Quick Gameplay Thoughts: October 31st

Meddler's

"Hi folks,

Usual Disclaimers

These posts will often contain talk about future work we're doing, or planning to do, that isn't yet guaranteed to ship. The nature of the work could change or, depending on what we discover, projects mentioned may get delayed or even stopped. If you'd like to see a Tweet whenever a new one of these posts goes up: https://twitter.com/RiotMeddler

A bit more preseason (8.23) context

Preseason's getting pretty close now. We've talked about the larger changes a fair bit, most recent update at the link below in case you missed. Wanted to run through some details on a few additional changes as well.

Jungle XP

Changes to the jungle earlier in the year, including the removal of the overlevelled xp penalty, mean junglers are often getting quite a bit more XP than they were previously, which can include them being highest or highest equal level on their team a bit more than we believe is appropriate. We're cutting the amount jungle XP scales over time back slightly as a result. Change we're testing involves camps giving the same amount of XP at game start, but scaling 5% slower over time.

Value of dragons

We're bumping up the value of taking a bit, since at present it's not proving to be as much of a priority as intended early game. Current tactics in testing for that are having the first stack of each buff give more benefit than the following ones (e.g. Cloud at 3%, 4.5%, 6% versus 2%, 4%, 6%) and increasing gold/XP a bit, so trade off versus taking regular camps isn't unnecessarily punishing.

Spear of Shojin

We're testing some modifications to Spear of Shojin with an eye to bringing it out in preseason. For anyone unfamiliar it's an item we had on the PBE around midseason that gave AD, health and defense based on your AD. Versions we're currently look at involve changing from flat DR to % DR (less abusive in certain cases, much clearer interactions with pen) and build path changes. Not currently planning to release Atma's Reckoning, which was the other item PBE'd during midseason, possible we end up merging some elements of it (some of its build path perhaps?) with the changes to Spear though.

Control Wards

We're planning on decreasing the number of Control Wards that can be carried at once to 2, from its current 3. That's targeted at play where they're being used almost like consumable red trinket charges despite the cost, providing unintended amounts of vision denial. We're not trying to remove that entirely, but do want to increase opportunity cost of doing so somewhat, hence the lowered cap.

Fleet Footwork's AP ratio

We're testing a reduction in Fleet Footwork's AP ratio at present. That's not driven by a desire to push AP users off Fleet Footwork, but instead due to the decoupling of stats from choice of rune tree. We've kept Fleet Footwork's AP ratio high until now because the cost of going into Precision for many AP champs was quite high, given they usually don't get as much benefit from Attack Speed. Now you'll be able to choose your stats on the other hand the tree's quite a bit more accessible to them, so pushing AP ratio so far above where it would normally be isn't needed as much.

8.22 context

We're trying a few tweaks right now as we come to the end of the 8.22 development window. Bit of context on some of those below:

Maokai - Considering a few different buffs aimed primarily at buffing his jungling, given he's performing quite a bit weaker there than in lane.

Nunu - Has never quite performed as well as we expected him to post update, even with optimal builds. Looks like we were a bit off in terms of how much power he'd get from learning curve. Giving him a bit more mid combat durability in particular as a result, with a stronger heal when he uses his Q on champions.

Taliyah - Testing a change where Q deals reduced damage to monsters, but has a lower CD and mana cost. Somewhat experimental, so might not ship. Taliyah jungle is performing too well in high tier play, both solo queue and pro. Mid lane performance by contrast isn't out of line, so looking at solutions that target jungle primarily.

Trundle - We hit him too hard with previous nerfs. Putting some damage back in, both base and ratio as a result.

Viktor - After some more investigation we're probably going to take a bit of power out of tank Viktor builds while aiming to keep AP Viktor around his current power level. Still down to see some top lane Viktor, starting to see it perform really well when tanky even though a lot of players doing it aren't that experienced yet. Trying to tone it down a bit as a result without going so far as to remove it from being a good choice at least some of the time.

No second post this week

I'll be out of town for a couple of days, so no second post this week. Back to normal next week."

Visual and Sound Effect Updates: Anivia, Dr. Mundo, Renekton, Gragas & Teemo

Riot Sirhaian

"Hello everyone!

Similar to the recent Jarvan, Lee Sin, Veigar, and Vi updates, we're working on VFX and SFX updates to more champions whose spell effects are in need of some love to get to current League standards and improve gameplay clarity. In Patch 8.24, we'll be releasing VFX and SFX updates for Anivia, Dr. Mundo and Renekton, and VFX-only updates for Gragas (he already received some SFX love) and Teemo. Keep an eye on this post and we'll add visual previews as they become ready! Please try them out on the PBE—especially if you're a main—when they're in and leave us your feedback here!

Starting off with our first preview...

Dr. Mundo

VFX

VFX update across the board to clean up unnecessary noise and improve gameplay clarity.

BA - New trails and impacts for more satisfaction.

Q - Now clearer, with a subtle trail to make it more easily readable. Cleaver also now stays stuck in the target for a short time, for maximum satisfaction!

W - Now properly shows the range of the AOE, while feeling more threatening. Targets are also briefly visually put on fire when damaged.

E - New buff effect on his wrists makes it easier to identify when it's active.

R - Bigger initial burst and overall clearer effect makes it actually look like a heal, and is now much easier to see in a Teamfight. Or a tower-dive.

SFX

SFX update across the board to clean up unnecessary noise and added higher definition sounds.

BA - Clearer SFX on the hit of the attack.

Q - Clearer SFX on when the cleaver is thrown and hits.

W - Activation audio is clearer.

E - Added Zaun elements into the audio.

R - Added Zaun elements into the audio.

And here's the video for Mundo:

And an update to his Q sounds:

All Mundo skins that previously used base VFXs have been updated to use the new ones, with subtle changes where it makes sense.

We'll be showing previews of the other champions in the near future, so keep your eyes peeled!"

Riot Beardilocks

"Hey, Renekton's VFX artist here.

Renekton's VFX will be updated across all of his skins, as all of them had very old, unclear VFX.

Galactic Renekton will use base's VFX, but with a recolored Ult.

SKT Renekton also has recoloured base VFX, with a unique Ult decal featuring SKT's logo.

Pool Party Renekton's ult will be changed the least, it's just slightly adjusted to shift the focus to the edge of the AoE so you can clearly tell when an enemy is in range.

Renektoy is a weird case: As a 750 RP skin, it shouldn't have any unique VFX, but when he was made he was given Pool Party Renekton's ult, but with nuts and bolts (?). I inquired with the team who originally worked on him, and they said he was given Pool Party's ult because Base ult was so noisy, but the nuts and bolts were removed after it went to PBE, because the team felt they didn't really make sense as he's a toy and not a robot.

Because I've now fixed the noisiness of base, I'm reverting him to using base VFX.

Once I post my preview, please let me know how it feels. If it's feels bad, I will take a look and see what we can do for Renektoy's Ult. We're trying to respect skin pricing tiers, but since this is already a weird case, I might be able to do something unique for this skin."

Ranked 2019: Rewards and Splits | /dev diary - League of Legends

Riot Sapmagic

Riot Gortok

/Dev: More on 2019 Ranked Rewards

Riot Sapmagic

"Hey everyone! Ed “SapMagic” Altorfer here, back again to talk about Ranked. In our latest video we detailed how splits work and how you’ll earn split-based rewards. We also answered a bunch of common questions you’ve been asking. In this article, we’re going to cover a few topics we weren’t able to get to in the video: season rewards, how Honor ties into Ranked, and what we’re doing to recognize players who go above and beyond to demonstrate their skill.

HOW IS THE VICTORIOUS SKIN CHOSEN?

We wanted to include this one because we get it a lot, but while doing our research for the article we realized we already answered this one back in 2017’s Ask Riot: Victorious Champions. Check it out!

WHY IS THE VICTORIOUS SKIN LINKED TO GOLD?

At a high level, we want earning the Victorious skin to feel like definitive recognition of your skill in League of Legends. To do that, it needs to feel exclusive and aspirational, and finding the right amount of exclusivity is actually key to making it feel aspirational.

If the bar for the Victorious skin is too high, it won’t feel aspirational to players because they’ll perceive it as completely out of reach. On the other hand, if it’s too low, players will feel like they don’t have to work for it.

Gold is a pretty nice balance between those two extremes—historically, about a third of Ranked players make it to Gold or higher, which makes the Victorious skin feel aspirational and within reach, but still something you have to work for.

IS THE “BAR” TO REACH GOLD CHANGING?

In short: Not much. Since we’re adding two tiers next year to give you better recognition and feedback as you get better at the game, the distribution of players across ranks will change a bit, but we’re trying to preserve the meaning of ranks as much as possible. That’s especially important at Gold, which has a lot of historical meaning in terms of what it means to be a skilled player.

Here’s a general rule of thumb for how you can think about what your rank will be next year: By the end of next season, assuming you play a similar number of games at the same skill level, you should be able to achieve an equal or slightly higher rank than this season. Once we finish the position rank regional previews, that feature should further improve the accuracy of your rank (and might give it a small bump) since autofill and off-position games won’t be lumped in as much with your main.

WHY DOES MY HONOR LEVEL AFFECT RANKED REWARDS?

It might seem counterintuitive to some players that we withhold rewards and reward progress below a certain Honor threshold, but—to us—sportsmanship is a big deal in competitive play, both in and outside of League.

When we look at the most successful Ranked players, they’re the ones who can stay cool under pressure, lead their teams in difficult circumstances, and work together to win games. Ranked rewards are all about bragging rights and recognizing success, so we can use Honor to make sure you’re being a good teammate before we hand them out.

HOW WILL HONOR WORK WITH SPLIT REWARDS?

The intent of tying Honor to Ranked is to make sure you’re only eligible for rewards if you’re a sportsmanlike player. That works well for season rewards because we can check your Honor level when the season ends and figure out if we should grant you rewards.

Split rewards work a little differently. Starting next season, you’ll unlock split rewards when you have enough Split Points, so we had to figure out how that should work with Honor. We decided on the following approach: As long as you’re Honor level 1 or higher, you’ll be eligible to earn Split Points. At Honor level 2 and above, you’ll earn bonus points toward split rewards.

This solution effectively stops unsportsmanlike players from making progress toward rewards while giving an extra boost to players who have a positive impact on their games. GG<3 Summoner!

Work in Progress

SINCE YOU’RE ADDING IRON TIER, WILL BRONZE GET A BORDER?

Going forward, you’ll actually have ranked armor and a loading screen border regardless of rank. That means Bronze and Iron tiers will both get borders when we start the new season.

So why the change? When we started exploring the updates we wanted to make to Ranked, one of our big goals was to give you regular milestones and meaningful goals regardless of skill. To do that, it’s important that you be able to see and feel your progress from game to game as you’re climbing.

If you don’t have ranked armor or a loading screen border below a certain skill level, you’d miss out on the awesome feeling of promoting from Iron to Bronze and seeing your armor and loading screen border level up when you queue for your next game. We think a better way to differentiate high skill players is to make their armor and border look more bright, polished, and visually impressive, so that’s what we’ll be doing going forward.

WHAT’S THE DEAL WITH PHYSICAL REWARDS FOR CHALLENGER PLAYERS?

A few years back, we set out to introduce physical rewards for Challenger players as a way to heat up competition at the top of the ladder, especially toward the end of the season. We also thought it would be cool to give players something to commemorate being one of the best players on the server.

So far, the results have been… well, mixed. We generally feel like we did a pretty good job of giving players a cool physical reward to commemorate their achievement, but that has been accompanied by delays caused by the incredible logistical challenge of distributing physical rewards. At the same time, we haven’t really seen a sustained increase in competition at the top of the ladder.

Our current plan is not to grant physical rewards for Challenger at the end of 2019. Instead, from the beginning of the season, you’ll be able to earn the long-awaited Challenger recall effect, which we think is pretty solid since it reflects your skill and you can show it off in every game. We may test out other aspirational rewards like this in the future, and if you have ideas we’d love to hear them.

WAIT, YOU’RE CHANGING RANKED?

Haha—yep! Earlier this year, we laid out our plan to overhaul Ranked, which includes clear feedback during placements, better matchmaking, more accurate ranks, milestones and meaningful goals regardless of skill, and new rewards for deep and ongoing engagement.

If you want a quick refresher on our previous posts, check out the links below!

That’s all we’ve got time for now. As always we’re open to your feedback, and we’re sure you have a ton more questions. Keep sharing them along with any concerns in the comments—or, better yet, smash that Ask Riot button below. Thanks for playing, and we’ll see you on the Rift!"

First week of Clash regional tests wrap up

Draggles

"In order to gain confidence in the technical changes made to Clash over the last few weeks we held one day tests in Oceania, Japan, Vietnam, Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia, and we wanted to share how they’ve gone so far!



How did they go?

In short, the overall experience was smooth, and thousands of teams participated in the tests. At this point we feel confident moving forward with tests in more regions. Keep an eye on your client for signups!

What did we learn?

As a reminder, we’re testing three major changes to Clash: a staggered scouting phase, to spread out the amount of games starting simultaneously; a more streamlined backend flow, to break out some of the systems that relied on each other to start Clash games; and a disaster recovery tool, for when we may need to easily extend or roll back each game phase. We’re now done with our time on PBE, and are gradually scaling up our testing in each region in turn.

Key issues during regional tests:

Champion mastery load: We saw champ mastery causing unusual load during the scouting phase. We’ve optimized this now, and the champ mastery service should be much more responsive.

Parties service errors: As part of our streamlining efforts, we use the parties service (like when you get into a lobby or voice chat) to keep teams together. Last week, we saw some players incorrectly restricted from entering their Clash matches. Because Clash’s team creation handles many of these eligibility checks as well, we were able to adjust the parties logic for Clash specifically.

SMS verification: The first major trial of our disaster recovery tool! We used it to extend the lock-in phase while we fixed an issue with SMS verification in some regions.

What’s next?

We’ll continue to bring one-day tests to more regions around the world. Some regions may even see tests that go for longer than a day to ensure we’re truly as ready as we can be.



Stay up to date on Clash

As we move into bigger tests and ultimately towards launch, you’ll see continue to see updates from us. Keep up with Clash here, and we look forward to seeing you during regional tests!"

Quick Hits

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This spooky story comes to us from couple of creepy cool fan creators, Luchardor Teemo as wordsmith, with Ze bringing the awesome art!"

"With the epic battle underway, Austin Creed introduces the teams of long time League of Legends rivals TYLER1 and IMAQTPIE! It's TEAM WWE vs. TEAM NXT. Which team will be the great winner of this legendary competition? Check it out here on UpUpDownDown!"

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Reminders

Here's quick gameplay thoughts , including more preseason context, some 8.22 PBE context, and more:Here's a boards thread fromon upcoming VFX and SFX updated for some older champions! First up being previewed isalso noted some details onupdatesCheck out the latest /Dev diary withandfor the latest details on Ranked in 2019:For even more on Ranked in 2019, here's a /Dev blog fromHere'swith an update on the most recent Clash regional tests held this week: