Aegis, the Geomancer (RIFT MINIGAMES!)
Aegis is a versatile champion who relies on positioning and timing to get the most out of their kit. Although viable as a Midlaner, Aegis can also perform efficiently as Support or as a Jungler, using their utility to help their teammates score kills or secure objectives.
Passive: Motes Aegis has no secondary resource. Instead, Aegis can store a maximum of 2/3/4 (levels 1/7/14) motes of each element for use in any type of terrain. Standing still in each type of terrain restores one mote every two seconds. Being damaged by an enemy champion disables this passive for two seconds. Air Motes are gained by standing in range of any turret (allied or enemy), Water Motes are gained by standing in either river, and Earth motes are gained by standing in brush. The number of remaining motes for each element are displayed as buffs above the skill bar. Passive: Geomancy Aegis' abilities are enhanced with added damage & effects when standing in the type of terrain for that ability. Additionally, these enhanced abilities do not require motes.
Q: Gale / Howl Cooldown: 8 seconds at all ranks When Cast Outside of Turret Range:_ (550 cast range, 25 area radius) Aegis consumes a Wind Mote to release a gust of air in a target direction, slicing the first enemy hit for 70 / 100 / 130 / 160 / 190 (+60% AP) magic damage. When Cast In Range of Any Turret: (400 cast range, 250 area radius) Aegis creates a whirlwind in a target location that lasts for 2 seconds and dealing 10 / 15 / 20 / 25 / 30 (+20% AP) magic damage every .25 seconds.
W: Surf / Torrent Cooldown: 15 / 14 / 13 / 12 / 11 seconds When Cast Outside of Water: (500 range, 75 area radius) Aegis consumes a Water Mote to create a flow of water in a target direction, sliding forward 500 units and knocking aside all enemies in the path. Enemies that are knocked back take 60 / 80 / 100 / 120 / 140 (+60% AP) magic damage. When Cast In Water: (600 range, 100 area radius) Aegis kicks up a wave from behind and freezes the water beneath them, sliding forward 600 units and knocking enemies behind them back 200 units. Enemies caught in the path or knocked back by the wave take 100 / 130 / 160 / 190 / 220 (+80% AP) magic damage. The path remains for 2 seconds before melting, slowing enemies that walk over it by 20/30/40/50/60%.
E: Tanglevine / Parasite Cooldown: 18 / 17 / 16 / 15 / 14 seconds When Cast Outside of Brush: (1000 cast range, 110 area radius) Aegis consumes an Earth Mote to summon vines at a targeted location. After a .75 second delay, the vines latch on to enemies in the area, rooting them for 1 / 1.1 / 1.2 / 1.3 / 1.4 / 1.5 second(s) and dealing 80 / 120 / 160 / 200 / 240 (+60% AP) magic damage. If Aegis is standing in the AoE, the vines attach to his body and shield him for 60/90/120/150/180 (+30% AP) for three seconds. When Cast In Brush: (950 range, 1750 speed) Aegis roots himself and sends out branches in a target direction, rooting the first enemy hit and dealing 20 / 30 / 40 / 50 / 60 (+20% AP) magic damage every .5 seconds for 2 seconds while also healing himself for 10% of the damage dealt (50% against Champions). Enemies can break the branches by walking over them.
R: Firestorm / Shock / Flare Cooldown: 120 / 100 / 80 seconds This skill can only be used when a basic ability's persistent effect is still active. Q: Howl ---> Firestorm Aegis ignites the tornado, renewing the 2 second duration, slowing enemies inside the area by 50 / 60 / 70% and increasing the damage to 30 / 40 / 50 (+20% AP) magic damage every .25 seconds. W: Torrent ---> Shock Aegis sends down a bolt of lightning, dealing 100 / 200 / 300 (+80% AP) magic damage and stunning all enemies on the path for 1.5 seconds. E: Parasite ---> Flare Aegis ignites the branches, dealing 200 / 350 / 500 (+80% AP) magic damage to the enemy champion and releasing them.
Strategies / Chains / Counterplay
Although the damage ratios may need to be toned down even more to account for this, I imagined Aegis as being more about making plays for their team with their utility than raw damage.
Aegis is all about having the correct skill for the correct situation, and this is most evident when it comes to Torrent, the empowered W skill. In a meta where Dragon and Baron are more important than ever, being able to push the enemy Jungler away when it comes time to Smite could be invaluable to a team. Additionally, it can also be used offensively: dash through the enemy team and immediately activate R: Shock for a stun that could lead to a game-changing team fight.
Aegis also offers great protection for turrets. With the short cooldown on Howl, large waves of minions can be quickly cleared if under siege. A well-timed Firestorm might also save you from a dive, or ensure that you at least take an eye for an eye. However, you must be wary about harass while recharging motes, especially early in the game.
Tanglevine and Parasite also offer surprises from unwarded bushes, allowing for your own brand of heavy damage with a Parasite ---> Flare combo (or just to root them so that your team can finish them off).
Although being resourceless has its benefits for most champions, running out of Motes might be problematic for Aegis if they are pushed under their turret. Not having easy access to nearby bushes or the river means less abilities available, less CS and more time wasted trying to walk where you need to go. However, the need to replenish Motes when pushing the lane also leaves room for roams and ganks as well: have you left lane simply to refuel, or are you heading top or bottom?
Aegis lacks waveclear unless pushed under turret. Because of the need to replenish motes for any sort of AoE damage, it is easy to punish Aegis early when he runs out of motes and must stand still to replenish them. Aegis' ultimate, while versatile, is only available in specific locations. When in the jungle or in lane, he is very susceptible to ganks due to his inability to fight back with much damage. Long-range harass is especially effective against Aegis, especially when used to deny him motes.
Matchup Examples
Hard:
- With her long range and short cooldowns, Lux has much better harass than Aegis and can interrupt his passive with relative safety, making gathering motes a chore.
- Nidalee will wait for you to recharge motes before throwing a spear and pouncing. Her heals also allow her to shrug off the little harass you have, making this a tough matchup.
Medium:
- His W is better than yours, and his harass is better as well. Avoid getting caught, however, and you can turn this into a farm lane.
- LeBlanc's harass is predictable, and you can bait her W before casting E, snaring her and allowing you to get off a full combo to win the trade.
Easy:
- Zed's ultimate is rendered useless by a good Aegis, as he will simply E underneath himself before Zed reappears and cast W to get away. If a Zed tries to dive Aegis under turret, he will most likely be the one to perish with a good E / Q / R combo.
- As a Support, Aegis offers similar levels of CC while also putting out much more damage than Janna. A hard engage using either W or E will lead to Janna using her ultimate, allowing Aegis to either W back into range or snare her with E.
With the amount of interaction with the rift we've seen from recent champions, (Bard, Skarner, Kindred) I thought I'd try my take at truly, ahem, "using the environment"... So to speak.
(I take no credit for the image. I can write, not draw... Just grabbed it off Google as a concept.)
Please leave comments and feedback! Does the kit offer too much? Too "Lee Sin" with two effects on each skill? Does the damage need to be lowered more to make up for it? Would this champion be too mechanically demanding?
