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The State of ADCs right now: Balanced or Broken... ?

Real Sexy Yoona·4/7/2018, 9:39:17 AM·35 votes·5,705 views

I just haven't seen a lot of "ADCS ARE BROKEN" threads lately. Here are two sides to the argument.

  1. it feels like shit to have your entire team melted by a brain dead ADC right-clicking and FLASHING WHICH TAKES SO MUCH SKILL
  2. It also feels pretty shit as an ADC to get instantly deleted by a zed hiding in your jungle bush, dark harvest shaco, Kass ult combo who stacked his ult with no problem thanks to presence of mind. Or those moments when a tank/bruiser kills you and you as an ADC feel like they are tankier yet somehow does more damage to you than you do to them.

[sg-lux-2]

Here are some recent changes that directly or indirectly nerfed the ADC class in no order whatsoever:

  • The nerf to the rapid fire cannon, stattik shiv
  • AP Item changes (Morellos doing flat magic pen + reduce healing, while other AP items like Rylai's were straight up buffed)
  • Duskblade User buffs (buffing AD ratios for compensation for some damage reduction on duskblade proc)
  • Ninja Tabi Nerf (reducing flat armor is terrible for ADCs while the 2% extra damage reduction for autos doesn't mean much) - In an assassin's POV, this is like having 10 extra Lethality against an ADC with the previous Ninja Tabi.
  • Introduction of Conqueror rune (I feel like this is a pretty nice rune since ADCs can't really abuse it while it's more efficient for Bruisers/slayers/juggernauts whatever that class is)
  • Fleet footwork Nerf (Makes laning phase for late game hyper carries harder- this typically makes ADCs slightly lower health in laning phase which allows mid, jg to secure ganks more often) Makes ADCs slightly more vulnerable early game.
  • Reducing immediate health benefits for second resolve tree
  • Aftershock brought back more engage supports (team oriented) into the meta and allowed them to compete with the shield/heal slave supports (protecting ADC oriented)
  • There is probably more but I can't remember.

What do you guys think honestly? My opinion is that ADCS are still the strongest class, but are in a pretty good spot right now. Maybe a bit more nerfs would suffice but too much will revive the "ADC in 2017" Meme. (would be 2018)

167 Comments

Chaeyeoní4/7/2018, 9:45:06 AM54 votes

Not seeing Tristana and Twitch as often in my games anymore (due to their nerfs) made my playing experience a lot better. I can say that much.

ExternalLink4/7/2018, 11:52:33 AM24 votes

I like how all of the negative situations you mentioned for an ADC involve them being caught out...alone...against classes that should naturally buttfuck them...

HoloTheWíseWolf4/7/2018, 9:50:12 AM17 votes

I've lost interest in playing the game ever since the Arden Censor Meta which made me insanely depressed. (Kogma, lulu haunted me in my dreams) Even now, the game doesn't feel very fun to play. I'll give it more time.

Śhunpo4/7/2018, 10:07:18 AM16 votes

They're still the strongest class imo. Any class that is good in ALL areas is strong. Like, ADCs are good in lane, good at pushing down towers, key for objective play, good at waveclearing, good at teamfighting, good at 1v1ing AND they scale insanely hard.

The problem with ADCs now imo is that they lack any major weakness unlike every other class/champ in the game. Case and point, a champion like Lee sin or Quinn will just fall flat on their face in late game, while ADCs are strong at all points in the game. A champion such as Veigar or Nas-.....actually this is just a universal problem, why are champions just good at all stages of the game now? Last I remember Nasus and Veigar weren't supposed to actually be strong in the early stages of the game. Anyways, ADCs just have no clear weak point in the game, they're strong early, strong midgame and amazing late game. Where's the opening?

But yeah, ADCs are just overperforming right now, and you can tell that since literally ALL macro play is directed towards bot lane in some way shape or form.

HarrowR4/7/2018, 9:51:24 AM10 votes

How can you say you think its the strongest class when you mention in your own post how bruisers do more damage and adcs get insta deleted by anyone. I don't think that's the mark of the "strongest" class. They can do damage if they get to 3-4 items but they are still to vulnerable to anything to properly utilize that damage,we are talking about real world scenarios where someone will flash on top of you and insta gib you. Being functional only after the 25 minute mark is not a strong fkin class,and its not a fun class either,coming from an ADC main since S1 i think i had enough of it,im switching to mid/jg. I cant believe people still talk about how adcs are op when i go Swain mid and have most damage in the game every single damn game while also being able to 3v1, and then you tell me that ADC is strong,i only have to hit him with one E and he's dead

Edit: This just happened in my game,i'll leave it here for you to gauge how op adcs really are....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCJQeHrgthE

Jinzo Torrance4/7/2018, 1:30:22 PM6 votes

90% of all ADC players are hardecore glue sniffers

Echostormxx4/7/2018, 6:58:27 PM6 votes

Supports carry bot lane, ADCS are only broken because of the supports. I know because I main support.

Late For Tea4/7/2018, 11:35:31 AM5 votes

[{quoted}](name=Real Sexy Yoona,realm=NA,application-id=3ErqAdtq,discussion-id=jj43HQ5Z,comment-id=,timestamp=2018-04-07T09:39:17.574+0000)

  1. it feels like shit to have your entire team melted by a brain dead ADC right-clicking and FLASHING WHICH TAKES SO MUCH SKILL
  2. It also feels pretty shit as an ADC to get instantly deleted by a zed hiding in your jungle bush

Both are in my opinion a big problem, and just goes to show how bad of a state the game is in. We're now in a "one-shot or be one-shot, zero skills" game state, which is really unfun to play in. I don't think anyone should be able to one shot anyone, but most assassins are able to oneshot squishies. It's just not fun to die in less than a second when you see the rengar ult warning, and it literally takes no skill on Rengar's part.

Overall I think assassins damage should be nerfed. However that would leave them in a bad spot as ADCs would melt them. So ADC damage has to be nerfed as well, but then they can't deal with the damage/defensiveness of tanks anymore, so tanks will have to be nerfed as well. This just goes to show how bad changes upon bad changes have spiraled the game out of control.

Divewing4/8/2018, 3:20:40 AM3 votes

I personally think ADCs are all balanced.

I think crit is overtuned.

But maybe I'm oversimplifying things

KlydeFrog4/7/2018, 3:03:12 PM3 votes

Hate to brake it to you but any class can be strong with correct runes and fed

AirKingNeo4/7/2018, 3:25:10 PM3 votes

Reducing immediate health benefits for second resolve tree

Huh? How does this nerf ADCs when ADC goes Precision Sorcery?

Critmaster Garen4/7/2018, 5:51:14 PM3 votes

[{quoted}](name=Real Sexy Yoona,realm=NA,application-id=3ErqAdtq,discussion-id=jj43HQ5Z,comment-id=,timestamp=2018-04-07T09:39:17.574+0000)

Here are some recent changes that directly or indirectly nerfed the ADC class in no order whatsoever:

  • The nerf to the rapid fire cannon, stattik shiv

shivs passive got a slight nerf of 20 damage, rapid fire got BUFFED

  • Duskblade User buffs (buffing AD ratios for compensation for some damage reduction on duskblade proc)

duskblade got nerfed. those were some assassin buffs because their main assassination tool lost a lot of power.

  • Introduction of Conqueror rune (I feel like this is a pretty nice rune since ADCs can't really abuse it while it's more efficient for Bruisers/slayers/juggernauts whatever that class is)

has almost no effect on marksmen and is more targeted against bruisers and tanks. marksmen dont build a lot of resistances, so the true damage conversion barely affects them. if you want to fight a marksman, then press the attack is a lot stronger tool against them than conqueror.

  • Reducing immediate health benefits for second resolve tree

crysalis became a strong early game option for marksmen to buy them time until they scale up, at which point it converts into ad. IF a marksman goes second into resolve, the rune compensates for the loss of health in the beginning and then turns into more useful ad. overall this is a clear net win for any marksman who opts into resolve. next to the fact, that they get more valuable attack speed for the 60 less health in the first place.

  • Aftershock brought back more engage supports (team oriented) into the meta and allowed them to compete with the shield/heal slave supports (protecting ADC oriented)

aftershock didnt change in recent patches.

overall, marksmen have received as many indirect buffs, as the few nerfs they received. theyre still broken and have too much game impact.

DW Diana4/7/2018, 12:37:30 PM2 votes

Adc's are dead if cc hits them. But otherwise they are too strong. Imo nerf lifesteal and adc's will have to use position to win like mages.