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Starting sometime in patch 8.16, we'll be live playtesting a new experimental mode: Nexus Blitz. The test will run for four weeks and everyone can participate—no invitation needed. If the community loves Nexus Blitz, we'll keep developing it after the alpha ends, but we need your input to make that call!
Please note; Localized versions of this page will be going live over the next few days in the EU.
<header class="header-primary"><h2>Welcome to the (double) jungle</h2>
</header>
<p>Nexus Blitz is a fast-paced (~15 minutes) <strong>experimental mode</strong> designed for those of you seeking fresh ways to play League and low-pressure fun. It emphasizes exciting and surprising moments over intense competition, while still rewarding the skills you've learned from other League modes, like Summoner’s Rift.</p><span class="content-border"><a class="lightbox cboxElement" rel="nofollow" href="https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/NB_map.jpg" rel="gallery"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/NB_map.jpg&resize=640:" /></a></span>
<p>In this 5v5 mode, each team consists of a duo jungle who share gold/XP along with three laners who flex across two halves of a split lane. The compact map makes for constant action, and a roulette of map-wide, mayhem-inducing <strong>events</strong>—like King of the Hill, snowball fights, or Bardle Royale— amplify the frenzy even more.</p>
<p>Winning an event unlocks one of several powerful team-wide <strong>rewards</strong>, like a base cannon that shoots you halfway across the map or a one-time Guardian Angel.</p>
<p>Additionally, racking up killstreaks lights you <strong>on fire</strong>, giving you tons of damage and shorter cooldowns but making you more vulnerable to damage in return. Champs on fire are worth a TON of gold to their enemies if ever they're shut down.</p>
<p>Nexus Blitz also brings back some <strong>classic items</strong> from League's past. Jump to the primer below for a list of those, or keep reading for some more info on what to expect from the alpha (and experimental modes in the future).</p>
What exactly does alpha mean?
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<p>It means Nexus Blitz isn't a polished, complete game mode. As a work-in-progress, you can expect reused models, textures, and music from elsewhere in League. At this stage, even the gameplay is up for iteration and development!</p>
<p>Don’t take that to mean we won't be paying close attention to the state of the game. In fact, it's the opposite. Lots of champions and runes have had their numbers tuned to fit Nexus Blitz's pace of action—in particular, stacking mechanics on abilities like Nasus's <strong>Siphoning Strike</strong> and activation timers on runes like <strong>Magical Footwear</strong> have been sped up.</p>
<p>We'll be aggressively patching Nexus Blitz across the four-week test to keep up with you and the global community of players who will define the first ever meta. These mid-patch updates could run the gamut from balance adjustments all the way up to new events and rewards, so make sure to check our <a rel="nofollow" href="https://boards.na.leagueoflegends.com/en/c/developer-corner"><strong>weekly dev corner threads</strong> on the Boards</a> every now and then.</p>
<p>Which also means your feedback is <em>crucial</em>. We need you to play and tell us what you think about pretty much everything, from the core game loop to ideas for additional mechanics to map visuals and theming. If you see potential in Nexus Blitz, this is your opportunity to help shape its development!</p>
Beyond Nexus Blitz: Experimental Modes
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<p>Nexus Blitz is the first of its kind, but it won’t be the last. An experimental mode is basically a gameplay prototype designed to deliver a different kind of experience than Summoner’s Rift, Twisted Treeline, or ARAM. We're looking for something that could last a while—maybe even as a permanent addition to League. By sharing experimental modes with players early on, they’re also a great way to test the water and get an initial community response before delving into additional months of development for a final version.</p>
<p>Experimental modes won’t happen super frequently. At most, you’ll see a couple in a given year. We’re designing them from the ground up instead of customizing and modifying existing modes, and the vast, vast majority of the League team is still focused on SR, with a much smaller group working on experimental prototypes.</p>
<p>We’re very excited to share the first of these modes with you, and hope you have a blast playtesting Nexus Blitz.</p>
Nexus Blitz Primer
<h2>Starting Items</h2>
<p>We've tuned up our starting items for Nexus Blitz. You can pick one (and <strong>only</strong> one) of the items below. Once you patch up to 8.16, head to the <strong>Items</strong> tab in your Collection for details!</p><br /><h4><strong>Doran's Items</strong></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/DoransLostBlade.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Doran's Lost Blade <span style="font-size:.8em"><em>(higher lifesteal than Doran's Blade)</em></span></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/DoransLostRing.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Doran's Lost Ring <span style="font-size:.8em"><em>(higher mana regen than Doran's Ring)</em></span></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/DoransLostShield.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Doran's Lost Shield <span style="font-size:.8em"><em>(higher health regen than Doran's Shield)</em></span></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/DoransLostIdol.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Doran's Lost Idol <span style="font-size:.8em"><em>(New item for enchanters! Ability Power, Mana Regen, Heal and Shield power, on-hit damage to minions)</em></span></h4>
<hr class="divider" /><br /><h4><strong>Gold Generation Items</strong></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/HeartofTargon.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Heart of Targon <span style="font-size:.8em"><em>(replaces the Relic Shield line. No upgrades, no Warding quest.)</em></span></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/PhilosophersMedallion.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Philosopher's Medallion <span style="font-size:.8em"><em>(replaces the Ancient Coin line. No upgrades, no Warding quest.)</em></span></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/SpellthiefsEdge.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" /><span style="font-size:.8em"><em>The Spellthief's Edge line isn't in Nexus Blitz</em></span></h4>
<hr class="divider" /><br /><h4><strong>Jungle Items</strong></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/PridestalkersBlade.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Pridestalker's Blade<span style="font-size:.8em"><em>(combination of Hunter's Machete and Hunter's Talisman, replacing both)</em></span></h4>
<h2>Returning Items</h2>
<p>Nexus Blitz brings a number of throwbacks to the shop. Once you patch up to 8.16, head to the <strong>Items</strong> tab in your Collection for details!</p><br /><h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/SpearofShojin_Icon.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Spear of Shojin <span style="font-size:.8em"><em>(last tested patch 8.12, unreleased)</em></span></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/AtmasReckoning_Icon.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Atma’s Reckoning <span style="font-size:.8em"><em>(last tested patch 8.12, unreleased)</em></span></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/Ghostwalkers_Icon.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Ghostwalkers <span style="font-size:.8em"><em>(last seen patch 8.12, Butcher's Bridge ARAM)</em></span></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/SpectralCutlass_Icon.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Spectral Cutlass <span style="font-size:.8em"><em>(last seen patch 8.12, Butcher's Bridge ARAM)</em></span></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/BloodlettersVeil_Icon.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Bloodletter's Veil <span style="font-size:.8em"><em>(last seen patch 8.12, Butcher's Bridge ARAM)</em></span></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/Zephyr_Icon.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Zephyr <span style="font-size:.8em"><em>(last seen patch 5.21)</em></span></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/DeathfireGrasp_Icon.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Deathfire Grasp <span style="font-size:.8em"><em>(last seen patch 5.1)</em></span></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/WrigglesLantern_Icon.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Wriggle’s Lantern <span style="font-size:.8em"><em>(last seen patch 4.19)</em></span></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/ForceofNature_Icon.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Force of Nature <span style="font-size:.8em"><em>(last seen patch 1.0.0.151 in Season 2)</em></span></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/HeartofGold_Icon.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Heart of Gold <span style="font-size:.8em"><em>(last seen patch 1.0.0.151 in Season 2)</em> spiritually returns as Heart of Targon. Only Season 2 kids will remember.</span></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/PhilosophersStone_Icon.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Philosopher's Stone <span style="font-size:.8em"><em>(last seen patch 3.13)</em> spiritually returns as Philosopher's Medallion</span></h4>
<h2>Jungling</h2>
<p>This jungle is a little different than the wilds you’ve encountered before. Here’s what you need to know:</p><br /><h4><strong>Camp clearing</strong></h4>
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<ul><li>Each team has two junglers who clear camps together</li>
<li>Monsters grant more overall gold and experience (150%) if you bring a friend. Last-hit rewards are split across all nearby allies.</li>
<li>Red and Blue buffs are about twice as strong as the SR versions. Two champs get buffed per clear, so no need to Smite-steal each other!</li>
</ul><hr class="divider" /><br /><h4><strong>Spells & Items</strong></h4>
<ul><li>Junglers are automatically assigned Smite in champion select, while laners are unable to take Smite.</li>
<li>Junglers should start with Pridestalker's Blade, a combination of Hunter's Machete and Hunter's Talisman (neither of which are in Nexus Blitz)</li>
<li style="list-style: none; display: inline">
<ul><li>Pridestalker's Blade doesn't have the jungle item XP and gold mechanics of the Hunter's items</li>
</ul></li>
<li>Completing a Pridestalker's Blade enchantment converts Smite to Chilling Smite</li>
</ul><hr class="divider" /><br /><h4><strong>Buff camps</strong></h4>
<p>Nexus Blitz has three total buff camps that spawn along the center-line of the map.</p>
<ul><li>Red buff at the top of the map</li>
<li>Blue buff immediately above the split lane</li>
<li>At 10 minutes, Rift Herald spawns in the hollow between Red and Blue buffs</li>
<li style="list-style: none; display: inline">
<ul><li>In addition to the Herald's Eye, Rift Herald grants the minion-empowering effects of Hand of Baron to its killer's team (but not its bonus AD or AP)</li>
</ul></li>
</ul>
<h2>On Fire</h2>
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<p>Champions that accrue large killing sprees light <strong>on fire</strong>, granting the following effects until death:</p>
<ul><li> 20% attack speed</li>
<li> 20-200 adaptive force (based on level)</li>
<li>TONS of cooldown reduction, which can exceed the CDR cap</li>
<li> 100 mana or energy regen / 5 seconds</li>
<li> 25% damage <strong>taken</strong> from champions</li>
<li>At least 800 gold granted on death to your killer and 200 gold to each of their allies—the bounty keeps climbing as you rack up more kills.</li>
</ul>
<h2>Other stuff</h2><br /><h4><strong>Global aura</strong></h4>
<ul><li> 10% Friendship</li>
<li> 30% Summoner Spell CDR</li>
<li> 4 mana regen per 5 seconds at level 1</li>
</ul><hr class="divider" /><br /><h4><strong>Teamwide minion & monster gold</strong></h4>
<ul><li>Lane minion deaths (regardless of last hit) and your team's monster kills grant ~30% of their gold value to every ally who didn't receive last-hit gold</li>
<li>Champion kills and assists don't grant teamwide gold</li>
</ul><hr class="divider" /><br /><h4><strong>Consumables</strong></h4>
<ul><li>Control Wards have been removed</li>
</ul><hr class="divider" /><br /><h4><strong>Surrenders</strong></h4>
<ul><li>Games can be surrendered with a 4 -1 vote after the 8 minute mark</li>
</ul>
<h2>Rune balance</h2>
<p>In a perfect world we'd say "we did some rune tuning" and suggest you look through tooltips, but... it's an alpha and the tooltips are bugged to still show SR values. So, here's a list of rune balance stuff.</p><br /><h4><strong>Domination</strong></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/TasteOfBlood.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Taste of Blood</h4>
<span class="attribute">COOLDOWN</span> <span class="attribute-before">20 seconds</span> <span class="change-indicator">⇒</span> <span class="attribute-after">10 seconds</span>
<hr class="divider" /><br /><h4><strong>Inspiration</strong></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/Kleptomancy.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Kleptomancy</h4>
<span class="attribute">Switchover to late game drops</span> <span class="attribute-before">15 minutes</span> <span class="change-indicator">⇒</span> <span class="attribute-after">6 minutes</span> <br /><span class="attribute">Early game loot curve steepness</span> <span class="attribute-before">First 8 drops</span> <span class="change-indicator">⇒</span> <span class="attribute-after">First 4 drops</span>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/MagicalFootwear.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Magical Footwear</h4>
<span class="attribute">Time available</span> <span class="attribute-before">10 minutes</span> <span class="change-indicator">⇒</span> <span class="attribute-after">6 minutes</span>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/PerfectTiming.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Perfect Timing</h4>
<span class="attribute">Time available</span> <span class="attribute-before">10 minutes</span> <span class="change-indicator">⇒</span> <span class="attribute-after">4 minutes</span>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/MinionDematerializer.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Minion Dematerializer</h4>
<span class="attribute">Time available</span> <span class="attribute-before">4 minutes</span> <span class="change-indicator">⇒</span> <span class="attribute-after">3 minutes</span>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/BiscuitDelivery.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Biscuit Delivery</h4>
<span class="attribute">Time between biscuits</span> <span class="attribute-before">3 minutes</span> <span class="change-indicator">⇒</span> <span class="attribute-after">1.5 minutes</span>
<hr class="divider" /><br /><h4><strong>Resolve</strong></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/GraspOfTheUndying.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Grasp of the Undying</h4>
<span class="attribute">Health per proc (melee)</span> <span class="attribute-before">5</span> <span class="change-indicator">⇒</span> <span class="attribute-after">10</span><br /><span class="attribute">Health per proc (ranged)</span> <span class="attribute-before">3</span> <span class="change-indicator">⇒</span> <span class="attribute-after">6</span>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/Conditioning.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Conditioning</h4>
<span class="attribute">Time Available</span> <span class="attribute-before">10 minutes</span> <span class="change-indicator">⇒</span> <span class="attribute-after">6 minutes</span>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/Overgrowth.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Overgrowth</h4>
<span class="attribute">% health per stack</span> <span class="attribute-before">0.2</span> <span class="change-indicator">⇒</span> <span class="attribute-after">0.3</span>
<hr class="divider" /><br /><h4><strong>Sorcery</strong></h4>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/Scorch.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Scorch</h4>
<span class="attribute">Cooldown</span> <span class="attribute-before">20</span> <span class="change-indicator">⇒</span> <span class="attribute-after">15</span>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img src="https://am-a.akamaihd.net/image?f=https://news-a.akamaihd.net/public/images/articles/2018/august/nexusblitz/GatheringStorm.jpg&resize=96:" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Gathering Storm</h4>
<span class="attribute">Rank-up time</span> <span class="attribute-before">Every 10 minutes</span> <span class="change-indicator">⇒</span> <span class="attribute-after">Every 4 minutes</span>
<h4 class="change-detail-title"><img
8000
src=":" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 54px;" />Transcendence
<span class="attribute">Level Available</span> <span class="attribute-before">10</span> <span class="change-indicator">⇒</span> <span class="attribute-after">6</span>