Seraphine was supposed to be a mid lane champion, but the community has always believed in support Seraphine. Did Riot finally give up after these changes in Patch 12.5?
From the moment Seraphine’s kit was revealed, players thought of her as a support. She heals, gives her allies a shield and slows them. Her ultimate is a long AoE charm, and the only real damage ability she’s got is her Q.
So, why was Riot pushing for her to be a mid laner so badly? Have they finally given up on ‘Mid Seraphine’? Let’s check out her kit and the upcoming changes to it in League of Legends patch 12.5.
What Can Seraphine’s Kit Do?
Seraphine was dubbed ‘Sona 2.0’ upon release. She has many similarities to the support champion. They’re both music-themed. They both heal allies, they’ve got a big stun, and they can do some insane poke damage.
So, with an upgraded Sona kit, Seraphine was supposed to be a mid laner according to Riot Games, yet her passive also enables her to deal more damage and gain extra range when near allies, and which champion is always in lane with another person? The support role!
Her E slows enemies, but if said enemy is already slowed, they’ll be rooted. This is another ability that works wonders in tandem with another player. For example, your lane partner uses Miss Fortune E, slowing enemies and Seraphine hits them with her E… well then the opponent is rooted and all we can say is ‘Hasta la Vista, baby’.
What Has Riot Changed on Seraphine’s Kit in Patch 12.5?
In League of Legends patch 12.5 Seraphine is getting a buff to her W. This is probably her best ‘support’ ability since it shields and heals her allies around her — and herself included, obviously. Until now, this ability would only shield allies for two-thirds of the shield Seraphine got.
Does this make sense? Basically, Seraphine would shield herself a bit more than allies standing within range of her W ability.
In the upcoming patch, this is going to be changed, though. Seraphine and her allies will have the same shield strength going forward. Not only that, but her heal will also be increased per level of the ability.
In a tweet by RiotPhroxon, he explained that “we expect W to be an attractive 2nd max after moving off level scaling”. So, will Seraphine be a full-time support champion now? Maybe. She was already most popular in the support role with the lowest win rate of all of her positions, though, hence, why Riot has decided to make these changes.
Support is her weakest role (by winrate) with significantly higher playrate while being underpowered (by our metrics).
So, if you’re sick and tired of dealing with Renata Glasc and you just want to lock Zeri down, get ready for Seraphine in LoL Patch 12.5, she will be a great asset to your team. Of course, you can also always test out Rell who was released in the same year as Seraphine.