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How to actually "fix" Akali

Waifu Demon·1/27/2020, 12:40:51 PM·8 votes·1,935 views

--Removed by Moderation--

The suggested changes to her:

W:

  • If Akali is immobilized she will be revealed for the full duration of the immobilize.
  • Akali gains 10% more movement speed, but only lasts 2 seconds instead of always being active in her shroud.

R:

  • Now a targeted spell.
  • Dash speed decreased from 3000 to 1900 on second cast.

I think the R change is a good start, removing at least SOME of her insane mobility and cancer, but it doesn't nearly come close to the level of changes needed to make her healthy for the game. I will put changes that will help with some explanations, and then at the end I will add my own personal changes based on being an old Akali main before rework.

Passive:

  • Movement speed decreased from 40-70% for 2 seconds when moving away, to 10-30% for 1.5 seconds.
  • Movement speed does not reapply if Akali hits another ability until the original effect is over.
  • Empowered auto attack heals for a 5-60 (60% AD + 45% AP), doubled if on an enemy champion.

Q:

  • Range reduced from 500 to 350.
  • No longer deals 25% bonus damage to minions and monsters at rank 5.
  • Cooldown increased from 1.5 seconds to 6-2 seconds and energy cost decreased from 100-80 to 60-40.

W:

  • No longer restores 80 energy
  • Requires 40 energy to use
  • Radius decreased from 1175 to 700
  • Shroud now always places directly around Akali instead of where you clicked
  • Akali can choose a spot to dash to as she casts it
  • Shroud now penetrates terrain
  • Cooldown changed from 20 seconds to 20-12 seconds
  • Cooldown does not start until Shroud is depleted (5 second duration)
  • Movement speed changed from 20-40% to 20-60% (Old W was 20-100%, but had a 475 radius instead of 1175)

E:

  • Akali no longer flips backwards, looks more akin to a kennen Q
  • No longer has a cast time, can be used while moving

R:

  • Keep it the exact same as what was suggested by Riot, but with some small additional changes
  • Recast changed from 2.5 seconds to 1 second
  • Second cast changed from 0 energy cost to 25
  • Second cast no longer executes
  • Cooldown changed from 160/130/100 to 120/100/80
  • First cast no longer deals physical damage, now both deal magic damage. (Still scales with physical for first cast)
  • Can be cast on minions and monsters, reduces cooldown from 120/100/80 to 30/25/20.

Explanations:

Akali was always meant to be the healing diver/assassin. I understand we will probably never get old Akali back and I understand and agree she was not the healthiest champion and it would have been better for the game to change her, but the new Akali failed severely, not making her healthier, but the exact opposite.

Passive: Way too much mobility, shaved off a ton with two direct nerfs, while adding her sustain back into her kit.

Q: Far too oppressive early hence the range nerf. Cooldown needed a change because once she got her W, it was extremely easy to level 2 all in people due to her W giving her 80 energy as well as her passive restoring 10 per empowered auto.

W: Many changes needed here because it was a very problematic ability. Should require energy to use and not restore, maybe 40 is too steep and could use a slight change, either making it scaling or lowering it. Radius needed a large decrease to actually make Akali counterable in her shroud, but the initial blink added some more wiggle room for Akali, allowing for some Shaco-level jukes.

E: This ability was fairly balanced already minus the amount of mobility it gave her.

R: As stated before, the changes Riot announced about making it a point and click were actually really good as well as the dash speed reduction, although it's hard to if the second part will change much because they don't actually release the first R's speed as a comparison. The recast should be faster, making her more of an assassin, while also making it so it doesn't deal too much damage. It should require energy to use just to make it a choice on if she wants to use her energy to dash the second time. Cooldown needed reductions because of Riot's "make it longer so she can't ruin someone's time as often" mentality being extremely unhealthy for the game. First cast dealing physical, while second dealing magic made the Hybrid champion just that much harder to build defenses against. The minion/monster cast is a change that gives Akali more choices in how she plays, making her more akin to Old Akali's ult without the 3 charges.

The damage numbers weren't touched because that is something that needs to come from gameplay testing and just speculation alone isn't enough to actually make her balanced. The overall numbers don't have to be exact, but the idea should stay the same.

15 Comments

Trusting1/27/2020, 2:25:00 PM6 votes

i fkn h8 akali but you are making her 1% winrate????? no1 is gonna play akali u might as well remove her than making her the biggest troll pick

Śhunpo1/27/2020, 2:13:34 PM5 votes

Why are these all basically nerfs.

Pinboard1/27/2020, 2:21:36 PM4 votes

This is perhaps the worst balancing "suggestions" I've ever seen in my life. - Range reduced from 500 to 350. - Akali no longer flips backwards, looks more akin to a kennen Q Let alone you ignoring the very concept of combos, but you thinking turning her into a cannon minion that gets out poked by everyone including tanks.... Just... [sg-miss-fortune]

Ragnaveil1/27/2020, 6:07:13 PM3 votes

Just. Give. Her. Passive. A Cooldown. Then up her Q cd to 3 seconds or something.

NF Remilia1/27/2020, 1:06:14 PM3 votes

Finally some1 explained how to nerf a champion instead of saying " F... you Riot nerf that S... champion" +1 from me.

Glory971/27/2020, 2:18:56 PM2 votes

I think it's a solid concept overall, but I'm a bit sceptical about several things mentioned:

-range nerf of q 500 -> 350 / e no backflip. This would make her passive extremly awkward to use. Right now, you can hit q on max-range step a millimeter backwards and get your passive aa. If you have to run backwards 150 units it would be extremly clunky. If the passive range is adjusted to the q range, you can proc your passive over and over while also sticking to the enemy target. This might be too powerfull even if the empowered aa does no bonus dmg only your 0.9 ap-ratio heal.

-R can be cast on minions/monsters, cdr reduced to 30/25/20. So if i gapclose via minion at lvl 6 my r has 30 sec cd, even if I use the 2nd cast on the enemy champion?. Seems pretty weird to me. As a midlaner I would probably always look to cast it on a minion and then all in the enemy laner. Because 30 sec on an ultimate at lvl 6 is a lot lower than almost all other midlaners. If the enemy has to use his ult during this exchange I'm at a huge advantage, because I buy myself a ~60 sec timewindow that I am a lot stronger than him.

PlzzGetGud2/18/2020, 8:09:13 PM1 votes

I miss the First and old akali... with the 3 R

Now you just broke the akali more and more... She was PERFECT and than you remake her to an OK CHAMP than you break her ult to a fuckign useless champ ever

Stop fukcing remaking champ to transform tham into useless champ.... you always add op champ and decrease normal champ to make people buy new champ u dumb shit riot !

Sucction1/27/2020, 2:18:07 PM1 votes

Looks pretty good! Only problem would be the ult cooldown. She can very easily just ult a minion for the first hit, and boom she's got a 30 second cd ult that does a solid 1/3 of your health every time it's up.

Should probably change that part I think

nm10101/27/2020, 3:16:25 PM1 votes

Soooo, make her a jungler? Because she ain't laning with no energy refund mechanic and garbage waveclear.

PhearBunny1/27/2020, 3:32:11 PM1 votes

The issue with Akali is that shes gated behind a high skill ceiling, and is rewarded by being overwhelmingly broken if you manage to get close to that skill ceiling. Now lets be honest, she isnt hard to play. Shes a typical hypermobile champion, and she resonates to that audience.

Should that audience be rewarded to such an extent where their champion is not only mechanically superior, but is also superior damage wise- just because shes hypermobile and it creates a flashy illusion of skill being required? The answer is no. She needs to be heavily tuned down, in every facet. Just like OP suggested. Yes it would lower her winrate overrall. But Akali mains would still sit around 50-54% post nerfs.

Riot needs to stop rewarding players who enjoy hypermobility with overtuned numbers. Its one of the biggest problems with balance. Your reward for hypermobility and mechanical superiorty is just that. Mobility and superior mechanics. the ability the run circles around your opponents. As a tradeoff these champions should deal significantly less damage- But they dont. In many instances they deal more damage than their less mobile, less mechanical counterparts. Which makes no sense whatsoever.

With the amount of safety baked into Akalis kit. She should undoubtably be the lowest damage Assassin in the game. But she isnt, shes on the higher end. In terms of both burst, sustained, and reliability.

Saezio1/28/2020, 12:34:36 AM1 votes

IDK why all the downvotes. I guess people didn't understand what OP meant. OP didn't mean to balance akali.

OP meant to FIX akali, like you FIX your pet.

ModJikker1/28/2020, 3:44:38 AM1 votes

Hey there,

I've edited your edit out of your OP. Pejorative language is never permitted nor are insults towards other members of the community per the Board Universal Rules.

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