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4.18 Akali Nerf Discussion

eXgamble··6 votes·5,464 views

So my favorite girl got hit pretty hard on her defense abilities recently. I just do not understand why. Her last change was in 3.07 right? So she was okay for a whole year then all of a sudden she is too strong now? So I just want to discuss why this is the case, her new W, and other changes that could have happen.

I have always felt Akali was perfect before 4.18. Bad early, great mid, good late. Riot stated that the change was so people can have more counter play against her, basically pink ward and AOE, which was already the case before the nerf, but now more than ever.

The Problem with this nerf

Normally Akali needs two combo to kill. So it normally goes combo, stealth (no counter play), combo.

Now pink wards are more effective than ever before. However, the ones that complains most about Akali are in low elo. The majority of those people will not buy pink wards. So this nerf wont actually help all of those people that complains about how there is no counter play against Akali. Akali is still gonna wreck low elo, only AOE will be a bit more effective. So this nerf did nothing to please those players

On higher elo, Akali is much worst since pinks are much more common. She needs a nearby enemy minion for a reliable escape before she goes in which is tedious.

When I read the patch notes I was actually excited. I thought that I would have the speed boost while Im stealth and have it decay over 1 second once I leave stealth, which I could make some cool plays, but the speed boost decays the instant you enter stealth, by the time you leave the other side of the shroud you are back at normal speed. which was so disappointing. I have so little creativity with this new W.

Conclusion

Akali is good in Solo Q All levels (especially bronze, silver, gold) but never sees competitive play. The problem is that the concept of her W is just so bad. Use pink, kill her. Or dont use pink, get killed.

In this world championship, I saw zed, fizz, and talon. All are assassin and can do about the same burst but they all have reliable escapes because they do not get countered by a 100g item....well maybe talon.

Riot the change on her W was just lazy and you know it. It does not help low elo complainers and it hurts her even more in high elo. You need to rework her W entirely. You need to get rid of her stealth and give her something else. so people can counter her and she doesnt get countered by every champion that decide to spend 100g.

Let me know how you guys feel community.

21 Comments

Icedteaisgood6 votes

[deleted]

manbearswine1 votes

Her w isn't exactly countered by pink wards(it is also extremely important to note,that not only a pink ward takes up a slot(which is a very big thing),requires someone to place it near her w(since it takes up a slot you don't expect everyone to have one do you?) and of course costs a whooping 130 gold(as it is guaranteed,especially if aimed at akalis w,to give your opponents 30 gold very soon),that's a third of what you would get if you would kill akali(~450 gold)),it will still gives mr regardless.

The issue with akali isn't low elo specific either,in fact,her winrate(apparently) peaks at diamond(~53%,whereas in bronze it's ~50%),her problem is(hence the hate for her) is that her gameplay is incredibly obnoxious,if you are playing the "wrong" champion she just clicks on you from a mile away and you explode instantly without anything you can do about it,akali simply does not deserve to be strong,with her current kit she shouldn't be allowed to be anything but weak.

as to this particular change,first of all,at first glance(haven't seen it in action much) it seem like an insanely moronic change,the last thing akali needs is even more mobility,now I realize it's intended(and probably is) to be nerf,but I would rather they would simply reduce the resistance than trade them for more mobility.

Overall a nerf to akali is ALWAYS(no matter how weak or strong she is) welcome,a rework to her ult would be even better though.

Fredart1 votes

Why should a cloak give you more defense when its already giving the greatest defense of all, invisibility?

eXgamble5 votes

I do not think people are reading my post, Im not complaining about the nerf. I complaining the fact the the way she counters and gets countered is unhealthy at all levels of play. I am talking about how the changes did nothing to fix her "problems".

Direwolfiez4 votes

Why should an assassin get bonus MR and armor? That makes no sense. I'll admit that the fact that her bonus MS decaying the instant she enters stealth is dumb, but she shouldn't have had the bonus tanky stats in the first place.

Icedteaisgood3 votes

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Direwolfiez1 votes

I'm not claiming to know anything about playing Akali, since I'm bad with assassins, but just the fact that she had the bonus stats in the first place is kinda unfair. Assassins are supposed to get in, take their target out and run like hell, not stick around and tank damage, right? It didn't make much sense with the rest of her kit.

I think Riot was trying to emphasize that her Shroud should be used for quick escapes or for setting up assassinations, not for confusing people and hanging around to pick them off afterwards. The MS buff seems to be for that purpose, right? I think if Akali players used it more for that purpose they'd have less of a problem with it. Take my words with a grain of salt, though, since like I said, I've never played Akali in my life.

Icedteaisgood4 votes

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Direwolfiez1 votes

Well, this is the whole problem right here. You're completely correct, except that Akali doesn't have any way to "run like hell, not stick around and take damage" if her stealth is revealed. She has no escapes, no way out of fights, just 100% all in. That's why the defenses did make sense with her kit.

Sorry, I just don't think she should get another gap closer. She's mobile in the sense of she can quickly reach a target, but after that all she has is her Shroud to make an escape with; giving her another mobility spell would be kinda pushing it, don't you think? Besides, there's already so many gap closing champs in the game already that it would get even more ridiculous than it already is.

Yes, I think this is what Riot was going for. But at the end of the day, a 1 second, decaying, 25%-over-by-the-time-the-cast-animation-is-done move speed buff doesn't keep you alive or help you escape after all-inning all that much in most cases.

Yeah, I can agree with that. Riot seems to be hitting assassins pretty hard recently. I'm not gonna be sad if Akali becomes less popular, but I do think a decaying 1 second MS buff is kinda dumb.

eXgamble4 votes

I did not say that she should have Armor and MR. I'm saying that her Shroud is a really bad design for all levels of play. Both now and pre nerf.

Direwolfiez1 votes

Sorry, I just kinda skimmed through your OP. You did say that you thought the pre-nerf Akali was perfect, though, so there's that.

Demented Lemur2 votes

You could say the same thing about talon there was no complaints about him till he started being used at a competitive level. He didn't receive any buffs or anything the meta just changed and he started to be played same thing with akali. Assasins came back into the meta. Resulting in "changes/ nerfs" besides I don't even think you can really consider this a Nerf as she was compensated with a huge MS boost Unlike (sorry Im a talon player) Talon who got his 1 second silence removed and was given a measly .25 second slow

Thats Frosty2 votes

I agree with dire in the fact it shouldnt decay the minute you come out of it, but I can also understand why they did. If you didnt have an upgraded sweeper or a pink for an akali in shroud, you weren't gonna hit her most of the time anyways, the bonus tank stats just didn't make much sense. The movespeed bonus just makes it easier for akalis to dodge skillshots being thrown at her into the shroud, second of all it aids her escape pretty well for someone with no real means of escaping. You just w behind you now and run like hell

l Mamba l 242 votes

Akalin is an assassin. The fact that an assassin has an ability to not only help them go invisible but give them defensive stats in dumb. Her new W fits to an assassin better as she can use the invisibilty to also give her movement speed to chase or use it to gain movement speed to run away along with it slowing enemy's. Not good gameplay to give a champ who can 100-0 a spell to increase her defensive stats.

tuck fard2 votes

I personally think akali is too strong, once she gets level 6 its pretty much a passive farm game or get killed by 3 rotations of her abilities. For example, i had a game with elise vs akali and i rushed spectres cowl to give me an edge on her but that still did not help me when she was dishing out her rotations, one kill was all she needed to roam and kill my whole team before ending the game 15/0. No i am not bronze, and no i am not a complainer, but her kit is too strong as it stands despite the shroud being counterable with a pink ward, her base damage should be hit and maybe a more reliable ability on her w

eXgamble1 votes

Thank you everyone for your thoughts. Im sorry if my post was a bit confusing, I kind of change train of thought while writing it.

Akali's biggest problem is her stealth. Ever since they got rid of oracles, every stealth champ got stronger except for Akali, since all they need is a pink or red trinket. It is really unhealthy for her to be countered with an item and not in champion select.

Riot needs to literally get rid of her stealth completely and give her something else that is not countered by everyone that spends 100g. This will make Akali players happy since they wont feel hopeless because of a cheap item and this will make people that plays against her happy since she is not stealth, there is chance to counter play before her second rotation.

Belisarius091 votes

As an Akali main I really like the change. The ms boost is a tremendous help in the laning phase. I'vebeen willing to lose the resistences for quite some time in return for either A) a ms boost or B) and increase on the slow.

That said, I'd like to see the decay go away, or the duration last a little longer. Maybe only decay after she leaves shroud, or something like that.

Lastly you bring up the binary nature of her shroud and how fucking gay pink wards/oracles are against her, and I agree. But the resistances did nothing to alter that binary nature. Don't bring back the resistances. Change those items somehow so they don't completely screw Akali over.

Just my two cents.

Ravenlok1 votes

My question is this: How is it that Akali's shroud negates all abilities and effects that have already been cast on her? for instance I recently played fiddlesticks vs akali in the new twisted treeline hexakill (where you can't buy vision) and i would fear and drain her, when she comes out of fear she shrouds and i stop doing anything, then she cycles and kills me - there is no counter play possible, there are no wards. I have used lee sin against her recently too and my 'e' should leave her visible but it does not - I think she is bugged.

Leblancs Boob1 votes

I agree that the W change was a bit lazy though I will say she definitely deserves a full kit rework for many reasons (ult). But the reason still stands that an assassin having a random defensive steroid like that was just very unhealthy. She didn't have to build any resistances for her to get deceptively tanky just by being in her shroud.

And also if you're alone against an Akali whether or not you have a pink ward you're going to die regardless.

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