League of Legends’ fan-favorite game mode, Nexus Blitz, is finally returning in 2023.
League of Legends has a fair share of rotating game modes under its belt. While some, like the 2v2v2v2 Arena, were a massive hit, so much so that Riot is thinking of re-releasing in a few months, other game modes were not so lucky, to say the least. And one of those game modes is Nexus Blitz.
Nexus Blitz is League’s only experimental game mode that was first introduced in season 8 and later brought back in season 10.
While it did have a core audience due to its unique playstyle and the fact that it has its own map, players quickly turned their back on the game mode after just a few days, as per Riot’s data. But to make the mode somewhat more fun and balanced, Riot added a couple of new changes, like Events & Rewards, that were very well-received in 2021.
And since 2021’s run was a hit, many players asked for its return in 2022. Even though Riot did promise that Nexus Blitz would return, it never got released that year—resulting in a backlash. Many players even assumed that Nexus Blitz might never return.
But to keep transparent, Riot clarified the issues and later announced that Nexus Blitz will return in 2023. And following up on the promise, in the latest Dev Update, Riot finally revealed that Nexus Blitz is indeed returning this year after a three-year hiatus.
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Nexus Blitz Release Date
Update: Riot has delayed Nexus Blitz 2023 release date to October 25 at 2 PM PT.
Riot has now confirmed that Nexus Blitz will return with the Worlds 2023 event. However, it will not be coming back with the event release but in the second phase of the event instead.
According to Riot Games, Nexus Blitz will officially return on October 24, 2023, at 8:00 am PT for EUW, EUNE, RU, and TR, followed by 1:00 pm PT for all other regions.
Nexus Blitz will end on November 27, 2023, at 11:59 pm PT.
Nexus Blitz 2023 New Changes
New Update
Here are all the new Nexus Blitz changes as per Patch 13.21 patch notes:
Jungle Pets
- Stacks required for upgrade: 20 >>> 10 for stage 2, 40 >>> 20 for stage 3
- Players no longer obtain bonus treats after fully upgrading their companion
Akshan
- During events with a ring of fire (Bardle Royale, URF Deathmatch, Prize Fight), killing scoundrels will revive teammates with 30% of their maximum health at the location of their death.
Bel’Veth
- Enemy jungle guardians drop an Enhanced Void Coral.
Ivern
- Ivern is joining the Nexus Blitz fun this time around. Sadly, Ivern’s Friend of the Forest Passive has been disabled.
- New passive: Enemy of the Forest – It’s time for Ivern’s revenge. Ivern can damage monsters, and they can damage him.
Item Adjustments
- Lifeline Active Cooldown: 120 seconds >>> 60 seconds
- Spectral Cutlass Active Cooldown: 60 seconds >>> 45 seconds
- Innervating Locket: After using an ability, restore 3.8% of missing health and 3% of missing mana over 3 seconds.
Jungle Monster Adjustments
- Scuttler Health: 2800-9520 >>> 3400-11,560
- Ancient Krug Health: 1300-3055 >>> 1650-3878
- Krug Health: 600-1410 >>> 900-2115
- Mini Krugs Health: 50-118 >>> 80-188
- Greater Murk Wolf Health: 2000-4700 >>> 2400-5640
- Murk Wolves Health: 600-1410 >>> 800-1880
- Sir Gromp Health: 2000-4700 >>> 2400-5640
- Crimson Raptor Health: 1250-2937 >>> 1600-3760
- Raptors Health: 500-1175 >>> 700-1645
- Red Brambleback Health: 4000-10,800 >>> 4600-12,420
- Blue Sentinel Health: 3000-8100 >>> 3500-9450
- Jungle Guardian Health: 3775-5521 >>> 4500-6584
- Jungle Guardian Attack Damage: 40-95 >>> 40-105
- Rift Herald Health: 7500-15,000 >>> 8400-16,800
Old Update from August 2023
As of now, there’s no information on the new champion balance or any map changes. However, per the dev update and Riot Cadmus’ reply from Reddit, Nexus Blitz’s gameplay will be pretty much the same as last time. And this year, the only new addition we can expect is the Jungle Pets, which is already there for the Summoner’s Rift.
To clarify the lack of changes, Riot also said that Nexus Blitz was “completely broken” due to various types of League of Legends updates. As a result, they want minimal changes, so that they can analyze the mode better and make adjustments as it goes to improve it for future release.
