League of Legends Patch 13.16 notes: Duskblade nerfs, lethality item buffs, more

Liam Ho
Prestige Immortal Journey Sona

League of Legends is gearing up for Patch 13.16, as this time several lethality items are receiving buffs whilst Duskblade of Drakthurr is getting nerfed. Many champions are also receiving buffs and nerfs in this patch. Here’s what to expect.

Once again Riot’s popular MOBA League of Legends is getting a new update in the form of Patch 13.16. This patch brings about several balance changes to champions and items, with the devs attempting to boost the power of several underperforming champions.

When does LoL Patch 13.16 go live?

League of Legends Patch 13.16 is expected to go live on August 16th, 2023, according to Riot’s patch schedule. Patch 13.16 will head to Oceanic servers first, with other servers slowly receiving it throughout the day.

Here are the key timings of Patch 13.16 for your server:

  • 3 AM PT (NA)
  • 5 AM GMT (EUW)
  • 3 AM CET (EUNE)
  • 8 AM KST (Korea)

There’ll be a few hours of downtime when patching begins, and matchmaking queues will be taken offline about three hours beforehand.

What’s changing in LoL Patch 13.16?

Soul Fighter Samira Splash Art
Samira is one of many champions that’s been building Duskblade.

Duskblade of Draktharr Nerfs, Lethality item buffs

Duskblade has become one of the premiere lethality mythics since its rework. Now allowing abilities to deal execution damage, the item has surged in popularity, even among champions outside of the assassin class. As such, Riot is looking to take down its power a bit to give other lethality items a chance to shine.

As a result of the nerfs to Duskblade, the AD assassin class takes a hit overall. The developers don’t think AD assassins need to be punished for other champions building their items, so they’re buffing less popular lethality items as a result. Items like Axiom Arc, Serpent’s Fang, and Prowler’s Claw are getting some love in Patch 13.16.

Pushing Champions toward other roles

There are a few changes in this patch that are meant to push champions toward other roles, whether in the form of buffs or nerfs.

Tristana’s getting her magic resist and base health nerfed, but she’s gaining some armor in exchange. In other words, they’re trying to push her out of being a first-pick mid laner and more toward bot lane. Shaco’s also getting the mana cost on his boxes nerfed to keep him from spamming them in lane in an effort to push him toward the jungle.

League of Legends Patch 13.16 early notes

Champions

Akali

Q: Five Point Strike

  • Base damage increased: 40/65/90/115/140 >>> 45/70/95/120/145
  • Energy cost reduced: 130/115/100/85/70 >>> 110/100/90/80/70

Brand

Passive: Blaze

  • Mana restore increased: 20 – 40 (based on level) >>> 30 – 50 (based on level)

Q: Sear

  • AP ratio increased: 55% >>> 65%

E: Conflagration

  • AP ratio increased: 45% >>> 55%

Caitlyn

Passive: Headshot

  • Number of stacks needed for headshot proc: 7 >>> 6

Ekko

Q: Timewinder

  • Initial base damage increased: 60/75/90/105/120 >>> 70/85/110/115/130
  • Slow increased: 32/39/46/53/60% >>> 40/45/50/55/60%

W: Parallel Convergence

  • Base shield increased: 70/90/110/130/150 >>> 100/120/140/160/180

Karma

Passive: Inner Flame

  • AP ratio increased: 40% >>> 50%

Q: Soulflare

  • Explosion AP ratio increased: 60% >>> 70%

R: Mantra

  • Cooldown reduced: 40/38/36/34 >>> 40/37/34/31

Lulu

Base Stats

  • Health growth increased: 88 >>> 92

Q: Glitterlance

  • AP ratio increased: 40% >>> 50%

E: Help, Pix!

  • Damage AP ratio increased: 40% >>> 50%

Malzahar

E: Malefic Visions

  • Damage tick rate: 0.5 >>> 0.25
  • Minion execute threshold: 15-45 (based on level) >>> 10-30 (based on level)

Milio

Q: Ultra Mega Fire Kick

  • Base damage changed: 90/135/180/225/270 >>> 80/145/210/275/340
  • AP ratio increased: 90% >>> 120%

E: Warm Hugs

  • Base shield increased: 60/80/100/120/140 (+25% AP) >>> 60/85/110/135/160 (+30% AP)

Naafiri

Base Stats

  • Base AD reduced: 57 >>> 55
  • Base armor reduced: 32 >>> 30
  • Base attack speed: 0.688 >>> 0.663

Nidalee

E: Swipe

  • Damage: 40% bonus AD scaling added

Rek’Sai

Q: Queen’s Wrath

  • REMOVED: No longer has a base damage of 21/27/33/39/45
  • AD ratio changed: 50% bonus AD at all ranks >>> 34/38/42/46/50% total AD

Shaco

Base Stats

  • Base mana regen reduced: 7.15 >>> 6

W: Jack in the Box

  • Mana cost increased: 50/55/60/65/70 >>> 70 at all ranks

Shyvana

W: Burnout

  • Damage per second: 20/32/45/57/70 (+30% bonus AD) >>> 20/30/40/50/60 (+20% bonus AD)
  • On-hit damage: 5/8/11.25/14.25/17.5 (+7.5% Bonus AD) >>> 5/7/9/11/13 (+5% Bonus AD)

Sylas

Base Stats

  • Base mana increased: 310 >>> 400

Tristana

Base Stats

  • Base health reduced: 670 >>> 640
  • Base armor increased: 26>>> 30
  • Armor growth increased: 4.2 >>> 4.5
  • Base MR reduced: 30 >>> 28

Wukong

Base Stats

  • Mana regen growth increased: 0.65 >>> 0.8

Q: Crushing Blow

  • Mana cost reduced: 40 >>> 20

W: Warrior Trickster

  • Mana cost reduced: 80/70/60/50/40 >>> 60/55/50/45/40

Items

Duskblade of Draktharr

  • Cooldown increased: 10 >>> 30 seconds
  • Nightstalker bonus damage reduced: 0-20% >>> 0-18%

Axiom Arc

  • Base ultimate cooldown refund increased: 5% >>> 10%

Serpent’s Fang

  • Lethality increased: 12 >>> 15

Prowler’s Claw

  • Cooldown reduced: 10 seconds >>> 5 seconds
  • Bonus AD ratio increased: 45% for melee and 30% for ranged >>> 55% for melee and 35% for ranged

Umbral Glaive

  • Lethality increased: 10 >>> 13

Skins

Immortal Journey Kayle

Immortal Journey Shyvana

Immortal Journey Zeri

Immortal Journey Sona

Immortal Journey Soraka

Immortal Journey Sona Prestige Edition