Red Post Collection: VS Event Ending Soon, New Summer Merch, Quick Gameplay Thoughts 6/27, and more!

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• Champion & Skin Sale 6/27 - 6/30
• Free Champion Rotation, Week of June 27th
• Patch 7.13 Server Maintenance
• New Champion - Kayn
• Patch 7.13 Notes
• Champion Reveal: Kayn, the Shadow Reaper

Quick Gameplay Thoughts, June 27th

 It's time for Meddler's Quick Gameplay Thoughts for June 27th, this week covering balance changes for the 7.14 PBE cycle, changes to Diana and Udyr, starting items, and more:

"Morning all, 

Usual Disclaimers 

These posts will often contain talk about future work we're doing, or planning to do, that isn't yet guaranteed to ship. The nature of the work could change or, depending on what we discover, projects mentioned may get put delayed or even stopped.
If you'd like to see a Tweet whenever a new one of these posts goes up: https://twitter.com/RiotMeddler 

Patch 7.14 

There's a chance 7.14 might be a bit smaller than usual in terms of number of balance changes in it. That's from a combination of a holiday weekend coming up during the patch's development and that we're putting more focus than usual into some upcoming work (focus on research for qualifiers/Worlds patches, plus other stuff) 

7.14 Balance changes on PBE today 

Usual deal, some stuff will still be under development so likely to change. Particularly worth calling out that the Udyr and Diana changes are pretty new to testing, so haven't been validated directly yet (possible those don't even hit PBE just yet). Lethality and other item changes are also still going through a bit more testing, so some likelihood of further change there, both since they were last mentioned and between now and the patch locking (Black Cleaver change for example hasn't tested as originally hoped so that's likely gone). 

Speaking of PBE today 

Not much of a surprise alas, given some stuff went up early, keep an eye out a couple of hours from now though for both some details about our next new champ and at some point some more Darkin details for those of you interested in that side of the lore. 

Starting Items 

Something we've been finding as we work on the new runes system is that there are some choices existing runes/masteries offer via stats that are interesting choices but not currently included in the new runes system. In some cases that means creating new runes that cover those stats, in some other cases though we've been looking at a wider range of starting items to cover those needs to. A good example of that which we're currently testing is a Doran's Attack Speed item, allowing an AD for AS tradeoff for those that want to go deeper down the AS path. Let us know if there are particular starting item niches you can think of that seem really promising, we still won't want to have too many, avoid overloading the system, but think there's probably room for at least a couple more than there are today."

When asked about the timing of Evelynn's future update, Meddler noted we'd see her after worlds:

"Quote:

Given that worlds patch will be 7.18 and usually you keep that patch and 7.19 not so different to not make difference between what we play and they play at worlds. Can we expect evelynn rework before worlds or closer to end of season?

Evelynn's rework will be post World's patch."

When asked again about base stat adjustments as part of future Rune system update, Meddler noted:

"We'll do some base stat adjustments too. The issue with base stat adjustments is that it's a one size fits all thing. If you're a player who wants significantly more of something like AS there are cases where we want to make sure we're still offering that sort of choice. Sometimes that'll be possible through the new runes, sometimes starting items look like they'll be a good alternative."

On Doran's Shield concerns, Meddler responded:

"Quote:

Since you've talked about starting items here: what do you think of the impact of the new Doran's Shield currently? Do you like the items' current position in the game?

We think it's been quite positive so far, in terms of opening up lanes to champions who were previously struggling more. Was a little bit overtuned, pretty confident it being a viable starting choice will do good things for the game now though."

Meddler continued:

"Quote:

On starting items, the reason ADCs like Doran's Shield is that it's an early game item rather than a mid game item like Blade. Blade is a mid game item because it gives percent lifesteal, rather than HP onhit like Cull. An attack speed based starting item sounds good, but now the question: who buys it? ADCs want Shield or Blade because they give last hitting power. Mages and tanks want ring or corrupting. Unless it gives +5 onhit damage vs minions like Shield, it's not gonna be good. Kayle can't buy it unless the passive from Doran's Ring because a rune.

With you on the last hitting, we've been trying +damage to minions on the Doran's AS item as a result."

Meddler went on:

"Quote:

I pretty much haven't seen a D-Shield on a melee since the nerfs. It's just always better to go Corrupting or even something like Cloth/4 or Boots/4.
I still see it on Vayne and Kog'maw though, so it's clearly doing exactly what you intended.

Vayne and Kog are intended to be potential users, especially when facing a tough lane. Since we're still seeing it used by a fair number of melee yeah, it does look like it's doing what we intended."

On the starting Jungle items, Meddler replied:

"Quote:

Speaking of starting items, how do you currently feel about the current jungling items? Should they still be built out of Hunter's Talisman and Hunter's Machete, as opposed to them being purchasable straight up (with tweaks, of course)?

Current assumption is they'll still coming from Machete/Talisman. Part of the reason that's done, rather than just starting people with modified T2 versions, is because we don't think it's appropriate to give junglers that increased power straight off the bat (their early game influence is really high already)."

On Fiora, Meddler commented:

"Quote:

Hey Meddler can I ask for your thoughts on the Fiora nerfs, you mentioned possibly scrapping them

Looking at her still. Current avenue of testing is reduction in movement speed from Passive/Ult, to see whether that's giving her excessive control in match ups where she shouldn't be as effective in particular (e.g. against other mobile champs)."

When asked if the new champion was related to Aatrox, Meddler confirmed:

"Quote:

Hey Meddler,
Is the new champion related to Aatrox in any way?

Probably obvious by now but yeah, they're both Darkin, so there's some strong connection there, both in terms of their nature and shared history. More details on Darkin in general to come at some point (not certain if we're talking about that stuff with Kayn's reveal/launch or later)."

On what sort of skins we would see this cycle, Meddler responded:

"Quote:

any skins in this patch @meddler ?? like poolparty,stargardian,omega squad,etc.

Skins are handled by a different set of teams to the ones I work with so I avoid talking about skins stuff most of the time - I don't have the context to know what it is, or isn't, appropriate to talk about in most cases."

Chime Chime - It's Summertime! New Merch!

Let's take a look at what is featured on the [summer landing page].

Bard Figure

"It's chime time! BWAAAHHH 

Bard wanders into Series 2 from the cosmic unknown.

• Gold foil embossed packaging
• Bard is #015 in Series 2
• Official Riot Games Card of Authenticity included"

 Free Meep with Purchase!

"This sweet Meep plush clips on to follow you on all your magical summer journeys and is FREE with any purchase for a limited time."

Volibear and Fizz Collectable Plush
    

• Volibear Collectible Plush 

"The Ursine do not know fear, and neither will you as you hug this unbearably cute Volibear plush! 

Voli is #02 in the Collectible Plush line"

• Fizz Collectible Plush 

"This is one time you won't want to ban Fizz. 

Snuggle up with the Tidal Trickster! Fizz is #01 in the Collectible Plush line."

Poro Beach Ball

"Take this buoyant poro with you to the beach or the pool! Just make sure not to feed it poro-snax 30 minutes before swimming."

Mini Summer Poro Plush Set
       

"This fluft of poros has come down from the Freljord to play at the beach!
Set comes with 4 poro variations:

• Ice cream cone
• Sand bucket
• Duck floatie 
• Beach ball"

Summer Shirts

• Pool Party Renekton Tee
• Friends Forever Amumu Tee
• Super Galaxy Marshmallow Tee
• Scary Gnar Story Tee
• Little Bossy Veigar Tee
• Lil' Devil Teemo Tee

Check out [your region's merch shop] for pricing and availability!

[Cancelled] PBE Live Stream at 2 PM PT on 6/27

[Update] Unfortunately, this stream has been cancelled for now. Here's Riot Scruffy with more:

"Kayn stream is cancelled from some audio difficulties for today. BUTTT I'm here to answer your kayn questions on twitter."

Following Kayn's champion reveal, there will also be a Kayn stream on June 27th at 2 PM PT!  

"Join Kayn’s designers Riot Scruffy and Riot Tokkelossie starting at 2 PM Pacific Time on June 27, 2017, for Q&A and a live PBE demo of Kayn’s gameplay. Leave your questions, memes, and dreams in the comments below so we can address them during the stream!

[Click here for Livestream!]

"You can also watch the stream directly or check out past VODs on the League Twitch channel."

Upcoming Diana, Udyr, and Yorick PBE Changes

ricklessabandon has tweeted out changelists for upcoming WIP Udyr and Diana changes!

"okay! here's a preview for udyr changes coming to pbe this week -- this is an untested initial pass, so numbers could be very off"

"oh! also, i have a preview for diana changes coming to the pbe as well for anyone interested -- also an untested initial pass"

Solcrushed also spotted on reddit sharing tentative Yorick changes for the 7.14 PBE:

"Hey guys, another changelist coming (probably tomorrow) wanted to give some context as certain changes will not be datamined. (The jump part especially) 

Passive 

Ghouls now immediately attack upon landing with E.
Ghoul damage adjusted to 10~90 -> 2-100
Radius that ghouls react to E: 1000 -> 1400 

R
CD: 160/150/140 -> 160/130/100
HP: 700/1500/3000 -> 700/1500/4000 

Yorick has a really early-mid focused power curve, which will always be true to some extent but trying to make it less so. At the same time he does much better in low elo compared to high elo. The goal is to keep his early game in high elo similar, while nerfing it in low. 

With the changes if you hit E, you are guaranteed at least one hit from the ghouls, but their dps will be lower early 

R cd probably needs no explaning, and hp is there since Maiden has 0 resists and could stand to be a bit more tanky lategame."

Look for all of these changes during the 7.14 PBE cycle. These changes are not final.

Updated Splash Discussion

When asked about the teased bit of Urgot's new splash in the recent Champion Roadmap post, Reav3 commented:

"Quote:

As far as I know, it didn't get mentioned anywhere that this is going to be part of his splashart. 

They are always creating some thematical art with champions, maybe that picture will be part of his backstory. 

And it makes sense that he is in a tank in the background. 

We see a guy working on a leg for his hextech modifications. The machinery which is supposed to keep him alive is probably not functional yet. So they put him in the tank for the time they are working on it and at the same time preparing his body for the operation.

It's s small snippet of the lower right section of his splash"

He clarified:

"Quote:

Wait. Lower right? It looks like it should be lower left (If that leg is his front right leg).
You sneaky sneaks.

Wait. Yes. Lower left. My Left, Urgot's Right...."

Reav3 continued:

"Quote:

Question, how many Shotgun Knees does Urgot have?

Enough"

While vague, Riot LegendLarry also jumped on the boards to talk abit on the upcoming Evelynn splashes:

"Oh man, I'm not sure how many of these questions I can answer so I'll have to pick an choose just a few. The team working on Evelynn did their homework and really tried to figure out what makes Evelynn so popular among those die hard fans and where they could push even further into the fantasy of an alluring demonic assassin. 

I don't want to spoil anything so I'll have to be vague here but she's a strong, beautiful, independent succubus and she don't need anybody telling her where to go! 

For the summoning spikes I'll just say that the artists won't let you down. 

As for your last question, I'm not an Eve main so take it with a grain of salt, but if there's an on the other team... never be alone. 

Cheers!"

As for Tango Evelynn's shared splash with Twisted Fate, Riot LegendLarry commented:

"Quote:

reave3 answered that she will be having a shared splash again with TF

We just wrote the creative brief for the Tango Evelynn splash and personally I'm super excited to see what our artists come up with. We also talked about Shadow Evelynn and that one has me super hyped as well."

Riot LegendLarry continued:

"Quote:

OMG, now I'm afraid that Masquerade will not be the coolest! :(

Oh, don't you worry about Masquerade. The artists have some really badass ideas for that one as well. 

I would personally count it a victory if you looked at all three of those illustrations and go, "I... I can't choose. I can't tell you which one is the coolest. You've got this one over here and that one over there but the other one has this!""

Riot LegendLarry went on:

"^ What they said. 

The illustrators feel the same way about those older splashes as you do, @sorceroroverlord. However, we've found that the amount of splash releases that were going out, on top of the new content they were being asked to make, was causing some major burn out. For now you'll see a slow down in the amount of splash updates that are going out but during that time the team is figuring out how we can fit in more updates while not killing the artists."

Patch Chat with the Playtest Team - Patch 7.13

Here's Riot King Cobra with a new patch chat with the Playtest team for Patch 7.13:

"Header by inkiness 

Hey, everyone! I'm Riot King Cobra and it's time for another round of Patch Chat! These threads serve as opportunity for us to talk about the patches that come out every two weeks. You can find the most recent patch by following this link: Patch 7.13 Notes. 

I'm on Riot's Playtest Team, a group of high elo players who play with the new champions, reworks, balance tweaks, items, and map updates before they are released. It's our job to the test the changes that our designers come up with and ensure that we're introducing positive changes to League in terms of both balance and fun. Ask us questions - we'll try to answer as many as we can! 

Patch 7.13 brings about the new Honor system! We also toned down Galio a bit, gave Gnar, Poppy, Maokai, and Rek'Sai some love, and made adjustments to a number of other champions like Kindred, Shaco, and Kha'Zix. This patch also contains a newly reworked Abyssal Mask and a buffed up Adaptive Helm! 

All of us on the Playtest Team are avid gamers so feel free to talk to us as fellow LoL players! 

• Ben “Cezium” Burkhardt
• Don “Aesah” Ding
• Dan “penguin” Hardison
• Robert “ROBERTxLEE” Lee
• Rob "King Cobra" Rosa
• Nicholas “Nickwu” Smith
• Blake “S0be” Soberanis
• Trevor “ThEntropist” Thernes
• Arnor "Hjarta" Halldorsson 
• Brian "Madness Heroo" Pressoir"

Head on over [to the boards] for more discussion.

Quick Hits

[Quick Hits is our own collection within a red post collection, often including easy to digest stories, specialized information, and/or repeat info you may have missed in other posts!]

1) The Honor update is headed our way in 7.13!  Draggles tweeted out to watch for more info soon:

"Honor will be switched on at some point during the patch (not immediately) - will keep you posted; it'll likely be later this week!"

2) Riot Games FB posted design work for the recently released Thresh Figure:

"Here is a look at some of the early design work for the Thresh figure! Today is the last day for the U.R.F. deal hope everyone enjoyed this event!"

3) On Kayn and the Darkin Rhaast,  DanielZKlein shared a bit on Aatrox and Darkin:

"Quote:

The ability to change back and forth mid game makes him incredibly flexible. If there's a "hybrid tax" on him he might struggle however. His E is also incredibly interesting, a bit like winter wyvern, night stalker and batrider from dota. 

This also confirms that Darkin are sentient weapons. Aatrox is the blade.

Aatrox is indeed the blade. The human form that carries him is fully corrupted, similar to Kayn when you give in to Rhaast."

4) Tickets for the NA LCS Summer Finals in Boston, MA are now on sale! Event runs September 2nd and 3rd.

5) New Death SFX to PBE soon - Rayven with more details:

"PBE testers, lend me your earballs. 

Similar to the Death VFX we added for mid-season, we have updated the various sound effects which play when a champion dies. No, not their champion-specific VO - new sound effects which quickly convey that an ally died across the map or enhancing the moment your last auto pops an opponent. 

Let us know how you feel about the sounds themselves as well as their current volume. Also, please specify if you play with music or not. You should notice the different sounds in the following situations: 

- An ally was killed
- An ally got a kill
- You got a kill
- You died (womp womp) 

Thanks!"

6) Pocket Picks: Sneaky's Jhin