Trinity Force Podcast - A League of Legends Podcast

Four of us get together to celebrate Christmas by discussing what we loved and hated about Season 4! We'll get into how to ward and what you should be doing with your sweeper and then discuss ways to get better at League. First, Gatherer’s Gourmet Granola is back to offer you delicious granola at cheap prices! Visit http://bit.ly/tforcegranola and then use the offer code “TFORCEGG” for 10% off your order! If that’s not enough to get you excited then you’ll be happy to hear that each order submitted with the offer code “TFORCEGG” is entered in for your chance at $10 in RP! So order granola TODAY or miss out on free RP! The second way to win RP is to write into contest@trinityforcepodcast.com and tell us why you’ve been naughty or nice. Remember: We have contacts at Riot!

We talk Rek'sai and what to play in the top lane (that isn't meta) on this episode of the podcast! Do you want a chance to win RP? We’ve got a double shot for you! First, Gatherer’s Gourmet Granola is back to offer you delicious granola at cheap prices! Visit http://bit.ly/tforcegranola and then use the offer code “TFORCEGG” for 10% off your order! If that’s not enough to get you excited then you’ll be happy to hear that each order submitted with the offer code “TFORCEGG” is entered in for your chance at $10 in RP! So order granola TODAY or miss out on free RP! The second way to win RP is to write into contest@trinityforcepodcast.com and tell us why you’ve been naughty or nice. Remember: We have contacts at Riot!

Pwnophobia isn't here so the crew plays! Patch 4.20 discussion (Yes, AGAIN) that includes MORE Kalista and ADC talk!   Don't forget to check out our sponsors at Prolific Games. They're running a Kickstarter for an expansion to their game Flapjacks & Sasquatches that they need your help to fund! Grab both the core game AND the expansion for $40 over at http://bit.ly/tforcegame.

Want to hear about what we're trying in Patch 4.20? Then stick around for discussion about Pantheon jungle, Rumble top lane, and the last 20 minutes of the podcast discussing Kalista!   Don't forget to check out our sponsors at Prolific Games. They're running a Kickstarter for an expansion to their game Flapjacks & Sasquatches that they need your help to fund! Grab both the core game AND the expansion for $40 over at http://bit.ly/tforcegame.

Riot game designers Ghostcrawler, Khoopa, and RoamingNumeral come on the Trinity Force Podcast to discuss Patch 4.20, pre-season 5, and more!! Time Stamps: 2:00- Introductions 3:10- Give us your thoughts on Season 5 and what you envisioned for it. While looking into changing the jungle, the towers, the baron, the dragon, and more, what was your goal for the game? 5:55- During the AMA designers admitted that there was a concern that there would be too much vision added into the game due to the scuttle crab and wolves. Do you see this being a problem in the future and if so what steps would be taken to address it? 10:14- Reduction of Vision 12:40- Was there concern about adding in uncounterable vision in front of 2 key objectives? Why was it decided to make the Scuttle Crab vision uncounterable? 15:44- Crab movement. 18:04- Assuming that you are spot on with every timer, it takes roughly 30 minutes to obtain all 5 of the dragon buffs. General Dragon talk. 21:12- First Dragon buff vs Towers 24:20- How did your design team come up with at what level you would get what buff? Some are complaining that buffs 2 and 4 are underwhelming in comparison to the other buffs. As Riot watches games (both solo and pro), do you think we will see minor tweaks to what level the buffs are available? Say moving buff 1, the AP and AD, to buff 3 instead where it could potentially have a larger impact on the game. 30:39- The Dragon is now classified as an Epic monster and has to be “tanked” by a single person (facing it away from the group). It has been argued that the team stealing the objective has the advantage. Do you feel that this added need for positioning unintentionally gives the team that is contesting the objective an advantage? 33:13- Do you have any plans to remove the ability to “tank” dragon with neutral plants / cannons? 35:39- We’re all aware that the Baron buff empowers nearby minions. Coupled with a few levels of the Dragon buff, this could be misinterpreted as an excuse to split push. Are you aware of the complications this could impart on solo queue? 40:04- Were they envisioning sustain jungler having such an impact immediately? were they trying to rescind power from the common top tier junglers we've been seeing over and over for the past year? 42:52- For champions(WW specifically), that are too strong at the moment, is it the champion or is it the items that are overtuned? 45:53- Skirmishers having internal CD 53:05-Now that Dragon buff globally gives players bonuses the game has seemed to slow down a fair bit. Was this a by product of the changes or do you feel that it’s because players are being cautious with the new changes? 59:58- How did you decide on the current jungle camp buff options? Were there any crazy buffs that didn’t make it into the game for one reason or another? 63:53- In season 3 we saw laners taking advantage of jungle items which caused some champions to be more powerful than what we perceived to be intended. Without saying that a lane cannot take Smite, what was the process the design team took to keep jungle items where they belong? 68:36- Why do you not have to kill the minion to get the buff? 70:46- There has been a lot of discussions about the mana regeneration changes. Will the amount of mana regeneration available through current midlaner paths (for example athenes) be less in season 5? 72:37- How will you balance this vs. resourceless/energy champions? 73:57- Morello made a comment that the pick/ban phase is being looked at for an update. He did say that these plans didn’t currently include upping picks/bans. Is there any insight you can give us into the possibilities that are currently being explored? 75:08- DOTA 2 Pick/Ban phase 76:00 - End of game gifting

With the host gone for another episode, CarrotColossus steps up to help host the show and discuss Patch 4.20! Careful, the audio is a bit rough! Don't forget to sign up for the Audible Trial!  http://audibletrial.com/TForcePodcast If Audible isn't your thing there is always a Nature Box: http://tinyurl.com/tforcenature

The crew (sans pwnophobia) talks about pre-season 5 in this first of two parts! Article to follow along: http://www.newsoflegends.com/index.php/preseason-for-dumbies-a-guide-for-every-change-coming-to-league-29268/ Don't forget to sign up for the Audible Trial!  http://audibletrial.com/TForcePodcast If Audible isn't your thing there is always a Nature Box: http://tinyurl.com/tforcenature

We spend this ENTIRE podcast talking itemization while breaking down the good, the bad, and the ugly of last Sunday's best of three. Come hang with us and we show you how to evaluate your replays so you can become a better player. The TForce Proper vs LCS Rundown VODs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFGF9NFTKf0&list=PL5qiMA6E5ZR-LuzPxkkSzrtbCv1TPfPNa Don't forget to sign up for the Audible Trial!  http://audibletrial.com/TForcePodcast If Audible isn't your thing there is always a Nature Box: http://tinyurl.com/tforcenature

We've got an intense episode for you today! Join the crew as they go over Sirlin.net's book entitled "Playing to Win" - http://www.sirlin.net/articles/playing-to-win  Don't forget to sign up for the Audible Trial!  http://audibletrial.com/TForcePodcast If Audible isn't your thing there is always a Nature Box: http://tinyurl.com/tforcenature

It's a four man episode but that doesn't stop the crew from spending half the show talking about the new Sona! Learn how to play her, what not to do with her, and how to win the lane (and the game) by playing just the right amount of aggressive. After that discussion is buried, we'll answer a single listener question about stopping snowbally champions that kind of...snowballs...out of control. Don't forget to sign up for the Audible Trial!  http://audibletrial.com/TForcePodcast If Audible isn't your thing there is always a Nature Box: http://tinyurl.com/tforcenature

Another listener episode including Aussie host Lee Herridge! (Now with fixed audio) Don't forget to sign up for the Audible Trial!  http://audibletrial.com/TForcePodcast If Audible isn't your thing there is always a Nature Box: http://tinyurl.com/tforcenature

Lots of jungle questions as we say farewell to Domenic and hello to Punchinelloo! Check out the list of questions we answered below and be prepared to be "up in the jungle" FoeKingNoodles writes: “When counter-jungling, is it better to clear the entire camp to get the timer or to leave one minion so they have to clear it out? Is this jungler or matchup specific?” Alec writes: “How do you maximize lane presence from the jungle while also maximizing your creep score? More specifically, how much (CS or gold) is a gank (failed or not) worth? It seems to me that time management heading into mid game is my biggest downfall and I would love to hear what ideas you have to fix it.” Klalan Liaster writes: “I am an ADC main but I have been jungling recently and I am a relatively inexperienced player. After my first clear and ganks, I'm not sure what to do. When is the best time to gank as a jungler, and when is the best time to farm?” TruthAM writes: “When might be it appropriate to get some of the lesser used support items, like Zeke's Herald or Banner of Command? I try to look at both team comps to determine what might be most beneficial but if there are no obvious things to itemize for (like the other team being heavily AP), I frequently find myself at a loss.” Furry eWok writes: “Support items have a lot of cooldown reduction and actives. Do these make ‘ideal’ support builds impossible? And does the role become too overwhelming due to the actives?” Jodie writes: “I have trouble playing consistently over long periods of time. I win a ton of games in a row, then I lose a ton of games in a row. This happens all the time, leaving me to go between S3 and S5 for a majority of the time. How can I play more consistently so I don't have these huge win/loss streaks?” Jack writes: “During pro play, the casters mention ‘red side champs' and 'blue side champs.' I was hoping you could elaborate the advantages to both sides and giving examples of champs who generally have disadvantages when played on a specific side.” Kalen writes: “How would you describe League of Legends to a completely gaming illiterate individual while still conveying enough detail for him or her to understand what it is?” Don't forget to sign up for the Audible Trial!  http://audibletrial.com/TForcePodcast If Audible isn't your thing there is always a Nature Box: http://tinyurl.com/tforcenature

Mailbag episode with questions dating from about a month ago. How do I get better as support? Where should I ward? Is my champion pool large enough? This and more on this week's TForce! Don't forget to sign up for the Audible Trial!  http://audibletrial.com/TForcePodcast If Audible isn't your thing there is always a Nature Box: http://tinyurl.com/tforcenature

DeClawd steps on Hornet's soap box to talk about the new Sion! Jungle? Top lane? Mid lane? Support? Where does this Goliath fit in the current meta? And then, to top off the night, we discuss the 4 primary fringe pick at worlds (Jayce, Rumble, Zilean, Janna) and discuss why they are popular there as well as solo queue. Don't forget to sign up for the Audible Trial!  http://audibletrial.com/TForcePodcast If Audible isn't your thing there is always a Nature Box: http://tinyurl.com/tforcenature

THIS POST INCLUDES UPDATED AUDIO. Patch 4.18 discussion on this week's Trinity Force Podcast! Come find out why Azir is (still) going to be powerful, what the changes mean for Tristana, and why isn't Chirajaeden eating any food?! Patch notes: http://na.leagueoflegends.com/en/news/game-updates/patch/patch-418-notes Don't forget to sign up for the Audible Trial!  http://audibletrial.com/TForcePodcast If Audible isn't your thing there is always a Nature Box: http://tinyurl.com/tforcenature