The upcoming Patch 5.1 is right around the corner, and after around 2 months of playing the same meta, everyone is eager for a fresh new experience.
I want to emphasize that it's not definite that we'll get a balance update in Patch 5.1, and that will heavily depend on Riot Games' Legends of Runeterra plan announcement on February 2nd.
However, we can only hope for the best, and a balance patch should change things up and give room for new archetypes to perform.
Here are 7 cards that I'd like to see nerfed in Patch 5.1.
1- Mordekaiser
Mordekaiser's revive ability is a headache, especially when it triggers summon effects like Mageseeker Inquisitor
and The Rekindler
.
One idea is to take away his onboard revive until he's leveled up. Keep the play revive ability so Mordekaiser gets to put pressure once he joins the board. If that's a harsh nerf, maybe lower his level-up condition down to 13/14.
2- Mageseeker Inquisitor
I can't stress how much a Mageseeker Inquisitor with a Deathless keyword ruins my LoR experience. The Suppression
stack is tough to deal with.
Switching Mageseeker Inquisitor's summon effect to a play effect would stop the Suppression reactivation each time he's revived. That way, Deathless and Mordekaiser's revive won't lead to more Suppressions.
3- Elder Dragon
The Dragon Boons are the main culprit here. Many decks are now including one copy of Elder Dragon just for the Dragon Boon effect.
It's a bit tricky to balance the Dragon Boons, and I'm not exactly sure how to do so. The Deathless Boon seems to be the most troublesome, so maybe changing it to something else could help balance out the overall power of Dragon Boons.
Another nerf I'm not too fond of is limiting the Dragon Boons to Dragon units only. This could end up being a harsh nerf and will likely need to change the 6+ cost units condition. Also, this will limit Elder Dragon to one archetype, which will limit player creativity with the Dragon Boons.
4- Shield of Durand
Shield of Durand is a combat trick that synergizes with the Formidable archetype, giving Formidable units a boost to take over the board presence.
One of the problems of Shield of Durand is that its first effect +0|+3 is "Grant" rather than "Give". This has allowed players to use it offensively in the early stages of the game to strike the Nexus for more damage without much repercussions. Changing the initial +0|+3 to "Give" shouldn't affect the card much outside of shutting down the early aggressive play.
5- Skip, "King of the Reef"
Skip, "King of the Reef" has become a staple in elusive decks like Teemo
Yuumi
and Fizz
Yuumi. Although it doesn't dish out much damage, its ability to Capture cards can leave opponents with no answers to deal with the Elusives or force resources on Skip.
One nerf could be adding a Capture timer, like making Skip hold onto a card for 3 or 4 turns before releasing it.
6- Sunken Temple
Sunken Temple has managed to dodge any nerfs, despite its popularity and late-game impact if not answered. Many archetypes have been taking advantage of its card draw and Updraft effect, forcing most decks to include a landmark removal tool.
I liked Talpinator's nerf suggestion of adding a countdown 4 to the landmark. This should tone down its late-game impact, since the longer the landmark remains on the board the less mana you'll have to spend on cards.
7- Enraged Firespitter
Enraged Firespitter is one of the strongest Noxus units since its release. The play effect + 8 power unit makes it a threat when combined with the Overwhelm keyword.
Lowering its health to 3 will make it easier to kill and shut down the Overwhelm combo. I can see another Nerf to its Power, making it a 7|3 unit while keeping the play effect as it is.
Closing Words
The Standard meta has been a bit stale with Morgana
Galio
Elder Dragon ruling over. These suggested nerfs, coupled with buffs for the less-played cards, aim to shake things up and breathe new life into the Standard meta.