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Only a few weeks after Bel'Veth graced the Rift, Riot Games uncovered the newest League of Legends champion: Nilah, The Joy Unbound. Nilah will be available on League of Legends Patch 12.13.
Nilah (pronounced “nee-lah”), is designed to be a melee bot laner. Harnessing the power of a demon in a jar, Nilah uses her formless blade to whip her opponents into shape.
She's been confirmed to be voiced by Sandra Saad. Saad has voiced characters like Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel in the 2020 video game Marvel's Avengers, as well as some voices in Deathloop, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, and Fallout 76.
Nilah Abilities
Her kit raised some eyebrows with the return of XP “cheating,” the kind that we last saw with Mordekaiser before he was reworked. Passive aside, her W being able to dodge turret shots also had people screaming “RIOT” from the top of their lungs once again. Personally, this is one thing that I expect to be removed first from her kit when she gets her eventual nerf.
The rest of her kit feels like an iteration of Samira's, complete with the E-Q interaction. Again, she is intended to be played in the bot lane anyway, so this isn't that much of a surprise.
Passive – Joy Unending
When Nilah kills a minion, she and her nearest ally gain 50% of the experience they would have normally lost from sharing the kill.
Nilah gains 10% increased effectiveness from healing and 20% increased shielding shielding given to her by allied champions. If an ally heals or shields her, they will also gain the increased amount of the shield or heal themselves. If an ally shields or heals themself, Nilah will also gain the additional effect.
Q – Formless Blade
Passive: Nilah gains (33% Critical Chance) Armor Penetration, and her Attacks against champions restore (15% Critical Chance)% damage dealth Health. Overhealing from this is converted into a Shield for 6 seconds.
Active: Nilah cracks her whip-blade, dealing (5/10/15/20/25) + (80/100/120/140/160% Attack Damage) physical damage. If an enemy is hit, Nilah gainst 125 Attack Range and 20-76% (scaling off of Nilah's level) Attack Speed, and her Attacks hit in a cone as (110% Attack Damage) physical damage for 4 seconds.
Cooldown: 4 seconds
W – Jubilant Veil
Nilah shrouds herself in a Jubilant Veil and briefly gains (15/17.5/20/22.5/25%) bonus movement speed, takes reduced magic damage, and dodges all incoming basic attacks.
Touching an ally champion hides them in the veil as well, but they'll be protected for a shorter period.
Cooldown: 26/25/24/23/22 seconds
Mana Cost: 60/45/30/15/0
E – Slipstream
Nilah dashes through a unit, dealing (65/90/115/140/165 + 20% bonus Attack Damage) physical damage to any enemies she passes through.
Casting Q – Formless Blade during E – Slipstream pulls a wave in her path, dealing damage after a quick delay and granting Q – Formless Blade's enhanced basic attack effect.
Nilah can hold two charges of E – Slipstream at a time.
Recharge Time: 24/21/18/15/12 seconds
Cooldown (in-between casts): 0.5 seconds
R – Apotheosis
Nilah whirls her whip-blade, dealing (60/120/180 + 200% bonus Attack Damage) physical damage over 1 second, then finishes with a burst of (125/225/325 + 200% bonus Attack Damage) physical damage that also Pulls nearby enemies toward her.
Nilah heals herself and nearby allies by 30% + (15% Critical Strike Chance) of her damage dealt to enemy champions' Health, converting any overhealing into a Shield for 6 seconds.
Cooldown: 110/95/80 seconds
Nilah Stats
- Base HP: 590
- HP/5: 4
- HP Per Level: 101
- HP Regen Per Level: 0.18
- Base Mana: 350
- Mana Per Level: 35
- Base MR: 32
- MR Per Level: 2.05
- Base AD: 58
- AD Per Level: 2
- Base Armor: 30
- Armor Per Level: 4.2
- Base Move Speed: 340
- Attack Speed Per Level: 3
- Attack Range: 225
Nilah Skins
Classic Nilah
Nilah is an ascetic warrior from a distant land, seeking the world's deadliest, most titanic opponents so that she might challenge and destroy them. Having won her power through an encounter with the long-imprisoned demon of joy, she has no emotions other than unceasing jubilation—a small price to pay for the vast strength she now possesses. Channeling the demon's liquid form into a blade of unparalleled might, she stands defiant against ancient threats long forgotten.
Nilah's Classic skin has her wearing the same outfit she had on her release trailer: Yellow top, and pants identical to Yasuo's but with a purple tint. Her grey twintails match the silver adornments that she has, and the curve of the water from her jar follows the body of Ashlesh, the demon of joy whose powers Nilah harnesses.
In-game, Nilah's watery particles are very pronounced. Her twin-ended whip as well as her bright yellow clothing makes her stand out from the dull moss green of the Rift. When her Passive is activated by shielding or healing, four hand signs surround Nilah and her allies affected by the Passive. Her basic attacks, as well as her Q, makes a whip-like noise. The empowered cone attacks from having the Q buff up has a more “slash-y” sound effect, while regular attacks are sharper. Critical strikes causes Nilah to spin 360 degrees for an added oomph to her whipping. Under the effect of her W, a muffled sound effect plays akin to a tune heard underwater. Casting E causes her to leave a trail of water behind her, and a wave follows when Q is casted during the dash. Her ultimate will surround Nilah with a circular area of water, and she will whip her enemies inside 4 times in a second before the area implodes and pulls all enemies to her. Allies healed or shielded by her ultimate will have a pool of water emerge under them.
Upon death, Nilah's body disintegrates into a body of water and is reconstituted as she respawns.
Star Guardian Nilah – 1250 RP
A powerful Outer Guardian who patrols the wider universe, Nilah has faced multiple reality-ending threats and returned alive… making her a living legend among her peers. Asked to act as teacher to the new generation, she has reluctantly accepted her new responsibilities… though if a particularly big monster appears in VC, she always calls dibs.
In the splash art for Star Guardian Nilah, she stands in the middle of the city amidst awed people as she faces a threat off-frame. She has a more pronounced hilt this time, and pink “dust” comes out of her jar that materializes into her whip. Her two-tailed familiar, unnamed as of now, is also leaping into action. Star Guardian Nilah's color seems to be purple, accented by deep green. Not bad for a release skin, and if you feel like you'll be playing a lot of Nilah, then a Star Guardian skin would be fabulous to have.
Starting from her Recall, Star Guardian Nilah already seems amazing. An angelic voice plays, and she forms multiple hearts as she exits. For her emotes, instead of interacting with Ashlesh the demon, she instead performs them with her familiar. The demon hands from her passive effect is replaced by pink Star Guardian gems. The watery sound effects from her basic attacks and Q are mostly gone. What's left is a more crisp whipping sound, topped off with a little bit of magical sprinkle. Stars surround her and her allies under the effect of Nilah's W, and the underwater tune is replaced by one more fitting the Star Guardians. Using E to dash, as well as the following wave from the E-Q combo now has star particles instead of water. The ultimate is also changed to fit the theme. In the middle of the huge pink circle is the Star Guardian logo, complete with sparkles and magical girl sound effects.
Again, Star Guardian never fails to deliver consistency. If you're a fan of the champion or the skin line, Star Guardian Nilah isn't one to pass up on.
Nilah will be available on League of Legends Patch 12.13.
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