Thoughts from an ex kindred OTP

Now I wasn't a hard core OTP but it is honest quite truthful wh en I say kindred played a major role in how I got gold in season 6 and 7.

Every season when I was on a tilt spree, some bullshit anger spree, or just had no idea what to do. EVERY YEAR, at the very last moment, I looked at my beloved Kindred and like angels singing the two kindred spirits said "play me". And I would quite literally go from silver five, to gold, sometimes high gold in just a months time frame.

The skill I expressed on Kindred far flattened my other champions, and while this is a bold claim, I will make it. I firmly believe if I stuck with Kindred last season, if I truly stuck with the ranked grind, I would of made plat last season If i simply chose to OTP Kindred.

So anyways what brings me to talk about Kindred? Well in short, Kindred players have not been happy for quite some time, even when she was at a fifty percent win rate we weren't happy, but now that kindreds win rate has plummeted we are even more so unhappy as it makes her poor QOL even worse.

So what are the big core issues right now with Kindred. Well to put them in bullet points her core issues are the following.

• Build Pathing
• Beyond Squishy pre six
• No damage pre items or marks
• The way we get marks

On release, while many of us questioned "why on earth does the grim reaper have a support ultimate" we did learn to adapt and love everything else, and over all Kindred became a very fun champion with a community who loved the champion. But it became quite clear that Kindred had a very critical set of problems that would forever plague them. Going into detail

Build Pathing On release On hit/percent health kindred was the best build to go by. This was a fun build that offered a lot of shred, and made them my go to pick when against tanky teams. It made squishies easy to duel, and it made team fights very easy to manage for even the tanks had trouble surviving against you. However it was clear that this game design had signs of unhealthiness to it and can easily become broken when out of control. In a attempt to make them easier to balance riot gave kindred a mathmatical rework.

Mathmatical rework: A rework that shifts how a champions power work, effectively all abilities remain the same or near the same, but their ratios are so heavily altered that it counts as a rework. Other examples would be shyvana and fizz or Ahri

The mathmatical rework however created a whole new set of problems..Kindred had to build crit, which is expensive, which also constantly gets reworked in a attempt to balance. So meaning, if adcs in bot lane ever create major problems, which calls action to be required to adjust marksman items. Kindred despite not being a bot lane marksman will be either buffed or nerfed. (in this case it was a nerf) So meaning with the items kindred currently has to build, Kindred mains have to pray that bot lane doesn't become broken, for it will eventually call for a class update which will in no doubt effect kindred as well.

Beyond Squishy Pre Six This is more simple. A while back Kindred had her stats nerfd heavily in defense due to riot feeling she had to much with all the options Kindred has since gone through more nerfs and to this day has never gotten her defensive stats back. So even after getting her power removed in other areas, riot to this day has Kindred be one of the squishiest junglers their is. Which makes anyone who invades them pre six, such a dangerous opponent. These old nerfs also serve as a core reason in why kindred sucks in the current meta. For anyone can just walk up to them and take a quarter of their health off a single auto.

No damage pre items or marks This champion quite literally Suffers through the "kayn problem" Pre items, and pre marks, this champion literally does nothing. While their early ganks are strong, what they really need is items and marks, other wise come mid game, and the damage is simply none existent. A very simple point, but it is one of kindreds core weakness.

Finally the marks Marks marks marks...the most annoying..hated thing about Kindred, while some Kindred mains fight with me on this and say we need to keep the marks, I argue that kindreds marks are her most toxic and unecessary elements to the game play of the champion. For essentially what the marks are, is pure luck and pray. You pray to God that no one is going to contest you at marks, you pray to God that your teamates will help you get marks. You pray to God that when you mark someone, it doesn't make them play like a bitch towards you the entire game. You pray to God your laners don't hard lose lane, so you can keep lane priority to get your marks. Basically everything about Kindreds marks, does not involve skill to gain, but pure luck in factors that are beyond your control.

-Did the mark spawn at a conveniant location according to your pathing? -Did the jungler and entire enemy team set up a death bush at your mark? -Does your team quite literally refuse to do anything to help you get them? -Did all of your laners literally go 0/4/0 by eight minutes so now trying to enter your own jungle becomes a game of "jee I hope they aren't camping this bush"?

No matter how hard anyone tries to argue, getting Kindred marks is pure RNG luck and nothing more. You are relying on your teamates to help you set up ganks, and you are relying on your teamates to watch your back while you look to get a mark. And we all know they won't. Players complain about scuttle crab rng? Kindred players have been dealing with it for 3 years now.

The Solutions

Build Pathing-Bring Kindred back to the shred jungler she's suppose to be, Kindred converting to pure crit has been a issue since day one and a horrible long term plan for the champion

To Squishy/No damage- Either give them more defense stats, or give them more offense stats, for at the moment, early game, we have neither, and it sucks.

Marks- Remove marks entirely and turn it base scaling per level passive. That way it has a fair guarentee max early game that Kindred can't transcend, which will nerf her ridiculous snow ball, but it will also give her better early game power, in the scenario where orignally getting marks would be impossible. If you Insist on this stupid mark system, make it resemble rengars more. Where kills and assists on a champion at any point can count as a mark. But over all I believe my first proposal is far more fair.

Just my thoughts on Kindred.