There’s a new League of Legends champion in town, and he’s small, but he’s mighty – or, as Riot puts it, “kind of a big deal.” Smolder’s kit looks like it’ll be pretty powerful (that Q looks especially deadly), so we’ve got a full rundown of what to expect when he arrives in-game.
Ever since Riot announced that League of Legends was adding another dragon to its ever-growing roster, I was excited. I love playing Aurelion Sol (who doesn’t?), and Shyvana was one of the first champions I ever picked up in the MOBA. So, when I saw Smolder, it’s safe to say I was hyped.
Described by game designer Jacob ‘Llama’ Crouch as an “AD caster marksman who is hyper scaling, short ranged, and team fight oriented,” Smolder “excels at Area of Effect (AoE) damage as the game progresses.”
Lead champion producer Lexi ‘Lexical’ Gao goes on to comment that Riot “wanted to create a cute creature ADC with a more accessible kit than most, especially with Hwei as our last champion release.”
So there you have it, folks, our first caster ADC. As an enchanter support player and control mage fan (even if I do play them horribly), this is music to my ears.
League of Legends Smolder abilities
But on to the bit you’ve been waiting for, his abilities. Below is the full list of Smolder’s abilities:
- Passive – Dragon Practice: Hitting champions with abilities and killing enemies with Super Scorcher Breath grants Smolder a stack of Dragon Practice. Stacks increase the damage of Smolder’s basic abilities.
- Q – Super Scorcher Breath: Smolder belches flame at his enemies. This ability evolves with stacks gaining the following:
- 25: Damages all enemies surrounding the target.
- 125: Sends explosions behind the target that deal 75% of this spell’s damage.
- 225: Burns the target dealing max health true damage over 3 seconds. Enemy champions that drop below a total health threshold while burning are killed instantly
- W – Achooo!: Smolder lets out an adorable flaming sneeze, damaging and slowing enemies hit. Hitting champions causes an additional explosion.
- E – Flap, Flap, Flap: Smolder takes flight, gaining Move Speed and ignoring terrain for 1.25 seconds. While flying, Smolder attacks the lowest health enemy.
- R – MMOOOMMMM!: Smolder’s mom breathes fire from above, dealing extra damage and slowing enemies in the center of her fire. Smolder’s mom also heals her son if she hits him.
It’s very clear that Smolder is going to scale (is that a pun?). His fully stacked Q is basically a free Elder Drake buff, and that ultimate will come in clutch in bigger teamfights. I, for one, am very excited to try him out.
And we’ll be able to do so soon – Smolder arrives with League of Legends patch 14.3 on Wednesday, February 7 2024.
In the meantime, though, it’s worth getting up to speed with all of the other League of Legends Season 14 changes (there are a lot), as well as our LoL tier list to ensure you’re coming into this season prepped and ready.
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