5.1 PBE Cycle

New Skins

To kick off the new cycle, we have TWO new champion skins - Challenger Ahri, which is made to celebrate the start of the 2015 season, and El Tigre Braum!

  Challenger Ahri

"The 2015 competitive season is about to begin, which means the climb to become world champions begins yet again! We're kicking off the 2015 competitive season with Challenger Ahri! 

It's a new season, which means all kinds of new beginnings - learning a new role or champion, playing with new teams, learning all of the changes. 

It also means bettering yourself as a player - Improve your skills, excel in your main role, rank up higher than you ever have before. 

Whether this is your first season, or your fifth, become a legend this season. 

Challenger Ahri will be 975 RP, and includes:

• A new recall animation!
• New model and texture!
• New particles! Note: Some particles could not be changed due to gameplay clarity. Her orb will remain the same colors. Her charm will remain the same.

Challenger Ahri is now available to play on PBE! We always find bug reports and feedback super helpful, so feel free to comment in the thread below! Likewise, if you've got any questions, post 'em here, and we'll do our best to answer them!"

El Tigre Braum

Here's Galetta with a bugs & feedback thread for El Tigre Braum:

"Ah! We are about to begin the fighting! 

El Tigre Braum and his tag team partner poro have entered the ring! Tag in El Tigre to crush any bottom lane that might try and stand in your way! This skin includes:

• All new model - He's decked out in a tiger themed luchador costume!
• His poro has also dawned an orange mask and has grown a very impressive mustache!
• All new recall and re-spawn animations!
• All new golden particles with tiger and wresting motifs!
• All new SFX on his spells, re-spawn, and his recall!

This skin will be 975rp.

Your feedback and bug reports are extremely helpful to us, so please check out El Tigre Braum and let us know what you think! Feel free to drop any bugs you find in this thread as well. 

See you on the Rift!

EDIT: Just wanted to update the El Tigre Braum thread about his price. He was always intended to be 1350 RP but we mistakenly listed him at 975 RP (sorry!). It's his custom respawn animation specifically that pushes him into the 1350 price tier. Like all 1350s though, he'll be on sale for the first week after his release so you can get him for 975 RP during that time. Sorry for the mistake and we'll make sure it doesn't happen again!"

As with the other Braum skins, the upcoming El Tigre Braum skin grants Howling Abyss poros an appropriately colored mustache when feeding them a poro snax.

Alistar visual update

Here's Ququroon with more information:

"Move aside and witness Alistar, the Minotaur, in his new and updated form! 

Known for his ability to change the shape of a teamfight, you can now spot this cow trampling in with his shape changing form! It's behoove of me to tell you what you can expect to see, so read up if you find yourself locking horns with the bull at any point! His model and textures are all sparkly and brand new, and his animations are tweaked a bit to make him run and look better on the fields. In addition, we've also given his ult a spitshine, so you'll see some nice shields here instead of... uh... spiky... things. His skins are receiving the same treatment as well, so be sure not to miss those as well*. 

Some questions to keep in mind as you take a look at the new models!

• Does this still read as Alistar to you? 
• Does the new Unbreakable Will still communicate the effect? 
• Do you feel anything important to you was missed during this update? 

We'd really appreciate it if you'd take a look at Alistar, and headbutt us with any bugs and feedback that come your way. Your feedback helps to guide changes we can make, as well as helps us grow as a team. 

*Sweeper Alistar was fairly recent, so it did not receive larger updates."

When asked about these smaller scope updates vs larger ones like Kartthus, Ququroon noted:

"Great question! I suggest you read this devblog for more context behind the smaller updates! tl;dr: We get to affect a broader amount of content."

Let's stampede on into a better look at this visual updates:

Alistar

Here's a video comparison between the old and new Alistar!

New Poro Ward Skins

Today's update features three new poro themed ward skins, which when combined with the three from the 4.21 PBE cycle, bring us up to a total of six!

Here's RiotBrokenSword with a bugs & feedback thread for the three new poro wards:

"What's better than three poro wards? Six, of course! We'll be adding three more poro wards into the mix! Poro wards are now available in the Dragonslayer, Underworld and Battlecast varieties! 

These poro wards will be 640 RP each and include:

• All new models and textures!
• New particles!
• New animations!
• New sounds!

Note: (12/12) Sounds for these wards are not in game yet! 

These are now available to play on PBE! We always find bug reports and feedback super helpful, so feel free to comment in the thread below! Likewise, if you've got any questions, post 'em here, and we'll do our best to answer them!"

He also mentioned they would not be out in time for Snowdown:

"Unfortunately no. These will ship in the first patch of the new year."

Now for a better look:


and here's a video showing off all three in-game!

2015 Ranked Team Reward Wards

With the 2015 season set to start soon, new in-client previews of the 2015 ranked team reward ward skin has been added!

Check out the new versions of the Conquering,  Triumphant, and Victorious ward skins, which will presumably be handed out at the end of the 2015 season!

New Splash Art

Some of you may recognize this as a heavily modified variant of the splash first seen on the PBE back in October before being pulled (not to be confused with her current splash on live). Here's a comparison: note the changes to the face, ears, hair, fingernails,  clothing straps, and color differences.

Updated Summoner Icons

Four of the classic summoner icons have been updated!

New Summoner Icons

We also have 19 new LCS team summoner icons, one for each team except Gravity (formerly Curse Academy).

NA LCS teams have a blue back ground while EU LCS teams have a red back ground.






These are what the icons currently look like on the loading screen and on your profile. The shop images have a slight variation to the Cloud9 logo.

Extended Amumu Lore 

An extended lore / story for  Amumu was added to the files of today's update!

"Greed and Tears

"The gods were angry, and shook the land. Cracks rent the earth," said old Khaldun, his crag-featured face lit by firelight. "It was into one of these fissures that a young man ventured. He found an opening; the entrance to a tomb, hidden for the Jackal knows how long. The man had little ones to feed and a wife to please, and so he ventured in, lured by opportunity."

Adults and children alike crowded in close to hear the old storyteller's words. They were all weary - they had traveled far that day, and the Shuriman sun had been unrelenting - but Khaldun's tales were a rare treat. They drew their cloaks tight around their shoulders against the chill of the night and leaned in.

"The air was cool in the tomb, a merciful relief from the scorching heat outside. The young man lit a torch. Its light made shadows dance before him. He stepped cautiously, wary of traps. He was poor, but he was no fool.

"The walls inside were smooth obsidian and carved with ancient writings and images. He could not read - he was a simple man - but he studied the images.

"He saw a boy prince, sitting cross-legged upon a sun disk borne by a team of servants, a beaming smile upon his face. Chests of coins and riches were piled before him, the offerings of strangely garbed, bowing emissaries.

"He saw other carvings, again showing the smiling prince, this time walking among his people. Their heads were pressed to the ground before him. Stylized rays of sunshine radiated from the boy's crown.

"Before one of these images was a small, gold statue. It alone was worth more than he could have hoped to earn in ten lifetimes. The young man took it, slipping it into his satchel.

"He did not intend to linger. He knew it would not be long before others came upon this place. When they did, he wanted to be gone. Greed makes fools of even the greatest men, and he knew that others would willingly spill his blood to claim that golden statue - and the other riches that were surely further in. Avarice was not one of the young man's faults, however. He felt no need to delve further. The other treasures hidden here were someone else's to claim.

"He looked upon one last image before he left the tomb. It showed the boy prince dead, lying upon a bier. Those closest to him were wailing... but further back, people were celebrating. Had the boy prince been beloved, or had he been a tyrant? There was no way of knowing.

"That was when he heard it: a sound in the darkness that made his skin crawl.

"He looked around, wide eyed, holding his torch up before him. Nothing.

"'Who's there?' he said. Silence was his only answer.

"The young man shook his head. 'It is just the wind, you fool,' he thought. 'Nothing but the wind.'

"Then he heard it again, more distinctly this time. A child was crying in the darkness further into the tomb.

"Heard anywhere else, his paternal instinct would have been to go to the sound. But here, in the darkness of a funereal tomb?

"He wanted to run... but he did not. The sobbing touched his heart. It was filled with such misery and grief.

"Was it possible there was another entrance to this tomb? Had a young boy found his way down here and become lost?

"Torch held high, he crept forward. The weeping continued, echoing faintly through the gloom.

"A wide chamber opened before him, its floor black and highly reflective. Golden artifacts and jewel-inlaid walls glinted within. Gingerly, he entered the room.

"He stepped back sharply as his heel sent ripples spreading out across the floor. Water. The floor was not made of reflective obsidian - it was covered in water.

"Kneeling, he scooped a handful of it to his lips. He spat it out immediately. It was salt water! Here, in the heart of Shurima, a thousand leagues from the nearest sea!

"He heard the sound of the boy weeping once more, closer now.

"Holding his torch before him, the young man glimpsed a shape at the edge of its light. It appeared to be the child, sitting with his back to the man.

"Carefully, he stepped into the room. The water upon the floor was not deep. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end, and fear clutched at his chest, yet he did not turn to run.

"'Are you lost?' he asked, as he stepped closer. 'How did you get here?'

"The shadowed figure did not turn... but he did speak.

"'I... I don't remember,' he said. The sound swam around the young man, echoing off the walls. The boy spoke in an old dialect. His words were strange... but understandable. 'I don't remember who I am.'

"'Be calm, child,' said the man. 'All will be well.'

"He stepped closer, and the figure resolved itself before him. His eyes widened.

"The shape before him was a god-statue carved in onyx, nothing more. It was not the source of the crying, nor of the child's voice.

"That was when a small, dry hand grabbed him."

The youngest of the listeners gasped, his eyes wide. The other children laughed in false bravado. Old Khaldun smiled, a golden tooth glinting in the firelight. Then, he continued.

"The young man looked down. The linen-wrapped corpse of the tiny prince stood beside the man. Dull, ghostly light emanated from the deathly boy's eye sockets, though his entire face was bound in burial wrappings. The corpse-child held the man's hand.

"'Will you be my friend?' the boy asked, his voice muffled by linen.

"The young man lurched backward, breaking free of the child's grasp. The young man looked down at his arm in horror; his hand was shriveling, turning black and withered. The wasting touch then began to climb up his arm.

"He turned and ran. In his shock and haste, he dropped his lantern. It hissed as it fell into the lake of tears, and darkness descended. Still, he could just make out the glow of daylight up ahead. He ran toward it, scrambling desperately, even as the wasting death crept up his arm towards his heart.

"At any moment, he expected to feel the deathly boy's grasp upon him... but did not. After what felt like an eternity, but could only have been a matter of heartbeats, he burst from the darkness into the desert heat once more.

"'I'm sorry,' echoed a mournful voice from the gloom behind him. 'I didn’t mean to.'

"And thus, the Tomb of Amumu was unearthed," said old Khaldun, "and the deathly child released into the world."

"But everyone knows he isn't real!" cried one of the children, the oldest of them, after a moment of silence.

"Amumu is real!" said the youngest. "He's wandering the land trying to find a friend!"

"He's real, but he isn't a boy," said another. "He's a yordle!"

Khaldun laughed, and pushed himself to his feet with the aid of a gnarled walking stick.

"I am old, and we have far to travel tomorrow," he said. "It is past time I was abed."

His audience began to dissipate, smiling and talking in low, familial voices, but one child did not move. She stared at Khaldun, unblinking.

"Grandfather," she said. "How did you lose your arm?"

Old Khaldun looked down at the empty sleeve pinned at his shoulder, then flashed the girl a grin.

"Goodnight, little one," he said with a wink."

Summoner's Rift Terrain Updates

There are now two new openings in the walls of each base placed between the existing side and middle entrance.

Riot Reinboom commented on these new openings, saying:

"Also, we put large openings in the bases on SR that only the team aligned with the base can pass through. Also on PBE now. :D"

She continued:

"You can't see through them. Only one side can pass through them (enemies can't pass through yours and you can't pass theirs)"

She continued:

"Exactly. This is an exploration of a "defender's advantage" that's not just pure stats. Something more interesting."

In summary:

• You can only pass through your OWN gate. - You can "exit" and "enter". 
• Enemies can not pass through your gate and you can not pass through theirs
• For enemy gates, you can Jump, Flash, or interact with them like a normal wall.
• You can not see through them.

Mass VFX Rebalancing

Here's Keyserito with info on the mass visual effect rebalancing that is currently testing on the PBE:

"Hey guys. Jason "Riot Keyserito" Keyser here. Once we saw old champ abilities on the updated Summoner's Rift, those of us on the VFX team decided to make some fidelity tweaks. So we made a sweep of all the champs in the game, making moderate to tiny adjustments on various (not all) abilities. 

If you notice champion ability effects displaying improperly on PBE, please let us know! If you notice any of the newly updated vfx, you get my heartfelt wink & nod!"

Keyserito continued:

"We don't have a list of every ability, since it was a group effort that covered literally hundreds of particles and emitter groups. To give you an idea, any time we found a particle that looked especially busy (meaning too detailed, or glaringly high in contrast) we blurred the pixels a bit, to help it fade into the rest of the action. 

For example, Many of Vayne's particles had tiny bits of particles flying everywhere. Nowadays, they have been tidied up, still giving the same motion and energy, but not showing as much busy detail."

Updated Item Icons

Each of the new jungle icons has received slight tweaks to their icons

Return of Dragonslayer Braum's Unique passive indicator

After a discussion launched around El Tigre Braum having a unique indicator while Dragonslayer Braum's was removed prior to his launch, the unique passive indicator for Dragonslayer Braum has returned! Rather than a Ram like the base, it is now a dragon face!

New Season 2015 Login

We also have a new new login screen to celebrate the 2015 season!

Here's the static image:
Got feedback? Toss @RiotVe1vet a tweet!

Misc

There is a new swap system for a few different similar item instead of buying and then having to resell the entire item.This works for Boot Enchantments, Jungle Items (non enchanted), and trinkets.
 [Note: You can not swap if you put an enchantment on your jungle item, only before]



[Easter Egg] Following IEM San Jose, there are a few interesting search terms you can type into the shop to pull up "Guardian's Horn" - Golden Arm of Kobe, Golden Bicep of Kobe, Horn, Horn of the ManWolf, and ManWolf.

There is also a file mentioning "HudSkin(HUD2015)" in one of the game mutator files. Nothing much else to share, could just be a placeholder name for a future game mode hud.

Summoner's Rift is back in it's normal spot on the custom game menu

Summoner's Rift 

• Crimson Raptor base HP increased to 1340 from 1200[Reverted]
• Raptor base HP increased to 300 from 250[Reverted]
• Raptor damage decreased to 18 from 20[Reverted]

• Greater Murk Wolf base HP increased to 1440 from 1320[Reverted]
• Murk Wolf movement speed increased to 500 from 450[Reverted]

• Ancient Krug base HP increased to 1560 from 1440[Reverted]
• Krug hp increased to 620 from 540[Reverted]

• Gromp base HP increased to 1800 from 1600[Reverted]

• Blue Sentinel base HP increased to 2100 from 2000[Reverted]
• Sentry base HP increased to 450 from 400[Reverted]

Rift Scuttler

• Health increased to 800 from 750
• [Health Per Level decreased by 150]
• [Health now scales with monster level multipliers].
• XP and gold on death increased to 50 from 35.

• [Context from Riot Reinboom available here]