The new honor system in League of Legends is live today, rolling out on different servers a bit at a time. Under this new system, players will be able to better give props to stand-out teammates and can also earn themselves rewards by being sportsmanlike and helpful.
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With the revamped honor format, players will likely be noticing a couple of changes that are being made to the post-game transition. Much like runes and masteries are about to be, the honor system has been completely overhauled to create a more meaningful process when it comes to helping your teammates get recognized as positive players.
This new system isn’t just about helping your teammates feel good, though. You can also net yourself some pretty sweet rewards by participating in the healthy gameplay such as skins that will be exclusively honor rewards as well as key fragments that can now only be received for free through the honor system. End-of-season honor rewards will also be given out, and it is possible for your honor level to be lowered by getting hit with penalties for bad behavior, so it’s encouraged to remain sportsmanlike throughout all your games instead of shooting for shortsighted rewards.
We’ve broken down the way the new honor system works here as well as what you can do to help others and walk away with some extra loot.
The New Honor Categories
As players are finishing up their games, they’ll notice that the transition to the post-game lobby looks a bit different now. Once the game is completed and before you get into the traditional end-game stats screen, you’ll have the chance to honor one of your teammates. You can only honor one player though, a change that looks to make the decision more impactful as opposed to dishing out honors left and right.
There are three options when it comes to honoring your teammates: “Stayed Cool,” “Great Shotcalling,” and “GG <3.” The first is for a player who remained in high spirits without tilting throughout the game, the second is for those players that make the awesome game-ending Baron calls, and the last is somewhat of a catch-all for a player who you just genuinely enjoyed playing with.
When you get to the post-game screen, you can see all of the honors you’ve received from that match. If three or more of your teammates honor you, you’ll receive a special recognition that everyone can see.
Leveling Up
Another change that’s been made in the honor reformatting is the addition of an honor level that ranks either up or down depending on your in-game behavior. With the start of the new system, everyone will begin at level 2, unless you’ve already been hit with a penalty for bad behavior in which case you’ll start at a lower level.
As you proceed through your games, being honored by your teammates will raise your individual honor level. Once you raise the level enough, you’ll be able to rank up to the next honor level, the highest being level 5 and the lowest being 0 with no rewards able to be obtained at that level.
Players will also be able to rank up a bit quicker if everyone on the team votes for someone. Riot wants to make sure that the team plays together all the way through the end, even including the post-game lobby, so you’ll benefit more if everyone works together on that end as well. Below is the rewards you can receive from each level:
- Level 0: No rewards
- Level 1: Fewer Key Fragments
- Level 2: Normal amount of Key Fragments
- Level 3: End-of-season rewards, normal amount of Key Fragments, Honor Capsules, Level 3 loading screen flair
- Level 4: End-of-season rewards, normal amount of Key Fragments, Honor Capsules, Level 4 loading screen flair
- Level 5: End-of-season rewards, normal amount of Key Fragments, Honor Capsules, Level 5 loading screen flair
The Rewards
Aside from helping your teammates boost their honor level, it’s in your best interest to keep up the positive behavior so that you can earn rewards. Key Fragments have been moved to honor rewards as well; it’s either play nice in-game or buy the key fragments yourself.
The Key Fragments being reserved for honorable players is likely the biggest change, but players still have other rewards to look forward to. End-of-season rewards have been promised, and though they haven’t been revealed yet, Riot says that they’re definitely coming.
Level 3 and above is where the honor rewards really start kicking in. From that level on, players will receive loading screen flairs to reflect their honorable performance while loading into the game. Honor Capsules will also be dropped at the third level and above, key-less loot chests that contain a minimum of two Key Fragments, a chance to get a rare skin shard, and an even rarer chance to get one of two skins that are now exclusive through the honor system: Grey Warwick and Medieval Twitch. These used to be a part of the “refer a friend” system, and they’ve now been moved to honor rewards.
You won’t be finding your key fragments after every game now. They’ll instead be given out while staying on the client or when you log in so that it’s clear they aren’t attached to in-game performance and are solely tied to honor.
FAQ
Still have questions about the new honor system? It’s a big update, and there are bound to be some elements left unclear, so Riot has already gotten ahead of the game by posting a FAQ on their support page.
The FAQ addresses many of the same questions that have been covered already here such as what the rewards are and how to get them. Some of the main questions that got answered here were why people started out at Level 2 as opposed to 1; Riot wants to make sure everyone gets a fresh start, unless you already have an active penalty, that is.
If you’re wondering what will happen to your old honor ribbons that you might’ve accumulated, Riot says that those won’t be sticking around. Your ribbons and honor count will be totally replaced with the new system, but they’re still looking to reward those who helped out with the first edition of the honor system.
“We’re prepping a small parting gift for those who participated in Honor 1.0,” the answer from the FAQ reads. “We’ll share more details once Honor is live around the world.”
Check the full FAQ here for any unanswered questions, and be sure to be on your best behavior to rake in those rewards.
