Riot Games has introduced the next new champion for League of Legends (LoL) . In a video, they showcased K’Sante: He is a tank for the top lane, expected to arrive at the end of 2022 when the preseason for the 2023 season begins. It sounds like LoL has drawn inspiration from “Monster Hunter”.
Where is the information from? On Friday, August 12, Riot Games released a video in which they highlighted “Champions and the 2023 Preseason”. There, Ryan “Reav3” Mireles lounged in the chair, Lead Producer for Gameplay at League of Legends. He had previously introduced the last champions, all of whom have now arrived in League of Legends (via youtube).
“The entire city is permanently impressed by him”
This is what LoL reveals about new champions: Mireles says:
“Throughout the year, a new tank from Shurima will be coming to the top lane. This champion brings a part of Shurima with him that we have not yet explored: The city of Nazumah.
Nazumah is an oasis city-state on the southern edge of the desert. And unlike the rest of Shurima, they are not followers of Azir.
Nazumah is located at the only water source for miles, and the people had to fight against giant monsters just to avoid dying of thirst. It was a hard struggle, but in the end, they conquered the oasis and built their society around it.”
New champ has special weapons: Ntofos
“Now, 500 years later, this new champion, along with the warriors of Nazumah, hunts precisely these monsters, and with the materials obtained, they improve their infrastructure and weapons.
He has even fought against one of the largest monsters in the world and made his unique Ntofos from its regenerating armor.
Ntofos are gigantic, blunt weapons that can be used defensively. But he can break them at any time, releasing finely crafted blades that can tear apart any opponent in an instant. Shortly thereafter, the material returns to its blunt form, allowing him to beat you up to the hospital. It is, quite honestly, a real spectacle.
You don’t have to take my word for it alone. The entire city-state is basically permanently impressed by him. After all, he is K’Sante, the pride of Nazumah. That title must be earned.”
This is how LoL introduced the hero Bel’Veth:
How do you discuss the hero? The new hero, K’Sante, is hardly discussed in the League of Legends community: Other revelations from the video were considered more exciting, especially the changes to the jungle.
One of the few discussions revolves around the name of the hero: K’Sante: Because until now, an apostrophe always represented a Void monster, but K’Sante apparently has nothing to do with the Void. Thus, LoL breaks with its naming conventions (via reddit).
The tank certainly sounds like Riot Games has drawn heavily from the “Monster Hunter” series: A warrior who hunts monsters to craft new gear from their parts to hunt even bigger monsters is exactly what the game series is all about. Here in the West, the series is mainly known for “Monster Hunter World”.
Apparently, Riot plans a weapon swap for the hero from “blunt” to “sharp”, perhaps the weapons in “Normal Form” increase defensive values and then in “Sharp Form” enhance K’Sante’s offense. But we will surely learn much more about K’Sante after the Worlds.
LoL often has a balancing problem with new heroes:
New champion eats LoL – Bel’Veth is considered a “hyper-carry”, with an absurdly high ban rate
