We don't know how many champions are in League of Legends at this point, and we're too afraid to go and check. But what we do know is that another is about the join the fray. Here's what we know about the League of Legends Nilah character: from the release date and lore, to their abilities and role.
Properly revealed in June 2022, Nilah arrives with a message draped in hope: "I will face the great villains of myth, and live forever in song." Said to be a woman of "unflinching, bombastic glee," it sounds as if she's sure to leave her mark on the rift.
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When Is the Nilah Release Date?
Nilah is set to release in League of Legends alongside patch 12.13. With 12.12 set to launch just as she's been properly revealed, it's safe to say she isn't far away at all.
What Role and Lane is Nilah?
Though you're technically free to use her wherever you want, Nilah is primarily positioned as a bot lane melee skirmisher. Viego, Kayn, and Jax are similar examples.
League of Legends Nilah Skills and Abilities - Nilah's Kit
Nilah's Abilities
Passive - Joy Unending
If Nilah last hits a minion she and the nearest allied champion gain 50% of the experience that would normally be lost from sharing with nearby allies.
Nilah gains additional effectiveness from heals and shields given to her by allied champions. When a nearby ally casts an ability that heals or shields Nilah or themselves, Nilah grants the additional benefit to both herself and her ally.
Q - Formless Blade
Passive: Attacks and ability damage against champions ignore some of their armor and heal Nilah for part of the damage dealt. This effect scales with crit chance and can overheal, granting Nilah a shield.
Active: Nilah strikes in a line damaging all enemies hit. Hitting an enemy increases Nilah’s attack range and attack speed for a few seconds. Additionally her basic attacks will splash in a cone, dealing additional damage.
W - Jubilant Veil
Nilah envelopes herself in mist, causing her to briefly gain movement speed, reduce incoming magic damage, and dodge all incoming basic attacks. Touching an ally champion hides them in the mist, granting them the same bonuses for half the duration.
E - Slipstream
Nilah dashes through a target unit, damaging all enemies she passes through. Nilah can hold 2 charges of Slipstream at once.
Nilah can cast Formless Blade (Q) during Slipstream to pull a wave in her path, dealing damage and activating her empowered attacks.
R - Apotheosis
Nilah spins her weapon in an area around her, dealing damage and pulling enemies in toward the center with a final burst. This damage heals Nilah for a portion of the damage dealt, converting excess healing into a shield. The healing and shielding scales with critical strike chance and is shared with nearby allies.
From her passive alone, it's clear to see that Nilah practically demands an accompanying support.
Between reducing the negative effects of sharing XP, to returning the favour whenever a nearby ally attempts to shield or heal themselves or Nilah herself, there's a lot to gain by having Nilah constantly guarded by a support.
In group situations, she's likely to latch onto (and share) heals and shields triggered by the whole team, passing those boons onto a squad in the midst of battle as well.
Nilah Lore and Story
Taken directly from the source, here's what we know about Nilah's story so far:
An epic-seeker and woman of unflinching, bombastic glee, Nilah is a warrior ascetic pledged to a legendary order, known for repurposing the power of the ancient demon of joy to right wrongs and slay great evils.
She practices a strict code of rite and ritual that connect her to this demon, its power appearing as shimmering, incandescent water from the spiritual lake that serves as its prison.
Though on an epic quest to find those who sealed Viego within her country’s borders, she senses the imminent return of an even greater threat, and resolves to face these myths of the old world as only she can.
We're bound to have a lot more to say regarding Nilah real soon. In fact, her full bio should be up right now. But preferred stats, items, and maybe even some decent team compositions wouldn't go amiss in the future, so we'll work on those as well
For now, though, read up on claims that disabling chat is one of the game's best features. That's something the latest patch has improved further as well.