DH5: 040 -Zilean, The Chronokeeper

Crabthief Fridays and our 40th highfive!

Looks like its time to buy some magic resistance! It's that chronokeeping king Zilean!

Zilean is a really fun looking character that fits into the classic mage role very well. I usually don't care for the floating champions but Zilean's mode of transportation really fits his character. The large time piece on his back really adds to his silhouette and  his spells are just cool enough to get a mention as well. Newer champions are getting better and better looking spells and the original champion's effects are really starting to show their age, luckily Zilean's looks are staying timeless! Uh-oh! That cunning crustacean is back! It looks like he's stolen Zilean's favorite wristwatch and Zilean isn't too happy with him!

In game i'm sure we've all had a BRUTAL experience against this time-bombing terror. Or maybe almost gotten that enemy only to see some wispy clouds form around him and him resurrect and get away? sure we've been on the giving end as well but we can agree that Zilean can really be a really powerful champion. I remember getting nailed with a rewind double timebomb and watching my health just blast down to nothing when i was first getting into the game. Zilean used to be able to sip in and naily you with one without even pulling turret aggro! So is there any time keepers out there that fancy talking about this time-bender? Drop us all a line in the comments below so we can stay on schedule!

-jouste the drawbarian

DH5: 039 -Kennen, The Heart of the Tempest

Alright! 39 highfives!

Man that's our third ninja in a row! it's that storm slinging shurikener Kennen!

Kennen is the third ninja in the ninja trinity and he is a pipsqueak in purple pajamas. He hurls shuriken and zaps around the map in lightning bolts and for the first 2 weeks of his release I thought he was a girl. The trouble with yordle characters I find is that the designer has to try and cram as much stuff onto their small frame as they can to keep him from looking overly simple. They remedy this by giving characters large weaponry or vehicles, Kennen falls into the category of the former with a shuriken he could eat off of. Here he is tossing that ninja-star backwards at whoever is chasing him and applying a shocking mark of the storm to the poor guy!

In game Kennen is a menace, I remember after a buff where he would gain more armor when he does his lightning rush, fighting Kennen made me cry. He's so shrill and can escape from almost anything as well as tie up nearly whole teams with his electrifying ult. Kennen is a monster than needs to be stuffed all game or else you're going to be in trouble. He tends to be built as a AD and AP hybrid and I always found those to be interesting builds because you usually have a greater variety of items to choose from. Although he isn't my kinda champion I know that theres gotta be some folks out there that love storming around with this guy! Sound off below as we wrap up our ninja triniity.

-jouste the drawbarian

DH5: 038 - Akali, The Fist of Shadow

Alright! Number 38!

Another ninja!? bah, alright let's get these guys all out of the way. It's Akali! That side-boobin' slayer!

Another basic ninja with not too much going on in the design department. But it must be said that a good friend of mine (Ipsquiggle) brought up her dynamic posture and silhouette and I have to agree that with the twin kamas and stealthy, widespread pose she does look interesting on screen. I like the whole smoke bombing thing with lightning quick strikes and it could be totally by accident but she is quite reminiscent of the two ninja type sisters from MK. Although she is most likely derived from some Anime or Manga series that I'm not familiar with and i could just be using my typical ignorance on the subject to totally westernize this character's inspiration, Mortal Kombat invented ninjas right guys?

I have to give a shout out to the player "bogieman" who played a really solid Akali with me a few days ago, I could play a pretty strong push game while Akali would be taking on multiple threats and tying up a lot of the enemy team. I initially thought that Akali was one of those characters that you needed to snowball to be good with but I've been proven wrong on a lot of occasions now and even though she's a ninja I still appreciate her presence on my team. Any fans of this kama-slinging slicer? drop a comment below along with your favorite smoke bomb!

-jouste the drawbarian

DH5: 037 - Shen, Eye of Twilight

37th highfive! no way!

Ewwww it's a ninja! How did he get in here!? looks like it's that saving shinobi Shen! ready to stop those assailants with a well timed shield!

I gotta say that the ninja champs that hang around in LoL are a bit on the generic side. They are all extremely symmetrical with hardly any variety at all. I think the main problem is they tried to be too authentic with these designs and the weapons and armor stray so little from the norm that they fall on the side of blandness. Shen is still a neat champion regardless though because of his toughness and tanky nature usually reserved for character types other than ninjas. the dual ninja-tos on his back and spiky shoulder armor are a nice touch and his surgeon skin is pretty slick as well. I'm also a pretty nostalgic guy, so to see him look like the ninjas in MK is pretty cool. (even though pirates ARRRR a lot better).

I pick on Shen a lot in some of my other sketches but it's really because he can save people at the perfect time and totally ruin a fight for the other team. He has a neat playstyle and is hilarious when put on a global team with TF, Pantheon and Nocturne or something. I was  always a little suspicious of the energy system in LoL but I figure that they are adding even more systems like rage and heat so there's gotta be something in the balance. Shen can taunt and although I hate getting hit by it, i love that it force taunts characters. It really makes you think before committing to a team fight or even a tower dive. So is there any Shen fans? sound off here with your stories of ninja saving action!

-jouste the drawbarian

DH5: 036 - Gragas, The Rabble Rouser

Our 36th Highfive! Hooray!

Get out of his way! it's that bruising boozer Gragas! Ready to body slam his way right into your team!

Gragas is a really fun looking champ, there definitely aren't enough giant bellied champions with lightning bolts war-painted to their bulks. He's probably got some of the greatest skins out there that range from gentleman to scuba, to hillbilly. His weapons are the casks that are rolled around and thrown around. he also slides into combat gut fist ready to bust up the enemies with his barroom brawling. A giant beard to go with his Giant Girth and you got yourself one hell of a champion! I've already given this one a shot but had to revisit him in the daily highfive style and get him a sportier cask for those champions on the go!

I never really got into caster Gragas, I primarily was tank Gragas and on the odd time attack damage Gragas. Those roles were a lot of fun to take on and you could get a lot of control to start happening in team fights. Then a nerf came that ruined my game, they added one more second to the cool down on body slam. It's weird but this totally ruined my Gragas game. I was so used to body slamming a certain way, that to add a second to the timer would totally throw me off. It was really interesting  to notice how one second can make all the difference in the world. Now I'm more focused on caster Gragas, but I think that I'd miss rocking that AP burst machine Sion too much to switch. Any Fans of the Grags? Drop us a line so we can Revel in this Rabble Rouser's glory!

-jouste the drawbarian 

Weekender vol. 008

Time to detect some metal with that deranged duo!

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The eighth weekender is here!

Another week has blown by and with it a series of daily highfives! I'm racking up something like 35 pictures so far and 8 weekenders it's actually going by pretty good! Picked up the Mortal Kombat this week and boy is it great. I've been super blown away at the amount of content on the disc and how trapped in the 90's the game is. It's a video game that knows it's a video game and isn't afraid to embrace the cheesiness of the characters and situations.

Lets follow some artists! I know these guys get billions of press anyways but check out the daily chops of Skottie Young and Scott Morse  when they tackle characters daily right Here! Its so great to see that whimsical style applied to some of the most famous characters ever created. Those champs even sell thier originals! what an awesome collaboration!

Have an excellent Easter pals!

-jouste the drawbarian