League of Legends kicks off Season One of 2025 this January 9 with a brand-new Noxus-themed update, bringing with it new art, music, structures, and a new in-game objective: Atakhan, Bringer of Ruin. New runes, items, changes to Teleport, and a system called Feats of Strength, which grants access to newer, more powerful boots, will also be added.
Season One will span eight patches and is split into two Acts that will each have their own Battle Pass with various Act-themed rewards, including skins, borders, and more. The in-game event was launched along with a new cinematic, Welcome to Noxus, set to the original song “Bite Marks” featuring TEYA.
Champion Updates
Arcane‘s Mel Medarda will be joining the game as a playable character, bringing with her a new type of gameplay known as “projectile reflection”. Her Rebuttal ability enables her to reflect targeted abilities back at their original caster and non-targeted abilities back in the enemy’s direction.
In celebration of the launch of the Season of Noxus, Mel will be unlockable for free through one of the seasonal missions. Players can explore her backstory further in the upcoming novel Ambessa: Chosen of the Wolf, releasing in February.
Existing champion LeBlanc will also be recieving a visual update, designed after her appearance in Arcane and the Welcome To Noxus cinematic. The update will be released this season, and will be followed by another champion update later this year.
New Cosmetics
New Noxus-themed skins will also be coming to League of Legends, with the first set being Masque of the Black Rose skins for Samira, Renata Glasc, Ezreal, Vladimir, Elise, and Katarina. These will be the first Battle Pass reward skins of the Season, with Katarina as the Prestige capstone for the paid Act One Battle Pass.
The Lunar New Year-themed Radiant Serpent Sett will release as the first Exalted skin of the season to celebrate the Year of the Snake. The second Exalted skin of the season will be for Mordekaiser, with its specific theme to be announced at a later date.
Esports
A new League of Legends esports tournament, the First Stand Tournament, was announced to be held this March 10-16 at LoL Park in Seoul, Korea. The event will feature best-of matches between the top teams from Split 1, with the winning team advancing directly to the bracket stage at MSI 2025.
Speaking of which, MSI 2025 will be held in Vancouver, Canada, from June 27 to July 12, while Worlds 2025 will be hosted across iconic cities in China, starting with Play-Ins and the Swiss Stage in Beijing, Quarterfinals and Semifinals in Shanghai, and Finals in Chengdu.
Game Modes
All Random URF will be active during Act One, and Act Two will bring back Arena with a Noxian update, featuring a Noxus map themed after the gladiator pits with its own map-specific mechanic.
Additionally, a system called Guests of Honor will be introduced across all Arena maps, where players will vote on which famous Noxian they would like to alter the rules of each game. New items and augments will also be added to Arena, along with changes to maps like Koi Pond, based on player feedback.
For more information, visit the official League of Legends website.
