The MSI patch preview was shared by Riot Phroxzon this Wednesday, with the update set to hit live servers on Wednesday, June 24. Combined with the 26.12 changes, this is shaping up to be one of the most open metas we've seen heading into an international event, with fresh priorities emerging across nearly every role.
ADC: the hypercarries return, Senna gets buried
Senna is the patch's big loser. Between her on-hit nerf, her damage cuts, the soul drop nerf on her ADC playstyle, and the Doran's Helm nerf she synergized perfectly with, nothing is going her way before MSI. It would be very surprising to see her anywhere but support — and her support playability actually picks up a slight buff that could make the difference for the most creative teams. Frankly, it's for the best that she's no longer an ADC option, given the far more exciting champions making their return.
Aphelios sees all his weapons' Q abilities buffed except Gravitum (his purple gun). He'd been flirting with the edge of competitive viability, and we expect this buff to be enough to bring him back — especially since MSI is all-BO5, with plenty of series likely to draw out 10 different ADCs. His all-purpose synergy with both setup supports and enchanters fits perfectly into the support meta that's recently opened up.
Kai'Sa, who synergizes mainly with aggressive or dive compositions, gets massive W and R shield buffs. They boost both her poke tool — which helps her hold lane and stay dangerous in the mid game on her hybrid build — and her all-in power. Enough to see her return when the angle allows in BO5, but probably not enough to make her a genuine priority.
Same story for Draven. The buff isn't a game-changer but it's meaningful, giving him more leeway to either secure a kill or to avoid dying since his E is his main engage and disengage tool.
