I was going to post a lot of relevant math, but my web browser decided to crash and eat the math I had worked so hard on, so I'm going to be lazy.
Kindred W (New vs Old) against Malphite. Neither had Runes/Materies of ANY kind.
Kindred had Lord Domink's Regards and no other items.
Malphite had Ninja Tabi, Randuin's Omen, Sunfire Cape, Iceborn Gauntlet, Abyssal Mask, and Gargoyle Stoneplate and was under the effects of Malphite's W, Stoneplate's Active, and Black Cleaver from an ally of Kindred.
After resistances were accounted for, Malphite took about 33 more damage in total on the first hit from new W than old W, and this damage difference increased in the favor of New Kindred by about 1 per Mark.
Seems like it's stronger, but, of course, that's only until Malphite starts losing health.
If that same Malphite hadn't activated Stoneplate, and before factoring in resistances, he would take 117.84 base damage from Old Kindred (45 + Total AD ratio), and New Kindred would deal 92.69 base damage (base damage + Bonus AD Ratio + 1.5% Current Health).
After you factor in the resistances, you'd deal only 33% of that with the Magic damage W, and only 25% of that for the Physical damage.
If you're still following this, that'd be 92.69 * .33 versus 117.84 * .25.
That would result in 30.59 versus 29.46 damage dealt, in favor of New Kindred.
By a single fucking point of damage.
New Kindred would deal an additional .165% Current Health damage per Mark, and Old Kindred would deal an additional .15% Current Health damage per Mark.
With 3k HP, that's a difference of about .45 damage, in favor of New Kindred.
By the time he's lost even a few hundred points of health, the base damage difference and better ratio on Old Kindred's W is going to make it stronger.
So yes. Tell me, again, how exactly it is a buff, when their damage is within single digits of each other even when Malphite STILL has 100 armor more than his Magic Resistance AFTER all of the Armor Penetration, so long as he does not have Stoneplate active?
New Kindred's W will deal less damage against an enemy ADC with Mercurial Scimitar and Guardian Angel than Old W.
New Kindred's W will deal less damage against an enemy Mage with Banshee's Veil and Zhonya's Hourglass.
New Kindred's W will deal less damage against an enemy assassin with an Edge of Night/Hexdrinker and Ninja Tabi.
New Kindred's W will deal less damage against an enemy support with Locket of the Iron Solari.
New Kindred' W does less damage early game.
The only cases in which New Kindred's W does MORE damage is in the middle of the game before you and/or someone on your team has purchased LW and/or Black Cleaver, against Armor stacking champions with high base Armor.
And it performs worse in the vast majority of other cases throughout the game. Cases which, I remind you, will and do happen, because someone on your team WILL almost certainly be rushing Black Cleaver, AND multiple members of the enemy team WILL be purchasing Magic Resistance relatively early, because Hexdrinker, Spirit Visage, Locket of the Iron Solari, and Banshee's Veil are ubiquitous right now.
And to top it off you lost the healing from Death's Dance.
The change to W is a nerf in most cases, neutral in some others, and a buff in some few obscure cases.
This. Is. Not. A. Buff.
