Rotating game mode queue now live!

Riot·4/21/2016, 1:41:05 AM·5 votes·118,356 views

From the original clone-tastic One For All to the sand-strewn battlefield of Ascension, featured game modes provide unique spins on the classic League formula. It’s time to kick things off with the next game mode in the rotation: Ultra Rapid Fire is now live!

Ultra Rapid Fire is the first mode we’ve made some bigger changes to, so we want to review our philosophy on balance for modes in the Rotating Game Mode queue:

Our goal for rotating game modes isn’t to replicate the hyper-competitive environment of Summoner’s Rift, so we generally don’t perform heavy balance passes. However, we draw the line in extreme cases: when a champ can permanently stun an enemy (literally, in the old, non-figurative sense), or when a mode’s fundamental nature makes a champ unplayable. As a couple of examples, Tahm Kench on U.R.F. and Brand in One For All could permastun without changes, and Bard on U.R.F. needs faster chime spawn rates to get to play the same mode as everyone else.

Not all champions are expected to be equally viable in all rotating modes. Champions are designed and balanced around SR. In RGMs, there’ll usually be a few over- or under-performers, and we’re comfortable with that given the rotating nature of the queue.

Now, let’s jump into exactly what’s changed with Ultra Rapid Fire this year:

Ultra Rapid Fire

Before we begin: these changes are layered on top of what you saw the last time U.R.F. was around. Buffs, nerfs, and updates have happened since, so we’re adjusting accordingly.

First up: slowing down a few cases of perma-CC.

Ryze

ULTRA RAPID COOLDOWN Spellcasts while overcharged reduce Ryze’s ability cooldowns by 100% ⇒ 50% of Q - Overload’s cooldown

OVERLY OVERLOADED Overcharged spellcasts no longer reduce the cooldown of Q - Overload

Rumble

LESS SLOW E - Electro-Harpoon does not gain Danger Zone bonus while overheated

I SAID LESS SLOW E - Electro-Harpoon slow no longer stacks

Tahm Kench

ULTRA RAPID COOLDOWN Q - Tongue Lash U.R.F. cooldown increased to 80% (1.2 seconds) ⇒ 60% (2.4 seconds)

If you think about it, “perma-living” is a very similar issue, hence the following two changes.

Mordekaiser

RUSTED Passive - Iron Man shield gain on damage dealt reduced by 25%

Taric

BUSTED W - Bastion shield max health percentage reduced by 50%

Last, bonus buffs for a few of the aforementioned anti-URF champs who don’t benefit as much from the Awesome Buff of Awesomely Awesome Buffing.

Aurelion Sol

WHY CAN’T I HOLD ALL THESE Passive - Center of the Universe star count increased to 4/5/6 (at levels 6/13/25)

Bard

EFFICIENCY Passive - Traveler’s Call meep upgrade requirement reduced to 5 chimes ⇒ 2 chimes

Corki

RUSH DELIVERY The Package spawn timer after use reduced to 8 minutes ⇒ 1 minute (initial spawn unchanged)

Kindred

DANCE FASTER Q - Dance of Arrows cooldown while in W - Wolf’s Frenzy reduced to 2 seconds ⇒ 0.5 seconds

As in any rotating queue game mode, we’ve specially tuned Champion Mastery so you can earn points in the mode. You’ll also be able to earn keys for your wins and loot chests for your (or your premade’s) S-, S, and S+ games.

Ultra Rapid Fire is now available and lasts through the evening on Sunday (we’ll shut it down very early Monday morning--usually between 1:00 AM and 3:00 AM).

Up next is Hexakill: Twisted Treeline next weekend, followed by One For All and the first return of Ascension. If you need to catch up on the rules for any game mode, check back at leagueoflegends.com each Friday, and we’ll give you the lowdown in a quick post like this one.

We’ll be trying out different things with the rotating game mode queue over the next few months, such as potentially turning it on longer depending on how popular it is, changing the mode cadence or what modes are available. We’re looking for your feedback as we go, so let us know. GLHF, and we’ll button-mashing alongside you during this ultra rapid weekend!