League of Legends’ tank champions have been left in a bit of a rough spot as a result of the numerous pre-season changes. Now, according to the League of Legends patch 12.23 preview, developer Riot Games is stepping in to give some of Runeterra’s thicker denizens some much needed buffs.
Taking to Twitter to share the studio’s plans, Summoner’s Rift team lead Matt ‘Phroxzon’ Leung-Harrison states that tanks are “weak, barring individual outlier synergy with items, so we’re buffing them (over items) to avoid poaching.
In the upcoming update, Amumu, Cho’Gath, Malphite, Maokai, Tahm Kench, Sion, and Zac will all be getting a boost, which should help players on their LoL ranks grind. Additionally, squeezed between their mountainous masses are buffs for Kayn’s shadow assassin form, and Zeri.
On the flipside, Lillia, Mordekaiser, Shyvana, Syndra, Trundle, and Yuumi are all receiving nerfs. We’re sure there are many among the League community who will be happy to hear the magical cat will be less egregious going forward.
Topping off the champion changes are Dr. Mundo and Kassadin, who are both receiving adjustments.
Over in item land, Sunfire Cape is receiving a buff, while Ravenous Hydra is, quite rightly, receiving a nerf. According to League of Graphs, Ravenous Hydra is by far the most popular item in the game right now with a 14.5% usage rate, and boasts a whopping 54.8% win rate.
Phroxzon has also shared a slew of tweaks to the jungle, which you can see in full below.
While junglers will now be earning less physical gold from their jungle pet treats, they will be gaining some of it back through the extra xp offered in return.