League players divided as Syndra mid-scope update gives mage an execute

Syndra is getting a League of Legends mid-scope update in Season 12 with aims to get her back into the meta by making her a late-game monster with an execute on her ultimate, Unleashed Power. However, that mere difference is dividing players.

Syndra was well-known for her ability to pressure laners and assert dominance over her opponent. Good Syndra players can make laning a nightmare, and her burst potential can make duels a nightmare.

After the durability update, Syndra’s power level and popularity have been very low in comparison to other mid laners.

Riot is trying to fix this with a mid-scope update planned for LoL patch 12.19. In it, the League of Legends developers are overhauling her entire kit revolving around a reworked passive with different ability upgrades.

For the most part it’s pretty straight-forward and agreeable. She can now store two charges of her Q, Dark Sphere, once upgraded, and her Scatter the Weak cone on E is wider and more powerful after reaching the Splinters breakpoint.

The one part that is dividing players is adding an execute to her ultimate, Unleashed Power, at 100 Splinters on her new passive. League of Legends’ iconic ‘outplay button’ is known for nuking enemies where they stand, and adding an execute onto a notoriously powerful ability isn’t pleasing too many.

The reception for these changes has certainly been mixed. The execute on her ultimate has sparked its fair share of controversy, but some players are saddened by the fact that her early game power has been scaled back.

“Is the execute part actually needed,” some players questioned in reply to the changelist.

The 15% HP threshold puts it well below the execute that comes with the Elder Dragon buff, for example, but it’s also a big step up from the 5% health execute on The Collector.

Champion balance aside, I hate that they are trying to turn her into a scaling mage and taking away her most renowned identity as an early lane bully, 7s CD on Q until ~level 8 is gonna feel terrible even if she is much stronger late https://t.co/s7wFQC1ph7

— Beora (@_Beora) September 20, 2022

It’s hard to say where Syndra’s power level with lie after this update considering the mix of buffs and nerfs, but she’ll surely be much stronger and more consistent in the late game given all the attention put toward late-game payoff in her new passive.