Just two weeks after League of Legends’ 147th champion Senna was released, Riot Games surprised players by teasing a new one on Nov. 19. Aphelios, the lunar marksman whose development was announced in the Champion Roadmap last month, will be joining the game faster than anticipated.
Riot announced the new marksman by publishing a short story of his lore, as well as his champion page. And just a week later, we now know how his complicated circulation of five weapons will work, what his abilities are, and when he’s coming to the game.
Who is Aphelios?
Aphelios is a part of the ancient religious order Lunari that lives in the caves of Mount Targon, a home for celestial beings such as himself. Solari, the worshipers of the sun, think of the Lunari as heretics. This is why the Lunari live as outcasts trying to defend their faith in the moon.
Aphelios was inseparable from his sister Alune, who trained to be a seer while Aphelios was polishing his assassination skills. But once they found themselves in the heat of Solari’s attack, they were separated. This was necessary for them to realize their fate, however, since it allowed Alune to start channeling her lunar magic through Aphelios and conjure it with his fighting skills.
While Alune is trapped in the temple helping him find his path, Aphelios is risking it all to defend the Lunari.
What will Aphelios be like in-game?
Aphelios is the newest addition to League’s ADCs. He’ll use five different weapons made from lunar magic, bringing a unique style to the non-traditional marksman.
The weapon circulation is pre-set. Each weapon has a unique passive, main-hand ability on Q, and impact on R. The switch to the next weapon will happen automatically once the ammo is spent. There’s 50 ammo, named moonlight, per weapon. Aphelios also carries an off-hand weapon that can be swapped with W, giving different effects and bonus attacks.
Moonlight Vigil is the name of Aphelios’ ultimate. No matter the equipped weapon, it’ll launch a bomb exploding at the first enemy hit, damaging all enemies in close proximity. The weapons aren’t irrelevant to the ultimate, though. The explosion is followed by enhanced basic attacks against everyone damaged by the explosion.
The five weapons
Related: Here’s how Aphelios’ multiple weapons work
Calibrum (poke/harass)
- Auto attack: Extra range, marks enemies hit. Right-click on marked enemies triggers an attack from the non-Calibrum weapon and detonates other nearby marks.
- Q (Moonshot): A skillshot damaging and marking the first enemy hit.
- R effect: Marks deal higher damage.
Severum (sustain)
- Auto attack: Heals based on the damage dealt. Overhealing converts to a shield.
- Q (Onslaught): Movement speed boost. Rapidly fires both weapons towards the nearest enemy.
- R effect: Flat heal.
Gravitum (utility)
- Auto attack: Applies decaying slow.
- Q (Eclipse): All enemies on the map affected by the slow get rooted and damaged.
- R effect: Increased slow.
Infernum (AoE/wave clear)
- Auto attack: Increased damage, creates damage cone behind hit enemies.
- Q (Duskwave): Damages enemies like a flamethrower, off-hand weapon follows up.
- R effect: Attacks create circles instead of cones around the enemies hit.
Crescendum (DPS)
- Auto attack: A boomerang that creates copies of itself for each enemy hit, strengthening the attack. Attack speed decreases the time it takes to return.
- Q (Sentry): Off-hand weapon deploys a turret shooting at the nearest target.
- R effect: Basic attack damage increase.
When will Aphelios be released?
Aphelios will be released on Dec. 11, according to the League client. If Aphelios is released in December, he’ll be the fifth and last champion of 2019.
This article will be updated whenever more information about Aphelios becomes available.
