Gameplay Suggestions (Would be much appreciated if Meddler/Balance Team have a read through this)

Hello all, with mid season coming up and the game being in a fairly decent current state I thought I'd post some of my suggestions that could potentially help the game moving forward. I'm no genius with specific balancing changes (the numbers) but my main points (in the short paragraphs) are the general changes I am suggesting. With that being said, my proposed changes are as follows:

Champion Changes

Brand Brand has been in a complicated state for quite some time now. He is a mid laner by design, however he isn't viable in the mid lane currently due to the meta of wave pushing mid laners that roam. There's not much wrong with Brand's overall kit (I personally enjoy playing him, especially in the support role). However, his kit is meant to output high amounts of damage (as a mid laner should), but as a mage that is mainly played in the support role he is doing far too much damage without any penalties for throwing skill shots galore. Due to this, I'd like to see a change specifically to Brand where he is changed from a mid lane champion to a support champion. His kit is very outdated for mid lane, but it fits in perfectly with the support role. He has poke to force the enemy ADC to watch their step, he has CC with his Q and he has an ultimate with huge potential when used correctly (but if, and only if, it is used correctly). There's nothing wrong with seeing mages show up in the bot lane (it added needed diversity to the support role), but since most mages' kits and damage patterns are based around mid lane (duh), we should convert their damage patterns/mana costs into more of a support/mage style. A support should not be able to 1v1 the enemy ADC at any point in the game (unless they are fed). With a few number tweaks to mage supports' cooldowns, mana costs, etc. they could become a perfect fit for bot lane. W - Pillar of Flame

• Mana Cost changed to 70/75/80/85/90 from 60/70/80/90/100 R - Pyroclasm
• Damage changed to 75/150/225 (+40% Ability Power) from 100/200/300 (+25% Ability Power)

Graves Graves is a very unique champion within the game. His "tankyness" combined with his ability to do damage can be very overpowered when used correctly, which causes him to be pick or ban. The recent change where he no longer gains MR from True Grit stacks was absurd to say the least. Not only does it mess with my slight OCD, but it is also a very weird change to say the least. I'm all for nerfing overpowered champions, but when you only nerf them against specific types of champions (graves against AP in this case) it makes me question whether the change was just done for the sake of change because Champion X was too good overall. What I suggest , instead of entirely removing his ability to gain MR, is to reduce the amount of stacks he can max out at. This will decrease his effectiveness overall, and not just against one type of damage. A more consistent change = happier Graves players! Now, I can't make a Graves post without complaining about him not having a cigar so... Why can you (Riot) remove Graves' MR stacking but he can't have have a cigar? E - Quickdraw

• True Grit defense bonuses per stack changed to 5/7.5/10/12.5/15 Armor and MR from 5/7.5/10/12.5/15 Armor
• Max Stacks reduced to 6 from 8

Lee Sin For a blind monk, this man can do far too much. Even if he misses his Q he'll still Ward hop and ult you into his team for an easy kill. In an attempt to force him to hit some abilities and have limitations, I'm suggesting to add an energy cost to his ultimate. This would force him to be more conservative with his energy so that he doesn't waste it all before he ults. A simple change for a complex champion. R - Dragon's Rage

• Added cost of 30 Energy

Lulu This proposed change is more so a "minor" balance suggestion for quality of life in the bot lane. Playing against Lulu is very hit or miss, but there's one constant in her kit. The annoyance of being polymorphed for 2.25 seconds late game, where you can move around freely knowing you will shortly have a gray screen. There's not much else to say. If you've ever been polymorphed late game , you will understand the struggle. her win rate/play rate is a direct effect of this. W - Whimsy

• Polymorph duration changed to 1.00/1.25/1.50/1.75/2.00 from 1.25/1.50/1.75/2.00/2.25

Ryze Where do i even start with this guy? He's either pick or ban, or he will never see a pick. Period. He's such a hit or miss champion that when powerful he can destroy entire teams with his combos, or if underpowered he'll get locked up and killed instantly. He has a very minimal range where he can be considered to be "balanced". While I agree with some of the past changes to Ryze, the fairly recent changes to his e cooldown have absolutely destroyed his ability to do anything in lane. I used to main this guy and absolutely LOVED playing him. I still love playing him late game when his E cooldown is back to "normal" for me, but until that max rank E his combos feel incredibly slow. Taking power out of other parts of his kit (specifically his tankyness) would be a much better solution than ruining his entire gameplay until he gets rank 5 E. I'd further like to add that with a perfect computer (meaning no lag and absolutely perfect connection) Ryze players have 0.75 second at rank 1 E to spread the flux. For most of us, we don't have perfect computers so that 0.75 second window isn't really 0.75 seconds, it's more like 0.50 or even near impossible for certain players. That change made Ryze even more connection dependent than ever before. If you don't have perfect connection Ryze is unplayable. A few tweaks of power could help make him at least playable again. Personally, I just want to be able to play one of my favorite champions again without being forced to max E first for the cooldown because I have a slow computer. Q - Overload

• Shield value changed to 65-150 (based on level) (50% AP) (2% bonus mana) from 65-150 (based on level) (60% AP) (3% bonus mana) W - Rune Prison
• Empowered root duration decreased to 1.50 seconds from 2.00 seconds E - Spell Flux
• Cooldown reduced at all ranks to 3.00/2.75/2.50/2.25/2.00 from 3.25/3.00/2.75/2.50/2.25

Zyra Similarly to Brand, Zyra is yet another champion that is meant to be a mid lane mage that got pushed to the bot lane due to fast pushing champions. Similar points from the Brand post above apply to Zyra as well. Although she isn't as bad as Brand, she still has some issues with oppressiveness. Her overall kit is packed perfectly for a pushing bot lane, but not for a mid lane. Some number tuning could also transform this "wanna-be-mage" into an excellent (non-oppressive) support champion. The main problem with her kit is that she isn't punished for using abilities in the early game like most aggressive supports are (and yes, for the record, Brand is also included in this list). With mana cost tweaks and damage pattern tweaks, Zyra has the potential to be an excellent mage support. Q - Deadly Spines

• Garden of Thorns: If Deadly Spines is cast near a seed, a Thorn Spitter grows, dealing 0 (+15% Ability Power) (+10% Ability Power) magic damage. E - Grasping Roots
• Garden of Thorns: If Grasping Roots passes near a seed, a Vine Lasher grows dealing 0 (+15% Ability Power) (+10% Ability Power) magic damage
• Mana Cost changed to 80/85/90/95/100 from 70/75/80/85/90

I'll be updating this thread as I see fit. But for now... off to bed because it's too damn late for me.