BotRK and the 5 stages of grief

Entertainment was cheap the last few days. I know I played in more than one game where I saw 7 or more Blade of the Ruined Kings (BotRKs). If you do not find that hilarious, or even chuckle worthy, then maybe you are taking this game too seriously.

When I wrote the article on the recent patch last week I saw something like this happening (not that I was the first one), but I still went through the emotions everyone else did.  Pretty much this is how it all went down, and to help illustrate I used the champions who best exemplify the emotion I was feeling.  

Denial

“BotRK is not really that powerful, no problem.”

Image courtesy of smartp1ck.com

 

Anger

“How did I go from 3k health to zero so quickly!”

 Image courtesy of massively.joystiq.com

 

Bargaining

“Please fix BotRK Riot, I will never be mean to a fellow summoner again.”

Image courtesy of Leagueoflegends.com

Depression

“My favorite game will never be the same.”

 Image courtesy of leaguepedia.com

 

Acceptance

“I guess I can just work BotRK into every physical damage build from now on.”

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The item has now been patched: reducing the attack damage by 5 and increasing cost by 350 gold.  As the dust starts to settle, I find myself going over the series of events and trying to find meaning in it all. If it was right or wrong to see all those Blades in summoners rift, and to what extent?

What I found is that the imbalance from BotRK actually made everyone feel strong in their roles.  A lot more armor items were bought instead of stacking flat health, making tankydps a little harder to maintain and true tank a little more niche.  Rushing Botrk for damage on a bruiser as opposed to getting tanky immediatly was actually an option.  Champions like Udyr and Shyvana were played again as they were able to really take advantage of the item to overcome their flaws.

Also, a rushed BotRK instead of, say, a Bloodthirster on most ADCs meant they were not dealing as much damage early game, but carrying just fine late game (as ADCs should).  All these changes were beneficial to the scene.  In the end though, the Blade was not healthy to the game if just for one reason: it removed choice from item builds.

League of Legends, and Riot has been getting better and better at this, is always more fun when you have options on what to build for any champion you enjoy playing. Whether it is just options in the order that you buy the items for your AD carry, completely different AP items for your mid-lane champ, or just picking from any of the 20+ options for a jungler champion; options keep players coming back for something different every game. Even our generally accepted meta for lane assignments is constantly challenged by pro and casual players alike.

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I am not so shortsighted to believe that anybody complained when the hotfix came down for the Blade. I do enjoy these kinds of changes though. They create a good opportunity to see where the state of the game is and also to appreciate how easily influenced it is. Good on Riot for not nerfing it into the ground, but just making it a little harder to reach so that it can be that niche yet powerful item it needs to be.

All of this nonsense reminds me how much I love this game, warts and all. We have seen pirates vs. ninjas, alien vs. predator, level 1 solo dragons, completely overpowered minions, and who knows what is still to come? If you missed it (due to complaining or otherwise) maybe the next time an item is nearly as popular as level 1 boots in summoners rift, you make sure to get a chance at enjoying it.

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