Marksmen changes on PBE

Riot Axes put up a thread a week ago addressing the PBE changes to marksmen and their itemization that are currently being tested on PBE. https://boards.na.leagueoflegends.com/en/c/developer-corner/2ykqAkNa-marksman-changes-coming-to-pbe-in-the-next-couple-days

Riots major points in why these changes are happening:

1. Marksmen as a class have been too strong for a while
2. Early setbacks in lane don't put hyperscaling carries behind enough to really matter, so most lane bully marksmen have vanished or moved to other positions. 3? As an aside, we've heard questions about the level of influence supports have on the game. The marksman issues outlined above need to be addressed regardless of the state of supports, though

How Riot is attempting to address these issues with the change:

1. We want to push back that moment of 'turning on' so early failure is appropriately punished and going even in lane doesn't guarantee dominance in mid-game. This gives other classes and positions more influence in matches where neither marksmen became obscenely fed in lane, moving us away from a bot-centric 'coin flip' meta.
2. nerfs to marksman lane sustain

The thing is that none of these changes will arguably hurt the marksmen role, or teams reliability on marksmen for DPS, along with marksmen remaining essential in terms of play, especially in bot lane. The only sure thing that these changes will bring that Riot is seeking to address is that ADCs will hit their power spike slightly later than they are atm, but IMO it won't be that far behind what it is right now. In addition to this, a number of these changes are a large buff to the assassin class, which as a whole has been getting a ton of small buffs for the last couple patches and these changes will push them over the top.

Lets take a look at the changes:

1. Riot wants to make IE 'less impactful early on' and they have certainly done that. There is effectively only one champ in the game now that can rush IE as a first item but even he probably wont because he needs tiamat. However I think that turning 20% of a crits damage into true damage will end up being problematic as it limits the defensive options people can go against it. True damage being spread across such a large portion of leagues roster on such a simple mechanic as criting will become a balance nightmare.

IE has also gained 10 AD, but gone up 300 gold in total cost. Except that given that 10AD is 350 gold worth of stats means that IE gained gold efficency when paired with one crit item, given that it now also doubles crit chance. IE + zeal item has gone up 500 gold in cost, but you gain an extra 10 AD and 10% crit in the new build. So you gain 750 gold worth of stats when you have a completed IE and one zeal item. (10AD = 350g, 10%cc=400g) Once that carry the completes their next zeal (not zeal item, just zeal) they reach 100% crit chance. They have gained 10AD and 30% crit chance, for 1550 gold in additional value.

2. To quote Riot Axes "Simple efficiency nerfs to the Zeal items." Zeal has had a cost increase of 100g. Zeal upgrades have had a total gold increase of 200g. But when you combine them with IE, we can see that this efficiency nerf is actually false. All it does is delay the ADC getting to IE + Zeal by 4 minutes (125 gold per wave X 4 waves = 500 gold.) Once those 4 minutes are up and these changes are a large buff of efficiency to an ADC.

3. Base health regen and armor nerfs. Meant to allow poke to stick more in the early game. Yet ADCs are getting compensated by health and health per level buffs, which primarily will hurt mages. Late game the ADC will have a better chance at surviving a mages all in, while the armor nerf and LW changes will actually help AD assassins.

4. + Upgrades: These items are returning to TOTAL ARMOR Penetration, instead of bonus armor. Meaning that assassins will gain benefits against tanks and squishies when building it. Meanwhile the LW changes don't help the true damage on IE's crit. It helps the other 180% of the attacks physical damage, but it isn't 100% efficient. So this change doesn't seem to be for ADCs to build against tanks, but rather assassins to build vs everyone again.

5. Fleet Footwork nerf: It isn't a direct nerf to FFs healing or sustain in lane. It is a nerf to the MS it gives (30% ->15-30% scaling) which usually allows ranged champs to kite. Granted this is entirely warranted seeing as how FF gave more MS than phase rush until the Phase Rush champ was level 11. Now they will give the same MS until PR champs hit 12. But FF has the heal going for it too, and is easier to proc. Because Riot hates Phase Rush.

6. Hail of Blades: I don't see any ADCs using this, except maybe and who want to maximize their burst window. Maybe but I still see her and most assassins taking electrocute if they did before.

7. will find a way to break this. 100%.

8. Item efficiency buffs: all got buffed.

9. Stormrazor: What ever compelled you to do this. This will become 2.0 No ADC is going to build this. MAYBE because of how his auto system works. But you just created another item for the AD assassin to dream about. Now whenever are hiding in your jungle they get a free crit, AS and MS to shorten their burst window.

The other major purchaser of this BS item will be top lane Maybe if he can fit it into his build. Guarenteed barrel and parrrrley crits. yuck

So TL-DR

Riot has slowed ADCs to their IE+Zeal item spike by by 4 minutes, but made it more gold efficient when completed, and ADCs are now stronger when they have IE+zeal and are 100% crit chance on IE+zeal item+zeal. (7800g = 100%cc) Riot wants lane bully ADCs to return by making poke stick more in bot lane while not touching any sustain other than Hp5 nerfs. Assassins damage is going to skyrocket with these changes and their burst window will shorten. Buffs to several non-crit AD items.

Overall expect no changes to how madatory ADCs are to the game, reduced agency on counter-building against a fed AD player, assassins becoming 'OP' overnight and a rise in top lane ranged AD players. Also 25 minute tryndamere split push ending games because 40% true damage crits.

**EDIT: So as I finished writing this Riot put buffs to Phase Rush on PBE (25%-40% from 15-40%) and nerfed zeal crit chance from 20% to 15%. Meaning that it also reduces IE's gold efficiency and also no longer gets you to 100% crit at 2 1/2 items (7800g) Meaning that players have to actually finish the last zeal item to get 100% crit. ** All in all good changes Riot "insert perfect timing joke"