Patch Preview
ADC durability rises while roaming supports lose easy gold
The full LoL Patch 26.16 preview is here, and the champion list undersells it. Azir, Gwen and Kennen get direct buffs. Bel'Veth, Camille and Poppy sit on the nerf side, while Nasus gets a lane-focused adjustment. The bigger story is systemic: almost every marksman gets more base magic resistance, support quest gold shifts back toward the bot lane, AP and tank junglers clear faster, and Riot is trying to break Sundered Sky's grip on fighter builds.
Patch 26.16 is scheduled to go live on August 12, 2026. These are the values in Riot's full preview. They are headed to PBE and can still change before release.
Champion Buffs in LoL Patch 26.16
- [Q] Conquering Sands base damage: 60/80/100/120/140 → 70/90/110/130/150
A flat 10 damage at every Q rank is deliberately boring, which is probably healthy for Azir. He gets more pressure before his item spikes without another rewrite of the champion. Press the Attack Azir has also been performing better than its pick rate suggests, so the Emperor may have two workable rune pages instead of one autopilot setup.
- [P] Healing from A Thousand Cuts: 50% of damage, capped at 10-25 (+6.5% AP) → 66% of damage, capped at 12-40 (+7% AP)
This is a top-lane sustain buff first and a teamfight buff second. Gwen still has to reach a target and keep cutting. When she does, converting two-thirds of passive damage into healing gives her more room to survive extended side-lane trades and front-to-back fights. The raised cap matters most once health bars and AP totals get large.
- [R] Slicing Maelstrom damage per bolt: 40/75/110 (+22.5% AP) → 40/80/120 (+25% AP)
- [R] Maximum damage: 300/562.5/825 (+168.75% AP) → 300/600/900 (+187.5% AP)
- [R] Bonus armor and magic resistance: 20/40/60 → 25/50/75
Rank one is mostly the same, but rank two and three Slicing Maelstrom become much scarier. The AP ratio climbs, the maximum damage jumps, and Kennen gets extra resists while standing in the worst possible place for a small yordle. He should still need a clean flank or Flash engage. He is simply less likely to explode before the storm does its job.
Champion Nerfs in LoL Patch 26.16
- Health growth: 110 → 105
- [R] True Form total attack speed increase: 5/15/25% → 6/13/20%
Bel'Veth loses 85 health by level 18 and five points of True Form attack speed at rank three. Her first ultimate rank gains one point, so the initial Herald or Void Coral spike survives. The target is the average-skill games where she gets rolling, reaches permanent True Form and turns every late fight into a blender demonstration.
- Base mana: 339 → 375
- [P] Shield maximum health ratio: 20% at all levels → 10/15/20/25% at levels 1/7/13/19
- [P] Cooldown: 18/14/10/6 seconds → 14/11/8 seconds at levels 1/7/13
- [W] Outer-cone maximum health damage: 6/6.5/7/7.5/8% → 7/7.5/8/8.5/9%
- [W] Cooldown: 15/14/13/12/11 → 12/11.5/11/10.5/10 seconds
Support Camille has been winning lanes through a brutal first trade, then leaving bot at level three to create chaos. A 10% max-health shield is far less forgiving than 20%. Top Camille gets more mana, a shorter W cooldown and more outer-cone damage to compensate. Late passive scaling also ends higher, but support games are decided long before level 19 turns up with a clipboard.
- Health regeneration per second: 1.6 → 1.8
- Base mana: 280 → 300, mana growth: 40 → 45
- Base attack damage: 60 → 56
- [Q] Bonus AD ratio: 100% → 75%, target maximum health ratio: 9% → 7/7.5/8/8.5/9%
- [Q] Slow: 20/25/30/35/40% → 20/23/26/29/32%, plus 8% per 1,000 bonus health
- [W] Bonus armor and magic resistance ratio: 12% → 16%, doubled below 40% health
The AD and early Q nerfs are aimed at support Poppy's ability to delete a carry after one wall stun. Top and tank jungle Poppy get better sustain, a larger mana pool and stronger bonus-resist scaling. Full-tank builds can also recover some slow strength through bonus health. Damage-heavy support builds get no such refund.
Champion Adjustment
- [Q] Stacks from basic enemies: 3 → 4
- [Q] Stacks from champions, large minions and large monsters: 12 → 10
Every ordinary lane minion is worth one more stack, so a patient top Nasus gets a meaningful reward from clean farming. Cannon minions drop from 12 to 10, and large jungle monsters do the same. Jungle Nasus should land close to power neutral while top Nasus walks away with more stacks from a normal wave. Yes, your jungler can still lose a camp to a dog with a spreadsheet.
System Changes in LoL Patch 26.16
Item, rune and jungle buffs
Sunfire Aegis
More champion burn damage, less monster scaling and a higher price.
- Immolate bonus health ratio: 1% → 1.5%
- Minion damage ratio: 160% → 150%, monster damage ratio: 200% → 180%
- Cost: 2,700 → 2,800 gold
Eclipse
The proc hits harder but protects you slightly less.
- Ever Rising Moon target maximum health damage: 6% melee / 4% ranged → 8% melee / 5% ranged
- Base shield: 160 melee / 80 ranged → 150 melee / 75 ranged
Tiamat
- Attack damage: 20 → 25
Spellslinger's Shoes
- Magic penetration: 18 → 20
Gunmetal Greaves
- Attack speed: 40% → 45%
Berserker's Greaves
- Attack speed: 25% → 30%
Jungle Pet
AP and tank jungle clears gain scaling, opening room for more magic-damage junglers beside AD mids.
- Monster damage AP ratio: 12% → 16%
- Bonus armor and magic resistance ratios: 20% → 25%
- Bonus health ratio: 3% → 4%
Fleet Footwork
- Base heal: 10-130 melee / 6-90 ranged → 15-160 melee / 9-96 ranged, scaling by level
Runaan's Hurricane
- Move speed: 4% → 5%
- Wind's Fury bolt AD ratio: 55% → 65%
Sterak's Gage
- The Claws That Catch bonus AD ratio: 45% of base AD → 50%
System nerfs
Sundered Sky
More health, much less missing-health healing. The final combine cost rises because Ruby Crystal leaves the build path.
- Health: 400 → 450
- Lightshield Strike base AD healing: 100% melee / 50% ranged → 90% melee / 45% ranged
- Missing-health healing: 6% → 4%
- Build path: Tunneler + Caulfield's Warhammer + Ruby Crystal + 500 gold → Tunneler + Caulfield's Warhammer + 900 gold
Chainlaced Crushers
- Magic resistance: 30 → 25
Support Role Quest
Supports earn the same gold faster by executing minions and less by poking champions or towers.
- World Atlas minion execute gold: 15 → 18
- World Atlas champion and tower damage gold: 22 melee / 20 ranged → 18
- Runic Compass minion execute gold: 20 → 21
- Runic Compass champion and tower damage gold: 24 melee / 22 ranged → 21
System adjustments
Hail of Blades
Melee champions lose early attack speed. The true-damage ratios scale harder with offensive stats.
- Bonus true damage: 4-20 (+8% bonus AD) (+6% AP) → 2-20 (+12% bonus AD) (+10% AP)
- Bonus attack speed: 120% melee / 60% ranged → 90% melee / 60% ranged
ADC Magic Resistance
Almost every marksman gets a stronger early buffer against bot-lane mages, with slightly less MR gained per level.
- Akshan, Aphelios, Ashe, Caitlyn, Corki, Draven, Ezreal, Graves, Jhin, Jinx, Kai'Sa, Kalista, Kindred, Kog'Maw, Lucian, Miss Fortune, Quinn, Samira, Senna, Sivir, Smolder, Twitch, Varus, Vayne, Xayah, Yunara and Zeri: base MR 30 → 33, MR growth 1.3 → 1.1
- Tristana: base MR 28 → 31, MR growth 1.3 → 1.1
Black Cleaver
A straight damage buff for melee users, with ranged champions losing half of Fervor's movement speed.
- Attack damage: 40 → 45
- Fervor bonus move speed: 20 for all users → 20 melee / 10 ranged
How LoL Patch 26.16 Plays Out
The first obvious winner is the standard marksman lane. Three extra base MR is a real level-one stat against Brand, Swain, Ziggs and the rest of the mage bot crew. The reduced growth means the change almost washes out late, but early lane is where the matchup feels miserable. Add stronger Berserker's Greaves, Gunmetal Greaves, Fleet Footwork and Runaan's Hurricane, and traditional ADC builds get several small reasons to come back. Check the live LoL tier list once the patch lands to see whether pick rates actually follow.
Support roaming gets a direct tax. World Atlas and Runic Compass pay less for hitting champions and towers, then return that gold through minion executes. You can still roam when the wave, matchup and objective call for it. Leaving at level three because pro players did it on stage becomes slower and more expensive. Camille and Poppy support also lose their sharpest early tools, while melee Hail of Blades drops from 120% to 90% bonus attack speed.
The jungle change may have the widest champion pool effect. The pet gains AP, resistance and bonus-health scaling, which helps AP carries and tanks without speeding up AD assassins. Diana, Ekko, Elise, Lillia, Amumu, Zac and other magic-damage junglers should all test faster clears. A stronger AP jungle makes AD mids easier to draft, which is why Berserker's Greaves also gets five attack speed.
Fighter builds should become less automatic. Sundered Sky still has 450 health, but its missing-health heal drops by a third and its base-AD heal falls too. Eclipse deals more damage but shields less. Sterak's Gage gains AD, Tiamat gains five AD, and Black Cleaver gains five AD while keeping the full movement speed only for melee users. Riot wants a choice between damage, durability and sticking power instead of Sundered Sky doing all three.
For top lane, Gwen and Kennen are the clearest risers. Nasus gets more Q value from ordinary waves. Camille and Poppy are more complicated: both lose early burst or protection, then receive lane sustain or tank scaling in return. Do not read the red arrow and assume either champion is dead. Their support variants are the main targets.
If you want to measure how the patch changes your own games, run a fresh MMR check after it settles. You can also browse the patch notes archive for the previous previews and live updates.
New patch, fresh account
Test the 26.16 meta on a smurf before you gamble your main's LP on day one.
Browse LoL SmurfsLoL Patch 26.16 FAQ
When does LoL Patch 26.16 come out?
LoL Patch 26.16 is scheduled for August 12, 2026. Riot can change patch dates, but that is the date on the official 2026 schedule.
Which champions are buffed in Patch 26.16?
Azir, Gwen and Kennen receive direct buffs in Patch 26.16. Azir gets more Q damage, Gwen heals more from her passive, and Kennen's ultimate gains damage and defenses.
Which champions are nerfed in Patch 26.16?
Bel'Veth, Camille and Poppy are listed for nerfs. Camille and Poppy also receive compensating changes aimed at keeping their top-lane and tank builds viable.
Are all ADCs getting more magic resistance?
Most marksmen gain 3 base magic resistance and lose 0.2 MR growth per level. This makes them tougher against magic damage early while keeping their late-game MR close to its current value.
How is support roaming changing in Patch 26.16?
The support quest pays more gold for executing minions and less for damaging champions or towers. This rewards staying near the bot wave and makes repeated early roams slower to complete.
Is Sundered Sky being nerfed?
Yes. Sundered Sky gains 50 health, but Lightshield Strike loses base-AD healing and its missing-health heal drops from 6% to 4%. Its final combine cost also rises after Ruby Crystal leaves the recipe.
