Riot shares the thought process behind choosing legendary skins

William Davis Published 12/03/2021

Understanding the thought process behind which champions are being chosen for new skins can be hard, so Riot recently gave players an explanation. 

As more champions are being added to League of Legends every year, it’s getting harder to provide all champions with new skins. This has resulted in certain champions being without new skins for years, making fans of those specific champions frustrated. In a recent Ask Riot blog, Riot explains the thought process behind choosing champions for new skins. More specifically, Riot explains how they choose which champions to make legendary skins for. 

Legendary skins are fairly exclusive and take time for Riot to design, which is why they aren’t being mass-produced. This puts Riot in a position where they have to choose carefully which champion will get the next legendary skin in line. To make this decision, Riot is looking at a few different factors.

The first thing Riot looks at is to prioritize champions that are broadly popular. This will usually be a champion that is viable in any sort of meta. A perfect example of a popular champion in any given meta is Thresh, or a champion like Lee Sin that will always be picked up in solo queue. 

After finding a broadly popular champion, Riot is looking at the big thematics of the year, to identify potential legendary skin candidates. Riot base this on the following factors. 

• How recently a champion has received a new skin, to make sure new skins don’t stack up on the same champion. 
• How well the champion fits into the thematic of the new skin concept.
• What the champion’s current catalog of skins looks like. To avoid making several skins for a champion with the same theme. 
• How much Riot can elevate the fantasy by taking a skin to the legendary level. 

In some cases, Riot even chooses a specific champion and builds up a fitting thematic around it. Recent examples of this are the recent Spirit Blossom skins, where Thresh and Ahri. 

Who has the most legendary skins in LoL?

Cho’Gath is one of the fortunate champions to have more than one legendary skin. The big void monster has two legendary skins, which is his Battlecast and Gentleman skin. Gentleman Cho’Gath was one of the first legendary skins to be introduced to League of Legends, which is also why it doesn’t have the same amount of in-game effects and new voice overs as the newer ones. 

A few other champions also have two legendary skins, such as Thresh and Lee Sin. 

How much does a legendary skin cost? 

A legendary skin in League of Legends is priced at 1820 RP. These skins are more expensive than the regular skins at 975 RP and epic skins sitting at 1350 RP. The reason for this is that legendary skins often have a more detailed design, which provides the specific champion with new in-game effects, dances, taunts, etc. 

Read Also

Esports Betting

Bet Tips and Predictions For Team Vitality vs MKOI LEC Summer Playoffs Ben Boland The LEC playoffs are well underway, and we have Team Vitality taking on MKOI in a do-or-die series. Lose here, and your chances of qualifying for Worlds 2026 go up in smoke. With Vitality getting dismantled by G2 Esports in their opening series, it begs the question whether it was just the G2 playoffs magic, or Vitality are not the team we thought they were. Let’s take a look at ...

Esports Betting

LCS Playoffs Round 1 Best Bets: Will C9 Falter? Ben Boland The LCS Summer regular season has finally come to a close and six teams will now do battle over the next few weeks with the hope of representing their region at the 2026 League of Legends World Championship. The first round of playoffs is expected to set the tone for what is to be an exciting conclusion to the return of the LCS. Cloud9 and Shopify do battle once again, ...

Esports Betting

The Best LCS Summer Split Week 7 Odds: Upsets On The Horizon? Ben Boland The LoL betting world is in for a treat this weekend as the LCS Summer Split regular season enters its final week. Everything is to play for, from the battle for first place to who starts life in the upper bracket. Esports betting sites are unsurprisingly covering the games extensively, and here my tips to bet on for each LCS match this weekend. This is a series that could go ...

League of Legends

LEC Playoffs Round 1 Betting Tips: G2 vs Vitality & Karmine Corp vs GIANTX Ben Boland The 2026 LEC Summer Playoffs are finally here in the world of LoL betting. After weeks of regular-season action, the battle to get to Worlds 2026 is heating up. Team Vitality, G2 Esports, GiantX, and Karmine Corp start their playoff run in the upper bracket. Both sets of matches have a lot of betting potential, with some decent value to be found. Here are some of the best bets to ...

League of Legends

Caps Hall of Legends skins prices and dates revealed Hannan Mundia Caps is the latest League of Legends player to be inducted into the Hall of Legends, and the LEC player’s dedicated skins have been revealed, including their prices and release dates. The Hall of Legends is Riot Games’ way to honor a handful of the most well-known and celebrated professional players associated with LoL. The first inductee was naturally Faker, while the second was Uzi. The third player is Caps, ...

League of Legends

Five Support Champions To Pick Up in LoL Patch 26.17 Ben Boland The support meta in League of Legends is one of the most highly discussed roles in the game right now. With Riot doubling down on the roaming support playstyle, we will likely see more champions added to the pool around the time of Worlds 2026, which begins on 15 October. At the time of writing this article, the current patch, 26.17, is being tested on the PBE, with the launch ...

League of Legends

These Are Five Top Lane Champions To Pick Up in League of Legends Patch 26.17 Ben Boland League of Legends patch 26.17 is just around the corner, and with that patch comes more changes to the role. The days of ADCs in the lane are starting to be a thing of the past, with more bruisers hitting the gym before the launch of 26.17. Many top laners are receiving buffs on the new patch, while powerhouses such as Nasus and Vayne are on the chopping block, making ...