League of Legends launched Season 16 on January 8, 2026, with Patch 26.1 bringing the most significant champion balance changes in years. With base critical strike damage returning to 200% (up from 175%), Riot has adjusted over 30 champions to compensate for this massive power shift. Here’s your complete breakdown of every buff, nerf, and rework in the game’s biggest patch of 2026.
Table of Contents
League of Legends Champion Changes Overview
| Category | Champions Affected | Major Change Type |
|---|---|---|
| ADC Nerfs | Akshan, Aphelios, Ashe, Caitlyn, Draven, Jinx, Jhin, Lucian, Miss Fortune, Sivir, Tristana, Twitch, Varus, Xayah, Yasuo, Yone | Crit scaling reductions to compensate for 200% base crit |
| ADC Buffs | Cassiopeia (Rework), Kalista, Kog’Maw, Samira, Zeri | Base stat improvements, passive adjustments |
| Top Lane | Olaf (Buff), Tryndamere (Nerf), Viego (Nerf) | Role quest compensation adjustments |
| Jungle | Elise (Buff), Rek’Sai (Buff) | Monster damage scaling improvements |
| Other Roles | Camille (Nerf), Seraphine (Buff), Swain (Buff) | General balance updates |
All changes live as of January 8, 2026
The Crit Overhaul: Why So Many ADCs Got Changed
Riot’s philosophy for Patch 26.1 centers on one massive shift: critical strike damage returns to 200% from 175%. Additionally, Bot lane champions now unlock a seventh item slot exclusively for boots, meaning fully built ADCs have six legendary items PLUS boots.
These two factors combined would make ADCs overwhelmingly strong without compensation nerfs. Riot’s solution? Reduce ability crit scaling across the board while maintaining—or even improving—auto-attack damage. The goal is pushing ADCs toward being true auto-attack carries rather than ability-spam mages who happen to build crit.
mage Scaling
Previously, abilities either benefited fully from crit (1.75x/2.15x with Infinity Edge) or not at all. Patch 26.1 introduces “bonus crit damage” scaling, where abilities only receive a percentage of your extra crit effectiveness.
Example: If your ability has “50% of bonus crit damage,” and you own Infinity Edge (which adds 40% bonus crit damage):
- Base crit: 200%
- With IE: 240%
- Ability receives: 50% of that 40% bonus = 220% total crit damage on abilities
This system preserves the feel of critical strikes while preventing abilities from becoming more powerful than basic attacks.
Major ADC Changes Explained
Cassiopeia – The Anti-Boot Serpent
Passive Reworked: Cassiopeia no longer gains 4-72 flat movement speed and can actually buy boots now! Instead, her new passive increases the effectiveness of ALL movement speed buffs by 6-40% based on level.
This change might seem like a nerf initially, but it’s actually genius design. Cassiopeia can now purchase boots like Sorcerer’s Shoes or Ionian Boots of Lucidity, gaining their unique effects while her passive amplifies the movement speed component. Combined with items like Cosmic Drive or Rylai’s Crystal Scepter’s movement speed bonuses, she becomes incredibly mobile in teamfights.
Kalista – Finally Viable Again
Second Shot Crit Damage: Increased from 30% of bonus crit damage to 100% of bonus crit damage
Kalista’s second spear throw (from her Rend passive’s stored spears) now crits for full damage instead of pathetic 30% effectiveness. This single change might push Kalista from “troll pick” to legitimate competitive ADC, especially paired with the seventh item slot letting her build more aggressive crit items.
Kog’Maw – The True DPS King
W Damage: Increased from 5/25/45/65/85 + 80% total AD to 45/75/105/135/165 + 70% bonus AD
Kog’Maw’s Bio-Arcane Barrage now deals significantly more base damage at all ranks, though the AD scaling shifts from total to bonus. For traditional on-hit Kog builds, this is a substantial buff that makes him scarier in extended fights—exactly where he should excel.
Samira – Smoother Style Points
E Damage: Increased from 15/30/45/60/75 + 15% total AD to 8/16/24/32/40 + 25% total AD
While base damage drops, the AD ratio improvement means Samira’s Blade Whirl dash-attack scales better into late game. Combined with adjusted crit scaling (50% of bonus crit damage, capping at 1.5x/1.65x), Samira players need to land more auto-attacks between abilities—rewarding mechanical skill.
The Problem Children: Big Nerfs
Yasuo & Yone – Wind Brothers Grounded
Both received significant crit scaling reductions across multiple abilities. Their Q (Steel Tempest for Yasuo, Mortal Steel for Yone) now only benefits from 90% effectiveness of bonus crit damage (capping at 1.8x/2.07x instead of full 2.0x/2.3x).
Why it matters: These champions historically double-dipped on crit effectiveness due to their passive, getting 2x crit chance from items. With base crit returning to 200%, they’d become unstoppable without these compensations. Even with nerfs, they’ll still be strong—just not game-breaking.
Tryndamere – Late Game Scaling Adjusted
R Bonus AD: Changed from 5/10/15/20/25 + 0.15-0.55% missing HP to 0 + 0.2-0.8% missing HP
Tryndamere loses flat AD from his ultimate at early ranks but gains better scaling based on missing HP at later levels. The maximum bonus AD threshold increased from 0% HP to 10% HP, meaning he peaks slightly earlier in fights rather than waiting until literally one-hit-from-death.
Viego – No More Q Spam
Q Crit Scaling: Reduced from 1.75x/2.15x to 50% of bonus crit damage (1.5x/1.65x)
Viego’s Blade of the Ruined King active and his Q both had crit ratios slashed. This pushes him toward using his passive resets and body-hopping mechanics rather than simply spamming Q for massive crit damage. He’ll still be strong in teamfights but less oppressive in lane trades.
Non-ADC Changes Worth Noting
Camille – Precision Protocol Adjusted
Q Bonus AD per Mark: Reduced from 15 + 20% bonus AD to 15 + 10% bonus AD
Camille’s signature True Damage second Q proc now scales with half the previous bonus AD ratio. This specifically targets her ability to delete squishies with a single combo while keeping her dueling power intact for extended trades.
Elise – Monster Slayer Buff
Monster Damage Cap: Changed from flat 75/100/125/150/175 to 65/85/105/125/145 (+ 90% AP)
Elise previously hit damage caps against jungle monsters that prevented her AP from mattering in clears. Now her spider form abilities scale with AP when fighting camps, meaning building Ability Power actually improves clear speed—a critical buff for late-game relevance.
Seraphine – Support Scaling
Passive Rework: Gain stacks faster, with abilities consuming all stored notes for enhanced effects
While specific numbers weren’t fully detailed in leaks, Seraphine’s new passive encourages more active trading and ability combos. Support Seraphine players should see noticeable quality-of-life improvements when proccing her passive-enhanced abilities.
What This Means for Your Ranked Climb
Bot Lane: Expect traditional auto-attack ADCs like Jinx, Tristana, and Kog’Maw to dominate. Caster ADCs (Ezreal, Lucian) will still work but require more auto-attacks between abilities.
Mid Lane: Yasuo and Yone remain strong despite nerfs, but players must commit to extended fights rather than one-rotation kills. Cassiopeia’s rework makes her viable again with proper itemization.
Top Lane: Tryndamere and Camille need adjustment periods as their power curves shifted. Olaf received minor buffs (not fully detailed) positioning him better for the faster-paced Season 16 games.
Jungle: Elise and Rek’Sai become more viable as their scaling improved against monsters, addressing late-game irrelevance.
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FAQs
When did Patch 26.1 go live?
Patch 26.1 launched on January 8, 2026, at 12:00 PM local server time, marking the official start of Season 16 ranked play worldwide.
Why did so many ADCs get nerfed despite being weak?
ADCs received compensation nerfs because base crit damage increased from 175% to 200% AND they gain a seventh item slot for boots. Without ability scaling reductions, they’d one-shot everyone.
