Riot Games Previews LoL Patch 13.17, Focuses on Durability

Riot Games previewed LoL Patch 13.17 on 21st August as it is preparing to be shipped onto the Public Beta Environment (PBE). The patch currently features a total of 19 champions who shall be getting balance changes. While the developers seem to be buffing certain mid-laners who have struggled over the last few patches, Riot Games is also keen on nerfing overpowered junglers.

Riot Games is also toning down champions who are "too good" at killing and are shifting them to build "durable" items.

Here's a closer look at every change planned for LoL Patch 13.17 as seen in the preview.

LoL Patch 13.17: Champion Buffs, Nerfs & Adjustments Listed

On 21st August, Lead Designer: League Balance Team & Preseason Matt Leung-Harrison aka Riot Phroxzon wrote on Twitter, "We're moving some champions off pure killing power builds and onto more durable [Aatrox, Hecarim, Vi, Xin] builds. We're also doing targeted adjustments to some champs who lost durability (eg. from Shieldbow moving from 1st to 3rd)."

Additionally, Phroxzon also gave more insights into the nerfs for junglers. He said Riot will continue to nerf some of the top junglers instead of buffing weak junglers up. He added, "We're pulling Blitzcrank's jungle mods out. It's been hard to make it viable and it's added complexity to an otherwise elegant champion."

Having said all this, Riot Games is clearly focusing on buffing struggling mid-laners since out of the nine champions who are listed for power upgrades, five are mid-lane mages. Here are the champion buffs in LoL Patch 13.17:

• Elise

• Gnar

• Lux (Mid)

• Orianna

• Samira

• Twisted Fate

• Tryndamere

• Vex

• Zoe

The champions listed for nerfs in LoL Patch 13.17 are as follows:

• Kayn

• Kha'Zix

• Kindred

• Naafiri

• Xerath (Support build)

The champion adjustments are for the following:

• Aatrox

• Blitzcrank

• Xin Zhao

• Vi

• Hecarim

System Buff & Nerfs in LoL Patch 13.17

For the upcoming LoL Patch 13.17, the only system buff is for Immortal Shieldbow, a legendary item that grants you a shield when your HP drops below a certain level (30% of max HP).

The system nerfs are for the following items:

• Bloodthrister

• Evenshroud

• Future's Market

• Statikk Shiv AP (Ability Power) ratio

Notably, LoL Patch 13.17 will be rolled out on 30th August and here are the key timings of the patch roll out for all regions:

• Oceania: 10 am AEST

• North America: 3 am PT

• Europe West: 5 am GMT 

• Europe Nordic and East: 3 am CET

• South Korea: 8 am KR 

The game will also be down for a while for maintenance before the patching begins.

With the end of LoL Patch 13.16, players will have to bid goodbye to the exciting and entertaining Arena mode in League of Legends. As previously mentioned by Riot Games developers, the mode will go into further development and the publisher may consider making it a permanent game mode in the future after listening to player feedback.