I think League of Legends would be better off without runes entirely.

xKumei·Mar 24, 2018·3 votes·485 views

Throughout League's history time and time again you'd see whichever champion could abuse the flavor of the month OP item rise to the top of the meta. You were playing the items, not the champions. Keystones do a very similar thing, you are playing the keystones and not the champions. This leaves champs who don't have a good keystone in the dust.

The best way to have a balanced champion pool is to just have champions. You can make specific changes instead of changes that effect a smorgasbord of champs, many irrelevant to the reason of change.

It would be nice if Riot considered toying with it now so they can get it ready for next season. :^)

18 Comments

VØIÐMar 24, 20182 votes

Balance wise yes it would.

But in terms of gameplay it would feel really boring and un-interactive.

xKumeiMar 24, 20181 votes

I don't think the current keystones are adding much, they just add on to ways we have already been playing for years.

GripaAviaraMar 24, 20181 votes

They def add a lot. You just have to look at the stats to understand how much

xKumeiMar 24, 20181 votes

I mean they don't add much when it comes to gameplay. They are mostly just add-ons to how we have been playing league for years. You literally do the same thing you have always done, just now a fairy or comet animates every thirty seconds.

Dokueki KenshinMar 24, 20181 votes

Utmost respect, I must play counter-point here. While the new rune system isn’t perfect, certainly, it allows for MUCH more diversity in character builds and viable roles than any system, or lack thereof, prior to it. As an example, I’m starting to develop an Ashe Top lane. While right now it’s still sub-50% winrate, i also just picked up Ashe and I’m having much more success than I originally anticipated. Without the new rune system, this simply would not have been possible.

xKumeiMar 24, 20182 votes

I don't see anything the new runes offer that allows you to do Ashe top now as opposed to without keystones. If anything she just gets pushed out by champs that have keystones that are optimal for top.

Dokueki KenshinMar 24, 20181 votes

My rune build is as follows:

SORCERY: Arcane Comet Manaflow Band Celerity Gathering Storm

DOMINATION: Cheap Shot Relentless Hunter

The thing is you have to play the lane somewhat defensively. You focus on CSing and kiting with autos and Volley for the large portion of the lanong phase. I’ve been able to pull out solid wins against meta top laners with this. It definitely needs work, of course, but the fundamentals are there. Her autos slow as well as her Volley, and her ultimate can be used to force team fights and make picks, as well as self peel during the laning phase. I normally start with a Youmuu’s or Infinity Edge, depending on how well I’m doing and build straight to a Shiv and Beserker’s.

xKumeiMar 24, 20182 votes

Seems strictly weaker than a lot of the meta top laners. I get your going for though. I would still say right now though that if they want to take runes in the direction of "play how you want," they need way more than one optimal rune per champion. Some champs don't even get one...

Dokueki KenshinMar 24, 20181 votes

I will agree that there are some champions that need some Keystones. As I said, it’s not perfect, and Riot themselves have said that they plan on continuing to add more rune and Keystone options over time. And it seems weaker at first, but Cheap Shot can be very easily proc’ed with a variety of different methods. Both autos and abilities fulfill the conditions for the extra true damage, and I’ve gotten upwards of 1k true damage just from the rune before. You also have a significant team fight presence due to your AoE slows and stun.

MalakMar 24, 20181 votes

I agree with you, but doubt riot would ever remove runes

GripaAviaraMar 24, 20181 votes

I love the rune system. It brings flexibility. It still needs work, none the less. But imho it's a big update since the split between runes and masteries

MF is my WaifuMar 24, 20181 votes

Yes. I've been saying this for a long time. Freedom of choice is an illusion. And with choice in games like this, there will always be a "best" pick... and the meta will always pigeonhole your playstyle into using/abusing those best picks.

Did you play Diablo 2 and 3? People cried when D3 came out because you couldn't allocate stat points, but let me remind you, all we did in D2 was put everything into Vitality after you could use your gear.

People feel like having the option to choose is better, even if it's meaningless after the first couple of weeks, when the most efficient options have been pointed out and put all over builds/stats websites for your champions.

Utmost respect, I must play counter-point here. While the new rune system isn’t perfect, certainly, it allows for MUCH more diversity in character builds and viable roles than any system, or lack thereof, prior to it. As an example, I’m starting to develop an Ashe Top lane. While right now it’s still sub-50% winrate, i also just picked up Ashe and I’m having much more success than I originally anticipated. Without the new rune system, this simply would not have been possible.

Let's not delude ourselves into believing that this system offers any improvements over the previous iterations.

xKumeiMar 24, 20181 votes

I haven't done anything more than the free trial of Diablo 3. These kind of things should be obvious to anyone who has played through multiple league metas, especially ones dictated by specific items.

MF is my WaifuMar 25, 20181 votes

{quoted}

I haven't done anything more than the free trial of Diablo 3. These kind of things should be obvious to anyone who has played through multiple league metas, especially ones dictated by specific items.

Well, yes, you would think. People seem to like having other things to do, despite how ineffective/inefficient they are.

Look, it literally wastes our time to screw around making rune pages. We want to play the game!!

I don't want to be punished for not keeping up with the latest metas and rearranging a couple of runes just to give my champion a slight increase in power. We already have to adapt to whatever items are the best for each champion as they are updated.

Remove runes and adjust all champions accordingly.

BeatzBoyFTWMar 24, 20181 votes

This would make League stale & boring very fast. The only "fun" thing to do with League after Runes' removal is what champions you're picking, and that's it. You'd be doing the exact same "typical Ashe ADC bot lane" with the exact same build path, playstyle, etc in every match you go.

xKumeiMar 24, 20181 votes

Isn't that pretty much how it was all of league's history until this season? And yes, it was fun. Playing a champion is fun.

BeatzBoyFTWMar 25, 20181 votes

At least League HAD the old Runes & Mastery system. You can either go full AD runes, Gold Generating runes, or straight up full Armor runes, all either 3 as an ADC Ashe if you have to. Without them, you're literally playing the exact same Ashe as how she looks: Q,W,E,R, a build path that you may complete it or end up finishing only 1 item before winning/surrendering.

Ahri BakaMar 24, 20181 votes

Yes I agree , It would be also be better without Summoner Spells , and without baron and dragons , and without supports and ad carries ,and without champion , and without players , without League , without Riot , without a planet , without bigger than planet?