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It's time to slay the dragon.

Danskheart·9/25/2013, 5:28:49 AM·3 votes·834 views

First and foremost, I want to address what I believe to be the most overpowered asset in League of Legends, and it won't be what most of you expect.

Namely, the Dragon.

I've suspected for a while that the Dragon is largely responsible for the snowball effect that League is so susceptible to, but the World Championships has more or less confirmed it. I present below a few arguments for your consideration:

  1. Most summoners in the League are aware of the snowball effect - I.E. the team that secures the first play (first blood, the double kill bot lane, the first dragon, that crucial counter-jungle) more often than not wins the game. This is due to a gradual snowball where an initial gold lead is expanded gradually until it is insurmountable. But why is this?

  2. In the vast majority of games (this is anecdotal, but watch for it in pro games), the Dragon is usually grabbed by the team which has already established a gold lead - most often through an early gank or rotation. Since the Dragon has few hit points and goes down quickly, contesting it usually isn't an option - especially in the mid to late game. As the casters so often say, it is the winning team "securing their gold lead." Think about it, is it really good design for the team already winning to be able to pile on an easy 1000 global gold through a barely-contestable objective?

  3. The second point is exacerbated by the fact that the team in the lead usually has control over mid/river. This map pressure allows them to easily - nearly risk-free - secure the dragon without the possibility of response from the opposing team.

  4. The Dragon is like an easy to kill, hard to defend tower that respawns every few minutes and can't be answered by the enemy team. Actual towers can be answered by the other team securing towers. Any gold deficit created by securing towers is, in theory, only temporary since your opponent can kill an equal amount of towers. The gold lead generated by killing the Dragon is significant and permanent.

  5. Consider that the average game is won with a roughly 5-10 thousand global gold lead. If you consider that the average (pro) game lasts ~35 minutes, that leaves room for about 5 Dragon kills. That's 4875 gold for one team. That is an enormous chunk of that ending global gold lead. In many games it could very well account for almost the entire gold lead.

Just think what would happen if there were no Dragon... Suddenly, the multi-thousand gold gaps you see at 10 minutes in games deflates to a multi-hundred gap; a deficit which is far more manageable. Comebacks would be far more likely, games would be closer, but most importantly, more emphasis would be placed on winning multiple fights rather than winning a singular fight which allows you to take a dragon uncontested. At last, champions fighting champions would be the most reliable way to secure a gold lead.

In short, I suggest either drastically reducing the gold per player that the Dragon gives (maybe 90 gold per player) or remove it entirely. Currently, it ruins the gameplay of LoL.

I'll be expanding this discussion with harder figures and other arguments for balance, but I wanted to get this one out there.

Discuss!

3 Comments

LoLByTheNumbers9/26/2013, 12:23:57 AM3 votes

You're running into the problem of looking at pure numbers without any real context behind them. Here are some more detailed numbers from the EU Regionals.

Win Percentage from: First Turret – 68.42% First Blood – 63.16% First Dragon – 52. 63%

Taking the first dragon as your first objective: 3 wins to 5 losses – 37.5% win rate Taking the first dragon after taking another first objective beforehand: 7 wins to 4 losses – 63.6%

Taking the first dragon but not the first turret: 4 wins to 7 losses – 36.4% Taking the first dragon and the first turret: 6 wins to 1 loss – 85.7%

During the EU Regionals, first dragon trended as the worst possible point of focus. Now that has changed some during the rest of the Regionals and the Worlds, but its just a warning about looking at simple numbers, and not more in depth analysis.

As for later dragons, you have to look at them in two ways. The first is how you have stated. In how it can snowball leads. But this is a reward for map/objective control. Players should be rewarded for consistently play over the course of the game, not just a single moment.

The second way to look at dragons, is in what they force in the game. Dragons force TEAMFIGHTS and this is a necessary function in the game. By having objectives in the game (towers, dragons, barons) it allows compositions based around team fights to be effective. If dragon did not exist, then pick comps and lane comps would be the only thing you would see. Without a valuable objective to create teamfights, then several compositions and heroes would become obsolete. Dragon creates variety.

Beware of base stats, they can be confusing and misleading. Dragon/River control is a reward for solid play, but it is not always a snowballing factor. Pick/Lane comps that win early, have lost because they are forced to fight at dragon. Dragon is just as much a source of comeback potential as it is victory solidification.

Once Worlds is over, I will be doing a very detailed analysis of dragon and its perceived value vs. its actual value. It's one I've been paying close attention to.

Gabriel Foxkin9/25/2013, 9:16:11 PM1 votes

I would say that this is an interesting point, personally I think that having that objective creates team fights and helps end the laning phase, keeping most games short. I agree that the winning team has an advantage when trying to gain all neutral camps and because they have forced the other team away from the area or weakened them until they can not realistically contest is part of the strategy that i enjoy about league of legends.

NeekoTrap10/4/2013, 11:57:57 PM1 votes

--#Nautilus#--
The winning team in a multiplayer game should always be more likely to win. If you want proof why snowballing is a good thing, go play another MoBA called AirMech, great high-paced game, but if you are unable to capitalize on every small victory your opponents will mount a defence that you cannot penetrate.

TF2 also has this implemented, and it is one of a variety of reasons why it is so successful. Momentum should be something that cannot be stopped without trying, and if you give up at first blood or first dragon, then you will inevitably lose, but skillful teamfighting can snag your team more than just global dragon gold - it can snag you kills: a good design that rewards not giving up.