Patch 26.19 Analysis — Champion Changes

League of Legends patch 26.19 rewards teams that can start fights cleanly and keep carries alive. The biggest winners are Aphelios and Lillia: Aphelios has stronger weapon uptime for damage and healing, and Lillia’s ultimate now sleeps for 2.5 seconds, which gives your team more time to follow up.

The patch also cuts back some of ranked’s most common jungle starts. Nocturne gets fewer ultimates per game, Vi is easier to punish early, and Poppy clears camps slower. On the buff side, Aatrox and Aurora are more reliable in longer fights, while Nasus needs more time before he can take over side lanes.

Biggest Buffs

Aphelios BUFF

Lillia BUFF

Aatrox BUFF

Aurora BUFF

Biggest Nerfs

Nocturne NERF

Vi NERF

Nasus NERF

Poppy NERF

What This Means for Ranked

Draft priority shifts in bot lane: If you play ADC, Aphelios is a safer ranked pick because he heals more with Severum and slows more reliably with Gravitum, so he survives teamfights more often while still dealing strong damage. If you want early kills instead, Draven has higher base attack damage, so his early trades hit harder when your support commits.

Jungle: pick more stable clears, ban fewer “press R” games: Nocturne has a longer ultimate cooldown, so you will get fewer gank and teamfight starts from Paranoia in the mid game. Vi also loses durability because her passive shield drops from 12% to 10% max health, so failed early fights cost more. If you want proactive jungle picks, Elise clears faster and hits harder early, and Kha'Zix has stronger first-hit damage for picks.

Solo lanes: longer fights favor specific champions: Aatrox gets his W more often and heals more from bonus health, so he is better in extended skirmishes after health items. Aurora has higher E damage and a longer early ultimate duration, so she controls lane better and has more time to win fights inside her R. Be cautious with Nasus: his Q now adds less bonus damage, so he trades worse early and reaches his threat point later. If you split push, Fiora is harder to kill later and heals more from her ultimate.

For the full details, read the patch notes at Riot's official website, and check the per-champion breakdowns on baronbuff.com/champions. If you are a Rumble, Ryze, Volibear, or Master Yi player, review your changes before you queue.

See you in the Rift — LP

Affected Champions

Aphelios BUFF Higher weapon damage, more healing, stronger slows

Lillia BUFF More early durability, longer sleep crowd control

Lucian ADJUST Weaker ally-bonus hits, stronger lane poke damage

Nocturne NERF Longer ultimate cooldown at all ranks

Rumble ADJUST Lower overheat attack speed, higher monster damage cap

Ryze ADJUST More scaling armor, weaker burst combo, higher spell cost

Vi NERF Less early damage, smaller shield durability

Aatrox BUFF More chain uptime, stronger healing scaling

Aurora BUFF More waveclear damage, longer ultimate zone time

Elise BUFF Faster clear, higher spider damage and speed

Fiora BUFF More scaling health, stronger ultimate healing

Kha'Zix BUFF Higher passive damage, better evolved utility and reach

Nasus NERF Lower early stacking damage per hit

Poppy NERF Lower max damage cap to monsters

Volibear BUFF Higher AP attack speed scaling, adds bonus AD on-hit damage

Draven BUFF Higher starting basic attack damage

Master Yi ADJUST Alpha Strike refund no longer reduced by haste

See how these changes affect your draft

Open Baron Buff for pick, ban, and matchup guidance based on the current patch.