Assurai, Keeper of the Seal [Contest Champion Concept]

#ASSURAI, KEEPER OF THE SEAL

This is an entry for the September Champion Concept Contest.

#LORE

Long ago, there was a man. He was no one. A small man who resorted to banditry and pillaging to survive in a world on the brink of annihilation. He was not even a footnote in the annuls of history. One day this man came upon a small remote shrine. With only a single priest to attend it, the man had no problem breaking in, murdering the attendant, and making off with the wealth within.

Unfortunately for him, the celestial being to whom the shrine was dedicated took great offense at this. In its rage, it cursed him to stand guard over the shrine and guard the relics within forever. Unable to leave, he took up his lonely vigil and, as far as anyone who might have known him was concerned, died there.

The magic unleashed during the Rune Wars was beyond imagining. A single spell from the greatest Summoners could level a mountain. Mighty champions were equipped with powerful artifacts specifically crafted for them. So attuned, a warrior could cut down entire armies. When such giants clashed, entire nations burned. When the Institute of War was founded, one of their goals was to secure these artifacts to ensure they would not be misused.

Shortly after its founding, the Institute came across an old shrine while in search of artifacts from the Rune Wars. However, the shrine was guarded by a fearsome creature. While it had the form of a man it's skin was gray and cracked like stone and it fought with a savage mindlessness, refusing all attempts at reason. Unable to safely subdue the guardian the Summoner's appealed directly to the celestial being that the shrine was dedicated to. Upon learning of their purpose the spirit granted them access and commanded the shrine's guardian to assist them on their quest.

The Summoners named the creature Assurai, since when they first encountered it that was the only sound it would make. Over time, they taught it to speak and how act among other people. Together the creature and the team from the Institute plumbed perilous depths and old battlefields, searching out the most dangerous remnants of the ancient wars.

When their task was finally complete they returned to the Institute. There, the celestial being was pleased with their efforts and granted the Institute its blessing. As for Assurai, he was still required to guard the relics, but the spirit allowed him more freedom in his task. Wielding some of the relics he helped secure, he now serves on the Field of Justice to ensure that these weapons are not misused and that the horrors of the Rune Wars that haunted his early life would never repeat themselves.

#DESCRIPTION

As one of the rare beings on Valoran to have actually seen all of the treasures stored within the Vaults under the Institute of War, Assurai is uniquely suited to wield many of them. While obviously not allowed to take them out of the vaults, he takes many weaker copies of such artifacts into battle. Those who face him are presented with a man who must surely be more metal and stone than flesh, for over a dozen different weapons are strapped to him, all positioned so that he may draw them at a moments notice. His body is mostly obscured with scabbards and cloth, but what little of him can be seen is gray and old, but still strong.

While not using a stance Assurai wields a single sword using a two-handed grip. When he changes stances he drops his existing weapon on the ground where it quickly fades away. After using Iron Raptor Technique he will draw a sword from amongst he various weapons strapped to him (except in the case of being in Three Kings Stance, in which case he will simply wield his remaining blade).

#STATS

|Stat---------------------------|Base-----|Per Level| |- |Health|425|+95 |Health Regen|7.5|+0.75 |Mana|220|+35 |Mana Regen|6|+0.35 |Range|125|- |Attack Damage|53|+3.5 |Attack Speed|0.67|+2.5% |Armor|20|+3.6 |Magic Resist|30|+1.25 |Movement|340|-

#ABILITIES

Assurai uses the stance mechanic. His basic abilities all grant a persistent bonus that lasts until he uses another ability. All of his abilities also have a temporary effect that activates when the ability is cast. Switching stances sets off a two second global cooldown.

Ancient Treasures [Passive]

Assurai gains 2-12 Attack Damage (based on level) for each item held (trinkets and consumables do not count).

Seven Thorns Strike [Q] Cooldown: 8 seconds Cost: 40 mana

Stance: Assurai wields a barbed spear, increasing his attack range by 50 and his critical hit chance by 10 / 15 / 20 / 25 / 30%.

Active: After a short windup Assurai lunges forward with his weapon, inflicting 80 / 110 / 140 / 170 / 200 (+80% bonus AD) physical damage to all enemies in a 600 range line. If only one enemy is struck then the attack inflicts 50% additional damage. This attack can critically hit, also inflicting 50% additional damage.

If this ability critical hits against a single target it inflicts a total damage of 160 / 220 / 280 / 340 / 400 (+160% bonus AD).

Three Kings Dance [W] Cooldown: 12 seconds Cost: 40 mana

Stance: Assurai wields a pair of swords, increasing his attack speed by 20 / 25 / 30 / 35 / 40%.

Active: Assurai vanishes for a moment before reappearing and creating two duplicates of himself that last for 3 / 3.5 / 4 / 4.5 / 5 seconds. These duplicates have the same stats as Assurai but cannot inflict damage. They will seek out and attack enemy champions but will flee if their health drops below 40%. While the duplicates are alive Assurai gains 20% increased movement speed.

Ringing Thunder Blow [E] Cooldown: 10 seconds Cost: 40 mana

Stance: Assurai wields a mighty hammer, causing all of his auto-attacks inflict splash damage. All enemies within 150 units of his target suffer 40 / 55 / 70 / 85 / 100% of Assurai's total AD as physical damage.

Active: Assurai smashes his weapon into the ground at a point within 150 units. All enemies within 220 units of the impact point struck suffer 70 / 100 / 130 / 160 / 190 (+50% AP) magic damage and are slowed by 45% for 1.5 seconds. Enemies at the impact point are stunned instead of being slowed.

Iron Raptor Technique [R] Cooldown: 10 seconds Cost: 75 / 50 / 25 / 0 mana Iron Raptor Technique begins the game with one rank and Assurai may increase it at levels 6, 11, and 16.

Active: Assurai hurls his weapon 700 units forward, inflicting 30 / 80 / 130 / 180 (+100% of total AD) physical damage to the first enemy struck. The attack is altered based on which stance Assurai is using. Using this ability cancels Assurai's current stance and puts that ability on cooldown. This ability may not be used if no stance is active.

Spear – The ability's range is doubled. In addition, this ability can critically hit, inflicting double damage. If the projectile travels farther than 700 units its critical hit chance is increased by 30%. Dual Swords – If the ability strikes an enemy projectile, both projectiles are destroyed. In addition, this ability may be used a second time within 4 seconds before going on cooldown. Hammer – The projectile explodes upon striking an enemy or reaching the end of its range, damaging all enemies within 200 units. If it strikes an enemy, they are also stunned for 1 second.

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#DOOM MODE

Doom Assurai

• The range of Seven Thorns Strike is increased and it inflicts the single-target bonus damage on the first target it strikes, regardless of how many enemies are struck.
• Three Kings Dance summons four duplicates, rather than two, and the duplicates last longer.
• Doom Assurai automatically uses Iron Raptor Technique whenever he changes stances or dies. In addition, Iron Raptor Technique launches additional projectiles. The higher the difficulty, the more projectiles there are.

Bonus Doom : Iron Raptor

• This champion periodically throws their weapon at the nearest enemy, inflicting a large amount of physical damage if it hits. This effect also triggers when the champion dies.

#EXTRAS

Quotes Upon Selection – “I'm sorry.”

Assurai will remark upon many of the items in the store when he purchases them, as he was most likely present for securing the original. Some examples have been given below. *Upon Purchasing * – "So much untapped potential." *Upon Purchasing * – "Ah yes. I remember this one." *Upon Purchasing * – "Ugh. I can still feel the shock I got when I picked this one up."

Joke – Assurai starts juggling various weapons! "Summoners, don't try this at home." or "Six ... seven ... eight ... nine ... ... curses! So close that time."

Skin Ideas Clown Assurai – A gaudy and colorful warrior armed with balloon weapons.

Trivia Assurai's basic abilities are inspired by different weapons from myths around the world. You can try and guess which ones I used, or you can use these links to find out!

#NOTES

Okay, here's the initial entry. Obvious not much in the way of numbers quite yet, but I thought I'd get people's initial impressions first. I had a lot of trouble with the kit. I felt like his ultimate was a good mechanical focus, but I'm concerned that his basic abilities might have ended up a bit generic and uninteresting. EDIT #1: Added initial numbers to the kit and fiddled with the lore a bit based on initial feedback. EDIT #2: Minor numerical and formatting adjustments. Finalized base stats and Doom traits. Added some extras for your amusement.

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The September Contest is over! The results are in this thread. Congratulations to our winner, Stephenizgod!