Azir Gone? League of Legends Patch 25.18 Preview: Jayce Buffs, Yunara Nerfs, and More

League of Legends Patch 25.18 is coming, and it promises to deliver a wave of buffs and nerfs to some of your favorite champions, particularly around the Mid Lane. With Worlds fast approaching, the path is starting to be cemented for what might be the defining meta of the tournament.

Let's take a look at some of the biggest changes to come when LoL Patch 25.18 arrives on Wednesday, September 10th.

Big Nerfs in the Mid Lane: Azir, Aurora, Annie

The Mid Lane meta is bound to make a turn when Patch 25.18 arrives to League of Legends. First up, Annie is getting nerfs to the base damage of her [W] Incinerate and the passive magic penetration of her [R] Summon: Tibbers. In combination, these nerfs will significantly affect the champion's burst capabilities in the new patch.

Up next we have Aurora and Azir. Both Mid Lane champions will receive significant hits to their dps output with Aurora's passive damage being nerfed and Azir's Attack Speed scaling and [W] Arise! AP scaling taking significant blows.

With Fearless Draft in full effect, expect both Aurora and Azir (and maybe even Annie) to still show up at Worlds. Their power levels will not be quite the same we've gotten used to, though.

Cassiopeia and Hwei Knock on the Door

While other Mid Lane mages are hit with the nerf hammer, Cassiopeia and Hwei mains will have plenty of reason to be excited about the arrival of LoL Patch 25.18. The new update will deliver number bumps to Cassiopeia's base mana and the base damage of her [E] Twin Fangs. Both of these changes will help the champion take over the laning phase more easily.

Hwei, meanwhile, will receive AP scaling buffs for several of his abilities, including his [P] Signature of the Visionary, making him a far more desirable pick moving forward.

These buffs, coupled with nerfs to several other Mid Lane champions, will throw the mid meta for a spin. Thankfully, there are still another two patches to go before Worlds 2025, giving pro players plenty of time to figure out the meta before the start of the tournament.

Yunara Receives Her First Nerfs!

The latest AD carry to hit League of Legends, Yunara, may not have felt immediately overpowered on release. Over time, though, the champion has risen in priority both among the highest tiers of Solo Queue and in the pro scene. In order to take her down a peg, Patch 25.18 will deliver Yunara her very first set of nerfs since her release back in July.

• Base HP reduced 600 >>> 575
• Base AD reduced 56 >>> 53
• [Q] Kanmei's Steps bonus Move Speed reduced 50/55/60/65/70% for 1.5/1.75/2/2.25/2.5 seconds >>> 30/35/40/45/50% for 1.5 flat seconds

These changes are not intended to take Yunara out of pro play entirely, but they should see her priority fall ahead of Worlds. As far as Solo Queue goes, however, the nerfs are likely to tank Yunara's win rate a bit more than intended, and only time will tell whether some of these will be partially reverted in the end.

Setting Up for Worlds 2025

Worlds may still be more than a month away (will be played on Patch 25.20), but LoL Patch 25.18 is already giving shape to what the tournament's meta may be in the end. The large wave of champion buffs and nerfs to come with the new update, particularly around the Mid Lane, means it will soon be time to head to Solo Queue and do plenty of testing!

All information about LoL Patch 25.18 was taken from an X (Twitter) post made by Matt "Phroxzon" Leung-Harrison, Lead Gameplay Designer for League of Legends. If you'd like to have a look at the complete list of changes, make sure to check out the post!

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Featured image credit: Riot Games

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