@Riot, we beg of you, do one last class update: Enchanters

Arcyyy·Aug 28, 2017·15 votes·1,205 views

These champions just scream binary stat check and zero skill expression, and it's sad because theres so much more that could be done with their themes.

Janna is a Weather Manipulator and has gameplay about as deep as a kiddie pool

She basically is an E Bot that occasionally presses other buttons in the general direction of people. Nothing about her is fun to play as or against.

Soraka is supposed to be THE healer, yet just presses W a few times until she dies and occasionally R's with no warning from across the map.

You could make her ult way more powerful but have a channel time like Karthus or Taric R to give some counterplay.

Sona uses music to battle but is the definition of faceroll

How do you define a GOOD Sona Player? You don't. Their mechanical skill plateaus at "Press ALL Buttons at the start of a fight". She could be so much more with that concept.

Lulu, the most interesting of the bunch -- A Fairy Yordle. Quite an interesting concept, but shes almost entirely point and click with linear abilities.

I've always wanted to see lulu be able to "Minimize" an enemy with her ult, instead of only being able to ult a teammate. This would fit her theme of "Do I buff my allies or debuff my enemies?". He Q should also be changed to a different spell completely, it just feels SO clunky.

44 Comments

BeatzBoyFTWAug 28, 20178 votes

Wasn't Diver Updates suppose to be the next thing before Riot cancelled it?

Plus, I don't think Class Updates is such a good idea at all. Who knows which champions affected will get:

Mordekaiser 'ed - Champion who got stripped off his original lane & got himself into a shittier one for no fking reason.

KogMaw 'ed - Champion whose kit was so furiously toxic & infuriating to dealt with that Riot has decided to change his kit back.

Malzahar 'ed - Goes from "I must coordinate my attacks well to have strong presence in teamfights" to "Just point & click this one guy ftw hurr durr".

KONO RUBICK DAAug 28, 20171 votes

{quoted}

'ed - Champion who got stripped off his original lane & got himself into a shittier one for no fking reason.

i lol'ed, nice lie

BeatzBoyFTWAug 28, 20171 votes

Well their "We ran out of ideas on how to make Morde look good, so we put him there" excuse was bullshit, so it's better to have no fking reason than this crap.

KONO RUBICK DAAug 28, 20171 votes

i'm not even understanding your point

you could please talk with a real language?

BeatzBoyFTWAug 28, 20171 votes

In other words, you should try catch up on the Morde memes. Not my fault you lack this much knowledge.

Sexy Jack RabbitAug 28, 20177 votes

No. No more Class Updates. They're all just awful and never served any good.

If these champions are to be updated they seriously need to be updated individually.

I don't want another class update that trashes 4 champions and makes 1 or 2 'kind' of better.

It happened with the Juggernaut Update, It happened with the Marksman update, it happened with the Mage update and it happened with the Assassin Update. I don't want to see EVEN MORE champions trashed.

rtbf231742773Aug 28, 20174 votes

As a sona main I would rather not have a sona rework i love that champions play stayle. "How do you define a GOOD Sona Player? You don't." That is not true i wouldnt have made it to Diamond if i didnt know her kit relly well she isnt a hard champ but she isnt a garen. You cant just smash all your abilitis and pray that your team wins. You have to use your passive at the fullest and she got one of the most diverse passive in the game.

Mens Hair ClubAug 28, 20171 votes

garen is harder to play than sona especially in high elo

rtbf231742773Aug 28, 20172 votes

How ? What abilitis in garens kit makes him harder to play then sona.

Mens Hair ClubAug 28, 20173 votes

decision making

use q for speed up now or sit on it to cleanse slow

w to absorb a burst of damage or eat a hard CC

E has some micro play in it because it has an isolation mechanic for bonus damage

sona has none of this, you press buttons and get stuff, there's no need to time anything except maybe the shield on W

garen also requires very good macro play to excel with

rtbf231742773Aug 28, 20174 votes

All champs have decision making and in team fight sona has more decisions then a garen. All champs requiers you to play good macro and micro play especially sona with her passive and ult. "she has none of this" Do you even know sona passive ? She can reduce damge with a good timed W power cord on the enemy carry.

Gentleman JeyAug 28, 20173 votes

The problem is us.
We get attached to characters that fall out of META, and grow frustrated with how we cannot perform as we used to with them. Buff them, and now the people freshly placed at the bottom of the ladder are complaining. If you played what was META and only what was META, you would have no frustration.

You would also lack the stubborn, clingy, love that makes you human. Solution, learn to love to lose.

dreadnoughtus01Aug 28, 20173 votes

Agreed. Enchanters need more defined niches. They do have some things to set themselves apart. Lulu has more cc, Janna queen of disengage, Sona has AoE, Soraka's those fat heals, etc..

But their kits could feel a lot more satisfactory and could use more skill expression. What seems to separate a good from a bad Sona relies a lot more on game knowledge, not bad in itself, but doesn't really show much of a learning curve for the character. Her ult is basically the only thing you need to aim with.

Should there be easier champions to get into? Sure but I don't think the vast majority of enchanter supports should be lumped into this category.

Starter champions that are simple and highlight objectives/nudge play styles should fall into this. That's why I love reworked Warwick, I think he's an excellent example of a starter champion that eases you into the role of a jungler.

I don't know why shields and heals have to be point and click abilities. There'd be more skill expression and variety if support (healing/shielding) abilities were more like Lux's W.

As skillshots enchanters could be defined into more subcategories ala mages.

Artillery-esque enchanters (long-range, weak but safer shields or heals) Battlemage-esque enchanters (small to mid range, tankier or stronger shields and heals) longer cd + power vs shorter cd and consistent shields/heals, but weaker

etc...

It also makes we wish certain items or abilities already in the game could've been reworked into enchanter abilities. Yasou's windwall as a perhaps smaller, destructible Janna shield, Redemption as a Soraka ult, etc...

AbyssphereAug 28, 20172 votes

Ally-targeted buffs are almost universally targeted because needing to rely on your allies allowing you to use your abilities on them sucks. It is very frustrating for Lux players to have allies walk out of the travel path of their W, and she's a mid laner whose main role in a team is to snipe enemies. Put that gameplay on someone whose actual job is keeping their allies alive and you're in for a world of dissatisfying gameplay. People still fuck up Redemption when you cast it and that's something they have to engage with every ~2 minutes. Missing every shield you throw out on a 10 second cooldown in a team fight because your allies are tunneling would be a nightmare.

I understand that the other side of the coin here is that making ally buffs targeted makes them very easy to use, but the solution to that is making the buffs more complex and situational rather than making them more unreliable. Lulu was given extensive trade-offs to using her basic targeted abilities, and her ult has enough different effects going on that it invites decision-making in some situations. Lulu's pretty easy right now but that's primarily because so much power has been loaded into ADC buffing in the current game that the choices in her kit have for the most part been removed (always put every buff on the ADC, consider using W on an enemy assassin at a push). Her kit on-paper is well-made. Nami's W and E both have good gameplay for targeted buffs too. We need more of that, not more Lux shields.

dreadnoughtus01Aug 28, 20172 votes

That's why there's also points to their kits that help keep allies alive beyond the simple shield or heal.

Janna Q, W and Ult offer really good peel and disengage. Lulu has poke and inherent CC Soraka has her silence and her Q slows.

Most tank and mage supports are still viable even if many don't directly keep their allies alive with shields or heals outside of item actives.

Lux's shield can be frustrating to target on allies, but that's part of what makes it a skillshot. You're not expected to hit them 24/7. If an allies walks out of that or you miss that, that's part of the skill expression. Keep in mind that if shields and heals were to become skillshots they wouldn't necessarily all have to be as hard to aim as Lux's W's. It's just the easiest example of one.

Plus a trade-off to a shield or heal skillshot being harder to aim might be a shorter cd. You could even still have AoE shields or heals, but that work sort of like Bards ult. There really is tons of ways to play with these skills, I really don't think ally skill expression is bad thing, it's an interaction at least. Compared to Sona's W which is just... not interactive at all.

Also the point is diversifying skills and applying clear weaknesses and strengths to a champions kit instead being as binary and numbers reliant as they are now.

People messing up with Redemption is a good thing. It shows skill expression. I think the bigger problem with that is sometimes support items are over-represented with item actives compared to other roles.

I disagree with the statement that just waves away shields and heals from being skillshots. I think making them have skill expression would be healthier than they are now.

Weiss GuertenaAug 28, 20172 votes

Actually heals and shields should be point and click, unless they are AoE in which case making them PnC might not be optimal since you want to have more freedom to hit as many targets as possible (like Redemption and old Karma Q).

A harder to land skillshot heal/shield would defeat the very point of skillshot. The idea is that intended target doesn't want to be hit, and as such is given opportunity to dodge. With beneficial effects, however, you want to get hit - making them hard to hit is frustrating for both the caster and the target. Soraka's W is a good example of skill expression on a heal without unnecessary frustration - at the base it's just a point and click heal but is really ineffective if you just use it like that. It only truly shines after you land your Q, which both increases that heal and lightens its HP cost. Now, imagine if Soraka's W was a skillshot instead. You try to use it to save a low HP ally but they unintentionally dodge and die. This feels terrible for both you and said ally. Compared to a situation when you can use a damaging skillshot to finish off a fleeing enemy. If you hit, it's satisfying for you. If they dodge, it's satisfying for them - unlike abovementioned example of a skillshot heal which isn't satisfying for anyone.

I'm all for having more skill expression, but not if it's just tacked on for the sake of difficulty, out of place and frustrating for everyone.

dreadnoughtus01Aug 28, 20171 votes

Not all damaging abilities are skill-shots, though. Look at Annie ult or AoE abilities like Brand's ult. Those aren't traditional skillshots and are more concerned with positioning.

As for AoE abilities or skillshots you do want to get hit by (usually)? Look at Redemption. A clear item active that people want to get hit by and enemies want to avoid.

It doesn't break the game, there isn't much confusion as far as allies knowing they'd get healed if they got under the beam. However there is a complexity about whether or not to enter the AoE area because the enemy might focus it with their own AoEs and your allies might get blown up as a result but it's not a bad thing. Redemption is still a really good item (almost too good) that offers skill expression for supports.

Distinguishing between a friendly skillshot or bad one should be something you're paying attention to regardless. Not simply reactionary because skillshot = bad. If your ally artillery mage throws out a Q behind you in a teamfight, are you possibly going to compromise your position to dodge it? That's your own bad habit.

Also I think point and click abilities have been highlighted as being frustrating to play against for lots of people before. That this extends to shields and heals (even coming from allies) doesn't surprise me.

Weiss GuertenaAug 28, 20172 votes

Redemption is a good example of a non-PnC heal; it is delayed bit the indicator is instant. This gives both allies and enemies time to react accordingly. Taric's ultimate is also a defensive ability with good amount of skill expression without being frustrating: who to use W on to affect most teammates, timing it for the delay, etc.

Making a more traditional skillshot heal akin to a Lux' shield or Bard's ultimate, however, would be bad. Again, with a harmful skillshot you want to hit and enemy wants to dodge - and thus making an ability missable makes sense. Invariably, after firing a hostile skillshot one side will be satisfied; either the caster for hitting or enemy for dodging. With a heal/shield you want to hit and your target wants to be hit. This makes a hard-to-land ability frustrating for both sides - and this is the very reasons those abilities are either PnC or instant AoEs, with few exceptions.

Again, there are more ways to introduce skill expression without making a spell easily missable - Redemption or Soraka being good examples - especially when doing that would make zero sense.

dreadnoughtus01Aug 28, 20171 votes

If the problem and I think it's a stretch to say that allies shouldn't be able to distinguish or be responsible for recognizing between enemy and ally skillshots, then there are ways to make shielding or healing skillshots more visually distinctive and signal to your ally to say "hey! this is an ability to want to get hit by.".

Certain visual aura's, glows and patterns to show this is a supportive ability could take care of this 'problem'.

Also "easily missable" is an exaggeration. I made this point earlier but not all supportive skillshots would have to have as small a hitbox as Lux's W. It could be as varied as mage's vast array of skillshots, AoEs, etc... with the added advantage of diversifying enchanter's kits.

Anyway skill-shots are skill expression. At the moment enchanter supports have a problem displaying ability skill expression rather than game knowledge and people playing against enchanters feel frustrated by this gameplay. Making them skillshots would help solve this issue.

Weiss GuertenaAug 28, 20172 votes

Skillshot is a skill expression in a way that both caster and target have conflicting goals in mind, and thus can play around each other. And this is why a missable ability has a point, one side wants it to miss and benefits from it doing so -there's literally no reason to make an ability missable if neither side benefits from it. Yes, it might increase skill expression but not in a good way. It'd be difficulty for the sace of difficulty and just feel bad for everyone.

Another big problem would be the difference it'd introduce between coordinated and uncoordinated teams. Healer in a Discord group with his premades will be able to say "Imma heal you so try not to dodge it accidentally", making it not much different from a point and click ability. With unorganized teams it'd just be a liability. Of course, being missable they'd also have to be buffed - meaning that they'd either be too strong for organized teams or terrible for disorganized ones.

Compare that to hostile skillshots again. No matter if you are solo or in a stack of 5, there isn't much difference. You'll try to hit and opponent will try to dodge all the same.

And once again, what is wrong with a skill expression that isn't just "this ability can miss"? Aside from Soraka you can also take Nami as an example. Her heal is point and click and bounces cannot miss as long as there is a valid target in range but the way it works involves a lot of decision making: picking the right initial target and positioning well for bounces is more often than not a difference between life and death.

dreadnoughtus01Aug 28, 20171 votes

This is assuming activating a shield or heal doesn't have other effects beyond the skill-shot. Look at Lux's W, Lux provides a shield for herself and allies that get hit by it is the other side part of the ability.

Again I point to Redemption as a psuedo skillshot heal AoE. I actually think the main reason why Riot added the delay wasn't because they thought people would miss the cue and try to dodge but because it'd make it too powerful if it was faster acting.

I think shields and walls not being expressed as AoE's or skillshots also limits them. Something like Karthus W and Yasou's windwall is more intuitive and would fit better into a supports kit white adding skill expression as area denial or protection. Enchanter's shields could also be expressed in this way (with perhaps different effects, shapes, etc..)

There are already big differences between coordinated and uncoordinated teams but that's part of the reason there is Flex and Solo Ques.

I don't think you addressed my point of how people function in a game when an allly mages throws skillshots during teamfights? Are they not able to recognize it and are blowing their dodge skills and/or flashes from ally skillshots if they get anywhere near them?

I don't think this is the case. You need to put more thought into "see a skillshot = dodge", that's not how this game works. Actually there's lot of cases where an ally will purposely run to their allies while (the) ally throws a skillshot in order to root/catch the enemy chasing them.

I'm not saying all shields or heals have to be skillshots, but I think the majority of them having better skill expression would benefit the meta a lot more and make it more fun.

Weiss GuertenaAug 28, 20172 votes

As I said, Redemption is a good example. What I am against is traditional skillshot heals - unless they are instant or near instant, but in that case they're more like a point-and-click AoE than a true skillshot.

And issue about ally skillshots wouldn't people trying to dodge them. It'd be people doing that on accident. Not "see skillshot - dodge". For example, say that you want to heal your low HP Ezreal who has a DoT on and your only heal is a skillshot. You cast it exactly the same moment he blinks away and he dies. This would feel terrible for the caster and terrible for the intended target. Enemies might get satisfaction of a kill but they had little agency over how the situation resolved; they got that kill not because of skill or outplay, but solely because of a clunky, unintuitive mechanic. You aren't introducing outplay opportunities for enemies - you are introducing them for your allies, which would be a glaring eaxmple of a bad design. Fortunately this is one of those things Riot probably deems toxic and won't allow it to happen.

With that in mind, you still haven't answered why a skillshot heal would be a good idea - and just saying "to be more skillfull" isn't a valid answer. Once a game starts introducing difficult abilities just for the sake of them being difficult, it fails at its design. A simple and clean, yet effective ability is much healthier for the game than unnecesarrily complicated, clunky one.

And for the third time, directly making heals into skillshots isn't the only way to make them more skilfull, but almost certainly is the worst. Soraka and Rakan are how a "skillshot" healer should look like. Skillshot part is offensive in nature and can be played around by your opponents, while the healing part is all but guaranteed to land after that. That is an example of a good mechanic which introduces skill expression, not just randomly making your heal missable.

And finally, making a skillshot heal really wouldn't increase skill expression much. Skill expression from skillshots comes in outplaying, predicting movement and comboing - both for teh caster and the target

With skillshot heals there is no skill expression on you hitting your target. They want to get hit and only way they wouldn't be is on accident - which is frustrating for everyone involved. Nothing akin to a satisfaction/reward of landing or dodging a, say, Morgana Q is present. There is no skill expression for your enemies. Offensive skillshots they can dodge or body-block for their allies. For something alike to a Lux shield they can't really do anything but trying to get through additional HP - exactly the same as with regular shield.

All in all, this would cause much frustration while bringing nothing good to the game. Better search for alternate, better ways to make those more skillful which isn't utterly and completely frustrating and unintuitive.

dreadnoughtus01Aug 28, 20171 votes

What I am against is traditional skillshot heals - unless they are instant or near instant, but in that case they're more like a point-and-click AoE than a true skillshot.

We don't have any traditional skilllshot heals to really compare do we? Riot's never really experimented with it to test if they're fun or not.

It's their kill because they would've gotten it if you didn't have a heal or shield. Same if you weren't in range or had your skill on cd. If Ezreal had bad positioning and gotten far enough away were you couldn't heal him, that'd also be on a mistake on his part.

You bring up him being reactionary and dodging, but this is still a mistake on his part. For not recognizing his allies trying to heal him, for getting that low that the DoT killed him, etc... Allies can and will get themselves killed, a point and click shield and heal might minimize the margin of error there but doesn't mean it's the best game design choice or most fun.

Do shields and heals serve to prevent damage? Yes but they shouldn't haven't any outplay potential in themselves. That they are point and click and you basically never have to work to actually heal or shield an ally besides being out of mana or dying, cd, etc... I think is unhealthy.

With that in mind, you still haven't answered why a skillshot heal would be a good idea - and just saying "to be more skillfull" isn't a valid answer

That's actually not the main reason I want them. The main reason I want them is for more enchanter kit diversity. There's a lot of potential in enchanter's lore and idea concepts to protray their abilities in a more satisfying and intuintive fashion.

Point and click heals and shields with little differences among them (ad boost, ms speed boosts) is the most boring way of all.

If more heals and shields were like Bards or Rakan's (who are not skillshots but more intuitive) this probably wouldn't be an issue. Them being skillshots just opens up the potential for more kit diversity because skillshots come in wide variety, shapes and even ranges.

**With skillshot heals there is no skill expression on you hitting your target. They want to get hit and only way they wouldn't be is on accident - which is frustrating for everyone involved. **

Actually you bring up an idea for opponents being able to bodyblock heals which could be interesting but maybe a bit too punishing. The skillshots don't all have to interact or behave the same way.

Look at Xerath's ult as a skillshot, a healer artillery mage would be very interesting actually.

If you want an example of a healer who has to aim, look at Ana from Overwatch. Different genre (Moba vs FPS) but the concept of it is somewhat the same. A healer has to aim, on fast moving targets most of time, to be able to heal. Ana's actually one of the most fun healers in Overwatch I think and more intuitive than the rest.

So I definitely disagree with you here about targeted healers not working in game. There'd have to be some translation for LoL since a character like Ana has unlimited ammo for heals but an enchanter could just have shorter cds, mana issues, etc but it could work in theory I don't see why not.

Weiss GuertenaAug 28, 20172 votes

1.) We had old Karma's Q - except it also dealt damage and was instant, justifying its skillshot nature. And who's to say with certainty Riot didn't experiment with skillshot heal? Lots of things get tested and scrapped before they get shipped to players - I'd bet my life that an idea as simple as skillshot heal was tested at one point. The fact that something similiar was never shipped speaks about how it doesn't fit Riot's intended game design.

It does not bring healthy interactions between a player and his opponent. On the contrary, it allows your allies to "outplay" your healing. You can say what you want, but this all goes strictly against Riot's design directives and as such will never fly in League.

And not every ability needs to have layers of counterplay. Lots of shields and heals are point and click... So what? It isn't ruining the game - especially considering how the very class entire meta is revolving on is 100% point-and-click oriented. On the contrary, making it a skillshot would make it even more unhealthy, adding frustration factor for allies with zero input from enemies like I've explained.

And what I've said for skill expression also stands for variety; there are lots of more intuitive ways to make heals/shields more varied.

And Ana actually gets help from the game itself when aiming her heals; ally hitboxes are artificially made larger than enemy ones - because the game recognizes how frustrating a heal that can easily miss can be. Not to mention that isn't her only heal; her grenade is an AoE with a fast travel time that can serve very well in a pinch.

And again, this violates far too many of game design paradigms. It just won't happen.

dreadnoughtus01Aug 29, 20171 votes

Not necessarily. A lot of enchanter supports are early champions who have been touched up here and there but left mostly the same, there may not have been an easy way to translate such a skill until much more recently.

Why does it not bring a healthy interaction with the opponent?

Allows allies to "outplay" your healing by opening up more diverse options to heal? Do we even have long range heals in LoL besides Soraka's ult? There's so much experimentation and concepts that could go into this idea, the way we have it now is actually more limiting in regards to healing if anything.

It's not breaking the game...? There have always been balance issues surrounding healing and shielding. That's why we things like grievous wounds, this shield meta right now, and complaints that enchanters are not intuitive or fun champions. Are there people who think point and click is healthier? Sure but I think there are even more people who would prefer more skill expression and kit diversity.

Point and click is unimaginative, limiting and boring.

Ana was the first aimed healer in Overwatch and she was introduced some time after launch. I seriously doubt they made all ally hit boxes bigger just to accommodate Ana. Either way, she is a prime example of healer class character like her can work. Even the AoE heal grenade is more intuitive than what we have now.

As for it not happening, eh. It hasn't happened but Riot is getting more daring with their designs. I wouldn't count it out and I definitely like to see it happen.

higuraAug 28, 20171 votes

I don't know why shields and heals have to be point and click abilities. There'd be more skill expression and variety if support (healing/shielding) abilities were more like Lux's W.

no one pick lux because of her shield.

unlike lux, would the enchanter supports simply be useless if their shield / heals weren't reliable and fast, as it is the only advantage they have over the other support classes.

dreadnoughtus01Aug 28, 20171 votes

Enchanters bring other things to the table besides just their shields/heals. Janna is queen of peel, Sona has dmg and ms buff AoEs, Lulu has poke and strong CC, Nami has strong CC, etc...

Their heals or shields contribute to their strengths as supports but shouldn't be their entire identity. As far no one picking Lux for her shield, sure no one picks mid Lux for her shield. Support Lux is probably isn't (they want dmg) but the shield definitely contributes to why she's taken down in bot every now and then.

She does provide some utility with it, especially since it's been buffed.

Anyway hypotectially a shield or heal being useless because it's not as easy to hit targets with is a hyperbole. Mages skillshots all differ in effectiveness, range, as AoE's etc... I don't know why it wouldn't translate to enchanter skillshots. They wouldn't have to be exactly like Lux's W, in fact they shouldn't.

The other half of my point is to make their kits more unique and have more an identity.

Dominick DestineAug 28, 20172 votes

So basically, this is a person that does not understand that supports are about positioning and timing rather than LC$BIGPlayZZZ.

There is nothing wrong with any of those characters.

MiantaAug 28, 20173 votes

It's not about "LC$BIGPlayZZZ". That's what Rakan, Leona, Bard, Thresh, etc etc etc are for. It's about the class of Enchanters specifically and their lack of a complex/diverse kit. He's saying they have POTENTIAL but need to be thought out more. They're meant to buff their team and/or help them survive many situations. But if "survive many situations" means "spam W to heal" then that's not a very great ability/kit. I like Janna, she has potential. Flash ults can separate the enemy team, blowing up their formation and healing everyone at the same time. Her Q is also quite complex, allowing you to peel or engage, and her kit ultimately says "You need to plan far ahead and prioritize". But everything else is just "shield them & slow them" over and over. Her passive is also quite brain-dead. Small fixes to make the abilities more complex than Skarner's Q is just a great idea.

Weiss GuertenaAug 28, 20173 votes

Not every spell on a champions' kit has to be super complex. Hell, it'd be hard to find just one champion without at least one simple ability; take LC$BIGPLAYS posterboy Lee for example; for all the versatility his QWR offer, E is still just "press button to deal damage and slow". And simplicity does not necesarrily mean bad design: Braum's design is really simple but well done and encompasses his theme as a protector perfectly.

Besides, how would you make a single target shield or heal more complex without making if frustrating for both the caster and the target? Only champion they've done so sucesfully with is Soraka, where if you want your heal to shine you have to land your Q first.

MiantaAug 28, 20172 votes

No i agree, not every spell needs to. But a decent amount of enchanters do have some pretty bland abilities imo. I don't know any better tho, im not creative nor a designer so I couldn't say "this is how it should be". It's definitely complicated for sure, I would personally just like to see a little bit more variety. Take rakan for example, if he lands his q it starts a timer that will heal him. If he gets in specific radius toward teammate, him & teammate get healed instantly. Or bard, heal shrine gets set on targeted location, charges over time and gives speed buff. Unique, different, not just spam 1 button over & over.

Weiss GuertenaAug 28, 20174 votes

That's the problem with nature of beneficial abilities, really. There are only so many ways you can heal or shield someone without it being too convoluted.

What I'd like to see with Janna, specifically, is something akin to W changes that were on PBE: the ability had its manacost removed and restored mana/CDs for her other spells when used on champions. This would make it a more important part of her kit instead of "that passive speedboost you only really use when you need to chase or escape".

And when you look better, not many of enchanters are that bland. Sure, their shields are bland at base but secondary effects are what makes them different: Janna's shield is as much of an offensive tool as it is defensive one; sometimes it's better used as a damage boost rather than protecting someone. Taric uses his to set up a conduit for other spells, as does Lulu to a lesser degree - tho she also has the option of directly using it for offense.

Mens Hair ClubAug 28, 20171 votes

this 2bh

one of the biggest peeves is how much potential most supports have completely wasted on being a passive heal slut or shield bitch with an onhit buff or MS boost attached

karma janna lulu and someone I forget have this problem for me