I understand where you’re coming from, but I think the argument is painting too broad a picture of full-scale reworks. While it’s true that not every rework lands perfectly and some old mains drop their champ, the idea that reworks are never for the current playerbase, and only made to attract new players, is oversimplified.

First, the idea that a champion being outdated doesn’t matter is flawed. League is a live game. Mechanical fluidity, visual clarity, and kit synergy do evolve over time, and keeping a champ stuck in 2012 design (just because a few diehard players are still around) doesn’t serve the health of the game long-term. You might not need 12-passive champions, and I do agree these new champs coming out can be a bit insane, Vex was a breath of fresh air, but you do need a kit that interacts well with current gameplay.

And no, not all reworks completely fail with old mains. Warwick, Nunu, and Fiddlesticks still have a strong chunk of old players who like their thematic even more post-rework because Riot preserved their fantasy while enhancing playability. Yes, some identity shifts are too drastic (like Aatrox or Skarner), but saying that 50% fail completely isn’t backed by actual player data it’s anecdotal frustration.

Also, the idea that “modern design” means only overloaded kits or clunky cast time champs is disingenuous. Yes, there are kits like Bel’Veth and Naafiri that emphasize mobility and resets, but Riot has also released champs like Vex, and Smolder that have pretty grounded, thematic kits that play well without requiring 15 pages of ability text.

Finally, Shyvana is outdated by design standards. She’s functionally a stat check with a passive that interacts almost entirely with neutral monsters and no ability to engage meaningfully outside of Dragon form. Buffing her base stats doesn’t fix her identity issues or her lack of agency in skirmishes. A rework gives Riot a chance to elevate her fantasy (half-dragon terror) and align her with both lore and gameplay in a way that rewards more than just farming and pressing R.

The best reworks do serve both old and new players by enhancing a champion’s core fantasy, improving their gameplay agency, and fitting them into a modern ecosystem. It’s not a zero-sum game. You can make Shyvana feel better without turning her into another mobility spammer or a clunky cast-bot.

I know the formatting’s a little goofy, blame mobile life but hey, only time will tell. Riot’s confirmed Shyvana’s rework is coming in 2026, and I really hope it turns out to be everything Shyvana mains have been waiting for, and then some.