League of Legends Classic: Everything You Need to Know

League Classic is the newest game mode coming to League of Legends. Set to launch on July 29 with the advent of Season 3, the mode is Riot Games’ attempt to recapture the feel of playing League of Legends in the early years, complete with nostalgia, long-forgotten dark technologies, and old-school accoutrements like the rune system, masteries, items, and summoner spells. Let’s check it out.

What Can I Expect from League Classic? 

League Classic is the most expansive game mode Riot Games has ever released for League of Legends. It’s a comprehensive recreation of the early look, feel, and nostalgia of one of the most popular MOBAs in the world.

“Anchored in 2013’s Season 3, League Classic gameplay is a collection of greatest hits from across early League rather than an exact recreation of a single patch.”

Over the decade, League of Legends has evolved far beyond its humble origins, into a game substantially more complex and diverse than anything the early player base could have imagined.

League Classic aims to slow it back down in a sense. Revisit a simpler time before 200 years. Of course, we’re not just headed back to the dawn of development. Modern comforts have been worked in to bring just the right bits of nostalgia without all the downsides of the time.

“League has evolved into a substantially more complex game with tons of spaces for skill expression, diverse champion fantasies, and quite a bit of mobility. But one thing you all mention when you talk about OG League, is how much you miss the combat pacing.”

Riot confirmed that in League Classic, champions have been adjusted back to include ‘sharper strengths and weaknesses’. This is further balanced with more choice cost, with each spell costing more to cast while doing substantially more damage than modern League of Legends.

While the old Summoner’s Rift map is glorious; lighting, shadows, and textures have all been improved to help gameplay clarity. This, along with more modern QoL additions like the current ping system, aims to bridge that gap between now and then for players.

What We Know So Far

“We want League Classic to scratch that itch while still bringing something new to the table. At its core, this is about honoring League’s roots. Whether you’ve been here since the beginning or you’re coming back after years away, we want this to feel like home.”

As we mentally prepare for the insanity that will be League Classic, here’s a quick checklist for you to see what you can expect to come with the first edition of League Classic.

Modern Comforts Ported Over

Enjoy the nostalgia without all the frustrations. League Classic will include modern improvements such as:

• Matchmaking updates
• Server infrastructure
• Performance improvements
• Modern pings
• Spell buffering
• WASD control option

Classic Level — Unlock Content as You Play

Classic Level is a free progression track every player will have access to. Levels are gained simply by playing games of League Classic, which in turn unlocks rewards, Masteries, Runes, in-game currency like IP and BE, etc.

Classic Level is a one-time progression system and is separate from the Seasonal Classic Passes.

Champions

60 champions off the bat. The 40 OG champions plus another 20 hand-selected champions released between 2009-2013.

Riot confirmed that in time, more champions will be added to this limited roster, but for the time being that is all we’re getting. The point is to not overwhelm players with 100+ champion kits all at once. It’s a focused package delivering a concentrated dosage of nostalgia.

• If you own a champion already, you’ll have immediate access to them in Classic.
• If you don’t own a champion, they’ll be unlockable via Classic Level or purchasable from the Shop.
• Free champion rotation will also apply for League Classic.

Any champion introduced in the future will also pull from the 2009-2013 pool. The hard rule Riot has set when it comes to introducing new champions into the League Classic environment is that they want to maintain the slower cadence of fights older champions brought.  Short answer: Yasuo isn’t getting a foot in.

Furthermore, each champion’s base model has been updated with old-school inking outlines. Some champions have also received VFX, animation, and sound updates to match their Classic kits.  

Skins, Portraits, and Passes

League Classic will feature its own Seasonal Classic Passes, similar to Battle passes with dual tracks: one free and the other paid. These passes will grant rewards including Influence Points (IP), Blue Essence (BE), Rune Pages, as well as emotes, titles, and Classic Skins and Portraits.  

The highlight as far as cosmetics go for this game mode will be Classic Skins, which are skins that ‘bring back the iconic look of Classic champions as they sported during the 2009-2013 era’.

They’ll be unlockable with the use of Classic Skin Tokens, which can be earned through the Seasonal Pass or purchased in the Shop. Classic Skin Tokens can be used to unlock any Classic Skin.

• Chromas will be available for Classic Skins.
• (Many) existing skins will be available to use in League Classic at launch.
• Portraits are a new cosmetic item that features alternate-style loading screen splash art for champions.
• Portraits show in the loading screen, allowing players to collect them.
• Classic Skins, associated chromas, and portraits are only usable in League Classic.

Items, Runes, Mastery, Summoner Spells All Return in Style

First up, virtually every item from that era of League of Legends is returning. Not just that, restrictions are off. Build as you wish, fill your inventory the exact way you envisioned to walk back down memory lane of that incredibly broken build you used to run.

Never experienced that? Doesn’t matter, wing it anyways. This is League Classic, where you run wild and unfettered.

Then, there are the Runes and Masteries. 

Briefly Explaining Old-School LoL Rune and Mastery System

Runes were little blocks of stats that could be stacked to increase their effect. In the old days, players had to pre-make Rune pages to set up slightly different builds, then pick one of those pages when heading into a match.

Runes are divided into 4 types: marks, glyphs, seals, and quintessences. Marks are offensive (red), seals defensive (yellow), glyphs deal with magic-related stats like spell cooldowns and mana regeneration (blue), and quintessences offer utility (purple/gold).   

Quintessences provided the strongest possible effect from a single rune. They also provided several effects not replicable/found in other rune types. However, each Rune Page only allowed for 3 as opposed to the 9 slots for marks, seals, or glyphs.

Unique abilities only found in Quintessences:

• Experience
• Life Steal
• Movement Speed
• Revival (Decrease respawn timer)
• Spell Vamp

Matching the outline color of the rune with the spot you place it in grants the primary rune benefits, which are usually the strongest (and preferable). However, you can also match the color slot with the secondary benefits of the rune.

While the returns are significantly lower, it gives the player space to allocate the runes they prioritize the highest to the most optimal slots.

Runes on their own are considered small stats, but when allocated and constructed as a page properly, they can be the difference maker in-game towards allowing a player more inventory options.

Runes used to be divided by Tier based on relative power:

• Tier 1, or 'Lesser' runes.
• Tier 2
• Tier 3, or 'Greater' Runes.

In League Classic, the Runes are all leveled up to their Tier 3 baseline. Each player receives 3 Rune Pages to start, an additional 2 come from Classic Levels, and more pages can be purchased for IP (which can be earned just by playing).

“Nearly every single Rune you actually used is coming back, and then under-picked ones have been given a little love to be more attractive options as well. So, if you want to play full Crit Gangplank, go crazy.”

Masteries, meanwhile, were a progression tree. Players had a set number of points, and they were spent progressing through the tree to access particular bonuses further down the line.

All Mastery pages and points will be fully unlocked early in your League Classic journey, by Level 4.

Mastery comes in 3 trees: Offense, Defense, and Utility. Figuring out where to distribute your limited points changes what branch becomes an option and can change your playstyle by virtue of what you select from the trees.

Some of the more advanced masteries require not just unlocking previous masteries within the same tree, but also specific masteries. At any time outside of a match, players can 'respec' by resetting the masteries and collecting back all the allocated points.

In the past, Summoners received one mastery point per Summoner level (capped at level 30). Each mastery took 1 point to increase its level, and each tree contained at least 37 points worth. That meant even at the maximum, no one tree could be completely filled, and strategizing was required to best synergize your masteries with your champion.

In League Classic, both systems have been simplified to adjust for the learning curve. Before a player loads into a game, Runes and Masteries will need to be pre-selected based on which champion they wish to play. 

However, both Runes and Masteries will be unlocked in League Classic just by playing. And if you forget to set your Runes and Masteries before a game, a default page will be used.

League Classic: Game Modes at Launch

While the big one is certainly the 5v5 draft, League Classic offers multiple options for players to get the full range of experiences:

• PvP Draft Queue
• Co-op vs AI
• Customs

Instead of a traditional ranked system, Riot will be introducing a new progression system called Summoner’s Journey, where once a player hits Classic Level 10, they begin their journey at the ‘Salt’ rank and progress on to ‘Wood’ and so forth, up to ‘Legend’.

You may have heard tales of how in the old days, players had to fight for their lane rights, calling out immediately on loading in what lane they’d be claiming. This is another case where modern League puts a hand in.

A positional preference system has been implemented, allowing players to choose the roles they want in order of preference. The game will then try to give the player their first choice while avoiding their last pick.

Where Does League Classic Go in the Future?

As a final touch, League Classic will be released hand-in-hand with a version of community voting, named the Council. It is unlocked through Classic Level, and players earn more voting power by playing League Classic more.

“We all know that the real thing that made early League amazing was your feedback. So, we wanted to create a system that gives you all power in the direction Classic goes.”

Season 3 will be all about celebrating League's past and present. The game mode ARAM: Mayhem will receive a new alternate version — ARAM: Mayhem Classic-ish, featuring a Classic-inspired map, Classic items, and Classic-themed augments.

Only the 60 champions available in Classic will be available in ARAM: Mayhem Classic-ish. The game mode will launch alongside League Classic as a limited-time mode with its own queue.

League Classic will be officially released on July 29. Stay tuned for more information.

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Featured Image Credit: Riot Games

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