Rammus Rework Abilities Concept

#Introduction So, let's get straight to the point: Rammus needs a VGU, and he already is planned for one. Now before all of you suddenly become Rammus mains and start ranting about Riot wanting to "ruin your champion", chill a bit. This isn't what this post is about. I wanted to share my idea for a Rammus rework. So just sit back, relax, and read the post. TL;DR: at end.

#Goals of Rework Rammus is not the most... interesting champion. So he can definitely get some changes to make him more appealing, and hopefully more fun. But before reworking him, let's cover his core identity and issues.

Identity: Rammus is a vanguard, known as an offensive tank with good engage. This is a core part of his gameplay that should be built upon. He's also one of the armour stacking champions. Sure, we have Taric and Malphite who do the same thing, but Rammus is known just as well for it, he's basically a living Thornmail. And finally, his taunt and Powerball are well-known parts of his kit that should stay. In short, Rammus is the armour-stacking vanguard who runs in, taunts people, and makes AD champions cry.

Issues: Rammus is one of those champions that sorta suffers from being simple. Champions such as Garen, Annie, and Rammus have their limits to their skill ceiling. Rammus needs to have OPTIONS. Lots of champions that do well and are fun have different ways to go into combat (or avoid it). Options is what makes champions like Lee Sin and Lucian so fun to play. Speaking of simple, Rammus doesn't have the most engaging gameplay, options or not. Hopefully a bit of flavour will change that. Basically, Rammus is a simple champion that suffers from less options and an kit that can be uninteresting to some.

And now, the big part: #The Rework

For this rework, I'm only going to cover the very basics of the kit. No exact numbers, just the kit and nothing more. May not be as elaborate as other rework ideas, but it's the kit. You may agree or disagree with it, this is my take on the rework and it may not even be close to what Riot has in store for him.

Passive: Defensive Ball Curl After hitting a large/epic monster or enemy champion with an ability, Rammus will gain bonus armour and magic resist (scaling off his existing resistances) and reflect damage from basic attacks for a few seconds. This ability has a medium-low cooldown that scales down throughout the game. This is basically his W, except on his passive. By putting his W here, it gives Rammus more opportunities for active abilities and Defensive Ball Curl replaces his less-interesting current passive.

Q: Powerball Upon use, Rammus starts rolling forward in a ball. He gains a large speed boost when starting which quickly scales down to a smaller speed boost. Upon hitting an enemy, Rammus unrolls, deals magic damage scaling off his AP, and displaces the target slightly. Instead of being moved normally, Rammus will roll towards the cursor during Powerball. Think Sion's ult, except a bit more responsive (you can turn rather normally). (Now the interesting part) By holding down Q, Rammus will stand in place and charge up further. By charging up Powerball, Rammus will gain stronger speed boosts and go farther during Powerball, as well as receiving a slight damage increase. Powerball, Rammus' core engage. Same as before, but with more options. Now you can charge Powerball up to go faster and further. Sounds fun, right?

W: Shuriman Slam Rammus rolls into a ball and vaults into the air, landing after a short time. When Rammus lands, he deals magic damage in an area scaling off his AP and Armour, and slows all enemies hit. Being knocked up or suspended during Shuriman Slam will not stop the ability, but simply extends Rammus' air time. Sorry Yasuo, you can't stop this armordillo. If Rammus uses Shuriman Slam during Powerball, Powerball ends but the magic damage dealt with each ability is combined and instead of slowing enemies Rammus displaces them. Remember what I said about options? Now Rammus has that. Not only does Shuriman Slam guarantee Rammus a Dunkmaster skin, but he has a lot of different ways to use it. Does Rammus want to use Shuriman Slam during Powerball for a strong AoE damage source and displacement spell, or does he want to space out his ability use to keep enemies CC'd for longer? Does he want to do neither and use Shuriman Slam to avoid getting heavily punished by knock ups? It's all up to the player.

E: Puncturing Taunt Rammus taunts a target enemy, reducing the target's armour for the duration. During the taunt, Rammus will store a small portion of the damage he takes as grey health. Once the taunt ends, Rammus heals himself for the grey health. The percent of damage he stores as grey health increases per rank and scales off his max health. Rammus' standard taunt, except now with heals! Adding a small heal to Rammus' kit gives him more item synergy with health items and Spirit Visage. And when I say small, I mean really small.

Ultimate: Tremors Toggle: Rammus begins stomping the ground heavily, dealing magic damage (scaling off AP) over time to all nearby enemies and enemy structures (dealing reduced damage to structures). Over the duration of Tremors, the magic damage increases slightly. Tremors can only last for a limited time, and will go on cooldown when toggled off or once the duration times out. Yeah, Tremors hasn't changed much. Asides from now being a toggle ability with gradually increasing damage. The reason for being a toggle is to use mana over the duration, making Rammus an even bigger fan of items such as Iceborn Gauntlet or Frozen Heart. Think about it, if Riven had mana she could use items such as Manamune and spellblade items, right? Having to use mana isn't always a bad thing.

#Closing Rammus isn't a champion that's too dear to me, but the ball of spikes needs some love with a very OK rework idea. With some more options and a bit more item synergy, Rammus won't be too locked into either building tons of armour or just going AP (Yes, you could still go AP with this build). Health items are better, mana is better, and now Rammus has access to options. Hopefully this Rammus will be more satisfying to play.

Have ideas or opinions of your own? Be sure to mention them!

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