Westdoor's Taiwanese Trickster
Riot·9/12/2014, 12:58:24 AM·0 votes·10,763 views
Fizz's presence in the competitive scene comes and goes with the tide, but he never fails to make a splash – especially upon the island nation of Taiwan, where 2014 world championship representatives AHQ's famously utilized him for some of the most shocking upset wins in Southeast Asia's competitive scene.
Mid laner Westdoor has made a reputation for clutch plays with his arsenal of assassins, and is especially famous for his command of the Tidal Trickster. He’s drawn bans on Fizz all year, with the necessity of it proven in the December LoL Nova League set against the Taipei Snipers as his 10-2-6 record just barely pulled them out of the riptides of defeat. As the World Championship draws close, he offers insight on the champion's utility and place in the current competitive environment.
The whole point of playing a trickster is, of course, to catch your enemies off-guard. "It's very easy to assassinate the back line," explained Westdoor, who’s made a career out of using Playful/Trickster to leap over walls and onto unsuspecting victims. By taking out high-priority targets, like the enemy caster or AD carry, fights naturally swing in favor of Fizz's team – and given Fizz's kit, it is very easy to do so, as he combines a powerful offense with incomparable mobility. Urchin Strike's targeted dash deals a massive amount of upfront damage with the right items, while Playful/Trickster affords a talented play an uncanny ability to escape scot-free.
"Fizz teamfights extremely well," further stated Westdoor, highlighting the champion's explosive initiating capabilities. Chum the Waters' long range and disruptive AOE knockup helps isolate a target, and forces the enemy team to back off from an afflicted target.
But while the champion's great at jumping ahead of the opposition, its very strengths turn into a weakness later into the game, posing a challenge when the team's attempting to close out the match. Westdoor acknowledges that the champion's ability to siege objectives is poor, given his melee-range package compared to the ranged advantage brought by other mid laners. Furthermore, if the opposing team's equipped well to protect their carries, he'll pass on Fizz for a safer option.
There are also specific matchups that makes him hesitate on the Trickster. "Orianna is the hardest to play against in the early game," said Westdoor. He also considers Ahri a difficult matchup – not as hard to deal with in-lane, compared to Orianna's zone control, but almost as difficult to come out ahead against.
However, building Fizz’s offensive core right off the bat isn’t always going to be the safest or wisest choice, and other items allow for more overall survivability. Westdoor suggests Seeker’s Armguard, eventually building into Zhonya’s Hourglass as the temporary invincibility it offers is very useful for Fizz’s all-in playstyle. Alternatively, an early investment into dual Doran’s Rings gives a good amount of bonus health.
Westdoor's also been paying attention to how Fizz's been used elsewhere. "From what I've seen from the EU LCS, I've been most interested by ROCCAT's mid laner’s builds," said Westdoor, noting with interest Overpow's usage of Deathfire Grasp over the conventional Lich Bane builds.
As for runes, Westdoor stresses the use of hybrid penetration marks, given its inherent synergy with Fizz's kit. Based on what champion his facing, however, he favors two otherwise different rune sets. Against physical assassins or teams with heavy AD focus, he will go with flat armor seals, flat AP quintessences, but scaling AP glyphs.
His "normal" set keeps the quintessences, but focuses more on preventing mages from deleting him with health per level seals and magic resistance per level glyphs. The overall goal of either set is, of course, to guarantee survival just long enough to take out his intended targets.
FEEDING TIME
The whole point of playing a trickster is, of course, to catch your enemies off-guard. "It's very easy to assassinate the back line," explained Westdoor, who’s made a career out of using Playful/Trickster to leap over walls and onto unsuspecting victims. By taking out high-priority targets, like the enemy caster or AD carry, fights naturally swing in favor of Fizz's team – and given Fizz's kit, it is very easy to do so, as he combines a powerful offense with incomparable mobility. Urchin Strike's targeted dash deals a massive amount of upfront damage with the right items, while Playful/Trickster affords a talented play an uncanny ability to escape scot-free.
"Fizz teamfights extremely well," further stated Westdoor, highlighting the champion's explosive initiating capabilities. Chum the Waters' long range and disruptive AOE knockup helps isolate a target, and forces the enemy team to back off from an afflicted target.
But while the champion's great at jumping ahead of the opposition, its very strengths turn into a weakness later into the game, posing a challenge when the team's attempting to close out the match. Westdoor acknowledges that the champion's ability to siege objectives is poor, given his melee-range package compared to the ranged advantage brought by other mid laners. Furthermore, if the opposing team's equipped well to protect their carries, he'll pass on Fizz for a safer option.
There are also specific matchups that makes him hesitate on the Trickster. "Orianna is the hardest to play against in the early game," said Westdoor. He also considers Ahri a difficult matchup – not as hard to deal with in-lane, compared to Orianna's zone control, but almost as difficult to come out ahead against.
NOW WE STRIKE
As most of Fizz's opposition in the mid lane will be ranged casters, his early survivability determines a lot of his success. As such, Westdoor favors opening up with Crystalline Flask and mana potions, allowing Fizz to safely sustain through the initial laning and harassment. After his first recall, he then determines his build order off the enemy team composition and how he's doing in-lane. Westdoor recommends a three-piece core kit to maximize Fizz’s strengths: Lich Bane, Rabadon’s Deathcap and Sorceror’s Shoes. As Urchin Strike triggers Lich Bane’s bonus damage, on top of additional magic damage, the relatively inexpensive Sheen buildpath allows Fizz to start the snowball rolling fairly soon into the game.
However, building Fizz’s offensive core right off the bat isn’t always going to be the safest or wisest choice, and other items allow for more overall survivability. Westdoor suggests Seeker’s Armguard, eventually building into Zhonya’s Hourglass as the temporary invincibility it offers is very useful for Fizz’s all-in playstyle. Alternatively, an early investment into dual Doran’s Rings gives a good amount of bonus health.
Westdoor's also been paying attention to how Fizz's been used elsewhere. "From what I've seen from the EU LCS, I've been most interested by ROCCAT's mid laner’s builds," said Westdoor, noting with interest Overpow's usage of Deathfire Grasp over the conventional Lich Bane builds.
As for runes, Westdoor stresses the use of hybrid penetration marks, given its inherent synergy with Fizz's kit. Based on what champion his facing, however, he favors two otherwise different rune sets. Against physical assassins or teams with heavy AD focus, he will go with flat armor seals, flat AP quintessences, but scaling AP glyphs.
His "normal" set keeps the quintessences, but focuses more on preventing mages from deleting him with health per level seals and magic resistance per level glyphs. The overall goal of either set is, of course, to guarantee survival just long enough to take out his intended targets.
