On October 27, 2009, League of Legends was released and interested players could download the game. There are champions that have existed since the beginning and for which adjustments were actually planned, but Riot Games found no better alternatives, and the champs remain unchanged in LoL. Thus, the planned rework of Morgana was abandoned.
What is the rework about? Champions in League of Legends are regularly reworked. The last rework was for Udyr.
For the Fallen – Morgana, a rework was supposed to happen in 2015. The champion has a unique set of abilities that did not exist at that time.
Morgana’s unmistakable ability is probably her “Black Shield”, her E ability. With it, she can shield allies, absorbing magic damage and protecting against crowd control effects.
Her other abilities are also uniquely designed. She can:
- Hold opponents in place
- Deal area damage
- Mark opponents
- Stun those who remain in range
The lead designer from Riot Games, Riot August, attempted to rework Morgana in 2015 and concluded that it made no sense and left it at that.
Here you can see the extent to which champion reworks can take:
That’s why the perfect champion should remain unchanged
The lead designer believes in Morgana: Riot August spoke about the rework in an interview with our colleagues from MGG Spain.
“I reworked Morgana and found that she was perfect and nothing needed to be changed. […] Nothing was as good as what she already had. In the end, she is perfect. That is why so many people admire her. It simply wasn’t worth changing anything,” he said in the interview.
It is about the fact that players who play Morgana need their playstyle exactly as it is. Each of her abilities represents an aspect of the game.
- With the Q ability, she immobilizes opponents
- The W ability results in area damage and pressure on the lane
- The E ability supports teammates or herself against the opponents’ crowd control
- Her ultimate ability is very interesting to play despite the complexity
The developers from Riot Games have adjusted the appearance over the years. Riot August mentions that “aesthetic helps, but the kit has to be good for a character to be popular.”
Morgana is one of the few cases that have such a good kit that she only requires adjustments to the scaling of her abilities. However, the weekly patches are completely sufficient for that. The last patch has heralded preseason 13.
This is how players see it: Even the players themselves only provide feedback that Morgana is a champion where no adjustments need to be made to gameplay and abilities. So “fruushy” replies on Twitter that she just lacks legs.
Moreover, the champion is still a champion that plays at a high level seven years after the planned but abandoned rework. She was played in this year’s Worlds. However, she had to concede the majority of games to other champions.
She has a pick rate of 15.35% in League of Legends and is banned in about 23% of all games (via op.gg). This shows Morgana’s relevance across all divisions of League of Legends. The champion was played back then and is still a character that players strive for.
If you want to know what other champions exist in League of Legends, we have an article for you here: LoL: How many champions are there currently? Here you will find the complete list
