Kindred are poised to receive a rather sizable buff in Patch 8.12 this week, according to the current PBE cycle. The buff is so large that it might do more than just help Kindred out in the jungle, too.
The League of Legends meta is more fragile right now than it’s been in about a year. Even after the new rune system was released last preseason the meta remained constant, more or less, and players simply had to learn more information to keep up with the new runes.
Now, however, it’s anyone’s game. Want to run Yasuo and Nautilus bot lane? Yeah, that’s doable even in high elo. Taliyah jungle? You bet. What about Taric mid lane? That’s in there, too. Anything’s possible right now. Previously weak champions are stepping into power. Some are even taking over roles they were never intended to fit into, and it’s utter chaos.
Through that chaos there are two junglers that stand to take over not just one, but maybe even two roles—Kindred.
It’s hard to doubt whether or not Kindred will become a prominent jungler after the buffs, because they’re all quite large. Their early gank power and camp clear are being buffed by 15 percent, with more bonus attack speed added to their Q as well as 15 base damage to their E. Not only that, but she’ll scale much harder with a rather momentous one whole percent being added to their attack speed growth. For a growth stat buff, that’s a very big deal.
Their camps will die faster, they’ll be able to pack more of a punch in ganks, they’ll be able to duel early game junglers around Scuttle Crabs more easily, and they’ll scale harder like the game’s other ADCs. That pretty much checks all the boxes, and Kindred joining the meta of the jungle seems inevitable.
The stranger outcome would be if they didn’t just join the jungle meta, but joined the bot lane meta too.
Out of all the game’s roles, the bot lane is the most volatile in its current state. There are bruisers, vanguard tanks, and assassins entering the fray as ADCs and supports, and now, with this buff, Kindred might make a claim, too. Not only do these buffs check all of the boxes for their jungle power, but they also check boxes that would be great for any marksman.
The significant buff to their Q’s bonus attack speed will help their in skirmishes to trade damage. The flat damage buff on their E will help their land quick bursts in those skirmishes that now hurt significantly more, especially early on. And, most importantly, the attack speed growth buff will help their scale up in pace with their lane opponent. Those are all great tools to have for any ADC, and their high mobility is nothing to scoff at either.
Patch 8.12 arrives this week, and with it, Kindred’s buffs. It’s possible she’ll never see the light of day as a bot lane marksman, but she’ll definitely see much more playtime in the jungle at least.
