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League of Legends
League of Legends Patch 26.18 lands on Thursday, September 10, 2026 and marks the first real balance push toward Worlds 2026. Headlining the update: a deep adjustment to Cassiopeia, buffs for Ekko, Kassadin, Master Yi, Viego and Zaahen, several nerfs (Zeri, Seraphine, Syndra, Nautilus, Bard) and a small buff to Guinsoo's Rageblade. The values below come from Riot's official preview (Phroxzon) and stay provisional until the official patch notes drop on release day.
LoL Patch 26.18 at a glance
This is a focused patch with big implications: Riot is starting to tune the competitive meta ahead of Worlds, which affects both the ranked ladder and pro play. It ships on a Thursday (instead of the usual Wednesday), around 3 PM CT in North America. The theme: making AP-scaling mages more reliable again while reining in carries that grew too strong after recent item changes.
Buffs: Ekko and Kassadin scale harder
The patch's winners are mostly mid-lane mages and bruisers. Ekko gains waveclear and scaling, Kassadin sharpens his late-game burst, while Master Yi, Viego and Zaahen recover durability or consistency after earlier nerfs.
- Ekko — Timewinder (Q) : mana 50-90 ⇒ 40-80 · return AP ratio 60% ⇒ 70%
- Kassadin — Null Sphere (Q) : AP ratio 70% ⇒ 80% · Riftwalk (R) base 70/90/110 ⇒ 80/95/110
- Master Yi — armor growth 4.5 ⇒ 5 / level · Highlander (R) move speed 35-55% ⇒ 40-60%
- Viego — Sovereign’s Domination (passive) : heal +2% per 500 bonus HP (new) · AD growth 3.5 ⇒ 4
- Zaahen — The Darkin Glaive (Q) : Q on cooldown on resurrection · Q2 25/50/75/100/125 ⇒ 30/60/90/120/150
Nerfs: Zeri, Seraphine and Syndra get reined in
On the losing side, Riot targets overrepresented or frustrating champions. Zeri loses AD scaling on her W after benefiting from the Hurricane rework, Seraphine's damage roles are weakened through her E cooldown, and Syndra loses mana while gaining cooldown on her W.
- Bard — armor 34 (+5/lvl) ⇒ 32 (+4.7/lvl)
- Nautilus — AD 61 (+3.3/lvl) ⇒ 58 (+3.3/lvl) · Dredge Line (Q) 85-265 ⇒ 85-245 (+90% AP)
- Seraphine — Beat Drop (E) cooldown 11-9s ⇒ 11s
- Syndra — Splinters of Wrath (passive) mana 20-255 ⇒ 20-199 · Force of Will (W) cooldown 12-8s ⇒ 13-9s
- Zeri — Ultrashock Laser (W) +120% total AD ⇒ +100% total AD · wall damage +180% ⇒ +150% total AD
Cassiopeia: the patch's central adjustment
Too strong in pro play but underwhelming for the average player, Cassiopeia gets a power-neutral adjustment: Riot pulls power out of her early game (movement speed, base damage) and moves it into her AP ratios. The goal is to make her less reliable when you miss Qs in lane, but more rewarding when you build AP. The total ratio on her Twin Fang (E) stays unchanged at 65%.
- Serpentine Grace (passive) : move speed 6-40% ⇒ 5-35%
- Twin Fang (E) : mana 40 ⇒ 45 · base AP ratio 10% ⇒ 20% · enhanced AP ratio 55% ⇒ 45% (total unchanged 65%) · base damage 52-120 ⇒ 50-118
- Noxious Blast (Q) : 75-215 (+65% AP) ⇒ 65-205 (+75% AP)
- Petrifying Gaze (R) : 150/250/350 (+50% AP) ⇒ 125/225/325 (+75% AP)
Items: Guinsoo's Rageblade gets some power back
After Rageblade was re-scripted in 26.14 (Phantom Hit trigger moved from 6 to 7), Riot is giving some power back to the item and the champions hit hardest, like Master Yi. Seething Strike stack duration goes from 3 to 4 seconds, making the attack-speed buff easier to maintain.
- Guinsoo’s Rageblade — Seething Strike stack duration 3s ⇒ 4s
Caps Hall of Legends skins and the road to Worlds 2026
Patch 26.18 also brings the Caps Hall of Legends skin line, celebrating the Western GOAT, with a dedicated event and a premium signature Tristana. More importantly, it is the first patch to clearly steer balance toward Worlds 2026: expect further adjustments in 26.19 and the tournament patch before the meta locks in.
Patch 26.18 rewards players who adapt their pool to the meta. Use the pre-Worlds window to lock in one or two buffed champions and climb before the meta settles. To save time, check out ElevateBoost's League of Legends boosting - guaranteed rank, coaching available.
