League of Legends patch 11.8 notes – New Champion Gwen, Dragonslayer, Blackfrost skins

April 14, 2021 – Patch 11.8 is headed to live! Check out the League of Legends patch 11.9 notes to see what's coming next

What a week for League of Legends patch 11.7 on live servers. And, we've got a brand-new champion on the way: Gwen, the Hallowed Seamstress, who will make her debut with the incoming patch 11.8. Speaking of which, League's next big patch is now hitting the PBE, so let's take a look at what's coming.

First up, League's newest face. Gwen is a former doll from The Shadow Isles, lovingly crafted by her maker, who is now gone. Brought to life by powerful magic and imbued with the essence of her creator, Gwen has taken up the tools used to make her – scissors, needles, and thread – which she transforms into spectral weapons using her powers to fight for those who need help across Runeterra. You can check out her abilities, stats, splash art, skins, and a gameplay preview in Gwen's section of the notes below.

Alongside the multiplayer game's latest addition, we've got several new skins coming with patch 11.8, too. Gwen's Space Groove skin – which was revealed earlier this week – has hit the PBE, along with Blackfrost skins for Sion and Vel'Koz, and Dragonslayer skins for Galio, Kayle, and Twitch. You can get a look at all of these below.

Plus, as discussed by Riot recently, Rammus, the Armordillo, is getting a small update soon, and it's up for testing on the PBE now. You can see what's getting tweaked in the champion changes section below.

Without further ado, here are the tentative League of Legends patch 11.8 notes based on what's on the PBE right now (cheers, Surrenderat20!):

LEAGUE OF LEGENDS PATCH 11.8 RELEASE DATE AND DOWNTIME

According to the League of Legends 2021 patch schedule, League of Legends patch 11.8 is due to go live on Wednesday, April 14, 2021. Maintenance times have now been confirmed, and will begin at 3am PT for NA servers, 5am UK time for EUW servers, and 3am CET for EUNE servers, and last for approximately three hours.

New Champion – Gwen

Gwen, the Hallowed Seamstress

GWEN – STATS

Base health – 550
Health regeneration – 7
Health per level – 90
Health regeneration per level – 0.11
Base mana – 330
Mana per level: 40
Base armour – 37
Armour per level – 4
Base movement speed – 340
Attack speed per level – 2.25
Base magic resistance – 32
Magic resistance per level – 1.25
Base attack damage – 63
Attack damage per level – 3
Attack range – 150

GWEN – ABILITIES

IVE – A THOUSAND CUTS

"Gwen's Attacks deal an additional (1% + 0.008% AP) Max Health magic damage on hit. Gwen recovers health equal to 70% of the damage this Ability deals to champions.
Max damage to monsters: [10 +25% AP]. Deals [8-30] bonus damage to minions below 40% health."

ive – Thousand Cuts

Gwen's basic attacks deal bonus on-hit magic damage based on a percentage of her health. Basic attacks against champions will heal her for some of the damage dealt. pic.twitter.com/zIEJe3imeD

— League of Legends // UK, IE & Nordics (@LoLUKN) March 30, 2021

Q – SNIP SNIP!

Mana cost – 40
Cooldown – 6.5/5.75/5/4.25/3.5 seconds

"ive: Gwen gains 1 stack when she hits an enemy with an attack (max 4, lasts 6 seconds).
Active: Consumes stacks. Gwen snips once for [8/10.75/13.5/16.25/19 +5% AP] magic damage, snips again for each ammo consumed, and then snips an final time for [40/53.75/67.5/81.25/95 +25% AP] magic damage.
The centre of each strikes deals true damage instead and applies A Thousand Cuts to enemies hit.

Q – Snip Snip!

Gwen rapidly snips her scissors between two and six times, dealing magic damage in a cone. At a minimum, Gwen will snip twice, adding one snip per basic attack Gwen has landed on an enemy (up to four for a total of six)! pic.twitter.com/4YKzneVtA3

— League of Legends // UK, IE & Nordics (@LoLUKN) March 30, 2021

W – HALLOWED MIST

Mana cost – 60
Cooldown – 22/20/18/16/14 seconds

"Gwen summons the Hallowed Mist, making her untargetable to all enemies (except towers) outside of the zone for 5 seconds or until she leaves it. While in the Mist, Gwen gains [20 + 5% AP] Armor and Magic Resist.
Gwen can Recast this ability once to call the Mist to her. This will automatically Recast the first time Gwen attempts to leave the zone. "

W – Hallowed Mist

Gwen spins up the Hallowed Mist to surround her for five seconds, gaining some armor and magic resist when in it. Enemies outside the Mist cannot target Gwen or hit her with any abilities. The mist will move to follow Gwen the first time she tries to leave it! pic.twitter.com/Vh9l3gCscQ

— League of Legends // UK, IE & Nordics (@LoLUKN) March 30, 2021

E – SKIP N' SLASH

Mana cost – 35
Cooldown – 13/12/11/10/9 seconds

"Gwen dashes and empowers her Attacks for 4 seconds.
Empowered Attacks gain 40/50/60/70/80% Attack Speed, [10 +8% AP] on hit magic damage, 100 range, and the first one to hit an enemy refunds 50% of this Ability's Cooldown."

E – Skip 'n Slash

Gwen dashes a short distance and empowers her attacks with increased range, speed, and on-hit magic damage for four seconds. Attacking an enemy during this time refunds 50% of this ability's cooldown. pic.twitter.com/vCUAggxzLL

— League of Legends // UK, IE & Nordics (@LoLUKN) March 30, 2021

R – NEEDLEWORK

Mana cost – 100
Cooldown – 120/100/80 seconds

"First Cast: Hurl a needle that deals [30/55/80 +8% AP] magic damage, Slows by 40/50/60% for 1.5 seconds, and applies A Thousand Cuts to all enemies. If Gwen hits an enemy with an Attack or Ability within 6 seconds of casting this, she can Recast it (up to 2 additional times.)
Second Cast: Fire three needles to deal [60/150/240 +24% AP] magic damage
Third Cast: Fire five needles to deal [100/250/400 +40% AP] magic damage
Subsequent needle hits on the same unit slow by 15/20/25% instead.
Max damage: [180/450/720 +72% AP], plus [9x base damage + 9% +.072% AP]% max health damage from A Thousand Cuts."

R – Needlework

Gwen can cast Needlework up to three times, but needs to hit an enemy within 8 seconds to unlock each subsequent cast. Each cast fires needles in a line that deal magic damage, slow enemies, and apply Gwen's Thousand Cuts bonus magic damage. pic.twitter.com/se9X2j2HyN

— League of Legends // UK, IE & Nordics (@LoLUKN) March 30, 2021

GWEN VO, LORE, AND GAMEPLAY

Here's Gwen's VO:

And here's a gameplay preview from Riot giving us a look at Gwen in action:

LEAGUE OF LEGENDS PATCH 11.8 BALANCE CHANGES

Champion Changes

Annie – nerfed

Incinerate (W):: Mana Cost has increased to 90/95/100/105/110 from 70/80/90/100/110

Aphelios – buffed

The Hitman and the Seer (ive):: This ability's lethality has increased to [3.5-21] from [3-18]

Moonlight Vigil (R):: Additional damage dealt by Calibrum per mark increased to 50-110 from 40-100; Severum Bonus: Heal increased to 275-525 from 250-500; The Gravitum root duration has been increased to 1.35 seconds from 1.25 seconds; Splash damage dealt from Infernum has increased to 90% from 85%; Number of Chakrams created from Crescendum increased to [5 additional (6 total)] from [4 additional (5 total)]

Cassiopeia – buffed

Twin Fang (E):: Mana Cost decreased to 50/48/46/44/42 from a flat 50

Darius – buffed

Hemorrhage (ive):: Damage dealt to jungle monsters increased to 300% from 175%

Diana – buffed

Moonsilver Blade (ive):: Damage dealt to monsters increased to 300% from 150%; Ability's Attack Speed increased to 20-40% from 10-40%

Dr Mundo – changed

Adrenaline Rush (ive):: Healing from ability increased to [2.50% max Health every 5 seconds] from [1.50% max Health every 5 seconds]

Infected Cleaver (Q):: Cap on damage dealt to monsters and minions increased to 100/200/300/400/500 from 300/350/400/450/500; Cost restore on champion hit increased to 100% from 50%

Masochism (E):: Attack Damage minimum bonus decreased to 30-90 from 0-100

Gnar – buffed

Hyper (W):: Bonus move speed increased to 20/40/60/80% (according to R rank) from 30/45/60/75%

LeBlanc – buffed

Sigil of Malice (Q):: Magic Damage dealt by ability increased to 65/90/115/140/165 from 55/80/105/130/155

Lee Sin – buffed

Tempest (E):: Ability cooldown decreased to 8 seconds from 10 seconds

Mordekaiser – buffed

Darkness Rise (ive):: Cap on damage dealt to monsters increased to a flat 180 from [28-164]

Morgana – buffed

Tormented Shadow (W):: Damage dealt to monsters increased to 200% from 150%

Orianna – nerfed

Command: Protect (E):: This ability's bonus resists have been decreased to 6/12/18/24/30 from 10/15/20/25/30

Rammus – changed

Powerball (Q):: Damage dealt decreased to 100/130/160/190/220 from 100/135/170/205/240

Defensive Ball Curl (W):: New! This ability now adds: "Attacking and using Abilities increased the duration of this effect by 0.4 seconds each (max 4)"

Frenzying Taunt (E):: Duration of ability decreased to [1.2/1.4/1.6/1.8/2] from [1.25/1.5/1.75/2/2.25]

Soaring Slam (R):: Was previously named 'Tremors' – name now changed.; New! This ability's effects have been changed:; Mana – 100; Cooldown – 130/110/90 seconds; "Hop into the air and slam down at a target location, dealing (100/175/250 +60% AP) magic damage and Slowing enemies by 15/17.5/20% for 1.5 seconds. Enemies near the centre take additional damage based on the distance travelled. If Soaring Slam is cast while Powerball is active, enemies near the centre are Knocked Up for 0.75 seconds.; Rammus creates aftershocks at the target location for 3.5 seconds that deal (20/30/40 +10% AP) magic damage and stack the original slow up to four times.; Max Impact Damage: (150/262.5/375 +90% AP); Soaring Slam deals 200% damage to turrets.; Soaring Slam's range increases based on Rammus' Move Speed."

Rumble – changed

Stats:: Base level Magic Resistance decreased to 28 from 32; Magic Resistance per level decreased to 0.75 from 1.25

Junkyard Titan (ive):: Bonus damage dealt while overheated changed to [(10-50 +30% AP) + 6% of target's maximum Health] from [25-110 + 30% AP]; New! Rumble gets 50% Attack Speed when he becomes overheated; New effect! This ability now notes: "Percent damage is limited to 120 damage on Monsters"

Sett – changed (potentially)

Knuckle Down (Q):: The tooltip for Sett's Q ability doesn't appear to now mention the maximum of 400 damage dealt per punch against minions, though it still references monsters.

Thresh – nerfed

Flay (E):: Ability cooldown increased to 11/10.5/10/9.5/9 seconds from a flat 9 seconds

Vladimir – buffed

Transfusion (Q):: Ability cooldown decreased to 9/7.75/6.5/5.25/4 seconds from 9/8/7/6/5 seconds

Yorick – changed

Shepherd of Souls (ive):: Attack Damage from mist walkers decreased to [2-88 +25% AD] from [2-99 +30% AD]

Mourning Mist (E):: Increased damage dealt to marked enemies changed to [40% increased damage for up to 8 attacks] from a flat 200%

Zac – buffed

Unstable Matter (W):: Damage dealt by this ability has increased to [(35/50/65/80/95 + 4% per 100AP)% Max HP] from [(25/40/55/70/85 +2% per 100 AP)% Max HP]

Zed – buffed

Contempt for the Weak (ive):: Removed! This ability no longer deals additional damage to jungle monsters; Cooldown for dealing a hit once every ten seconds changed to enemy champions from enemies; Maximum damage dealt to jungle monsters changed to [300 damage to epic monsters] from [200/350/500 to jungle monsters]

Item Changes

Chemtech Putrifier

Stats:: Ability Power increased to 55 from 50

Frozen Heart

Effects:: This item's armour has increased to 80 from 70

Hextech Rocketbelt

Effects:: New! This item now has +6 Magic Penetration; Health decreased to 250 from 350

Ionian Boots of Lucidity

Cost:: This item's overall cost has increased to 950 from 900

Shurelya's Battlesong

Active – Inspire:: Removed! This item no longer adds self move speed; Removed! This item no longer grants additional magic damage; New ive effect – "Motivate: Empowering or Protecting another ally Champion grants both allies 25% Move Speed for 1.5 seconds."

Mythic ive:: Effect changed to [5 ability haste] from [2.5% movement speed]

Staff of Flowing Water

Effects:: Removed! This ability no longer gives 15% Move Speed; New! This ability now gives +20 Ability Haste; Duration of effects increased to 4 seconds from 3 seconds

Moonstone Renewer

ive – Starlit Grace:: Health changed to [a flat 60 health] from [50-100 according to ally's level]; Buff effect for time spent in combat changed to "[increases your Heal and Shield Power by 4% (to a maximum of 20%)]" from "[increases this healing effect by 12.5% (to a maximum of 50%)]"

Mythic ive:: Effect changed to "[10 health increase to Starlit Grace's heal]" from [5 Ability Haste]

Here's the early patch preview from Riot:

https://twitter.com/MarkYetter/status/1379502179233398784

League of Legends patch 11.8 – New Champion Skins

New Champion Skins

SPACE GROOVE GWEN – 1350 RP – Gwen's release skin!

"It was pretty far out when Gwen applied to be Lux and Samira's quartermaster—after all, no one else did. Cheerfully sewing good vibes into great clothes, she amplifies disco energy through her nifty threads. Though she's new to this whole galactic hero gig, one thing's for sure: no way Gwen lets her friends liberate the galaxy in less-than-stellar outfits."

Here's the SPACE GROOVE GWEN splash art:

BLACKFROST SION – 1350 RP

"A fearsome jötunn who once led at the front of Lissandra's vast armies, Sion fell in battle only for his master's magic to weave itself beneath his massive frame, resurrecting him as a monster of rage and cold."

Here's the BLACKFROST SION splash art:

BLACKFROST VEL'KOZ – 1350 RP

"Beneath the ice they slumber, trapped as two worlds them by. Watching, waiting, for the day they will rise again, and all will be buried in ice."

Here's the BLACKFROST VEL'KOZ splash art:

DRAGON GUARDIAN GALIO* – 1350 RP

"A great dragon of old, who protected the ancestral nesting grounds of dragonkind from those who might do it harm. Tricked by the mad knight Kayle so she could destroy every clutch of eggs under his charge, he has followed her back to human society, so he might extract his vengeance personally."

Here's the DRAGON GUARDIAN GALIO splash art:

*Note that this skin has been renamed from Dragonslayer Galio to Dragon Guardian Galio, as per the game's skins QA lead Katey Anthony:

https://twitter.com/moonstonesxo/status/1377370193375076358

DRAGONSLAYER KAYLE – 1350 RP

"A famous dragonslayer who vanished into the distant mountains, obsessed with destroying the dragon lineage utterly. Many years later she has returned, so changed by the carnage that she has begun to resemble a dragon herself."

Here's the DRAGONSLAYER KAYLE splash art:

DRAGONSLAYER TWITCH – 1530 RP

"A lesser dragon who has learned to blend in among human society… poorly. Twitch worships the true dragons and plans to one day become one himself, though he isn't sure how just yet."

Here's the DRAGONSLAYER TWITCH splash art:

Rammus VFX and Skins update

With his small update, Rammus is getting some VFX and gameplay tweaks – here's a glimpse of them action:

And, here's a thread of

Skin Spotlights has put together a look at the new VFX for Rammus' reworked skins:

MISCELLANEOUS CHANGES

ARAM CHANGES

Riot has posted previews of some VFX and other changes coming to ARAM with patch 11.8:

https://twitter.com/Sirhaian/status/1376590510895206404

https://twitter.com/Sirhaian/status/1376590597037957125

https://twitter.com/Sirhaian/status/1376590632546787330

https://twitter.com/Sirhaian/status/1376590652989861890

That's it for the tentative League of Legends patch 11.8 notes for now, but keep checking back on them over the coming fortnight as the update's two-week-long testing cycle will likely see plenty more changes hit the PBE, which we'll keep this post updated with. Assuming you want to keep up with all the latest changes headed to League, that is? Of course you do.

We also have a handy rundown of the best League of Legends champions to play if you're a beginner and wanting to get into League, while our sister site The Loadout has a League of Legends ranks guide if you're looking for tips on how to work your way up those ladders.