Latest December 2023 Updates to Arena of Valor Heroes

The latest Dream Realm Update has brought about more changes to Arena of Valor heroes. In this patch, Garena has balanced the power of some hot picks and provided assistance to some outmeta heroes, giving them a chance to shine in ranked matches.

So, what are these new changes? Do they make our Arena of Valor heroes stand out? Let's dive into the details of this latest update and evaluation with Mytour.

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Natalya (buff)

• Inner Mechanism: (New Addition): Landing abilities will now inflict an extra 11(+2% ability power) magic damage and grant a 2% movement speed boost, stacking up to 10 times. Each stack lasts for 3 seconds.

With this buff, Natalya gains improved kite potential, akin to constantly spamming her first ability and executing satisfying hit-and-run tactics. However, with just that much power, it's perhaps not sufficient for this Arena of Valor champion to make a mark in tournaments due to her inherently challenging playstyle. Nevertheless, in ranked matches, Natalya might see a slightly increased presence.

Keera (nerf)

• Ability 2: Cooldown: 8s => 10/9.6/9/9.2/8.8/8.4/8s
• Ability 3: Movement Speed Increase: 40% => 30%

Despite the nerf, it's essential to note that Keera's damage output remains unaffected. She can still deliver substantial burst damage with her devastating combo. However, after this adjustment to the Arena of Valor hero, players need to time her ultimate cooldown more accurately and execute the combo more precisely and cautiously. According to Mytour, this adjustment doesn't push her out of the top spot for the hottest Jungle heroes in both ranked matches and tournaments.

Paine (nerf)

• Passive: Base normal attack damage 225 + 15/lv + 40% magic power => 200 + 15/lv + 40% magic power

Despite a slight reduction in damage from basic attacks in his passive, personally, I don't think this makes Paine significantly weaker because the Dream Realm update brings a map that greatly benefits Paine, maximizing his mobility and surprise attacks to the fullest. Therefore, you can still confidently pick this ace to climb ranks, even in Master or Grandmaster tiers. As for tournaments, we might need to wait a bit longer to see whether professional players pick Paine as a firefighting solution or just to save a pick.

Stuart (buff)

• Ability 1: Base damage: 320/410/500/590/680/770 (+100% AD) => 320/410/500/590/680/770 (+120 AD)

After this buff, Stuart still struggles early game with damage output, farming, or clearing minions. It's only when he has multiple items, especially physical attack ones, that he starts to shine. As for his popularity in tournaments, Stuart remains a wildcard, but surely won't match up to Joker. However, in ranked matches, Stuart is currently quite strong and gets picked frequently, so feel free to use this Arena of Valor hero to climb the ranks.

Veres (buff)

• HP growth: 352.5 => 375
• Armor growth: 26.9 => 29

With this type of buff, Veres becomes tankier as the game progresses. However, what most Arena of Valor players eagerly anticipate is Fried Chicken returning her original 20% movement speed, as the critical nerf previously removed her status as the jungle queen. Predicting her tournament popularity is tricky because there are other preferred picks for the top lane like Zuka, Ryoma, etc. In ranked matches, though, she's still a solid choice for players in many matchups.

Laville (buff)

• Ability 1: Base damage: 175/220/265/310/355/400 (+50% AD) => 200/250/300/350/400/450 (+50% AD)

Examining the stats, players can see that Laville's additional damage is quite substantial, giving him a slightly brighter lane phase. However, compared to long-range marksmen like Tel'Annas, Violet, Yorn, there are still many disadvantages. Nevertheless, one thing is for sure, after this buff, Laville will have a higher pick rate and appear more frequently in ranked matches.

Hero Balancing

• Raz bug fix: Increase the range of Ability 3 by 1m to match the actual range.
• Nakroth and Veres bug fix: Fix abnormal terrain crossing bug.
• Speed Boost bug fix: Fix abnormal terrain crossing bug.
• Fennik bug fix: Using Ability 1 triggers Ability 2 and accumulates Ability 2 abnormally.
• Thane's Ability 2 optimization bug fix: Optimize the warning circle to match the actual range.

Explore more: Top 5 Assassins You Should Play in Season 4 of the Dream Realm Update