Rell nerfs on League patch 11.3 makes Iron Maiden less tanky

Rell is getting a hefty set of nerfs in League of Legends patch 11.3 to make the Iron Maiden less tanky. However, they could have a knock-on effect, where full AP Rell takes over the meta.

Rell has been a rather interesting addition to the League of Legends roster. The first champion in preseason 11 struggled to find her way into the meta at the start, but then has exploded as a power pick in recent patches.

Now, Riot are toning her back. Her utility is just a little bit too strong to justify some of her damage values ⁠— at least in her base kit.

The current changes on the League of Legends PBE include nerfs to her W shield, while buffing its damage ratio. Her E is getting nerfed all around ⁠— damage and resistances. Her R, on the other hand, is getting an AP ratio buff.

The changes have led to a mixed response from the community. While Rell mains feel like Riot are trying to streamline her into just maxing Q, Riot are trying to just nerf the rest of her kit to be more in line with her Q, rather than risk increasing her already high win-rate before.

• Read More: How League’s mid lane meta is changing in Season 11

“The goal of the change-list is to very slightly nerf her, and also skew her slightly back towards Q max being correct by weakening the durability gained with each W point. The AP ratios are mostly just extra and aren’t much power at all unless going Shurelya’s,” developer Ray Yonggi said.

“It’s not because we want them to specifically have more damage, it’s because we want all 4 abilities to feel like they are pulling their weight, and unfortunately Q doesn’t feel like it when it’s not maxed.”

However, the increase of AP ratios ⁠— including an extra 40% AP on her ultimate ⁠— have players weary of the potential of full AP Rell. With 110% AP on her ultimate, as well as 60% AP on her Q, she could nuke enemies with a full AP build.

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Riot are still tinkering with the buffs, but they’re trying to make sure Rell stays true to her tank identity ⁠— just with a little bit less power right off the bat.

“Basic idea around the Q thing was that Q feels really wimpy if not maxed, but W feels effective no matter what, so the character can feel more punchy if Q max was what people did more often, as it increases the damage and healing per point,” Yonggi added.

The Rell changes are expected to go through with League patch 11.3, penned in for February 3.