Updating Champion Mastery in League of Legends
Greetings, Summoners! I’m Evan “Riot Revenancer” Humphreys, lead systems designer for Motivations at Riot Games. In today’s developer blog, I’m excited to dive deeper into the major overhaul we're making to League of Legends’ Champion Mastery system. This update is designed to better reflect your achievements and progression as you master your favorite champions. Let’s take a look at what’s coming in the revamped system.
Why Update Champion Mastery?
Champion Mastery is a core part of how players express their love for their favorite champions and demonstrate their skills. However, the current system has limitations, including level caps that leave many players feeling stuck once they've reached mastery level 7. Additionally, the static nature of mastery doesn’t capture skill changes as the game evolves with balance updates and new metas.
Leveling Changes: No More Level Caps
One of the biggest changes in the new Champion Mastery system is the removal of level caps. Players will now be able to progress their mastery levels indefinitely. To level up, you’ll still accumulate mastery score by playing matches and earning higher grades, but we’re introducing a new mechanic called “Marks of Mastery” to further enhance your champion progression.
How Marks of Mastery Work
Marks of Mastery are earned by achieving consistent high grades and demonstrating your proficiency with a champion during a split. These marks will become a key part of leveling up, alongside traditional mastery scores. Our long-term goal is to award Marks for completing champion-specific feats to add more depth to progression.
New Mastery Icons
With the introduction of levels beyond 7, we’ve also revamped mastery icons. Drawing inspiration from Mount Targon, these new icons represent the journey of mastery, visually scaling as you climb the levels. Levels 8-10 will feature new icons, and an infinitely scaling system will provide visual distinction for players who go beyond level 10.
Seasonal Progression and Milestones
To keep progression engaging, we’re introducing a per-split reward track that resets each season. Each champion will have four milestones, which are unlocked by achieving high mastery grades. Completing these milestones will grant Marks of Mastery and other rewards, including a revamped system for earning Hextech chests based on performance.
Introducing Mastery Sets
To reward mastery across multiple champions, we’re adding Mastery Sets. Each split, you’ll have a set of champions where progress contributes toward extra rewards. Completing milestones across these champions will unlock a special super-charged mastery chest, offering additional rewards for those who show mastery across the board.
Final Thoughts
We’re excited about these changes and believe they’ll enhance your Champion Mastery experience, making it more rewarding and reflective of your in-game achievements. Let us know what you think as we continue to work on this system. The new mastery updates are slated for release in early summer, and we can’t wait for you to explore the new progression opportunities!