dated, so most of his trades resemble glorified stat checks. On the other, his scaling is so good that he occasionally sneaks into pro play. Jax might get even more dominant, as the Leap Strike [Q] cooldown was reduced by 2 seconds at first rank, further mitigating his early game weaknesses. Expect to see more of him in the top lane.
Lux Gets a Stronger Shield
Lux support might not be as prevalent as it used to be, but Riot has certainly not given up on her. The Lady of Luminosity gained 40 extra shield points on the max rank of Prismatic Barrier [W]. This means you can get 80 more shield points if you get hit by both parts of her W on League of Legends patch 9.16, which is great for late-game teamfights. The only issue is that support players will have a hard time getting enough levels to max out their W, so this change might be more impactful in the mid lane.
Nocturne Stat Tweaks
Nocturne received a bunch of changes to his base stats. Most of these are focused on rounding out the numbers. For instance, his health went from 582.8 to 585, his mana went from 273.8 to 275, and his mana regen went from 6.756 to 7. However, his base armor was straight-up buffed from 36 to 38. On top of that, Shroud of Darkness [W] now grants 10% bonus attack speed at all ranks, meaning that Nocturne will be bringing more DPS to the table.
Sejuani Nerfs
It wouldn’t be an understatement to say that Sejuani is the queen of the jungle. Unfortunately, the throne won’t belong to her on LoL patch 9.16, as her passive now grants 50% of the base resistances it used to grant. If that wasn’t enough, Arctic Assault [Q] had its cooldown increased from 17-11 seconds to 20-12 seconds, making Sejuani’s crowd control less reliable in prolonged skirmishes.
Shen Buffs
It’s been a long time since we’ve seen the ninja guardian in the meta! However, Shen might make a triumphant return, as Twilight Assault’s [Q] empowered damage was increased from 4-6% to 5-7% of the target’s maximum health. The Shadow Dash [E] also received a buff, as it will now deal 10 more damage at all ranks. And while damage has never been the primary reason to pick Shen, these buffs will definitely help him keep up with other top laners.
Sivir Loses Early Game Power
Sivir might be one of the most uninteractive champions in the bot lane, as her ability to consistently push in the wave forces her opponents to choose between trading and picking up CS under their turret. Things are about to change, though. Ricochet’s [W] AD ratio was decreased from 50-70% to 30-70%, meaning that Sivir will finally need to fight her opponents instead of mindlessly pushing in the wave. And more interactivity is always great in our book.
Syndra Damage Buffs
Syndra is back! The Transcendent bonus on Dark Sphere [Q] was increased from 15% to 25% extra damage against champions. On top of that, Scatter the Weak [E] received 15 additional damage at all ranks, so Syndra will have even more burst potential than she used to. And if that won’t make her a staple mid lane pick on LoL patch 9.16, we don’t know what will!
Tahm Kench Mobility And Durability Nerfs
Tahm Kench nerfs just keep on coming! Everyone’s favorite tadpole will have a harder time navigating the map, as its base movement speed was bumped down from 345 to 335. Additionally, the duration of Thick Skin [E] was reduced from 3 seconds to 2 seconds, meaning that it will be much easier for Tahm’s opponents to wait out the shield and finish off the crippled River King.
Yuumi Q Nerf
Yuumi has become of the most troublesome supports in the game, and her unavoidable harass is one of the main reasons behind that. LoL patch 9.16 addresses this by reducing the empowered Prowling Projectile [Q] damage by 50 points at max rank. On top of that, Q hits will apply a much weaker slow at early ranks (down from 40% to 20%). The cooldown was also increased by 2 seconds in the early game, so it will be much easier to play around her poke in the laning phase.
That’s it for the top changes of the League of Legends patch 9.16! You can check the complete patch notes here, and we’ll see you on the Summoner’s Rift!
