Are there plans to introduce another AP item with MR, given the Abyssal changes? (Diana player here)
As someone who likes to play Diana, I'm feeling hung out to dry with these changes, since being unable to go Abyssal first is a massive blow to a lot of AP matchups. She really benefited from the flat MR reduction (since she has good bases), the MR (since she has a shield), and obviously from the AP. The only other major AP item with MR, Athene's, simply isn't an attractive buy and doesn't provide the same all-in focused stats. It's basically looking like I'd have to go echo first in every AP matchup, which is a massive hit to laning against AP champs that can harass Diana easily... which is basically every ranged AP. I don't really feel like I can itemize in any similar way to compensate; the best I can expect to do is maybe rush echo and hope to kill them faster (which isn't desirable because it costs so much more and gives no defensive stats).
Also, unrelated, but... is Riot expecting a triple AP meta or something with these Abyssal changes? Double AP was huge on TT for a while, so it's hardly impossible for AP-focused comps to become meta, and this version of Abyssal keeps triple+ AP comps from falling off -far- too well, especially if you have something like Ryze's AoE MR shred and Cass/Ziggs DPS. I'd be pretty afraid of it.
is going to get screwed over the most by these changes.
Scepter is often core on Kat because of it's synergy with death lotus, and if she is in a tough matchup with a ranged mage I usually rush it because it allows me to mitigate some damage without sacrificing my own damage. At least Diana can act as an AP Bruiser/Battle mage, so the pulses could still be useful to her in longer skirmishes, but the pulses do absolutely nothing for Katarina.