Gaia & Willow (Community Collab - Old Lady + Pet Champion)
tl;dr: This is a long post and is meant to be an ongoing, evolving, changing discussion. I'd like to work with the community to build this Champion design. At the end of the post, I'll have a Work In Progress version of the current kit design, which will be open to suggestions and improvements from the community. So if you're starting to read this, please be prepared to read through and contribute, or move along. Now, onward.
So as far as I know, Riot doesn't actually use community concepts, but I had a creative itch and felt like drafting up a design. I've been following some of the recent threads about wanting an "old lady" Champion in League - and I've also read Riot's responses to it. Most of these came from This Thread - the Petition for an Old Lady Champion. Here are the points I'm going to touch on:
Meddler
Age by itself though isn't a justification for making a character. It's a means to an end, not the end in and of itself, just like any other character trait... 'Old lady' though's not a fleshed out character, but a small part of an individual, in the same way that Swain isn't just 'old man'. Start talking about old female characters that are actual characters and we get somewhere really interesting... We haven't hit on a version that's worked for us yet, I'm sure it'll keep coming up though.
So, we are okay with a fleshed out, creative, interesting character who might happen to work with being an "Old Lady", but simply being old is not a concept by itself. That leaves us with our first goal.
#Objective No. 1: Age is a product of the character - not the other way around.
Bioluminescent
Now, I may be overthinking this, but I'd want to be super careful if the champ team came up with a concept that also happened to be an old woman. A lot of the time, when people think "old lady" they get a mixture of vibes or stereotypes... Basically, they split into two camps - untrustworthy and malicious witch/hag, and the harmless and mostly ineffectual grandmother type. Neither of these are particularly healthy stereotypes and not usually something people aspire to be (or play).. Consider me selfish, but I'd like if whatever the next aged champ we create (that people obviously identify as being visibly aged - Lulu and Lissandra need not apply) to be something that is seen as not only powerful as all champs are, but a force for good.
Next, avoid the "evil old hag" witch stereotypes, and any kind of silly "granny" characters. Also, be a Good character.
#Objective No. 2: Not a witch, not a granny, is a "force for good."
Now, this brings me to the "pet" concept. I know that's another thing that I know some members (read: me) have wanted to really embrace in League. A true and blue "pet Champion" - and for clarity, my definition of a Pet Champion has a pet that is 1) permanent, 2) controllable, 3) integral to their design. The other Champs with some form of pet have not met this goal in some way. Lulu has Pix, but is only usable via her passive and some abilities, but is not a wholly separate entity. Malzahar cannot directly control his Voidlings so much as he "guides" them via marking targets with his E - but their AI is kinda horrid sometimes. Mordekaiser has a unique "pet" via his Ult, but again it is not permanent, but he has his own little niche with the badass Dragon Ghost. What I want is a compelling pet Champion. Brings us to:
#Objective No. 3: A cohesive and compelling "Pet Champion" kit design.
So now that we have our guidelines laid out, let's hit the drawing board.
Flavor First: Lore, Background, Fantasy. Let's talk theme. After all, that is what drew me to this concept. This is what I'm thinking:
She is known as The Watcher. The Woman in the Mist. The Mother of the Rift. An elder Sage who has survived not through brute strength, nor even through her own magical prowess - but rather has become attuned to the natural, wild magic of Runeterra. She is not a particularly strong Mage by herself - had she not learned the Ways, she would have passed years ago, unknown and nameless. Instead, she grew up in the Woods, she ran with the Wolves and slept with the Krugs. She played with the Cinderlings, and raised a Raptor from an egg. She skirted the edges of the war, only getting involved when the conflicts moved too far into her territory. She has been seen by few, but her influences are clear; some say it was she that migrated the Elder Lizards from Runeterra and shepherded them to greener pastures, and crafted the new home of the Brambleback.
Her name is Gaia, and she has survived by embracing the runic magic of the Rift. Along her travels she met a spirit, a coalescence of raw rune energy - a Will o' The Wisps. This "Willow" has been her only companion for decades. Together they move through the trees, guarding and protecting the spirits of the Rift. Only now has Gaia decided to step from the shadows of the Woods and make her presence known. A dark presence has spread through her lands, poisoning and weakening the natural spirits and magic that runs through the earth itself. To confront this presence, Gaia will make herself known...
And what a reckoning she will bring.
So basically, the idea is that Gaia is in fact old - she has outlived her life expectancy, by far. However she has done it not through her own magic, but through a symbiotic relationship with the Rune magic. Where other Champions such as Xerath have been consumed by this same source of power, Gaia has found a way to commune with it, harness it. She also protects it. This makes her both a) not a witch (doesn't have much of her own "magic", but rather manipulates the existing energy of the Wild), b) not evil (more neutral, as her only real alliance is to the land, but generally she is portrayed more on the Good side) and c) not just a granny.
Gaia is meant to be spunky, sassy, and yet elegant - all of the class of Meryl Streep with the biting sarcasm of Toph Beifong (especially in the Legend of Korra era version)
Willow, meanwhile, is her pet. A little wisp that is always with her, and directly augments/changes her abilities. Willow will take on different forms, which leads us to...
Nuts & Bolts: Let's Talk Mechanics So now that we've addressed Objectives 1 & 2, let's look at 3. Making a Pet Champion. This is admittedly where I have some more trouble, because there are a few ways to go about this. I'm confident that if Riot ever wanted to make a kit like this they could and would; they've proved with Champions like Azir (who still doesn't qualify as a Pet Champ - they are not permanent and not completely controllable, still just "robots obeying commands") that they are willing to introduce some Microing (the management of multiple units). They've also been willing to introduce wildly unique Champion attributes, from making Kalista the only ADC with a .9 AD ratio on her AAs in order to make her rely on her abilities, to giving Rek'Sai a true "tremor sense" where she actually loses her local vision and relies on the movement of her enemies. More recently, Tahm and Bard both introduce abilities that can "target" your allies in very unique ways. So they have shown a willingness to experiment with truly different Champion designs.
That said: I will be trying to work this design within the confines of the current League mechanics - with the understanding that a Champion this ambitious would likely require implementing some very unique controls or mechanics. For the purpose of concept, I'm trying to stay within our current "rules".
Without further ado, let's discuss some ideas. First, I think her Pet must be tied into her passive in order to keep it permanent. Second, I want to design her as an AP Jungling Mage. This ties into her thematically (more below) and I think the mechanics will tie in really well. Let's look at some ideas:
Passive
Arcane Companion Gaia gains a permanent pet, Willow. Willow follows Gaia and her commands unless directed elsewhere with Alt+Right Click. In Spirit form (default), Willow grants vision, can move through terrain, but cannot be targeted. Upon slaying a Large or Epic Monster, Willow becomes Manifested. When Willow is Manifested she can no longer move through terrain, but Gaia's basic abilities will also cast from Willow's location with additional effects. In addition, Willow gains a melee-range auto attack and can be targeted. When killed, Willow grants a small amount of gold and reverts to Spirit Form.
So with this, she would get a persistent Pet that could be independently controlled. Right now this uses the established "Alt-Click" mechanics that Annie, Mordekaiser, and others use for controlling a secondary entity. However due to the nature of their design it might be necessary to create a new way of controlling Willow so they can both be used smoothly, and the player can properly coordinate the two players. Unlike Quinn/Valor's tag team style, Gaia & Willow are truly meant to play together - very strong when together, but weaker when apart.
My thinking with this is that it would give her very clear "windows" of strength. When she comes into lane for a gank or a fight, she brings Willow to play, and together they have some very unique and interesting play options. However it gives her clear counterplay; kill Willow and she'll lose some of her strengths. Then she can go back into the jungle to "recharge" Willow, which then gives her 1) a reason to jungle, 2) cohesion to her jungle/kit design, and 3) even ties into her theme. (The idea is that even though she is a "protector" of the Woods, she does not see herself as murdering the Jungle monsters, but rather harnessing their spirits. Along the lines of the Native American traditions where they hunt with respect and honor, seeing the animals as a necessary resource but humbled by their blessings.)
Furthermore, I think her really unique niche would be having abilities that can play really well by having Willow present. Those will play into her Q, W and E abilities. One example might be:
Gaia stomps the ground, sending 3 lines of runic energy radiating out from her position. If Willow is present, they also spread out from her location. A target crossing a line takes a small amount of magic damage and is slowed briefly.
The number/angle/length of the "lines" is something that would take a lot of testing to pinpoint, but the idea is that Gaia can use it by herself, but if she has Willow she can moved her ahead of her target they could "trap" them by intersecting the lines together, cutting off escape routes or zoning the enemy.
Other spells could change entirely depending on Willow, such as:
Energy radiates out from Gaia's position, dealing damage in a small AoE. If Willow is present, the energy instead tethers to Willow, creating a wall of energy between them, and dealing damage to enemies that pass through it.
Not unlike one of Karma's old abilities, but this could basically change the shape/direction of her abilities depending on if Willow was present. And yet other spells might let her use Willow for utility, such as:
Gaia sends out a line of energy. If the energy hits Willow, Gaia is pulled to her location.
Obviously that's very basic for an ability, there'd be other stuff (you know, a few passives and a 3-hit mechanic. </joke>) but the idea is that she'd have potentially strong utility but only by using Willow correctly.
Alright, I've typed enough for now. What are your thoughts? Ideas for abilities? Questions about the concept? Discussion below! I'll be monitoring the comments and replying whenever possible and will edit this front post with ideas or questions. And then way down below, I'll include a sort of "working rough draft" of what the current popular or best ideas are.
Q&A Q: Why Gaia & Willow? Those names are stupid. A: I know, but Riot likes cheesy names. (Come on. Ekko?) so I thought I'd throw them a bone.
[Ask more questions below!]
Edits It occurred that there might be a need to manually "Un-Manifest" Willow so I incorporated it into her W as an active, when it normally grants her a passive ability when Willow is Manifested.
Current Kit Proposal
Passive
Arcane Companion Gaia gains a permanent pet, Willow. Willow follows Gaia and her commands unless directed elsewhere with Alt+Right Click. In Spirit form (default), Willow grants vision, can move through terrain, but cannot be targeted. Upon slaying a Large or Epic Monster, Willow becomes Manifested. When Willow is Manifested she can no longer move through terrain, but Gaia's basic abilities will have additional effects. In addition, Willow gains a melee-range auto attack and can be targeted. When killed, Willow grants a small amount of gold and reverts to Spirit Form.
Q [Vacant - Need ideas! Discuss below!]
W
Rune Glyphs (Passive) While Willow is Manifested, her auto attacks mark her target. If Gaia then lands a basic attack against a marked target, they are briefly stunned for .5 seconds. Cannot be applied to the same target within a short time period, and attacks on a new target cleanses any existing marks.
(Active) Only usable while Willow is Manifested, she detonates her physical form and deals magic damage in a small AoE area at her location. Willow reverts back to Spirit Form.
E
Spectral Raptor Gaia sends out a raptor spirit in a line, dealing damage to enemies it passes through and slowing them. Arcane Companion: If the spirit hits Willow while she is Manifested, it stops and Gaia is pulled to Willow's location.
R [Vacant - Need ideas! Discuss below!]