Fleet Footwork Nerf Hits League of Legends Marksman Champions
The most popular rune for marksman champions in League of Legends, Fleet Footwork, is about to take a serious hit. Earlier this month, the rune received a movement speed boost reduction from 30% to 20% on the PBE. And now, with the latest update, the rune’s healing effectiveness against minions is also being lowered from 30% to 20%. This means that the overall survivability provided by Fleet Footwork will be significantly decreased.
Unfortunately, this nerf will make ADCs feel noticeably weaker on almost every champion they play. Fleet Footwork’s strength is why almost every marksman utilizes it, but these nerfs have been deemed necessary. When a single rune dominates the meta as Fleet Footwork has, it is a clear indication that it is too powerful.
However, there are concerns about these balance changes being too severe. Initially, when only the movement speed was being heavily affected, it seemed fair. But now, with multiple aspects of the rune being nerfed together, it might be viewed as excessive, at least on first glance.
Without the changes going live and being tested by the wider playerbase, it’s difficult to determine if these adjustments are healthy. The limited audience on the PBE cannot accurately reflect the opinions of the massive playerbase that use this rune in almost every game of League. Therefore, it’s important to keep an open mind and try it out on the new patch before forming a definitive judgment.
One additional concern revolves around Ezreal. He’s already a powerful and popular ADC who doesn’t rely on Fleet Footwork. As all other ADCs, including hyper-carries and early bullies like Jhin and Lucian, use Fleet Footwork, this significant nerf will impact almost every ADC except Ezreal.
This indirectly buffs the already-strong Ezreal, and we may see a repeat of the early season where he dominated every game, both in pro play and solo queue.
While the Fleet Footwork nerf is necessary, don’t be surprised if there are further changes for Ezreal on the PBE in the coming weeks.
League of Legends, Fleet Footwork, ADC, nerf, marksman champions, balance changes, Ezreal