League of Legends: what's new?

This morning, Riot Games held a live broadcast, dedicated to League of Legends 10 Year Anniversary. The company announced several new projects in the game universe and in some brand new ones.

But let's check out what happened to League of Legends itself. A new champion, map changes and more.

Who is Senna?

Recently, Riot Games introduced a short video called Dark Passage, which shows the confrontation between the game's two characters: Lucian and Thresh. Many people have immediately concluded that this was a teaser for the new champion and that it would most likely be Lucian's wife, Senna. Yesterday, this theory was confirmed: Riot Games released a video with her presentation. It is not yet known what the gameplay will be like but given the promises of developers on the unconventional ADC, as well as what was seen in the video itself, we can conclude that it will be an ADC-support.

Ingame changes

League of Legends preseason is a time of dramatic change. This year, its name is "Rise of the Elements," and the main feature of the update will be, respectively,  Elemental Drakes — they will permanently transform the map right during the match.

• The Infernal Drake sunders the Rift, creating new pathways through buff camps and burning away their brush. In addition, the dragon pit itself becomes the Infernal Drake’s molten domain, crumbling the walls at the mouth of the pit. New paths make opportunities for a quick flank or sidestep that your opponent isn’t expecting.  

• The Ocean Drake brings new life to the Rift, causing existing brush to expand, fresh patches of brush to grow around the dragon pit, and the environment to flood with pools of water. In addition, Honeyfruit plants sprout up in each jungle quadrant. Sneak around the jungle or look for a new ambush opportunity.

• The Cloud Drake’s power spawns air currents flowing through the jungle and dragon pit, speeding up champions in the vicinity. Dodge skillshots or make a swift collapse on your enemies trying to sneak a far away objective.

• The Mountain Drake triggers a seismic shift throughout the Rift. Bluffs of rock erupt from the earth, making for some scary new choke points and ambush locations, most notably across the mouth of the dragon pit itself. Extra tight spaces give opportunities for big AOE wombos and create some interesting new hiding spots with fog of war.

In addition, buffs that the dragons give will also change. The Elder Dragon's buff now gives unimaginable power: if a champion with a low level of health begins to receive burning, they’ll be consumed by Elder Immolation which kills instantly. 

There will be more changes on the map, not only dragons to blame: the alcoves will appear on top and bot lanes, which can give more opportunities to beat opponents with the help of environmental elements.

There will be even more changes in the preseason, for example, items, champions balance and many other points. A complete list can be found here. 

Anniversary gifts

Riot Games has announced a special set of gifts for those who will play at least one game for ten days.

Daily valuable gifts will peak in the last two days: first, players will receive a random legendary skin, and then a special Annie skin — Annie-versary.

And moreover, due to the celebration of the decade of League of Legends, the original U.R.F. mode will be available — you will be able to pick and ban heroes there. 

The festival of LoL starts tomorrow!