League of Legends Patch Notes 26.02 Preview: Is the game faster in the new season?

Now that the new season has been out for a bit, it’s time to turn our attention to the upcoming update, the League of Legends Patch Notes 26.02.

League of Legends Patch Notes 26.02 – Adjustments to crit damage users

The new season came with lots of new changes. Aside from the removal of Atakhan and Feats of Strength, the 2026 season’s biggest change is without a doubt the introduction of Role Quests. After a week in the live servers, we can easily say that the power between roles has greatly shifted compared to the previous season, with top laners and ADCs seemingly having a much higher agency in the games.

While this is the general feeling of playing the game, Riot Games game designer Matt ‘Phroxzon’ Leung-Harrison has been more cautious with his impressions: “No role is so out of line [that] it demands immediate action,” he said in one of his latest posts on X.

Phroxzon also explained that the snowballing is not higher compared to the previous season and that the game times are slightly longer in every region. He added that the game might “feel faster,” likely due to less downtime and the Crystalline Overgrowth Turrets making progress feel more immediate. While there are no plans to change snowballing or game length for now, the Riot team will continue to monitor the game state.

The Rioter also touched on the vision control game with the Faelights. While there are no changes in 16.2, the team is having active discussions for 16.3, particularly around how vision impacts early jungle ganks. The game devs will, however, wait to see how pro play unfolds.

For now, the upcoming Patch 26.02 will come with several champion changes as well as a few tweaks on the newer items. You can find all the changes in the section below.

When will LoL Patch 26.02 be released?

The official patch schedule for the 2026 season is set to reach the live servers on January 22, 2026. Compared to the usual release on Wednesday, this update will be on Thursday.

What are the most impactful changes in Patch Notes 26.02? 

Now that we have the numbers from the preview, we can csay that we might get to see a major jungle meta shift going into the new patch.

While some of the best champions are set to stay in high priority, champions like Malphite and Gwen have been hit and will likely lower their presence, especially in the jungle.

The Zed nerf also seems quite high and I’m concerned it will completely remove him from the meta.

The patch also comes with many ADC changes, so keep an eye out for how it shifts. Varus got a pretty good buff, and scaling champions like Sivir and Smolder are getting slightly tuned down early on, making them more easily punished.

League of Legends Patch Notes 26.02 Preview

Champion Changes

Aatrox

• Passive bonus damage scaling: 4% – 8% ⇒ 4% – 12%
• Q monster bonus damage: +15 ⇒ +25

Ashe

• AD growth: 3.0 ⇒ 3.5 (+9 AD at level 18)

Draven

• Q Spinning Axe bonus damage now applies correctly

Gwen (Jungle)

• Passive monster cap: 5 + 10% AP ⇒ 3 + 5% AP

Jayce (Jungle)

• Q bonus damage to monsters: 50 ⇒ 25

Lillia

• Passive monster heal: 39 + 15% AP ⇒ 39 + 9% AP
• Q damage: 35 – 75 + 35% AP ⇒ 35 – 75 + 30% AP

Malphite

• E damage: 80 – 240 + 40% total armor + 60% AP ⇒ 60 – 200 + 40% total armor + 60% AP
• E cost: 50 ⇒ 50 – 70
• W monster modifier: 2x ⇒ 1.8x
• R cooldown: 130/105/80 ⇒ 130/115/100

Master Yi

• Armor growth: 4.2 ⇒ 4.5
• Q on-hit mid: 65% ⇒ 75%

Nunu & Willump

• Q cooldown: 12 – 8 seconds ⇒ 13 – 9 seconds
• W max damage: 180 – 360 ⇒ 150 – 330
• E damage per hit (up to 9x): 16 – 48 + 15% ⇒ 14 – 42 + 12%

Sivir

• Armor growth: 4.45 ⇒ 4.0
• AS growth: 2% ⇒ 1.6%

Smolder

• Armor growth: 4.7 ⇒ 4.0

Taliyah (Jungle)

• Q bonus monster damage: 20 ⇒ 20 – 40
• E monster mod: 1.9x ⇒ 2.25x

Trundle (removed)

Varus

• Q max base damage: 80 – 360 ⇒ 80 – 400
• W on-hit damage: 6 – 38 ⇒ 8 – 44

Viego

• AS growth: 2.25% ⇒ 2.75%
• Q on-hit crit ratio: 50% ⇒ 70%
• Q active crit ratio: 50% ⇒ 60%

Zed (Jungle)

• Passive monster modifier: 1.8x ⇒ 1.2x

System Changes

Bandlepipes 

• Cost: 2000 gold ⇒ 2300 gold

Fiendhunter Bolts

• Attack Speed: 40% ⇒ 45%
• Opening Barrage: Guaranteed Critical Strike Damage increased 150% (+15% with Infinity Edge) ⇒ 160% (+18% with Infinity Edge)
• Bonus true damage ratio when already a Critical Strike: 10% ⇒ 15%

Hexoptics C44

• AD: 50 ⇒ 55
• Magnification bonus damage distance condensed 0-10% (based on distance to target 0-700, linear) ⇒ 0-10% (based on distance to target 0-600, linear)

New Skins

• Revenant Reign Viego
• Aegis Frame Galio – 1820 RP
• Aegis Frame Ornn – 1350 RP
• Battle Academia Briar – 1350 RP
• Battle Professor Samira – 1350 RP