Update, 3/6: The new kit isn’t out yet, but here’s your first look at new Galio!

Update, 3/7: Galio’s new kit has been announced and can be found right here.

Galio is an old champion in League of Legends, but I have always loved him dearly. Something about his weird color scheme and generally clunky design seems endearing to me. Well, the old gargoyle is getting a facelift sometime in the near future, as Riot announced back in August a massive rework for him is currently being worked on. With that in mind, I decided to have a go at designing the rework myself. What follows is my dream kit for the Galio rework.

In my opinion, Galio’s main identity is that of a Gargoyle who plays like an anti-mage. As such, he should have the tools to use mages’ power against them. While he should by no means be useless in other situations, his kit should be about avoiding getting killed by the enemy AP users and careful manipulation of the enemies’ positioning. Careful utilization of both should also give Galio the power to defeat his enemies without becoming unstoppable.

The (suggested) new kit

Passive - Idol of Durand

When Galio stands still, he turns to stone, granting him additional resistances. If Galio is standing inside of his own Pools of Ancient Magic (his new “E”), he gains the benefits of Idol of Durand.

Q - Mana-Bomb

Short cooldown, light mana cost, long range

Galio conjures and fires a magic ball in a targeted direction. The ball deals damage to all non-champion targets hit, and explodes if it collides with an enemy champion. Pools of Ancient Magic fire an echo of Mana Bomb.

Riot Games

W - Null-Magic Shield

Moderate cooldown, heavy mana cost, no range

Galio surrounds himself in a swirl of magic energy for a few seconds. The next spell that strikes Galio will only deal half damage. The other half will be absorbed into Galio. After absorbing power from an ability, Galio’s next auto-attack will gain increased range and deal the damage previously absorbed as true damage.

E - Pools of Ancient Magic

No mana cost, light cooldown on active, heavy cooldown on passive, moderate range on active, long range on passive

Passive: When anyone, friend or foe, uses an ability around Galio, the residue of their magic manifests itself into a Pool of Ancient Magic nearby. Each player can create only one Pool of Ancient Magic every 30 seconds.

Active: On a two-charge system, Galio can place Pools of Ancient Magic near him on the Rift. Pools of Ancient Magic will deal light damage to enemies who step inside them, as well as slowly drain their mana or stop them from regenerating energy. When Galio is inside a pool, his mana regenerates faster and he gains a brief movement speed bonus. When Galio casts Mana Bomb, any nearby pools will fire a reflection of Mana Bomb in the same direction. Pools of Ancient Magic dissipate after casting a reflection.

R - Mana-Storm

Heavy cooldown, heavy mana cost, long range on draw-in, short range on storm

Galio draws all Pools of Ancient Magic towards him, creating one large Mana-Storm, the size of which is determined by the number of pools absorbed. After a short pause the Mana-Storm will explode, dealing damage depending on the size of the storm. If Galio launches a Mana-Bomb before the Mana-Storm explodes, a massive, slow-moving Mana-Bomb will launch in his target direction, absorbing the storm before it explodes. If an empowered Mana-Bomb collides with an enemy champion, it will deal massive damage in an area as well as stunning all enemies hit for one second.

Playstyle

When designing this kit, I wanted Galio to be strong against mages, but have serious risk/reward considerations in team fights. With his passive, Galio has a way to lessen the damage of long range Ziggs bombs as well as post explosions like an empowered Viktor E. But with this kind of ability comes inherent risk. Galio may have no problem soaking up the extra damage from a Veigar ultimate, but Event Horizon will still get him stuck. When dealing with CC and multiple enemies, Galio still has to be careful of where he presses S.

In a similar vein, the design of the W is to encourage spellcasters on the enemy team to focus on other targets. Null-Magic Shield would be a huge powerhouse ability for Galio, but with careful aim on the enemies part, the ability can be wholly useless. Galio players also have a determination of risk, trying to decide whether half of the damage is worth the pay off. Sure, you could throw yourself in front of an ability to soak it up, but can you take the damage?

The rest of Galio’s abilities all center around these Pools of Ancient Magic. This is something that I really like from both a gameplay and a thematic perspective. The observant player should be able to carefully avoid being hit by the slow moving skill-shot that is Mana-Bomb, as well as all of its echoes. A player who dives in recklessly may find themselves getting hit by multiple bombs at once, which could potentially be bad for their health. Playing in and around the pools should be Galio’s bread and butter. With abilities like his passive and W, he needs some way to be proactive rather than reactive. Therefore, a forward-thinking Galio will be able to set up excellent situations to succeed.

Galio should probably be a more defensive-focused mid laner, aimed at shutting down a Viktor or Annie throughout the game. His Mana-Bombs shouldn’t deal outrageous damage, but he should have the power to change the tide of fights with a well coordinated attack. In Galio’s current, live state, he is either completely useless or a force of utter destruction. By giving him more of an identity as the magic manipulating team fight machine, he should hopefully find a similar place to a champion like Orianna, who has always been a solid staple of the mid lane.

I want to make it clear that this kit is made up of my own thoughts and collaborations with other Rift Herald folks. This in no way reflects the Galio rework that is being worked on by Riot. Thoughts and ideas are more than welcome in the comment section. What do you like? What would you change? Let me know!