Why zephyr was removed?

Killer of Night9··15 votes·8,930 views

Before to start this post is just a bunch of question about why zephyr should't be removed. I'm not good at cost efficiency or serching old post so I don't know the real reason for why it was removed but I almost figure all the question relative to this item and explain why they shouldn't. Let me know if you know the real reason and if i'm wrong.

After play a bunch of nexus blitz, I miss this item a lot on SR (i play from the start of season 4). This item was really good on almost all adc and other Aa user. It provide tenacity without give real tankyness so mages and ADs was still able to burst their target but at least them was able to avoid the Cc stack. Since Berseker's greaves provide only atk speed and movespeed, most adc always sell the boots to grab zephyr since it provide a good ms. So I just want to know.

Why zephyr has been removed?

Because it was never builded? I always saw people buy this item at least as last item.

Because it was too powerful to balance like banner? Mercury's Treads shared the same unique passive and it was at 1200g and now at 1100g. Zephyr gave a small amount of real damage (25ad if I wasn't wrong) and a bunch of atk speed and movespeed (it was basically a true adc item)

Lowering Cc chain was a problem? Honestly yes it was but as I alredy say merc boots has less cost so every champ could use it and Qss was way more powerful. Nowadays Cc is like a death sentence (1 is enough) and tenacity doesn't work on displacement so it's not even near to op. Also having no armor/mr/hp this item couldn't save from a lux combo, but would give to player more reaction time.

Selling boots to get another damage item was an issue from game design? No. People are still selling boots to get another damage item. I always sell boots to get double zeal or double lifesteal or even lifesteal and armor/mr item on adc (as last item). In the past, adc's even when they removed zephyr, they still sell boots. Zephyr wasn't not even close to almost buy this item but it was still bought if required.

Zephyr was too powerful as a kite item? Well zeal upgrade do the same as zephyr do but they provide more thing. Melee has alredy a bounch of ms effect that wasn't present in the past. Even volibear can run toward an adc with a bounch of ms active to pull and kill him. In the past melee was always kited as hell but as I alredy say adc could just grab a double phantom dancer (season 4 phantom) or double zeal item and still kite as hell the melee so it wasn't a problem. So it was a real good sustained dmg item, it wasn't a true defensive item but it still give a little bit of help (also this would help a lot adc with fiddlesticks without nefating his dmg).

Thanks for reading this bunch of question.

29 Comments

LynXerf9 votes

The item was mainly removed because it wasn't really ideal for any champion in a regular build, but at the same time if a snowball champ got ahead and to full build they would swap out boots for Zephyr and actually increase in mobility and not to mention damage output so they would effectively snowball even further. It was for all intents and purposes like giving everyone Ornn.

Edit: the only champ I can remember who really had it in their build was Udyr when he was a ridiculous roaming splitpusher. I suppose it would have worked with Heca but can't remember seeing it until it replaced boots.

Terozu5 votes

Teemo used it too.

KlydeFrog2 votes

Are you dumb? Udyr always built it. I always built ut as a adc every game where i was full build. Sold boots for it because you gain more damage and didnt lose much movement speed

LynXerf1 votes

{quoted}

Are you dumb? Udyr always built it. I always built ut as a adc every game where i was full build. Sold boots for it because you gain more damage and didnt lose much movement speed

What's with the insult? I said Udyr built it, if you can read.

Arcane Blue Boi1 votes

During Metarim, i saw alot of hecarims running it aswell

AR URF7 votes

Back then zephyr would have been an amazing item. Now with all the hyper mobility and one shotting assassins like Rengar it makes no difference.

Warlord Rhinark5 votes

Because Riot hates Tenacity.

Why do you think every single new champion gets CC unaffected by Tenacity?

I mean, Christ's sake even Nunu has a knock up now.

Terozu1 votes

He also gets 100% tenacity to slows during his w so this isnt the reason.

Warlord Rhinark1 votes

{quoted}

He also gets 100% tenacity to slows during his w so this isnt the reason.

It's not Tenacity, it's slow immunity.

Terozu1 votes

Theres not much of a difference.

Warlord Rhinark1 votes

{quoted}

Theres not much of a difference.

There's a big difference.

Hard CC is an infinite amount of times better than a slow.

Terozu1 votes

That doesnt make immunity to slows any different fron 100% tenacity to slows.

Warlord Rhinark1 votes

{quoted}

That doesnt make immunity to slows any different fron 100% tenacity to slows.

And you're right.

But we the original topic wasn't about slows. It was about hard CC.

Eedat4 votes

Because nobody used it ever. We can sit and and talk about how great the item is and whatever but in reality it was awful, nobody ever built it, and was more of a Trick2g novelty than anything. The only real time I ever saw somebody build it was as a 6th item to replace boots on ADCs. Other than that, I could have easily gone 100 matches and not have seen someone build it one single time. Thats it. Old =/= Good. Don't let the nostalgia fool you. Currently Fighters/Bruisers/Juggies have plenty of access to tenacity. The only thing Zephyr would do is give ADCs access to tenacity in the extreme lategame.

Need Gold 4 Tent1 votes

Tenacity didn't use to stack though. So there may be issues now if you have a Master Yi running around with 80% tenacity (pretty close to olaf ult already).

That said tenacity is borderline useless these days since so many of the CC are knockups and slows now, and you'd want swifties for slows.

Sirsir4 votes

Zephyr was removed because it was never bought, except in extremely niche cases as a true final item over boots, like you said. Even then, back then giving up boots was something only considered viable on high base MS champs like Yi or Jax

Ycagel Legacy4 votes

So Jhin don't eventually reach lightspeed.

PowerSlave9933 votes
  1. Riot hates tenacity - makes champ go away > longer games > no profit
  2. Riot said that small amount of people were using it. hmm
KlydeFrog1 votes

Wtf you mean hates tenacity. Lol your dumb. Seeing there are 2 tenacity runes 1 that gives you 20% depending on summomer spell cds. And another that will give you 30 % . then add merc treads and boom

PowerSlave9931 votes

If they didn't hate it, then why so many champions have knockups which can't be prevented? Why some items have been removed? Why some champions have removed tenacity? Please argue better.

OtterlyLost1 votes

I think the real reason is back then, riot and the general populace considered it a noob trap item. There were a handful like this, such as Avarice Blade(though it built into shiv) that they removed about the end of season 5. I do feel zephyr could have been reworked and added back.

Luigi Tortellini1 votes

Because in Riot's new league all champions should build the exact same 6 items in every game in every situation in every matchup.

Verxint4 votes

What are you talking about? You think you get to 6 items in the first place?

almightygod21 votes

Cause no one used it except for like 2 champs

delete shaco1 votes

The movespeed bonus would have to be nerfed to something like 5% but zephyr would be a great item.

ChaddyFantome1 votes

I used it on attack speed Lucian back in Season 3/4.

i miss it so much.

Velasan1 votes

No idea, amazing item. They should put it back in the game. I miss it.

Arcane Blue Boi1 votes

Also, why did abyssal scepter got removed? i never got that one

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