Diana and Season 5 (it's a personal rework idea)
So, in part to distract from Cass stuffs, and in part because I had a terrible game as her, (I am in love/hate with this season, I swear,) I started to think about the Diana gameplay rework that was going to happen and then isn't and I just got sad. So, to cheer myself up, I looked at some old ideas and tried to make my own "no numbers" rework.
Here it is:
Passive [Moonsilver Blade]: Every 3rd attack cleaves nearby enemies. The counter will reset if Diana hasn't attacked for 3.5 seconds. Removed the passive attack speed for reasons that will be explained later. I like where this ability is, it's fun to try to trigger it in high pressure situations and allows for inexpensive clearing in more laid back ones.
Q [Crescent Strike]: Diana unleashes a bolt of lunar energy that travels in an arc. Enemies struck take magic damage and are afflicted with Moonlight, granting sight of them for 3 seconds. Also no change because, frankly, landing these as they are is the most rewarding aspect of playing her currently, [which is a little sad in and of itself,].
**W [Pale Cascade]: **Diana creates three orbs around her that absorb the next three champion auto attacks, (on per auto.) If all three orbs are consumed, a small damage shield is added for a short time. In the event that Pale Cascade's Active orbs do not all get consumed, at the end of the spell time, the orbs all explode simultaneously, dealing damage in an AoE around Diana, based upon how many are left, ( 100% at 3 orbs, 66% at 2, etc.) While a lot of people complain that Diana doesn't have a clear team role, and kind of shifts between assassin, and fighter, I've always felt that was her best attribute, leaving her able to react depending on the enemy and allied team and how they are playing/functioning, therefore, instead of trying to solidify one role or another, I suggest we give Diana players more clear ability choices for their role choice. Making her W more of a fighter type ability, while still leaving waveclear is, I think an important aspect of Diana in League.
E [Lunar Rush]: Diana becomes the fleeting image of the moon on water, accelerating towards a unit. When used to dash to an enemy afflicted with Moonlight, Lunar Rush's cooldown is refreshed, primes Moonsilver Blade to proc, and consumes the Moonlight debuff. Allowing Diana to be able to Lunar Rush to any unit not only frees up some more Lee Sin/Katarina-esque plays, but also, addresses the issues that many players have with playing her, which is the lack of her escape. It is important to note that you cannot inflict allied units with Moonlight, and therefore, cannot reset lunar rush on her escape. I feel as if when playing Diana, one of my most important decisions is about whether or not I want my Lunar Rush to go on cooldown, "Do I wait for my Q and possibly lose him, or do I dash now and lose my initiate for a short time," is a common thought I find myself having when playing her, I like that, I like the quick mental challenge that it proposes, so I say add more of it. The purpose of allowing Moonsilver Blade to proc immediately after lunar rush is not only to counter balance the lack of passive attack speed found in Moonsilver Blade, but also, to fill the power vacuum left after the Lich's Bane changes, which used to be an integral part of the Diana playstyle, but now feels like a tier-3 pick for her at best.
R [Moonfall (I say we call it Gravitational Axis, but w/e)]: Diana reveals and draws in all nearby enemies to her location, dealing some damage, slowing them for some time, as well as infecting all those affected with Moonlight. This skill is heart-wrenching for me, on one hand, I feel that it is useless one point wonder i occasionally hit when I'm trying to quickly level my Pale Cascade, but it also is one of my favorite skill types, (I mean the Ori plays are phenomenal,) in lieu of that, making it do a minute amount of damage and focusing in on it's utility aspects, (similar to Kalista's ult,) allows for the interplay between Diana's basic skills to be the more primary focus. Since the pull and slow is all about buffing Diana's sticking power, I believe this to be a solid direction.
I apologize for this being so long, I have a hard time articulating my points at times, I hope you were able to read till the end. Please tell me what you think. :)
