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Path of Champions, Patch 4.9 – New Champs, New Toys, and Big Bad's Huge Buff

Patch 4.9 brings a lot of changes to LoR's Path of Champions... including a HUGE buff to the Big Bad himself!
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While the Legends of Runeterra Patch 4.9 wasn’t a big balance patch, LoR's Path of Champions received a lot of changes.

Along with three new Onwards Champions, there are a handful of new powers and items that just caused many characters to get indirect buffs…

… including a HUGE indirect buff to the Big Bad himself: Aurelion SolAurelion Sol!


Predictions for Janna, Nilah, and Volibear in Path of Champions

This is how I think Janna, Nilah, and Volibear will end up in our Path of Champions Tier List.


JannaJanna – B tier

I don’t think that JannaJanna will be as crazy powerful in Path of Champions as her cost-reducing powers would make it seem.

While reducing cost is a very powerful mechanic in Path, JannaJanna’s Star Powers apply the cost reduction to the top card of the deck, not directly in hand. I think this fact alone will cause a lot of card reduction effects to be put to waste, either being used on cards that already cost 0 or because we may not have enough card draw or card value in hand.

Janna will be uniquely interesting because of how she drafts, pun intended. She wants to go for the usual cost-reducing powers like Spellslinger (Your spells cost 1 less) or Inspiration (Your created cards cost 1 less) but she also has unique synergies with powers like Overprepared (Game Start: Create a random Weapon in hand, it costs 2 less) or Counterfeit Production (Round Start, create a Fleeting 0-cost Counterfeit CopiesCounterfeit Copies in hand).

Naturally, Updraft will be quite good with Janna as well as other cost-reduction items attached to cards.

Aside from the obvious cost reductions, I think Janna will also partner well with Predict and card-draw effects alongside the cost reductions to maximize the value she gets from her Star powers.

Her relics aren’t immediately obvious; I think it will be interesting to experiment depending on how her deck ends up playing!


NilahNilah – S+ Tier?

This may be an incredibly spicy prediction, but I believe NilahNilah will be at the top of our Path of Champions Tier List, as she literally has the most powerful power in Path: Duplicate (Legendary power, copy the first card you play each round) that casts twice(*) per round.

(*Conditions may apply.)

On top of that, Nilah herself is a low-cost champion, which is always a good sign for TPoC Champs.

The real question for Nilah and her deck is: how easy will it be to find useful, Fleeting cards?

Aside from Fast Deal (Round Start: draw 1 and give it Fleeting ) being the immediate best choice of power that comes to mind, the items Ante Up (-2 Cost and Fleeting) and Spirit Stone (rare item, When I’m summoned, create a Fleeting copy of me in hand) could make for interesting additions during drafting.

As for builds, The Gravedigger’s Spade (Rare relic, Round Start: Draw 1 and give it Fleeting) may have just found a new home and is likely to be Nilah’s go-to staple relic.

Nilah will definitely have an interesting play style as her second Star power encourages the discarding of cards, meaning she’ll have similar power, card, and item synergies as one of Path's top-tier Champions, JinxJinx, while simultaneously having a new, unique play style.


VolibearVolibear – A Tier

I’m going to cautiously predict an A tier for VolibearVolibear, despite high-costed Champions being infamously bad in TPoC.

My hunch is mostly on the bet that his second Star power is going to be very impactful. It’s essentially Trifarian Might (When you summon a 5+ power unit, it strikes the weakest enemy) for Titanic units.

The ability to strike enemies on summon is a big deal, as we’ve seen with Stalker’s Blade (rare relic, When I’m summoned, I strike the weakest enemy) builds.

I don’t believe that VolibearVolibear is going to make a huge impact all by himself, even with the mana cheat that Sigil of the StormSigil of the Storm provides – I don’t think he affects the board enough when played to justify even a discounted cost, but it’s very likely that there will be other disgustingly statted Titanic units in the base deck that will be ready to shake up the board in his place, making the 1*/3* powers uniquely interesting when it comes to potential drafts or deck builds.

I’m willing to put in a guess that Volibear is going to end up similar to DariusDarius in terms of early aggression, but without Darius’ biggest weaknesses, as Freljord units tend to have more bulk, which makes up for Darius’ lack of board control through the strikes from 2*, and very powerful late-game units that are still able to trade on the off chance he’s unable to finish early.

I plan to test him out with Stalker’s Blade or even Gatebreakers (Rare relic, -1|-0, Play: Strike the enemy Nexus) on patch week to really maximize the damage output for his level-up.


Champion Changes (Bug Fixes)

EvelynnEvelynn (nerf)

EvelynnEvelynn’s 1*/3* power, Peak of Ecstasy, now likely no longer applies to shuffled leveled champions at the game start.

Rest in peace, +20|+20 everywhere from getting the Level Up! power, and a similar cheese strategy from Oath of the Guardians epic relic (which we still have yet to test).

While no doubt a nerf, it doesn’t affect Evelynn’s power level or her placement on our Path of Champions Tier List.


SamiraSamira (buff)

SamiraSamira’s Collect Your Bounty star powers now last to the next round.

Honestly, while technically a buff, most players probably didn’t realize that it didn’t actually say “The next card you play this round”. Nothing should fundamentally change, for the most part. Samira continues to be the gun-slingin’, sword-swingin’, high-tier Champ she is.


Toys for Path of Champions Veterans – New Powers

Elemental Winds (Rare)

Spells and Skills Deal 2 more damage.

Anyone who loved Luden’s Tempest (Rare relic, All of your spells and skills deal 1 extra damage) is going to love this power.

It may unironically be one of the top-tier powers to get early on, as it can single-handedly bend the direction of a draft. Sadly, it’ll be bad against the Aurelion SolAurelion Sol adventure or other encounters based on high stats; but it will chew through any low health-units or nexuses.

A list of Champions that would love to see this power includes:

  • AnnieAnnie, for her entire deck in general.
  • EkkoEkko, thanks to TimewinderTimewinder & Hexite CrystalHexite Crystal.
  • GnarGnar with a ton of Pokey StickPokey Sticks, and WallopWallop if you reach his second Star.
  • GwenGwen, already a Luden abuser, can take her level 2 to disgustingly high damage, basically dealing so much damage that she could probably take down the enemy Nexus thrice by the time she drops.
  • JackJack: Bilgewater loves boosted spells, and Jack has a free ParrrleyParrrley and high-damage Risky VentureRisky Ventures – it wouldn’t be shocking to see Jack and crew sinking some ships with that level of firepower.
  • JhinJhin, for the exact same reason as Annie, and more if he has Star Powers.
  • JinxJinx: A large number of the cards in Jinx’s deck already hit pretty hard, now they’re enough to recreate the Get Jinxed music video.
  • Kai'Sa, Mostly for Icathian RainIcathian Rain, but can be nice for the already high-damage Void SeekerVoid Seeker.
  • Miss FortuneMiss Fortune’s Love TapLove Tap, Bullet TimeBullet Time, and Make it RainMake it Rain. May all who stand in the way of Captain Fortune be struck down by a hail of bullets!
  • SamiraSamira would have her chip damage turned to CHUNK damage with every Stylish ShotStylish Shot or FlairFlair to the Nexus.
  • VeigarVeigar: with DarknessDarkness and Pokey StickPokey Stick, if Veigar already leveled fast before, game-ending combos and board clears are all deadlier now.

I’m sure there are even more that would be able to wreck entire adventures if they just had one or two extra damage on their spells and skills. I firmly believe this may be one of the most insane powers in the game, especially at Rare.


Mystic Meditation (Epic)

Round Start: Grant Spells in hand -1 cost.

I honestly don’t know how I feel about this one. It should be amazing, but potentially slow. Good thing it’s Round Start and not Round End, meaning that it’ll be active as early as the first round. Comparable to Spellslinger, although it doesn’t apply to cards added to hand after Round Start, meaning that it won’t apply immediately to drawn or created cards.

While it does have the ability to reduce the cost of expensive spells further, I think it’s just worse than its Rare counterpart.


Titanic Wake (Rare)

When you summon a unit with 8 attack, health, or cost, grant it +8|+8.

Note that it's not "grow to", but grant.

This one is a lot better for adventures that go for longer, as it becomes more and more likely that one or more of your cards will end up getting to that needed 8 extra power or health.

+8|+8 is an insanely powerful boost, but the requirement to get there is what’s going to hold you back in most cases – yet keep in mind that even triggering this once or twice early on in a game could mean a fast and decisive victory. A sneakily high-risk, high-reward power.


Urumi Shield (Rare)

When you play a spell, heal 1. If it’s elemental, heal 2.

Aside from Stamina (Common power gained from champion levels, with Game Start: Heal your Nexus 2), this is the first normally obtainable power that has any form of continuous heal, and I’m excited to try and see how it works with champions who normally have somewhat worse defensive options but have spammable spells.

NamiNami and AnnieAnnie, in particular, are going to benefit greatly from Urumi Shield. And Nami’s EbbEbb is a champion spell that already wants to be spammed, while Annie’s DisintegrateDisintegrate also gains Elixir of Skill (When I’m played, draw a card), allowing for a ton of healing in decks that normally don’t have S+ tier defensive options. 

Even outside the spellslinger characters, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Urumi Shield healing a good amount of your health just by the sheer number of spells that we often cast across a single encounter. There’s a good chance you’ll heal at least around 2-4 Nexus health a fight, even with decks that have next to no spells.

Not a bad option for players who are a bit more worried about taking damage.


Toys for Path of Champions Veterans – New Spell Items

Stormcalling (Rare)

Manifest a Titanic unit and create an Offering. (*)

*It is assumed that Offering is a Sigil of the StormSigil of the Storm.

I can’t see Stormcalling being good, as despite being able to choose what unit you want to pick, it’s very likely the unit pool is going to be high-cost for TPoC standards, as well as even less likely to have items on them. It seems like Stormcalling is most likely to create a dead card in hand unless it has access to manifest cards from other card pools, such as the Emperor’s Deck.


Power Riff (Rare)

Cost 1 less for each card you’ve drawn this round.

A strictly better Mana Potion (-1 cost), with the potential of a huge payoff. I can’t ever see Power Riff as a bad option, especially with the multiple new items with card draw options in the new patch. Power Riff is likely to be a simple yet effective item on your spells.


Heroes Call (Common)

Draw a unit.

Not all items need to be complicated, Heroes Call is a simple way to draw a card to replace a spell. A simple yet effective way to maintain your hand value.


Urumi (Common)

Create a SlipstreamSlipstream in hand.

Insanely good on anyone who burns their hand fast. I can see Urumi being useful for any Champion with a lot of cost reduction or low-to-the-ground decks as just more ways to reload your hand, with the added BWBilgewater risk-taking, of course.

Some standout champions in particular that I'm sure would love having access to Slipstream are Nilah, Jinx, Annie, and Samira.


Toys for Path of Champions Veterans – New Unit Items

Excavator Charge (Rare)

When you play a card, give me +1|+1 this round.

A situational item, but I can see this being incredibly powerful when it comes to AI manipulation, getting them to block targets that would normally be safe under most circumstances, or even pushing for unexpected damage. This Excavator has some depth.


Titanify (Rare)

Grow my stats to 8|8.

This just seems insane if you can get this on a low-cost unit. I’m relatively sure there has to be some kind of catch, like a requirement to meet a minimum cost or stat total. If there isn’t such a requirement, Titanify is about to crush the other items, ESPECIALLY if it’s just rare. The only downside I can think of is that your units won’t be Titanic until they hit the board.


Ante Up (Common)

-2 Cost and Fleeting.

The gambler’s dream! I hope you’re ready to add some risk/reward to your plans if you’re planning on picking up this item on any of your units. -2 Cost is an incredibly powerful effect, but to counteract it, so is Fleeting. It will be interesting deciding when or when not to take the item, but one thing is for sure, Ante Up is going to make a lot of broken combos, especially as a common item.


Coralcrush Gauntlets (Common)

Brash and +1|+0.

Up until now, there hasn’t been any item that added Brash to a unit. Brash has always proven itself to be a very flexible and powerful keyword, so any decks loaded with direct damage will be more than happy to add Brash to their units to sneak by any would-be blockers.


Tech Evolution (Common)

Augment and Tech.

While Augment isn’t a crazy keyword, it does have the potential to steamroll out of control with the right setups.

I can’t consider Tech Evolution very powerful, especially compared to the other items, but being able to grab a new unique keyword can be helpful to characters such as The Poro KingThe Poro King or Kai'Sa.

As a bonus, Swarm Neeko is actually a lot better since Tech is already an uncommon subtype, closer guaranteeing your ability to flip NeekoNeeko.


Arcane Knowledge (Common)

Draw a spell.

The inverse of Heroes Call, but still very useful, especially with these new Champions generally wanting more card draw.


The Big Bad Buff

I feared this day would come…

The nine-mana turn was one of the few times you could breathe during the Aurelion SolAurelion Sol fight, and now it may have just become one of the most dangerous since we may be staring up at a 22|22 VolibearVolibear that gives Overwhelm to any champions that didn’t have it before, such as the 26|26 NautilusNautilus, 14|22 MalphiteMalphite or, most terrifying, a never-ending swarm of leveled 22|22 Aurelion SolAurelion Sol.

On top of that, Volibear is the only nine-cost champion, meaning that you’ll have to deal with him every time Aurelion Sol ends his turn at 9 mana. The inclusion of this one card may have just made the numerous buffs to GalioGalio’s adventure in Patch 4.8 look like a participation award.


Wrapping Up

As someone whose favorite adventure is Aurelion's, I’m absolutely terrified. Hopefully, these new tools are enough to hold back the dragon!

Thanks for reading all the way here! More Path-related content will be on the way on my YouTube channel where you can catch me streaming my process of power-leveling the new characters all the way to champion level 30 as soon as the new patch drops!

If you have any ideas or requests for future topics on Path, ask away on Reddit or ask me directly on Discord @YouuXun.

Shoutout to the Path community for providing so much documentation, info, and discussion to help push the mode forward!


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