5 things to know from Patch 8.6

It’s hard to believe it, but we’re about a quarter of the way through the season. Patch 8.6 is here and it’s bringing plenty of fun new changes to League of Legends. We’re getting some fun new runes and items as well as big buffs to Kai’Sa, our newest champion.

There are also several champion changes coming with 8.6. Quinn is getting a pretty hefty face-lift in this patch and items like Duskblade are seeing changes big enough to change the meta entirely. Most importantly, of course, there are some sick new skins this patch. It’s almost April Fools day which means goofy new skins are here.

Here are the five most important things in this patch. For a complete list of the Patch 8.6 changes, check out our post here.

1. Duskblade is getting changed and so are all the champions that use it

Riot has been talking about it for weeks, but Patch 8.6 is finally the one where they’re doing something about Duskblade. It’s not that the item was just too strong, it’s that the item’s strengths stood in the way of any other buffs that Riot wanted to give to the assassins it was strong on. So, instead of having the holes in their kit patched, most assassins were just leaning on Duskblade’s raw power instead. Now that Duskblade is getting some changes, and a very big nerf, Riot’s taking the chance to give changes to almost every assassin the item was strong on. And that’s a lot of champions, from Kayn and Zed, all the way to Talon and Shaco.

For a full breakdown on the changes to each champion, and the item itself, check out our preview coverage from the Public Beta Environment here.

2. Quinn got changed again

Believe it or not, Quinn actually got a rework not that long ago. As you’ve probably already figured out, it wasn’t particularly successful. She remains somewhere between a marksman and a brawler, whose pure focus is blowing people up after using her pet bird as a taxi service. Riot is taking another look at Quinn in Patch 8.6 and at the very least trying to make things a little better. Along with a few changes to her base stats and a couple of bug fixes, her ultimate now applies Vulnerable to all champions hit and no longer stops channeling when Quinn gets hit, which should give her a real place in teamfights now.

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3. There’s a new (old) item and some big changes

Patch 8.6 is bringing Shurelya’s Reverie. Honestly, this item’s return is likely to be met with some pretty muted fanfare because, well, it wasn’t very popular the first time it was in the game. The item is basically a replacement for Talisman of Ascension and lets support players give their team a quick speed boost, which should provide some nice utility for the role beyond the healing and shielding that currently dominate the non-damage caster meta.

Along with this returning item are a huge number of changes to other items. Abyssal Mask is getting a pretty hefty nerf, which is much needed to help clean up midlane. Also getting a tweak is Guinsoo’s Rageblade, which will do a little less damage up front and cost a little less gold. In other words, Riot wants Guinsoo’s to be a better fourth item than first item. Finally, Statikk Shiv is losing its bonus damage to minions, meaning that AD Carry wave clear just got a whole lot less effective.

4. Conqueror is our newest keystone

There are a ton of new rune changes in this patch, so many that we won’t be going over all of them here. But these new rune changes come with a brand new keystone. Conqueror, which appears in the Precision tree, is meant to help champions in longer fights. After fighting for four seconds, the first attack you make against an enemy increased your attack damage for a few seconds and causes 20 percent of your damage to be true. For melee champions, the buff is refreshed every time you damage your opponent.

Sounds like full AD Tryndamere just got a lot worse.

5. Goofy skins for fun people are here

It’s April Fools time, which is always wonderful for skin lovers in League. Our goofy skins this year are offering up the highly anticipated Pizza Delivery Sivir as well Foghorn Leghorn Galio Birdio. For the support main in you that’s just flush with Gemstones, you can also pick up the new Hextech Alistar.

For those of us with fancier tastes, the newest ultimate skin also arrives this patch. Yes, Gun Goddess Miss Fortune is here for all of us. Now you can deal way too much damage with that Q and look great while doing it.

Like usual, there are also tons of new chromas coming in 8.6, as well as some fun new emotes!

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