5 things to know in League of Legends patch 8.9

Patch 8.9 brings so many mage changes. It’ll take you several seconds to scroll through all the mana changes and that’s actually not a joke. There are also fun new changes to Baron and runes.

And this is a patch to the video game League of Legends, so there are skins, of course. Even better, there is a brand new surprise skin: Beemo! Let’s take a look into this massive patch together.

For a complete list of 8.9 changes, check out our post here.

1. Mage items are getting some huge changes

The biggest changes this patch are all aimed at mages, but it isn’t just the champions — their items are getting tweaked too. The most impactful changes are coming to Doran’s Ring and Lost Chapter, both aimed a decreasing the amount of overall mana recovery in the game. For Doran’s that means no more mana return on minion kills, and for Lost Chapter, it’s a 200 gold increase in price. All of these changes are going to mean that mages need to think a little more carefully before using their spells after this patch.

Riot Games

2. Mages are getting more base mana and better mana regen

In order to help off-set some of those item nerfs, mages are also getting some changes to their base numbers, especially base mana and mana regen. And when I say mages, I mean just about all of them. 30 mages in total got changes to their base stats as part of this patch, so you’ll have to check the full patch notes to know if your favorite champs were affected. The good news is, none of these changes should feel too big, as most of them were to help compensate for the Doran’s Ring nerf.

3. Baron and Rift Herald are getting stronger

Everyone’s favorite worm, Baron Nashor, is getting a little harder to take down in 8.9. While his base damage is being slightly nerfed, his base health is going way up. Even worse, his damage-over-time spell is getting an increase in damage. This should make tanking Baron much harder.

Rift Herald is getting better when players summon her. First, she does more damage when charging towers and takes less damage from the impact. However, hitting her in the eye will deal a lot more damage to her, making it easier for players to take her down quick.

Riot Games

4. Unsealed Spellbook is being reworked ... again

Remember that weird rune, Unsealed Spellbook? The one that lets you change your Summoner Spells mid game? Well, it’s getting changed again. You can now swap anywhere as long as you’re out of combat. When you swap, you get a single use spell. After you use it, your original spell comes back. You can’t swap until six minutes in and there is a four minute cooldown between each swap. However, each time you swap to a spell you’ve never used, the swap cooldown is reduced by 15 seconds.

In other rune news, Chrysalis got some bug fixes.

5. Surprise, Beemo is here

The most important thing to know about this patch is that there is a surprise new Teemo skin coming to the game. It’s called Beemo and it’s adorable. He shoots honey and looks like a little bee. It’s a welcome return to cute from Teemo after facing his true nature in Lil’ Devil and Omega Squad.

We’re also getting the very cool Blood Moon Evelynn skin, which fits back into the beautiful Blood Moon line. Mecha Zero Sion, easily one of the best skins in the game, is also getting a bunch of chromas added this patch. Get excited y’all.