Major changes coming in preseason 13

Bot laners have dictated the game ever since the durability update and the recent changes aim to change that. But with making tanks and bruisers more viable, the only class capable of handling them are the ADCs. Preseason is the wildest of all times in the calendar year for a League player, so buckle up for some action.

The return of Chemtech Drake in preseason 13

If the development team at Riot could go back in time, we probably would have never had Chemtech Drake in the game. When the change was announced in preseason 12, everyone was worried about the impact on the game. Rengar became unplayable due to the Chemtech Rift, and the Soul buff made the game enjoyable. Riot wised up and completely removed the feature three months into the season, but now it’s back.

The reworked Chemtech Drake is coming back in preseason 13, giving 5% tenacity and 5% healing and shielding power. Considering that we are in a sustain meta ever since the durability update, this should only empower the already strong. When a team slays four dragons and claims the Chemtech soul, the entire team receives a 10% reduction in damage taken and a 10% damage increase when below 50% health. If you have been playing League of Legends long enough, you would know why this sounds like a bad change.

Instead of camouflage zones, the new Chemtech Rift will now change the map in different ways. The Honeyfruits will be empowered, giving a shield on top of the usual heal. A major plus is that they won’t slow when consumed anymore. Blast cones on the Chemtech Rift will now blast you twice the range when compared to other Rifts. And that’s not all. The vision plant will now grant vision in both directions after being destroyed. If you reveal an enemy using these, you will receive a movement speed increase towards them and any wards that get revealed die to one auto attack.

Smite changes headline jungle in the preseason

The jungle changes coming in preseason 13 are geared toward helping newer players pick up the role faster. While this might lower the skill ceiling in higher ranks of play, it should make the role more appealing for the lower ranks. Considering that 90% of the player base in League of Legends is below the Platinum rank, it does benefit Riot long term.

The summoner spell Smite will not heal anymore, and it now evolves through 3 ranks. Smite now does 600/900/1200 damage to jungle monsters, depending on how many stacks you have on your jungle item. And choosing your jungle items is now even more important since they give different effects and pets.

The three different jungle items will also give you jungle companions that will help you clear the jungle. Apart from doing damage to monsters, the jungle pets also give health and mana regeneration. They consume treats for every jungle monster slayed and with every passing minute, helping you get the evolution on your Smite faster.

Jungle pet changes in League of Legends

The Mosstopper is the pet for the new tank jungle item which gives a shield after killing a camp or 10 seconds after you leave combat. The item also gives you 20% Tenacity and slow resistance while you have the shield and 3 seconds after you have lost it. 

Scorchclaw is the pet for the changed damage jungle item, which collects 100 stacks, after which the next attack will slow surrounding enemies by 30% That attack also deals an additional 5% of the target’s maximum health as true damage over the course of 4 seconds.

Gustwalker is the mobility jungle item, which gives 45% movement speed for 2 seconds after entering a bush. That ramps up to 60% over 2 seconds after killing a jungle monster.

Camp changes in the jungle coming in preseason 13

A lot of the jungle camps have received changes, making them tankier but also making them do less damage. But the most important changes in terms of the jungle this preseason, are patience meters and leash ranges. Riot has now implemented shorter leash ranges which are now displayed around the camp. While this makes it easier to know when the jungle monster will reset, it also hurts multi-camping at higher levels of play. On the other hand, patience meters now run out faster, so you have to be careful how you kite your camps.

Solo lane experience, tower, and communication adjustments

Solo laners will now receive a bit more experience from minions, while bot laners will receive less. The mid-lane minions will now give 1 gold less before 14 minutes when being last hit, instead of the cannon minion giving 10 less gold which was changed last year. It will also be harder for laners to farm jungle camps without jungle items, while junglers receive less gold and experience from lane minions before their jungle item transforms announced this preseason.

Turret plates will now give more gold, but will also be harder to take. Instead of using third-party applications to scout your teammates, Riot is now enabling ability recommendations. This builds off last year’s changes, where items are now recommended to you in the shop depending on your opponent. To combat the impact of these applications, Riot is also introducing lobby anonymity. This way, you can’t see the names of your opponents and allies until the game is finished, which should help cut down on the toxicity in the community.

Vision and communication 

Vision has always been an important aspect of this game, and Riot are implementing more ways to keep track of it. There are now visible timers on both ally and enemy wards, showing how long they will last before they expire. On top of that, if you use a Vision ping on a Control Ward, you will now receive 5 gold for discovering it.

The new and updated Ping wheel is also being introduced, with new and updated pings for clearer communication. You can also vote for which objective the team should prioritize, with the junglers vote being equal to two votes.

Header: Riot Games