Riot Games is making significant changes to the upcoming League of Legends preseason, focusing on improving the frustrating Stasis mechanic. In a recent developer blog post, Riot announced that Stopwatch will be removed from the game, but its functionality will be incorporated into Seeker’s Armguard, a component of Zhonya’s Hourglass. This rework aims to enhance the item’s value and effectiveness for mages dealing with assassins.
Seeker’s Armguard will now include the Stasis effect previously provided by Stopwatch. However, its price will be increased from 1,000 to 1,600 gold. The item will be built from two Amplifying Tomes, a Cloth Armor, and an additional 500 gold, while still being part of the Zhonya’s Hourglass build path. Similar to Stopwatch, Seeker’s Armguard can only be used once before losing its value and transforming into Broken Armguard. Players can keep Broken Armguard in their inventories for the 40 ability power and 30 armor it provides, but they will no longer have access to its active effect until they fully complete Zhonya’s Hourglass.
The controversy surrounding Stopwatch arose from the ability to purchase both Stopwatch and Zhonya’s Hourglass simultaneously, allowing for two instances of Stasis. This interaction was removed in League Patch 12.8 and is unlikely to return with the changes to Seeker’s Armguard. However, Seeker’s Armguard remains an important item for many players, especially in coordinated play.
In addition to the removal of Stopwatch, the Perfect Timing rune in the Inspiration tree will also be eliminated. This rune granted players a free Stopwatch after a certain amount of time. It is unclear how this rune will be modified, considering the significant changes to Seeker’s Armguard.
These changes, along with numerous others, will be available for testing on League’s PBE (Public Beta Environment) today. Players will also have the opportunity to try out Hwei, the newest mage champion, who brings a unique set of paint-based spells to Summoner’s Rift.
Source: DOTESPORTS
