State of Azir

Hey,

So Season 8 has started along with LCS and given how things play out so far in proplay, I figured it's a window to discuss the state of Azir. Note: I haven't watched all the games across LPL/LCK but I usually check out discussion threads to see picks/ban etc. and it looks that Azir is a very contested pick. Which brings me to the core of the topic.

To me, it feels it's the same ol' story. He's too dominant in proplay so he must be nerfed, while being well below 50% winrate in average soloque and spiking up to 55% in higher Diamond and above. I'm well aware of the fact that winrate is not the sole statistic to go by and it takes a lot of effort to master this champ (<-main since his release)

But since preseason, his soldier damage has already been slightly slapped and if more nerfs are to follow, he is likely to end up in the gutter for an average soloque player ranging say, Silver III-Diamond V.

This brings me to another point, which is IF he is to be nerfed, what else can be stripped away. The rework already took away his range advantage, half of ult's utility and shifted power from Q-poke to soldier cleave damage. There can be either further nerfs to soldier damage/AA, % reduction to cleaved targets past the main one or a nerf to his Q by hitting base damage or amping cooldown/mana cost to gate him from harassing enemy. In a scenario where his soldier damage is nerfed (again), it's another blow to his envisioned playstyle and theme. Potentially, soldier damage at high-end levels could be slightly nerfed but I doubt it would solve the issue. He would just be slightly weaker and less of a late-game hypercarry is was supposed to be. On the other hand, nerfing his Q by lowering base damage or gating it behind higher cooldown/mana cost would make him less oppressive in laning phase but also leave him vulnerable to unfavorable trades (which kind of already is with the trimmed range)

This is a precedent, where a champion who was strong during internal testing and release was consistently nerfed over his lifespan because pros, who are able to somewhat reach his skill ceiling, abused his kit and power and the remedy affected both player bases with the bigger one in shambles pretty much till rework. Now, if he is going to get nerfed again and again because of his resurgence in proplay then the rework is pretty much a useless effort. Working in game dev myself, I know that when balancing, usually it's the outlier that is easiest to hit with the bat over the head but, as seen, it isn't the right and long-lasting solution to the problem. Maybe instead, slight buffs to champs that hard counter Azir could shake up the midlane meta and trim his dominance in proplay.

Best friend of mine (with whom I duo Azir+Ornn (I know it's a dirty duo) compares Azir to a kid who was constantly taken away toys from, one by one, until he could only play with himself (pun not intended)

Lastly, I would love to hear out Devs' stance on that matter if they have ideas I missed.

Peace out.