The StunLock

Patch 14.10 is here. To accompany the new patch (and new split!) is a collection of uneducated opinions on the changes. Cheers.

1) Better Bot Wins

The XP gained from shared minion killing has been increased while the XP gained from shared takedowns has been decreased. Additionally, the bounty system (which is terrible to begin with) has become less punitive for players who can farm well.

Given the introduction of 25% critical strike items, which give ADCs the option to gain 100% crit at four items instead of the usual five, you can bet that ADCs will be prioritizing book-farming (that’s farming over taking skirmishes) more often, resulting in a faster rate of “coming online-ness”, resulting in a 20 to 25 minute timer each team has to either end the game or outlast their opponents, depending on the comp.

This is all in theory, of course. In reality, whichever bot is better is going to have a much more drastic influence on the match through winning 2v2s in the bot lane and snowballing the game with greater critical strike efficiency. And for champs that don’t rely on critical strike, such as on-hit Varus or Ashe, the changes to items like Kraken and Terminus mean that hitting hard can be just as good as hitting often, assuming a kit filled with utility and a like-minded team composition is built around the idea.

2) I’m in Love with Aphelios

Where critical strike is concerned, Aphy boy always needs to get to 100% as soon as possible. Critical strikes not only hit extremely hard against tanks and squishes alike (thanks in no small part to Aphelios’s natural lethality), but his abilities and weapon behavior modify themselves differently depending on whether or not they critically strike.

This meant that, before, Aphelios would have to opt for five critical strike options, leaving him as a high-damage, highly immobile solution for the late game. In patch 14.10, Aphelios can opt for four critical strike items and then go for a safety solution like Guardian Angel or, if hyper-carrying is a must, the new Bloodthirster for insane lifesteal, shields, and a whopping 80 damage to boot.

I foresee a pick/ban state of being for Aphy in pro-play, either early on or later when Riot Games erroneously buffs him due to a low pick rate (due to, again, erroneous behavior on the part of the player base).

3) The Precision Tree is Wicked and Wily

No more Lethal Tempo favors late-game champions (like Aphelios) and nerfs early game bullies (like Tristana). The exclusion of overheal, which provided squishy late-game champions with around 600-800 gold worth of HP in the late game, has been replaced with a laning phase focused sustain rune, which means reaching that there late game will be easier for champions who struggle in finding a secure place in the bot lane before getting a couple of items.

Strictly speaking, the Precision tree is weaker overall, which makes it much stronger for champions who didn’t make use of lethal tempo and who want extra sustain early, since other champions who want to pick precision up will have less options than they otherwise would. In short, I’m still in love with Aphelios, and that has shaped my opinion on the tree.

4) Symbiotic Boots are a Book Player’s Dream

Symbiotic Boots are 900 gold: +35 movespeed, gain empowered recall. After moving 150,000 units, transform into synchronized Souls

Synchronized Souls transform for free: +45 movespeed, gain empowered recall. +45 movespeed when out of combat.

For book players who prefer to win lanes through proper wave management and reliable, mathematically efficient gameplay over flashy mechanics, Symbiotic Boots and their eventual evolution are a dream.

Here’s the deal: these boots are overpowered in solo-queue and will need to be nerfed in pro-play. When players opt for lucidity boots, they are often doing so because they would like the extra movement speed early so that they can try to win more. Most of the time, the extra ability haste is just icing on that cake, and is only useable if the opponent doesn’t respect the winning player’s early strength.

In these scenarios, Symbiotic Boots can be used to win teleport advantage against lane opponents or gain access to hyper-efficient cheater recalls, and continue to give value after there-after when the winning player uses their lead against the oppressed and under-towered opponent to efficiently roam after shoving.

When the lane is all but won by default: lucidity boots. When the lane is won by default, Symbiotic Boots. Early game bullies and reliable wave-shoving supports rejoice. In pro-play, where junglers are used for breaking freezes and obtaining lane dominance, these boots will be wildly overpowered.

5) I Can’t Tell if Corki is Busted or F-Tier

His passive has been reworked and his package removed. In place of these changes:

Higher AD ratios on his Q and an additional 15% true damage, at base, to his auto attacks? The argument against calling Corki busted is that you don’t really want to be auto-attacking with him very often in the first place, so changing his strengths to revolve around auto attacking (such as with his reduction in R recharge times on-hit) but if critical striking your opponent for half of their HP is the norm, does that age-old wisdom really ring true anymore?

Corki’s passive made games a bit too predictable and boring, yes, but just because you can auto-attack with him now doesn’t mean you need to. You can still play Corki as a poke master 5000 that farms First Strike hits while getting his late-game items. The increase in flat damage on his R makes up for the 5% reduction in AD scaling, and the AD scaling on his E doesn’t matter much to begin with, since if you’re hitting your opponent with your E for longer than .2 seconds you’re probably dead already.

Farm, farm, farm. Poke, poke, poke. When late game comes around Corki will be melting tanks and one-shotting squishies. (Or he’s F-tier. I can’t tell, yet.)

GGEZ.