Legends of Runeterra |OT| Yay! Now I Can Bat Around the Bodies!

[Hybris]

So I went 3-2 in the tournament. Happy enough with that since I got the cardback! I think I could have gone 5-0 with a bit better play. I actually had an insanely close 2-1 series against thecupismine who went 5-0. Our final game went to him 2 cards left in his deck as go hard vs my veimer. Definitely the best series I played in that tournament and he agreed.

I have to say I was really impressed by the smoothness of the ingame client. My only complaint would be the timer penalty being too harsh on control vs control decks and maybe the "per round" personal timer should carry over between games of the series. Some of the turns at the end of that final game were impossible to navigate properly with so little time per action.

My lineup was Veimer, Go hard, Fearsomes and my ban priority was fearsomes. I teched against FTR with veimer and go hard, but couldn't do much there with fearsomes. If I had to do it again, I would have teched veimer and go hard against fearsomes and banned FTR instead because of the vulnerability of fearsomes against FTR. I think this weakness is what cost me in my 2-1 match after losing to thecupismine.

 

[Hybris]

Watching Swim's restream today was really fun. BBG had some intense matches. He had a chance of winning/drawing by calling a pass bluff but didn't take it!

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That game was so nutty! The opponent definitely highrolled with the two tri-beams he played (rekindler and 6 damage 4 drop) and dodging the 10 mushrooms in his deck while at 1 hp, and misplayed big by passing at all when he finally drew farron. There was nothing to bluff and no punish possible for playing farron instantly since he had mana to play the decimate that turn. BBG's line was correct in trying to even up the blockers in the case where none of them drew a mushroom next turn. Huge heartbreaker for him and his reaction to the loss on stream was very telling of how frustrated he was.

 

[ZeroX]

Those are good cards. The first Augment reveal was boring but these ones are a lot better and sell the mechanic a lot more. Burn and Discard/Create P&Z just got better. Hell I think Teemo did too.

 

[Kalentan]

How hard is it to get a good deck if you're someone basically starting as new?

 

[ZeroX]

How hard is it to get a good deck if you're someone basically starting as new?

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A few weeks, maybe. The game is very generous early on and you'll get a lot from playing. Don't craft stuff until you know exactly what deck you want to build, is my main piece of advice. The game gives you a free champion each week so you'll get everything eventually but don't waste your early influx of wildcards.

The meta's about to change so I don't want to give specific deck recommendations but these two websites are usually a safe bet for good decks:

https://lor.mobalytics.gg/meta-tier-list
https://www.swimstrim.com/runeterra/decks-and-meta

 

[cheesekao]

How hard is it to get a good deck if you're someone basically starting as new?

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For beginners, I would recommend midrange frostbite because you get two of the champions for free as a day 7 newcomer bonus. That means you only need 4 champion wildcards or the equivalent shards. If you feel like cheaping out on champion wildcards/shards, you can simply include a card called "entreat" that tutors champs into your hand. Still, you should have at the bare minimum 4 champions in the deck. You can find the deck list in the link ZeroX shared above.

 

[Dahbomb]

How hard is it to get a good deck if you're someone basically starting as new?

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Not very hard at all. Its very easy to make a Midrange Demacia deck, an Ashe Frosbite or an aggro deck with Elise. The game is very generous and F2p friendly.

 

[cheesekao]

I wasn't all that hot on the previous 3 champions but I'm really looking forward to the next 3 since we already know who they'll be.

 

[Dahbomb]

Victor looks like a bad ass. I don't know how good he will be though, seems like he needs a bit more support. Might be good with Heimer. Need to see the Zoe + new Targon cards because its most likely this is going to be a P&Z + Targon type deck since both have a lot of created cards.

2/4 for 4 is so bad though, it made Taric almost unplayable. Lots of fearsomes stil in the meta. I guess he has Augment so its fine.

 

[Excelsior]

WOW that's the best reveal trailer I've seen

P&Z coming up in a big way, psyched for the madness Augment will bring

 

[Dahbomb]

Viktor + Heimer going to be a thing. The two level up each other (Viktor generates spells for Heimer and creates cards for Viktor level up). You place it in Targon for the Invokes late game and Gems. Curious to see how the build is made for that and how good that will be. I think you also have to run Give it All in that deck as a finisher.

 

[Evolution of Metal]

Yep, Victor is legit both interesting mechanically and fun visually.

As long as he isn't Shyvana of this Expansion, I will definitely try building something with him.

 

[Dahbomb]

What's funny is that pre-release, Shyvanna was widely considered as the strongest of the 3 new champions and very likely to be competitive.

My take on an initial Heimer Viktor deck. Really hard to figure out which cards to cut.

I think Death Ray might be a cut because in my head playing it out if you don't draw your champions then this card just makes it that much harder to get them off of the draw and the deck doesn't run that many draws (most of the value is from the creations). I thought about replacing it with the new 4 mana deal 3 damage at slow speed but then the deck has no fast speed answer. Probably will have to run Get Excited eventually like in the standard Heimer Vi deck, use gems as fodder.

Mentor of the Stones, Goat, Flash of Brilliance, Iterative Improvements, Priestess and Starshaping should be more than enough cards to level up Viktor not to mention Heimer himself. Decided to use Calculated creations because in my head you generally aren't playing any minion on turn 2 as you want to bank the spell mana and it's match up dependent which bot you want so having the choice is nice. Plus using the spell counts for Heimer's turrets and the created minion counts for Viktor so it hits synergy on both champions.

Iterative Improvement probably too good of a card to not have 3 of in most P&Z decks and especially this one. There are many other good options to consider, Subpersible hits this deck hard, as does Give it All, even Poro Cannon, Spacy Sketcher and hell even Vi.

Updated P&Z Burn list. Basically all the cards that hit face including Ballistic Bot (instead of Crimson Disciple) and Aftershocks (instead of Static Shock/Death Hands). I also like Jinx in it because she gives you draw option when out of steam and her level up condition gives you a very powerful burn card as well. Poro Cannon instead of Teemo because I really dislike double drawing Teemo (maybe two Poro Cannons, one Teemo). It's possible to include Funsmight in this as well.

P&Z Poro and a couple of other decks are worth experimenting with again as well. As is P&Z Go Hard with Viktor for the discounted 0 mana Go Hards and Zevi.

 

[ZeroX]

flavor wise that dude looks awesome. Not sure if he'll be competitive but yeah very fun at true very least.

What's funny is that pre-release, Shyvanna was widely considered as the strongest of the 3 new champions and very likely to be competitive.

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I thought it was wild how the pros hyped her up, I was glad to be right on that one. TK and Soraka were definitely more interesting.

 

[Dahbomb]

Looks like today was a variety day, stuff that doesn't belong in the specific archetypes of this expansion are here.

The landmarks are interesting. Man they are trying to make Vlad deck a thing so hard.

 

[LightBang]

I'm loving the new cards, specially the last batch. How many cards are we getting? The same as the last one or less?

 

[Dahbomb]

I'm loving the new cards, specially the last batch. How many cards are we getting? The same as the last one or less?

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Same as the last one or close to it.

Ionia has so many Recall effects but not nearly enough Recall pay offs. These are the cards that perform a recall or stun type effect:

Recall
Steel Tempest
Navori Conspirator
Retreat
Shadowshift
Solitary Monk
Concussive Palm
Go Get It
Will of Ionia
Yone
Minah Swiftfoot
Singular Will
Dragon's Rage (if they survive)
Monastery of Hirana (creates Recall every turn)
Homecoming

Versus cards that get some type of payoff from these effects

Faeblade Twirler
Yasuo
.....

If you want to include cards that get pay off because of their on play effects:

Inspiring Mentor
Yone
Minah Swiftfoot
Concussive Palm
Jeweled Protector
Zephyr Sage
Fae Guide


A lot of supposed synergy, not enough pay off options. Really really hope Riven brings the stun synergies to make Yasuo whole.

 

[Won]

Hey, another card to replace Vlad in your Vlad deck.

I had more success with Targon + Scartribe, than any Crimson variant with the recent cards. Giving FJ a better Legion Veteran effect doesn't really invite Vlad and the gang back into the self-harm party.

It is better than Star Spring at keeping Ember Maiden going without leaving the region, so that can bring some decks back on the table.

 

[ZeroX]

Lol It That Stares. Avalanche and Icequake are so much better. Weak landmark hate and a 8/8 body with no tags aren't going to change that.

Scargrounds maybe Vlad can finally hit Tier 3. As mentioned probably without Vlad in the deck

don't wanna say Monastery is trash but that's a lot of unit mana to get a weak spell each turn

Homecoming has a specific place in a recall deck that needs landmark hate and is completely garbage otherwise. People underestimated Crumble but like.... Will of Ionia exists

The Fish probably isn't amazing but if it had like one more health I could definitely see it

Boomship is a meme

Today was definitely dregs day

 

[Dahbomb]

It That Stares is alright, its a body with an on play effect in one action/card. This can save your hide in situations where Avalanche can't. Also has the extra bonus of Landmark removal which they are adding more of now and thats becoming a factor. I believe its Freljord's only Landmark removal.

Monastery I really do not like however a burst Recall effect is still nice because it can allow you to do uninterrupted combo recalls in thr future. Again, if there were enough Recall pay offs it might be legit but we don't have much. Probably the best case usage on this is being able to reuse Minah's or Yone's on play effect every turn if need be.

Homecoming in a very narrow situation can be better than Will however in most cases it won't be. This really should have been 4 mana though, I think it would have perfectly fine at that.

The Fish is a Fizz deck card and its fine for that. Probably needed like an Attune on top to really be good though I guess having 0 mana +1 spell bonus could be too busted since it could set up Mind Meld earlier than expected.

Scargrounds probably the best of the bunch but it's support for a mediocre archetype. Its pretty funny with Ember Maiden however people said the same thing for Life Spring.... at least this one is an appropriate region.

Boomship is a meme for sure. I think if it also had the ability to hit face there could be something here but nah.

 

[cheesekao]

Man ya'll are really down on Vlad. I've been having some fun with Vlad/Swain splashed with the bilgewater self harm units. It's not the best but I still won my fair share of games with it.

 

[ZeroX]

Homecoming definitely should have been 4 mana but you know they wanted to play it super safe after how strong Will was. But like Crumble is 5 mana and Vengeance is 7 mana. Homecoming is 5 mana and Will is... also 5 mana. Bizarre. At the very least they could separate the conditions, so it's two separate effects. It's actually more interruptible than Will.

Just give It That Stares a keyword at least. At least Endure and Wanders have Overwhelm and Regeneration respectively.

 

[Dahbomb]

Moonlight Affliction....

Oh no no no no no no no no no.................

 

[LightBang]

I know what deck I'll be building day one and it will be pesky. Targon's Peak least favorite card so far, rng at it's worst.

Moonlight Affliction....

Oh no no no no no no no no no.................

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First thought is that it's good but not broken. Mana cost seems appropriate.

 

[Dahbomb]

Remember that old Hush used to cost 3 mana and was chainable. Usually you just needed to hit two targets to swing the game big and beyond that its diminished returns anyway.. This also has the offensive clause of ignoring defenders completely (which there is no counter play to, at least with Ashe you can raise the attack of your blockers and then block).

I can already see something like Targon Noxus putting this card in to finish the game. Would actually be better than Decisive Manuever in most cases.

 

[LightBang]

The lack of flexibility is why I think it's not that great. You're forced to spend 5 mana, plus one card for the extra effect. I rather play Captain Farron than this card, unless the meta calls for it.

 

[Dahbomb]

The lack of flexibility is why I think it's not that great. You're forced to spend 5 mana, plus one card for the extra effect. I rather play Captain Farron than this card, unless the meta calls for it.

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Those are two very different cards though. This card can end the game on the spot with a decent board, Farron is a board independent finisher post turn 8. Also different region combinations, this card also fits nicely into Fearsome Aggro as you can deny the only Fearsome blockers on their side and have all your minions hit face. Its also very good for midrange and control decks. Like I have a couple of decks where I run 1-2 Hushes which are slower decks I would rather use this card. Very good in Leona Asol to force a close with a leveled Leona.

 

[cheesekao]

I gotta say, I'm not really a fan of the RNG cards. They aren't too bad at the moment but I really don't want LOR to turn into Hearthstone.

 

[ZeroX]

Moonlight Affliction is absolutely fucking nuts. I can absolutely see that card getting kicked up to 6 mana, that thing is straight up better than Harsh Winds half the time. It can shut down not one but two bomb units (Feel the Rush) but also doubles as a finisher with Nightfall. It's definitely flexible.

I gotta say, I'm not really a fan of the RNG cards. They aren't too bad at the moment but I really don't want LOR to turn into Hearthstone.

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So far the only RNG cards that I'd say have been problems are Make it Rain and Riptide Rex. And even that's less about randomness (both players have some influence over board state) and most about them just being really strong value.. The new RNG cards are perfectly fine. Like the Landmark that was just revealed has a huge deckbuilding cost to it because you start getting incentivized to run more and more expensive cards to the point where you have no early game. So far most are balanced for entertainment rather than competitiveness.


*in constructed. Expeditions is a totally different story lol

 

[cheesekao]

So far the only RNG cards that I'd say have been problems are Make it Rain and Riptide Rex. And even that's less about randomness (both players have some influence over board state) and most about them just being really strong value.. The new RNG cards are perfectly fine. Like the Landmark that was just revealed has a huge deckbuilding cost to it because you start getting incentivized to run more and more expensive cards to the point where you have no early game. So far most are balanced for entertainment rather than competitiveness.


*in constructed. Expeditions is a totally different story lol

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I don't really mind getting blown up by something like riptide rex since I can at least anticipate that. My opponent getting off feel the rush on turn 6 though? I'll definitely be a bit salty but like you said, a deck based around it will lack consistency and furthermore, the landmark affects both players so not only is the one playing the landmark sacrificing tempo, they're also giving the enemy an advantage.

All I'm saying is I hope they don't go too far with it.

 

[Dahbomb]

5 mana makes it a huge tempo loss and at that mana point every region except Freljord has a counter play to it. If it ever comes to a point where this and other landmarks are too good we will see more landmark removals being run which would in turn make running landmarks less powerful. I am sure week 1/2 we will see a lot of Freljord/Targon decks attempting to cheese out Warmothers/FTR with this.

Also that Demacia landmark is a much bigger issue. Its not random but it has an insanely high power level. This landmark on turn 3 into Grizzle Ranger with attack token... say goodbye to 2 of your minions.

 

[cheesekao]

That level up condition is nasty. I definitely think she needs to be paired with PNZ for Von Yipp/Suit Up in order to stay alive. At least with Teemo you can easily level him up to prevent being pinged by 1 dmg spells but Zoe pretty much dies to anything in this current meta.

 

[Evolution of Metal]

I lost to the AI at the 7th expedition game.

Cheating piece of shit, you cannot get everything on-curve like this.

 

[Dahbomb]

Apparently there was a leak of the Riven Noxus support cards from Brazil.

 

[cheesekao]

Apparently there was a leak of the Riven Noxus support cards from Brazil.

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Yup


Hunt the weak, 2 mana slow - Your opponent discards the weakest follower in their hand
Brutal huntress, 4 mana 3/3 - When I'm summoned, give me QA this round
Frenzied knight, 5 mana 7/3 - Vanilla challenger
Arrel, the Tracker, 6 mana 2/5 - End of round: If you've cast a spell on me this round, I strike the weakest enemy

*Not my translation

 

[Dahbomb]

Yeah that doesn't really give any hints as to the playstyle of Riven. Maybe its based on striking/killing enemies?

Zoe can be played in a Victor or Heimer deck as well. Basically P&Z. Very strong game ending type level up effect but also very easy to kill.

The new Tagron spells are cool. Also a pretty powerful nab like effect.

 

[Dahbomb]

At first I thought Zoe leveled up in deck but apparently she has to be on the board to level....

That has to be among the hardest champions to level up in the game. Especially when you consider its attached to a 1/1 body...

 

[Lumination]

Zoe is pretty meme, but hopefully appeals to that kind of player.

I really like Spell Thief. 1m adaptable toolbox burst spell. Seems great for midrange decks. Since most decks outside of P&Z are running 6ish unique spells, you have a 40-50% chance of topping out on late game power cards like Denies, Vengeances, Ruinations, etc. In the midgame, the consistency goes up to closer to 80-100% you find what you want from what they've played. Even aggro runs face damage that you can convert to board control, albeit it's definitely less strong compared to the other two scenarios.

 

[Poodlestrike]

Somebody's gonna get a Zoe deck working and y'all gonna see why she's a menace in League.

"Oops, I 100-0'd you from legit who the fuck even knows where!"

Very strong chaos energy in the design, I love it.

(She is probably too weak to see competitive play with that levelup, though)

 

[cheesekao]

I honestly can't get over her 1/1 stat line. How do they expect us to keep her alive while also maintaining board presence when removal is so prevalent in this meta? The only way I can see her being remotely halfway decent is in an Out of the Way deck.

 

[Dahbomb]

Zoe is "viable" in that her front end is pretty good. A 1 mana card that keeps generating value. I could see myself running it in the Yasuo + Targon deck to generate the stun/removal card. At the end of the day it's still a 1 mana card that demands an answer and often the opponent will use something more expensive to remove it. If she sticks for a few turns somehow (through buffs or protections) then she can win the game straight up.

 

[ZeroX]

Yeah Zoe as a win condition is a meme, but a 1/1 elusive that adds a card to your hand isn't bad. Granted I can't also see a deck that would really want to use a champ spot for her, but I'm sure there'll be some way to get her into a deck like Teemo gets a one off in Discard sometimes.

I really like Spell Thief and Sparklefly, I think they're great. Paddle Star just emphasizes how good Flock is. The leaked cards suck but I am a sucker for discard effects in any card game.

 

[Poodlestrike]

Yeah Zoe as a win condition is a meme, but a 1/1 elusive that adds a card to your hand isn't bad. Granted I can't also see a deck that would really want to use a champ spot for her, but I'm sure there'll be some way to get her into a deck like Teemo gets a one off in Discard sometimes.

I really like Spell Thief and Sparklefly, I think they're great. Paddle Star just emphasizes how good Flock is. The leaked cards suck but I am a sucker for discard effects in any card game.

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It's a 1/1 Quick Attack until she levels.

 

[ZeroX]

It's a 1/1 Quick Attack until she levels.

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Hmm?

 

[Poodlestrike]

Hmm?

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Oh, that's... weird. Could've sworn... must've gotten my wires crossed in the video.

 

[Deleted member 52442]

the new cards are way more my style than this initial expansion, didnt play much when diana/nocturne etc. came but these new drops look super fun


when does this drop?

 

[LightBang]

the new cards are way more my style than this initial expansion, didnt play much when diana/nocturne etc. came but these new drops look super fun


when does this drop?

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I'm with you, most of the cards were straightforward and dull. Hope they don't repeat the same pattern for the next region.

Expansion is out on the 16th, four days to go.

 

[Deleted member 52442]

I'm with you, most of the cards were straightforward and dull. Hope they don't repeat the same pattern for the next region.

Expansion is out on the 16th, four days to go.

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Nice! Guess Ill play a bit this week to earn some wildcards

 

[Excelsior]

odd that they revealed Zoe without her folowers first - means MOnday won't have anything

 

[Dahbomb]

odd that they revealed Zoe without her folowers first - means MOnday won't have anything

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They revealed two followers, the Sparklefly and the 0 mana 2/2.

Thing is that they have revealed the Zoe followers already. Spacey Sketcher was a Zoe card all along for example. Also many of the P&Z cards are also Zoe followers like the Assembly Bot.

I almost think that on Sunday we won't get Riven. We might get her spells, other synergy cards and then Monday is Riven day. I think they have been doing 2 day breaks in between champions. Shyvanna was also revealed on Monday.