Season 2026 rebuilt both the jungle and the objectives on Summoner’s Rift in League of Legends. Atakhan, Blood Roses and Feats of Strength are gone, Baron Nashor is back at the 20-minute mark and epic monsters take longer to kill. This guide covers when each objective spawns, what it gives your team, how the jungler works with a pet and a role quest, and why objectives are harder to steal. Everything is based on Riot’s official patch notes and is accurate as of patch 26.20 (20 October 2026).
What changed in Season 2026
Patch 26.1, which kicked off Season 2026, removed three things you may remember from older guides: the Atakhan monster, Blood Roses and Feats of Strength. If a guide treats them as current, it’s out of date.
With Feats of Strength gone, the bonuses for early milestones are back. First Blood once again grants 100 extra gold, and the first turret destroyed grants 300 gold, shared among nearby players.
Riot’s reasoning is that jungle had been by far the strongest role. It slowed down early jungle clearing to give lanes more time, and the game as a whole now leans more towards pushing turrets than fighting over epic monsters.
Objectives on the map: when they spawn and what they give
| Objective | When | What your team gets (per patch notes 26.1) |
|---|---|---|
| Void Grubs | 8:00, once only (a group of three) | Hunger of the Void for all three; 30 gold to the killer and 65 XP each |
| Rift Herald | 15:00 | 100 gold to the killer, 240 XP; the summoned Herald charges a turret |
| Elemental Drakes | respawn 5:00 after a kill | 75 gold per kill |
| Baron Nashor | 20:00 | 100 gold to the killer + 150 to the whole team, 650 XP to the whole team |
| Elder Dragon | – | 100 gold to the killer + 150 to the whole team, 650 XP to the whole team |
Void Grubs
Since patch 25.09, Void Grubs spawn at 8:00 and never respawn: there’s just one group of three per match. If your team kills all three, you get Hunger of the Void. Since Season 2026, gold only goes to whoever kills a grub (30 gold), while the 65 XP is per grub. Patch 26.11 buffed them further.
Rift Herald
Since patch 25.09, Rift Herald spawns at 15:00. The killer gets 100 gold, plus 240 XP. You can then summon the Herald, and it charges into a turret for 3,000 damage. Since patch 26.6 it also triggers Crystalline Overgrowth on turrets (more on that below).
Elemental Drakes and Dragon Soul
After an Elemental Drake is killed, the next one spawns 5 minutes later. Since Season 2026, drakes have up to 35% more effective HP and give 75 gold per kill. When a team gets close to Dragon Soul (the bonus for a series of drakes), the drake gains Dragon Vengeance against them: 15, 30 or 45% damage reduction. Late soul drakes therefore take much longer to kill, and the other team has more time to contest.
Baron Nashor and Elder Dragon
Since patch 26.1, Baron Nashor spawns at 20:00, down from 25:00. The reward is 100 gold for the killer, 150 gold for the whole team and 650 XP for the whole team. The losing team also gets comeback XP: 25% more experience for every level they’re behind, capped at double. In patch 26.2, Riot added that Barons are being taken earlier, but the first Baron no longer ends games as often, because it gives the team 150 gold instead of the previous 300.
Since Season 2026, Elder Dragon gives the same reward as Baron: 100 gold to the killer, 150 to the whole team and 650 XP to the whole team.
Early game: what spawns when
These timings apply since patch 26.1:
- 0:30 – first minions.
- 0:55 – Murk Wolf, Blue Sentinel, Red Brambleback and Raptors.
- 1:07 – Krugs and Gromp.
- 2:55 – Rift Scuttler in the river.
- 0:55 to 2:25 – the window for a remake vote (cancelling the match when someone is missing).
How the jungler works in 2026
Junglers start by buying one of three pets (Scorchclaw Pup, Gustwalker Hatchling or Mosstomper Seedling, 450 gold each). The pet evolves for the first time after 15 kills. Prices and other starter items are in our LoL items guide.
Junglers only take 50% damage from non-epic monsters, which makes clearing camps safer. The jungle role quest completes at 35 stacks and rewards a pet upgrade, Smite usable on champions, more gold and XP from large monsters, and extra speed in the jungle.
One change that’s easy to miss: Baron no longer turns the red and blue buffs into team-wide buffs.
Why objectives are harder to steal
Since Season 2026, all epic monsters have higher resistances, so they take 10 to 30% longer to kill, and they level up like champions. Riot wanted to raise the risk of fighting over objectives. The pet and Smite deal true damage, which ignores those resistances, so a jungler taking an objective solo isn’t hit as hard.
Smite was also buffed to 600, 1,000 and 1,400 damage. For you, that means an enemy without Smite has a harder time stealing your objective at the last second. Having vision around an objective before you fight for it pays off; more on that in our vision and wards guide.
Crystalline Overgrowth and Herald versus turrets
Since patch 26.1, crystals grow on turrets, called Crystalline Overgrowth. When a champion first attacks such a turret, it deals bonus true damage. Turret plates (the plating on turrets that pays out gold) are permanent and now appear on inner and inhibitor turrets too. Since patch 26.6, Rift Herald triggers Crystalline Overgrowth as well, which makes it a strong tool for taking a turret down quickly.
Coordinating with your team: ping the objective
You don’t need to type in chat to call an objective. Pinging the drake, Baron or Herald directly starts a team vote. If the objective isn’t on the map yet, use the All In ping. The full ping system is covered in our pings and chat guide.
Swiftplay has different rules
Swiftplay uses different timings: Dragon Soul comes after 2 drakes, Elder Dragon spawns from 15:00 and then every 6 minutes, and Baron spawns as early as 12:00. There are no Void Grubs, Rift Herald or Atakhan in Swiftplay.
If you’re only just heading into the jungle, pick your champion from our beginner champions list. How the jungler’s job compares with the other positions is covered in our LoL roles overview.
Join our Discord to find teammates you can call objectives with over voice: GamersTogether Discord.
FAQ
Since patch 26.1 at 20:00; before that it was 25:00. In Swiftplay, Baron spawns at 12:00.
Void Grubs at 8:00, only once per match, as a group of three. Rift Herald at 15:00. Both timings have applied since patch 25.09 and didn’t change in Season 2026.
No. Season 2026 (patch 26.1) removed Atakhan along with Blood Roses and Feats of Strength.
An Elemental Drake respawns 5 minutes after it’s killed.
Since Season 2026, epic monsters have higher resistances, and Smite was buffed to 600, 1,000 and 1,400 damage. A jungler with Smite therefore has an edge over everyone else.
Information verified on 20 October 2026. More guides are waiting in the League of Legends hub.