How to make J4 and Anivia relevant in light of the mobility creep

Hyrum Graff·5/27/2014, 3:04:46 AM·2 votes·745 views

####First, some background:

JarvanIV and Anivia used to be strong picks, because they could create terrain which can turn the tide of a team fight. This was true because not many champs had dashes, so J4's ult really locked up anyone in it, and Anivia's wall was actually a movement impediment.

However, with the slew of recent champs who have gotten dashes (dubbed, "the mobility creep"), these abilities have become less relevant.

####Second, some perspective:

You might be wondering, "If temporary terrain has become weaker, why is Trundle still relevant?"
The answer is twofold:

  1. Secondary CC: Trundle's pillar also slows, even if it gets dashed over.
  2. Cooldown: Trundle's max rank pillar is on an 11 second CD (6.6 wth 40% cdr) and lasts for 6 seconds. With his frozen domain, he can easily stay in range of a fleeing target to land his second pillar.

####Third, some short analysis:

The real problem with Jarvan and Anivia's walls isn't that they can't contain people, it's that they don't really have too much of a negative effect on their opponent (assuming the opponent has a dash): the opponent uses said dash, and continues going about their merry way (ie, doing whatever they were doing before; there's no reason NOT to go over the wall).
For contrast, when trundle pillars, you have to think: Do I want to use my dash now, or try to wait out this pillar so I can dash out of the next one? You never have to think, "Am I sure I want to dash out of cataclysm?"

####Fourth, a simple solution:

There needs to be a reason not to use your dash to go over the wall or out of the cataclysm, the same decision you make when you think, "Do I really want to dash through trundle's pillar?"

I think either a being slowed or taking damage for dashing through temporary terrain would be an appropriate consequence.

Thoughts?

######Finally, I must give credit where credit is due: Though the analysis is mine, the original idea is CommanderMath's, in this comment.

13 Comments

Dax Ayrton5/27/2014, 4:57:17 AM2 votes

I think most old champs are really vulnerable to this mobility creep. A possible solution, alternative to yours, would be a new type of debuff: "Locked".

"Locked" would be a special type of CC, with longer duration than most, that would allow movement of the enemy, but he can't use dashes or other "hard" mobility spells to dash. This means that a "Locked" Ezreal can still use his E, but he is forced to Arcane Shift on his own position. He wouldn't dash anywhere, but he can still use the spell offensively. Same with Zed's W (can't switch with his shadow), Jax's Q (can only use at melee range), and other similar skills. "Locked" would be annexed at champions that have been severly outclassed via mobility creep, added to the skills that provide them some control. For example, Anivia would Lock all enemies near her wall, Jarvan would Lock all enemies inside his ultimate, Ryze would Lock an enemy for a duration after his snare, and Brand would Lock an enemy for a short duration after his stun.

JackYAqua5/27/2014, 2:06:13 PM1 votes

Yeah, but Trundle is a melee duelist and Jarven and Anivia aren't ...

MrBuffington5/29/2014, 1:24:08 AM1 votes

Both these champions have an AOE slow that can work really well with these abilities anyways. For J4, drop your slow as soon as you cataclysm, gives you bonus stats and slows pretty much everyone around you anyways. For Anivia, put your ult on top of your wall, or around your wall, just for that extra zoning potential. I think you just have to be smarter with how you use these abilities, rather than mindlessly spamming walls or cataclysms whenever you get the chance. For J4, EQ onto their carries, if they dash away (which many do, since no squishy wants to be face first with a J4), then cataclysm. Anivia can slow and stun multiple targets too, use those to your advantage. And if they flash, hey, you just burned their flash. Your abilities are on a much shorter cooldown. Just kill them later.

I do agree that more and more champions seem to be getting dash abilities (freaking Lucian with slow removal too), though.