[LeBlanc] Shadow of the Rose - This ability feels so awful. Changes please?

dakota saturn··4 votes·2,120 views

I am a > 1m mastery point leblanc main since she was released before season 1. This rework has a lot of hit and miss in it - what's done well feels ok, and what is done poorly just makes the champion feel awful and incomplete. The 'deceiving abilities' are the biggest contention points because those were supposed to be what sold LB players on this rework. The clones are by far the most useless of all of the clone champs (shaco, wukong), when it's supposed to be LB's specialty.

One of the biggest disappointments of the whole rework is her RR - this ability is so gimmicky, so reliant on the enemy being bad, and does -nothing- 90% of the time. I would say not only is it the worst ultimate in the entire game, it's one of the worst -abilities- in the entire game. Could you imagine literally ANY champion in the entire roster losing ANY ability and having it be replaced with this garbage? It would instantly destroy every single champion because it's useless and there is no champion kit that could ever possibly make it worth having over ANY other ability in the entire game. Losing LB's entire identity so we can play with dolls makes LB mains feel so shitty and awful about this rework.

The AI is awful, where even if there is a straight line from the spawn point to the enemy, it likes to spin in circles or hump a random wall before despawning and laughing. The only person the clone trolls is LeBlanc herself. The best uses I've found for it so far are blocking skillshots, or tower diving. Trying to use it for its intended purpose is so frustrating it makes me want to throw my monitor against a wall when it uselessly stares into space for the fourth time that game. If ONE of the conditions were changed on it, it wouldn't be so bloody useless.

It seems to go against all your design philosophies when you have an ability, on one of the highest cooldowns in the game, that can literally do -NOTHING- beyond act as a glorified global blue trinket. If I wanted this, I'd pick Ashe, or Teemo, or Quinn - one of the champs that are designed to scout. Nothing feels worse than blowing a 150s cooldown when you're trying to cause confusion, when it vanishes almost immediately on entering someone's screen before they even can react, or blow a single ability.

I would GLADLY trade the global aspect of this awful ability for the ability to control the clone. Or at the very least, draw a line for the clone to follow before its braindead AI kicks in and makes it immediately run to the nearest wall to start humping it. Or, maybe not have it vanish the INSTANT it fires its ability, and have a set timer where it won't despawn before this. Or if it could just slow enemies it hits so it could actually have some combat use.

Then to add even more insult to injury, the spell isn't even usable when her regular mimic is on cooldown! The time LB needs to actually deceive more than ever is when she's trying to escape - and this of course is the one time you CAN'T EVEN USE THIS SHITTY ABILITY.

I am struggling to think of -ANY- other champion besides the Scouter champs named above who have ANY abilities that have ZERO combat use. Even These champs have extra effects on their abilities, and I'd -much- rather have Quinn's reveal ability or Ashe's hawkshot than this stupid inconsistent clone. If LB's clone doesn't catch someone completely offguard and get them to blow a flash (Which will never happen in any ELO above silver), it has ZERO combat use beyond blocking skillshots.

I know that someone will come along and tote that "LAWL UR USING IT RONG HAHAAHAA NOOOOB DOWNVOTES!!!111!!1one", but anyone who played LB significantly before the rework and after has to agree this ability just feels like complete and utter shit.

8 Comments

Calabok3 votes

nope

dakota saturn1 votes

{quoted}

nope

Thanks for reading my post and giving an insightful, thoughtful reply before downvoting. I really enjoy the intelligent discussion that this forum offers with lovely, smart posters.

Calabok2 votes

your welcome.

Blàdedancer2 votes

I think you can make some great plays with it, the RR you can make it walk down lane but you're actually behind them in a bush, and the R QWE does a lot of damage.

dakota saturn1 votes

{quoted}

I think you can make some great plays with it, the RR you can make it walk down lane but you're actually behind them in a bush, and the R QWE does a lot of damage.

I understand the ability isn't completely unusable - I'm saying more often than not, the AI doesn't cooperate and make it behave in the manner it's supposed to.

You're also completely reliant on the enemy to not be paying attention, or to not have read the patch notes to fall for it, as it's very predictable in its behavior, and doesn't act like a real LB player.

It CAN work, 10% of the time you use it, you'll get a flash or a stun off someone. But 90% of the time it's a useless ability, besides a walking ward. Kalista's spirits are way better for that purpose than LB's ult.

Charmed by Ahri2 votes

OMG i died laughing. This post is comical. Send halp pls!!11one.

But seriously your right. Her RR is one of the most inconsistent AI in the game. All other AI is controllable like Tibbers or Ivern Ult. It is a global blue trinket. And adds histeria when a fight breaks out in an unwarded zone her clone allows allies to see where enemies are which foils their little tactic of hiding in a bush for an ambush.

I've used it for mind games, albeit it is a brain dead ability but I try to launch it from the side of me as I walk towards my selected enemy . So as the clone proceeds to hopefully W I try to W at the same moment. Its funny honestly people can't tell which is which then immediately pop RE-EQ for the kill. Before they realized who is the real leblanc they are respawning. Like practically have 2 clones briefly up at the same time. 150 sec cool down is obscene but i run CDR per lvl blues.

It could get an update, allow us to control the clone. I don't see why she wasn't given this when other AI's are controllable. On an even less cool down and their AI does DMG. Leblanc's doesn't. So I would trade global ward for some control as well.

At the time being, i've just tried making multiple versions of leblanc when going in and forcing the enemy to blow ignite or flash or their ult or cc on a clone. Hard to set up properly cause the AI is buggy and inconsistent. But when it is pulled off it looks really cool on my end. I sure the enemy is like wtf.Especially when they type in all chat wtf.

Vistha2 votes

I find this gimmick frankly useless.

  1. You can't use RR when R+Q/W/E is on cooldown, despite the fact they do not share cooldowns.
  2. AI is utter garbage. I used it in the middle of the lane right after an enemy went into the brush. The clone went to MY tower and disappeared.

Not to mention R+Q/W clones aren't doing shit. R-E at least remains for the whole duration of the channel, so enemies may actually notice it before it poofs back into non-existence. I mean, it took me about 30 minutes to remind myself that "old" Mimic creates clones and it was only because an enemy decided to attack the RE clone instead of me and I walked away.

Nameless Voice1 votes

I must agree that the cooldown on it feels really, really strange.

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