Oh really? I had no idea they had finally started hiring people for design and balance positions.
bluemax
4342
They’ve been hiring designers for about a year now. Or at least had an ad up with a couple of designer positions that they were sending a test out for.
Honestly given the current direction of LoL I’m starting to think there will be a mass exodus when DotA 2 comes out.
Pogo
4343
Good. All the hardcore assholes that love creep denial and losing gold on death are free to leave.
Could you elaborate as to what those issues are?
JoshV
4345
On a side note, anyone ever think how awesome a licensed property version of a DotA game would be? All you need is a licensed property with a large cast of unique characters, with varying abilities. Pokemon, G.I. Joe, Transformers, etc.
Interesting change on teemo’s move speed buff. I used to try and wait to take it at level 8 (getting to 4 points in poison), but I tink I’ll definately be grabbing the first point before then (possibly 5, as I really like 2 points in poison and 2 in blind).
You mean like a Super Smash bros version of DotA? That actually sounds pretty cool.
JoshV
4348
Yeah, exactly, use either a bunch of different licenses, or just one with a large set of characters. (There are probably enough G.I. Joe characters to fill a whole game, though I’m sure the popularity drops off quick, I mean does anyone remember Quick Kick?)
I’m surprised it hasn’t been done already, really.
Kirian
4349
Morello’s ex-Arena.net (I think?). There are a few others.
One of their dudes used to do the balance for Blizzard. I believe he did some late Warcraft III balancing and some WoW balancing.
Just checked, their head of design (Tom Cadwell) headed up the play balance teams for Frozen Throne and WoW. Apparently he was responsible for the talent system in Wow. Goes by the name Zileas.
There is at least one other ex-Blizzard person there in design. I still contest that Shurelia’s a muppet (hurr Lux. Buffed into usefulness).
Also I believe people are referring to a cross-media type thing. You know, like Pokemon.
You’d never be able to get a game going because everyone would queue dodge after Snake Eyes was picked.
JoshV
4351
But what if your team was the awesome array that was:
Sgt. Slaughter
Road Block
Duke
Lady Jay
Shipwreck
I mean, that’s totally imba!
Worse, when you got games you’d be losing 5v2 because the other team was Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow.
Would still lose to Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow.
Pogo
4353
I’m not sure what his issue is. Trynd and some others got the slight nerfs they needed last patch. Rammus charging into your lane from the bushes got slightly less dangerous this patch. The mana/regen changes were definitely needed (I suspect Mundo’s ridiculous longevity is going to get a slight nerf here), and Quints of Fort did seem pretty damn strong.
Hell, I even understand the Akali nerf. An AP focused Akali was still very viable in taking down towers due to that extra hit damage bonus from AP.
Vlad nerf looks right on target, reduce duration and amount of slow from his pool, which is what ultimately killed people as he could trap them and use Q 2-3 times.
I’m finding Karma’s ult to be very strange though. She’s not a tank, that much is obvious, so why give her extra power on lower health? Perhaps she will be tanky enough to survive a teamfight, I dunno.
Looks like Morde has been reverted back to his original slightly overpowered form. I thought he was just fine right now after the rebalance of shield decay from 3% > 5%
Soraka is still gonna get ripped to shreds in any teamfight that has a competent assassin.
On top of the taunt nerf last patch. Both were needed IMO.
I was trying to play with a friend who’s completely new and I laned with him as Ashe and me as Soraka (because she was the only free support that week) and her babysitter potential just didn’t seem nearly as good as that of Janna, Taric, or Sona (anyone else who can babysit well?). And Wish was barely noticeable as a heal. Is the heal nerf/armor buff supposed to make her viable now? And which champ is the best at keeping a carry alive and fed? I was thinking Taric but I haven’t played him in ages.
And if Karma’s ult doesn’t require points does that mean her skills go up to 6 ranks?
Kirian
4356
Trynd hasn’t needed nerfing since they changed his psuedo-blink to a much, much shorter length. He’s just tough to deal with if you aren’t used to him.
Quints of Fort were strong but they were also a trade-off. Nerfing them means that 6300 IP you spent on some very useful Quints now seems like a bad deal. It’s a gambit to stop people taking them by Riot.
AP already deals damage to towers so caster-heavy teams aren’t gimped in pushing. I’m ambivalent about the Akali change because if your Akali is off pushing towers instead of ganking or counter-jungling she’s not really doing her job.
Vlad probably didn’t need that nerf. He’s still a stupid idea (also in this category is a slow orb on a long-ranged carry). I’m also fairly sure his slow only lasts as long as he’s pooled- if you’re slowed afterwards it’s probably Rylai’s procing.
Karma’s ult is LeBlanc’s ult. It’s a steroid for her skills. Her passive, on the other hand, isn’t really for tanks- it’s for damage-dealing supports, which is kinda what she is. She’s going to get focused and she looks like she needs to be in the fight.
Pogo
4357
How does this work? I never noticed this. Does the AP get added into their auto attack damage on towers?
Vlad probably didn’t need that nerfr. He’s still a stupid idea (also in this category is a slow orb on a long-ranged carry). I’m also fairly sure his slow only lasts as long as he’s pooled- if you’re slowed afterwards it’s probably Rylai’s procing.
From what I understand, something like the pool “ticks” the slow when it applies the damage. For someone that only momentarily got hit by the pool in a teamfight, they won’t be slowed as long.
Karma’s ult is LeBlanc’s ult. It’s a steroid for her skills. Her passive, on the other hand, isn’t really for tanks- it’s for damage-dealing supports, which is kinda what she is. She’s going to get focused and she looks like she needs to be in the fight.
Aye.
skyride
4358
I think you will be better off playing a DPS champ that can kill the enemy before they kill your friend. No support character can really make a big difference when playing with someone who is learning the game.
IMO the new player should probably start with support/tanky champ instead because it will be a long time before he can carry since party of carrying involves knowing every champion in the game.
Kirian
4359
A percentage of a caster’s AP is added to their damage when attacking towers. It got nerfed a few months ago. I can’t remember how much it is now.
Probably true. He had no idea as to when he needed to run away, and Soraka’s sad damage just was no deterrent to harassment. If I could have smacked the harassers in the face, that probably would have been better for keeping my partner safe. Kayle might be good for that since she’s a DPS with a small heal as well.
I also think that most melee champs are hard for new players, though, since it’s harder to tower hug. Morde would be really good since there’s no bad way to build him.
Yeah, but sometimes you do just need to push and with a sheen she was pretty good at it.
