Riot's League Classic dev blog: everything new we learned

Riot has published its full dev blog on League Classic, and it goes far deeper than the MSI reveal did. We finally have real detail on how the mode plays, how progression works, and how the roster will grow over time. If you only read one thing before July 29, read this.

Here's what's new, and what it means.

It's Season 3, but Riot is calling it a greatest hits

Riot settled the "which patch" question in the most Riot way possible. Asked when League Classic is set, their answer was basically "yes." Season 3 is the anchor, but the mode pulls from across the first few years: every summoner spell including Fortify, almost every early item, and a pile of pre-rework kits. The one hard rule they actually spelled out is that there are no post-2013 champions. Or as they put it, no Yasuos allowed.

The combat feels different, on purpose

This is the part the reveal glossed over. Classic isn't just old kits on the modern game, it's a different pace of fight. Champions have sharper strengths and weaknesses, missiles and dashes move slower, and there are more stuns. The trade-off that matters: spells cost more to cast but do a lot more damage than they do in modern League. You have to pick your moments. A misused ability hurts more, and a landed one hurts more too.

If you played back then, that's the feeling you remember. If you didn't, expect a slower, heavier game where positioning and cooldowns matter more than dashing in and out.

The old Summoner's Rift is back

The Classic map recreates the early Rift. Wraiths return, the old buff camps are back, and the jungle hits harder and respawns much faster than the modern version. Riot's advice, buy health potions unless you're Warwick.

They did make targeted readability improvements, better lighting, shadows and textures, so fights are easier to follow, but the layout and rhythm are the old ones.

60 champions, with more coming

Classic launches with 60 champions: the original 40 plus 20 hand-picked from 2009 to 2013. Riot deliberately kept the roster focused so returning players don't have to relearn a hundred kits to jump back in.

If you already own a champion, you have them in Classic straight away. If not, you unlock them through your Classic Level, buy them in the shop, or play them in the free rotation. More champions are coming after launch, all pulled from the same early-League period.

Runes and masteries, without the grind

Pre-game runes and masteries are back, and they matter. They change how you build and how much damage you do. But Riot has stripped out the painful part. Everything unlocks just by playing, and there's no upgrading, every rune and mastery is the old Tier 3 by default.

You get three rune pages to start, two more from Classic Levels, and can buy extra with IP, which is also back. Masteries fully unlock by Classic Level 4. Nearly every rune anyone actually used is returning, and some of the under-used ones have been tuned to be worth picking. Forget to set a page before a game and you get a sensible default, so you're never badly behind.

Summoner's Journey is Classic's progression

Instead of a traditional ranked ladder, Classic has Summoner's Journey. From Classic Level 10 you start at Salt, then Wood, and climb all the way up to Legend. Only a single-digit percentage of players will reach Legend, so the top is a real achievement, but the framing is friendly, it's meant to be something to chase with friends rather than a sweaty grind.

At launch the queues are a single PvP draft queue, Co-op vs AI, and customs. Champ select uses a positional preference system where you rank the roles you want, which should kill the old "mid or feed" scramble.

The Council: you decide what comes next

This is the most interesting long-term piece. The Council is Riot's community voting system for Classic. It decides which champions get added next, what skins get made, and even some gameplay changes. You unlock voting access through Classic Level, and you get more voting power the more you play. Riot keeps control of balance and game health, but the direction of the mode is partly in players' hands.

Cosmetics and passes

Classic has a free progression track (Classic Levels) plus Seasonal Classic Passes with free and paid tracks. Classic Skins restore the 2009-2013 look of champions, unlocked with tokens from the pass or shop. There are also Classic Chromas and rotating loading-screen Portraits. Base champion models get the old-school inked outlines, and reworked champions like Sion get VFX and sound updates to match their Classic kits.

When

League Classic launches July 29, 2026 alongside Patch 26.15, inside the normal League client. No separate download, no second account.

We'll be covering each of these systems in detail as launch approaches, and building out the champion, item, rune and mastery pages for the mode. The plan stays the same: the classic data done properly and checked, not scraped.