LoL Patch 26.21 Nerfs Jinx and Lee Sin, Buffs Sion and Adds New True Damage Skins

The League of Legends Patch 26.21 brings a new wave of balance changes to League of Legends, including nerfs to Jinx, Lee Sin and Caitlyn, buffs to Sion, Orianna and Ryze, and adjustments to Varus and Taric.

The update also changes four items, expands ARAM Mayhem with the Journey to Stardom event, brings four champions to League Classic and introduces new True Damage skins.

Table of Contents

• When Does LoL Patch 26.21 Release?
• Replay Downloads, Mythic Shop and System Requirements
• Champion Changes in LoL Patch 26.21
  • Buffs
  • Nerfs
  • Adjustments
• Item Changes
• ARAM Mayhem: Journey to Stardom
  • New Headliner Effects
  • New Augments
  • Removed Augments
• League Classic Changes
• Arena Changes
  • Arena Champion Changes
  • Arena Item Changes
  • Arena Augment Changes
• New True Damage Skins and Chromas

When Does LoL Patch 26.21 Release?

LoL Patch 26.21 releases on October 21, 2026. The five True Damage Know My Name skins are also scheduled to become available that day.

Replay Downloads, Mythic Shop and System Requirements

Starting during Patch 26.21, replay downloads will be limited to 10 per hour. Players can continue downloading their own replays and those belonging to other players, subject to the new limit.

The Mythic Shop's daily, weekly and biweekly rotation timings will be adjusted ahead of planned personalized offerings in Patch 26.22. Riot is also raising the AMD minimum system requirement due to an update to the patch launcher that requires SSE 4.2.

Champion Changes in LoL Patch 26.21

Buffs

Azir

• Base stats: Mana growth 40 -> 50 per level

Darius

• Q (Decimate): Cooldown 9 / 8 / 7 / 6 / 5s -> 9 / 8 / 7 / 6 / 4s

Miss Fortune

• E (Make It Rain): Damage 70 / 100 / 130 / 160 / 190 (+120% AP) -> 90 / 120 / 150 / 180 / 210 (+120% AP)
• R (Bullet Time): Critical strike damage 130% (+0.3% per 1% bonus crit damage) -> 145% (+0.45% per 1% bonus crit damage)

Nunu & Willump

• R (Absolute Zero): Maximum damage 625 / 925 / 1275 (+300% AP) -> 750 / 1100 / 1450 (+300% AP)

Orianna

• Q (Command: Attack): Damage 60 / 90 / 120 / 150 / 180 (+55% AP) -> 60 / 90 / 120 / 150 / 180 (+60% AP)
• W (Command: Dissonance): Damage 70 / 110 / 150 / 190 / 230 (+80% AP) -> 70 / 110 / 150 / 190 / 230 (+85% AP)

Ryze

• Q (Overload): Flux bonus damage 15 / 40 / 65 / 90% -> 10 / 40 / 70 / 100%
• Q (Overload): Bonus movement speed 28 / 32 / 36 / 40 / 44% -> 30 / 35 / 40 / 45 / 50%
• W (Rune Prison): Damage 60 / 90 / 120 / 150 / 180 (+60% AP) (+3% bonus mana) -> 60 / 90 / 120 / 150 / 180 (+70% AP) (+3% bonus mana)

Sion

• Base stats: Health 655 + 87 per level -> 655 + 95 per level
• R (Unstoppable Onslaught): Damage increase over the first 3 seconds of channeling +0 to 166.67% base damage and 0 to 100% ratio damage -> +0 to 200%

Taliyah

• E (Unraveled Earth): Damage 60 / 105 / 150 / 195 / 240 (+60% AP) -> 70 / 115 / 160 / 205 / 250 (+70% AP)
• E: Detonation damage 25 / 40 / 55 / 70 / 85 (+30% AP) -> 30 / 45 / 60 / 75 / 90 (+30% AP)
• E: Deals 225% damage to monsters

Vel'Koz

• Passive (Organic Deconstruction): Damage 35–180 (+60% AP) -> 35–205 (+65% AP)
• Q (Plasma Fission): Cooldown 7s -> 6s

Xin Zhao

• Q (Three Talon Strike): Damage per strike 15 / 30 / 45 / 60 / 75 (+40% bonus AD) -> 15 / 30 / 45 / 60 / 75 (+45% bonus AD)
• E (Audacious Charge): 1% attack speed scaling per 5% permanent bonus attack speed -> per 4%

Zyra

• W (Rampant Growth): Seed ammo cooldown 18 / 16 / 14 / 12 / 10s -> 16 / 14.5 / 13 / 11.5 / 10s

Nerfs

Caitlyn

• Passive (Headshot): Damage 60–100% AD (+1% AD per 1% crit chance) (+1% AD per 1% bonus crit damage) -> 60–80% AD (+0.8% AD per 1% crit chance) (+0.8% AD per 1% bonus crit damage)
• Q (Piltover Peacemaker): Base damage 50 / 90 / 130 / 170 / 210 -> 50 / 95 / 140 / 185 / 230

Jinx

• Base stats: Attack damage 59 + 3.25 per level -> 59 + 3 per level
• Base stats: Health 630 + 105 per level -> 610 + 105 per level

Lee Sin

• W (Safeguard): Cooldown 7s -> 8s
• R (Dragon's Rage): Kick damage 175 / 400 / 625 (+200% bonus AD) -> 150 / 350 / 550 (+200% bonus AD)
• R: Collision damage 175 / 400 / 625 (+200% bonus AD) (+12 / 15 / 18% kicked champion's health) -> 150 / 350 / 550 (+200% bonus AD) (+12 / 15 / 18% kicked champion's health)

Locke

• Base stats: Mana growth 70 -> 60
• Q (Ritual Nails): Unused-charge mana and cooldown refund 20–35% -> 10–40%
• W (Soul Ignition): Mana cost 50 / 55 / 60 / 65 / 70 -> 60 / 65 / 70 / 75 / 80
• W: Grey health stored based on current health 40–200 -> 20–200 (level-based)
• W: Current health store 150–450 (level-based) -> 100–500 (+60% AP)
• E (Ashen Pursuit): Blink damage 40 / 50 / 60 / 70 / 80 (+40% AP) -> 40 / 55 / 70 / 85 / 100 (+50% AP)

Nidalee

• W (Pounce): Damage 55 / 88.75 / 122.5 / 156.25 / 190 (+50% bonus AD) (+30% AP) -> 50 / 80 / 110 / 140 / 170 (+50% bonus AD) (+30% AP)
• E (Primal Surge): Attack speed 30 / 40 / 50 / 60 / 70% -> 20 / 30 / 40 / 50 / 60%

Qiyana

• Q (Elemental Wrath / Edge of Ixtal): Damage 80 / 110 / 140 / 170 / 200 (+90% bonus AD) -> 70 / 100 / 130 / 160 / 190 (+90% bonus AD)

Rammus

• W (Defensive Ball Curl): Bonus armor 27 / 32 / 37 / 42 / 47 (+30–60% armor) -> 25 / 30 / 35 / 40 / 45 (+30–50% armor)
• W: Bonus magic resistance 20 / 25 / 30 / 35 / 40 (+30–60% magic resistance) -> 20 / 25 / 30 / 35 / 40 (+30–50% magic resistance)

Tristana

• Q (Rapid Fire): Attack speed 60 / 75 / 90 / 105 / 120% -> 40 / 60 / 80 / 100 / 120%

Viktor

• Base stats: Movement speed 335 -> 330
• Q (Siphon Power): Shield 40–140 (based on level) (+25% AP) -> 30–130 (+20% AP)
• Q: Shield duration 2.5s -> 2s

Wukong

• Base stats: Health regeneration 3.5 + 0.65 per level -> 5.5 + 0.65 per level
• Passive (Stone Skin): Armor per stack 6–10 -> 4.5–10 (based on champion level)

Yone

• Q (Mortal Steel): Damage 25 / 50 / 75 / 100 / 125 (+110% AD) -> 25 / 50 / 75 / 100 / 125 (+105% AD)

Adjustments

Taric

• Q (Starlight's Touch): Casts now successfully fire when the linked ally is untargetable
• E (Dazzle): Casts now successfully fire when the linked ally is untargetable, but not from vanished allies
• R (Cosmic Radiance): Casts now successfully fire when the linked ally is untargetable

Twisted Fate

• R (Destiny): Now reveals untargetable units

Varus

• Q (Piercing Arrow): Damage calculation changed from maximum damage 53.33–240 (+80% bonus AD) to 80–360 (+120% bonus AD), to minimum damage 50–230 (+80% bonus AD) to 85–391 (+136% bonus AD)
• Q: Channel-time damage increase up to 50% -> up to 70%
• W (Blighted Quiver): On-hit damage 4 / 13 / 22 / 31 / 40 (+15% bonus AD) (+25% AP) -> 4 / 10 / 16 / 22 / 28 (+20% bonus AD) (+30% AP)
• W: Per-stack target maximum health damage 3–5% (+1.3% per 100 AP) -> 2.5–4.5% (+1.4% per 100 AP)
• W: Active missing-health damage 6–14%, increased by up to 50% with Q channel -> 6–10%, increased by up to 70% with Q channel
• W: Basic ability cooldown refund 13% per stack, increased by up to 50% with Q channel -> 11%, increased by up to 70% with Q channel

Zaahen

• No standard Summoner's Rift balance changes listed in Riot's champion section. Arena passive adjustment is listed below.

Item Changes

Bastion Breaker

• Lethality 22 -> 18
• Shaped Charge damage 50 melee + 1.5 per Lethality / 25 ranged + 0.75 per Lethality -> 40 melee + 1.5 per Lethality / 20 ranged + 0.75 per Lethality
• Sabotage duration 90s -> unlimited

Dawncore

• Ability power per 100% base mana regeneration 10 -> 15

Gluttonous Greaves

• Total cost 1,000 gold -> 1,100 gold

Hubris

• Base bonus attack damage 12 -> 15 for melee / 10 for ranged
• Bonus attack damage per stack 3 -> 3 for melee / 2 for ranged

ARAM Mayhem: Journey to Stardom

The Journey to Stardom update introduces Headliners, match-wide band-themed effects, a Superstar Rank progression system and additional Augments. Players can complete band missions for rewards including Augments, emotes and orange essence. Butcher's Bridge and Koeshin's Crossing will be unavailable in Mayhem for this patch.

New Headliner Effects

K/DA

• Collect four K/DA Cards to gain an additional Augment

HEARTSTEEL

• Augments can roll powerful special modifiers

True Damage

• Takedowns and tower destructions can drop team Anvils

Pentakill

• Empower an ability at the start of a game and at level 18

Disco

• Dance beneath the disco ball to earn gold for the team

Cafe Cuties

• Health relics become more powerful

Bees

• Collect honey pots while avoiding bees

Command Line

• Reroll one Augment to a higher tier at every selection

New Augments

The update adds the following Augments: Silver Blue Barrier, Flow of Spirit, Fruitify, Gift of the Drowned, Hands Off The Talent, Lich Brain, Lonely Warrior, No Mana, No Problem, Sound Barrier, Ultimate Recursion, Gold Arcane Axiom, Armored Impact, BEES!!!, Brass Blast, CRIMSON COBALT, Double Time, Enchanting Butterflies, Get Jinxed, Heavy Is The Crown, Jeweled Bracelet, Recoil, Salvation, Sap Magic, Still Here, Take’em Down Down Down, The Boom and the Bass, Tickle Monster, Upgrade: Stormsurge, Weapon Of Destiny, Prismatic Big Shot, Bouncing Bees, Group Hug, Mosh Monster, Third Times The Harm, Totentanz.

Removed Augments

Combusting Interest, Crit 'n Cast, Critical Missile, Dimension Shift, DropBear, Dropkick, Fan the Hammer, Hide on Bush, High Roller, Our Healing, Poro Stampede, Spiritual Purification and Ult Bot.

League Classic Changes

Mordekaiser, Yorick, Hecarim and Lucian join League Classic with their older ability kits. Mordekaiser can capture a defeated enemy champion as a ghost, while Yorick returns with his original ghoul-summoning abilities. Lucian's classic attack range is 550.

Aatrox

• Passive (Blood Well): Cooldown 225s -> 225 / 200 / 175 / 150s at levels 1 / 6 / 11 / 16

Irelia

• Base health 546 -> 515
• Health regeneration 8.15 -> 6.5
• Passive (Ionian Fervor): Tenacity item stacking additive -> multiplicative

Karma

• Q (Heavenly Wave): Damage 70 / 110 / 150 / 190 / 230 / 270 -> 85 / 125 / 165 / 205 / 245 / 285
• Q: Base Mantra heal 35 / 55 / 75 / 95 / 115 / 135 -> 50 / 70 / 90 / 110 / 130 / 150
• W (Spirit Bond): Base damage 80 / 125 / 170 / 215 / 260 / 305 -> 100 / 140 / 180 / 220 / 260 / 300
• W: Movement speed 10 / 12 / 14 / 16 / 18 / 20% -> 15 / 16 / 17 / 18 / 19 / 20%

Kassadin

• Q (Null Sphere): Base damage 60 / 105 / 150 / 195 / 240 -> 80 / 130 / 180 / 230 / 280
• Q: Silence duration 1 / 1.25 / 1.5 / 1.75 / 2s -> 1 / 1.4 / 1.8 / 2.2 / 2.6s
• R (Riftwalk): AP ratio 70% -> 80%

Atma's Impaler

• Critical strike chance 15% -> 18%
• Maximum health to bonus attack damage conversion 1.5% -> 2%

Arena Changes

Arena receives champion, item and Augment balance changes. The changes below apply specifically to Arena, not Summoner's Rift.

Arena Champion Changes

Bel'Veth

• Q (Void Surge): AD ratio 105% -> 95%
• R (Endless Banquet): Bonus AD ratio per stack 1% -> 0.5%

Briar

• Q (Head Rush): Stun duration 0.85s -> 0.5s
• E (Chilling Scream): Full-charge AP ratio 100% -> 150%
• E: Full-charge wall-hit AP ratio 240% -> 350%
• E: Maximum total AP ratio 340% -> 500%

Elise

• E (Cocoon): Cooldown 8 / 7.5 / 7 / 6.5 / 6s -> 10s
• W (Skittering Frenzy): Spiderlings 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 -> 4 / 6 / 8 / 10
• W: Previous spider damage buff removed

Ezreal

• R (Trueshot Barrage): Bonus AD ratio 100% -> 150%
• R: Cooldown 50 / 40 / 30s -> 40 / 30 / 20s

Fiora

• Passive (Duelist's Dance): Bonus AD ratio 3% per 100 bonus AD -> 2% per 100 bonus AD
• Q (Lunge): AP ratio 0 -> 25%

Galio

• W (Shield of Durand): Passive shield health ratio 7.5–15% -> 6–10%
• W: Fully charged taunt duration 1.5s -> 1s
• R (Hero's Entrance): Knockup duration 1.5s -> 1s

Gangplank

• W (Remove Scurvy): AP ratio 90% -> 135%
• W: Cooldown 22 / 20 / 18 / 16 / 14s -> 18 / 16 / 14 / 12 / 10s
• R (Cannon Barrage): Cooldown 130 / 110 / 90s -> 100 / 80 / 60s

Gnar

• W (Hyper): Duration 4s -> 2s
• W: Movement speed 20 / 40 / 60 / 80 -> 40 / 80 / 120 / 160
• R (GNAR!): AP ratio 100% -> 150%

Kayn

• Passive (The Darkin Scythe): Transformation progress increased

Katarina

• R (Death Lotus): On-hit ratio 20 / 25 / 30% -> 25% at all ranks
• R: AP ratio per dagger 26% -> 35%

Lee Sin

• E (Tempest): AP ratio 0 -> 75%

Malzahar

• W (Void Swarm): Maximum storage increased to six Voidling charges

Milio

• Q (Ultra Mega Fire Kick): Cooldown 8s -> 10s
• Q: AP ratio 120% -> 200%
• R (Breath of Life): Cooldown 160 / 145 / 130s -> 180 / 150 / 130s

Miss Fortune

• Q (Double Up): AP ratio 55% -> 70%
• R (Bullet Time): AP ratio 35% -> 40%

Morgana

• Q (Dark Binding): Cooldown 12s -> 14s
• E (Black Shield): Cooldown 26 / 23.5 / 21 / 18.5 / 16s -> 30 / 27.5 / 25 / 22.5 / 20s

Nidalee

• W (Bushwhack): Trap cooldown 14 / 13 / 12 / 11 / 10s -> 8s
• R (Aspect of the Cougar): Cougar-form ability cooldowns 6s -> 4s

Rengar

• W (Battle Roar): AP ratio 95% -> 120%
• Empowered AP ratio 105% -> 120%

Renata Glasc

• R (Hostile Takeover): Cooldown 150 / 130 / 110s -> 170 / 150 / 130s
• W (Bailout): Cooldown 28 / 27 / 26 / 25 / 24s -> 32 / 31 / 30 / 29 / 28s

Skarner

• Q (Shattered Earth): Bonus AD ratio 90% -> 150%
• W (Seismic Bastion): Cooldown 10 / 9 / 8 / 7 / 6s -> 8 / 7 / 6 / 5 / 4s
• W: AP ratio 80% -> 120%

Teemo

• E (Toxic Shot): Initial-hit AD ratio 5% -> 10%
• E: Damage-over-time AD ratio 10% -> 20%

Urgot

• W (Purge): On-hit effectiveness 50% -> 75%

Varus

• E (Hail of Arrows): Cooldown 18 / 16 / 14 / 12 / 10s -> 14 / 12 / 10 / 8 / 6s
• E: AP ratio 0 -> 50%

Yone

• R (Fate Sealed): Bonus AD ratio 80% -> 100%
• R: Cooldown 70 / 60 / 50s -> 60 / 50 / 40s

Yuumi

• W (You and Me!): Heal and shield power 10–25% -> 4–8%

Zaahen

• Passive (Cultivation of War): Bonus AD per stack 1–2% -> 1%

Arena Item Changes

Turbo Chemtank

• Restore 4% -> 20% maximum health

Galeforce

• Maximum dash range 600 -> 900

Night Harvester

• Cooldown 10s -> 8s
• Movement speed duration 1.5s -> 1s
• Movement speed 40% -> 60%

Mirage Blade

• Cooldown refund 20% -> 15%

Moonflair Spellblade

• Cooldown refund per attack 0.5 -> 0.3
• Enhanced attacks 2 -> 3

Arena Augment Changes

Big Brain

• Out-of-combat timer 3s -> 5s

Castle

• Cooldown 12s -> 10s

Chroma Flux

• Cooldown 10s -> 8s

Courage of the Colossus

• Cooldown 5s -> 6s

Dawnbringer's Resolve

• Healing 25 / 30 -> 35 / 40

Dual Wield

• On-hit effectiveness 40 / 50 / 60% -> 40 / 45 / 50%

Flashy

• Charges 2 / 3 -> 4 / 6

Hive Mind

• Starting bees 2 / 4 / 6 -> 3 / 6 / 9

Minionmancer

• Increased minion power 40 / 55 -> 55 / 70

Nesting Doll

• Maximum revives 1 / 2 / 3 -> 0 / 1 / 2

Rite of the Forge God

• Item stat amplification 40% -> 60%

Spin to Win

• Damage amplification 25 / 35% -> 35 / 45%

Trueshot Prodigy

• Base damage 175 / 350 / 525 -> 175 / 275 / 375
• AD ratio 100% -> 50%
• Cooldown 10 / 8 / 6s -> 12 / 10 / 8s

New True Damage Skins and Chromas

The following five skins arrive on October 21, 2026:

• Prestige True Damage Know My Name Ekko
• True Damage Know My Name Akali
• True Damage Know My Name Qiyana
• True Damage Know My Name Senna
• True Damage Know My Name Yasuo

Matching chromas are also listed for all five skins in Riot's official notes.

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Featured image credit: Riot Games

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