[UPDATED] 10/16 PBE Update: Tentative balance changes, Party Chat, & PBE Ranked only OCT 16-18th

[UPDATE: A second patch went out after the extra long downtime. Gangplank balance changes added and the centered splash art assets were removed. PBE is ranked queues only for the weekend!]

The PBE has been updated! Today's update includes a Party chat option & more tentative balance changes.
Continue reading for more information!

Table of Contents

• [PBE] Ranked queues only this weekend (October 16-18)
• "Party" Chat
• [REMOVED] Centered Splash Art Assets
• Miscellaneous 
• Balance Changes

[PBE] Ranked queues only this weekend (October 16-18)

Before we get into changes, here's an heads up that ONLY RANKED QUEUES will be enabled on the PBE between October 16th to 18th in order to test the end of ranked season stuff next week. H

Here's Riot Mirross with more information:

"Hey folks, 

We're going to be bringing normal queues down later this afternoon, and they'll be down until Monday. We'd like more people to play Ranked over the weekend so that we can properly test Ranked end of season next week. 

Thanks! 

-Riot Mirross"

Party Chat

Looks like there is some sort of new option to talk to your "party" in in-game chat.

"Send a message to your party by typing /party [your message here], then press enter to send."

Currently typing /party in the chat when you are not in a party just returns:

"ERROR - You are not currently in a party."

SPECULATION: Presumably this feature will allow you to talk only to those you have queued with in-game rather than needing to use whispers.

[REMOVED] Centered Splash Art Assets

[UPDATE: AS OF SECOND PATCH, THESE HAVE BEEN REMOVED.]

Over 500 new "centered splash art" assets appeared in the initial 10/16 PBE patch but have now been removed. For example. here's Victorious Morgana and base Sejuani .
As you can see in the images above, these arts were zoomed in versions of the original splash with a focus on the middle rather than the right as we see in the champion pages.

There isn't one for every champion & skin but over 500 were added. They are not replacements for the normal splashes but a new asset. There were also few Chinese arts or outdated art (such as Gangplank or Fiora) sprinkled in.

While we never saw them implanted into anything prior to being removed, theories included being related to either the upcoming client update or the updated champion select experience but we again are not entirely sure. Either way, it seems they went out unintentionally and have been removed.

Click the galleries below to preview each image:

• A-D
• E-G
• H-L
• M-P
• R-T

Perhaps more interesting, there was  what appears to be a new Swain base splash art in the mix!

Miscellaneous 

• The  Development sandbox map for SR that we saw in the 10/15 update as been renamed to "WIP map for updates to Summoner's Rift" & "Summoner's Rift WIP" , likely to quell any misunderstandings regarding what it is for. Even though you could never actually load into it, it has also been removed from the custom game screen.

• Confirmation from Reinboom - "This isn't a Sandbox mode. This is development map. It's SR with some map rules changes. Nothing more." 

Gangplank

• Base HP reduced to 580 from 631
• HP per level growth increased to 82 from 79
• Parrrley (Q) mana cost reduced to 40 from 50.
• Parrrley (Q) no longer refunds 50% of mana cost (25 mana) on kill.

Veigar

• Baleful Strike (Q) damage reduced to 70/110/150/190/230 from 80/125/170/215/260
• Dark Matter (W) AP ratio reverted to 1 from .8