Strawpoll for Part 3: strawpoll.com/polls/B2ZB378DLyJ

Bard’s portal. You never force anyone to use it, both allies an enemies can use it. There’s always a warning before you portal into a lane while roaming

Vars. What you just said. Is the absolute truth. No one else can explain my Q better than that. 500 adoration stacks for Brother Vars.

Huh that's weird I didn't see any of Yones abilities in here, after all he is league best designed champ

Cassiopeia's Passive. She can't wear boots because of her snake tail. Unlike her poorly designed counterpart, NAMI

1:20 thank goodness, that super minion very nearly crushed that adorable little creature

They should make wind wall have health like reinhardt shield, and be clickable, so i can focus the wind wall and stay safe

I gotta say I'm sad you didn't bring up rakans dash when you were talking about ally dashes, I think all the targeted ally dashes are so well designed for their individual Champs. Rakans is basically Lee sin but he also gets to cast it twice letting him play with the dash in dash out playstile

Here's a cool fact about Galio's ult Animation: When casting his ultimate normally you mostly see him smashing the ground with his fist. But that animation only plays if Galio isnt in his ult circle. If Galio is in his ult circle than he smashes the ground with his two feet. This was something I only realised when I started playing Galio on Wild Rift and was kinda shocked when I saw that it is also in League considering that even tho he wasnt my main he was still a champ I played a lot to counter mages........ Okay one more. Galio starts auto attacking the Enemy Champ he hits with his E no matter what if you dont cancel it with another thing like walking. It is useful too since after E'ing auto attacking the champ you hit to use your enhanced auto is mostly the best thing you can do after E'ing.

Maybe you could do also a video about the balance of late and early game, how champions that peak on different stages of the game are balanced.

the spot where Draven's axe falls isn't just "somewhat" controlable, it's literally a calculation of where Draven will be in 2 seconds if he walks in a straight line, given he isn't standing still

I find it both satisfying and sad that over half the abilities here are on wardens (counting thresh), probably the least popular and lowest champ count class which really just says a lot about what champs are popular.

Kinda weird how a wall literally made out of air is somehow more effective than a giant door designed to be unbreakable. The latter of which is being carried by a champion who's entire thing is supposed to be keeping people safe, whereas Windwall is just on a samurai who's constantly in direct combat.

I would say the 5 best designed abilities in the game are, in this order: Jhin passive, Jhin W, Jhin R, Jhin Q and Jhin E. Thank you for listening

I think Udyr’s e is a well designed ability. It shows you the importance of running fast which is very important if you’re part of your high school track team.

I can never be mad if I die to Xerath's Rite of the Arcane. It's heavily telegraphed, reveals xerath on the map, and is comprised of 3-5 pinpoint skillshots. If I die to that, it's simply because i got outplayed, not because Xerath is an overtuned champion. And honestly, that makes it a lot easier to take mentally because it doesn't feel unfair.

What I like about Orianna's ultimate is aside from engaging, you can also disengage with it depending on where you put your ball

"...giving enemy champions plenty of time to sidestep or dash out of it provided they are not disabled..." So that's why all my teammates get rooted by it

I'm a Dota player, not a League player, but I absolutely adore Braum's design. Simple yet synergistic abilities, a rare combination in LoL.

There's no doubt that the best ability is Blitzcrank's W, which speeds him up then slows him down. Balanced, as all things should be.

My 2 propositions are Ekko's W and Janna's Q Ekko's W is a giant ass 1,75sec stun AND a shield, but it's drawn back by the fact that it takes 3 seconds to set up, enemies don't see it, but can move unpredictably because once set the field is stationary, and before ekko enters it he can still be hit, giving it counterplay, but the player can predict where the enemies will be, or use it out of vision to surprise them, giving it skill expression as well. Even if he doesn't hit the enemy with the stun he can still get the shield to survive fights. Janna's Q is a tornado that can knock up a lot of enemies for a lot of time, but the knock up is long only when janna charges the Q, and it gives enemies time to react, but if player predicts the movement or blocks off the escape, then it can still hit. It can be used charged to set up a wombo combo in teamfights or uncharged to peel from something like a warwick chasing you or your teammate. The thing those 2 abilities have in common is that they aren't cheese, are fair to play agains and rewarding to hit

I love Talon"s Q. A target dash (that has damage) or a melee damaging ability that always crits with the auto-attack reset. It´s on the Talon player if he wants the mobility to get to targets, but dealing less damage, or if he wants the full damage (but no mobility)

While technically a passive, it still has ability like functions to it. Kindreds Mark of the Kindred is probably the best designed "infinite" scaling properties. It checks off all your boxes Has multipurpose use. You can use it to set up a gank, fear an enemy into thinking you're gonna gank, and her passive scales with her entire kit. I don't think you could GET more visual clarity with this passive. After activated, you have like 7 seconds before the mark ACTUALLY activates. Not only does the enemy with the mark know they're marked, but so does the ENTIRE enemy team along with your team. Next with wolf marking camps, you have to be in the enemy jungle, the entire enemy team KNOWS where said mark is, and once it's taken, after 15 seconds the mark vanishes which let's the enemies know Kindred just got her mark. I'm a Kindred main so obviously I'm biased but I don't think there's literally anything unfair about this passive. Yeah, if you have like 20 marks, you have a longer auto range than caitlyn, you get like 150% bonus attack speed on q, 20% current health magic damage on W, and like 50% missing health physical damage on E, but honestly to get that many marks takes a shit ton of skill. My highest mark game I've gotten has been 15 but most of my games end at 8-11 marks. Kindred passive should 100% be talked about if you do a part 3.

Mundo's reworked E is a godsend to have some way to poke over minions in the laning phase and I was so happy it became a thing, I would consider it a good designed ability, in contrast of his reworked W... You win some and lose some i guess...

I would call Kindred's ultimate a fine example of a good designed ability too. The deaths itself lets you, as lamb herself says, shine once more before a possible end. It affects both allies and enemies equally and so its a fair gamble of whoever gets to strike faster after it ends. Though it may be more efficient with assassins, it still doesnt affect anyone unfairly.

Some of my favourites are Vel’Koz Q, Viktor R, and Jinx Q. I want to say Sivir’s W but it’s better in theory than implementation (we’ll see how the rework changes that)

yesss! i've been waiting for a part 2! great job on the video though

I don't like playing galio, but his r is one of the most satisfying abilities to use in league, the zoom out and then fast dash the the area makes it soooo satisfying

I'm going to be contrarian here, but Soraka Q. Soraka *can* just sit back and heal from relative safety (barring assassins), but if she wants to heal them well, and for an extended period, she must hit her Q, which is slower, the further away the enemy is. It's an inherently "The more you risk your life, the better a battery you can be." Meanwhile, if you do manage to land it, it gives you the tools to walk away from the position you've put yourself in. (Again, barring assassins.) And that's before we even start to compare to Yuumi's utterly toxic "gameplay."

One thing i like about thresh Lantern it is that reminded me an ability from WoW priests called "Leap of Faith" that lets you pull a friedly player on your group to your location, its a really fun mechanic and i think we should have more things that interacts with allies that just with enemies

It feels good to see your mains on a video of well designed abilities. Thresh, Jhin and Orianna. ✨

My favorite play to do with lantern is to throw it behind you as if a teammate is going to take it to countergank, sometimes they get afraid at the bluff and you escape safely, only happens with enemies with certain braincells tho, not too little but not too much.

I love the perspective you take on the videos, and i agree 💯 to this selection. I would actually say, thresh q and w are amazing abilities aswell, rewards u for not last hitting the minions in lane for your adcs, and u sre the one to decide if u engage or disengage.

IMO, hot take but Pyke Q is one of the most balanced hooks, highly telegraphed, and very easy to punish is miss used as you become slower. And it's a set distance, not changed based on range.

I'd give design props to any ability with a "sweet spot". For example Soraka's Q, or Leona's R both have additional utility for hitting an enemy right in the centre. Landing the ability is fine, but having that "sweet spot" allows for nice skill expression.

dude your choice in music is sooooo good! was not expecting to here gravity rush 2 ost

11:03 Katarina has ally targeted mobility with her E, however it is a blink and not a dash. However I believe Yuumi would count?

I always thought about galio's ult less like a shen ult and more like an Anti Nocturne Ult. Its essentially the same. Functionally, noy as much, but essentially the same The are 3 uses between the two.

love the fire emblem ost in the background of so many of your videos

GP's powder keg its pretty well desing imo, not memeing , its the hardest part about GP with a ton of skill if the player wants to, and gives counterplay since the enemys can target the barrels.

I love Braum! Such a selfless support character/champion, "stand behind Braum!" Putting yourself in the line of danger, absorbing punishment meant for your carries. Targeted abilities used on those behind the wall will damage Braum instead, and unlike Samira and Yasuo's W, Braum only negates the first spell/attack completely.

I like to suggest that Kaisa R is also very well-designed. It can be used offensively, defensively, to gap close, and to gain a small shield. However, as an adc, u don't usually prefer to get in closer range with ur enemies or else u could easily get oneshot. So using it can be very risky if there's assassins or hard cc on the enemy team. Lastly, u can't just use it whenever u want, u need to hit autos/ability from urself or a cc from ur allies. So it's pretty balanced

Nice video, been watching you since the beginning and was just curious, do you play fire emblem? I guessed this based on its music being in many of your videos. I may have stopped playing league as of a month ago (thanks to overtuned and overloaded champs) but I still appreciate your videos and ty for the content

If we count passives, then I'd nominate Ornn's passive(s). Being capable of building your items on the go is, in my opinion, an ability that, in almost any other champion, would be completely broken, but that is perfectly balanced on him. More importantly though, the part of his passive that makes it possible for him and his teammates to get Masterwork Mythics is my favorite, as it ensures that a good Ornn that plays well will reach it quickly and provide his team with more snowball potential. It even has some skill expression, since you're the one who decides who gets the upgrades, prioritizing whoever would benefit from it the most. Giving these Masterworks is even incentivised by the other part of his passive, that makes him get 10% more value from any items Health, Armor or Magic Resist stats, since he gets an extra 4% for each teammate he's given a Masterwork to, ensuring that he has a good reason to give his upgrades as well as making sure he scales well into late game. Although a bit smaller, even Brittle is, in my opinion, a well designed passive. You can only apply it with you W or your R, and, when consumed, it slightly knocks back your opponent on top of dealing a percentage of the target's maximum health as bonus magic damage. On top of that, it also improves any immobilizing spells by 30%, meaning that you don't need to use it yourself and can, instead, allow a Twisted Fate to Yellow Card them for a longer stun or let a Morgana Q them for a longer root. While Ornn has 4 passives and a lot of passives are usually seen as a sign of an overloaded kit, these are all a balancing act and are why I think that his Passive(s) are part of League's Best Designed Abilities (I had to work it in somewhere).

I want to give Anivia's ult a spotlight. It's a zoning tool that becomes bigger over time and becomes stronger at full size, also empowering her E. It can be channeled shortly for burst, channeled longer for sustained damage and channeled at chokepoints preemptively to zone enemies.

Nice videos buddy, they r calm, informative and cool. Plus u r also playing Pantheon also

Kled's q is pretty good, it fits what he wants to do and his theme while also giving the enemy a way to negate most of the damage if played right.

Neeko’s W is a unique escape ability that feels balanced to me. She gains bonus movement speed and summons a clone where she can position it. The neeko player has to think in advance where to place the clone and can’t use any other abilities to keep the disguise as well as the movement speed being easy to catch up. There are also some very creative things you can do with this ability such as hiding her E, camouflaging her Ult, and there is even an input to make the clone stay leaving a lot of skill expression.

for a newer champ i think that renata's Q is a really well designed ability

One of the few ultimate I think it's quite Well Designed. It had a multitude of uses. Escape, Engage, Follow-up, Cc, And also being Quick essentially. Tho as it says the quickness. You don't need to use your Ult always as an engage. As Rakan's Gimick as he is supposed to be the distraction, eye candy, to the point you can have your team thank you for giving them time to reposition, or an escape if necessary.

I see thresh's lantern in here and as an ex-thresh main I have to say that Thresh has a ridiculously overloaded kit solely because of that one ability.

Wheres draven draven's comment

When I saw Thresh’s lantern in the thumbnail, I was instantly like ‘yeah that’s a perfect ability’. Just wish my allies knew that

Man, can we agree that the hitbox of Yone's R is also missleading ?

Ahh yes, my favourite League gamedesign ASMR

Kennen W. Hear me out: Scales with skill --> 5th attack for an extra stack so while trading you can save your e for disengage after using q w wpassive combo, but it gives a visual indicator so your enemy can also spot it. Conditional --> needs to mark enemy with passive for you to actually be able to use the active, which makes it not just a gp q which is also point and click but something you actually need to put yourself in a sort of risk for to use it. Versatile --> can be used as an engage with stun (also again timing 5th auto) and as a somewhat safe poke tool and as a disengage option together with q and e --> q w e into them and away with movement speed. (I really like kennen if you didnt notice, been picking him up as a support) Feels really good when enemy doesnt fully understand the complexity and strength of this ability to just stun them and set up free kills with (again) passive w Same kinda with kennen e, need to choose whether you use it as an engage tool or disengage with it. Also decent energy cost, making it not just a brainless ability but you actually have to think about conserving energy to use this / if you have enough energy to combo after it with w and e I really like kennen (especially support with spellbook)

U forget that thresh’s W can also be placed in between tower and the edge of the map so that enemy’s can’t go through it which is very useful if used correctly

I love Soraka silence as concept.

Rakan's R, simple and clear, game changer but counterable, can be used in many ways, good interaction with all his basic abilities and gain more potential the more players are near him.

Kindred R: Similar to Bard ult, can either mess up or save a fight completely. Also, unlike most abilities, can be used by both ally and enemy, thus the real power of this ability (as well as whom it benefits) comes from skill, timing etc. from both teams Evelynn W: Powerful ability with a clear indicator, also an indicator pointing to Evelynn once it's charged up. Can be used as counter-engage tool and given the context of Evelynn's kit it also creates a choice of giving your enemy more time to react compensated by a potentially stronger burst or not to use the ability at all and take the enemy by surprise. Plus, the ability itself begins a mind game between Evelynn and her target, especially in the open, as both sides need to predict where the other will go. It can either give away Evelynn's position and waste her chance of getting a kill or completely obliterating her target.

Ekko W. Massive potential crowd control / slow and shielding, but is very slow to activate and gives opponents a warning if they spot you using the ability and the clone that spawns. You really have to try and predict your opponents movements and they have to predict yours. I never really see people complain about it but maybe cause it’s drowned out by other hated abilities, idk.

the sheer meme of blocking Garen's R with Braum E. i have only seen it happen a single time(as usually the spin damage tick will eat Braum's single Block hit). but man it felt good.

i just wanna take a moment to appreciate the editing and the calming tone of your vids. I always watch them before bed and they help me wind down, even when u rightfully rant about yone. (fuck yone)

I always thought Ezreals old W was really cool. It was a skillshot that would buff your allies attack speed, and the only way you could benefit was if you E'd in its path right after shooting it. Gave you the option to burn your E to make yourself more dangerous. The problem with this ability was that intuitively it looked like another damaging skillshot. They coulda redid the graphics to more clearly communicate that it was a buff.

Three abilities I think are well designed: Veigar ult - yes, it's kind of a feel bad when it gets turned against you and you're just deleted but the thing is, his entire kit is skillshots and the damage scaling mostly comes from how low you are. I think it's like a good 'reward' for managing to hit all your skillshots and it gives the enemy player the ability to, well, dodge them, ya know? Tahm Kench ult - there's so much utility in the ult, especially combined with his little dash-leap-thingy. Stealing an enemy and taking them under your turret or into your team, removing the enemy carry from a fight for a few seconds, saving one of your teammates...it's super neat. Nidalee's human Q - it's a super high damage projectile but it's got a really thin hit box and can't do any aoe damage. It's really reliant on the jungler's ability to use walls and fog of war to aim well but still dodgeable, plus the damage scaling over distance rewards riskier throws.

it's crazy how well designed braums shield was only for them to put a less balanced version on pantheon, yas and samira

Idk, but i kinda think the new Taliyah’s Q is very good designed. You can now choose for a volley or a burst rock without one clearly being better in every situation. On top of that it is a very unique skill shot.

“It’s more fun to complain than it is to talk about good stuff” is the perfect description of the League of Legends player base.

love the quality of the videos

I'd say the whole Gragas kit is dope. Abilities quite simple on its own, yet when you start combing more and more... it quickly escalates in difficulty, up to his full combo, where you'll need some degree in trigonometry many of Vel'koz mains don't have and precision not many of Camille mains can show off.

hey vars how would you feel about making FE content too? I mean, I hear the 3 houses music in the bg more than once in ya vids an even a comparasion in a vid too if I'm not mistaken cuz I'd love to hear your opinion on certain FE units, specially in 3 houses like how Cathrine and Shamir are great to pick up early in your run but fall off drastically later on

Darius Q is one of the best designed abilities in league of legends. Wind up gives the opponent time to recognize and counterplay it while also providing Darius outplay potential with Q-flash. Q also requires precision to hit for the fatty 2-3 man heals, so it makes Darius's tankiness conditional on his positioning and timing. My favorite part tho is that you can counterplay Q by getting closer to him. Let's say you are fighting him and he's about to heal and win the fight off that heal. You can dash, flash, or even walk into his inner Q hitbox, dodge the heal and bleed stack, and still be in range to finish him off and win the fight. Honestly makes me feel so big brain when I do that

Zeri q. Easily one of the best qs/main forms of damage from an adc. It’s like ezreal where it makes all of her damage a skill check on whether you can land it. But the damage output and scaling is amazing if you get consistent but you also have to account for the fact that your a squishy scaling adc so if you to trigger happy to chase down your opponent you might end up dead. I feel like the ability perfectly encapsulates her “ramp up” game philosophy while also being easily the most fun abilities to use in the game.

I think Namis Ebb and Flow (her W) is one of the best abilities in the game its great I love nami lol

Anivia's wall. Much like Bard's ult, it can be used for a variety of applications and has the potential to screw over your own team just as bad as your opponents. It's up to the the player's imagination and skill to make the best use of it, and it's one of the major differences between good and bad Anivia players.

My top 5 are akali’s E interwoven with her passive moving her to the side to dodge skill shots moving out of the ring popping her passive and heading back to use it is really well made and adds a lot to the champ and yasuo/yone’s Q with the third hit and attack speed scaling work wonderfully with the champions in uniquely beneficial ways Talon’s E cuz Parkour Viego’s E with perhaps the fairest stealth in the game telling you yeah he’s here but where tho it’s interesting and powerful with the guessing game and attack speed steroid and Aatrox’s Q as his gimmick with his whole kit built around it much like Draven

Aatrox Q. Three solid hard hitters but very long and very clear cast, can be easily dodged, but rewards the player for being able to land the sweet spots.

I think Evelynns E is a very well designed ability. You basically give up the surprise factor of your passive to have more damage + cc, or you use it for a slow mid combo to keep your surprise factor, but in both cases you leave the enemy options. The skill expression is in figuring out what options are more in your favor. While it feels super fair to play against.

Blitzcranck's Q should be able to hook allies Bottom text

Saw a comment about Pyke Q. I honestly believe Pyke E is even more fair as an ability. It's got a multitude of uses, it synergizes really well with his kit, while at the same time acts as the greatest bait to his safety. Due to the squishiness of Pyke, miss-use of E can lead to hilarious deaths, but a good Pyke can get so much value out of E, and it synergizes well with Flash/Prowlers and stuff aswell...

The amount of times I've had to yell "GRAB THE F**KIN LANTERN" in wild rift when i was low elo was absolutely ridiculous.

Death sentence, it honestly feels overpowered sometimes. Perfect amount of mind game, perfect range and enough bullshit in it of itself to make it Thresh's signature ability.

1.Shacos W, use it to stop ganks, to starts ganks, place on ally when chased so they can escape, place in front of enemy to catch them, place infront of you to escape 2.Aatrox E, its just perfect for his playstyle 3.Ammumu W, can't explain its just good 4.Nunus W, makes for perfect ganks but it's risky, unlike heca E 5.Azir E, it makes for high risk high reward plays and it flows good with his kit

I think shen’s q deserves credit for best designed abilities, given the sword pull is not only the source of his damage but also his w to protect him and his allies. It’s possible to get the most value out of offense and defense with the sword put usually you are choosing between focusing on getting the empowered blade from the pull or timing the blade barrier. Aiming the sword pull to hit enemies is a minigame all it’s own and core to shen’s strength and his other abilities emphasize around the importance of his sword, E can be used to position for a sword pull and r does the same on a global scale for a r into w on arrival.

I think it is worth noting that the design of an ability can be good in the context of the rest of a champion kit. For example yasuo wind wall I'm not convinced in of it self is over powered but between that his honestly beefy passive shield, his high mobility and his very high make him very hard for champion that rely on skill shot and projectiles. If instead it was Janna who had it in place of her current E,if feel it would be much more healthy even maybe underpowered.

I might be bias here, but gnar's passive. You can see when he is going mega, so you shouldnt get caught of, he only gets mega for 15 seconds, so a preety small window, and the player needs to manage the rage to time mini or mega for when each is better

Swain’s W (Vision of Empire) would fit on this list imo. It has fair multipurpose use in that it can be used for zoning, peeling, scouting, stealing, or chasing but it is not the best at any of them. Plus the moderate wind-up and huge glowing red eye means that any champion can just walk out of it if they react fast enough.

First Octopath and now Three Houses music. Great taste!

Great vid also have u ever considersd making a bloopers video?

Evelynn's W is actually pretty well designed but we still hate her

the only reason yasuo counters (or stand a chance, more like) against ranged mid laners is his windwall preventing all-in from them. someone like leblanc can poke him down and deal with him quickly if they react faster than him, but burst mages like neeko and annie really struggle against that because their whole combo goes down the drain, making the lane much less fun compared to a dangerous game of dodge with someone like zed or talon

I’d argue that Mordekaiser’s w is well designed, he HAS to stack it up in combat or the shield is for barely 50 hp and has a decent heal if he uses it properly but it doesn’t let him sustain for free. I’d also say that Aatrox q is pretty balanced since it is fair to go against and use, rewards good players and their positioning and vise versa

@Vars, i think 11:00 you missed kalista's ultimate, it's also an allied targeted dash thing like thresh lantern.

"dark passage is the only ally pull type ability" kalista: am i a joke to u?

My personal list: Bard W Nearly limitless amount if uses, but has a clear indicator and can be used against him Talon E: Kayn E but actually balanced, a good ability that fits the assasin archetype in general Vex Passive: OP if used properly, but you are punished if you use the wrong ability or use it at the wrong time, also has a clear visual indicator (her ears glowing and the red bar below her hp) basically the anti 200 years passive Darius R: imo the best designed execute type ability. can be devastating but you actually need to connect some autos/abilities to use it to its fullest potential Thresh Q: not technically as good at locking down as other hooks but gives thresh several more options of what to do after it connects, also has a clear visual indicator in terms of its windup.

I haven't gotten though the video yet, but I love Elise Repel. I think its amazing especially with the plants.

hot take but i think samira R is a very well designed ability, the fact that her entire kit is balanced and decided around this one climatic moment is just very cool. I cant describe it well but the ability itself is telegraphed with her style stacks.

Velkoz q and pantheon q are two great abilities that share their skill expression

This series just showing off why the best characters design wise are jhin and thresh. Thematic, appropriate, have a clear identity, skill expression, etc. Man I could gush about how entertaining every interaction with these characters is on either side.

I usually watch your videos in bed. Your voice helps put me to sleep. xD