Breaking down abilities and kit of Kayn
Kayn, the Shadow Reaper, is the newest champion getting ready to hit League of Legends. Here’s a breakdown of his unique abilities and kit.
When news hit that developers of League of Legends were indeed working on a new champion, everyone was excited to see what the final result would be. Of course, with the way the internet is, news started to leak as to which developers beat everyone to it and simply announced Kayn, the Shadow Reaper, to the masses.
Right off the bat, it’s easy to see why many feel he could be one overpowered champion. For starters, his passive, the Darkin Scythe, will transform him into either a Shadow Assassin or Darkin. Basically, if Kayn faces ranged opponents, he’ll turn into a Shadow Assassin champion that does bonus magic damage during the first few seconds of combat. On the flipside, if Kayn faces melee opponents, he’ll transform into a Darkin champion that heals for a chunk of all spell damage dished out to enemies.
His Q – Reaping Slash ability is a straight out dash forward striking enemies at the end with physical damage. Against monsters in the jungle, it does bonus damage. Under Darkin form, it deals bonus percent-health damage against everything with the exception of minions.
Kayn’s W – Blade’s Reach is an interesting ability that does damage in a straight line and slows everything hit. In Shadow form, it will leave behind a living shadow that casts Blade’s Reach but with extended range. In Darkin form, this ability will knock enemies straight up into the air.
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The most controversial ability in Kayn’s kit is his E – Shadow Step. Believe it or not, this ability allows him to gain a burst of movement speed and walk through walls.
Not only that but the first time he enters a wall, it’ll heal him a bit and the duration of Shadow Step will be extended.
If he’s in combat, Kayn won’t get the extension but this move might be something that needs to either be adjusted or even completely changed as it’s currently being tested out in the Public Beta Environment. In Shadow form, Kayn gets additional movement speed and is immune to all slowing abilities.
Kayn’s ultimate ability, R – Umbral Trespass, allows him to infest any champion he’s recently damaged while being completely untargetable for a few seconds. If you’re in Shadow form, it can be unleashed from farther away and completely resets your bonus magic damage as you exit their body. If you’re in Darkin form, it will deal extra damage as a percentage of their maximum health and also heal you in one fell swoop.
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At the end of it all, Kayne lives up to his nickname of the Shadow Reaper since he can endlessly go from kill to kill across the map with how fluid his kit is. Once he’s officially added to League of Legends, it’s easy to see him be a strong top lane champion or even one annoying jungler. His ability to transform in the middle of a match based on the composition of the enemy team is a true game-changing option.