League of Legends Patch 26.8 is one of those updates that does a little bit of everything. Riot is hitting some of the strongest picks in the current meta, helping out a few struggling champions, and rolling out several quality-of-life features that regular players have wanted for a long time.
This patch is especially important because it also closes out Ranked Season 1, adds champion-specific keybinds, and starts a new Discord integration beta in select regions. On top of that, Riot has adjustments lined up for ARAM, ARAM: Mayhem, and Arena, so Patch 26.8 is not just about Summoner’s Rift balance.
LoL Patch 26.8 champion buffs and nerfs
The biggest Summoner’s Rift balance changes in Patch 26.8 are aimed at trimming down a few overperformers while giving weaker picks some room to breathe. Dr. Mundo jungle took direct nerfs to his monster damage on both Q and E, Mel lost damage on her Q, along with a harsher W cooldown and much shorter movement speed duration, and Karma was hit again through lower base AD, reduced AD growth, and a more expensive E.
On the buff side, Hwei got stronger passive damage, Lillia received better monster damage scaling on her passive for jungle clears, Lucian’s E now has a lower cooldown and mana cost, and Yuumi’s ultimate healing was increased. Tahm Kench also got an adjustment to his passive scaling, while Zilean and Zyra can no longer put a point into their W at level 1, which is a simple but welcome quality of life fix.
ARAM, Arena, and other mode changes in Patch 26.8
Outside of the standard League, Riot also made a long list of mode-specific changes. ARAM: Mayhem continues to tone down excessive movement speed from augments, while several item cooldowns, such as Immortal Shieldbow, Maw of Malmortius, Randuin’s Omen, and Shurelya’s Battlesong, were reduced to make them feel more impactful in faster fights. Regular ARAM also received item cooldown changes and another Mel nerf through her W cooldown.
Arena, meanwhile, is opening up more alternate builds and buffing champions whose ultimates or AP setups benefit from larger spaces, with notable boosts for Tristana, Sivir, Jarvan IV, Senna, Sion, Vex, Seraphine, Vel’Koz, Viktor, Camille, and Kled. Riot also shipped a batch of bug fixes across all these modes, so Patch 26.8 is doing more than just shifting the main ranked meta.
Ranked Season 1 end date and new features
Patch 26.8 also matters because it marks the end of Ranked Season 1. Riot says the current ranked split ends at 11:59:59 PM local server time on April 28, with Season 2 beginning at 12:00 PM local server time on April 29.
This update also introduces champion-specific keybinds, letting players set per-champion overrides for most controls, including smartcast options. On the social side, Riot is launching a Discord integration beta starting April 15 for players in the United States, Canada, and Brazil. To round things out, the patch brings an ARAM Clash event called the Ixtal Cup on April 18 and 19, while new skins such as PsyOps Vladimir, PROJECT: Sivir, Space Groove Zac, and PROJECT: Command Line Master Yi arrive on April 15.
Full LOL 26.8 Patch Notes
Champions
Dr. Mundo
Dr. Mundo has been able to more consistently reach his high points in the jungle where he is less concerned about his slow early game. We are looking to curb some of his clear speed to make sure he can’t go where he pleases too quickly and requires some more time to scale up.
Q – Infected Bonesaw
Q – Infected Bonesaw- Monster Damage Cap: 300 / 375 / 450 / 525 / 600 ⇒ 250 / 325 / 400 / 475 / 550
E – Blunt Force Trauma
E – Blunt Force Trauma- Monster Damage Cap:: 200%⇒ 140%
Hwei
Hwei has remained on the weaker side since the nerfs to his waveclear last year, and we are fixing a bug that we expect to be a further minor nerf. We still believe those waveclear nerfs to be correct as we want Hwei League’s coolest combo mage, not just a walking waveclear machine. Therefore, we’re buffing his combo casting output up through his passive.
Passive – Signature of the Visionary
Passive – Signature of the Visionary- Base Damage: 35 – 230 (Levels 1 – 18) ⇒ 40 – 285 (Levels 1 – 18)
- Comboing Slows: Slows from Hwei’s abilities now stack with diminishing values.
- Bugfix: Slows from Hwei’s QE and R abilities no longer stack with slows from other champions / items.
Karma
Last patch we made some changes to Karma to reduce how generically powerful she was by reducing her midgame shield strength. Unfortunately those weren’t as effective as we had intended so we’re taking another swing at Karma by directly targeting her E power and reducing her base stats a tad so she is more reliant on skillful and intentional ability usage.
Base Stats
- Base AD: 51 ⇒ 49
- AD Growth: 3.3 ⇒ 3.0
E – Inspire
E – Inspire- Mana Cost: 50 / 55 / 60 / 65 / 70 ⇒ 60 / 65 / 70 / 75 / 80
Lillia
Our favorite bouncing deer has been a bit less than enthusiastic to prance from camp to camp as of late, it’s a scary jungle out there. We’re hoping to give Lillia players some more courage to bring her into the jungle by increasing her ability to have her high move speed translate into a faster clear.
Passive – Dream-Laden Bough
Passive – Dream-Laden Bough- Monster Damage Cap: 65 ⇒ 70-180 (based on level)
Lucian
Lucian has a unique role as an AD Carry that dashes in, out of, and around fights which is why many of his players enjoy him. Unfortunately, he hasn’t been doing that as effectively recently so we’re looking to remedy that. To get there, we’re lowering both the cooldown and mana cost of his dashes.
E – Relentless Pursuit
E – Relentless Pursuit- Cooldown: 18 / 17 / 16 / 15 / 14 ⇒ 16 / 15.5 / 15 / 14.5 / 14
- Mana Cost: 40 / 30 / 20 / 10 / 0 ⇒ 32 / 24 / 16 / 8 / 0
Mel
Since our recent adjustments to Mel, she’s been hitting too hard with her initial Q missile whether ahead or behind, even as opponents dodge the rest of the spell, so we’re looking to take her damage down a notch. We’re also aiming to reduce how frustrating her W can be by lowering the bonus mobility she gets and the spell’s uptime, with the movespeed now matching her shield and reflect duration.
Q – Radiant Volley
Q – Radiant Volley- Initial Explosion Damage: 60 / 90 / 120 / 150 / 180 (+ 60% AP) ⇒ 60 / 85 / 110 / 135 / 160 (+ 55% AP)
W – Rebuttal
W – Rebuttal- Cooldown: 35 / 32 / 29 / 26 / 23 ⇒ 38 / 35 / 32 / 29 / 26 seconds
- Bonus Movement Speed Duration: 1.5 ⇒ 0.75 seconds
Tahm Kench
As a champ in both Top and Support, Tahm Kench requires periodic maintenance as the meta shifts to ensure both roles of his roles are equally supported. In this case, Dusk and Dawn’s addition to the game this season has shifted this balance in favor of top lane, so we’re adjusting how his passive scales to help balance him out.
Passive – An Acquired Taste
Passive – An Acquired Taste- Damage: 6 – 48 (Levels 1 – 11) (+1.5% AP per 100 Bonus HP) (+4.5% Bonus HP) ⇒ 5 – 60 (Levels 1 – 12) (+1.25% AP per 100 Bonus HP) (+4% Bonus HP)
Yuumi
We’re implementing a couple bugfixes to Yuumi’s ultimate, one of which will sometimes result in the magical cat outputting significantly more healing than she may have grown used to. As such, we’re throwing her a FISH by increasing her base healing and best friend healing to provide a stronger baseline effect.
R – Final Chapter
R – Final Chapter- Heal Per Wave: 30 / 40 / 50 (+10% AP) ⇒ 30 / 50 / 70 (+12% AP)
- Best Friend Enhanced Heal: 30% More Healing ⇒ 30 – 60% More Healing (Levels 6 – 12)
- Bugfix: The attached ally is no longer healed an additional time whenever Final Chapter heals another ally
- Bugfix: Final Chapter’s overhealing shield now takes into account Heal/Shield power as well as Grievous Wounds
Zilean
As a quality of life change we’re looking to make sure Zilean can only put points into abilities he can fully utilize level 1.
W – Rewind
W – Rewind- W Level Up: No longer can level W at level 1.
Zyra
Since the dawn of time Zyra’s have been accidentally putting a point into W and effectively doing nothing level 1. Well no more! We’re adding a small QoL change so Zyra can no longer put her first skill point into W to prevent this type of situation from being a thorn in your side and mental blooming.
W – Rampant Growth
W – Rampant Growth- W Level Up: No longer can level W level
ARAM: Mayhem
Hello ARAM Mayhemers!
In this patch, we’re continuing to reduce passive and persistent Movement Speed from Augments to give champions more room to react and make fights easier to read.
To help address overall damage levels, we’re also buffing a number of items and the Health Relic system. Several melee and tank support items now have lower cooldowns, making them more impactful and usable in Mayhem’s fast-paced fights.
See you on the Bridge!
Champions
Mel
- Rebuttal W Cooldown: 35 / 32 / 29 / 26 / 23 ⇒ 45 / 44 / 43 / 42 / 41
Items
Immortal Shieldbow
- Cooldown: 75 ⇒ 60 seconds
Locket of the Iron Solari
- Cooldown: 90 ⇒ 75 seconds
Maw of Malmortius
- Cooldown: 75 ⇒ 60 seconds
Protoplasm Harness
- Cooldown: 90 ⇒ 60 seconds
Randuin’s Omen
- Cooldown: 90 ⇒ 60 seconds
Shurelya’s Battlesong
- Cooldown: 75 ⇒ 60 seconds
Sterak’s Gage
- Cooldown: 75 ⇒ 60 seconds
Augments
Fan the Hammer
- Per Missile Damage: 10 – 52.5 (+ 15% bonus AD) ⇒ 8 – 51 (+ 14% bonus AD)
Giant Slayer
- Movement Speed: 30% ⇒ 20%
Grandma’s Chili Oil
- Will no longer heal allied minions.
Movement Speed Stat Anvil
- 18% ⇒ 15%
Homeguard
- Time to regain bonus movespeed after taking damage: 3 ⇒ 6 seconds
Quantum Computing
- Outer damage: 200 – 350 (+65% bonus AD) (+ 40% AP) ⇒ + (75% Bonus AD) (+ 45% AP)
- No base damage change
Red Envelopes
- Movement Speed from pickup: 150 ⇒ 100
- Movement Speed duration: 4 ⇒ 3 seconds
With Haste
- Movement Speed from Ability Haste: 100% ⇒ 70%
- ??? (Missing Ping)
- Healing towards allies will not be affected by Howling Abyss Buff’s heal cut
Bugfixes
- Fixed a bug where Train of the Dead changed directions with champions that have a zombie effect.
- Fixed a bug where Crack Open That Egg VFX did not persist correctly on subsequent shields after the initial expiration in Mayhem.
- Fixed a bug that caused Karma’s R cooldown to be reduced by the Firefox augment.
- Fixed a bug that caused Aphelios to not work with Marksmage.
- Fixed a bug where Marksmage Hextech did not trigger additional damage when purchasing Ability Power items on Aphelios in Mayhem ARAM.
- Fixed a bug where Graves dealt higher than intended damage with Marksmage in Mayhem ARAM.
- Fixed a bug that caused Illaoi’s E clone to gain the effects of the Final Form.
- Fixed a bug where Quantum Computing was doing more than double damage on the inside circle.
- Fixed a bug where Infernal Conduit dealt higher than intended base damage and scaling in Mayhem.
- Fixed a bug where Droppybara incorrectly triggered certain champion passives in Mayhem.
- Fixed a bug where Archmage did not affect abilities with deferred cooldowns in Mayhem.
- Fixed a bug where Harmful Summoner Spell was not cast when hit by Dash/Mark while Snowball Roulette was equipped in Mayhem.
- Fixed a bug where Slow and Steady contained a syntax error in Mayhem.
- Fixed a bug where Devil on Your Shoulder did not apply to all target-sourced damage over time effects in Mayhem.
- Fixed a bug where Bard did not benefit from Stackosaurus’s set bonus when collecting chimes in Mayhem.
- Fixed a bug where Kai’Sa could not evolve her W after gaining Ability Power from Stat Anvil in Mayhem ARAM.
- Fixed a bug where Fan the Hammer dealt less of its displayed damage in Mayhem ARAM.
- Fixed a bug where Dropkick triggered on turrets and crystals in Mayhem ARAM.
- Fixed a bug where selecting Biggest Snowball Ever followed by Pinball caused Pinball to lose its true damage in Mayhem ARAM.
- Fixed a bug where Void Immolation’s Immolate effect could stop working shortly after activation in Mayhem.
- Fixed a bug where Augments that added an item to your inventory could accidentally consume components of the item without properly compensating you.
- Fixed a bug where stat augments could grant two prismatic stat options instead of three in Mayhem.
ARAM
For this patch we’re going to be bringing over some changes we’re also doing in Mayhem so that item actives can come up a bit more frequently.
Champions
Mel
- Rebuttal W Cooldown: 35 / 32 / 29 / 26 / 23 ⇒ 45 / 44 / 43 / 42 / 41
Items
Locket of the Iron Solari
- Cooldown: 90 ⇒ 75 seconds
Protoplasm Harness
- ARAM: Cooldown: 90 ⇒ 75 seconds
Randuin’s Omen
- Cooldown: 90 ⇒ 60 seconds
Arena
For this patch Arena is looking to open up some alt builds for some champions, along with buffs to champions whose ultimates are designed for a larger spaces.
Champions
Tristana
- Rocket Jump: 50% AP ⇒ 80% AP
- Explosive Charge: 50% AP ⇒ 80% AP
- : Buster Shot: 100% AP ⇒ 150%
Sivir
- Boomerang Blade: 60% AP ⇒ 80% AP
- Spell Shield: 50% AP ⇒ 120% AP
Jarvan IV
- Demacian Standard: 100% AP ⇒ 140% AP
Senna
- Piercing Darkness: Damage 50% AP ⇒ 80% AP
- Piercing Darkness: Slow 10% AP ⇒ 15% AP
- Curse of the Black Mist: MS 5% AP ⇒ 7% AP
- Dawning Shadow: Damage 70% AP ⇒ 100% AP
- Dawning Shadow: Shield 50% AP ⇒ 70% AP
Sion
- Soul Furnace: Shield 40% AP ⇒ 60% AP
- Soul Furnace: Damage 40% AP ⇒ 60% AP
Vex
- Shadow Surge: Cooldown 140/120/100 ⇒ 110/90/70
Seraphine
- High Note: Damage 50% AP ⇒ 65% AP
- Encore: Cooldown 160/140/120 ⇒ 100/80/60
Vel’Koz
- Life Form Disintegration Ray: Cooldown 100/90/80 ⇒ 80/70/60
Viktor
- Arcane Storm: Cooldown 120/100/80 ⇒ 100/80/60
Camille
- Tactical Sweep: Damage 2.5% per 100 bonus AD ⇒ 3% per 100 bonus AD
- Hookshot: Cooldown 16/15/14/13/12 ⇒ 14/13/12/11/10
Kled
- Chaaaaaaaarge!!!: Cooldown 140/125/110 ⇒ 60/45/30
Bugfixes
- Fixed a bug that caused Zilean’s Laugh and Taunt VO to not play correctly.
ARAM Clash – Ixtal Cup
The Ixtal Cup will be happening on ARAM this patch! Grab your 5 stacks and get ready to rumble!
- Registration Begins: April 13 @ 11:00 AM (Local Time)
- Tournament Dates: April 18 and 19 (~4-7 PM Local Time, varies by region)
If you have any questions or you’re just looking for the full 2026 Clash schedule, make sure to check out our Clash FAQ support page.
Bugfixes & QoL Changes
Bugfixes
- Fixed a bug that caused Zilean’s Laugh and Taunt VO to not play correctly.
- Fixed a bug that caused Shyvana’s progress towards her ultimate to not display correctly when pinged.
- Fixed a bug that caused Mel’s Q to go on cooldown when blocking Zac’s Q with her W.
- Fixed a bug that caused Katarina’s ultimate to be cancellable by pressing the recall button.
- Fixed a bug where Yuumi fails to be healed or gain the Homeguard buff upon entering the fountain while attached to Ally Champion.
Overall, LoL Patch 26.8 feels like a broad cleanup patch with a few meaningful meta nudges. The Mundo, Mel, and Karma nerfs should catch the most attention right away, but the Lucian, Hwei, and Lillia buffs could end up being just as important once players start testing them. Add in the ranked reset timing, the new keybind system, and all the side mode tuning, and this is a patch that touches nearly every corner of League.
