Why does anyone take barrier?

5000000000000000·Jul 15, 2015·1 votes·780 views

Doesn't heal do everything barrier does?

Especially on aram holy shit I see so many barriers

13 Comments

Lauricella3Jul 15, 20153 votes

shorter cooldown (210 compared to 240)/ better protection (10-100 more)/unaffected by healing reduction

JupıterJul 15, 20152 votes

Better (in the case of ADC) when you have a roaming support (Bard, Leona, etc) and only need single target protection.

YumaS2AstralJul 15, 20151 votes

{quoted}

^

Better (in the case of ADC) when you have a roaming support (Bard, Leona, etc) and only need single target protection.

Also better if you are on mid lane. Most mid laners take Ignite, so it is likely that Heal will not protect you. Barrier has the edge on that situation.

JupıterJul 15, 20151 votes

^ Also very true. I see many people take barrier on less mobile champions like Xerath against assassin mid laners.

IcyPepperJul 15, 20151 votes

Although some ADC players don't do this, and sometimes want to take barrier if I'm playing something like Soraka.

And that's when I leave the team builder queue :c

But yes, Barrier is nice when you have a roaming support. Although the MS boost from heal also helps from time to time.

DrNovaJul 15, 20151 votes

Stupid time to leave que. If heals are already there, barrier is a good choice

IcyPepperJul 15, 20151 votes

Maybe from the PoV of the adc.

Not the support who uses her own health and can't heal herself outside of her ult and an easy-to-dodge Q...

It might be stupid for some, but I'm not really keen on being someone's health pot. Heal is more efficient than barrier in bot lane because it can heal us both, and Soraka gets focused too.

It's just personal preference. If you prefer barrier, then by all means go ahead.

DrNovaJul 15, 20151 votes

well cant fault the adc for you playing soraka. Personally I dont like her because of that self damage bullshit. It is a stupid way to try to rein in a healing champ.

IcyPepperJul 15, 20151 votes

Agreed. I mean, I like her new Q, the old one wasn't very interactive and this one looks cool. Personal preference. But the way her heal works... ugh. I understand why to a point, but I don't have to like it.

But I play her mainly because (as a jungle main) top lane gets screwed over a lot when I'm not jungling. I keep my ult up and try to save it for my top (or mid) laner if they're in trouble. Rarely for my adc, considering they tend to survive with me using the rest of my kit optimally, and using hp/mana regen runes to keep my heals constant and going.

Poor top laners. I feel for Dyrus, man.

Origami KaijuJul 15, 20152 votes

Barrier is good against certain burst champions. Consider Syndra, who can point+click delete you with ult. If she's ignited you, heal probably wouldn't save you because of the gw reduction, but barrier might mitigate enough damage for you to live or turn it around.

SchenixJul 15, 20151 votes

Azir

For risky plays / Not trusting teammates or expecting them to not be there all the time / Making up for mobility

StratJul 15, 20151 votes

Healing in ARAM is reduced by a certain amount. Also barrier provides more personal EHP (effective HP) instead of sharing it. In a way this isn't such a bad thing because you don't have to micromanage your team mates' health - rather, you know when you're being focused by the enemy, so you can choose when to protect yourself.

The main advantage heal has is the movement speed increase, but since healing is reduced and the cooldown is higher, generally barrier is a better choice in ARAM.

In summoner's rift, barrier is good in situations where you are likely to face healing reduction (e.g. ignite or Grievous Wounds caused by other things such as Katarina or Morellonomicon). ADCs should generally pick heal over barrier because the movement speed is valuable early and late for kiting, and you can apply the heal to both yourself and your support. In the mid/top lane, if you choose not to take ignite or teleport or exhaust, barrier is a good option since you're by yourself so you want to maximise your personal protection. Champions that love barrier mid include Lux and Xerath.