New Smite Patch Adds a Hunter, Gives a Character a Giant Corn Dog Weapon

Details of the next Smite update have been revealed, and it's a big one, introducing a new character and a whole lot more.

Patch 3.16 introduces a new Hunter, Izanami, whose basic attacks function like boomerangs: she throws out her sickles in a straight line, passing through enemies, and they then return to her, dealing damage to enemies a second time. It's unlike anything in the game and brings with it some unique challenges from a balance perspective. Due to how powerful this would otherwise be, damage scaling on Izanami's basics is much lower, on-hit effects only activate on the first target, and lifesteal is lowered to 33 percent on everything hit. One other interesting wrinkle is that the sickle immediately returns upon hitting things like walls, allowing players to use the environment (or something like a Ymir wall) to more quickly deal damage.

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Izanami's passive provides her with penetration as she loses health, gaining four percent for every 15 percent of her health that's missing. Her Sickle Storm ability removes the boomerang effect from her basic attacks but increases the damage they do. Spectral Projection does damage and slows enemies in a line; if an enemy god is killed with the slow on them, the ability gains a permanent increase to the slow effect (maxing out at two stacks). Fade Away allows her to perform an underground leap that causes her to go stealth (making her the first Hunter to be able to do so); this lasts for a few seconds or until she takes damage or performs an ability. Finally, her Ultimate, Dark Portal, does damage and silences enemies in a targeted area after a short delay.

3.16 also introduces new achievements and skins, the highlight of which is Hoot 'n Holler Bacchus. This gives him camo shorts, a USA flag tank top, crocs, a beer hat, and a giant corn dog that functions as his weapon. Other new additions include Oktoberfest Nu Wa and Griffindwarf Fafnir (showcased in the video below), who will be the final reward from this year's Season Ticket. You can see all of these in the gallery above.

The update continues to tweak matchmaking, now making it so that three-person parties can no longer queue up for ranked Conquest games.

On the balance side, the Phantom relic (the one allowing you to walk through players and player-made objects, like Odin's ring) is being changed so that it has a longer cooldown but affects nearby teammates. The cost of Magi's Blessing and Spectral Armor will be reduced, Divine Ruin will now provide more magical power, and Witchblade gains more physical protection. The most significant change comes for Pythagorem's Piece, which will now cost less and offer less magical power, but provide more magical power and lifesteal to nearby teammates with its aura.

Character-wise, the changes center around four characters. Erlang Shen's Pin ability now has a cooldown of 16 seconds, while Fafnir gains less bonus gold and has to wait longer to use Coerce. Sylvanus gains damage on Verdant Growth, provides more protections with Wisps, and has a shorter cooldown on Nature's Grasp.

Hou Yi's changes stand as maybe the most significant of the update, with Hi-Rez saying the changes are meant to "address his performance at the highest end of play while also maintaining his core strengths." Ricochet now does more damage and scales more, but deals less bonus damage following a bounce. Mark of the Golden Bow loses the bonus penetration it provides at rank 5 and lasts for less time, but it now reveals marked targets at all ranks.

You can read the full patch notes on Smite's website.