How would adding a boot slot effect the game?

Traust·Mar 3, 2015·5 votes·1,010 views

After the release of trinkets, I've always wanted Riot to add boots into a similar designated footwear only slot space.

I've sometimes found myself late game as an ADC with 2-3k extra cash 30-40 min marker fed but unable to finish, deciding whether to sell my beserker greaves for a zephyr or as a tank that needs much more gusto when the enemy team is at the doorstep and I can afford to sell my tabi for a bulkier defensive item to fill a needed niche in my tankiness. Doing so has the consequence of being incredibly slow.

Giving a boot slot alleviates the mandatory slot stress and I believe would help build diversity and combinations making late game truly unique.

What's your take on it?

10 Comments

Leti the YetiMar 3, 20154 votes

I would have one more slot for my 6th infinity edge without losing out on movespeed so thats cool

KomePrePongoMar 4, 20153 votes

Absolutely not. This is the decision you have to make in endgame: would you trade movement speed for extra power in fight? Extra slot is not an option at all and I'm sure Riot wouldn't even consider it.

TraustMar 4, 20151 votes

Currently that is the boot dilemma, what is the marginal benefits of losing movement speed over damage/survivability? This is the same dilemma that plagued late game warding, which required supports to always keep a slot free for buying wards over buying an entire item. For years the thought of a trinket slot was an inconceivable game addition, yet it revolutionized tactics (its the meta) and improved game play when it came out. So why wouldn't riot even entertain the idea of making a boot slot?

Sightless66Mar 4, 20151 votes

The trinket slot was a way of distributing the vision burden across an entire team. Instead of having the support buy stacks of 10 wards and just sit on boots and a gp10 item, trinkets and ward limits forced other players to get involved. It wasn't intended to give supports more slots for items, because they didn't get to fill up their slots because they were so poor (supports still have to sacrifice a slot to sightstone, which doesn't exactly give late-game stats). It gave supports more gold, without impacting the builds of other champions.

The major difference between that and your idea is that yours does majorly impact champion builds. It gives heavily-scaling champions an even stronger lategame to look forward to, without giving anything nearly as useful to early-game champions. Any champion based heavily around scaling loves this because they want more lategame slots to scale off of. Any champion based around the early game hates this because they want to end the game before full slots are reached, and they'll get stomped on by the scaling champions much harder.

The creation of a boots slot doesn't really solve any problem or help any class. It doesn't create new gameplay options or better the experience for anyone. It just gives late-game scalers a buff. That is the only real effect it has, and it isn't something the game needs. I think the negatives of having to rebalance champions outweighs any benefits.

PhifeMar 3, 20152 votes

it would lengthen the time of games. now instead of them being 45min long the average would be an hour long.

Zair UmbrasMar 4, 20152 votes

Considering how small of stats boots provide, with the exception of MPen boots, it could be pretty nice to have a boot slot. It would be a game changer though for some champions. Tanks would have an extra item slot to be uber beefy, mages could all easily have their 2 CDR and mana items and still get around 800-1k AP, and ADC's would be able to have a Zephyr or a 2nd LS item. I'm scared to think of what some of the odd build champions would do like Urgot, Ryze, and such.

Lord DusteonMar 3, 20151 votes

...Marksman scale multiplicatively; AD x AS x Crit chance x Crit Damage. Giving them an extra entire slot GREATLY spikes their power even more, while a tank getting another defensive item or a mage another offensive does not give them anywhere near the same durability or defence.

Basically, you'd just make marksmen even more important, while removing any trade off for movement speed.

NorthernDruidMar 3, 20151 votes

It would be really, really cool. So many times I've found myself as a mage and wished for an extra slot to fit in some defensive item or other.

Game balance would probably be wrecked though.

But as someone who loves playing support I want that 4th item slot so badly.

ZarxisMar 4, 20151 votes

Adding a boot slot would require some major rebalancing (mostly nerfing) for ADCs because their stats (crit, AD, AS) are stronger due to the multiplicative effects of said stats. However, it does make sense to add a boot slot. Wards used to be that one mandatory item that held [support] champions back; now we have trinkets and Sightstone (which makes the "ward burden" less difficult by adding giving the owner health). Boots are the only other mandatory item type for nearly all champions.

WoblyMar 4, 20151 votes

This could have lots of impacts on game balance. My prediction:

It would become harder to make super late game comebacks. Right now, a team that's ahead will hit their max items somewhere around 40-50 minutes, and if the losing team can keep delaying, they'll catch up. With another item slot, losing teams would have to delay for another 15 minutes or so before reaching that tipping point. If you gave everyone a boot slot, I bet late game champs would fall out of favor and early game snowball champs would be even stronger and more popular than they already are.