Elise in League Classic: Legacy Kit and Changes

Classic Elise arrived in Patch 26.22 with her older kit, where healing lives on Skittering Frenzy and Rappel makes her untargetable. Here is each legacy ability set against her live kit.

By the MID.GG editorial team

Patch 26.22 7 November 2026 4 min read

Elise in League Classic at a glance

Elise in League Classic is the older version of the Spider Queen. She still swaps between a ranged human form and a melee spider form, but her sustain and spider-form damage come from different buttons than they do today. The first thing a live player notices is that the healing sits on Skittering Frenzy instead of her passive, and Rappel makes her untargetable before she picks a target to drop on.

She joined the mode in Patch 26.22. You can see who else has been brought back on the League Classic champions page.

The Classic kit: Elise’s legacy abilities

The legacy kit keeps the two-forms-in-one structure, with each ability key holding a human spell and a spider spell. Here is what each one does, as the Patch 26.22 notes describe it.

Passive, Spider Swarm: landing human-form abilities on enemies banks Spiderlings, up to a limit. Swapping to spider form lets them loose on whatever is nearby.
Q, Neurotoxin / Venomous Bite: the human version hits harder the more health the target currently has. The spider version is a lunge, joined by the Spiderlings, that hits harder the more health the target is missing.
W, Volatile Spiderling / Skittering Frenzy: in human form, a spiderling bursts on the first enemy it reaches and damages the area around it. In spider form, Elise and her Spiderlings attack faster, and her attacks heal her.
E, Cocoon / Rappel: the human version stuns the first enemy it connects with. The spider version lifts Elise and her Spiderlings up, untargetable, and a second cast drops her onto a target of your choice.
R, Human Form / Spider Form: swaps between the two forms. Human form fights at range; spider form fights in melee and adds bonus damage to her attacks.

Passive - Spider Swarm: While in human form, abilities that hit enemies store a Spiderling, up to a cap. In spider form, Elise releases these Spiderlings to attack nearby enemies.
Q - Neurotoxin / Venomous Bite: In human form, Elise spits neurotoxin that deals bonus damage based on her target’s current health. In spider form, Elise and her Spiderlings lunge at an enemy and deal bonus damage based on their target’s missing health.
W - Volatile Spiderling / Skittering Frenzy: In human form, Elise releases a volatile spiderling that explodes on the first enemy it hits, dealing damage in an area. In spider form, Elise and her Spiderlings gain bonus attack speed and heal Elise on-hit.
E - Cocoon / Rappel: In human form, Elise fires a cocoon that stuns the first enemy it hits. In spider form, Elise and her Spiderlings rappel into the air, becoming untargetable. She can then re-cast Rappel to descend upon her choice of target.
R - Human Form / Spider Form: Elise transforms back and forth between human form and spider form. In human form she’s ranged. In spider form, she is melee and deals bonus damage on-hit.

MID.GG analysis

This entry adds Elise to League Classic with her legacy kit, which puts spider-form healing on Skittering Frenzy and on-hit damage on the form swap instead of the passive. As a result, her sustain depends on timing W, and Rappel serves as a dodge and target picker rather than a damage buff.

How it differs from today’s Elise

The big shift is where her spider-form damage and healing live. In the Classic kit, the on-hit damage belongs to the form swap itself and the healing belongs to Skittering Frenzy. On the live kit, both sit on her passive. Here is the breakdown, ability by ability. For the current version, see the Elise guide.

Passive

Both versions store Spiderlings when human-form abilities hit. The live passive, Spider Queen, also adds bonus magic damage and self-healing to spider-form attacks. Classic Spider Swarm does neither; its job is only to bank Spiderlings and release them when you transform.

Q

Neurotoxin and Venomous Bite are effectively the same in both kits. The human form scales with the target’s current health and the spider form with missing health. The Classic notes add that the Spiderlings lunge alongside her.

W

Volatile Spiderling plays the same in both: a spiderling that blows up on an enemy. Skittering Frenzy is where they split. Both versions grant attack speed, but only the Classic one heals Elise on-hit. The live version gets that healing from the passive instead.

E

Cocoon stuns the first enemy hit in both kits, and the live version also reveals the target if it is not stealthed. The two Rappels differ in what they give you. The Classic one stresses untargetability and a recast to pick your landing target. The live one boosts Spider Queen’s damage and healing after she lands, which the Classic notes do not mention.

R

Both ultimates swap her into a shorter-range spider form with new abilities. The Classic version puts the bonus on-hit damage on the spider form itself. The live version lists move speed and the Spiderling swarm as the payoff, with the on-hit damage moved to the passive.

Key takeawayWhat changes in practice

Three habits from the live game need adjusting in the Classic version.

Your spider-form healing only works while Skittering Frenzy is active, so time W for when you need sustain.
Rappel is your untargetable window and your target picker; it does not empower your next attacks.
Spiderlings come from landing human-form abilities, so open with spells before you transform.

Classic patch history

Classic Elise has not received a balance change since she arrived in Patch 26.22. The only entry on record is the one that added her to the mode. Check the patch notes for future tuning, and Elise stats and builds for live-game data, which does not apply to League Classic.

Frequently asked questions

When did Elise arrive in League Classic?

Elise came to League Classic in Patch 26.22. That patch added her with her legacy kit: Spider Swarm as her passive, a healing Skittering Frenzy, and an untargetable Rappel with a recast to choose her landing target. She has not had a Classic balance change since she arrived.

What is different about Classic Elise?

Classic Elise keeps her two forms, but her spider-form damage and healing sit elsewhere. The bonus on-hit damage comes from her Spider Form ultimate, and the healing comes from Skittering Frenzy. On live Elise, both are on her Spider Queen passive. Rappel also works differently, focusing on untargetability and choosing a target.

Does Classic Elise heal from Skittering Frenzy?

Yes. In League Classic, Skittering Frenzy gives Elise and her Spiderlings bonus attack speed and heals her on-hit. Live Elise’s Skittering Frenzy only grants attack speed, because the healing is on her passive. In the Classic version, you need W active to sustain in spider form.

Is there a build or tier for Classic Elise?

No. League Classic has no statistics, so there are no win rates, pick rates, tiers, builds or runes for Classic Elise. Any live-game build data describes the current Elise kit, not the legacy one. What is documented is her Classic ability set and Riot’s patch entries for the mode.

Sources

Riot Games: League of Legends Patch 26.22 Notes