I've just read Riot's new Dev Blog about classes and subclasses (check it out, there's a Vlad teaser in it :)!). Since I am always interested in game design, I was eager to read what Riot had to write and then, just for fun, tried to find out, where Karma would fit in. And it left me really confused. Obviously, she is a mage, so she could be a:

• Burstmage
• Battlemage
• Artillery mage
• Enchanter
• Disruptor

Since in terms of design, she is supposed to be close to Lux, let's see if she fits the Burstmages description:

Burst Mages aim to single out vulnerable targets by locking them down and following up with a devastating barrage of damage from range. Burst Mages struggle heavily against beefier targets who can shrug off their initial spike of damage.

So, Karma has troubles with beefier targets and she can deal devastating damage from range.... but to lock down, she has to cuddle for a while and what she does really isn't a "barrage" either. Besides, she has short cooldowns, so maybe she is a Battlemage?`

Battle Mages get into the middle of the fray, seeking to wreak havoc upon the entire enemy team with their overwhelming sustained area damage. Due to their relatively short (but not melee) combat ranges and the need to burn down their opponents over time, Battle Mages have significant defensive capabilities that range from sustaining endlessly to literally defying death for a short period of time.

Karma seems to have really good defensive capabilities, and one could argue that her RW lets her defy death pretty well,.... but she doesn't exactly have "overwhelming sustained area damage". Soooo..... maybe her RQ qualifies her for Artillery Mages?

Artillery Mages are the masters of range, and they leverage that advantage to whittle down their opponents over time from great distances. In turn, Artillery Mages are severely punished when enemies finally succeed in closing in on them, due to their extreme fragility and limited mobility.

Well, she does wittle down enemies from afar, it's just not really great distances. She also seems to have troubles when being closed on, but significantly less than other mages.

So this isn't getting us anywhere. How about Lulu/Janna, who Karma is frequently compared to. Can she share their "Enchanter" subclass?

Enchanters focus on amplifying their allies’ effectiveness by directly augmenting them and defending them from incoming threats. Enchanters themselves are often quite fragile and bring relatively low damage to the table, meaning they really only shine when grouped together with others.

Her E and RE would fit this, as Karma profits from lategame teamfights, in which she can shield everyone and defend allies from incoming threats. However, is Karma's damage "relatively low"? I wouldn't dare to say. She also doesn't directly amplify her allies' effectiveness, like Lulu's & Janna's shields do. So, what about the last category? Zyra is another mage support, in the end.... can Karma be a Disruptor?

Disruptors specialize in locking down opponents or, in some cases, entire battlefields by creating intense zones of threat that only foolish enemies would dare wade through. Although not as reliant on their friends as Enchanters, the fragile and immobile Disruptors greatly benefit from allied presence - both to deter incoming danger and to help capitalize on targets they’ve locked down.

Well, Karma's RQ kiiiiiind of creates a zone of threat. Karma also isn't as reliant on allies, while still profiting from allies, who she can lock targets down for with RW.... but then again, she really can't easily or reliably create those zones and her lockdown and damage zones exclude each other. Compared to Zyra/Anivia she has no reliable lockdown and can AT BEST only lock down one target, slowly and unreliably.

So what is Karma? And does it matter?

Maybe not. Riot did say, that these are "more a set of guidelines than rigid rules" and it is very likely - or even better - if some champions explore the outskirts of those subclasses, while maybe crossing over to another subclass. So having champions who don't clearly fit one of those is to be expected.

But in terms of design it seems VERY concerning to me, that this champion falls awkwardly over five outskirts AT ONCE. This, to me, indicates a very strong confusion of roles and a HEAVY disconnect with Riot's current understanding of champion design. So, are the subclasses not good enough to describe Karma, or is Karma so far removed from fitting a role, that it explodes Riot's terminology? And is this a problem?

I am interested in what you think. And in what Riot thinks, but I don't eally expect an answer. Let's discuss :)!