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Annual Reminder to Mix Up the Flash Meta

Penta Penguin·12/28/2019, 8:27:38 PM·3 votes·2,538 views

Let's see some diversity and renovation for Summoner Spells like we're seeing with everything else, new dragons, new maps, new champs, and so on.

Flash has been the dominant spell for 10 years. "But it's required" isn't an excuse. So many core features of the game have changed multiple times but Flash remains the same. If every champion requires a base-line of mobility then Flash doesn't have to be the only choice.

Mobility Spell + Functional Spell

If everyone needs Flash then just create two spell slots for Mobility and Function, then nerf Flash a bit and add alternative mobility spells to that slot while keeping everything else in Function. Or add Ghost to Mobility slot as well.

You could remove Hextech Flash and add a buffed version of it to Mobility. You could add a mini-Ekko Ult. You could add an ally-target Dash. You could add a non-global mini-shen teleport with no shield. You could add that thing that pushes you away from the enemy you're targeting. You could add an air-recovery to spin out of knockups and regain control.

If you have a mix of interesting options and a right amount of nerf to Flash, the Summoner Spells could be a lot cooler and more skill-expressive.

8 Comments

Hotarµ12/28/2019, 8:41:47 PM7 votes

Flash has been the dominant spell for 10 years. "But it's required" isn't an excuse. So many core features of the game have changed multiple times but Flash remains the same. If every champion requires a base-line of mobility then Flash doesn't have to be the only choice.

I think the main problem is that no spell is ever going to be as good as Flash. If Flash were nerfed or removed, these are just a few of the things that would (inevitably) happen:

  • The disparity between ranged and melee top laners widen
  • Immobile melee-only champions have a very hard time consistently sticking to their opponents
  • Combo-oriented champions like Lee Sin and Graves lose one of their bread-and-butter spells
  • Objective steals are much less likely due to the inability to quickly cross walls and initiate fights

This might be a controversial suggestion and I know you did somewhat suggest this as well, but it would be cool to have 3 spell slots. Make Flash mandatory or defaulted to one slot (because let's be real, there is not a single champion in the game who doesn't benefit from it's power) and that opens up room for more spells to be included in the meta.

Granted, those two spells would almost always be a combination of Ignite/Teleport/Smite/Heal, but still. Add some buffs to the other spells and the game could get very interesting.

Ionian Vulpix12/29/2019, 1:19:46 AM1 votes

OK, how? The game is literally balanced around Flash. It provides way too much versatility and functionality. And the only things that can really be nerfed on it without completely changing what it is or how it functions are Cooldown and Distance. It's already the longest CD in the game, and nerfing the distance would probably just make it feel awful to use. And to top it off, people LIKE using Flash because it DOES give them the high play points. Sure, it may be necessary, but that doesn't make it less impactful.

It's like when people say they need to nerf mobility. No one provides a viable solution as to How without literally deleting the parts of champion kits that people actually like.

Z3SIeeper12/29/2019, 2:05:32 AM1 votes

Let’s be honest here. Every time a champion can viably run Ghost it removes some form of their counterplay.

Examples:

Tryndamere, Darius, Olaf.

Worst JG Wins12/29/2019, 2:25:12 AM1 votes

Cause what this game really needs is for mobile champs to be even more OP.