Since her 2023 debut, Naafiri has consistently ranked among League of Legends' least-played champions. To address her unappealing kit and vulnerability issues, Riot Games is introducing a comprehensive midscope update aimed at expanding her viability beyond mid lane into the jungle role while giving players greater access to her signature Packmates.
The rework will debut on PBE during patch 25.05, though no official live release date has been announced yet.
Rework Goals
According to Lead Designer August "RiotAugust" Browning, the update focuses on:
- Making W more effective in combat with untargetability
- Enhancing jungle clear capability
- Improving mobility through E changes
- Increasing passive Packmate numbers
- Reducing overall damage
- Balancing Packmate damage and defense to accommodate their increased numbers
Complete List of Changes
The most significant change swaps her W (Hounds' Pursuit) and R (The Call of the Pack) abilities. Here are all the planned adjustments:
Stat Changes
- HP: 635 + 120/lvl → 635 + 110/lvl
- HP regen: 9+.9/lvl → 8+.8/lvl
[P] We Are More
- Max Packmates: 2/3 @ levels 1/9 → 2/3/4/5 @ levels 1/9/12/15
- Packmate damage: 12-32 +5% bAD → 10-20 +4% bAD
- Packmate health growth: 16 → 13
- Packmate AoE damage reduction: 76-50% by level 14 → 75-40% by level 15
- Packmate tower damage: 25% → 50%
- Packmates now deal 155% damage to monsters
- Packmate Taunt duration: 3s → 2s
[Q] Darkin Daggers
- Damage 1st cast: 35-75 → 30-70
- Damage 2nd cast: 30-90 → 25-85
[W] The Call of the Pack (Old R)
- Now grants Attack Damage and Movement Speed immediately
- Naafiri becomes untargetable for 1 second on cast
- Hunt Duration: 15s → 5s
- Movement Speed: 70-100% decaying over 4s → 20-30% for 5s
- Bonus AD: 5/15/25 +8-24% bAD → 20% total AD
- Cooldown: 120-100s → 20-16s
- Mana cost: 100 → 60
- Extra dogs: 2/3/4 → 2
- No longer grants a shield, Packmate health/CD, vision pulse, or reset on takedown
[E] Eviscerate
- Cooldown: 10-8s → 9-7s
- Range: 350 → 450
- Initial Damage: 35-95 + 50% bAD → 15-55 + 40% bAD
- Now dashes to cursor instead of always dashing full distance
[R] Hounds' Pursuit (Old W)
- NEW: Can be recast once if Naafiri scores a takedown within 7s
- Cooldown: 22-14s → 110-80s
- Mana cost: 70-30 → 100
- Range: 700/770/860/940 → 900
- Damage: 30-190 (+.8 bAD) → 150-350 (+1.2 bAD)
- Is no longer blockable and can't be cast on minions
Assassin or Bruiser?
While these changes are still in testing, the rework's direction raises questions about Naafiri's optimal playstyle. The reduced base HP combined with increased mobility and Packmate access suggests a potential shift toward bruiser builds that combine AD with HP for prolonged exchanges.
As the rework continues through PBE testing, numbers will likely be adjusted before final release. The champion clearly needed attention, and it remains to be seen how these changes will affect the "Hound of a Hundred Bites" in the League meta.
