[Champion Concept] Wilhelm, the Cursed Seeker

ModEchoing··5 votes·930 views

It's been awhile.

Appearance: A grizzled gray-haired old man, with a rather long full beard. He wears a dark blue overcoat over leather armor, with a hood to keep the rain from drenching him. In one hand, he holds his rather thick spellbook - the focus of his power. In the other, he holds the reins for his black horse, also showing gray hairs.

Stats:

Health: 490 (+81) Health Regen: 6.7 (+0.66) Mana: 370 (+90) Mana Regen: 5.6 (+0.81) Attack Damage: 52 (+2.7) Attack Speed: 0.625 (+1.5%) Armor: 25 (+3) Magic Resistance: 30 (+0.5) Range: 550 Movement Speed: 340

Abilities:

Passive: Faithful - On champion takedown, Wilhelm gains +20% movement speed out of combat for the next 40-80 seconds (increasing with level).

Q: Dread Thunder - After a 0.25 second delay, strikes target area with lightning, dealing magic damage. Successive hits deal 150% damage. No cast time.

Magic Damage: 30/60/90/120/150 (+0.4 AP) Total Damage on Two Hits: 105/150/225/300/375 (+1.0 AP) Range: 775 Radius: 150 Timeout on Successive Hits: 1 second Mana Cost: 40/45/50/55/60 Maximum Charges: 2 Cooldown: 0.25 seconds Charge Cooldown: 8/7.5/7/6.5/6 seconds

W: Lightning Hound - Calls down three lines of lighting - one moving straight, two on opposite arcs - to intersect and explode at a target location. Being hit by a line deals damage and marks the victim, while being hit by the explosion adds three marks. Wilhelm's abilities consume marks to deal bonus damage. No cast time.

Line Magic Damage: 20/35/50/65/80 (+0.2 AP) Explosion Magic Damage: 60/105/150/195/240 (+0.6 AP) Mark Magic Damage: 10/20/30/40/50 (+0.1.5 AP) Range: 850 Duration: 4 seconds Mana Cost: 50/60/70/80/90 Cooldown: 12/11/10/9/8 seconds

E: Leap of Faith/Make Haste! - Leaps over target enemy champion while blasting them with a bolt of lightning, damaging and briefly slowing them. When out of combat for at least 8 seconds, doubles movement speed.

(It switches over to a different skill - they have separate cooldowns.)

Magic Damage: 50/90/130/170/210 (+0.4 AP) Slow: 80% for 0.5 seconds Leap of Faith Range: 450 Duration for Make Haste: 3 seconds Mana Cost: 50 Cooldown: 12/11.5/11/10.5/10 seconds in combat, 40/36/32/28/24 seconds out of combat

R: Infernal Bolt - Calls down an advancing wall of lightning perpendicular to Wilhelm, starting from one end and sweeping to the other over 1 second. Enemies hit take magic damage and are stunned for 1 second. No cast time.

(Think T-shape - Wilhelm is at the bottom, and the line at the top is the ult. If it helps, imagine it as a giant Viktor laser of lightning, stuns, and doom, and you won't be too far off.)

Magic Damage: 200/350/500 (+0.7 AP) Range: 850 Area: 175 wide, 500 long Mana Cost: 100 Cooldown: 90/80/70 seconds


Short Lore:

He was an insatiable prodigy of a mage once. He delved into every book and every scroll and every tablet he could get his hands on in the search for more knowledge. Such was his desire to learn that he gleefully disregarded the curse on a spellbook that, in exchange for its knowledge, would doom all of his loved ones when he died. He had no loved ones beyond his own thirst for knowledge, what did it matter to him?

That was fifty-two years ago.

His body beginning to fail him, he left his wife and four children behind as Wilhelm rode out to find a way to undo the curse. With regret and his horse, Faithful, as his constant companions, he began a search of every significant area of magic in Runeterra and an audience with every possible mage.

That was two years ago.

Wilhelm is no closer to breaking the curse than when he began, but his fight against time continues all the same.


Long Lore:

Born on the outskirts of Noxus, Wilhelm was fairly ordinary until he developed his affinity for magic in his early teens. Quickly figuring out that being drafted into Noxus's military would lead to his demise through horrible mismanagement, Wilhelm stole the family horse and left his town. There was nothing left for him there anyways, with their patriotic fervor clouding any other possibilities. From there, he set his sights on a town said to have a great library.

That began his long tour of the continent. Wilhelm made it a personal objective to visit anywhere with enough literature to have at least a few books on magic. He needed to learn, both for practical reasons in defending himself and for the love of knowledge and power. Modern literature soon began to fail him - they all hinted at theories that were previously discovered and no longer practiced. With only a horse as his companion, Wilhelm joined up with an archaeological crew to help uncover these samples of ancient literature.

Each year was an agonizing trial for the impatient Wilhelm. Every dig took what felt like an eternity, and only a handful yielded even a scratch of writing that was even useful for him. Once he found a tablet indicating the location of a powerful spellbook after many such uneventful digs, Wilhelm immediately abandoned the crew to go search for it himself. He would have enlisted their help, but they would have insisted it be put in a museum. That would have been useless for him.

The spellbook was located in the ruins of an ancient temple. As Wilhelm rode near the temple, he quickly discovered the reasons for both the spellbook's location and the numerous scattered human remains in the area - the plains around the temple began a constant, unstoppable storm as soon as he approached, with lightning streaking across the sky and ravaging the ground. It took all of Wilhelm's considerable prowess just to deflect the bolts only a few inches away from him. Were it not for his horse, it would have been an impossible endeavor. His strength failed him only at the last moment, where a bolt flashed too close to his horse, which bucked him off and was itself struck by a second bolt. Wilhelm shed a single tear before dashing inside, safe from the rain and the lightning.

Compared to the grueling trial outside, the temple's inner workings were very simple. A long walk led to the spellbook itself. As he reached for it, a voice rang out from the book itself.

"Seeker of knowledge...Are you prepared to sacrifice your loved ones for this power?"

Wilhelm could only scoff. "Magic is everything," he replied, snatching the book without a second thought. As he pored through the book, he could feel his knowledge of magic expanding to new horizons he would not have thought possible. When it came time to finally leave, it was a simple matter to stop the eternal storm.

But upon his return to civilization, Wilhelm was struck with something of an existential crisis. He obtained his goal and had knowledge of magic far surpassing what even he thought could have been done. What was to be done with it? With all the power of the storms at his command, Wilhelm realized he had nothing - or no one - to fight for. He most certainly was not going back to Noxus to establish himself as a threat and get assassinated at the soonest opportunity. What then was left?

He was struck with a rather dramatic sort of irony as he finally settled on running a stable in some unmapped town. He was the most powerful mage he knew, and all he could do with this power was put it to the side and run a stable in the memory of the only companion he ever had. Staying still so long was completely foreign to Wilhelm, who spent all his life constantly moving. It was relaxing. Peaceful.

And then he met Amelia.

And nothing was the same any more.

She came in needing a horse, but spent some time talking to Wilhelm. A lot of time. Enough that, after dinner, it was no longer viable for Amelia to leave that day. That began the start of a friendship - a concept unknown to Wilhelm. It completely consumed him just as magic had once done. Every day was spent looking forward to meeting with Amelia and talking about anything - or if not talking, then taking a ride somewhere. Where once he spent time looking for magical literature, he now spent time looking for picnic spots and scenic vistas. Before he knew it, he had made a bride out of Amelia.

And they lived happily.

Until fifty years later, when a seizing pain in his chest knocked Wilhelm off his horse during a ride with his family. As he slowly pulled himself to his feet, he could feel the spellbook itself echoing its words inside his head:

"Seeker of knowledge...Are you prepared to sacrifice your loved ones for this power?"

He looked back at his wife, two sons, and two daughters, fear and concern in their faces.

Wilhelm now realized his great error.

No longer in the health he was in so long ago, Wilhelm knew his time on this earth was limited. Unlocking the chest he kept his cursed spellbook in, a quick flip through its pages revealed his worst fears: when he perished, so would his loved ones. That was no longer an acceptable trade to him - he would happily trade everything for his family, instead of sacrificing it all for his own personal ambition.

But his vast knowledge had told him that every curse was able to be broken. There was still hope. Even if it meant abandoning his family and taking his own horse, Faithful, on a reprisal of his tour fifty years ago. His new objective was to hurry and find someone strong enough to break the curse so he could live the rest of his days with his family, knowing their own lives would not be cut short by his foolishness.

Two years later, Wilhelm had found nothing. The few mages he found were too weak, and Wilhelm had made several enemies in his efforts to find those mages. He missed his family. He missed his new life, now trapped in exactly the sort of thing he did in his youth. He missed not having to strike down wildlife and humans alike that got in his way.

There were, however, stories of a powerful magus in Shurima, strong enough that he ascended even human form. Seeing that as his only chance, Wilhelm departed for Shurima, in the hopes of finding this magus and breaking the curse.


Wilhelm is an extremely aggressive, short-ranged mage that puts a heavy emphasis on in-combat mobility to quickly dispatch his foes, since he has no time for your nonsense. There was other text here, but it's no longer relevant.

The inspiration should be very, very obvious.

Comments, concerns, thoughts, etc. are welcome.

20 Comments

Matt Pizza1 votes

Sounds really good although the lore could use a bit of work it sounds like a really interesting champion and a fun on to play too, I would say maybe make the passive a bit stronger, and his ult feels a lot like rumbles so maybe find a unique turn on it?

ModEchoing1 votes

Thank you.

It's a short lore. If I'm feeling up to it, I can expand further, but the snippet there should give all the characterization necessary.

The passive was actually a tough one for me. I settled on ignoring a slow effect since I didn't want to add even more burst. I could probably drop the cooldown - I'll think about it.

It seems pretty similar in that they both cover a line, but I think there's enough differentiation with the ult to separate it from Rumble's ult due to its cast paradigm and how it requires Wilhelm to take further action to get the best use out of it. It also has arguably more counterplay than Rumble's ult - you're given a full second of warning before lightning strikes, while Rumble has already ulted you and made it incredibly difficult to escape. I'll keep this in mind, though, as it's a fair concern.

Thank you again for your feedback.

Kloqdq1 votes

I am not sure how I feel about this. I like the idea of a lighting mage, old wizard archetype but the main issue I see with it is the disconnect between his steed and his kit. Think Kled and Skaaral for example. They work together and they fill like a duo. Wilhelm just doesn't feel like he uses his horse in any meaningful way. W and E are simple and they almost feel like his part Teemo while both Q and R are really neat.

The kit just needs some more interesting elements to it and really push the Wizard on horseback to another level. If you take away skaral from kled, the play style is completely different. If you take away Faithful from Wilhelm, I wouldn't see any difference I believe.

ModEchoing1 votes

Thank you for the feedback.

Not every mount has to be special. Skaarl's special since Skaarl is almost her own character given how Kled interacts with her. In comparison, Bristle is irrelevant outside of Sejuani's Q. Sometimes a horse is just a horse.

I put pretty much the entire power budget in the Q, so the W and E are almost painfully simple and revolve around both positioning for the Q and following up after the Q. I think there's enough differentiation in there that he's distinct from Teemo's playstyle given that Teemo can't move and attack at the same time, but I'll admit that had slipped my mind.

I'm curious as to what you'd think would be more interesting elements, though. I tend toward very simple, very basic designs, and don't really consider complex ideas, which means I can overlook a bunch of possibilities. I'd love to hear what you have in mind to improve Wilhelm further.

Kloqdq1 votes

Well I personally like finding a single thread to link a champion together. Since I am replying at work I will just sip ball some ideas. Lightning magic and the Horse would be what i'd look at first. Wilhelm seems be based around fast, quick spell casting. I could see him be a nimble battlemage for sure; an archetype that league hasn't really seen before.

One neat idea could be "Rolling Thunder". Something like Wilhelm strikes lighting against the ground that moves along Wilhelm's path. Another cool idea would consider making his W be more like chain lightning. Firing off rapid bolts of lightning to shred through his foes. Maybe one of his abilities would allow him to dash in a direction and shoot of bolts of lightning. One ability could allow his horse to stomp the ground and send out a shock wave of electricity forward in a cone?

There are a few cool things you could do and if I were to change anything the most it'd be his E as it's just a bland movement speed ability. Personally i'd try to find that thread that can connect the champion and add depth to them. Wilhelm is just lacking that depth in gameplay. Something that will let people sink their teethes into as they get to play him. Could be simple as Trundle auto-attack cancelling and using his Pillar better or complex like Azir's dashing around and shuffling people.

ModEchoing1 votes

Well, the thread to link the champion together was "Let's re-create Reinhardt and see who notices." I matched his Fire Emblem Heroes playstyle as best as I could - get in, explode someone's face with Dire Thunder, have an ally get you out. No one has Reposition in League, so I had to make do with moving really fast.

Leaving behind a trail of damage is pretty cool, but would require re-jiggering of the kit to support that since it necessitates charging INTO enemies. A constant stream of damage is workable, admittedly, but I'd have to struggle to differentiate it from Rumble while also making it fair. A dash shooting bolts of lightning doesn't work with what I have in mind - the horse is not magical, it's just a horse, and the dash would have no real purpose. Similarly, the horse sending out a shock wave doesn't work because it's a regular horse.

I do agree the E is worth investigating. I don't agree that he lacks depth simply because you're constantly moving to avoid attacks while firing off your spells. That's a hell of a lot better than some of the faceroll mages out there, and better on a more visceral level than figuring out a mechanical quirk that I really don't have the patience to implement.

Thank you again, though. I'll look into an in-combat E replacement.

Kloqdq1 votes

No problem! Happy to offer some input! I didn't notice that Reinhardt re-create at first to be honest xD.

ModEchoing1 votes

If I cared enough to put quotes, the pick quote being "Magic was everything." would have cemented it there.

Kloqdq1 votes

Yeah xD. I can see it not after you told me.

Raxistaicho1 votes

So here's my thoughts on it.

I'm going to have to agree with Kloq on this one, he has a steed, but it's just... there. Except for arguable his E, it doesn't play any real part in his kit.

His passive fits his movement-centered design, but it makes him even more annoying to catch unless you're already on top of him.

Lightning striking the same place twice, that Q made me laugh. Nice reward for hitting two, but it should just be a double-cast ability, not a stocked one. Otherwise he can constantly threaten enemies and force them to blow their escapes with the threat of a second cast that he doesn't have to commit to after landing the first.

Also, with a .25 cooldown, you can generally just double-tap your Q and expect to get the full thing. 175-radius isn't as small as you might think, that's bigger than Nami's Q and with a shorter delay to it.

His W is unhealthy all around. Against a ranged enemy, it's at odds with his Q while in the laning phase, and useless after it. He's going to mostly want to harass with his Q while laning and going to attack range as a mage is a bad idea in teamfights. However, he absolutely needs to have his attack range cut if he's going to have this ability, because he'd be obnoxious as fuck against melee champions with an ability like this, especially with his unusually high movement speed for a not-immobile ranged character.

Remember Leilani? She had the ability to attack while moving as well, but she had 500 attack range and her only attack steroid forces her into melee range.

E out of combat is the only horse-like thing about Willhelm. E in-combat is a win more button. He's short range, yes, but he doesn't have Ryze or Vladimir's defensive qualities. He has no business approaching enemies unless he's in position to beat them.

His ultimate is pretty interesting, its ability to cut off escapes could come in handy, but the shape is a little awkward to use in team fights.

I have mixed feelings on this guy when you put it all together. His above-average movement speed for a ranged character combined with his focus on moving while casting would make him unholy annoying to catch out once he gets Rylai's Crystal Scepter, but I can't help but think he doesn't bring much to a teamfight. He has no business using his W or E until a fight is already basically won, and his Q doesn't give him the sort of sustained damage spread he'd need to make up for his complete lack of crowd control outside of his ultimate, or his lackluster waveclear. He also denies the enemy laner a lot of agency in the laning phase since his Q gives him pretty risk-free potent harass against range, and his W is just evil against melee.

Lore's interesting, he reminds me of my first concept, a girl looking to master every spell that exists, except he paid a tragic price for his thoughtlessness when he was young. It ties fairly nicely to, as you said, him having no time to mess around. Props for that :)

Do me a favor and review Qing sometime please :D

https://boards.na.leagueoflegends.com/en/c/skin-champion-concepts/zAZaFw9h-champion-concept-qing-the-dragonguard

ModEchoing1 votes

I knew this was coming.

Like I said before, sometimes a horse is just a horse. Not every horse has to be some legendary steed with its own will. I'm also curious as to how I'm supposed to implement the horse better into the kit anyways? It's letting him move while attacking, blocking slows, speeding him up, giving him 340 base MS...it's already doing more than Bristle, for instance, who rams people and that's it.

Until Rylai's, there is a .75 second delay minimum between consecutive hits (.25 second cooldown, .5 second delay), which is ample time for just about anyone to escape the same area. Double-tapping will result in a miss more often than not. The 175 radius was ballparked though, I could probably reduce it without worry.

He gets three shots with his W. That's it. It's not like your concept, who can squeeze in up to...oh, let's see...6 second maximum...hypothetical 2.5 AS...15 hits without having to stop moving. Even with a more likely 1.25 AS, you'd still be able to get in about 7 hits at best, all of which can crit. 550 range is also enough to put him in range of most forms of CC - even if he blocks a slow, he can't block a stun, a pull, a root, a knock-up, etc. Comparing to Leilani would be a false equivalence - Wilhelm cannot crit, cannot switch targets, cannot benefit from lifesteal barring quirky off-builds, and cannot keep attacking past 3 hits. He's far healthier in that regard.

I don't think E in combat is win-more. That would require him to speed up when chasing nearly-dead targets. It's somewhat lackluster, admittedly, and I could probably replace that more than anything else, but it's not a win-more ability. It doesn't fit that definition.

I'll argue against Q being risk-free harass. At 650 range, you'll have more luck finding a mage who CAN'T outrange that. It's potent, yes, which is why the rest of the kit is sparse on ranged damage as well as CC - any CC on the basics would mean an easy combo from that CC into 2x Q which would be far, far more cancerous than relatively short-ranged mobile casting. I will also argue W being evil against melee given that, as I said, it's good for three hits and that's it. I will also also argue against Q not being enough for damage - if we're generous and give him 20% CDR (which is really hard not to get given how mage items have CDR EVERYWHERE), that cuts down Q charge cooldown to 4.8 seconds. The time between Q bursts is short enough that he can get off two, maybe three volleys during a teamfight.

Thanks for your feedback all the same.

Kloqdq1 votes

One note for you.

Sejuani while it may not seem like Bristle does nothing it is what allows Sej to jump forward and it has the frost armor (not completely sure about Bristle is the one that shows the active frost armor). SO while it may not seem like Bristle doesn't do a lot and is just there, the boar does have a small part in Sej's kit. It's for sure a small element but it's noticeable when you start looking. We can assume Sej without Bristle wouldn't have the frost armor or the dash. A good way to judge how well a duo champion - sort of in nature - is to take away their other half and say, what is it they lose without that stead.

Yes a steed can sometimes be just a steed, but great champions by design mix all their aspects to define them best. Using the horse more creatively, even with small effects can really change the feel of it.

ModEchoing1 votes

But like I said, the horse blocks slows, speeds up Wilhelm, gives him an innately high MS, and makes the W possible since the horse can logically move independently of Wilhelm casting magic. It's got just as much a presence, perhaps more, than Bristle. You could make a case that the W could work independently of the horse, but for everything else to be the same requires a radical shift in Wilhelm's lore and theme that I don't want to make since it'd ruin my original intention. By contrast, Sejuani without Bristle would probably just body-slam people instead of using Bristle to do it instead, being mostly unchanged.

The horse also ties into his theme of a man with a lot to lose and no time to waste - it's a constant companion that's necessary and provides him the means he needs to travel about. It reminds him of what's at stake, and it's also showing its age. Not everything needs to be overdone to be meaningful.

ModEchoing1 votes

I've changed the passive and E. They should be more effective/interactive now while smoothing out potential pain points for Wilhelm and opening up new avenues of expressive skill play.

I have also learned that it is a mistake to ever include a mount in your concept unless you are willing to tie half the kit into it, no matter how ordinary the mount may be.

Villainous1 votes

First Thoughts

Kinda generic feeling, if I'm honest. Also suffers from having both mediocre damage and utility, so it seems like there's little reason to pick him over other mages.

Passive - Faithful

Seems okay as a filler passive. It's more or less comparable to Malz's passive (with a longer duration, but no damage reduction).

Doesn't the 'wait for this to charge up' kinda go against the whole 'I AM IN A RUSH' theme, though?

Q - Dread Thunder

Not actually a bad ability, though the numbers (0.5 second wind up + 175 radius + 1 second time out on the damage bonus) make it quite punishing, especially since Wilhelm lacks reliable crowd control of his own. It's more or less a twist on Lay Waste/Dark Sphere, but it's interesting in and of itself. IMO, all it really needs is a bit of a tune up.

W - Lightning Hound

This ability is missing a duration, just a heads up. This is a bit of an odd one, what with the lack of other elements that'd encourage something like Nashor's, and I believe it's quite, quite under-tuned. It's usually going to be a weaker, self-target only version of Tidecaller's Blessing (which has a decently powerful slow to 'compensate' for the fact you still have an AA animation). While you could probably just buff the numbers, I feel this could also do with a little more mechanical play to it, with how vanilla the rest of his kit is.

For suggestions, have you perhaps considered increasing the number of buffed attacks remaining whenever you hit the target with Dread Thunder?

E - Leap of Faith/Make Haste!

When I first started this post, this was an awful ability. The current version is far more interesting (even if it is just one of Lunara's ultimates from HotS XD). That said, I feel like it could use more range (even if it's technically a 700 range dash).

The passive, on the other hand, doesn't feel quite right.

R - Infernal Bolt

Eh.

It's a cross between a classical team fight winning AOE CC ultimate, and a pure damage ender like Requiem or Crowstorm. Unfortunately, with the 1 second wind-up + the requirement to hit more spells, it doesn't seem great for initiating.

The closest comparison I could really find is Petrifying Gaze, but this is far more on the damaging side.

I dunno, this just feels kinda... Out of place.

Thematics

I feel like Wilhelm doesn't really make good on some of the elements that were emphasised in his fantasy. There's basically three themes at play in the lore; old, experienced mage + Mage on a horse + 'I'm in a hurry'. We get the horse part through his passive, his E and the whole 'I'm on a horse, so I don't need to stop to attack' from his W. The other two parts, not so much. There's no real texture to his spells; nothing that really differentiates them in feel from, say, Karthus. He also doesn't really get the 'hurry' part, aside from the minor out of combat speed boost on his E. In fact, he technically gets rewarded for waiting, between his long cooldowns and the fact that he wants to wait for his tenacity to charge up on his passive.

Gameplay

It might just be me, but Wilhelm feels a little indistinct as to what he wants to do post laning phase. While he has options both mid and top, he doesn't feel like he brings a massive amount to the table post laning phase. Barring his ultimate, his team fighting isn't great with his low range/durability and inconsistent CC, which also kills his pick potential. He doesn't really have the duelling prowess or escape potential necessary to split push either. He could really do with a more secure identity in this regard.

Overall

To me, it feels like Wilhelm wants to fill a similar role to either Taliyah or Aurelion Sol, but feels lacking in most regards compared with either. He's very reliant on fighting melee champions, and seems to baulk at any sort of assassin getting on him. Maybe it's just his numbers being a little undertuned colouring my perception, but it feels like he could do with more substance to ~half his kit.

ModEchoing1 votes

Okay.

How do I fix this?

TigerNox1 votes

Hey there! Even though I feel like a pest in the verbal fight of the CCOS's founding fathers (or mothers, how should I know), I'll try to be helpful. I promise. Thus I'll try not to repeat the others.

You are lucky enough that I don't know this Reinhard you're supposed to be ripping of. Or I might heard of him. Is that in Overwatch lore? Well, whatever, my point is I cannot really compare to the original, so whatever references there are, I cannot get them :(

Lore: First I though "So far, so generic", but I think it's okay. It's simple, but contains all his themes. No champs woven in, no needless drama, no unimportant bits.

Now then I look at his kit, there are a few concerns that I'd like to adress.

I have seen the passive in its early form, and yes, I agree with everyone else that the first one was a little lackluster. This new one though... I don't know. There is nothing really wrong with it, but my immediate thought was: "What if I build item 3111 on him?" Would that stack? Because if, he'd be able to eat two, if not three stuns, almost unscathed by the CC. Also, I'd put this ability on a cooldown, rather than the in and out of combat. I see how this promotes his gameplay as a poke champ, yet I'd say as such he has a rather poor range, and combat E needs him to be up close and personal. So when he starts throwing out his stuff, will he get away? The Movement speed from the E is all nice, but only accessible out of combat. A silly Idea I just had: Why don't you give him a condition, that allows him to recharge his passive instantly? Like hitting enough spells, or being able to force out of combat E after combat E?

For the Q... There isn't much to say. Seems all good to me. Though I personally see myself missing then second one every time :(

As I am writing this, I still feel a little uncertain whether or not I'd see W as a fitting or non-fitting pick. When I think about it, his combo would go along the lines of rushing in, combat E, Q, Q, see if it still lives. If the answer no, good job, if on high health, retreat, if low on health, use this. To be honest, I don't see any other use for this than chase who barely lived. And for me, that makes it a bit boring. I am not going to say that this is a "win more" button, for that you have to be too close, but I'd say in every other context it feels wasted.

I think W is alright. The only thing that bothers me, is that combat E wants you to be close, when everything else let's you dance around your enemies mid range. And while technically 350 isn't that close, for a mage this is too close to the death zone for any comfort at all. It might be designed to be exactly that, but I don't think that this is a bit harsh on the "risk" part for the "reward". But combat E still makes for a majestic sight, that's for sure.

Now, for the ult... I am not entirely sold on that one. I for one see it as a tool to land your second Q, hence the 1 second stun on ability hit. And while it certainly has a lot of power (500 base damage, oh boy) I cannot help feeling this is too... stationary. Everything in Wilhelms kit revolves around being on the move because how you so eloquently put it, he has no time for your nonsense. Now I imagine him, sticking to an enemy, running around them, jumping over them to cut their escape, attacking and galloping full speed... to stop to channel for a second for that field, that does the thing. I mean, 1 second is enough time to see what he does, and since he is a mage it's enough time to lay all that damage down on him. On the other hand, defensively this ability isn't half bad. Yet, since the stun component only works when people are inside the actual field, you either need help form a displacement support or hit Q right after the ability, given the haven't walked out of the rather small zone yet.

All in all I'd say this is pretty solid, though I might not understand certain design decisions. Hope you can enlighten me about that. If you want to throw your big, menacing shade on my concept, feel free to do so here :P

I hope, I have been helpful :D

Anyways, have a good one!

ModEchoing1 votes

Apologies but I used your post as an excuse to stop lazing around and make some changes to the passive, W, and R.

And by changes I mean I replaced them entirely.

Thank you for your feedback all the same. I definitely feel those changes were the right moves given that your hangups matched the same hangups I had. I'll take a look-see at your concept.

TigerNox1 votes

You did WHAT? :O My my, Now I am a stepping board, huh?

Skylarke1 votes

I'm sorry I have to do this, old friend.

This may come across as old, and worn over, but the main issue which I must address first and foremost is the presence of the horse. You have always been a keen advocate of cutting whatever is unecessary to a concept, and I feel most strongly in this regard when it comes to yours - the horse as is, no matter how ordinary you may make it (a fact that actually condemns it far more than anything else), as it is neither important to gameplay, nor is it particularly relevant to the lore. In terms of the lore, the horse is just a vehicle, a mode of transportation - after all, the champion is Wilhelm, not Wilhelm's nobody horse. He should never have factored into the story in the first place, and as such, I feel that such an integration is forced and irrelevant.

In terms of gameplay, there are only two abilities which somewhat factor in the presence of the horse - the passive and E. The passive I find rather dull. It is straight up a win-more ability. Having some other form of power that is more moderate with lower highs and higher lows would definitely serve to be more effective. What's even more confusing is that this is out-of-combat movement speed, meaning that the only way that this is triggered is after you've killed someone, then being able to roam somewhere else, making it effectively useless in any teamfight situation. It can be posited that it is useful as a splitpushing tool, but this is an AP champion, who do not have strong access to splitpushing or dueling builds. In particular, I feel that the E is far more suited to a melee tank than any ranged champion. It places you far too close to the enemies for what it provides, and as a consequence, makes it effectively useless unless an enemy is already behind you since using this offensively in any capacity is suicide. Similarly, the OOC use basically overlaps with your passive far too much.

The Q, W and R are actually fine - they fit the thematic fairly well, although the second part of the W feel somewhat awkward - as a mage you don't really want to be in autoattack range of ANY enemies, sice you'll most likely be hitting their front line - despite all the attempts to grant OOC movement speed, flanking attempts are highly risky, and even so you are unlikely to make full potential.

I generally feel the lore is very weak - it's simple, overly cliche, and doesn't really bring anything new to League. He's basically your everyday rogue mage - hell, we don't even know what region of Runeterra he's from, a critical weakness. He just seems like a nobody to me.

I'm sorry I couldn't leave a more positive review, but if you could, could you also look at Sylva, the Ribbon Dancer?

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