Zilean Rework Concept: The Chronokeeper
is a champ I've been playing a LOT of lately, and I think it's about time he gets some love. His old man time theme is timeless, and we've been waiting a long time for him to get even just a skin. I think he could honestly be amazing if they spent some time making him fresh and new with a full VGU, but in the meantime I've been spending my spare time making this mock rework for the chronokeeper. Let's not waste any more time, and get right into it.
Zilean's kit has actually imo has aged decently, as one would expect of a gent who has himself aged gracefully. His visuals are another story, but eeeeeeh that's not the point of this post. After the little rework they gave him, he can be a pretty fun and effective support, and at least to me his kit doesn't feel that out of date. I still feel, however, that despite some of his kit being unique and iconic, it could still be changed for the better. His passive, for instance, is really neat and unique, but the issue with it is that it's rendered effectively null come late late game. It's still nice until then, but I think it should be changed for the reason that it eventually becomes a wasted ability slot once everyone reaches level 18, and that feels pretty blah. His W is the only other spell I think really needs a change. Although cooldown manipulation should definitely remain part of Zilean's skill set, having it take up one of his main ability slots imo feels bad. I think it would be better suited as a passive, allowing him to have a new skill take its place that's more than just essentially another Q and E. I'm also shuffling around the mechanics of his Q and E to freshen them up and to eliminate the issue of his point and click 99% slow into stun combo, which can imo is pretty unfun to face.
My goal with this little project was to keep Zilean feeling like Zilean while introducing some new tricks, as well as keeping old ones where it counts, to keep him in his current position as a support that offers unique tools to his team, giving him his own strong place and niche in the roster. Although I almost definitely made him too strong, I did try to balance out his new E and W by reducing the potential damage of his Q, and the scaling on his ult.
So here's my shiny rework.
Passive: Time in a Bottle Zilean stores seconds as they pass in a well of Spare Time that caps at 20 seconds (reduced by cdr). While on cooldown, Zilean's abilities will light up if there is Spare Time in his well equal to or greater than the remaining cooldown of the ability. Zilean may cast lit up abilities, even if they are on cooldown, putting them on cooldown and consuming Mana as normal, with the additional cost of Spare Time from his well equal to the remaining cooldown of the ability when it was cast using Time in a Bottle.
Q: Time Bomb - range: 900, radius: 125 - 275, cost: 60/65/70/75/80, cooldown: 10/9.5/9/8.5/8 Zilean conjures a ticking temporal anomaly and tosses it to the target location, creating a Time Zone that increases in size and strength over 1.2 seconds, Slowing the movement speed of enemies within it for an amount that scales over its lifetime. The anomaly then detonates to deal magic damage in the Time Zone's area. Throwing a Time Bomb onto existing Time Bomb will detonate both immediately, dealing magic damage in the Time Zone of the first bomb's current area, and Stunning enemies hit for 1.2 seconds.
Magic Damage: 75/115/165/230/300 (+75% AP) Double Detonation Damage: 100/175/250/325/400 (+150% AP) Time Zone Slow: 20 - 35/40/45/50/55%
W: Time Out - range: 500, radius: 225, cost: 75/70/65/60/55, cooldown: 15 Zilean drops an Hourglass Trap at the target location, which arms after 0.5 seconds, and is both visible and untargetable. Traps last indefinitely until activated, but ZIlean may only have up to a maximum number of them active at once. When any champion, allied or enemy, activates the trap, it will create a sandy area around it that lasts 1.15 seconds. If the champion that triggered it remains in the area for its full duration, they will be put into Stasis for 1.75 seconds when it vanishes. Champions put into Stasis by Hourglass Traps will be unable to trigger additional Hourglass Traps for 5 seconds.
Number of Traps Cap: 1/2/3/4/5
E: Time Warp - range: 550, cost: 60, cooldown: 15 Zilean massively increases the movement speed of an allied champion for 2.5 seconds. When this effect expires, the target receives potential energy from the future in the form of Mana. Zilean can not grant more than 60 Mana to himself using Time Warp, and casting Time Warp on a manaless champion instead gives Zilean the Mana they would receive, up to 60.
Movement Speed: 40/55/70/85/100% Mana Gifted: 20/30/40/50/60 (+10% AP) (+2.5% Max Mana)
R: Continuum - range: 900, cost: 125/150/175, cooldown: 120/90/60 Zilean marks an allied champion for up to 5 seconds. If they take fatal damage while marked, they will be transported back in time, being put into Stasis for 3 seconds before arriving with a set amount of health.
Health Restored: 600/850/1100 (+175% AP)
Notes -
Rewind's cooldown manipulation was moved to his passive, Time in a Bottle. It's now a secondary resource of sorts that allows him to cast spells that are on cooldown. I figure this is probably weaker than his current W in terms of just how many extra spell casts he can get out of it, but I think it allows for some dynamic play and skill expression via manipulation and good use of Spare Time. It also works on his ultimate now (again)!
Time Bomb isn't sticky anymore, instead becoming a ground targeted expanding slow zone that pops to deal some still pretty nice damage. Slow was moved here to tie it to a skillshot, and was made aoe too. Although quick and mobile enemies can still get out of the area before it, and the slow it applies, gets too large, landing it right on a target will likely cause them to take the damage and full scaling slow. That's the idea anyways. Values theoretically would be changed to allow for a direct bomb hit to mean an inescapable slow zone for that target, at least that's how I meant for it to work. Double bombing is still a thing, and deals all of its damage up front although not dealing as much potential damage as a current double bomb. Since double bombing doesn't require you to land 2 skillshots for the stun, the expanding slow zone was implemented to make an instant double bomb have a smaller aoe.
Time Out is new and shiny (and a ripoff of a certain character from a certain other game). It provides a lot of additional utility and potential CC. It can be combod with the slow from Q to disable an enemy, or set up a double bomb on top of an enemy in Stasis. It can be a semi reliable defensive and baiting tool as well and can be combod with R to give an ally a much extended grace period. Downside is that it is visible and usable by both teams, so you gotta be careful with it.
Time Warp is just an allied target skill now seeing as his Q is now his slow. It has a higher Mana cost, but now can actually give Mana to allies, giving him a new niche and reintroducing something taken away from old Soraka. Using it on yourself or a manaless champion will still give Mana back to Zilean, but can't give him more than the cost of the ability, meaning he can't use it to refill his own Mana.
Chronoshift is iconic, and all I did was change the name and reduce the AP scaling since he now has W as an additional defensive tool.
That raps it up. Thanks to whoever's reading this for their time, and I hope this maybe gets Zilean some more attention, because I think he deserves it.
