Bel’Veth dominates League of Legends at launch as Riot prepares early nerfs

Andrew Amos
Battle Boss Bel'Veth in League of Legends

Riot are swooping in early to nerf new League of Legends champion Bel’Veth as the Empress of the Void slowly takes over the meta. With her winrate creeping up to 50% in high elo and smashing past all predictions, developers are toning back her whole kit.

Bel’Veth isn’t just corrupting the Void in League of Legends, but Summoner’s Rift too. The 160th champion was released last week, and the Void jungler is already dominating the meta at all ranks as a late-game scaling threat.

Bel’Veth’s win rate has just nudged above 50% in Platinum+ ranks just a week after her release, while at all ranks it’s sitting near 53%. In low elo, Bel’Veth’s win rate spikes as high as 55% ⁠— something which is alarming Riot given how sharp a rise it’s been.

The internal numbers, according to developer August ‘August’ Browning, paint a different and more dire picture.

“[Bel’Veth’s] win rate in skilled and elite play, despite starting at 37%, is starting to reach 50%,” he said. “Her average MMR win rate is 55%. All are still climbing by the day. That’s pretty strong for a champion who’s only been out 1 week.”

This has prompted Riot to shuffle through some nerfs to the Empress of the Void come LoL patch 12.12, due to release on June 22, 2022.

The first set of Bel’Veth nerfs will touch up every ability in the Void jungler’s kit but her W, Above and Below.

Her passive attack speed stacks will stop scaling at level 13, meaning she won’t be as potent in the late-game. This is complemented by scaling nerfs to her E damage later on, as well as early scaling changes to her ultimate to make it less powerful right out the gate at level 6.

However it’s not all bad news for newly-crowned Bel’Veth mains. Her early game is being buffed slightly with an increased base attack range that negates the ultimate nerf, as well as bonus attack speed scaling from her passive.

Bel'Veth side angle in league of legends cinematic
Bel’Veth’s late-game scaling is being nerfed while her early game remains power neutral.

More changes could be floated between now and the late-June patch depending on where Bel’Veth ends up as players continue building mastery on her. You can find the full details on the changes in our LoL patch 12.12 hub.

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About The Author

Hailing from Perth, Andrew was formerly Dexerto's Australian Managing Editor. They love telling stories across all games and esports, but they have a soft spot for League of Legends and Rainbow Six. Oh, and they're also fascinated by the rise of VTubers.