Support item changes

Linkedgamer·1/10/2018, 11:44:25 PM·4 votes·389 views

So with the recent announcement on the PBE about the changes to support items, I honestly feel that Riot is making a mistake by somewhat doing the reverse of what I see as might be the right decision here. Now i'm no support main, but I fill most of the time so I might as well be one. What this change does is remove some meaningful choices from the support item kit that some supports find necessary. item 3401 helps so much in protecting or saving that one person who the bursted to high hell or as just a buffer to prevent this. item 3092 helps with creating picks, preventing ganks both by slowing the ganker and/or giving vision of who is nearby. item 3069 helps with escaping a losing situation, preventing ganks through quick escape, or giving your team a form of engage or backup to engage. All of these items have useful effects that allow for multiple uses and decision making into how to actually use the item, instead of something like item 3190 where it's press the button to stop damage in a fight, item 3107 aoe heal and damage dealer, item 3109 you take damage from your mark and heal from damage they deal. Removing these items creates a bland feeling the the decisions of the support game, what item should I start (I know that on most champions there really isn't a "choice" but this is more due to champion kits, playstyle, and synergy with these items, a Braum really wont take FQC or Talisman over FoTM), and how to properly use these items. In comparison the Eye line of items, item 2302 item 2303 item 2301, which are literally just stat sticks with a sightstone in it, providing a bland and non interactive item decision.

Now, there feels like there is something that Riot is forgetting to utilize and possibly actually use as the proper solution to this situation: item 3340. Instead of forcing the supports to continue to have a sight stone, causing an item loss, they should focus on promoting totem usage by rewarding it. Ideas such as: changing the duration scaling of totems, changing the recharge time on totems, rewarding placing wards by reducing the recharge time by placing wards based on amount of wards placed on the map (each placed removes 10-20 seconds on recharge [item 2057 wards and ghost wards don't count]), after certain amount of uses, next ward is a mini control (pretty much a normal ward that has the control passive). This way we prevent going back to season 2-3 situations of support being recognized as the "ward bitch" and instead properly reinforces the fact that everyone needs to ward. Now the downside to this can be that people might refrain from using item 3364 item 3363 item 3341, in which these items would need buffs as well.

TLDR: Don't remove usable support items, buff totems, remove sightstone

2 Comments

Run In Outa Time1/14/2018, 5:07:51 PM1 votes

As a support main that often buys item 2045 with one of the active support items such as item 3401 , these changes are very disappointing to me. The current state of support items allows for different playstyles, so if you dislike having active items you can choose the upgrade that simply provides wards, e.g. item 2303 . However, I feel as though Riot is going to streamline the support itemization even more with the changes that are planned. They have stated that they want to allow supports to rush items other than item 2049 , but there will always be meta items and builds no matter what you change. I will try to keep an open mind about the intended changes, but I hope that Riot takes a serious look at what they are doing here before they actually implement this.

Rabblerouser1/18/2018, 12:31:57 PM1 votes

My problem is the removal of the quests. I understand that was half of the intention with Targon's (thank you, ADCs, for ruining it for us supports! :D I have some harsh words but I'll relent), but it could've been reworked into something else, maybe? The passives on item 3096 item 3098 item 3097 helped us a lot. Especially item 3098.

The quests made the lane feel more interactive without adding too many extra mechanics. More complexity but still noob-friendly. It was very well-designed.

Maybe you could just buckle down on ranged abusers of Targon's and make Targon's melee-only... and actually break down and make Thresh and Rakan melee! Or go the Viktor route and make a Targon's equivalent that only Thresh and Rakan can build? It's a bit out there but with that level of abuse, it may be needed.