Huge Teemo buffs planned for upcoming League of Legends patch divides players

Captain Teemo is brushing off his uniform, as he’s certainly going to be on duty after League of Legends patch 11.21. A mega buff to his blind is on its way and it might catapult him into not just the top lane meta, but jungle too.

Teemo might not be getting a rework in League of Legends, but he’s certainly getting some big buffs.

Love him or hate him, the Swift Scout hasn’t really ever been a strong pick. A fan-favorite for sure, Teemo boasts an average 50.72% win rate in ranked as of League patch 11.20 with a 6.75% pick rate in his main role of top.

For the few times he’s popped up in the meta ⁠— never at high elo ⁠— he’s been quickly squashed.

Riot have been discreetly buffing him in Season 11 though, and the latest changes might tip him into the “broken” basket.

Teemo buffs in LoL patch 11.21 super-charge his blind

Teemo’s point-and-click Blinding Dart is the focus of League of Legends patch 11.21.

The blind’s cooldown is being dropped by one second at all ranks to seven seconds. The duration is also being increased by 0.5 seconds at all ranks ⁠— maxing out at three seconds ⁠— and the missile speed has been nearly doubled.

With 100 Ability Haste (50% CDR), you can basically ensure maximum uptime on Teemo’s blind, completely shutting down enemy carries.

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The change seems excessive. However, with all the different tenacity options in League of Legends nowadays, Riot have to give CC-reliant characters like Teemo a helping hand.

“Frankly there are a lot of tenacity choices in the system and QSS. Those are more valuable against Teemo now,” developer Phlox said on Reddit.

“Teemo should be quite powerful against auto attackers as the only true blind in the game and when the spell is limp and doesn’t counter them too well then it’s hardly filling its niche.”

It’s no longer just Mercury’s Treads for tenacity. Runes like Legend: Tenacity and Unflinching are accessible to nearly every champion. Silvermere Dawn and Sunfire Aegis also grants it.

Regardless, players have expressed concern about the changes. Challenger Teemo player ‘Alan234’ called the buff “too strong” ⁠— potentially even pushing Teemo into the jungle given the blind is twice as effective on monsters.

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However, Riot aren’t concerned about Teemo becoming too much of a threat to the meta.

“I really don’t think this pushes Teemo toward being a real hard counter. I don’t expect him to force dodges if there’s a Tryndamere on the other team,” Phlox added.

“If he does end up being such a counter that he’s really feeling like a true hard counter and it’s worthless to play against him as certain champions we’ll likely nerf him.”

You can find the full list of Teemo changes coming in LoL patch 11.21 below.

Teemo changes in LoL patch 11.21

Q: Blinding Dart

• Cooldown: 8 seconds >>> 7 seconds
• Blind duration: 1.5-2.5 seconds >>> 2-3 seconds
• Missile speed: 1500 >>> 2500