Lack of Force
Wraith is the Trait most affected by the lack of champions in the upcoming season 5.5. While in season 5, players had a full set of 9 Wraith champions, in season 5.5, Warwick, Viktor, Katarina, and Ryze will have to say goodbye. Notably, many of these champions were very strong despite their low cost, such as Viktor, Warwick, or even Katarina.
Only one addition, Miss Fortune, can be considered a bit too few. Although at the 6 Wraith threshold, activating the trait still adds 70 attack damage and ability power, the reality is that in the early game, Wraith has almost only 1-2 champions worth considering, forcing players to choose between leveling up early to open more slots on the board and looking for champions of 4-5 stars (which are very easily contested and difficult to upgrade) or slow-rolling to upgrade existing champions (which are not particularly strong late game or easy to combine into a team). Remember, Vayne and Hecarim have been nerfed quite a bit compared to the Vayne Claw meta or Hecarim Dark Bolt at the start of the season.
Similar reasons apply to Sorcerers and Mages; however, unlike Wraith, these 2 Traits are almost only used to mix with other team compositions, and very rarely do players build a full 6 Mages or 8 Sorcerers. The absence of a series of names like Viktor, Morgana, and Darius also affects these compositions to some extent.
Too Many Counters
With the appearance of a series of new names, most of which (Fiddlesticks, Gwen, Pyke, Lucian, Tristana, Akshan) have the ability to shred through the backline of the enemy team, using any champion as a damage dealer requires players to be very careful in their calculations. Not only the 3 mentioned compositions, but also other compositions like Angel and Legion will not withstand the heat if they keep being focused continuously.
Using Vel’Koz or Draven or Aphelios at the moment can be considered somewhat outdated. For example, with Vel’Koz, this champion will struggle to quickly eliminate a Mystic lineup with Fiddlesticks, Lux, Gwen, and Ancient Fear being able to ambush from behind. All players need to do is position Fiddlesticks to focus on Vel’Koz’s location. In fact, this ability of Scarecrow is even more effective than Assassins, as it does not require diving into the enemy formation to cast.
Everything would be resolved if the team had another damage dealer, but usually, when any of the trio Draven – Aphelios – Vel’Koz is present, most players will funnel items into these 3 champions. Otherwise, having them in the lineup will waste both money and slots, as they cannot fulfill their role. But with so many counters as mentioned above, it can be understood that not many players will prefer damage from Draven, Aphelios, or Vel’Koz anymore this season.
Too Expensive Core Champions
As mentioned above, the lack of force due to the disappearance of low-cost champions along with the Traits makes the early game very challenging for those wanting to use Wraith, Mage, or Sorcerer compositions. And when forced to upgrade, they will miss out on the 1-3 cost champions of their Traits. Moreover, the core champions (Aphelios, Draven – Viego, Vel’Koz) are too expensive, and the remaining champions also need a certain amount of items and levels to carry the team, which inadvertently makes it difficult for players to arrange their lineup and equip for the late game, especially if they intend to switch compositions.
It can be said that although Wraith, Sorcerer, and Mage have not been completely removed from the game, they now probably only serve the purpose of activating traits and supplementing damage as well as control and defense, rather than being the center of gameplay as before.