LoL Patch 25.21 Preview Brings Midlane Overhaul, Yunara Buffs, & more

Riot Games has shared the preview details for League of Legends Patch 25.21, and this one looks quite focused on reshaping how the midlane feels to play. The patch tries to reduce the passive sustain that many players rely on and bring more skill-based fights back into the lane. Alongside that, there are a few champion buffs, nerfs, and item changes that together could shake up the game balance once again.

League of Legends Patch 25.21 Preview

The developers are turning their attention to sustain items like Doran’s Shield, Second Wind, and Catalyst of Aeons, aiming to lower their defensive power. The main goal seems to be to make midlane fights more engaging rather than simply healing through damage. Even though these items are getting nerfed, Catalyst should still remain a good choice for mages who need extra protection against early burst damage from assassins.

Image Credits: @RiotPhroxzon

Buffed Champions in League of Legends Patch 25.21

Several champions have been given improvements in this update, either to help them scale better or to make them slightly more impactful overall.

Bard – His W now heals more and gives a higher movement speed boost with AP scaling, making his support role a bit stronger.
Ezreal – Gets a minor bump in attack damage growth, which should help in late-game power.
Kalista – Her AD per level has been raised too, helping her stay competitive with other aggressive ADCs.
Yone – Receives a small base attack damage boost to strengthen early trades.
Yunara – Gets the biggest adjustment this time. Her W now deals more consistent damage, and her E no longer loses speed over time. However, her ultimate’s damage is slightly tuned down. There’s also a bug fix where her E speed was not dropping when moving away from enemies, which now works correctly.

Champions Facing Nerfs

A few popular champions are getting hit with nerfs, particularly those performing too well in recent patches.

Diana – Her passive’s monster damage has been slightly lowered to reduce her jungle speed.
Kog’Maw – His Q’s passive attack speed bonus drops a bit, making him a little less explosive.
Morgana – Has reduced armor growth, making her less tanky than before.
Qiyana – One of the biggest targets for nerfs, losing a bit of health growth and some bonus AD scaling on her Q.
Quinn – Gets lowered AD ratios on Q and ultimate damage scaling to tone down her burst potential.

Champion Adjustments and Reverts

Dr. Mundo – Gains a bit more armor growth but loses some E active bonus HP ratio.
Graves – Has his defensive stats changed significantly, with E now granting magic resist based on armor.
Gwen – Reverts to her earlier 25.05 version, keeping the adjusted armor and monster damage values.
Skarner – His new changes didn’t make it this time and are now pushed to Patch 25.22.

Item and Rune Tweaks

A number of popular starter items and runes are being rebalanced in this update too:

Catalyst of Aeons – Loses 50 base health, going from 350 to 300.
Second Wind – Now restores only 4% of missing health after taking damage, cutting out the old flat healing.
Doran’s Shield – Melee champions now heal slightly less after damage, which may make early poke lanes tougher.
Doran’s Blade – The life steal effect has been removed, replaced with a new passive that restores 2.5% of the damage dealt, though area attacks and pets heal for less.
Doran’s Ring – Gets new mana and health regeneration scaling, including a short-term boost in mana recovery when hitting enemy champions.

League of Legends Patch 25.21 Release Date

League of Legends Patch 25.21 is scheduled to release on October 22, 2025. Once live, these changes should make the midlane less about constant healing and more about outplaying opponents through mechanics and timing.