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Shurima and Aphelios Are Coming to Legends of Runeterra!

Shurima and Aphelios are coming to Legends of Runeterra in February and March, respectively! Riot’s “2021 Season” livestream was... | 9. January 2021

Shurima and Aphelios are coming to Legends of Runeterra in February and March, respectively! Riot’s “2021 Season” livestream was packed to the gills with information, so we’ve got a metric ton of stuff to cover! Heck, maybe that’s even an understatement!

And, of course, if you want to watch the whole event yourself, you can do so down below:

Legends of Runeterra | Full Aphelios Reveal

First of all, Aphelios will be joining the ever-growing LoR champion roster this February! He’s not exactly the first champ that comes to mind when someone says “Legends of Runeterra,” but he’s not a bad addition either. It all comes down to personal preference. In any case, his ties (lore-wise) with the Lunari will surely empower the Targon archetype in all the right ways.

His release will also be accompanied with a “single-player Legends lab,” a Champion Expansion Deck Bundle, multiple Lunar cosmetics, and yet another seasonal tournament. As for Aphelios himself, there are numerous aspects of his kit that we need to go over.

He’s a 3 mana champion from Targon with 3 | 3 and the Nightfall passive. Once activated, you’ll be able to pick a Moon Weapon to create in hand. Once you’ve activated two other cards in a round, you’ll be able to create a phased Moon weapon in hand if you don’t already have one. To level him up, you’ll need to cast 4+ Moon Weapons.

Once leveled up, Aphelios will gain the Quick Attack keyword and have slightly improved stats at 4 | 4. His Nightfall passive will still remain (along with his weapon-based component), but now your phased Moon Weapons will cost 1 less mana.

Moon Weapons Galore

His Moon Weapons, however, are where things get a lot more interesting.

All of them are 2 mana Slow spells that’ll certainly come in handy.

  • Calibrum” deals 3 damate to an enemy target and phases either “Severum” or “Gravitum.”
  • Severum” gives an ally unit +1 | +2 along with Lifesteal for the remainder of the round. It’ll also phase “Gravitum” or “Infernum.”
  • Gravitum” can stun an enemy target. If it’s a follower, that target will be stunned once again at the start of next round. It’ll also phase either “Infernum” or “Crescendum.”
  • Infernum” gives an ally unit +2 | +1 and Overwhelm for the remainder of the round, and phases “Crescendum” or “Calibrum.”
  • Crescendum” summons a 2 mana follower from your deck. If that unit has the Nightfall passive, it’ll be activated by default. Finally, it’ll phase “Calibrum” or “Severum.”

If you’re scratching your head right now in confusion, know that you’re not in the minority. This sounds about as convoluted as Aphelios’ ability kit in the full-fledged game. And that’s not necessarily a good thing. Still, these are all quite potent spells, and they’re pretty darn cheap, too! Especially if you can level Aphelios up and lower their mana cost.

Finally, his sister, Moon Seer Alune, can help Aphelios in the heat of battle. “Gifts from Beyond” is a 2 mana Burst spell that’ll create any Moon Weapon of your choice in hand. Quite a handy (no pun intended) tool if you’re looking for a specific weapon. It’ll be interesting to see which champions Aphelios will best synergize with, and how big of an impact he’ll have on the meta.

Legends of Runeterra | 2021 Roadmap

If you’re not elated about Aphelios’ release, then you’re in luck: there’s a ton of other stuff for us to go over as well! This includes a surprisingly thorough (and quite exciting) roadmap for 2021!

The Shurima-based set will, as expected, be comprised of three separate expansions. The first one is called “Empires of the Ascended” and is scheduled for release in March. That’ll be our first foray into Shurima and you can expect the stands bells and whistles, too — cosmetics, bundles, event passes, and the start of a brand-new ranked season! We’re also getting Champion Mastery as well, and it’ll function exactly as it does in regular old League of Legends.

The second expansion, called “Guardians of the Ancient,” will come out in May, accompanied with a new themed event, champion skins, and a slew of exciting new cards. The third and final Shurima-based expansion is called “Rise of the Underworlds” and is scheduled for release in June.

Finally, we’ll get a brand-new champion expansion (much like the Aphelios one) in July. There’s still no telling which champion will get the nod, but we’ll surely find out over the coming weeks and months.

In any case, Riot delivered big time with yesterday’s live stream! The LoR team is obviously working around the clock to deliver on all fronts, and we can’t wait to see what they have in store!