League of Legends’ textbook definition of both an unstoppable force and immovable object is continuing to cement himself as a legitimate balance problem, and the few changes he received in the most recent patch do not appear to have uprooted his power.
Maokai remains one of the most powerful champions in the current state of the meta as of Patch 14.3, holding at a 55-percent win rate according to League stats sites OP.GG and U.GG—exactly where he ended in the most recent patch. His pick and ban rates are similarly high, floating around 15 percent and 25 percent respectively, just a bit higher than in Patch 14.2.
But Maokai did receive a handful of adjustments in Patch 14.3, though they’ve yet to make the impact that Riot Games seems to have intended. The patch brought about hefty nerfs to the heal on Maokai’s passive, as well as the cooldowns of both his E and his R while reducing the cooldown and mana cost of his Q in an attempt to make him more viable in the top lane and jungle roles. But, at this time, it does not appear that the changes altered Maokai’s presence in these other positions.
Much of this spike in popularity of Maokai support can be attributed to some of the new and tweaked items introduced in the 2024 season, specifically those that increase the champion’s movement speed. As Maokai is one of the few champions with a point-and-click root, providing him with an ample amount of movement speed can ensure enemies cannot escape, while also making them susceptible to further damage from a lane partner—followed up by even more crowd control within Maokai’s kit.
The new item Trailblazer is key to the success Maokai experienced in the last patch, and what he is likely to continue relishing in Patch 14.3. This item—cost-effective for supports at only 2,500 gold—provides not only Maokai with additional movement speed and an additional slow on his next attack but also allows allies to follow in pursuit with a speed-increasing trail behind him. Trailblazer effectively serves as a tank iteration of Shurelya’s Battlesong without an active, giving Maokai nearly everything he needs to disrupt the opposing bot lane with one purchase.
As this is only the second day of Patch 14.3 existing on the live servers, it’s possible that Maokai’s win rate will stabilize over the next several days as players discover new ways to deal with the champion. But should Maokai continue to be a threat across nearly all levels of play, Riot may step in for further nerfs akin to the hotfix implemented yesterday targeting the near 58-percent win rate of Aurelion Sol.
If not, Maokai is more than likely to join the list of changes coming in Patch 14.4, which is expected to be pushed to the PBE for testing next week with a live release the following week.
