Gragas, the Rabble Rouser
Overview:
For such a big and boisterous guy, Gragas's problems are fairly subtle and revolve around his identity. Is he a siege mage? A squishy melee assassin? Magic damage juggernaut? Like with some other older champions who haven't seen much change over the years, Gragas has fermented into something inoffensive. He works, so why change him?
In an attempt to make the boozy brawler feel more solid while letting him feel comfortable getting into the fray and actually rabble rousing, I made him more melee-focused and with a more over-the-top survivability tool. Now that my initial redesign has had time to settle, however, I realize that there's a vital missing ingredient. Something that makes the big guy exciting, and distinguishes him within the roster.
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This (re)redesign has a similar goal to others within the Minor Redesigns section: to both provide players with a unique tool to master, and to turn Gragas into something that is memorable and exciting (rather than something that's satisfied to simply function). And what better way than to spiff up his cask?
The Rabble Rouser's oversized flask and generous girth are still central to his identity, but now their purposes are clear: to soak up crowd control and dish it out, respectively. With a drink in hand, Gragas is as hearty as they come - but once he throws down the barrel, even the most run-of-the-mill teamfight will quickly devolve into a chaotic barroom brawl.
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Though he's no longer capable of doing his best Donkey Kong impression, much of the classic Gragas recipe remains in this redesign. He's still belly-flopping into fights and splitting up tight-knit team comps with a well-placed Ult (albeit to a lesser degree), and isn't above taking a breather mid-fight to appreciate some vintage 946 AN Freljord Frost.
In fitting with his considerable constitution, this version of Gragas is modeled more after his tankier interpretations than the team-annihilating full AP varieties. He's also a fair shake more complex than before, but players with a taste for the simple things can still get their bearings while holding the barrel.
All values in blue are meant to give a general idea of the ability's properties, and are subject to change.
Class: Vanguard
Recommended Positions: Solo Sidelane, Duo Sidelane (Support)
Complexity: Medium
Innate: Everlasting Grog
Gragas carries around an enchanted cask that fills with a gallon of grog every
2 to 1 (based on level) seconds if it hasn't spilled any within 3 seconds, up to 10 gallons.
While carrying the cask, Gragas is immune to stuns and displacement while any grog
remains, and incoming stuns and displacement effects instead cause the cask to spill 3 gallons.
If the cask runs out of grog, it loses its enchantment for 6 seconds.
Q: Cask Hammer/Barstool Breaker
Gragas smashes his cask against the ground, spilling 2 gallons of grog to douse himself and nearby enemies with it for 2.5 seconds, granting himself 14/16/18/20/22% damage reduction and applying nearsight to enemies for the duration.
While not carrying his cask, Gragas instead performs a ground pound, dealing
80/120/160/200/240 + (16% current HP) magic damage to nearby enemies and stunning them for 1.5 seconds.
Range: Self, 365 (effect radius)
Targeting Type: None
Cooldown: 11/10/9/8/7
Cost: 60/65/70/75/80 mana
W: Take A Swig/Gut Buster
Gragas channels for 1.5 seconds, drinking 3 gallons of grog over 1.5 seconds and recovering (17/19/21/23/25% total HP) health over the duration.
While not carrying his cask, Gragas instead braces his gut for 1.25 seconds, causing the first basic attack or ability from an enemy champion that hits him from the front to bounce off, reducing its damage by 60/70/80/90/100 + (13% bonus HP). If the attacker is within 250 units of Gragas, they are additionally knocked 450 units back.
Range: Self
Targeting Type: None
Cooldown: 8/7.5/7/6.5/6
Cost: 30 mana
E: Barrel Roll/Body Slam
Gragas rolls his cask in front of him and gains 30% bonus movement speed for 3/3.5/4/4.5/5 seconds. Enemies he moves through are pushed aside, and Gragas will spill 1 gallon of grog on champions he pushes aside to slow them by 90% for 0.75 seconds.
While not carrying his cask, Gragas belly flops in the target direction, stopping upon colliding with an enemy before dealing 80/120/160/200/240 + (8% total HP) magic damage to nearby enemies and knocking them up for 1 second.
Range: Self (Barrel Roll), 600 (Body Slam target range), 180 (Body Slam effect radius)
Targeting Type: None (Barrel Roll), Skill Shot - Line (Body Slam)
Cooldown: 16/15/14/13/12
Cost: 50 mana
R: Happy Hour
Gragas hurls his cask at the target location, applying a 30/40/50% slow to nearby enemies that decays over 3 seconds, and altering his abilities until he picks it back up.
Grog flows from the cask towards a nearby ally every 1.5 seconds, spilling 1 gallon to heal them for 30/40/50 + (3% total HP). The grog will prioritize allies with lower health, and its healing effects are increased by 2% for every 1% health the affected ally is missing.
While not carrying his cask, Happy Hour can be re-activated while Gragas is near it, causing him to dash to it and pick it back up.
The cask can be targeted by enemy champions and spills 1 gallon for every (6/8/10% total HP) damage suffered, and will return to Gragas empty after 15 seconds or once it is fully depleted.
Range: 500 (target range), 250 (effect radius), 500 (dash range)
Targeting Type: Skill Shot - Circle
Cooldown: 40/25/10
Cost: 100/50/0 mana