Karma Rework Coming to PBE; New Kit Revealed

"We’ve talked a lot about giving Karma a complete overhaul, and we’re ready to discuss her changes. Karma’s relaunch is the real deal, covering her art, abilities and lore for a total renovation. We know she’s been the source of a lot of contention since her launch, but we also know that she’s got a cult following of Karma diehards. Here’s an overview of why we think she needs a rework. 

Karma’s aesthetics are confusing. While she looks cool, it’s difficult to read her role at face value. Grumpy Monkey has provided more info for you on Karma’s look. We’ve also seen players eschew her support role for bursty mage gameplay, so we seized this opportunity to give Karma more options in lane. Scarizard has talked more on Karma’s evolving mechanics. We also think that Karma needs a new story that suits her updated abilities and aesthetics. RiotRunaan has taken you through Karma’s transformation into an unstoppable Ionian leader.

For Karma diehards, we have a special treat – we’ll be giving those of you who’ve unlocked Karma a skin based on her traditional look.

Karma’s getting an extended PBE stay so we can thoroughly test her new gameplay and incorporate your feedback."

"No skins are being replaced. Karma's existing skins will all be updated to reflect her new look."

"Everybody that owns Karma when she is relaunched on the live servers will receive the free traditional skin. "

Passive: Gathering Fire

Damage from Karma’s spells and basic attacks lower Mantra’s cooldown.

 

R: Mantra

• Empowered by Mantra: Soulflare – Increases damage and leaves behind a zone that slows and, after a brief delay, explodes for AoE damage.

 

• Empowered by Mantra: Renewal – Deals bonus damage and heals Karma for the duration of the tether.

"Old Karma had issues. What were they?

Karma’s kit was in a weird place, but her ultimate was especially problematic. Her base abilities didn’t feel impactful and only felt effective when supercharged by Mantra. On top of that, when Karma had two charges of Mantra, we had to make both of them weaker to compensate for players double casting empowered spells. 

The changes we made to Karma’s kit focused on making each decision fun and meaningful while giving her abilities the focus they needed to perform her intended role. We kept the “empowering”-type gameplay of Mantra, but instead of waiting around for it to recharge, Karma’s basic attacks and abilities now lower Mantra’s cooldown. This rewards aggressive play so you can “buyback” her ultimate. Also, we gave Mantra a single charge to pump extra power into each cast. We also made sure Mantra empowers Karma’s abilities in drastically different ways, leading to more impactful decision-making and a better feeling of accomplishment when you pull off the right move at the right time.

Why was she hard to place in team comps?

Karma had the offensive tools to support her team in small skirmishes but not the powerful defensive abilities she needed to protect a team. Also, her all-purpose abilities are so broad they never felt like the right choice in any situation. All in all, Karma lacked direction.

Why isn’t Karma fun?

The effectiveness of Karma’s abilities relied too heavily on your teammates knowing all their nuances. No matter how hard you were carrying with Karma, your teammates had to be just as good with her for you to be super effective. When an ally’s confused about whether or not he should run from or pass through your Spirit Bond, we probably made a mistake.

What did we like about Karma?

Despite all the Mantra hate we’ve got going on, we actually think the concept is pretty kickass. It’s unique and character-defining to old Karma, and augmenting her abilities with an immense surge of Ionian will is visually and thematically fun. We also liked how Karma could turn the tables on her opponents with abilities that provided defensive bonuses and had hidden offensive power. Finally, Spirit Bond’s “clothesline” gameplay is really cool, but it’d work better on a tank champion that has an easier time jumping into the fray. 

Karma’s new role

Originally envisioned as a support, Karma’s fringe successes actually came from players using her in the top or mid lanes as an AP burst mage with support abilities, much like Zilean or Morgana. We like this direction and want to encourage you to boost both her offensive and support abilities by building AP. We also want to make sure she can hold her own as a solo or with a lane partner. 

Finally, we’ve updated her skills so allies are reliant on Karma, but Karma’s not reliant on them. She’s got enough power at her fingertips to feel strong as a mage or as a support without teammates having to work in perfect concert for you to be effective."