It might be a bit soon to call Pantheon for retirement, but the hotfix that hit Teamfight Tactics yesterday will sure temper the fever that surrounded his initial release. Perhaps Riot suddenly realized that Yuumi Pantheon within a full Yordle/Sorcerer composition was just a bit too strong.
I mean, a 100 mana jump allowing a Champion to become un-targetable before dealing 30% of the maximum health points of your ENTIRE team is obviously one powerful ability. However, with Yuumi granting him the Sorcerer trait, Pantheon's ability was kind of a Starcraft nuke: inevitable, unstoppable, and terrifically destructive.
Well, brace yourselves because the Dragon Slayer has been struck by the nerf hammer through a quick hotfix!
• Mana Pool: 100/150 → 150/200
• Armor: 100 → 80
• Ability Damage: 15/30/45% → 10/20/30%
• Ability Stun Duration: 4/6/8s → 2/2/2
While it seems quite obvious that Pantheon needed his power to be a little bit decreased, the decision to also nerf the Guardian trait just seems a bit too much. Braum used to be one massive unkillable tank two patches ago but he got massively nerfed, Leona's ability was nerfed and she was also undirectly weakened by the Noble trait nerf. From this perspective, one may wonder if Riot's choice wasn't a bit too centered around Pantheon being too strong.
(2) → Allies adjacent a Guardian Unit receive +50 Armor → 35 Armor
Yes, Guardian is a very strong trait, especially because it fits easily in numerous compositions: you can play them with Nobles, Brawlers, even with Assassins — the only downside being the positioning requirement. This versatility allows Leona, Braum and now Pantheon to be added to any lineup without damaging its consistency. While Braum and Leona are two 'tank' Champions — thus bringing Crowd Control and protecting your carries — Pantheon is something else.
If you manage to build a composition around him, you can easily stack the Dragon and the Guardian traits — meaning Pantheon becomes one major unkillable thing, countering any other lineup. That being said, in contrast to Leona and Braum, Pantheon is a damage-dealer champion: that makes all the difference.
We get the fact that Riot doesn't want to spoil the essence of our beloved Spartan — and neither do we. We don't want him to become another tanky champion with a pointless ability — especially because an ability that makes a Champion lose the aggro isn't good at all on a tank. So, was the decision to nerf the Guardian trait justified? That remains to be seen...
Patches keep raining onto Teamfight Tactics! However, 9.17 has something else more: it introduces Pantheon! Check this out!
