Another week, another strategy. This week I'll be explaining the "patch mentality" and how to not get trapped up in it. Many summoners think that a nerf or buff to a champion magically changes them to overpowered or underpowered. Not only is this typically a false assumption, it can be a hindrance to your development. This idea is put in different wrappers such as "flavor of the week" or "bandwagon jumping", however the core remains the same: leaving established knowledge for inherent advantage.

Before getting into the specifics on not falling into this trap, it is important to note that there are situations where a buff or nerf is extremely significant. During the development and beta stages of this game, certain champions were hilariously overpowered. This is not about those times or situations. An example of that is Evelynn. She was very strong and then was "reworked" and is now not strong. She can still be played effectively, however she isn't even a shadow of her former self. With that said, let's take a look at some examples from recent times:


These are all champions that have seen some hard times, but remain viable. While they may not always be the strongest picks, domination with them is absolutely possible. I rarely see these champions played anymore, and to be honest they are just as strong as the other ones played.




These champions were all relatively unplayed for a while and then received changes and are now picked or banned in nearly every single match. They remain strong in a number of matchups, and are the current (as of 1/5/2012) "strongest" picks.


So, what's the point? Anyone looking at this can see the second listing of characters and say they are clearly stronger than the first. The problem is this is slight patch mentality and our tendency as humans to list, rank and sort things. The second listing of characters are perceived as stronger picks, and therefore the only picks. However, the point of this entire listing is that knowledge of a character outweighs their inherent power level.

This can be seen in my team selections all the time, and I'm sure you have seen it before as well. A player picks a character because they're strong rather than they're good with that character. This happens a lot with mid lane, where anyone will play the most OP they can at the time simply because they are op, man! This loses out to someone with a strong knowledge of a character. A die-hard Mordekaiser player that knows the ins and outs well can outplay another matchup.



Lastly, these characters were gods. At one point in time, they were extremely potent in their positions, and for reasons related to the meta, they have faded. Most received minor nerfs and have since been even given buffs. You will see them from time to time and they are still just as good as ever, just the meta has shifted. So what holds them back from being what they once were? You.

Don't let the load screen fool you, and don't be so fast to take advice about how your character may or may not be good. Play someone, get a feel for them and determine it for yourself. Following the trend of the patching system will only leave you with no strong skills to fall back on. Player skill will almost always triumph over character selection until the skills become even enough that you're professional. Once you're above 2000 ELO, you can start not playing characters because they're slightly weaker.

Until next time...

GL HF