Yearly Prestige skins will be unlockable with Prestige Points

Riot Games introduced Prestige skins, a type of skin only unlockable through grinding in events in 2018. For 2019, two Prestige versions of skins have appeared on the horizon: Blood Moon Aatrox and Firecracker Vayne. Riot announced in a post on Thursday that some of the Prestige skins will be unlockable through a different method.

Prestige Points will be earned whenever a player buys a bundle of loot boxes. Rather than plopping down and grinding day after day for tokens to exchange for these rare skins, players will have to invest some money into the game. These Prestige skins will be buyable for 100 points.

Riot Mort noted on Twitter that there will be opportunities throughout the year for players to earn some Prestige Points for free, though not an entire skin’s worth of points. You can also still roll Prestige skins through normal crafting means, though it’s the same rarity as the Gemstone skins, like Soulstealer Vayne or Hextech Annie.

The Prestige skins will release throughout 2019 until they expire on Jan. 31, 2020. The Prestige Points earned in 2019 will also expire on Dec. 31, 2019.

This does address a concern that players had about the quality of the latest Prestige skins decreasing and thus seeming not as worth it to grind for, though players will have to shell out some serious coin in order to get the collectable skins they want. The bundle that gives the most Prestige points is 6750 RP, which is a little less than $50.

The release also notes that there will still be event-specific Prestige skins that players will likely have to grind for. Firecracker Vayne has been confirmed as an event skin, and will not be buyable with Prestige Points.