Vel’Koz is the 118th champion to be released for League of Legends and we return to the void for the most alien creature to reach the rift yet. A bit of background for the character is that he/she/it is a highly intelligent and developed alien hellbent on learning everything there is to know about the universe. How does he garner this information? By vaporising it; obviously. Think the machines from The Matrix, mixed with a desire for knowledge that cannot be quenched.
Vel’Koz is kitted out as a slow, but stronger AP mid-laner with his spells focusing on some sustained magic damage. While he’ll likely be vulnerable to highly mobile, explosive burst assassins like Le Blanc, Kassadin and Ahri, if he can sustain a laning phase he will be a teamfight monster in the mid to late game.
His abilities look like this:
Passive – Organic Deconstrustion: Vel’koz’s spells build Organic Deconstruction stacks on enemies. The third spell hit consumes the stacks and deals bonus 35 -205 true damage based on his level.
Q – Plasma Fission:
Cost: 50/55/60/65/70 Mana, 7/7/7/7/7 sec Cooldown
Vel’koz shoots a plasma bolt that deals 80/120/160/200/240(+60% AP) Magic Damage and applies a slow of 70/70/70/70/70% that decays over 1/1.25/1.5/1.75/2 seconds. Upon reactivation of the ability or upon hitting an enemy, the bolt splits at a 90 degree angle.
W – Void Rift:
Cost: 50/55/60/65/70 Mana, 19/18/17/16/15 sec per Charge (Max 2)
Vel’koz opens a rift to the void that deals 30/50/70/90/110 (+25% AP) Magic Damage. After a delay, it deals an additional 45/75/105/135/165 (+38% AP) Magic Damage. Both hits add a stack of Organic Deconstruction.
E – Tectonic Disruption:
Cost: 35/45/55/65/75 Mana, 16/15/14/13/12 sec Cooldown
Vel’koz disrupts a nearby area which, after a delay, deals 70/100/130/160/190 (+50% AP) Magic Damage and knocks up enemies hit for .75 seconds. Any enemies hit that are close to Vel’koz will be pushed slightly in the direction the ability was cast.
R – Life Form Disintegration Ray:
Cost: 100/100/100 Mana, 130/110/90 sec Cooldown
Vel’koz channels a ray of energy that follows the cursor for 2.5 seconds, dealing Magic Damage up to a total of 500/700/900(+60% AP), and slows enemies hit by 20% for 1 second. Adds a stack of Organic Deconstruction every 0.5 seconds. Vel’Koz is immobile whilst channeling. Can be cancelled by recasting.
Play Style
Laning – Vel’koz is going to be a slow burner. He has the abilities to keep himself safe in the laning phase, staying away from too much major harrassment from the enemy laner. His wave clear is pretty strong combining his W and E, using the range and unpredictability of his Q to put down some poke when needs be. He’s likely only to pick up any kills when his jungler comes in and he can get off a full E/W/R combo and put down some serious hurtin’.
Teamfighting – While the damage potential for him is huge, he’s also pretty squishy and, like Katarina or Nunu, will be a CC magnet when his ultimate starts channeling. The best bet is to keep at the back of the fight firing Q’s and W’s until the enemy team is low, using E to fend off any diving tanks and then you can clean up with a full ultimate channel across the team. If the fight goes south just keep firing out your spells to keep the enemy heads down while retreating, saving your ultimate for if there’s a chance of a turn around.
Items
Some key items for Vel’Koz will be to keep his AP high while still preserving his mana bar so he can rifle off all his abilities. Key items will be the Rabadon’s Deathcap and Athene’s Unholy Grail for the high magic damage and mana regen with some cooldown reduction as well. For some utility a Rylai’s Crystal Sceptre and a Banshee’s Veil are good pick ups to kite away from fights, chase down enemies and avoid being burst too quickly.
Will you be splashing out on Vel’Koz, a mere 7800 IP?
