Thursday, March 13, 2014

WORD OF THE DAY! 3/13/14!



disintegrate [dis-in-tuh-greyt]
verb
1. To separate into parts, disassemble, or break-up; deterioroate.
2. To reduce something into particles, fragments, or parts.

EX. I know he has already been out for a couple weeks, but I still think I'd like to talk about one of my new favorite champs, Vel'Koz the Eye of the Void.

I've always been a big fan of Void champs (see Malzahar) and Vel'Koz is an interest spin on the concept.

The Void is a plan of existence beyond Runeterra that is both enchantingly enigmatic and terribly simple; the denizens of the Void are consumed by hunger. All four of the Voidborn champions in the League of Legends have a strong desire to consume; Cho'Gath seeks to consume the world, Kog'Maw is always, always "HUNGRY!", Kha'Zix seeks to consume deadlier and deadlier prey, and Vel'Koz seeks knowledge.

Vel'Koz may or may not be a member of the race of beings described as the Watchers by Lissandra but we do know he is from the Void. Unlike the other Voidborn, his concerns seem to be, rather than based on consuming matter, consuming knowledge. Vel'Koz enters Runeterra and the first thing he does is shoot a laser at a small animal, disintegrating instantly, and move onto more interesting subjects for observation. Vel'Koz learns through destruction and he certainly can learn a lot about Runeterra on the Summoner's Rift by destroying the other champions. But... what are his tools of destruction?

Vel'Koz passive puts a stack of Organic Deconstruction on a target when he hits them with an ability and, upon taking three stacks, the target takes true damage. This means that Vel'Koz can deal a lot of damage by hitting up his combos with his abilities. His Q, Plasma Fission, is a skillshot projectile that shoots a blast in a straight line and explodes into two projectiles at a 90 degree upon hitting a target. It is a good slow with great range and damage. His W, Void Rift, is his bread and butter ability for dealing damage and putting stacks of Deconstruction on target. He laws down a line of damage that, after a short period, explodes and deals additional damage. This can lay up to two stacks of Deconstruct on target and can be cast as Vel'Koz moves and simultaneously with his other actions with ease. His E, Tectonic Disruption, is a knock-up that can set up his other abilities for a combo or help him flee from foes. Lastly, Vel'Koz's ultimate, Life-Form Disintegration Ray, channels a blast of damage in a straight line that slows targets hit and adds stacks of Deconstruction. The longer they stay in the laser's path, which you can change the direction of, the more stacks they take and the more damage they take. Ultimately, Vel'Koz is a champion that works best on the back line of a team and can serve up interrupts and poke before ultimately ending his foes with his ultimate or true damage to lead to some awesome long-distance kills.

I really dig Vel'Koz as a mid but I'm also experimenting with him as a support... Hm. More research is more required.

P.S. I love how his alt skin was previewed in Lucien's alt skin art and Creator Viktor's art.