Wild Rift Patch 7.3b Notes: Changes, Winners and What It Means for Your Games

Riot published the Wild Rift 7.3b patch notes on October 14, 2026 (09:00 UTC). This is a balance patch: crit users (Jhin, Tryndamere, Yasuo) and Volibear get stronger, while Hwei, Nocturne, Yunara and Senna lose power. Assassins get cheaper Youmuu's Ghostblade, a stronger early Electrocute and a shorter Cheap Shot cooldown. Grasp of the Undying and Aery are nerfed, Locket gets cheaper and tankier, and raptors take longer to clear. No new champions.

Rollout date

Riot's patch schedule lists only major versions (7.0 to 7.3) and says lettered balance patches follow a less predictable schedule. Treat October 15 as the date Riot references, not as a confirmed rollout time for every server. Check the version in your client, in your local time. Riot also says content is released throughout the patch.

Quick summary

1. Champion buffs

Volibear: more damage and sustain on Frenzied Maul

• Frenzied Maul (his 2) AD ratio: 100% → 110%.
• Empowered damage AD ratio: 160% → 176%.
• Empowered healing based on missing health: 5/6/7/8% → 5/8/11/14%.

What it means: rank 1 healing is unchanged, so the gain grows as you level Frenzied Maul. Volibear plays both Jungle and Baron Lane; in longer fights, the empowered hit now returns noticeably more health when you are already low. That rewards staying in a fight you started rather than leaving at half health. See the Volibear build and Volibear counters (written for 7.3a, so read them with this buff in mind).

Jhin: power arrives earlier

• Whisper standard crit damage: 80% → 85%.
• Missing-health damage: 11–25% (cap at level 15) → 11.5–25% (cap at level 10).

What it means: the maximum value does not change; the timing does. Jhin reaches full missing-health damage five levels earlier, which matters in the mid game, when most objective fights happen. Riot's stated goal is to help him hit his power spikes sooner. Jhin build.

Tryndamere: steadier crits

• Battle Fury crit chance per Fury: 0.3–0.5% (by level) → 0.5% at all levels.
• Spinning Slash: 80/120/160/200 + 100% bonus AD + 80% AP → 80/130/180/230 + 110% bonus AD + 80% AP.

What it means: early levels gain the most, because Fury now gives the full crit value from the start. Spinning Slash keeps the same base damage at rank 1 but gains more base damage from rank 2, and its bonus AD ratio rises from 100% to 110% at every rank. Tryndamere build.

Yasuo: more crit damage, bigger shield

• Way of the Wanderer standard crit damage: 90% → 95%.
• Passive shield: 77–529 → 77–630 (by level).

What it means: the early shield is the same; the extra value comes in the mid and late game. Riot links this to Yasuo losing the crit version of Bloodthirster. Yasuo build.

2. Champion nerfs

Hwei: less damage, shield and control

• Signature of the Visionary: 40–285 + 30% AP → 30–280 + 25% AP.
• Serenity, Pool of Reflection: initial shield 60/80/100/120 + 35% AP → 50/70/90/110 + 30% AP; maximum shield 108/128/148/168 + 71% AP → 98/118/138/158 + 60% AP.
• Serenity, Stirring Lights: bonus base damage 30/40/50/60 → 20/30/40/50.
• Torment, Crushing Maw: cast range 7.5 → 7; damage 70/120/170/220 + 70% AP → 60/110/160/210 + 60% AP; jaw hitbox "optimized".

What it means: this is Hwei's second consecutive nerf after 7.3a. The shorter Crushing Maw range is the change you will feel in lane: cast it from the old distance and it may fall short. The shield is smaller, so expect less protection from it when a diver reaches you. The Hwei Mid guide still uses 7.3a values.

Nocturne: slower clears, fewer ultimate windows

• Health per level: 134 → 128.
• Duskbringer base damage: 70/125/180/235 → 60/115/170/225.
• Attack Damage gained on Dusk Trails: 20/30/40/50 → 10/25/40/55.
• Paranoia cooldown: 110/90/70 s → 120/100/80 s.

What it means: Duskbringer deals 10 less base damage at every rank. The Attack Damage Nocturne gains while standing on Dusk Trails drops at ranks 1–2, is unchanged at rank 3 and rises at rank 4. Riot's stated reason is that, after the jungle overhaul, he was clearing camps and finding targets too efficiently. Combined with tankier raptors, expect his early clear to be slower. Paranoia comes back 10 seconds later at every rank, so you get fewer chances to look for a dive. Nocturne build.

Yunara: less sustained damage

• Cultivation of Spirit (her 1), passive and active damage: 10/15/20/25 → 5/10/15/20.
• Transcend One's Self cooldown: 70/60/50 s → 70/65/60 s.

What it means: each rank of Cultivation of Spirit loses 5 damage, which affects long fights more than short trades. The ultimate cooldown is unchanged at rank 1 and longer afterward, so late-game fights see it less often. Yunara build and Yunara counters (written for 7.3a).

Senna: less scaling

• Absolution standard crit damage: 90% → 80%.
• AD per Black Mist stack: 1.25 → 0.9.
• Piercing Darkness base damage: 50/80/110/140 → 30/60/90/120.

What it means: Black Mist stacks now give less AD each, so Senna scales more slowly through the game. Piercing Darkness also deals less damage at every rank. Riot says it wants to give both marksmen and supports more room. Senna build.

3. Items

Our read:

• Locket is aimed at tank supports. Riot wants to close the gap between playing with a tank support and an enchanter.
• Warmog's needs more health before Warmog's Heart activates. Enchanter supports, who were building it for the extra health, will find it harder to reach.
• Thornmail costs 150 more. If it is your first completed item, it arrives a little later. That matters for tank Baron laners and for Volibear builds that include it.
• Statikk Shiv charges faster and is cheaper. Yun Tal Wildarrows is cheaper and fixed. Both make crit builds easier to complete.

These are build starting points, not universal builds. Check the item list for current descriptions.

4. Runes

Electrocute gains damage only in the early levels; the maximum is unchanged. Together with Youmuu's and Cheap Shot, this follows Riot's goal of helping assassins convert an early lead. Grasp was gaining an edge over Conqueror, according to Riot. Aery's late-game shield is smaller because the new support items trigger it more often.

5. Jungle and other systems

Riot says raptors had become too easy to take in the mid and late game, which made them an easy invade target. They are tougher now, so stealing them takes longer, and your own clear does too.

Other changes: AAA ARAM adjusts nine augments (Soothing Slipstream, Rock Solid, Poro Head, Origin: Lethal Tempo, Eureka, Sword of Blossoming Dawn, Bigger and Bigger, Goliath and Fast and Furious). Bug fixes cover Yun Tal Wildarrows, Yordle Snap Trap, Smolder's 1 description and Veigar's 1 cast range. The Guild Leaderboard now calculates points at 11:55 PM every Sunday (Riot does not specify a time zone). Legends Showdown Volibear chroma chests are available from the October 15 update through January 6, 2027.

6. What changes for your games, by role

This section is editorial analysis based on the notes, not match statistics.

Baron Lane

• Grasp users hit a little less and gain less permanent health. Think about Conqueror again if you play bruisers.
• Tank builds that rush Thornmail complete it later.
• Tryndamere, Yasuo and Volibear come out stronger. Respect their extended fights, and Volibear's healing when he is low.

Jungle

• Plan for slower raptor clears in your route, and for longer raptor steals when you invade.
• Nocturne: expect a slower first clear and fewer ultimate windows; pick your dive timings carefully.
• Volibear and Tryndamere junglers gain the most from extended skirmishes.
• Assassin junglers: Electrocute, Cheap Shot and a cheaper Youmuu's reward early ganks.

Mid Lane

• Hwei: adjust to the shorter Crushing Maw range and the smaller shield. Keep control available for divers.
• Yasuo gets better as the game goes on; trade carefully against him after the first items.
• Burst mages and assassins on Electrocute deal more early damage.

Dragon Lane (ADC)

• Jhin hits his strongest point earlier; mid-game objective fights are his window.
• Yunara loses damage in long fights and sees her ultimate less often late.
• Cheaper Statikk Shiv and Yun Tal speed up crit builds. Check which one fits your champion.

Support

• Enchanters on Aery shield less late; Warmog's is harder to activate.
• Tank supports: Locket is cheaper and gives more health.
• Senna scales more slowly. Do not count on the same late-game damage.

Before your next ranked game

1. Check your client version and current item descriptions.
2. Re-test one combo or clear route affected by 7.3b (Hwei's Crushing Maw range, raptor timing).
3. Read the guide for your champion: champion rankings and builds.
4. Review one recurring decision with the match analyzer.

For the bigger picture, see our Patch 7.3 and 7.3a guide and the 2026 patch calendar.

Verdict

7.3b moves power toward crit carries and assassins and away from Hwei, Nocturne, Senna, Grasp and Aery. None of this makes a champion an automatic pick. Ask yourself which habits from 7.3a will lose you games now, and adjust them first.

Sources

• Riot: Wild Rift Patch Notes 7.3b
• Riot Support: Wild Rift patch schedule
• Riot: Wild Rift Patch Notes 7.3 (Season 23)
• Riot: Wild Rift Patch Notes 7.3a