I’d like discuss this question specifically for the comments about “synergy.”



But first, I will comment about nene kapa + shell spikes. We are aware that Kuzenbo could use some buffs, but we worry a LOT about additional damage reflection or additional strength on his pets. Both of these have potential for high frustration. We have experience and community feedback that confirm these aspects of gods are more frustrating. We would rather buff his ultimate, his push, or his passive. The general reason we don’t do this is because of possible frustration.

Now, onto synergy. I disagree with the way this statement was made. I do not mean to single out this specific post, but the SMITE design team sees this attitude very often, especially on r/smite and we strongly disagree with it. These type of comments have been made many times about many different gods. The issue is with the use of the word “synergy.”

“The only synergy he has is Shell Spikes reduces the cooldown on his Nene Kappa”

Now this statement is not necessarily wrong, but it is extremely narrow and I think most game devs would disagree with this use of the word “synergy”. In my opinion there are many types of synergy. I’d like to define those first:

Explicit Synergy - The character has an ability that explicitly references another ability. This is the type the Redditor mentioned. Gods with explicit synergy are ones like Hades. His Blight directly buffs his other abilities. Other gods that utilize this type of synergy are Agni and Thoth.

Implicit Synergy - The character has abilities that work well together, but they do not specifically reference each other. Examples would be Hercules. It is a great strategy to pull an enemy with Earthbreaker and then push them further in the same direction with Driving Strike. The abilities do not specifically augment each other, although it might feel like they do. This is just a flow or pattern that feels good to use and has potent effects. Nothing in the kit says you have to use them together. We use this type of synergy to drive most kit design.

External Synergy - The character plays well with other characters. These are your multi-god combos. Examples would be Ne Zha and Scylla, where Scylla can easily confirm a Crush and/or her ultimate on an enemy as they land after being hit by Ne Zha ult. Another example is Awilix and Bacchus. Awilix can more easily use her ultimate when she can be set up by her team mates. This type of synergy is always implicit in SMITE, as the game has no character that explicitly references another character. However, External Explicit Synergy is present in other games. An example would be the winged duo that recently arrived in League of Legends.

Of course there are more examples than just the ones I listed, but the important thing is to note the difference between the types of synergy. We strive to create synergy in all of our god designs.

We prioritize Implicit Synergy and External Synergy above all else. Ra’s ability 2 slow makes all of his other abilities a bit easier to hit, while also providing him the necessary peel and movement he needs survive a fight. He also works well in a variety of team comps. Hard CC comps help him be especially potent in hitting his abilities and being hard to kill. Also tankier push comps work well with his ability to heal between fights and keep the pressure on.

Explicit Synergy is actually the rarest and not at all necessary in god designs. Many gods have none of this in their kit and the kits are still quite successful. The community often made it sound like this type of synergy is necessary. That also implied that it is the only type of synergy. I felt strongly that we should discuss the issue and show that both of those statements are false.

Kuzenbo has definitely Explicit Synergy and has External Synergy. He has his Shell Spikes / NeNe CDR combo and he excels with other gods that can root or stun to help him set up huge Sumo Slams. One of his weak points could be his Implicit Synergy. His abilities have a lot of flexibility in their order of use. Depending on your playstyle and opinions this could be a huge positive for a god, but since Kuzenbo struggles a bit we have been trying to improve it. The first big step toward it was adding a slow to NeNe Kappa to let him better set up Sumo Slams on his own. It creates a clear 1 into 3 ability order. We will continue to watch Kuzenbo and find ways to improve his play style.

Keep these types of synergy in mind when you make your posts about what a god lacks or what a god excels at. Balance suggestions across the entire community will improve when we understand these concepts.