LoL: News, Patch Notes, Weekly Sale, Champ Rotation (2025)

Quick Patch Highlights (25.S1.22) Buffs and Nerfs

Congratulations to T1 for winning Worlds 2025! They have now won for three consecutive years, becoming the first ever team in history to secure a “three-peat.” Faker has also officially claimed his sixth title. T1 is truly unstoppable.

Leaving the esports side, a whole bunch of new changes have been introduced to the game! I’ll highlight the key changes below, but I’ll first briefly touch on the champion buffs and nerfs. As expected, League has focused on implementing other gameplay aspects in this patch, so not many champions have undergone adjustments.

Patch 25.S1.22 Champion Buffs

• Aurelion Sol
• Blitzcrank
• Yone

Patch 25.S1.22 Champion Nerfs (Aww…)

• Akshan
• LeBlanc
• Talon

Patch 25.S1.22 Champion Adjustments

• Skarner
• Volibear

Most of the changes here are general tweaks and adjustments to balance out champions after the last update. Champions like Akshan, who benefited significantly from the previous adjustments to early game sustain, are being taken down a notch to ensure they aren’t insta-locked in every match. On the other hand, champions like Blitzcrank and Aurelion Sol, who have been consistently underperforming in the early game as of late, have been given some much-appreciated buffs. Riot has also made some item adjustments to allow for more versatile gameplay (ahem, to ensure Phase Rush is no longer the go-to build).

Brawl is Back!

Good news! Riot has temporarily brought back Brawl to give any players who missed it before a chance to experience what this game mode is all about! Brawl is truly the ultimate tilt reliever, and it can also serve as the perfect grounds to limit test, practice teamfighting, and hone your mechanics. So, it shouldn’t be a surprise that the main reason Riot has brought it back is to see if it can serve as an effective tool to help new players learn the game. They’re essentially looking to make it a permanent part of the New Player Journey — something that’s sure to make learning League a whole lot more fun!

Current Event Overview: Trials of Twilight (S3 A2)

Trials of Twilight Season 3 Act 2 is finally live in the client, and there’s a new Seasonal Battle Pass with plenty of missions to explore!

As you progress through the event, you’ll unlock mystery icons, emotes, champion capsules, and even Hextech Chests. The exact amount of rewards you unlock (and the quality) depends on whether you pay for a premium pass. With a premium pass, you’ll have the opportunity to unlock Beeko, Mecha Kingdoms Skarner, and the exclusive Prestige Eternal Aspect Zoe skin. There is a fair bit of grinding involved. However, most of the missions for this event are fairly easy and can be achieved by simply playing LoL. 

Trails of Twilight: Season 3 Act 2 runs until January 8th, so you still have plenty of time to get started on the missions.

Latest Skins to Hit the Shop

Mecha Kingdoms

The latest Mecha Kingdoms skins have dropped, and avid fans of the line will be pleased to hear that they’re badass and totally worth the buck! I seriously can’t fault them. Every skin is eye-catching, slick, and overflowing with that otherworldly, sci-fi goodness. The animations and sound effects are also polished and impactful. I also have to especially commend Riot for somehow managing to make Skarner — yes, the champion that’s essentially a prehistoric entity — into a futuristic mecha that looks like they could effortlessly rule over the known universe. It’s impressive stuff.

• Mecha Kingdoms Darius: 1820 RP
• Mecha Kingdoms Wukong: 1350 RP
• Mecha Kingdoms Skarner: Battle Pass

Panda Pal Lux (Charity Skin)

Badass mechas aren’t your vibe? No problem. Riot has just dropped a new adorable skin for Lux! The character model is both cute and hilarious in equal measure, and the attack animations channel the same playful energy. Purchasing this skin won’t just make your gameplay feel snug and cozy; it’ll also warm your heart. All proceeds from your purchase will be donated to the Riot Games Social Impact Fund.

• Panda Pal Lux: 1350 RP

Latest Champion: Yunara

The latest champion to hit the Rift is Yunara, a shrine maiden who hails from Ionia. Let’s get this out of the way first: Her character design looks absolutely ethereal and gives off a Frieren vibe, and her abilities are packed full of magical goodness, too. The best part is that her kit is actually pretty simple to master, making her a refreshing change from all the mechanically intensive ADC champions Riot has been releasing as of late. I also seriously love the sound effects.

However, I will say that I am concerned about how “broken” she feels on release. I feel it may be a bit too overkill… And that usually means Riot will absolutely obliterate her and make her unplayable in the next few patches (if they live up to their reputation). I haven’t had a chance to properly experience her yet, though, so I’ll hold my breath for now before I say anything further.

You can find an in-depth breakdown of her abilities right here.

Current Champion Rotation Pool

Owning every champion in the game is not an easy feat — unless you’re willing to fork out on RP or grind Blue Essence for hours on end. Luckily, Riot helps out us peasants with the champion rotation pool, a schedule of over 20 champions that are made available for everyone to play, regardless of whether you actually own them. 

As of November 11th, here are the champions that are currently free to play:

• Akshan
• Corki
• Elise
• Fiora
• Fizz
• Graves
• Heimerdinger
• Kassadin
• Kog’Maw
• Malzahar
• Olaf
• Renata Glasc
• Riven
• Shyvana
• Swain
• Taric
• Thresh
• Viego
• Xayah
• Zeri

I highly recommend taking the time to explore Taric if you haven’t done so already. He’s a support with an effective yet simple-to-master kit that can work well in practically any elo, and he’s fairly strong in the meta right now!

Weekly Sale (Skins and Champions)

Want to spruce up your main champion with a new, flashy skin? Then don’t fork out just yet; every week, Riot puts several skins on sale in the shop, with some skins even having a staggering 60% discount. 

As of November 11th, the current skins on sale are:

• Mythmaker Galio
• Winter Wonder Lulu
• EDG Viego
• Fnatic Jarvan IV
• Spirit Blossom Springs Yunara
• Spirit Blossom Hwei
• Inkshadow Renekton
• Masked Justice Senna
• Chosen of the Wolf Ambessa
• Empyrean Varus
• Dragonmancer Rakan
• Winterblessed Sylas
• Cafe Cuties Poppies
• La Ilusion Renata Glasc
• Soul Fighter Gwen
• Heartache Amumu
• Star Guardian Taliyah
• Ocean Song Zeri
• Marauder Kalista
• Marauder Xin Zhao
• Battle Queen Qiyana
• Cosmic Flight Anivia
• PsyOps Viktor
• Blood Moon Sivir
• Coven Camille
• K/DA Kai’Sa
• PROJECT: Jhin
• Soaring Sword Fiora
• Cosmic Dawn Rakan
• PROJECT: Leona
• Cornstable Trundle
• Dragonslayer Pantheon
• Jade Fang Cassiopeia
• Eternum Nocturne
• Oktoberfest Gragas
• Crime City Miss Fortune
• Cottontail Teemo
• Lumberjack Sion
• Bird of Prey Anivia
• Grim Reaper Karthus

Happy bargain hunting!

Several champions also go on sale every week, though I don’t recommend ever spending RP on a champion unless you’re desperate. They can all be unlocked with Blue Essence, the free in-game currency that you earn while playing matches.

That said, the current champions on sale are:

• Yunara
• Ambessa
• Renata Glasc
• Viego
• Rell
• Sylas
• Rakan
• Camille
• Taliyah
• Kalista
• Jayce
• Varus
• Teemo
• Fiora
• Viktor
• Leona
• Orianna
• Nocturne
• Jarvan IV
• Renekton
• Alistar
• Anivia
• Galio
• Gragas
• Miss Fortune
• Pantheon
• Poppy
• Sion
• Sivir
• Xin Zhao

Ranked 2025 Season 3

Ranked 2025 Season 3 has officially hit the Rift! Here’s a quick overview of the main gameplay changes and ranked adjustments:

• Season 2 2025 will not reset your ranked progression, nor will you need to undergo placement games
• Victorious Missions will be reset, meaning you will need to win 15 ranked games in this season to qualify for the next round of rewards
• Atakhan is now armed with a weapon… It doesn’t change any aspect of their mechanics — it’s purely for visuals, but it does make them look a whole lot deadlier

Riot hasn’t really made any major changes to the ranked system this time around. However, I am seriously happy that we get to keep all our ranked progression — all our hard work isn’t being undone for once!

What’s Coming Up in LoL

There’s a whole lot to look forward to over the next few months, with the most noteworthy being the introduction of thematic seasons instead of splits. Here’s a quick rundown of what you can expect to see coming to the Rift:

• A new Darkin champion known as Zaahen is set to hit the Rift soon. From the sneak peek, Zaahen looks like a fighter and bruiser top laner with a revive element to his kit… Like the old Aatrox. In fact, Zaahen’s similarity to the OG Aatrox is a bit too close for comfort and hasn’t gone unnoticed by the LoL community. Hopefully, it’ll be a different story once Zaahen is actually released, and we’ll finally be able to appreciate his originality and the unique components of his kit. Hopefully…
• It’s time to get festive and play those Christmas tunes guilt-free! The winter map is set to hit the Rift in patch 25.23.
• Riot is introducing the option to play League with WASD controls, offering players a new yet familiar way to explore all the Rift has to offer.
• Continued improvements to the Mythic Shop to enhance its interface and make it more rewarding and accessible
• The Blue Essence Emporium is scheduled to run again later this year.
• Your Shop will return five times this year, with a special “Legendary” Your Shop where you can unlock legendary skins for a significantly reduced price.
• Plenty of new skin releases, including new skin lines and the return of old favorites.
• The Riot team are actively working on improving the griefing detection systems in League. Players can expect to see new updates rolled out regularly this season.