---
description: June 29, 2015
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# 1.6 Notes

## RONA UPDATE (1.6): AXES & CARD PACKS!

_Update 1.6 brings a bold new berserker to the Fold. Plus, get cards packs to unlock those Tier II and Tier III skins and enjoy Casual & Ranked queues, a revamped profile and much, much more. Let’s explore the update …_

![new\_hero2\_header](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/new_hero2_header.png)

### **RONA BACKGROUND & LORE**

Rona is a deadly berserker who is always ready to leap into battle. She holds her own in melee combat, unleashing enormous damage on everyone who stands and fights. Rona is most often played in the jungle, pairs well with protectors and works well with both weapon and crystal builds.

**Read the lore:** [**Rona vs. Skvader**](http://www.vainglorygame.com/news/rona-vs-skvader/)

### **RONA EARLY-ACCESS PERIOD**

**Rona will be unlockable with ICE only for the first 7 days.** Afterward, you will be able to unlock Rona with ICE or Glory.

![header\_features\_new](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/header_features_new.png)

![rona\_perk](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/rona_perk.jpg) **BERSERKERS’ FURY (HEROIC PERK)**

Rona attacks 50% faster than most heroes, but she deals only 80% damage with each attack. Additionally, Rona’s abilities use Bloodrage instead of energy, a unique resource that is generated from basic attacks, abilities and taking damage from enemies. This caps at 100 and decays when Rona leaves combat. Energy and energy regeneration from items is converted to in-combat bloodrage generation.

&#x20; \
![A-intofray](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/A-intofray.jpg)**INTO THE FRAY**

Rona leaps into battle, gaining bloodrage from colliding with enemies. She also gains damage reduction based on the number of enemy heroes she hits. After a short delay the ground ruptures, slowing enemies who pass over it.

&#x20; \
![B-Foesplitter](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/B-Foesplitter.jpg)**FOESPLITTER**

Rona lunges to her target, landing a basic attack and gaining bloodrage. Briefly after using this ability she can reactivate it to attack again, consuming all of her bloodrage and applying a mortal wound to her target. The damage of the second attack is increased for each point of bloodrage consumed. Additionally, the cooldown for this ability is reduced by Rona’s basic attack.

&#x20; \
![C-red-mist](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/C-red-mist.jpg)**RED MIST**

Rona begins an axe-wielding whirlwind, continually dealing weapon damage to nearby enemies. During the whirlwind she can move freely but at reduced speed. She can cancel the ability at any time by reactivating it or using another ability. Red Mist requires at least 75 bloodrage to activate.

![header\_features\_new](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/header_features_new1.png)

### **UNLOCK CARD PACKS IN THE MARKET!**

![6x2\_Icebox20152906\_gold](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/6x2_Icebox20152906_gold.jpg)

“The rollout of new skins and card collecting continues as the GET CARDS section of the Market is now available! You can use your ICE and Glory to collect more cards faster by getting card packs from the card boxes. Distinguish yourself from other players by completing card collections and unlocking the unique Tier II and Tier III skins for your favorite heroes.

“The card boxes are time limited and will be replaced with a new box once the current one has expired. The new box will have a new mix of card content favoring different heroes and skins. Tip: Use the ‘Peek in Box’ option to inspect the contents of the box to see if it features any cards you’re looking for.

“Got unwanted cards from a box? Don’t worry, we’ll be adding additional features in the near future that will help you use any unwanted cards to complete the skins of your choosing.” _—Noj-Trab_

* **ICE BOX:** Unlock a four-pack of cards using ICE you’ve purchased. Features different heroes and themes over time.
* **GLORY BOX:** Unlock a four-pack of cards using the Glory you’ve earned. Available cards change over time.
* **You can peek in a box** before you unlock cards! Use the cards you get to unlock skin tiers.

### **NEW CASUAL & RANKED QUEUES**

“Introducing separate Casual and Ranked queues is all about player intent. If it’s late at night and you just want to get in _one more game_, you shouldn’t be afraid to play for fear of losing a hard-earned skill tier. If you want to try new things, you need a place to experiment without regretting the consequences. And if you want to coordinate, grind and compete, you need a home for that without running into a first-time instalock Celeste building Weapon. If we’ve done our work well, both queues should be fun and rewarding. But now, you can pick the queue that’s right for you in the moment.” _—PlayoffBeard_

* **The Public Match queue has been divided into Casual and Ranked.** These are separate matchmaking queues with different purposes and requirements:

**CASUAL MATCHES**

* **Play fun, low-pressure games.** It’s a great place to try new heroes, new item builds and experiment with different hero comps.
* **Your skill tier is not impacted.** The matchmaker will still try to find the best possible match. If you always try-hard in the Casual queue, your casual queue matchmaking score will rise, making it difficult for you to try new heroes or strategies when you want to.
* **You will still gain XP, Glory and Karma — and cards will drop at the same rate** as Ranked. Also, all your Casual and Ranked matches will count toward First Win, Third Win and Sinister Seven achievements. _You don’t ever have to play Ranked if you don’t want to!_

**RANKED MATCHES**

*
  * **Play for skill-tier prestige.**
  * You must be account level 10 and Karma level 10.
  * Free hero rotation does NOT apply. _We want players in Ranked to already know how to use the heroes they pick._
  * You must have at least three heroes unlocked to play. _This is just so you don’t get stuck if your teammates select the only two heroes you’ve unlocked._
  * Parties with members who are greater than one skill tier apart cannot play Ranked.
  * Whenever you play Ranked Matches, you have the opportunity to advance your skill tier. To test your skill, the matchmaker will occasionally match you with opponents who are slightly higher or lower tier than you.
  * To climb, you must consistently defeat opponents equal or above you in skill tier and avoid losing matches to opponents below you. Maintaining a 50/50 win rate will not result in promotion but only keep your skill tier constant.

### **NEW PROFILE SECTION & HONORS**

“We’ve reorganized the information in your profile to reflect the Casual and Ranked queues and to display information more clearly.” _—PlayoffBeard_

* **Your Profile is divided into separate tabs** for Account, Karma and Ranked.
* **The Ranked tab of your profile will display your PROGRESS** forward (and backward) as you attempt to reach the next skill tier. It will also indicate when you’re in danger of dropping in tiers.
* **Honoring players (upvoting) will increase their Karma score. Downvoting players will reduce their Karma,** which means that repeat offenders will no longer meet Karma requirement for Ranked play (Karma level 10).
* Abuse of downvotes will result in your votes no longer having any impact on other players.

### **NEW SKINS & CARDS**

“This update introduces Tier III skins for Ringo _(that fiery arm!)_, Adagio _(ooooh, the red wings!)_ and Koshka _(those emote effects!!!), \_and we can’t wait to see which players achieve these rare and special skins first. If it’s you, be sure to post_ [_on Twitter_](https://twitter.com/vainglorygame) _or in the_ [_forums_](http://forums.vainglorygame.com/index.php)_! We’re cranking on new skin themes, existing skin tiers and additional cards as fast as we can without compromising our standard for quality. If you’re still waiting for your favorite hero’s skin_ (Taka, anyone?), _we know and we’re on it. What else is cool is that even released skin tiers are likely to get cooler over time as we have a chance to reflect and revisit them after this mad push is over.”_ —PlayoffBeard\_

* **Adds Tier I skins** for Skaarf and Catherine.
* **Adds Tier II skin** for Adagio.
* **Adds Tier III skins** for Ringo, Koshka and Adagio.
* **Adds more cards,** including Legendary rarity!
* _Skins for the remaining heroes will arrive in future updates._

![header\_gameplay\_changes\_new](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/header_gameplay_changes_new.png)

* **Turrets** must be destroyed in order.
* **Early game Aces** do not buff lane minions as much as late game ones. This ramps up from half strength at beginning of match to full strength at 15 minutes.
* **Ace buff** is cancelled if you take turret damage.
* **Jungle minions** no longer deal true damage, so you can mitigate the damage with armor and shield. But they deal more damage as the game progresses, especially jungle bosses.
* **Sanctuary death beam** now ends sooner when you leave the spawn area.
* **Melee heroes** have +33 bonus defense against lane minions. Consequently, Book of Eulogies / Barbed Needle’s massive melee heal has been reduced (see below). We want to melee laners be viable in lane because of stronger trading — not because of endless heal sustain.
* **Scoreboard:** You can now see the minion/monster kill count (commonly called CS) for each player.

![header\_hero\_balance\_changes\_new](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/header_hero_balance_changes_new.png)

![petal](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/petal.png)**PETAL**

“We’re increasing the overall effectiveness of her pets and improving her viability in the current meta. Our work here may not be totally done.” _—SurpriseBirthday_

**Convenience improvements**

*
  * Munion pets are smart enough to pursue enemies **who leave vision.**
  * Existing pets will **instantly level up** when Yay, Pets! is levelled up.

**Munion Pets**

*
  * Pets attack **50% faster.** (This is actually their natural attack speed; the old AI wasted a lot of time standing around.)
  * Pets are **much** **more responsive** when chasing.
  * Petal damage down from **20-95 + 45% crystal ratio** to **12-62 + 35% crystal ratio.** _Base DPS is roughly the same, but crystal ratio DPS is now about 16% higher._

**Seeds**

*
  * Seeds have **1.2m vision range.** _This is very short … shorter even than melee attack range, so enemies pretty much have to walk over the seed to be revealed. It does mean enemies are now forced to clear overgrown areas._
  * Seeds defense aura also grants equal amounts of **shield.**

**Spontaneous Combustion**

*
  * Base damage down from **245-350-455** to **215-310-405.**

![](http://static1.squarespace.com/static/53ff565fe4b0826cfdfb4767/54062f48e4b096fd0ba12284/556638f7e4b0e48846325086/1432762616951/#img.png)**SKAARF**

“Skaarf’s kit had a few inconsistencies that need to be ironed out. We’re happy with his role as a poke mage but believe he needs better tools for last-hitting and deal greater damage to turrets when he is willing to commit to it.” _—SurpriseBirthday_

**Spitfire**

* Collides with **heroes & objectives** but passes through **everthing else.** _This means it now passes through jungle monsters & petal munions._
* Damages everything it passes through, but each subsequent target takes **66%** the damage of the previous.
* Collision box reduced to better match visual size of the fireball.
* Damage up from **75-100-125-150-325** to **75-125-175-225-325** (only middle ranks are stronger).

**Turret Damage**

* **Goop Pool’s burn damage** vs. turrets down to **33%** strength.
* **Fan the Flames** can now damage turrets, but at **33%** strength.

![](http://static1.squarespace.com/static/53ff565fe4b0826cfdfb4767/54062f48e4b096fd0ba12284/556640a5e4b0349f890f26c8/1432764582481/#img.png)

**JOULE**

“Joule’s potential for interrupting abilities from merely using her knockback gave her too much hidden power. Finally, we’re ironing out some awkward sources of extra power in her kit.” _—SurpriseBirthday_

**Rocket Leap**

* Rocket Leap’s stun hitbox reduced by \~5%.
* Rocket Leap’s pushback no longer cancels enemies’ abilities.

**Big Red Button**

* Big Red Button deals damage over **6 ticks** instead of **3** with the same channel time. _This not only makes the damage smoother but shifts damage into later frames and hence makes the damage easier to dodge._
* Big Red Button will begin to reveal Joule the moment she begins channeling, not when she begins firing.
* Big Red Button and Thunder Strike damage hitboxes start near the front of Joule, not at the center.
* Fixed a bug where Big Red Button dealt all of its damage over 1 second.

### ![fortress](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/fortress.png)**FORTRESS**

“Fortress’ percent health bite damage was too easy too apply, triggering the burst damage + slow + mortal wound in most situations. It was also a tad too strong early game, so we’re shifting some of its power into later levels.” _—SurpriseBirthday_

* Stacks to trigger up from **5** to **6 stacks.**
* Initial damage down from **120-170-220-270-370** to **90-140-190-240-340.**
* Percent health damage crystal ratio up from **0.05%** to **0.06%.**

![adagio](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/adagio.png)**ADAGIO**

“Adagio gets a slight buff to his carry scaling, as we want to see him back in the meta as a situational farming carry. His perk was not particularly pronounced and rarely affected player decision making. You can now get a decent amount of energy by splashing Arcane Fire onto an entire wave of minions and clearing the whole wave.” _—SurpriseBirthday_

* **Base damage** up from **65-118** to **75-118.**
* **Arcane Renewal** up from **20%** to **35%.**
* **Gift of Fire** burst heal crystal ratio up from **50%** to **65%** crystal ratio.
* **Agent of Wrath** damage crystal ratio up from **65%** to **85%** crystal ratio.

![taka](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/taka.png)**TAKA**

“**Taka**’s bug fixes have been very good to him. Turns out, Taka is a little too strong when every part of his kit is working consistently!” _—SurpriseBirthday_

* **Mortal strike** lifesteal down from **30%** to **20%.**

![](http://static1.squarespace.com/static/53ff565fe4b0826cfdfb4767/54062f48e4b096fd0ba12284/55663b59e4b0e48846326122/1432763225944/#img.png)

**VOX**

“Crystal Vox’s early game is now too painful to survive to get to his late-game power. CP Vox’s signature style of dealing more damage through Resonance bounces doesn’t really emerge until later, condemning a CP Vox to selfishly farm in lane until his real personality emerges. If you haven’t noticed, we’re also nudging his stats to make weapon and crystal builds equally viable.” _—SurpriseBirthday_

* Increase Resonance amp from **20-40-60-80-125%** to **50-65-80-95-125%** (only early ranks are stronger).
* Attack speed at level 12 down from **161%** to **151%.**

![catherine](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/catherine.png)**CATHERINE**

* Captain of the Guard Heroic Perk also grants **1 shield** in addition to 1 armor.

![](http://static1.squarespace.com/static/53ff565fe4b0826cfdfb4767/54062f48e4b096fd0ba12284/55664016e4b089955d1d5071/1432764440332/#img.png)**SAW**

* Spin-Up also grants **1 shield** in addition to 1 armor.

![header\_item\_changes\_new](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/header_item_changes_new1.png)

![minion-candy](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/minion-candy.png)**MINION CANDY**

“This item was meant for map objectives, not for arbitrarily buffing heroes who have minions and making them dependent on this item to be relevant. Instead, we are directly addressing Petal’s power this update.” _—SurpriseBirthday_

* No long affects hero summons/pets.

![fountain-of-renewal](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/fountain-of-renewal.png)**FOUNTAIN OF RENEWAL**

“Fountains are too stackable. We want this item to be powerful and create interesting timing gameplay, but don’t want to see it spammed across everyone’s inventory.” _—SurpriseBirthday_

* After receiving **600** healing from Fountains, further healing from other fountains are only **66**% as effective for 10 seconds.

![book-of-eulogies](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/book-of-eulogies.png)**BOOK OF EULOGIES & BARBED NEEDLE**

“Originally intended for situational lane sustain and to make melee laners viable, these items are now granting a tad too much sustain. Additionally, “semi-melee” laners like Joule took full advantage of enhanced healing despite often last-hitting with a ranged ability. The large heal now only triggers if you’ve last-hit using a melee attack, as a reward for taking the proper level of risk. Finally, these items heavily punished Petal in lane, as her seeds and pets granted tons of bonus healing to the enemy laner.” _—SurpriseBirthday_

* Only grants healing on killing **lane minions** and **jungle monsters.**
* Only grants larger melee healing if you last-hit **using a melee basic attack.**
* **Book of Eulogies** heal down from **35** to **30;** melee heal from **70** to **60.**
* **Barbed Needle** heal down from **50** to **40;** melee heal from **100** to **85.**

![bonesaw](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/bonesaw.png) **BONESAW**

“Bonesaw is seen too often even against enemies with no armor. This item was too strong as a general-purpose damage amplifier instead of a situational counter. It was also too strong on heroes who can proc this effect rapidly (such as Vox).” _—SurpriseBirthday_

* Armor shred per stack down from **12%** to **10%.**

![flare-gun](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/flare-gun.png) **FLARE GUN**

* **Friendly flares are a different color,** so you can tell if it was your ally or an enemy who flared that area.

![header\_performance\_improvements\_new](https://jd3sljkvzi-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/header_performance_improvements_new.png)

### **ANDROID LAUNCH!**

The full Android launch is here! We’re supporting more than 150 Android devices to start. The list will grow even larger over time. **Please tell your friends** on Android devices that they can get Vainglory now on Google Play. Vainglory is 100% cross-platform, so you can play with and against friends regardless of whether they’re on iOS or Android — and a mix of devices and platforms is fine for the same party or match.

* **More than 150 Android devices** supported.
* Completely **cross-platform**.
* Go **rally your friends on Android** and bring them into the Fold!

### **BUG FIXES**

* The chat keyboard now shows what you type. _What a concept!_
* Fan The Flames crystal ratio now properly applies to all stacks.
* Skaarf can no longer use Reflex Block to block his own self-silence during his ultimate.
* Fixed a bug where Big Red Button dealt all of its damage over 1 second.
* Fixed a bug that caused Catherine to apply her stun several frames too early.
* Fixed a bug that caused Book of Eulogies and Barbed Needle passives to sometimes heal even if you didn’t get a last hit.

_This is a big, big update with a lot of new moving parts. Give it a go now, and please be sure to report bugs and provide feedback_ [_in the forums_](http://forums.vainglorygame.com/index.php) _and_ [_subreddit_](http://www.reddit.com/r/vainglorygame/)_. Let the race to Tier III skins begin! —PlayoffBeard_
