League of Legends Patch 26.16 Hits Support Roaming and Expands Classic

League of Legends Patch 26.16 is reshaping some of the strategies that have recently defined the bot lane and jungle meta. Riot Games is making early support roaming more expensive, giving ADCs additional early Magic Resistance and adjusting jungle pets to improve conditions for AP and tank junglers.

The update also delivers the first major patch for League Classic. Akali, Kennen and Shen join the nostalgic mode alongside extensive champion, rune and system changes.

Riot takes aim at early support roaming

One of the biggest changes affects the Support Role Quest.

Riot says supports have increasingly started leaving bot lane extremely early and effectively operating as second junglers. The developer does not want to eliminate roaming as a strategy, but believes the current version has become too efficient when used as the default approach.

Patch 26.16 therefore increases the cost of abandoning bot lane early.

The key support changes are:

• Champion and turret damage now provide less favorable quest progression
• Minion last-hitting becomes more competitive for quest progression
• Gold and XP penalties outside bot lane increase from 25% to 33% and now remain active until level five

Camille is also being addressed directly after becoming one of the standout champions in the roaming-support meta. Her early passive shield becomes weaker, while Riot compensates with lower cooldowns and stronger repeat trading intended to preserve her position in top lane.

The goal is not to remove roaming supports, but to make leaving the ADC behind during the opening levels a meaningful strategic tradeoff again.

ADCs get more protection against bot-lane mages

Riot is simultaneously addressing another bot-lane trend: the increasing strength of mages.

A large group of traditional marksmen will now start with 33 Magic Resistance instead of 30, while their MR gained per level falls slightly. Tristana receives an even larger early adjustment, moving from 28 starting MR to 33.

This shifts defensive power toward the early game without significantly increasing late-game durability.

Area	Patch 26.16 direction	Intended effect
Support Quest	Stronger roaming penalties	Keep supports involved in lane
ADC Magic Resistance	Higher early MR	Reduce mage dominance
Jungle Pets	Better AP/tank scaling	Diversify jungle picks
League Classic	Three champions added	Expand the Classic roster

The adjustment is particularly relevant because Riot says bot-lane mages have become prominent in both professional and regular play.

Jungle pets favor more AP and tank picks

Jungle diversity is another major target.

Riot believes AD fighters have become too central to the current jungle meta, with Sundered Sky users occupying significant space in the role. Patch 26.16 therefore increases how strongly jungle pets scale with Ability Power, Armor, Magic Resistance and bonus Health.

AP scaling rises from 12% to 16%, while Armor and Magic Resistance scaling increase from 20% to 25%. Bonus Health scaling moves from 3% to 4%.

The changes do not directly nerf AD junglers. Instead, Riot is attempting to improve the relative efficiency of alternative archetypes.

Several champions also receive individual adjustments. Azir’s Q gains more base damage to strengthen his lane, while Gwen receives improved healing through her passive. Kennen’s ultimate becomes more powerful, especially when he finds successful teamfight flanks.

Bel’Veth moves in the opposite direction. Riot is reducing some of her late-game scaling after determining that her power curve was becoming too strong across multiple skill brackets.

Akali, Kennen and Shen arrive in League Classic

Patch 26.16 is also a substantial update for League Classic.

The mode receives three returning champions based on their historical designs: Akali, Kennen and Shen. Their older ability kits differ significantly from the modern versions available on the standard Summoner’s Rift.

Players returning to the Classic mode will encounter several familiar mechanics:

• Akali returns with her old Mark of the Assassin and charge-based Shadow Dance
• Kennen once again revolves around stacking Mark of the Storm for stuns
• Shen uses Vorpal Blade while retaining his global Stand United ultimate

The additions are accompanied by new Classic runes, including options for Energy, Energy regeneration and additional Ability Power.

That is particularly relevant for the three incoming ninjas because Akali, Kennen and Shen all rely on Energy instead of Mana.

Classic economy and balance also change

Riot is not limiting the Classic update to champions.

Passive gold generation now begins later, but the amount generated over time increases. At the same time, melee and ranged minions each provide one less gold.

The intention is to slightly raise the economic floor without heavily increasing total gold across matches.

Early Homeguards are also being removed after players argued that the mechanic felt too modern for the Classic experience. Homeguards will instead activate after 15 minutes, while early death timers become slightly shorter to prevent a single early death from deciding an entire lane.

Regular jungle monsters gain increased health scaling in the mid and late game, while Riot is also modifying turrets and a lengthy list of Classic champions.

Among the notable balance targets are Blitzcrank, Heimerdinger and Janna, while Dr. Mundo and Garen receive buffs.

Assessment

Patch 26.16 is less about one dramatic champion overhaul and more about changing the incentives behind several emerging strategies.

The Support Role Quest adjustment could have the largest immediate influence. If roaming becomes sufficiently expensive before level five, bot lanes may return toward more traditional two-versus-two play during the opening minutes.

Additional Magic Resistance for ADCs supports the same direction by making mage lanes less oppressive early without removing them as viable alternatives.

The jungle-pet changes are more experimental. Stronger AP and tank scaling creates better conditions for different jungle archetypes, but whether that is enough to reduce the dominance of AD fighters will depend on how players adapt.

League Classic, meanwhile, receives the more visible content expansion. Akali, Kennen and Shen significantly increase its champion pool while reinforcing Riot’s attempt to reproduce older League systems without freezing the mode permanently in its launch state.

Patch 26.16 therefore attacks the modern meta and expands the nostalgic one at the same time, giving both versions of League meaningful changes to explore.