Riot Games Legends of Runeterra News, Question and Answers

Now open for pre-registration, Legends of Runeterra is a digital strategy card game for PC and mobile, set in the world of League of Legends.

Riot Games, the developer and publisher of League of Legends (LoL), revealed “Legends of Runeterra” (LoR), a free-to-play strategy card game set in the world of League of Legends that will be fully launched in 2020 for PC and mobile and is now open for pre-registration.

LoR features cards based on the iconic champions of LoL, as well as new characters and allies hailing from the regions of Runeterra, each with their own style and strategic advantage. LoR’s gameplay is built around dynamic, alternating combat that demands players use their skill, creativity, and cleverness to succeed. LoR offers players multiple options to acquire cards, including both robust free-to-play options and the ability to directly purchase any card with either earned or paid currency.

"We’re all huge card game fans on the LoR team, so we know the issues with the genre: things like excessive cost, over-the-top randomness, and seeing the same decks over and over. We’ve spent a lot of time thinking about what we’d do differently, and now we have a chance to shake up the genre by keeping what’s great, improving what’s not, and adding some new twists of our own," said Jeff Jew, Executive Producer for LoR. "We’ve been hard at work making the best card game we can imagine—one that we hope players everywhere will love. We’re pretty excited to show players what we’ve got so far, and we can’t wait to hear what they think!"

Riot Games' game philosophy is built on a commitment to outstanding player experience and live service. As a result, LoR will see frequent balance updates and content releases to ensure a dynamic metagame and evergreen experimentation. An exciting new venture into the League IP, LoR invests heavily in the art and world-building already established from ten years of League of Legends to make LoR a game that takes players deeper into an IP they already know and love.

LoR is now open for pre-registration on PC and the Google Play Store Android at the Legends of Runeterra website. Players who pre-register will have a chance at early access prior to release in 2020, as well as an exclusive Poro pet chroma at launch.

To celebrate its reveal, LoR is holding a limited-time, PC “Preview Patch" in select regions.More details on LoR can be found at LoR's website.

LoR FAQ

What is Legends of Runeterra?

Set in the world of League of Legends, Legends of Runeterra is the strategy card game where

skill, creativity, and cleverness determine your success.

In LoR, you can:

● Build decks with your favorite League champions (and new characters) from the regions

of Runeterra, each with their own style and strategic advantage.

● Face off in dynamic, alternating combat full of opportunities for outplay.

● Earn cards for free as you play or buy exactly what you want in the store—you’re in

control of your collection.

But that’s just the beginning—check out this video for an in-depth look.

What platforms is LoR available for? Is it cross-platform?

LoR is being developed for both PC and mobile (coming at launch), and will be playable crossplatform.

How can I get access to LoR now?

We’re still getting things ready for Southeast Asia, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau, so

unfortunately these regions will not be part of the special preview patches. Stay tuned for more info on when you’ll be able to play LoR!

When will LoR release?

The full launch, including mobile, will be sometime in 2020—as soon as we’ve landed on an

exact date for Southeast Asia, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau, we’ll let you know.

Is there a pre-registration reward?

All pre-registered accounts will receive an exclusive Moonstruck Poro Guardian once Legends of Runeterra fully launches in 2020. To redeem this variant for the Poro Guardian, you’ll just need to login within seven days after LoR launches. Don’t worry, your poro pal will wait for you.

Why is Riot making a card game?

A lot of us have been playing card games since we were kids, so we know the issues with the genre: Spending an entire paycheck just to try another deck. Over-the-top randomness deciding which player wins. Playing against the same decks over and over, and cards that stay broken way too long. 

So we asked ourselves: what if we could change all that?

Basically, we’ve spent a lot of time thinking about what we’d do differently. And now we have a chance to shake up the genre by keeping what’s great, improving what’s not, and adding some new twists of our own.

So we’ve been hard at work making the best card game we can imagine—one that we hope

players everywhere will love. We’re pretty excited to show players what we’ve got so far, and we can’t wait to hear what you think!

What’s different in LoR?

Beyond bringing the world of League of Legends—including the champions, characters,

creatures, and regions of Runeterra—to a totally new game, there are three big things we aim to do differently with LoR:

● Strike the right balance between accessibility and strategic depth.

● Give players more choice and control when it comes to getting cards.

● Support a diverse meta and endless experimentation with frequent releases and balance

updates.

That’s really just scratching the surface—check out this video for all the details.

Who is LoR for?

League players who love strategy and card game players looking for something different should feel right at home with LoR, but we hope players of all types can find something they love about our take on the card game genre.

Do I have to pay to get started in the game or to unlock certain things?

Legends of Runeterra is free to play. There are two in-game currencies: Shards you earn

through play, and Coins you can purchase anytime.

Here’s how unlocking stuff works in LoR:

As you play, you’ll complete quests and earn experience to advance and automatically unlock new cards, but which region you unlock first is totally up to you. You decide where your cards come from, and can switch regions whenever you want, which makes assembling your dream deck a whole lot easier.

Once a week, you’ll also unlock chests from the Vault. The Vault levels up as you play and

upgrades the chests inside, which increases the number of cards you get from each.  Individually, both the cards and chests have a chance to upgrade into something even better, and at level 10 and above, you’re guaranteed a champion.

Sometimes you’ll encounter wildcards, which can be turned into any card you want—no guessing required. A limited number of additional wildcards are available in the store, which is replenished with a new stock each week.

We know that sometimes you just want a guaranteed way to get specific cards. So instead of waiting for the right drop, you can unlock cards for your collection using the Shards you’ve earned or the wildcards you’ve acquired through play or purchase.

Bottom line: In Legends of Runeterra, you will never pay for randomized packs, and you have a bunch of different ways to get the cards you actually want and build multiple decks for both casual duels and the competitive meta.

When it comes to cosmetics, there are free base options that every player starts with: the

Summoner’s Rift Board and the Poro Guardian. Stay tuned for more details on other ways to personalize your LoR experience in the future.

Why are you limiting how much players can spend on cards?

It’s a good question, with a slightly complicated answer.

The summary version is that we want to ensure you always have something you’re looking

forward to unlocking, and that you’re constantly discovering new cards and strategies. 

Slowing down how quickly the entire set of cards can be unlocked is one method for helping us accomplish that goal.

Does LoR include all the champions and factions from League of Legends?

Currently, LoR features six major regions of Runeterra—Demacia, Noxus, Ionia, Piltover &

Zaun, Freljord, and the Shadow Isles—and 24 champions (four from each of those regions).

League players will probably notice that there’s a lot more of Runeterra to still be explored...

Will LoR have its own story and champions or will it co-exist within current League lore?

Will there be any new and unique champions in LoR?

Every character and card in the game comes from a region of Runeterra, the same world that the champions from League of Legends hail from. You’ll encounter some familiar faces and discover completely new ones.

Will there be a ranked system?

Absolutely—it’s currently in development.

Will there be a “limited” or draft-based game mode?

Definitely—we plan on sharing some details very soon. 

Can I play with my friends?

We’re still working on the friends list and a friend challenge feature—both are currently set to be ready for closed beta in early 2020.

What are LoR’s minimum specs and supported operating systems?

● Windows

○ 64-bit Windows 7, 8.1 or 10

○ 3 GHz processor

○ 4 GB RAM

○ GPU with 512MB+ VRAM

● Mac OS

○ Not supported.

● Mobile (iOS & Android)

○ Specs coming once we release LoR for mobile.

Is LoR going to be an esport?

We believe that wherever there’s dedicated competition, there’s an esport in the making.

However, this isn’t something we’re aggressively pushing to happen. For now, our focus is

entirely on building the best card game we can imagine—one that we hope players everywhere will love.

How long has Riot been developing this game?

The idea of a League card game has been around for a while at Riot (what can we say, we’re fans). We’ve had several prototypes over the years, but Legends of Runeterra itself was largely built over the last couple years.

Is LoR finished? What’s a preview patch?

LoR is still in active development, but we’re gearing up for beta in early 2020. However, the

League Ten Year Anniversary was just too good an opportunity to pass up for sharing an early preview with League players.

Unfortunately, Southeast Asia, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau will not be part of the special

preview patches. Stay tuned for more info on when you’ll be able to play LoR!

Is Riot working with anyone to make LoR?

LoR is mostly being developed at Riot, but we’re working with three fantastic art partners:

SIXMOREVODKA, Kudos3d (partner studios for card art) and Beyond FX (partner studio for

VFX). Working closely with our veteran, in-house art team, our partners are playing a critical

role in making LoR a game that lives up to Riot’s high artistic standard, and takes players

deeper than ever before into the world of Runeterra.

We also work with several external parties who provide functional QA, localization QA, and

compatibility testing services that help ensure LoR hits the quality bar players deserve.

Why doesn’t LoR use Riot Points (League of Legends’ paid currency)?

There are two main reasons. First, Riot is working on multiple mobile games (LoR and League of Legends: Wild Rift), and, as it turns out, both the Google Play Store and Apple App Store actually don’t allow games to share currencies (for a bunch of good reasons). This restriction and other eccentricities of cross-platform currencies pushed us towards an independent paid currency (Coins) for LoR.

Second, we’re trying some interesting new stuff with LoR’s business model (see earlier

questions for more info on that), and plan to actively fine-tune our system prior to launch as we gather data and hear what you think. An independent paid currency will give us the freedom tomake any necessary changes in the run up to launch, without worrying about cross-game ripple effects.

Do I need the League of Legends client or a LoL account to play LoR?

No to both! Legends of Runeterra is a standalone download. You will not be able to use your

Garena League of Legends account to play LOR, but you can make a Riot account to play once we’re live in Southeast Asia, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau.

How long does one game of LoR usually take?

Games take around 10 to 15 minutes to finish, but we’re warning you now: you may end up

playing all night.

How are you handling cheaters?

Riot is deeply committed to competitive integrity in all our products. We have detection and

protection services in place on LoR, and will take any and all necessary measures to preserve a level battlefield.

I’m interested in creating a website, app, bot, etc. for LoR, how can I get started?

Head to the LoR section of our Riot Developer Portal.