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Brainstorming about ADC balancing (Not a negative post)

SORS Bot·10/20/2017, 8:53:33 PM·1 votes·306 views

So I've been lurking about the boards for a while now and recently there have been a lot of post about ADC's being "broken". I personally don't think the role in general is broken and actually think it's balanced overall but there are problems that the role faces when it comes balancing. So first I want to make a comparison between the Meta and Non - Meta ADC picks. Tristana Twitch KogMaw are pretty much the top ADC picks currently and are the champs that I see the most complaints about when it comes to ADC being broken (and I would have to agree to an extent).

Lucian Jhin Draven are what I consider to be balanced ADC's with good kits but are not played as much as the previous ones I mentioned.

Now ask yourself what do the broken ADC's have in common with each other and what do the balanced ADC's have in common with each other? The "broken" ones not only rely on their auto attacks for damage but have some ability that increases their auto attack range farther than normal AND can increase the speed of their auto attacks.

The "balanced" ADC's usually have some mini game or rely on their abilities to get their damage off.

Now that we see the underlying differences we can address the problem. ADC who rely on their auto attacks for damage are not healthy for the game and inherently difficult to balance. That's why champions like Kalista are either good or bad, because she can never reach that middle ground of being balanced. It's also no surprise that item like Ardent was abused for so long since ADC's that could already increase their attack speed get even more attack speed from the item which is pretty insane tbh.

Ok so we addressed the problem, so what does Riot do about it? A Lot of people on the boards have been saying to increase the cost of crit items, but tbh that's not really gonna stop twitch from absolutely obliterating your entire team with his ult, all your doing is delaying the inevitable. I personally think sometime during season 8 they need to look at the problem ADC's and rework their kits like they did XinZhao with the idea of ability usage in mind.

Welp that about wraps my post up. This is the first one I've ever made so tell me your guys thoughts and what you thought about it. [slayer-jinx-catface]

2 Comments

Drive By Max10/20/2017, 9:26:56 PM1 votes

I think the problem isn't in the adc's kits, or their gold costs.

It's with itemization. Not with adcs, but with other roles. It's hard to build against someone that gets ahead, unless you are a pure tank. Randuin's is meant to counter twitch crits and reduce the damage of the autos in general, while also making you tankier. Problem is, the active is some of the gold cost in it, which is wasted unless, again, you are a tank.

But that armor you built? Armor pen counters it. So now you're a burst mage in mid lane, with gold used on one defensive item that does nothing for you other than a little health. It's nearly impossible to build against anyone that gets fed, and that's a real problem, as it means it's a lot harder to come back than it needs to, and one role will just carry games without needing a large amount of skill.

Assassins are what counter the adcs though, but it's hard to find a spot for them without giving up tank slots. There's also the same with assassins, ap mages and tanks can build against assassins through zhonyas and general tankyness, but then adcs and non tank supports are prone to getting deleted.

Itemization is garbage right now, plain and simple.

Taliyah Rocks10/20/2017, 9:37:11 PM1 votes

All the top ADC have relatively weak early games, but the strenght of supports and their high gold income allows them to negate their early weakness, so these adc have a way easier time getting their big items and shine.

On the other hand, ADCs with a stronger early game have a harder time shutting down the top adc, or at least they catch up too fast to make a lasting difference over the game.

Also crit is a broken mechanic as a lucky streak can win a trade, in a game where nothing should even be left to chance in the first place.

Reworked Guardian Angel offers it's passive while still offerring damage, allowing them to push their advantage safely, for a very cheap price.

I don't think i even need to mention how Ardent Censer strongly benefit Auto-Attack adcs.

All these factors and more lead to our current meta, that i hope will get fixed soon as botlan as too much impact over the game compared to mid and top laners. Having a fed ADC is probably better and more efficient than having both a fed top and fed mid.