Riot Patch 26.10 Removes Minion-Aggro Trick, Pros Push Back

Riot Games removed a niche minion-to-minion aggro interaction in League of Legends patch 26.10, released May 12. The change alters how minions target other minions; the longstanding rule that minions switch to attack a champion who hits an enemy inside a wave remains in place.

The interaction allowed a player to hit a middle minion to draw its aggro, then reposition that minion to force a wave to advance or crash on a single target. Players used the tactic for advanced wave management in side lanes, particularly top, where wave pace affects lane pressure, safety and gank windows.

Ranged top laners could use the interaction to build long slow pushes that created attack windows from a safe distance. Combined with a lane freeze, those slow pushes could invite a jungler to collapse on an opponent. Players also reported champions such as Rengar could exploit the mechanic by quickly moving between minions from nearby brush to shift aggro.

High-elo players and some professional teams raised concerns about the timing because the change takes effect during competitive Weeks 8 and 9. Gen.G CEO Arnold publicly questioned making the adjustment in the middle of the season as teams approach playoff qualification. Prominent players including HANCOCK discussed wave-state techniques on social channels, and several top-ranked players noted they had not known the interaction existed before the patch.

Riot listed the minion-aggro tweak among competitive adjustments and mini reworks in the official 26.10 patch notes and described it as the removal of an obscure interaction. A League designer posted about the adjustment on social media; Riot did not provide further public explanation beyond the patch documentation.

Players and teams have a short window to adapt strategies that relied on minion-to-minion targeting before late-season matches. Full details of patch 26.10 and its other adjustments are available in Riot’s official patch notes.