Swarm mode has been available for a while, and players have finally experienced the long-awaited PvE version of the game. With the launch of Swarm, we got to see what the developers’ take on Vampire Survivors looks like in League of Legends, and it has been a hit among players.

The mode features hordes of enemies and rogue-like upgrades that gradually make you stronger as you progress through each match. There is a lot to love about what Riot has introduced. The mode includes 4 different maps, each with unique bosses, a variety of champions to try out, and an upgrade system that makes the grind worthwhile.

These upgrades are essential if you want to tackle the more difficult levels. However, a newly discovered hidden feature might make things a bit easier, especially if you find yourself cornered by the Swarm.

YouTuber Vandiril discovered that the Swarm user interface (UI) still includes a recall button, and it is actually visible to the player. The recall feature allows you to channel for a short time before teleporting back to your starting point. In Swarm mode, this teleportation seems to bring you near the center of the Arena.

It appears that while Swarm’s UI has been modified to fit the new mode, it still contains elements from the original game’s UI, which is why the recall button is still present.

This feature is quite handy as it allows you to move quickly across the map. Additionally, if you find yourself trapped in a corner with no way out, recalling can be a great option to escape a difficult situation.

However, it is important to note that, just like in the regular League of Legends game, taking damage while recalling will interrupt the process. Therefore, make sure you either have an ally to assist you to keep enemies at bay while you recall.

League of Legends is no stranger to bugs, both big and small, and these glitches tend to surface especially with the release of new updates or champions. Recently, following the 14.14 update, the community discovered an amusing yet problematic bug.

For reasons not entirely understood, champions utilizing abilities like Ekko, Illao, and certain aspects of Rengar while targeting enemy structures such as Inhibitors or the Nexus, fail to execute their leap. Instead, these champions appear to attack from an extended range, resembling ranged champions.

This bug was thoroughly investigated and confirmed by Vandiril, a prominent content creator known for testing and showcasing it. He conducted an experiment with Ivern and Rengar, revealing that Rengar, even without using his ultimate, could attack the Nexus from within a brush, bypassing the usual melee range restrictions.

The extent of this bug’s impact is still uncertain. It’s unclear whether it affects only Ekko, Illaoi, and Rengar or if it applies to all champions with jump abilities and attack buffs. Nevertheless, this glitch provides significant advantages to these melee champions during late-game fights, allowing them to safely attack structures from a distance, much like ranged champions.

However, exploiting this bug requires the enemy to be pushed back to their Nexus turrets, limiting its impact in the early to mid-game stages. Thus, while it presents a notable advantage in certain situations, it doesn’t offer an overwhelming benefit for consistent rank climbing. Despite this, it is significant enough that Riot Games will need to address it promptly to maintain game balance and fairness.

In summary, this bug, although humorous at first glance, creates an unfair advantage for specific champions when attacking key enemy structures. Riot Games will likely prioritize a fix to ensure the gameplay consistency.

One of the game’s main developers, Riot Games’ August, believes LoL is in a less than ideal state for the current meta in League of Legends heavily favors Corki and Tristana in the mid lane for various reasons.

During a Twitch stream on June 6, August delved into the details of the current state of League, focusing particularly on the mid lane dominance of Tristana and Corki. He expressed concerns about the impact these two champions are having on the game. Although he believes they will likely be nerfed, he is not convinced that this will fully address the issue.

“Personally, I agree with you that Corki and Trist being in the meta is probably pretty rough and I don’t think the game looks like it’s in a great spot when those two AD Carries that are really safe are the ones you should be playing in mid lane,” 

While acknowledging that Corki and Tristana are not “optimal” for the current state of League, August also pointed out the difficulties in balancing the current meta due to other gameplay dynamics.

Like, AP junglers are currently very strong and popular, which August sees as positive for League. However, this popularity has increased the demand for AD-based mid laners to ensure teams have a diversified damage. Currently, Corki and Tristana are the best options.

August further explained that other mid laners, such as assassins, are not picked in the current meta because they are weaker and less suitable. He suggested that Corki and Tristana might simply be overpowered and in need of nerfs. However, he also proposed that making other AD champions viable could be a better solution.

“They might just need nerfs. But in a meta where you need to run a physical damage mid laner to account for your magic damage jungle, if there’s only two physical damage mid laners you can run, that’s going to look like these two characters are completely broken, “

Currently, both Tristana and Corki are extremely popular in high-ranked solo queue. In the 2024 LPL Summer Split so far, they have a 100% pick and ban rate, according to Oracle’s Elixir.

Fortunately for those tired of the current state of the mid lane, significant changes appear to be on the horizon. Riot Phroxzon has hinted at major adjustments for both Tristana and Corki, possibly coming as early as Patch 14.14.

The current meta of the summer professional arena can be sum in two ADC champions: Tristana and Corki, dominating the mid lane and leading to boredom for viewers.

This current season has seen an AD-centric mid-lane meta, with marksmen champions consistently appearing in this role and maintaining a very stable win rate. Specifically, Corki and Tristana stand out as the key marksmen in the mid lane, and teams are eager to secure one of these two champions.

Statistics from recent Summer tournaments highlight this trend, with Tristana and Corki boasting presence rates of 85% and 64% respectively. Their dominance is evident as they surpass other popular mid lane picks such as Taliyah or Leblanc, who have a presence rate of less than 45%. This clearly demonstrates that Corki and Tristana are exceptionally powerful picks, causing significant issues in the professional scene.

In summer regional tournaments, the LPL typically commences early, and as soon as LPL teams began heavily utilizing these champions, other regions quickly recognized their advantages.

Corki and Tristana offer reliable damage, strong laning phases, and flexibility, making them ideal choices in a meta that emphasizes mid lane and carry junglers. This understanding has led to their high presence rate in matches.

Riot Games has released 3 updates since the start of the summer tournament, but apart from a slight nerf to Corki (after his rework) to balance his damage, there have been minimal changes affecting these champions. Consequently, teams continue to use Corki and Tristana extensively in all matches during the Esports World Cup.

The community is growing tired of the lack of creativity in champion selection for carries, and there is hope that Riot Games will implement significant adjustments soon. It’s noteworthy that Tristana not only dominates the professional arena but also enjoys high popularity among regular players, yet Riot has maintained her status across several patches.

In contrast, during the Spring season, the meta focused on control mages, with Orianna and Azir being the top picks. This resulted in a more balanced champion presence, with various viable counterpicks, rather than the current scenario where teams feel forced to choose between just two champions.

The mid-lane meta revolving around only 2 champions is causing a sense of monotony in new tournaments like the Esports World Cup. It also indicates that the remainder of the summer tournaments may follow a similar pattern unless Riot Games introduces a significant update to shake up the meta.

Faker’s Concerns towards the LoL Esports

On June 25, T1, Faker’s team, released a video where various players discussed important topics. In this video, Faker emphasized the persistent issues of online DDoS attacks and personal harassment, which he feels Riot Games must address promptly.

In the video, he explained how online DDoS attacks and personal harassment continue to plague the esports scene. A DDoS attack is a malicious attempt to disrupt the normal traffic of a targeted server, service, or network by overwhelming the target with a flood of internet traffic.

In the context of esports, these attacks are intended to disconnect players from their ongoing games, causing significant disruptions. Faker stated, “Online streams and personal attacks still remain, and it’s crucial for these concerns to be addressed. If left unresolved, it could gradually undermine the value of esports.”

He did not go into extensive detail, but his comments suggest a broader implication: if these issues persist, professional players will find it increasingly difficult to test and refine their skills outside of official practice sessions.

Faker’s experiences with these issues are not unique. DDoS attacks have been a recurring problem since the early days of League of Legends’ esports scene, which began in earnest in 2011. These cyberattacks are often launched by individuals seeking entertainment or harboring grudges against professional players.

The T1 video quickly made its way to Reddit, where fans expressed their dismay over the ongoing issues. Many fans acknowledged the difficulty of completely eliminating online attacks with current technology, highlighting the need for more robust solutions.

League of Legends Swarm event

Story

Swarm will take League of Legends players back to the world of the Anima Squad skin line, placing them in a story-rich setting where humanity’s last stronghold, Final City, stands against a new threat: the Primordians. According to Riot Games, these sea-dwelling creatures act like the planet’s white blood cells, aiming to eradicate humanity. The members of the Anima Squad will fight back using re-engineered Primordian technology in an attempt to save the world from this threat.

Event Duration

The event will kick off with the release of Patch 14.14 on July 17. Riot Games is encouraging players to dive into this new mode instead of enjoying the warm summer days outside. While an official end date for the event hasn’t been announced, it is expected to last about a month, similar to previous summer events. Whether the mode will return in the future will depend on its popularity.

Gameplay

This game mode will differ significantly from the traditional combat style seen in Summoner’s Rift. One of the major differences will be the control scheme. Instead of moving with the mouse as usual, players will use the WASD keys, which is a familiar setup from other types of games.

Riot Games had to rethink the champions’ abilities to fit this new mode, focusing on movement and teamwork to succeed in clearing all the levels of Swarm.

Gameplay Style

In Swarm, players will face numerous enemies while defending their territory. The mode is essentially a Bullet Hell experience, meaning players will grow stronger each time they die, similar to the mechanics in ARAM. During each round, players can collect weapons and items, although these will only provide limited assistance in the early stages. After dying, players will continue to level up and can choose a bonus, becoming progressively stronger with each death.

Player Count

While Bullet Hell games are typically designed for a single player, League of Legends is fundamentally a team-based game. Therefore, players can choose to face the horde of enemies alone or team up with a group of up to four people. Playing in a group has its advantages, as teammates can revive each other at any time. However, for those seeking a greater challenge, tackling the mode solo is definitely an option worth considering.

Arcane Season 2

Arcane has introduced many viewers to the League of Legends universe. Season 1 attracted a large audience, turning many into fans of the franchise. Whether you’re familiar with the games or new to the universe, everyone has enjoyed Arcane.

However, like all good things, the series will conclude with Season 2. Riot Games has confirmed that this season will be the show’s last, as they had a specific ending in mind. The new sneak peeks and trailer highlight the ongoing conflict between Zaun and Piltover, which will be a central focus. How the season will wrap up remains largely speculative.

Although it is ending, this does not signal the end of the creative partnership between Netflix, Riot Games, and animation studio Fortiche. During a League of Legends Dev Update on June 11, Arcane’s co-showrunner Christian Linke confirmed that there will be more projects set in the League of Legends world of Runeterra in the future.

“Arcane is just the beginning of our larger storytelling journey and partnership with the wonderful animation studio that is Fortiche,”

The official trailer for Arcane Season 2 arrives just four days after an earlier teaser that hinted at new heroes, another possible time skip, and Vi’s new costume.

The latest trailer suggests that a war is brewing between the wealthy, progressive city of Piltover and the poorer, underbelly district known as Zaun. With Jinx now regarded as Piltover’s public enemy number one following her terrorist attack on the city’s council, everyone – including Vi’s new ally Caitlyn – is out for revenge.

It seems that Vi will reluctantly accept Caitlyn’s offer to join the hunt for Jinx, who is her sister, as one of Piltover’s new Wardens. This will likely test Vi’s loyalty to both her sister and her friend, who may also be a potential love interest, throughout much of Season 2.

Arcane Season 2 is set to premiere in November 2024 on Netflix.

Riot Games shared this new Arcane teaser trailer across multiple social media platforms. The teaser shows Vi standing next to Caitlyn, who is dressed in what seems to be an enforcer’s uniform. This outfit closely resembles her splash art in League of Legends, featuring a belt in the middle and a pink frill on the side.

While fans were quick to admire the new looks of Vi and Caitlyn in Arcane 2, another detail caught their attention. A girl with ginger hair standing to the right looks remarkably similar to Marcus’s daughter from the first season. This resemblance sets up a potentially intriguing storyline.

In the first season, Marcus’s daughter was depicted as a young child, but the girl in the teaser looks much older. This noticeable difference in age strongly suggests a significant timeskip. Such a timeskip could imply that Marcus’s daughter has grown up and possibly joined the enforcers, possibly seeking vengeance against Jinx, who killed her father on the bridge before her devastating fight with Ekko.

A timeskip is just one of many theories that fans are speculating about with each new sneak peek of season two. Another popular theory that gained traction earlier this year is that Vander could return as Warwick.

Fans have speculated that Vander, who was presumed dead, might have been transformed into the monstrous Warwick. Alongside these theories, there’s a growing list of all the League champions rumored to appear in season two.

Vi joining the enforcers, especially after the dramatic cliffhanger of the first season—where Jinx launched her rocket at the Piltover council⁠—raises many questions. This development suggests that the sisters did not reunite during the potential timeskip, and it appears likely that Vi is even leading the effort to capture Jinx.

With unresolved issues from the past and the shadow of Jinx’s actions looming large, the stakes are higher than ever. Arcane’s second season is scheduled to be released on Netflix in November.

Aurora was initially hinted at before the start of the 2024 League season. This new footage suggests she may be arriving in the game client shortly.

The video, shared on the SkinSpotlight YouTube channel, is an animated comic that explores the beginnings of the friendship between Ornn and Aurora. The narrative starts with Aurora approaching Ornn, seeking help.

Ornn provides the narration, describing Aurora as a quiet, unobtrusive, and curious Vastaya. Upon Aurora’s arrival at Hearth Home, Ornn forges a new, powerful artifact for her—a wand, which is likely connected to her in-game abilities.

With this new wand, Aurora casts a spell that opens a portal at the top of Ornn’s mountain, causing snowflakes and a few small poros to fall onto the formidable figure of the Forge Master. This scene gives League of Legends fans a sneak peek at her potential abilities.

Aurora is a Vastayan rabbit explorer from the Freljord region. Riot had previously teased her as a mid-range solo lane mage earlier in the year. According to those teasers, she has the ability to see things that others cannot, as evidenced by her special glasses.

As a mid-range solo lane mage, she is designed to be more whimsical and light-hearted compared to other champions in the League of Legends roster.

When Aurora was first hinted at, the game designers mentioned that she has a natural ability to see what others believe isn’t there. This could imply that she possesses a skill similar to a control ward.

Although Riot has not officially released her abilities, League players are already speculating about what new skills she might bring, including the possibility of her summoning a Haestryr—a companion much like Ornn’s ultimate ability.

While her exact release date remains unknown, the recent teasers suggest that her character might launch in the coming months. Based on the information available, it is estimated that she could be released around late June or July, possibly with Patch 14.13 on June 26, 2024, or Patch 14.14 on July 14, 2024.

Faker Hall of Legends: Ahri and Leblanc

Fans were initially thrilled by the image of a new Ahri skin dedicated to Faker, which featured two different, visually stunning versions.

This skin quickly generated a lot of enthusiasm due to its eye-catching design. However, the excitement reached new heights when it was revealed that Faker would be getting another skin in addition to Ahri—this time for LeBlanc.

The community discovered this additional skin by closely examining details in the event’s trailer. The first images of Faker’s LeBlanc skin have now been leaked, and they have been met with widespread acclaim.

The splash art for both the Ahri and LeBlanc skins was displayed at Faker’s congratulations exhibition, positioned alongside the T1 Mid Laner’s artwork. Both skins feature a striking color scheme of red, black, and gold, which has been highly praised by fans. Many believe that the LeBlanc skin, in particular, stands out even more than the Ahri skin.

Fans are eagerly anticipating the official release of these skins, which are designed to celebrate Faker’s contributions and achievements in the game.

According to leaks, the Ahri and LeBlanc skins will not be available for direct purchase. Instead, players will need to buy Battle Pass and complete quests to earn points, which can then be redeemed for the skins. Due to the prestige associated with Faker and the impressive design of these skins, it is expected that the cost of the Event Tickets and the effort required to obtain both skins will be quite high.

Overall, the release of these skins has generated a great deal of excitement and anticipation within the League of Legends community. Fans are eagerly looking forward to seeing the official images and learning more about the event’s launch date.