The first hit to Warwick after a year of his rework with upcoming patch 8.9

Warwick on the way to get a Nerf with upcoming patch 8.9, according to the latest PBE update. Maybe it’s not a big Nerf, but it’s still something.

There have been brief moments where Warwick wasn’t in the top five win rates or play rates out of the game’s long list of jungle champions, according to League stats site Champion.gg, but for the most part, he’s remained somewhere in the top three.

The reason for him staying on top that long with no significant Nerfs is simple. Win rates and play rates aren’t everything, and although a high win rate combined with a high play rate is usually a red flag, there are always other factors at play. Warwick, for instance, has very clear counters. He’s extremely kitable, his ultimate is easy to miss, and there are clear paths to take to play around him.

As a bit of a nudge in the right direction, Riot is Nerfing the max health damage from his Q, but only at higher ability ranks, as well as lowering his base AD slightly. The base AD Nerf will slow down his early camp clears and lower his potential to duel in the jungle, and the scaling Nerf on his Q will make him a bit less effective late in the game.

These changes must be arriving with Patch 8.9 in the next week.