I thought the problem being addressed by Ryze's rework was that he got too tanky while building his damage due to the nature of mana items, and I know I remember a post that mentioned that specifically. Can someone give a quick reminder on what the goal of the rework was? Even if it was just to freshen him up, which is fine with me.
Hard4Hamsters1 votesWell he was at a stage where he could only be altered through numbers on his kit. If his Q did too much damage, he was oppressive, if it did too little, he was useless. If he was ahead, he would win a fight. If he was behind, he would lose. There really wasn't a way for Ryze to come back if he was behind or be taken down if he was ahead because his kit is always "on".
They effectively changed this by giving Ryze power windows in his passive. Scenario: Ryze is behind in lane, and his opponent knows it. His opponent tries to push the issue and goes to fight Ryze when he thinks he has the advantage. Ryze can kite his opponent with his Qs (given its increased range) while building up his passive. He then turns on his opponent unleashing a slew of spells while his shield keeps him alive to win the 1v1. On the other hand, if Ryze is ahead, his opponent can dodge his Qs and back off when Ryze's passive is about to hit 5 stacks to avoid Ryze's power windows.
They wanted to keep his identity as the tanky battle mage, but they wanted to give Ryze more power when he was behind and more counterplay when he was ahead.
JC DarkOmen1 votesOk, I can see it now. I don't play Ryze, nor do I play top when I can avoid it, so I never really considered how... is uninteractive a word?... he was. This makes sense though, thanks!