League of Legends patch 12.9 preview: Olaf and Taliyah mini-rework, Pyke mid nerfs, and more

League of Legends patch 12.9 will shake things up quite a bit with the champion meta and introduce a significant number of changes in the game.

One of the biggest highlights of the upcoming update is the mini-rework or the mid-scope updates that will be making their way to both Olaf and Taliyah. These changes were highly anticipated by fans, and they will finally be making their way to the live servers next week.

Additionally, picks like Hecarim, Varus, Braum, and Thresh will be receiving some quality-of-life updates. Meanwhile, Renata, Rengar, and Ahri will be in for some much-needed nerfs.

Riot Games have also mentioned that in League of Legends patch 12.10, which is the update after this one, they will focus on increasing champion durability and toning down damage from all sources.

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League of Legends patch 12.9 preview

It’s important to note here that the champion changes that Riot Games have listed for patch 12.9 so far are tentative and may not reflect entirely in the final update.

The tweaks to these champions will first make their way to the League of Legends PBE. Only after they have gone through the test servers will Riot Games look to ship it in the official patch.

1) Champion Buffs

• Hecarim
• Varus
• Braum
• Thresh

Hecarim and Varus are not exactly doing too well in season 12. However, the developers will look to change things around for them in the upcoming patch in order to help them have a much easier time in the game.

2) Champion Nerfs

• Rengar
• Master Yi
• Nidalee
• Ahri
• Renata
• Sion

Ahri and Renata have been quite difficult to deal with in season 12. They have had a fairly high pick and win rate in both solo-queue in competitive matchmaking.

3) Champion Adjustments

• Olaf
• Taliyah
• Pyke (Mid nerf)

Olaf and Taliyah’s mid-scope updates have been on the cards for quite some time, and Riot Games will look to test their changes out further in the PBE.

Meanwhile, Pyke seems to be going through a lot of changes in the test servers, with the developers looking to bring tweaks to both his ultimate and passive. However, those are experimental for now, and he will only be receiving nerfs to his capabilities in the midlane.

4) System nerfs

• Hullbreaker (Rush)

The League of Legends developers have also mentioned that in light of the durability changes that they are looking to introduce with 12.10, they will aim to keep the upcoming update rather small.