New League of Legends Champion revealed as Kalista, the Spear of Vengeance

League of Legends Kalista

Riot Games has revealed the new League of Legends Champion Kalista, a twisted specter whose powers grant substantial damage bonuses to her Soul-Bound allies.

Based by her description, Kalista is a powerful Champion, but not a powerhouse. "Kalista is a marksman who cooperates with her Soul-Bound to deal substantial sustained damage, access her full repertoire of abilities and wither her enemies under her relentless assault," it states. "Kalista’s potential is unlocked by solid communication and cooperation with allies rather than raw mechanical skill."

League of Legends designer Bradford "CertainlyT" Wenban said Kalista is designed for players who enjoy, or want to get better at, cooperative play. Bot lane fights often turn into two separate one-on-one battles rather than a proper two-vs-two contest, something the Sentinel passive Soul-Marked is intended to discourage through its emphasis on focused fire. At the same time, the character is designed to enable "tighter, more consistent teamwork without making Kalista so communication dependent that you practically need to play in the same room as your Soul-Bound."

"As designers, we are constantly trying to help players succeed. Building scenarios that overwhelm or confuse players is simple, laying the foundations for success is the challenge," Wenban wrote. "As such, Kalista highlights the cooperative end-state in which she and her ally are most likely to succeed and offers a tool kit to enable players to reach that state."

A detailed breakdown of Kalista is up now at leagueoflegends.com.

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Andy Chalk

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.