5 things to know about League of Legends patch 8.21

We’re quickly closing in on the last patch of Season 8, and that means things are still pretty slow for this patch. But, with the preseason right around the corner, Riot is still making some important changes to the game.

First of all, ADC players should be happy to see a few marksmen changes on the block, including buffs to a few ADC champions as well as to some less common items. There are a few other champion changes, both buffs and nerfs, coming through to help make sure everyone’s in a good spot for whatever the upcoming preseason patch might hold.

Finally, there are some quality of life changes coming with this patch as well. A nice update to Graga’s visual effects, some change to the way camouflage works — that you really shouldn’t notice — and even an update to the On My Way Ping are all head for players for patch 8.21.

As always you can check out the full list of changes in our patch notes.

A few marksmen are getting changes

This season has been a little bumpy for marksmen. After spending the mid-season almost completely nonviable, most of them have been buffed, or nerfed, back into line, but there are still a few outliers and that’s what Riot is trying to take care of here. Ashe is getting a slightly more impactful slow, Draven’s getting an important bugfix, Ezreal’s getting a buff to his newly improved W and Kai’Sa is well ... still getting nerfed.

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Item changes, because no one was buying Edge of Night

Speaking of ADCs some of their more underused items are also getting tweaks in this patch. Both Edge of Night and Essence Reaver are going to cost a little less, which should help people think of them a little more often. Edge of Night is also getting a little bonus as the channel time for Veil, which acts as a spell shield, was also decreased.

The On My Way ping is getting a little easier to understand

On My Way has always been a delicate ping. A ping in your lane from your jungler, could mean they’re almost there ... or it could mean they’ll be there after getting blue buff ... and wolves ... and gromp ... and you’re dead, because you thought you were getting a gank. Thankfully, this is a problem that Riot is well aware of and trying to fix. Now, instead of getting the same type of ping no matter where your ally is, the ping’s volume and clarity will be determined by how far away the ally that makes it is. This should help make sure that you always know exactly what an On My Way ping really means.

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Ivern’s back, maybe

It’s been a little while since we’ve seen Ivern in a good place. In fact, the last time he really fit into the meta was almost a year ago. But, with a few well place buffs to his damage and his shield, Riot is hoping to pull Ivern back from the forest and into the jungle where he can once again send his favorite neutral camps safely away from danger. While still taking their gold and buffs and making them disappear, of course.

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A ton of skins

Seriously, there are a lot of skins in this patch. First of all, you have the Tales from the Rift skins, which this year are for Janna, Kled and Ekko. Then, if that weren’t enough, there’s also a brand new line of KD/A popstar skins for Ahri, Akali, Kai’Sa and Evelynn, with Kai’Sa getting her own special Prestige Edition.