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LoL Patch 26.20 Brings Worlds 2026 Balance Changes, HEARTSTEEL 2026 Skins and Controversial Replay Update
Patch 26.20 for League of Legends is the update that will be used at Worlds 2026, bringing competitive-focused balance changes, item adjustments and a new restriction to the replay system.
Riot Games classified five champions as nerfs and another 11 as buffs. Ambessa, Ashe, Cassiopeia, K'Sante and Yunara are getting weaker, while champions such as Kennen, Kindred, Lillia, Lucian and Vayne are receiving buffs. The patch also adds more champions to League Classic and introduces the new HEARTSTEEL Live My Life skins.
When Does LoL Patch 26.20 Release?
LoL Patch 26.20 releases on October 7, 2026. Riot also confirmed the same date for the new skins and cosmetics included in the update.
Replays Become Private in Patch 26.20
One of the biggest system changes in Patch 26.20 affects replays. Starting with the update, players will only be able to access replays from matches they participated in.
Players will also no longer be able to download someone else's replay, while third-party apps and websites will lose access to replay downloads entirely. According to Riot, the change is intended to close security vulnerabilities that have been exploited to create unauthorized tools and cheats.
Players will still be able to download and watch their own replays directly through the League of Legends client. The decision has already sparked backlash from parts of the League community over the replay changes.
Champion Changes in LoL Patch 26.20
Buffs
Diana
- W: Pale Cascade: Shield Bonus Health Ratio increased from 11% to 14%.
Kennen
- E: Lightning Rush: Bonus Attack Speed increased from 40/50/60/70/80% to 50/60/70/80/90%.
Kindred
- W: Wolf's Frenzy: Monster Mod increased from 150% to 165%.
- E: Mounting Dread: Slow Duration increased from 1s to 1.5s.
- E: Mounting Dread: Small Monster Targeting removed.
Lillia
- R: Lilting Lullaby: Duration changed from 2.5s to 2.5/2.75/3s.
Lucian
- Attack Damage: increased from 60 + 2.5 per level to 60 + 2.9 per level.
Mordekaiser
- Q: Obliterate: scaling from levels 10 to 20 increased from +5 per level to +7 per level.
- R: Realm of Death: Cooldown reduced from 140/120/100s to 120/110/100s.
Neeko
- E: Tangle-Barbs: Base Damage increased from 70/105/140/175/210 (+65% AP) to 80/115/150/185/220 (+65% AP).
- E: Tangle-Barbs: Empowered Root Duration increased from 1.8/2.1/2.4/2.7/3s to 2/2.25/2.5/2.75/3s.
Smolder
- Passive: Dragon Practice, Super Scorcher: Bonus Magic Damage increased from 25-55% (+0-9% with IE) to 25-60% (+0-10.5% with IE) of Dragon Practice stacks, scaling with Critical Strike Chance.
- Passive: Dragon Practice, Flap Flap Flap: Bonus Magic Damage increased from 8-12.8% (+0-1.44% with IE) to 8-14% (+0-1.8% with IE) of Dragon Practice stacks, scaling with Critical Strike Chance.
- R: Mmooommmm!: Self Heal increased from 100/135/170 (+50% bonus AD) (+75% AP) to 100/175/250 (+75% bonus AD) (+75% AP).
Swain
- Base Magic Resistance: increased from 31 to 34.
- Base Armor: reduced from 25 to 23.
- W: Vision of Empire: Damage changed from 70/105/140/175/210 (+60% AP) to 70/115/160/205/250 (+60% AP).
- W: Vision of Empire: Cooldown reduced from 22/21/20/19/18s to 20/19/18/17/16s.
Tahm Kench
- Q: Tongue Lash: Base Healing increased from 10/13.75/17.5/21.25/25 to 10/20/30/40/50.
Vayne
- Health per 5: changed from 4 + 0.5 per level to 5.5 + 0.4 per level.
- Q: Tumble: Mana Cost changed from 46/42/38/34/30 to 30 at all ranks.
Nerfs
Ambessa
- Passive: Drakehound's Step: Damage reduced from 5-30 (+25% bonus AD) to 5-25 (+20% bonus AD).
Ashe
- Attack Damage per Level: reduced from 3.5 to 3.
Cassiopeia
- Base Health: reduced from 630 to 610.
- Base Mana: reduced from 480 to 450.
K'Sante
- W: Path Maker: Mana Cost increased from 40/45/50/55/60 to 45/50/55/60/65.
- W: Path Maker: Base/All-Out Damage Reduction reduced from 30/75% to 25/70%.
Yunara
- Q: Cultivation of Spirit: Passive On-Hit Damage reduced from 5/10/15/20/25 (+20% AP) to 3/8/13/18/23 (+20% AP).
- Q: Cultivation of Spirit: Active On-Hit Damage reduced from 5/10/15/20/25 (+20% AP) to 3/8/13/18/23 (+20% AP).
- W: Arc of Judgement: Slow no longer stacks with other slows.
Item and System Changes
Experimental Hexplate
- Ranged Mod: reduced from 70% of value, equal to 35% Attack Speed and 14% Move Speed, to 50% of value, equal to 25% Attack Speed and 10% Move Speed.
Hextech Rocketbelt
- Ability Haste: reduced from 20 to 10.
- Active Damage: increased from 100 (+10% AP) to 135 (+15% AP).
Runaan's Hurricane
- Attack Damage per Bolt: reduced from 65% to 60%.
Scoreboard Cleanup
Riot is also reducing the amount of temporary information displayed on item icons on the scoreboard. Counters will now be hidden for Death's Dance, Haunting Guise, Liandry's Torment, Riftmaker, Kraken Slayer, Terminus, Guinsoo's Rageblade, Fiendhunter Bolts, Echoes of Helia, Dead Man's Plate, Spear of Shojin, Overlord's Bloodmail, Hullbreaker, Jak'Sho the Protean and Force of Nature.
Strategically relevant information, such as stacks on Tear of the Goddess items and Mejai's Soulstealer, will remain visible.
New Champions Arrive in League Classic
Patch 26.20 adds five more champions to League Classic: Aatrox, Caitlyn, Irelia, Karma, and Quinn and Valor. These versions are taken from periods before the champions received their major reworks.
The update also includes more balance changes for champions already available in the mode.
Fiora
- W: Riposte: Bonus Attack Damage reduced from 15/20/25/30/35 to 10/15/20/25/30.
Graves
- Basic Attack and Critical Attack animations sped up.
- Base Attack Damage: reduced from 54.1 to 50.
- Attack Damage per Level: reduced from 3.1 to 2.5.
- Attack Speed per Level: reduced from 2.9% to 2.5%.
- R: Collateral Damage: Cone Damage reduced from 140/250/360 + 120% bonus AD to 140/230/320 + 100% bonus AD.
- Projectile Damage remains unchanged.
Fizz
- Q: Urchin Strike: Ability Power Ratio reduced from 60% to 40%.
- W: Seastone Trident: Active Ability Power Ratio reduced from 35% to 20%.
Kennen
- W: Electrical Surge: Passive Damage changed from 40/50/60/70/80% total AD to 25/40/55/70/85 + 100% bonus AD.
Nautilus
- Passive: Staggering Blow: fixed a bug where the empowered attack dealt too much damage on Critical Strikes.
- W: Titan's Wrath: fixed a bug where the Shield did not factor in Armor or Magic Resistance.
- W: Titan's Wrath: Damage over Time increased from 40/55/70/85/100 + 40% AP to 40/65/90/115/140 + 40% AP.
- W: Titan's Wrath: Shield Bonus Health Ratio increased from 10% to 15%.
- W: Titan's Wrath: Shield Duration increased from 9.75s to 10s.
League Classic Items
- Spirit Visage: Health per 5 increased from 4 to 20.
- Force of Nature: Health per 5 increased from 20 to 40.
- Warmog's Armor: Health per 5 increased from 10 to 30.
- Banshee's Veil: Stat Filter changed from Ability Power to Health.
ARAM: Mayhem Changes
Champions
Bard
- Meep: Ability Power Ratio increased from 50% to 67%.
- Meep: Recharge reduced from 8s to 5s.
- Meep: Auto Damage per Chime Breakpoint increased from 6 per 3 chimes to 10 per 3 chimes.
Garen
- Passive Regen: changed from 1.5%-1.01% to 2%-12%.
- W: Cooldown changed from 22-12 to 18-12.
- W: Shield Strength increased from 18% Bonus Health to 20% Bonus Health.
- W: Passive Stacks per minion kill increased from 0.4 to 0.75.
K'Sante
- W: Cooldown changed from 14-10 to 10.
- W: Damage Reduction increased from 30% to 45%.
- E: Shield Strength increased from 13.5% Bonus Health to 15% Bonus Health.
Lee Sin
- Passive: Bonus Attack Speed increased from 40% to 50%.
- Passive: Energy Restore increased from 20/30/40 to 30/40/50.
- W: Shield increased from 60-240 to 80-320.
- Q2: Damage increased from 60-180 to 80-240.
Swain
- Damage Taken: reduced from 105% to 100%.
- Healing: increased from 95% to 100%.
- Soul Fragments Restore: changed from 6% flat to 3%-6%, scaling with level.
Thresh
- Passive Soul Drop: increased from 2 to 3.
- W: Cooldown reduced from 21/20/19/18/17s to 19/18/17/16/15s.
Augments
Juiced
- Mana Drain removed.
- Damage-to-Mana Ratio: increased from 4.5% to 7%.
- New Ranged Mod of 80% of the 7%.
Leg Day
- Slow Resist: increased from 40% to 50%.
Missile Split
- The missile now splits when it reaches the end of its trajectory or is recast, rather than when it hits the first unit.
Shark Tempest
- Slow: increased from 30% for 3s to 40% for 3s.
- Base Area of Effect Damage: increased from 50-100 to 100-200.
- Attached Damage over 3s: increased from 75-225 + 0.6 bonus AD + 0.36 AP to 90-270 + 0.75 bonus AD + 0.45 AP.
Squishy Slappy Grab
- Cooldown: reduced from 35s to 30s.
- Damage: increased from 30-100 + 10% Bonus Health to 50-150 + 15% Bonus Health.
- Shield per Target: increased from 35-150 + 50% Bonus Armor + 50% Bonus Magic Resistance to 50-200 + 50% Bonus Armor + 50% Bonus Magic Resistance.
Tooth Fairy
- The damage check now uses pre-mitigation damage instead of post-mitigation damage.
Triggered Inferno
- Cooldown: reduced from 15s to 5s.
ARAM Changes
Bel'Veth
- Damage Dealt: reduced from 105% to 100%.
- Damage Taken: increased from 95% to 100%.
- Tenacity: reduced from 20% to 0%.
Locke
- Damage Dealt: increased from 105% to 115%.
Ranked 5s Queue Window Extended
Riot has also extended the queue window for Ranked 5s. Previously available from 4 PM to 2 AM, the queue will now remain open from 4 PM to 4 AM server time.
New Skins in LoL Patch 26.20
The new skins will be available on October 7, 2026. The patch introduces the HEARTSTEEL Live My Life skin line alongside two Prestige cosmetics.
- Prestige HEARTSTEEL Live My Life Sett;
- HEARTSTEEL Live My Life Ezreal;
- HEARTSTEEL Live My Life Kayn;
- HEARTSTEEL Live My Life Aphelios;
- HEARTSTEEL Live My Life Yone;
- HEARTSTEEL Live My Life K'Sante;
- Prestige Classic Baron Kog'Maw.
New Chromas
- SKT T1 Jax (Elite);
- SKT T1 Lee Sin (Elite);
- SKT T1 Vayne (Elite);
- SKT T1 Zyra (Elite);
- SKT T1 Zed (Elite);
- Prestige Classic Baron Kog'Maw (Vivid);
- Prestige HEARTSTEEL Live My Life Sett (Vivid);
- HEARTSTEEL Live My Life Ezreal, with Ruby, Sapphire, Catseye, Tanzanite, Rose Quartz, Obsidian, Pearl and Peridot chromas;
- HEARTSTEEL Live My Life Kayn, with Ruby, Rose Quartz, Catseye and Tanzanite chromas;
- HEARTSTEEL Live My Life Aphelios, with Ruby, Tanzanite, Pearl, Catseye, Peridot, Obsidian, Rose Quartz and Aquamarine chromas;
- HEARTSTEEL Live My Life Yone, with Ruby, Rose Quartz, Catseye, Pearl, Tanzanite, Sapphire, Emerald and Obsidian chromas;
- HEARTSTEEL Live My Life K'Sante, with Ruby, Sapphire, Turquoise, Tanzanite, Rose Quartz, Obsidian, Pearl and Catseye chromas.
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