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Way to Improve Runes

Youkai Ningen·8/11/2014, 12:18:09 AM·65 votes·2,030 views

So I was trying to think of a way to make the game a little better for newer players and I started to think about Tier 1 and Tier 2 runes. Currently these runes kind of feel like a noob trap because tier 3s exist and they're just flat out better, but it feels like it would be a waste to just outright remove the lower tiers and it would probably frustrate people who had purchased them. And then there is the Rune Combiner which I mean is an interesting concept but all in all with the number of runes out there its not exactly the most useful system.

So my proposal is this, replace the Rune Combiner with a Rune Upgrade system. Allow players to upgrade runes to the next tier by paying the difference. This way people won't feel bad that they bought a "inferior" rune and will be able to just upgrade it in the future. It seems kind of silly that you can spend IP a currency that can take some time to accumulate on something that will actually become useless if you buy a higher tier, and this primarily effects new players who simply don't know better.

What are your guys thoughts on this?

24 Comments

Shrikesnest8/11/2014, 1:20:32 AM15 votes

Well, whatever they do, they need to do -something.- The current runes system is, no joke, the absolute worst-designed thing in the entire game. I understand they want them to be something of an IP sink to drive champion sales, and I don't begrudge them that, but the way the system works now is just cruel to new players.

This is a game with a very high skill cap compared to other competitive PVP games. People who have been playing for a couple of years have massive advantages in terms of their game knowledge and mechanical practice. Giving them dramatically better base stats on their champions as well is just unnecessary. Runes need to be easier to obtain, and the noob trap aspects of them need to be dealt with.

Decrit8/11/2014, 2:08:03 PM14 votes

I like the rune upgrade thing: while the rune mechanic itself is underdeveloped, that might actually help a lot! Another thing that could be considered is removing t1 runes, make the t2 runes free and avaiable at level 10 and calling them "basic" and making the t3 "advanced", avaiable at level 20 and avayable by buying, as they are now.

In this way the newbie that plays aram and VS bots can play and get involved without much worries, beginning to get interested more in mechanics at 10 by messing up freely with runes and at 20 beginning the grind for the better runes, with the basic ones that still give base power for jungling and such.

Worgslarg8/11/2014, 12:52:10 AM6 votes

Imo, just make runes free( at least t1-t2) so that you dont need to grind for months to get several sets.

Starcall Casey8/11/2014, 7:12:44 AM4 votes

I really love this concept of "Upgrading" your older runes into something more useful.

Driec8/12/2014, 12:43:52 AM3 votes

Think a better way would be to award tier 1-2 runes when the players level up. And as they play the game they have random chances of getting T1-T2 (very rarely T3) runes by playing the game, similar to the item drop system on Dota 2. When players hit 30 They can increase their drop rates by not afking, getting honored, playing alot.

This way new players will freely get runes by just playing and level up. Players level 20+ can use the Rune Combiner, making it something fun to use and play. Players level 30 will be encourage to play more, not act like assholes and in the end it will lower IP celing for new players which is a big plus

Spectre No 158/11/2014, 6:13:19 AM3 votes

Not only is it a noob-trap for IP, but players that don't buy tier 1 and 2 runes are at a huge disadvantage if they get matched against someone level 20+ before reaching 20 themselves. I was playing with a friend when this happened and the level 20 player just went all-in and killed him level 1 because of the stat advantage. This teaches new players not to kite back or trade damage, but just run if your opponent goes aggressive and it can really hinder someone trying to learn the game.

AesSedai8298/11/2014, 5:08:14 PM2 votes

A lot of people may get mad at me for posting this but it is my opinion and I have to say it: I believe out of game stats/upgrades that affect gameplay ruin mobas. For example, I get bored with games rather easily, so I spent most of my ip on champions until recently, so I would have more options. I didn't have any runes when I was level 30. Now let's say I'm fighting someone mid lane with full runes while I have none, and we're both level 30. He will have a huge advantage for no other reason than he has less champions or spends more real money than I do on them. I don't believe this is fair, because even if I am a slightly better player, I am likely to lose. Now this isn't always the case, if I was good at dodging and stuff it would have made it easier, but if we were both at the same skill level he would have won. This is where I think league went wrong. Out of game advantages ruins the game for people that don't catch on to how strong it is right away, an honestly, the only way to fix it in my opinion is to either make all the runes free or remove them. If you look at the other major mobas that are successful, like dota hon and smite, none have out of game advantages and they are more in for that reason to me. I can beat someone out of pure skill and if I lose to them, I know they outplayed me and it wasn't because of some crap they bought to make them stronger when they weren't even playing. I am not trying to be offensive please don't be mad this is just my opinion.

Deep Terror Nami8/11/2014, 12:38:05 PM2 votes

Runes should just be free like masteries. It pigeonholes new players into either having fun by getting new champs, or spending hard earned IP on runes they won't even know how to build. Pretty much all I have to input on that.

ModCaptainMårvelous8/11/2014, 4:03:28 PM2 votes

Remove T1 and T2. T3 but with T2 costs.

At the moment a new player joining in has an OBSCENE amount of work to get to be even remotely competitive thanks to both champions, runes and runepages. More so, T1 aren't really a "noob trap" because of just how cheap they are. T2? Totally a trap. T3 however is so stupidly expensive it makes it next-to-impossible for someone to be competitive on more than a few champions.

Hell if it was up to me I'd just make buying one rune unlock it entirely (AKA Fill a whole page with 9 of the rune you just bought). Systems should encourage the player to expand and diversify. Not force them to stick with one set because that's all they can get right now.

ModWulf Helhammer8/11/2014, 10:12:37 PM2 votes

Yeah, I was upset about this as well. I bought a few tier 1 runes, but reached level 10 before I bought a bunch of them. I did, however, buy quite a few tier 2 ones. When I reached level 20, I started using the rune combiner to get some tier 3's, but in the end, none of them worked for the champs I liked playing. Add to that that I bought a couple wrong tier 3's before I knew what i was doing, and I wasted IP by doing so. At the very least, the rune combiner needs to be changed to something like what the OP suggested, or refined so that is isn't completely random (i.e., you put in all the same AD marks, but get a MR glyph. This is not cool).

TL;DR I agree with the OP, and the Rune Combiner needs to changed.

Lord Graves III8/12/2014, 8:53:02 AM1 votes

Done. Do it, ship it, get it out there.

Runes need an overhaul, I'd argue runes need done more than the SR update, more than the fighter fixes, more than almost anything. Runes are an archaic and detrimental part of this system. Everytime I am required to think about runes it makes me wanna go play Dota.

Thelmon8/11/2014, 12:47:56 AM1 votes

YES!! I basically stopped buying runes after I bought a few tier one runes and realized that it was worth waiting until I could buy tier 3 runes. Anything else was just a waste of my time!

Austin Covello8/11/2014, 12:58:36 AM1 votes

Oh HELL, yeah! This may be the best suggestion I've ever heard!

MeleeNuke8/11/2014, 2:11:21 AM1 votes

THUMBS UP

Primitive008/11/2014, 4:43:14 AM1 votes

Great idea.

Doominator108/11/2014, 7:10:36 PM1 votes

I feel like that would just be a patch job for a deeper problem in the rune system. That said I really like it. It's definitely better than the current combiner.

acepil0t8/12/2014, 1:04:47 AM1 votes

Ya know what, this is a great idea.

Chilly Willies8/11/2014, 12:33:10 AM1 votes

Cool idea. Could definitely work.