Riot Games has decided to unbench the Tahm Kench with some changes in his kit in the upcoming LoL patch 13.21.
After an eventful 13.20 patch, Riot now shifts its focus to the League of Legends patch 13.21. This patch comes with multiple balance changes and adjustments along with the controversial Coven Syndra makeover. The Café Cuties skin line is also coming with a new roster.
Seems like Riot has not totally forgotten Tahm Kench. The champion’s last change was back in June. Although the last ‘real’ change in his kit, aside from bug fixes, dates back to December last year in patch 12.23. After almost a year, Riot has decided to bring noteworthy changes to our favorite catfish.
Tahm Kench currently sits at a 49.46% win rate across all ranks. You may think that it’s balanced due to the near 50% win rate. However, its pick rate at the Top lane and Support role is 1.48% and 0.58% respectively. So, the decision to bring some changes to Tahm Kench is quite rational in my opinion.
So, let’s look at the specific changes now.
Read more: Ping Adjustments in LoL Patch 13.20
Tahm Kench changes Patch 13.21
- Passive – An Acquired Taste:
- Bonus Magic Damage: 8 – 60 (Level 1-18) >>> 6 – 48 (Level 1-11)
- Health Ratio: 3% bonus HP >>> 5%
- W – Abyssal Dive:
- Cooldown refund: 40% flat >>> 40% – 50%
While Riot calls it an adjustment, you can notice how it’s more of a buff. Tahm Kench’s strength lies in his health scaling mainly. So, the negligible damage reduction might be barely felt. However, the 2% bonus HP increase has more significance. Because now players can proc Heartsteel passive and get bonus hp at an accelerated rate. So, expect even more players to rush it.
Moreover, increased CD refund on Abyssal Dive can encourage players to take more aggressive trades and skirmishes. Having said all that, the changes are quite marginal. Thus, it is difficult to say how big of an effect it will have.
Patch 13.21 Release Date
We can see the impact of Tahm Kench changes in LoL Patch 13.21 soon enough as it’s officially scheduled to be released on 25th October.