League of Legends has a roster of 166 champions with the latest one, Hwei, being released in Patch 13.24. Having said that, Smolder will be the 167th champion to enter Summoner's Rift as he will fulfill the role of a bot lane ADC. We will be taking a look at how Rioters came up with the concept for Smolder along with their reasoning behind his kit.
With such an abundance of champions, it can be difficult to think of new and interesting abilities and champion personalities that not only fit League of Legends conceptually, but also further complement the gameplay and current champion pool.
Having a dragon take flight in LoL has been a long time coming, with many players even asking when the Shyvana rework would take place. Since Smolder will debut in Season 14, players will have enough time to learn all of the new map terrain changes, along with the new neutral objectives and items.
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LoL Smolder Design Concept
The developers share a lot of insight regarding their design philosophy behind Smolder.
While making an aww-inspiring marksman was a big goal for the team, another aim was to add an AD carry that was straightforwardly fun to play.
Although his appearance can seem cute and cuddly at first sight, this fiery dragon is surely seeking to cause havoc on Summoner's Rift. His easy-to-learn and master kit bodes well with the fact that newer players to the game can pick up the ADC role without having to pilot complex champions like Zeri, Aphelios, Samira, and Nilah.
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LoL Smolder Dragon Aspect
It is interesting to dive deeper into the evolution of the champion as he goes through multiple stages of development, along with the rich lore that was created around him.
For Smolder’s background, the team looked to a more mysterious part of Runeterra: Camavor.
It is great that Riot Games is looking to further expand its rich story by adding more information regarding the multiple regions of Runeterra.
The imperial dragons of Camavor are immensely powerful creatures who had strong ties with the royal family before the Ruination. Once thought to be lost forever, we now know that their lineage lives on in Smolder—and he’s pretty stoked about it (though he doesn’t quite understand the gravity of what it means).
Although the community was quick to point out that Smolder's face lacked enough dragon characteristics, the devs were quick to implement some adjustments to the design.
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LoL Smolder Sound Design and Animations
In the blog post, the devs shared that some of the sound design behind Smolder comes from a Rioter's dog.
We can later see how Riot Games has implemented these sounds to better fit a dragon.
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Among the sound design, the devs also pointed out just how much attention they paid to make sure that not only do his abilities, walk cycle and overall behavior fit that of an ambitious whelp, but also further showcases just how much time and attention is needed to design a new champion overall.
“One of the biggest challenges we faced with the ultimate was making it feel like you're the one doing it and you have the power,” says Riot KingCobra.
“We spent a lot of time on animation and sound and timing to make it feel impactful, and more importantly make you feel tied to the power it carries. People put in a lot of work to make that moment feel as awesome as it feels now.”
Overall, Smolder's design breathes fresh air onto the rift as having a champion with a much simpler kit can help players struggling to pick up ADCs. Although it is nice to have champions with greater skill expressions, sometimes you should be rewarded for your great macro knowledge along with a better understanding of core mechanics in the game.
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