League of Legends Season 3 launches August 27 with Doom Bots, Xin Zhao VGU, and the new ranked system

League of Legends Season 3 launches August 27, 2026 at 12:00 noon local server time. The new season brings back base Summoner's Rift, the return of Doom Bots, Xin Zhao's visual update, and a new ranked system that doesn't reset LP.

What changes in Season 3

The map returns to base Summoner's

Rift

Season 3 reverts the map to the base Summoner's Rift (the same map used in Seasons 1 and 2). The Season 2 winter-themed map is no longer in rotation.

Doom Bots return

Doom Bots (the PvE mode where you fight against bots with stacked abilities) is returning as a permanent mode. New Doom Bot abilities for Season 3:

• Doom Veigar — Event Horizon

now pulls in 3 directions

• Doom Teemo — Mushrooms now

leave a poison cloud for 3 seconds

• Doom Singed — Poison Trail now

explodes on contact

• Doom Darius — Decimate has

infinite scaling

• Doom Cho'Gath — Feast has

no max stack limit

Doom Bots was first added in 2014 and has been a recurring limited- time mode. This is the first time it's a permanent mode.

Xin Zhao visual update

Xin Zhao is receiving his long-awaited visual update (VGU). The update is the third in the 2026 VGU lineup after Skarner (Q1 2026) and Aurelion Sol (Q2 2026).

Per Riot's preview:

• New model with higher

polygon count and updated textures

• New VFX for all abilities
• Adjusted animations with new

E (Audacious Charge) leap and R (Crescent Guard) sweep

• **His Commando and Imperial

skins** are increased from 520 RP to 750 RP

Vayne and Sett in the jungle

Vayne and Sett are officially being added to the jungle. Both have been off-meta junglers for years. The Season 3 patch buffs their clear speed and dueling power:

• Vayne: Tumble (Q) bonus

damage vs monsters increased from 50% to 75%

• Sett: Haymaker (E) damage

vs monsters increased from 60% to 80%

AP Irelia returns

AP Irelia is back as a viable build. The Season 3 changes:

• W (Defiant Dance) — AP

ratio increased from 40% to 50% (minimum damage unchanged)

• W — Maximum damage AP

ratio increased from 120% to 150%

• E (Flawless Duet) — AP

ratio increased from 80% to 100%

• E — Cooldown decreased at

higher ranks from 16/14/12/10/8 to 16/12/10/9/8

Lane Kayn

Kayn can now be played in other lanes, not just jungle:

• Q (Reaping Slash) — Mana

cost decreased from 55 to 45

• W (Blade's Reach) — Mana

cost decreased from 60 to 50

The new ranked system

Season 3 introduces the biggest ranked system change in LoL history:

• LP doesn't reset between

Season 2 and Season 3

• Victorious Mission resets

(you need 15 ranked wins for the Victorious skin)

• New rank: Eternal (above

Master, below Challenger)

• LP gain/loss visible in

the post-game screen for the first time

• Auto-fill protection for

players with 65%+ win rate in their primary role

New champion balance changes

Nerfs

• Gwen: Base armor 36 → 33,

Attack Speed Growth 2.25% → 2.5%, R initial slow 60% → 30/45/60%

• Master Yi: Base HP 669 →

655, Q on-hit modifier 75% → 65%

• Rumble: Overheated damage

4% → 5% target max HP (per- level scaling unchanged)

• Singed: Q duration 2.2s →

2s, max damage ticks 9 → 8

Buffs

• Kassadin: Q AP ratio 60% →

70%, E AP ratio 65% → 70%

• Irelia: See AP Irelia above
• Nilah: Off-meta jungle

buffs

• Vayne: See jungle above
• Sett: See jungle above

Item changes

• Axiom Arc: Total cost 3000

→ 2750

• Horizon Focus: AP 115 → 125,

total cost 2800 → 2750, recipe adjusted

• Profane Hydra: Cost 3200 →

2850, AD 60 → 55 (net 350g more efficient)

The Season 3 Battle Pass

The Season 3 Act 1 Battle Pass includes:

• Level 1: 3 Darkin Orbs
• Level 2: Imperfect Beauty

Icon

• Level 3: 3000 Blue Essence
• Level 4: Ancient Spark
• Level 5-54: 750 Blue Essence

per level

• Level 55: 750 Blue Essence
• Mythic Variants: Arcana

Lulu, Arcana Jhin, Prestige Visions of the Fallen Jarvan IV (max 40 pulls in MV Sanctum)

• Skins: Visions of the

Fallen Tryndamere, Visions of the Fallen Garen, Elderwood Alistar

The MV Sanctum is Riot's new Mythic Variant gacha format (max 40 pulls to guarantee).

Quality of life changes

• **Jungle timers added to the

minimap** (basic view shows epic camps, all camps visible while pressing TAB)

• Death recap repositioned to

the side of the screen with a show/hide option

• Anti-smurf measures for

new accounts

• Anti-griefing detection for

intentional feeding

Why it matters

Season 3 is the biggest off-season reset in LoL history. The new ranked system (no LP reset, Eternal rank, visible LP) is a direct response to years of community complaints about ranked anxiety and grind.

Doom Bots as a permanent mode is the first new permanent mode since Arena (2024). The mode has high retention in the LoL community and is expected to bring back lapsed players.

What's next

The next major LoL event is the Worlds 2026 group draw (Sep 14), followed by Worlds 2026 (Sep 25 - Oct 31 in Shanghai).

FAQ

When does LoL Season 3 start?

August 27, 2026 at 12:00 noon local server time.

Does ranked reset in LoL Season

3?

LP doesn't reset, but the Victorious Mission resets (15 ranked wins for the Victorious skin).

Is Doom Bots permanent in LoL?

Yes, Doom Bots is a permanent mode in Season 3 — the first time it's been permanent since 2014.

What is the Xin Zhao VGU?

A full visual update for Xin Zhao with new model, VFX, animations, and higher-poly character art. His Commando and Imperial skins are re-priced from 520 to 750 RP.

What champions are getting

jungle buffs in Season 3?

Vayne and Sett officially become viable junglers, with bonus damage vs monsters and adjusted clear speed. Nilah also gets off-meta jungle buffs.

When is LoL Worlds 2026?

September 25 - October 31, 2026 in Shanghai, China.