Legends of Runeterra patch 3.10 - All buffs and nerfs

Since Riot Games announced their decision to shift focus to prioritize PvP in Legends of Runeterra, fans have been anxious to find out what sort of new changes they would introduce to the card game. 

Patch 3.10 will still have some changes to Path of Champions but will primarily focus on massive PvP balance changes, with buffs and nerfs across the board, as well as changing how certain cards work overall.

One of the biggest changes is that copied spells will now be counted as playing cards. Meaning that decks such as the Jayce/Lux combo will become even stronger since Lux Beams can be triggered more consistently. 

Let's break down everything you can expect from patch 3.10 in Legends of Runeterra.

Legends of Runeterra patch 3.10 - Full patch notes

Here’s a look at each of the card updates coming in this patch:

Gameplay System Updates: 

• Scout has been removed as a generatable keyword (i.e. Hex Core Upgrade, Pantheon, The Arsenal, Acceleration Gate).
• Copied spells now count as being Played (i.e. Karma, Taric, Mirror Mage, Jayce).

Following up from our Play / Cast changes, we wanted to ensure that champions that copy spells are satisfying and exciting in the long term.

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• League of Legends Arcane's second season is now in production

Spells that are copied will now activate targeting quests such as Ezreal & Taric, they’ll count towards making Lux Beams, and will now also activate Augment!

Champions & Related Cards

• Ashe (Level 1)
  • Level-Up Condition: Now counts Power reduction on units that already have 0 Power.

This is part bugfix, part gameplay clarity & functionality update - now Ashe should be somewhat less sad about being unable to level off of Formidable units.

• Bard (Level 1)
  • Level-Up Condition: Now counts units that buff their own stats.

Fix to open up additional deckbuilding possibilities for Bard and address confusion around what counts for his level up quest.

• Ezreal (Level 1)
  
  • Level-Up Condition: Increased to 8+ targets.
• Hecarim (Level 2)
  
  • Change: Ephemeral allies have +3|+0 → When I level up, grant Ephemeral allies everywhere +3|+0.

We want the payoff for Ephemeral decks to be more consistent by guaranteeing Hecarim’s buff on leveling up, even if he dies in combat.

• Irelia (Level 1 & 2):

  • Keywords: Quick Attack → Quick Attack, Attune

Over the course of several archetype nerfs, Irelia has become much less satisfying. 

• Kalista (Level 1):
  
  • Base Stats: 4|3 → 3|4

Swapping states here gives Kalista some more innate tankiness, and will increase her ability to engage in combat and level up.

• Shen (Level 1 & 2):
  
  • Keyword: None → Barrier
  • Level Up Requirement: I’ve seen allies gain barrier 4+ times. → I’ve seen allies gain barrier 5+ times.

Shen’s play rate is among the lowest in LoR - we want to give him a bit more immediate ability to attack or block to give him some more combat control, with added potentially to level him up and realize the Shen dream.

Followers, Spells, and Landmarks

• Aftershock
  
  • Cost: 4 → 3
  • Change: Deal 3 to anything or destroy a Landmark. → Deal 3 to a follower or destroy a landmark.

We'd love for more landmark removal to be more viable, and identified Aftershock as a card that could help provide more widespread interactive counterplay against landmarks.

• Avatar of the Tides
  • Base Stats: 4|5 → 4|6
  • Adding a bit of health to help make the mana engine a little more stable.
• Avarosan Hearthguard
  
  • Base Stats: 5|5 → 5|6

Returning Hearthguard to his former glory to give Freljord midgame units a boost.

• Babbling Bjerg
  
  • Base Stats: 3|3 → 3|4

A slight buff to a staple Freljord midrange unit to help enable the archetype more.

• Blighted Caretaker
  
  • Base Stats: 1|1 → 2|1

Reverting a previous nerf to give Slay / sacrifice archetypes a bit more power.

• Brightsteel Protector
  • Base Stats: 3|2 → 2|1

This change is meant to soften the strength of Demacia curving out with Brightsteel, and encouraging the utility of her Barrier.

• Camavoran Dragon
  • Base Stats: 4|3 → 4|4

Adding more on-curve health to make the Camavoran Dragon more cost-effective.

• Chief Nakotak
  
  • Base Stats: 3|3 → 2|4

Change: When an ally transforms, fully heal it and grant it +1|+1. → When an ally transforms, fully heal it, grant it +1|+1, and Impact.

Transform-based Bandle City decks have historically not seen much play, so we're buffing Chief Nakotak as a core synergistic card for new deckbuilding possibilities.

• Crumble
  • Cost: 5 → 4

Given its high ability to disrupt and potential access through Tellstones, we've identified Crumble as a card that could use a cost decrease to see a bit more play.

• Disintegrate
  • Change: Damage mitigation now prevents units dying from Disintegrate’s effect.

We want to add more healthy counterplay to Distentegrate, increase the clarity of its text and effect, and fix several buggy edge-cases (such as Disintegrate vs Barrier, Lifesteal, Tough, etc).

• Ember Monk
  • Cost: 4 → 3
  • Base Stats: 3|3 → 2|3

Ember Monk was too inefficient to function within its archetype, so we’re lowering its cost.

• Ferros Financier
  • Base Stats: 2|2 → 2|1

Ferros Financier was giving too much value with a decent statline for his versatility.

• Gleaming Lantern
  • Base Stats: 3|3 → 3|2

We’re increasing the ability to disrupt explosive Gleaming Lantern starts, but leaving the outright power the Lantern provides for Fae decks.

• Hothead
  • Base Stats: 4|2 → 3|3

Hothead could use a bit of a stat adjustment to have a higher potential to make one or more attacks.

• Inspiring Marshal
  • Base Stats: 4|5 → 5|6

Marshal has had a hard time since its previous nerfs - we'll keep it as a top end for token decks, and increase the stats to make it a bit more viable in Shuriman token decks.

• Justice Rider
  • Base Stats: 3|4 → 3|5

Flashbomb trap followers rarely show up in decks and haven’t been too effective, so we’re giving Justice Rider more durability to plant more bombs.

• Khahiri the Returned
  • Cost: 6 → 5
  • Base Stats: 4|4 → 3|3

We’re reducing Khahiri’s cost to make him a more satisfying “build around me” card.

• The Lady of Blood
  • Base Stats: 2|4 → 3|4

Providing Lady a bit more combat viability to give slower Noxus discard decks a bit of a better curve.

• Lava Lizard
  • Keywords: None → Impact

Lava Lizard deserves to spit a bit more fire.

• Legion Deserter
  • Keywords: Overwhelm → Fearsome

We want to keep the gameplay dreams of scaling huge Legion Deserters, but swap out Overwhelm to Fearsome to reduce the ability to outright end your opponent’s career prematurely.

• Murkwolf Shaman
  • Base Stats: 3|3 → 2|4
• Murkwolf Rager
  • Base Stats: 5|6 → 4|6

Freljord midrange units and transform should be a bit more viable to enable some of those strategies.

• Petricite Broadwing
  • Keywords: Challenger → None
  • New Effect: When you summon an ally, grant me Challenger.

We're opting for a small nerf to Broadwing that will ease some of the early round tension of playing against it, while also giving more windows for potential counterplay.

• Promising Future
  • Cost: 4 → 6

We’re greatly slowing down the ability to double down on landmarks risk-free and introduce more obvious windows for counterplay.

• Quicksand
  • Change: When targeting two units, give them -2|-0 and disable positive keywords this round. → When targeting two units, give them -1|-0 and disable their positive keywords this round.

We're happy with the increased interaction previous Quicksand changes has provided Shurima, but are pushing a small follow up to make it less of a combat blowout and reduce the overall safety it provides to more greedy decks.

• Resplendent Stellacorn
  • Base Stats: 4|5 → 5|6

This change should provide more on-curve power to Targon healing decks.

• Riptide Rex
  
  • Base Stats:6|4 → 7|5
  • Change: Plunder: Play Cannon Barrage 6 times on randomly-targeted enemies. → Plunder: Play Cannon Barrage 7 times on randomly-targeted enemies.

Bilgewater Control decks have slowly moved out of the metagame with time and nerfs to key cards. Returning Riptide Rex to his former glory should give some slower and midrange Bilgewater decks more viable top end cards.

• Sands of Time
  • Change: Instant Century is now Fleeting

Instant Century being a 0-cost card that can be held in hand for an ideal combo timing gives Thrall decks a bit too much agency over when to advance their landmarks. We think this adjustment aligns the functionality a bit closer to our design standards for cards that are created in hand.

• Squeaker
  • Base Stats: 1|1 → 1|2

We want to make Mecha-Yordle creation more cost-efficient.

• The Arsenal
  • Base Stats: 8|6 → 9|7

Scout’s removal as a generatable keyword hurts this guy quite a bit, so we’re making him a bit beefier to retain his name as The Arsenal.

• The Prefect
  • Base Stats: 1|3 → 2|3

The Prefect is too undertuned to see play in dedicated Skill decks, so we’re boosting her overall strength.

• Trifarian Assessor
  • Cost: 5 → 4

Reputation-based Noxus decks could use a revert on the Assessor’s cost to improve viability.

• Vanguard Firstblade
  • Base Stats: 2|2 → 3|3

What's a patch without a random Elite Buff? Firstblade curve out should be a bit more satisfying for Demacia decks.

• Windfarer Hatchling
  
  • Base Stats: 4|2 → 4|3

With the release of Worldwalker, Ionia has been underrepresented overall - we’re providing Elusive decks some more power to finish out games.

• Yordle Contraption
  
  • Cost: 5 → 4

This card hasn’t seen much play, so we’re improving the efficiency of this old contraption.

• Zenith Blade
  
  • Change:Grant Overwhelm. → Give Overwhelm This Round.

Zenith Blade should be a solid go-to repeatable buff for decks, but its power output should be a bit more narrow considering the low amount of card resources required to grant up to 3 units Overwhelm, especially given the additional synergies and stats repeated Zenith Blades provide.

The Path of Champions updates

We’re smoothing out Shard acquisition in The Path of Champions by introducing Wild Fragments:

• Wild Fragments can be used in place of Champion Fragments to unlock or Star Up any champion in The Path of Champions.
• When you earn Champion Fragments for a champion that exceeds the amount to get that champion to 3 Stars, you’ll instead earn an amount of Wild Fragments.
• Players who have already earned excess Champion Fragments will retroactively receive Wild Fragments.
• When you earn duplicate Relics that are clearly not useful (e.g. a fourth copy of any Relic, or a second copy of any keyword-granting Relic) you’ll get Wild Fragments instead. This also applies retroactively!
• Additionally, players can receive Wild Fragments from some Weekly and Daily Quests.
• Finally, we’re opening the option to spend Coins to unlock champions instead of Champion Fragments or Wild Fragments.

Don't forget to check out our dedicated Legends of Runeterra section for the latest news, guides, updates, esports coverage, and more.

Featured image courtesy of Riot Games.