Preseason 2023 dropped in League of Legends patch 12.22, and with it, major jungle changes, a renewed Chemtech Drake, system upgrades, and item changes.
Out of the new Mythic items that were introduced, Heartsteel has had the biggest impact on the meta.
Riot Games explained that it originally designed Mythic items as first-buys, but recognized that wasn’t always the case, for sometimes, a Legendary item better fit the bill.
“We are revamping tank Mythics without the presence of Immolate, allowing them to focus less on damage/farming and more on enabling the core tank fantasies of having tons of durability or crowd control (or both)!” the game developer wrote.
And so from this update onwards, Iceborn Gauntlet, Turbo Chemtank, and Sunfire Cape are classified as Legendary items. Jak’Sho the Protean, Radiant Virtue, and Heartsteel have entered the fray as the newest tank Mythic items.
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Why tanks are now buying Heartsteel as their Mythic item
- Gold Cost: 3200
- Health: 800
- Health Regen: 200%
- Ability Haste: 20
- Build Path: Kindlegem + Crystalline Bracer + Giant’s Belt
- Passive – Colossal Consumption: Charge up a powerful attack against a champion over 3 seconds while within 700 range of them. The charged attack deals 125+6% of your max health as bonus physical damage, and grants you 10% of that amount as permanent max health. 30 second cooldown per target.
- Mythic Passive: Grants all other Legendary items 1% bonus health and 6% champion size
Heartsteel reads like Warmog’s Armor at first, and they’re made of the same components. They also give the same effects, granting 800 health and 200% health regen.
The difference is that this Mythic item provides extra 10 ability haste, while its unique passive gives tanks offensive and additional defensive power based on their defensive stats.
Beware, however, that you’re not going to feel the effect of Heartsteel immediately as your first item. Using its Colossal Consumption charged attack will grant you 10% of that amount as permanent max health, with a 30 second cooldown — which you’ll need to stack, and keep stacking until late game where you’ll finally become near unkillable and a killer at the same time.
You also need to be within 700 range of a champion for Colossal Consumption to work, so you’re not going to be able to proc it every 30 seconds. You’ll need to recall and base, as will your opposing laner.
Shen is excelling in two roles now thanks to this Mythic item, in top lane and mid lane. He currently holds a 52.79% win rate at top in Platinum rank and above, and 52.88% win rate in mid, according to U.GG at the time of writing.
Other tanks that are buying Heartsteel are those who similarly stack health, resistances, and use their size to their advantage, namely Ornn, Cho’Gath, Maokai, Sejuani, and Mundo.
Compared to Heartsteel, Jak’Sho the Protean is an item that’s more champion-specific. Its passive, Voidborn Resilience, instantly drains enemies around you for 3% of your max health (reduced to 30% against minions and monsters) and increases your resists by 15% until the end of combat.
Note that it’s a one-off drain, not a continuous one, which makes it less appealing. Champions like Singed and Rammus, particularly when they’re the sole initiators on the team, will benefit from Jak’Sho the Protean’s 10% increased resistances during combat.
Read the full League of Legends patch 12.22 notes here.
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