League of Legends Patch 12.8 was a huge patch that had item changes, champion nerfs, buffs, and adjustments.
With the Mid-Season Invitational 2022 being played on Patch 12.8, the changes in this patch will make a significant difference in the event. In fact, the recent patches have been focused on the pro-scene, making changes that will surely impact MSI 2022.
With that in mind, here's why Patch 12.8 is the best patch that Riot Games has put out in a while.
Why League of Legends Patch 12.8 is a Great Update for MSI 2022
League of Legends Patch 12.8 had a lot of champion buffs to bring back ones that were falling behind in Summoner's Rift. A total of 14 champions were buffed: Bard, Ezreal, Fiddlesticks, Kassadin, Jhin, Mordekaiser, Poppy, Sejuani, Sylas, Tristana, Vel'Koz, Vladimir, Xerath, and Zoe. Although most of these were reasonable, it felt unnecessary that champions such as Jhin and Tristana were buffed. Jhin's Deadly Flourish (W) root duration increased while his Captive Audience (E) now recharges faster. On top of that, damage reduction against monsters was removed. On the other hand, Tristana's AD growth increased to return some power to her late game. Mostly, it was great to see champions such as Bard, Kassadin, Vladimir, and Xerath making a comeback as they were fading into the background. It's almost certain that the champion buffs will affect the pro meta scene in MSI 2022, as the champions that got buffed are much more viable and the champions that were already part of the top are even stronger.
Up next are the champion nerfs in Patch 12.8. Only three champions were nerfed this time around, Jinx, Soraka, and Xayah. Jinx and Xayah have both been popular ADCs in the bot lane. Jinx's base health was decreased while Xayah's Double Daggers (Q) base damage decrease late and cooldown increased late. Additionally, Soraka is a great support that can heal up her team within seconds and can help her allies across the Rift with her ultimate. However, Patch 12.8 nerfed her Astral Infusion (W), enabling her to heal less. This means that Patch 12.8 has given other ADC and support champions a chance to shine. Coming from someone who often both plays or fights against Jinx and Xayah, this nerf was a fair addition to the update. This patch is sure to have an impact on the MSI 2022 as two of the strongest and most played AD Carry champions were nerfed.
Along with the champion nerfs and buffs, Swain and Kai'Sa both got updates. Swain got mana buffs across all his abilities, changes to his crowd control capabilities, and longer-lasting Demonic Ascension (R). Meanwhile, Riot Games changed Kai'Sa due to her AP damage on her Void Seeker (W). It's been too strong for quite some time now and they've adjusted her to play more around single pops of her passive. I felt that these were both fantastic changes because Swain was almost never seen in Summoner's Rift in Season 12 and Kai'Sa was way too strong compared to other champions. The only thing that I was a bit disappointed not to see was more champion nerfs as there are definitely unbalanced champions that are too powerful. Hopefully, this problem gets addressed in the future as more patches come out.
The other fantastic change to balance out the game was the item change to the Stopwatch. Stopwatch was an item that was deemed to be too strong and 'broken' because it enabled players to enter Stasis. This made champions invulnerable and untargetable for 2.5 seconds, but unable to move, cast spells, attack, or use any items during this time. Many deemed it a frustrating item to play against. Now, it can no longer be purchased if gamers already own Guardian Angel or Zhonya's Hourglass. Although this was not a major problem in pro play, it will prevent any players from abusing stasis.
Overall, it's clear that the arrival of Patch 12.8 will make MSI 2022's pro meta scene look significantly different than originally thought.