[SOTC] Taliyah

So I've played Taliyah pretty steadily at this point and I thought I would share my thoughts on the champion and see if others agree / disagree. I was extremely stoked to see a control Mage being released and I have not been disappointed.

Artwork and Spells 10/10. Love it.

Base Movement Speed Upfront and center, I'd like to see this increased from 325. Positioning is vital on Taliyah. I understand It can be easy to kite on her but in a non-1v1 teamfight situation, moving around and trying to position correctly seems so slow, especially when trying to line up my Q's on specific targets. Even with building Tier 2 Boots, 385 Movement Speed as a Mage feels so underwhelming. Building Luden's Echo helps some but not every game is the same and I'm not always able to build that extra little bit of movement.

Mana I find it difficult to really manage my mana on Taliyah. I'm a Mage main to begin with and before the Mage update and after, I haven't had any major issues when it comes to managing my mana. However, with Taliyah I feel her Mana Regeneration is quite sub-par. A full Q+W+E combo before you build something that brings your mana level up. Not a big issue, since it is early. The problem I find with mana is that when I go Rod of Ages, I'm still having Mana issues. I've tried going the Tear route but Glass Cannon Taliyah is a very dangerous play style. I think a simple solution would be to just slightly buff her MP5. I'm not asking to stay in lane forever with no worries about Mana but I would like to do more than 1 combo and have nothing left to follow up with.

Q :: Threaded Volley I absolutely love the mechanics to this spell and I think It reinforces that the champion is difficult to master but rewarding If you do. However, I do feel that it needs a small buff. It currently feels underwhelming. Because Taliyah's Ultimate doesn't provide her with a damaging ability I think she should benefit from more Ability Power applied to her Q. Maybe even just a small buff to ranks 1,2,3. Late game at Rank 5, this Q when fully landed is absolutely devestating.

W :: Seismic Shove Again, I absolutely love the mechanics to this spell and overall I feel it's right where it should be. The only real issue I have with it is that the delay sometimes feels a little bit to long. Against other Champions with base movement speed, with good practice it's fairly easy to land. Late game when people have Tier 2 Boots and other movement enhancing items / spells, It can be tough and the delay is sometimes means to rage. But I do think it's healthy.

E :: Unraveled Earth When I saw Taliyah's Champion Spotlight before her release, I thought this spell was really cool. After I played her, even cooler. Damage can sometimes seem underwhelming but with a well place Seismic Shove it gets the job done. What feels most underwhelming about this spell is the range of it. You have to get dangerously close to really make it effective. I would have preferred it be something that I could throw out from a distance in X area with X range. But overall, I like the spell.

R :: Weaver's Wall How could I not love this? I can save teammates, I can trap enemies, I can cut off major objectives to easily secure them and I can displace an entire team with one press of the button. I love control Mages that can really shake up a team fight with powerful spells that make you a force to reckon with when it comes to bending the positioning of others to your will. This mechanic alone makes it worth not having any Damage for an Ultimate.

My basic thoughts on Taliyah

Thank you Riot for delivering on such a great Champion though. I'm very happy with her play style and her uniqueness as a Champion.