Ox Force is too strong in Season 8.5
After the arrival of Season 8.5 in Teamfight Tactics, the Ox Force trait has garnered much more attention from players. Replacing attack speed with defensive stats in Season 8.5 has made Ox Force champions significantly sturdier. This change is crucial for tanky champions like Alistar and Annie.
Not stopping there, Ox Force interacts exceptionally well with Twisted Fate, a very powerful unit. Essentially, Twisted Fate can easily activate both the Duelist and Sorcerer traits when paired with 4 Ox Force units. As a result, the Ox Force composition combined with Twisted Fate has become overwhelmingly strong and popular in recent times.
Details of the Ox Force Rework
For this reason, in the upcoming patch 13.8, Riot Games will be reworking the Ox Force trait. The goal of Riot Games is to remove the damage immunity effect (which cannot be balanced) to reduce the survivability of this trait. Specifically, the new Ox Force effect will grant champions a shield equal to 50% of their health the first time these units are defeated.
Simply put, Riot’s change will make Ox Force champions more vulnerable to high-damage carries. The previous damage immunity effect allowed Ox Force champions to avoid being defeated too easily and survive thanks to shield and healing abilities. The changes in patch 13.8 will open up opportunities to counter Ox Force champions, as long as the carry has enough damage.
Conclusion
In summary, the “new” Ox Force trait has had its natural tankiness significantly reduced. This necessitates players to invest more items and resources into Ox Force champions to ensure they remain durable. This adjustment is a necessary move to reduce the dominance of the Ox Force composition combined with Twisted Fate in the future.