I feel sorry for all Elise players at this point.

It just saddens me to see someone play in my games, because due to her unviability I know for a fact that they are playing her simply because they enjoy her, yet aren't allowed to win games while playing a champ they genuinely like. The supposed "buff" for this patch ended up dropping her winrate by 2%, for a grand total of 41% in Plat+, literally the worst winrate in the game, and I don't believe any champion deserves to have their winrate in the very bottom of the gutter (maybe not even ), especially for as long as Elise has.

I started playing on release so I wasn't playing at the time Elise was considered god-tier or even strong, so I might not have any authority to speak about her issues, but from what I have heard, the removal of her spiderform defense stats were the final nail in her coffin. Maybe just giving her back the defense stats she desperately needs in melee range would solve 90% of her problems and make her instantly playable?

I have also been told that Riot had painted themselves in a corner with Elise by giving her a kit that, while not necessarily overloaded, packs in everything a jungler could possibly want as it has fast clears, HP sustain, (partly) resourceless, and potent early ganks (which is why I also worry that one of my favorite champs will continue to get nerfed to the point that she becomes the next Elise, but that's another post).

As it stands, it feels like there is no reason to ever pick Elise, not only because she has a trash winrate, but also because it seems that the other shapeshifting AP jungler simply does everything Elise does, but better, except for hard CC which she trades for much more safety with the javelin spam (ever been bush camped by a Nidalee jg?). But even Nidalee isn't in the best of spots right now, since Riot chose to nerf her a week before they finally solved the real problem with the S5 jungle by making a worthwile tank item and making the camps easier to clear for tanks.

Well, maybe I shouldn't focus on this patch's shortcomings so much. On the bright side, the long-awaited splash is gorgeous.