League of Legends Patch 26.5 – First Stand 2026 Official Update, Brawl Returns & Major System Changes

League of Legends Patch 26.5 arrives as the official patch for First Stand 2026, the first international tournament of the competitive season. Scheduled to go live on March 4, 2026, this update introduces targeted pro-focused balance adjustments, broader champion and item tuning, system updates, the return of Brawl, Last Hit Indicators, Demacia Rising Act 2, and stricter penalties for severely disruptive chat behavior.

This is a tournament patch — but not on the scale of Worlds — meaning Riot is making measured mid-lane adjustments and a single bot lane retune, while continuing broader roster balance work across all roles.

Limited-Time Modes & Events

Brawl Returns

Brawl is back and live from March 4, 2026 through April 28, 2026. Players can queue up with friends — or rivals — and jump into the chaotic mode once again.

Season 1 Act 2 Battle Pass

The new Battle Pass launches with this patch and includes:

• Corrupted Petricite Maokai (Level 9 reward)
• Corrupted Petricite Xerath (Level 25 reward)
• Prestige Requiem Sona (Paid Pass capstone reward)

Champion Balance Changes

Akali

W – Twilight Shroud

• Restealth Timer adjusted to scale by level instead of game time
• 1s/.9s/.825s/.725s/.625s(Now at Levels 1/ 7/ 10/ 13/ 16)

Azir

Base Stats

• Health Growth: 119 ⇒ 108

Garen

Q – Decisive Strike

• Move Speed Duration:1/ 1.65/ 2.3/ 2.95/ 3.6 ⇒ 1.4/ 1.95/ 2.5/ 3.05/ 3.6

E – Judgment

• Damage per spin:4/ 7/ 10/ 13/ 16 (+ 38/ 41/ 44/ 47/ 50% AD)⇒ 4/ 7/ 10/ 13/ 16 (+ 40/ 43/ 46/ 49/ 52% AD)

Kha’Zix

Base Stats

• Move Speed: 350 ⇒ 345

Q – Taste Their Fear

• Bonus AD ratio: 110% ⇒ 105%
• Isolated bonus: 231% ⇒ 220.5%

Lee Sin

Q – Sonic Wave/ Resonating Strike

• Base Damage: 60/ 90/ 120/ 150/ 180⇒ 65/ 95/ 125/ 155/ 185

Lillia

Passive – Dream-Laden Bough

• Monster Heal AP ratio: 9% ⇒ 15%

Q – Blooming Blows

• Bonus AP ratio: 30% ⇒ 35%

R – Lilting Lullaby

• Base Damage: 100/ 150/ 200 ⇒ 150/ 200/ 250
• AP ratio: 45% ⇒ 40%
• Cooldown: 150/ 130/ 110 ⇒ 140/ 120/ 100

Mel

Passive – Searing Brilliance

• Minion Damage Modifier: 0.6x ⇒ 0.5x

Q – Radiant Volley

• Base Damage per Bolt: 5/ 6/ 7/ 8/ 9 ⇒ 5/ 7/ 9/ 11/ 13
• Total Q Base Damage: 90/ 132/ 176/ 222/ 270 ⇒ 90/ 145/ 200/ 255/ 310

R – Golden Eclipse

• Initial Base Damage: 100/ 150/ 200 ⇒ 125/ 200/ 275

Neeko

W – Shapeshifter

• Cooldown now begins on clone expiration instead of cast
• Removed Ctrl+5 clone-only joke interaction

Nocturne

Passive – Umbra Blades

• Cooldown: 13 ⇒ 12

Q – Duskbringer

• Bonus Move Speed:15/ 20/ 25/ 30/ 35%⇒ 20/ 25/ 30/ 35/ 40%

Orianna

Q – Command: Attack

• Cooldown:6/ 5.25/ 4.5/ 3.75/ 3⇒ 7/ 6/ 5/ 4/ 3

Samira

Q – Flair

• Improved logic for Sword Q vs Gun Q usage
• Now checks enemy positioning on right/left and forward range
• Q properly sealed during passive animation
• Prevents cooldown being triggered if not actually used
• Additional logic prevents low MS champions from simply walking out at final Sword Q range

Taliyah

Q – Threaded Volley

• Base Damage: 55/ 72.5/ 90/ 107.5/ 125⇒ 50/ 67.5/ 85/ 102.5/ 120
• Bonus Monster Damage: 20/ 25/ 30/ 35/ 40⇒ 23/ 28/ 33/ 38/ 43

Varus

Q – Piercing Arrow

• Max Damage:80/ 160/ 240/ 320/ 400(+ 130/ 140/ 150/ 160/ 170% bonus AD)⇒ 80/ 150/ 220/ 290/ 360(+ 150% bonus AD)

W – Blighted Quiver

• On-hit Damage:8/ 17/ 26/ 35/ 44 (+ 25% AP)⇒ 8/ 17/ 26/ 35/ 44 (+ 25% AP + 15% bonus AD)

Volibear

Q – Thundering Smash

• Bonus Physical Damage: 140% ⇒ 160%

W – Frenzied Maul

• Mana Cost: 30/ 35/ 40/ 45/ 50 ⇒ 20/ 25/ 30/ 35/ 40
• Wounded Bonus: +15% per 100 bonus AD ⇒ +25% per 100 bonus AD

E – Sky Splitter

• Mana Cost: 60 ⇒ 50

Item Changes

Hubris

• Combine Cost: 950 ⇒ 750 gold
• Total Cost: 3000 ⇒ 2800 gold

Locket of the Iron Solari

• Shield: 200–360 ⇒ 290–360 (scales after level 8)
• Functional Shield Level 8–18: 265–360 ⇒ 290–360

Ranked & Matchmaking

Aegis of Valor

Players eligible for Aegis rewards will have them voided if reports for disruptive behavior are validated.

Autofill Improvements

Starting in EUW:

• Autofill jungle vs autofill jungle matching
• Secondary role mirroring improvements Global rollout planned if successful.

ARAM: Mayhem Updates

Major tank durability buffs across Augments:

• Upgrade Immolate: 10 ⇒ 12 gold per tick
• Slow Cooker: 1.5% ⇒ 2% max HP scaling
• Celestial Body: 1250 ⇒ 1500 max HP
• Perseverance regen increased
• Courage of the Colossus shield: 100–300 +4% HP ⇒ 150–450 +4% HP
• Adamant: 8 ⇒ 10 resistances
• Stuck In Here With Me: 40% ⇒ 50% mitigation
• Golden Snowball invulnerability: 1s ⇒ 1.5s
• Poro King MS: 25% ⇒ 40%, damage adjusted to 100–700

System changes:

• Nexus HP: 5500 ⇒ 3000
• Nexus Tower HP: 1800 ⇒ 3000

Multiple bugfixes applied across Augments and interactions.

Arena Bugfixes

Fixes applied to:

• Mordekaiser Guest of Honor
• Cosmic Drive tooltip & MS values
• Atma’s Reckoning crit cap issue
• Multitool item removal bug
• Buff Buddies tooltip
• Visual cleanup for Righteous Fury

Demacia Rising – Act 2

Story progresses to present-day events.

New content includes:

• Chapters 5 & 6 (16 objectives total)
• Rewards: “The Great City” icon & “Poster Boy” Garen emote
• 4 new Settlements: Hayneath, Hawkstone, Fossbarrow, Dawnhold
• 5 new Noxian enemy types
• Garen & Sona added as playable champions
• Towns & structures upgradeable to Level 4
• 22 new Events
• 19 new Research types

Conclusion arrives in Patch 25.7.

Last Hit Indicators

Now live in:

• Co-op vs AI
• Tutorials
• Swiftplay
• Custom Games
• Practice Tool
• RGM Summoner’s Rift

Enabled by default for new accounts.

Indicators account for permanent damage modifiers only.

Gameplay Bans for Severely Disruptive Chat

Starting this patch, Riot will issue gameplay bans — not just chat bans — for severe offenses such as:

• Hate speech
• Threats of violence
• Severe harassment

Mild flame may still result in penalties, but extreme behavior will now result in removal from gameplay access.

Skins

• Peacemaker High Noon Yone returns to The Sanctum

Additional Bugfixes & QoL

Fixes include:

• Rek’Sai Void Rush fog interaction
• Senna homeguard SFX
• Rengar passive duration extension
• Zeke’s Convergence slow stacking
• Zac E Fog of War audio

Patch 26.5 Summary

Patch 26.5 balances competitive integrity for First Stand 2026 while delivering meaningful updates across systems, ARAM, Arena, progression, and player behavior enforcement. With Brawl returning, Last Hit Indicators launching, and Demacia Rising advancing its narrative, this patch offers both competitive refinement and fresh content.

League of Legends is heading into a year that will look very different from previous content cycles. Riot Games has officially revealed its plans for champion releases in 2026, and the announcement has quickly become a major topic of discussion within the community.