It has been a much longer road than expected, but the Tahm Kench rework is finally here. The River King has been on League of Legends' PBE, so thoroughly tested, and brings the changes promised by Riot Games; but goes far beyond the simple switch between the (W) Devour and (R) Abyssal Voyage.
Riot Games have given details regarding the rework leading up to now; first hinted at during the teaser announcement for the Arcana Skins where we saw changes to Tahm Kench's abilities. He then simply appeared amongst the content on the League of Legends PBE heading into the 11.13 Patch. And so, without much fanfare, the Champion and all his new abilities were revealed. The lack of a major announcement is somewhat strange, especially considering that the rework had been up in the air for more than a year.
This leaves us questioning who will next. Tahm Kench is now live, and follows the recent Kog'Maw changes closely, so it is natural to expect another small rework or update to come over the next couple of months..
In what position will the champion play now?
As for Tahm Kench's role, it looks like the Champion is due to leave the Support position. With Devour now becoming his Ultimate, which now has too long a cooldown to able to consistently save allies. As a Support he will only be able to slow opponents with Q (Tongue Lash) and the initiation that he now has thanks to the new W (Abyssal Dive).
Despite scaling his Ability Power, it is most likely that he will not see the Mid lane either. Impossible also as a Botlane carry and hardly viable as a Jungler too.
This leaves only one option: a return to the Top lane. An acceptable option now that the Champion has more damage and his abilities are better adapted to the solo lane. Tahm Kench used to cause lots of problems in the Top lane due to his tankiness and sustain, and the damage and annoying crowd control; especially when his Q would stack his passive, which is does now with the rework. Now, however, he may be better tuned for the role, and therefore healthier for the game in the Top lane than he was previously.
Tahm Kench's new look is live now, on Patch 11.13, which was deployed in the early hours of June 23rd.
Original content by Bruno "GalleGutsito" Oubiña.
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