League of Legends news » Champion rework: Trundle, the Troll King

As tensions rise in the Freljord, the frost trolls fight to preserve their homeland. Trundle, now troll king, leads his people with cunning, brutal strength and just enough biting wit to make would-be conquerors think twice about entering his frozen kingdom. When skulls need smashing, Trundle’s the troll for the job.

Trundle has a lot of changes coming. In addition to a complete visual rework, Trundle’s story has been revamped to reflect his new direction and new charge – using guile uncharacteristic of his people to lead them through tumultuous times. His gameplay is remaining the same with some tweaks.

 

Visuals

What began as a kickass ice troll skin for Trundle quickly transformed into a full-fledged campaign to reinvent his look. A frost motif, instead of disease and garbage, felt like a better fit for his slowing and displacement abilities, both of which are typically associated with ice.

Trundle’s model was reimagined into a badass ice troll alpha with a commanding battlefield presence. Trading his skulking hobble for a fearsome, imposing stride, Trundle’s now one champion you don’t want to troll.

Just like the Karma relaunch, those of you who already unlocked Trundle get a free skin based on Trundle’s traditional look, complete with classic VO.

 

Gameplay

Trundle’s abilities are receiving a few minor changes and tweaks to add some additional functionality to Subjugate and Frozen Kingdom (formerly Decompose and Contaminate, respectively). Trundle’s ultimate now steals a percentage of your target’s magic resist, armor and health in addition to dealing damage based their max health. Also, when you stand in Frozen Kingdom you gain increased healing from all sources.

Trundle was already pretty solid heading into the remake, so we didn’t want to change his core gameplay too much. These changes are intended to round out his skillset. Here’s a complete look at his new kit:

 

• Passive: King's Tribute – When an enemy dies near Trundle, he heals for a percentage of their max health.
• Q: Chomp – Trundle’s next attack deals bonus damage and briefly slows the target.
• W: Frozen Kingdom - Trundle creates a zone on the ground that increases his movement, attack speed, and healing from all sources.
• E: Pillar of Ice - Trundle creates an immovable pillar of ice that bumps back and slows nearby enemies.
• R: Subjugate - Trundle drains an enemy of armor and magic resist for a short time and damages for a percentage of the opponent’s max health.

 

In the jungle: Trundle excels as a safe and speedy jungler thanks to the healing effects from his passive and Frozen Kingdom. If your team needs lane pressure, you can block enemy escape routes and slow stragglers with Pillar of Ice while chasing down and damaging enemies with Frozen Kingdom and Chomp.

Mid game: As the match enters mid game, Trundle’s all about counter-ganking and securing objectives. He can utilize the increased attack speed from Frozen Kingdom and the attack reset on Chomp to quickly clear lanes and pressure towers. A clutch Pillar of Ice can be used to block enemies from stealing a crucial objective like the dragon or Baron, or pressure enemies into a hasty retreat.

Late game and teamfights: Once the team fights start, Trundle makes a great counter-initiator and disruptor. With a well-placed Pillar of Ice, Trundle can stop champions while they're charging through your front line or peel off carries from the main fight. Trundle can also troll beefy tanks and bruisers with Subjugate, tearing away their defenses and health to secure quick kills.

 

Story

In light of his new visuals, we also took the opportunity to revisit Trundle's story. We really wanted to broaden the audience that perceived him as a compelling champion. Trundle's now a major player on the world stage, acting as catalyst for the emerging conflict in the Freljord. Mercurial as ever, Trundle seeks to preserve his people by allying with an imposing, powerful force and to prove that a reunited troll army bows to no aggressor.

Trundle is a hulking and devious troll with a mischievous streak. There is nothing he can't beat into submission and bend to his will, not even the ice itself. With his massive, frozen club, he chills his enemies to the core and runs them through with jagged shards of ice. Fiercely territorial, Trundle chases down anyone foolish enough to enter his domain and laughs as they bleed onto the tundra.

Trundle's warband once followed a foolish and cowardly chieftain. Under such a weak leader, Trundle feared he and his kin would fall prey to the other troll hordes scattered across the tundra. Though the chieftain was bigger and stronger, Trundle dared to directly challenge him, but the confrontation ended in humiliation. Where most trolls would accept defeat, Trundle did something that wasn't very troll-like: instead of his fists, he turned to his wits. Thinking on his hairy feet, he spun a tall tale about the troll leaders of old, claiming they wielded weapons of great power as symbols of their right to rule. Though he'd made up the story on the spot, Trundle wagered that if he could find or steal such a weapon, he would become the rightful leader of the warband. The trolls believed him, but none thought him capable of undertaking such a challenge. Knowing the boastful troll would die trying, the foolish chieftain agreed and Trundle departed to the familiar sound of laughter.

Alone but undaunted, Trundle ventured into the foreboding realm of the dreaded Ice Witch. There, hidden among the many ancient and dangerous secrets, he planned to find a weapon to prove his elaborate tale. He out-muscled the Ice Witch's guards and outsmarted her dark magic traps, but nothing he scavenged matched the power he'd described to his kin. Finally, he found an unexpected prize: a huge and magical club of never-melting True Ice. Grasping the weapon, he marveled at the cold power that ran through him. But then the wrathful Ice Witch herself appeared. As she summoned her dark magic, Trundle believed he had met his end and failed his people, but another clever idea struck him. With a knowing grin, he offered the Ice Witch a devious proposition: a troll army would be of much more use to her than one troll corpse. Together, he told her, they could conquer the Freljord. The Ice Witch agreed, and Trundle departed with a powerful ally - one he was certain he could defeat when the time was right.

When Trundle returned to the warband, his fellow trolls bowed to his conquest. Calling his weapon “Boneshiver,” he took a moment to enjoy the look of numb shock on his chieftain's face before he caved it in. Seizing command, Trundle announced that there would no longer be chieftains - only a Troll King before whom all of his kind would kneel. The trolls rallied behind their brash, new leader and prepared for the coming war. With Trundle leading the charge, the time of the trolls had finally come.

"Outsmart anyone you can't beat, and beat anyone you can't outsmart." -- Trundle