Riot details process of designing new LoL champ Smolder to be ‘straightforward’ ADC

Dragons are all the rage in 2024, and Riot Games is jumping on the bandwagon with a new flying, fire-breathing face in League of Legends—one whose development remained methodical at nearly every turn.

In a new champion insights blog post shared today highlighting the newest bundle of energy set to ignite Summoner’s Rift soon, various members of Smolder’s development team provided an in-depth look at the thought processes behind League’s newest dragon champion—and how he differs from the other fearsome beasts already in the cast. And while Smolder was created to directly tie into the Year of the Dragon, many pre-existing champions and pieces of lore played a big part in what ultimately became the next addition to the growing League cast.

One of the central design philosophies with Smolder was to add an ADC to the bot lane lineup “that’s a bit easier to play,” with producer Riot KingCobra specifically pointing out champions like Zeri and Aphelios that have convoluted, untraditional marksman kits and mechanics. Deciding on this route for Smolder allowed the team to narrow in on a “cute” thematic for the champion—even working with the Legends of Runeterra team to make his background as a dragon from Camavor make sense with what exists already in that game.

Smolder’s development team also sought to actively make him feel different from the other playable dragon champions, Aurelion Sol and Shyvana. Game designers Riot Llama and Riot TwinErso noted that Smolder acts as an antithesis to these other champions, beginning in a rather weak form while slowly growing more powerful as the game progresses. Riot TwinErso even specified that Smolder’s ability to both fly and breathe fire—that he believes “should happen in any dragon that [they] make—was originally planned to be a part of pre-rework Aurelion Sol and even Shyvana, who will be receiving a long-awaited rework later this year.

Much of the League community was perplexed at the design of Smolder when he was first teased last week, noting his “humanlike” face that not only stood out against Aurelion Sol and Shyvana but also dragons that appear in various skins for other champions. Since then, Riot has confirmed Smolder’s face will be undergoing design adjustments, even showcasing a small “before and after” look at what is being prepared internally. It is unclear if these are the final changes to Smolder’s face or if more will be made before he is added to the PBE for testing.

Players will be able to control the evolving fire of Smolder soon as he is expected to join League’s roster of champions officially in the next several weeks.