Riot Games’ anti-cheat software, Vanguard, was first available for VALORANT. Over time, the developer perfected its VAC equivalent and it was eventually ready for release on League of Legends.
Vanguard was initially ready for an early 2024 debut in League, but Riot’s timeline shifted. In late February 2024, Riot confirmed Vanguard’s LoL release for March 6. However, there has since been another change of plans, leaving many fans to wonder when exactly Vanguard will release in League.
When Patch 14.5 dropped on March 6, many expected Vanguard to be a part of it on a global scale. Riot decided to pivot at the last minute, though, and preferred a slow, region-based rollout strategy.
When will Vanguard be added to League?
Vanguard will likely come to League globally after Riot finishes its research on test regions in 2024. Philippines was the first region to get Vanguard since Riot decided not to release Vanguard globally in League on March 6.
At the time of writing, there isn’t an official release date for Vanguard’s addition to League. Ideally, most expect this to be a one patch delay, hoping Vanguard could arrive with League patch 14.6. While that may be the case, it has generally taken longer for the Riot developers to deliver content after similar delays.
While online games of League’s caliber require anti-cheat software, Vanguard hasn’t been a stranger to controversies. The software had eras when it was overly sensitive, detecting the likes of MSI Afterburner as cheat software, causing confusion amongst players.
Not much will change for most players when Vanguard eventually becomes available in League. Unless you have an old gaming PC, you shouldn’t even notice Vanguard running in the background. The worst-case scenario would be errors like Vanguard not initialized popping up, but they tend to be short-lived since Riot rolls out hotfixes frequently.
In the meantime, Riot continues to release new content in the form of events, like the One for All game mode. While it might take longer than expected to get Vanguard in League, there will be plenty of content pass the time.
