A thought about adding gameplay vs. adding power

Rune update preseason update (Surrender@20)

So this is a topic that's been brewing on my mind since the first announcement of the reforged rune system, the line drawn between when additions to a champion's kit, be it ability passives, items, or runes and masteries really try to add a new avenue of gameplay (original goal of Keystone Masteries) or just add extraneous power (Runes). When Riot originally announced Runes Reforged, they emphasized adding gameplay and diversity instead of going for the most optimal rune page for a given champion every single game. I want to start a discussion on whether they succeeded in this regard.

One of my favorite examples of well-designed passives are those of Lux and Xerath, two long-range artillery/burst mages that otherwise would have no business actively auto attacking their opponents, complete with passives that actively reward auto attacking in between spells. I go into more detail in the original post, but the important takeaway is that their passives add to their gameplay; instead of just spell-slinging a thousand units away, they get rewarded for getting into a more interactive range with their opponents and changing up the playstyle of the rest of their kit. Compare this with, say, Shyvana's old passive of just granting extra stats. Potential power, yes, but boring and literally pure stats.

I believe the key element of these well-designed passives is that they bring champions to do more than the rest of their kit is comfortable with. Lethal Tempo, for example, is a cool Rune because not all auto attackers can always commit perfectly to a window of boosted attack speed. A single misfire (on a champion archetype that emphasizes constant damage and action) can completely waste it. On the other hand, even if you start a fight, if the auto attacking champion is forced to reposition, it eats up their time to take advantage of the attack speed. Yes if you've found the perfect opportunity the extra attack speed can be godsend, but the rune comes with its own active trade-offs built right into its gameplay.

I worry about some of these new runes already, as a couple of them already show signs of rewarding champions for actions they should already be doing. Glacial Augment doesn't seem to add any depth at all from its description, aftershock is cool but does absolutely nothing to change Vanguard or Diver playstyles, it's hard to tell Dark Harvest's purpose, and I can't help but fear more Runes like that will slip through. Some of them can have gameplay artifically forced into them with good enough number manipulation, but I just don't want to see Riot just have another repeat of Keystone Masteries.