Riot Games has revealed a new champion for League of Legends — Illaoi, the Kraken Priestess.
Described as "one of the new breed of juggernauts," Illaoi is a "slow but impactful solo laner" in any game. Her large tentacles offer huge zone control. While she lacks traditional gap closers to initate a fight, she "can pull the spirits from distant squishies and destroy them." Riot's words, not mine.
So how is she able to do this? Let's take a look at Illaoi's abilities:
PASSIVE: PROPHET OF AN ELDER GOD
Illaoi periodically spawns a tentacle on a nearby wall. Tentacles interact with Illaoi’s abilities and last until killed or left dormant a full minute.
Q: TENTACLE SMASH
Passive: Tentacles that hit enemy champions heal Illaoi for a small portion of her missing health.
Active: Illaoi summons a tentacle that slams down in a target direction, damaging all enemies struck.
W: HARSH LESSON
Instead of attacking normally, Illaoi charges in for her next basic attack, dealing bonus physical damage before commanding all nearby tentacles to swing at her target.
E: TEST OF SPIRIT
Illaoi casts a spell that sends tendrils out in a target direction. If the tendrils connect with an enemy champion, they grasp the champion’s spirit and tear it back to Illaoi. When spirits are attacked by the Kraken Priestess or her allies, it transmits a portion of its suffering to their now spiritless champion. If Illaoi and her allies are able to destroy the spirit, or if the spiritless champion flees too far from their spirit, they suffer a heavy slow as they become a vessel, and start spawning tentacles around them that attack both their host and their allies. Test of Spirit allows tentacles to occasionally swing at spirits and vessels, dealing physical damage to all enemies hit.
R: LEAP OF FAITH
Illaoi leaps into the air before slamming her idol into the ground, damaging all nearby enemies and summoning a tentacle for every enemy champion hit. Harsh Lesson’s cooldown is significantly reduced while Leap of Faith is active.
Over on her introduction page, Riot has some tips for all phases of Ilaoi's game. The developer recommends playing cautiously with her abilities early on, noting she's strong but relatively slow. In the skirmishing phase, it's recommended that she's at the forefront of her team's formation.
"She’s a beast around stationary objectives, particularly when she has enough lead time to set up her tentacles."
When teamfighting, Illaoi works best securing her team's frontline while waiting for the best time to cast Test of Spirit.
Illaoi is said to work well with Orianna, Blitzcrank and Lulu, while struggling against Vayne, Janna, and Ziggs.
Head on over to Illaoi's reveal page for more details on her playstyle.
