The Zed Problem

I know Riot has had a problem balancing Zed for quite some time. He was always either picked or banned in the pro circuit, and for good reason. He carries all of the benefits of an assassin without any of the flaws. I have a proposal: remove Zed's passive % AD boost on Living Shadow.

Zed crushes bruisers and tanks late game partly because BotK is so effectively on him, but also because +25% AD is back-breaking on a late-game burst champion. His kit is cool and fun. It requires skill to use effectively, and a wrong choice can put you in hot water.

That being said, I feel that 25% bonus AD is obscene and unnecessary. I fail to understand why he needs it. Assassins, from what I remember back in the day, were meant to counter squishies, be weak vs bruisers and tanks, and fall off late game. The idea was to dominate early and mid, then late game was blowing up the carry or split-pushing. Zed circumvents all flaws of an assassin, and that is not okay.

Let me know what you think.