Font of Life: Abuse it or Delete it?
Introduction
In League of Legends: Wild Rift (WR) there are 8 primary runes to choose from. These runes, like their League of Legends PC (PC) counterparts, are known as keystone runes. While discussing these WR keystone runes with my friend apo11o, we spent a bit of time talking about Font of Life (FoL): Why is it even in the game?; Why take Font of Life when engage supports could take Aftershock (for additional defenses during an engage) or enchanters could take Aery (to damage enemies or shield allies)? What use does a small heal serve? From our point of view, the only champion that players frequently take FoL on is Braum, likely because it is his default rune. After some quick thoughts, which evolved into not-so-quick brainstorming, apo11o and I realized this rune has the potential to be viable, if not a top-tier rune choice. If you have a few minutes, we’d like to explain why.
I just take whatever Rune the game gives my champ, the heck is Font of Life?
As mentioned above, FoL is a keystone rune mainly picked up by champions that play in the support position. The Wiki page is linked, but the basic use of the rune is as follows: upon slowing or immobilizing an enemy champion, they are marked for 4 seconds (the mark is a leaf). Ally champions who auto-attack these marked enemies will heal for 3% of the FoL user’s maximum health over 2 seconds.
So how good is a 3% max HP heal? A quick read of this rune would suggest that the healing provided is serviceable at best; despite that, apo11o and I decided to explore FoL further. Here are our initial findings:
- FoL has no cooldown. For example, if you are using FoL and slow an enemy champion with ability X and then stun another enemy with ability Y immediately afterward, they will both be marked.
- After the mark is applied (through stuns, slows, and other crowd control features), its duration can be extended before its expiration after 4 seconds. Let’s say you are using FoL and slow an enemy, thus applying the mark. 3 seconds into the mark’s duration, you apply a slow again — the mark’s duration will then be refreshed (or extended). The mark will now have lasted a total of 7 seconds (3 seconds from the first slow, 4 additional seconds from the second slow).
- Each mark will always last 4 seconds. Following the previous point, auto-attacks from allied champions do not and cannot “consume” the mark.
- Allied champions can proc (activate) FoL via auto-attacks as many times as their Attack Speed allows them until the 4 seconds elapse. Accordingly, if an allied champion can auto-attack two times per second, they ideally would be able to heal from a FoL mark 8 times before it disappears.
- The FoL user can also heal from auto-attacking an enemy they have marked.
- Furthermore, it was found that all teammates can benefit (receive FoL’s healing) from auto-attacking the same marked enemy champion at the same time.
- Abilities do not proc the mark’s heal, with the exception being abilities that are considered auto-attacks (a.k.a. on-hit abilities). An example of this would be Yasuo’s first ability, Steel Tempest.
A Deeper Dive
If you aren’t interested in the nitty-gritty of the analysis, then you can skip this section and the next “Healing 101” section; however, you will lose out on a better understanding of how FoL works.
At this point, you’re probably realizing that there’s more to Font of Life than meets the eye. As such, it’s appropriate to get into the weeds and really understand how this rune works before jumping to any conclusions.
Let’s begin with FoL’s description which states that the FoL heal is delivered over 2 seconds.
But how is the heal — from auto-attacking the mark once — distributed over those 2 seconds? To answer this question, we decided to screen-record an allied champion’s HP when auto-attacking a marked target and reviewed the footage to get an idea of how the champion healed. We found that on a single autoattack, the allied champion immediately receives a considerable heal, shortly followed by another smaller heal. The rest of the FoL heal was then more-or-less equally distributed in bursts for the remainder of the 2 seconds.
Note: if you want to run this test yourself, you will need to control for HP regeneration. The HP Regen value given in-game is the amount of HP that is passively healed over 5 seconds, received every second. Therefore, if you had an HP Regen = 10, you would passively heal for 2 HP per second, for 10 HP over 5 seconds.
Looking into the LoL PC Wiki page on FoL, we find a distribution that seemingly matches our findings. Per the wiki:
Font of Life restores 40% of the total heal on-hit, then 15% after 0.1 seconds, then 15% every 0.55 seconds occurring three times.
This matches our findings and corroborates with our own tests, where we found strikingly close (insignificantly different) percentages ( i.e. 18% healing instead of 15%).
Now, how do multiple successive auto-attacks interact with FoL? Mainly, how do they interact with the distributed healing? In the best-case scenario, every FoL proc from the same ally champion would be considered independent from one another. This means that every auto-attack made on a marked enemy (a.k.a. proc) in quick succession would in turn always heal the attacker for 3% of the FoL user’s health. For example, if an ally rapidly auto-attacks a marked enemy 5 times, and if the expected full healing per auto-attack is 100 HP, it would accordingly be expected that the ally heals for a total of 500 HP after the auto-attack sequence. Unfortunately, this is not the case; the amount healed is noticeably lower than 500.
apo11o and I spent a lot of time closely reviewing footage, and we determined that ongoing FoL procs can be interrupted by another FoL proc. Per the Wiki quote above, the first auto-attack (time = 0 sec), the ally champion will heal 40% of the total heal on-hit, followed by another 15% 0.1 seconds later. At 0.65 seconds, they will heal another 15%, followed by an additional 15% at 1.2 seconds and then again at 1.75 seconds. By the end of 2 seconds, the ally champion will have gained the full FoL heal.
However, auto-attacking at any point within the 2 seconds cuts the heal-sequence short and begins the process again for the next proc. For example, if you auto-attack again 1 second into the first 2-second FoL heal distribution, then it will be cut short, and you would thus only receive 70% of the total heal for the first proc.
Healing 101
Since we now know that auto-attacks made in quick succession can reduce FoL healing, we need to determine its relationship with attack speed; this is because as a champion auto-attacks more frequently, their total healing per auto-attack decreases — but their overall healing over the course of several auto-attacks may still increase. To put it simply, we need to know if high attack speed is good or bad in terms of FoL healing. In order to easily answer this question, let’s assume that a full FoL heal provides 50 HP and that at the moment the mark is applied, an allied champion auto-attacks. We created a table in which said ally had varying attack speeds, and then found how many consecutive auto-attacks they are optimally able to fit into the 4-second mark duration.
Note: The results from that computation can be used to calculate how much healing the allied champion gets from auto-attacking in the 4 seconds, factoring in the loss of healing dependent on attack speed. If you’re curious about exactly how this works, feel free to @ me on Twitter. If you’d like to learn how to speak French, reach out to Halinator. (omegalul)
Feel free to review the table, but the numbers are far more interpretable in the graph. There we find that the amount of overall healing scales with attack speed (upwards trend). Each “dip” in the graph represents the thresholds at which certain attack speeds cut the FoL healing short by 15%; however, the healing recovers and proceeds to provide a net increase with attack speed. Note that since 40% of the healing is delivered on-hit, and is followed 0.1 seconds afterward by 15% of the total healing, FoL effectively guarantees a minimum of 55% of the total healing per auto-attack.
Keep in mind that these numbers are under the assumption that the full FoL heal is 50 HP; but, the graph looks exactly the same for other values. The graph’s scale, however, scales with the full HP heal provided by FoL. For example, a FoL heal of 100 HP would double the scale of the graph above as 100 is double 50. I will explain why later, but the amount of HP on the FoL user needed to provide a 50 HP FoL full-heal (1667HP) is well within the grasp of every champion, without any items purchased. Consider then that at the highest possible attack speeds, allies can heal almost 300 HP every 4 seconds, assuming optimal gameplay.
A more conservative take would be to consider an ally with a 0.9 attack speed (which is easily within the reach of the majority champions without any attack speed items); this champion would optimally receive 155 HP every 4 seconds. To put this in perspective, if you had 15% physical vamp, the amount Bloodthirster gives, you would need to deal over 1000 physical damage to heal 155 HP. Factoring in the fact that all allies can benefit from FoL and it can be reapplied after 4 seconds, the strength of this rune is quite apparent.
Noteworthy Interactions
Anything that slows will apply the FoL mark, not just crowd control abilities. This includes items that provide slows, such as Rylai’s Crystal Scepter and Frozen Mallet. Note that when using Frozen Mallet, the FoL user will not heal off the first autoattack on the enemy champion, but will heal on consecutive auto-attacks.
Building off the previous point, we discovered that if Ashe takes FoL as her keystone rune, her auto-attacks will apply the mark and heal off of it in the same attack. We believe that since Ashe’s passive allows her auto-attacks to slow, the server applies the mark and in the same instant evaluates the auto-attack to be independent of FoL, subsequently healing her. I imagine this will be patched out sooner or later. Until then, in terms of FoL healing, she practically has a free built-in Frozen Mallet passive (although she does heal off her first auto-attack).
Runaan’s Hurricane’s bolts also count as auto-attacks that trigger FoL healing. Thus, a Runaan’s user can receive triple FoL healing via three marked enemy champions from the same autoattack. If we again assume a champion with an attack speed of 0.9 and a FoL full-heal value of 50 HP, said champion will now heal an ideal total of 465 HP over the duration of the mark (3 x 155 HP, the optimal heal every 4 seconds from attacking one marked enemy champion).
Considerations
As you would expect, the greatest counter to healing is grievous wounds. The summoner spell Ignite, along with items such as Morellonomicon, Executioner’s Calling items, Bramble Vest items, and other grievous wounds sources are clear counters to Font of Life. On the other hand, I would argue that by forcing the enemy team to allocate gold into purchasing grievous wound items, allies are able to comparatively spend more gold on high-damage items, relative to the opponents.
Note: Depending on the item, grievous wounds will either reduce healing by 40% or 60%.
It is critical to remember that FoL healing is derived from 3% of the user’s maximum HP. Thus, when taking this rune, you should look to increase your HP whenever possible. Two “breakpoints” to consider are at ~1667 HP and ~3333 HP; at these HP values, allies can receive a maximum heal of 50 HP and 100 HP per FoL proc, respectively. As such, it follows that one should take a champion with high base-HP and stack relevant HP items in order to hit and surpass these breakpoints. Yet, the champions with high base-HP are oftentimes the ones who would arguably benefit more from taking Aftershock than FoL due to their aggressive playstyles. Alistar is a key example, as he is a champion with above-average base HP at level 1 and the second-highest base HP at level 15. He is commonly played as an engage tank who often requires Aftershock in order to survive in teamfights.
There are some champions that are quite effective at utilizing both Aftershock and FoL — champions that provide peel, or protection from enemies, and have a strong engage. Braum is a prime example of this dichotomy; his kit is enormously useful in team compositions that play to peel for carries, but it is also solid in engage comps. Yet, many players take FoL on Braum with disregard to the function he is supposed to play in a team composition. Please do not take this rune absentmindedly. If you take FoL, you must then play around the fact that Braum is far less durable without Aftershock. Rakan is another champion that functions in a similar way. When should you take FoL on champions that can use both Aftershock and FoL? Consider your team composition; do any of your allies get strong use out of FoL (i.e. ADC’s, Master Yi, Diana, Graves, etc.)?; how does your team want to play the game (low-tempo or high-tempo)?
What about enchanters then? Champions like Lulu and Nami have kits that lend themselves to easy application of FoL. With that being said, this comes with a tradeoff; enchanters generally have the lowest base HP values in WR. For instance, Lulu has the lowest base HP in the game, reaching a mere 1860HP at level 15 compared to Alistar’s 2500HP (a difference in value of ~2133 gold!). While enchanters lose out on easily being able to hit high amounts of maximum HP, they are potentially the best class of champions in the game at being able to use and play around FoL. Why? Champions such as Lulu, Janna, Lux, Seraphine, Nami, and others have multiple ways to apply FoL. Additionally, many of the ways to apply it have short cooldowns, long range, and/or can apply to multiple targets at once. These champions will also not use Aftershock leaving FoL and Aery as the only real choices. One interaction to note is on Nami, if you cast Tidecaller’s Blessing (3), your ally’s empowered auto-attacks will not only apply FoL but will also trigger it in the same auto-attack. This means the ally would heal themselves off of the applied slow immediately on hit. Finally, there are a variety of serviceable items enchanters can purchase that provide respectable amounts of HP, such as Ardent’s Censer, Protector’s Vow, etc.
So what about Aery? Is it better to use on enchanters than FoL? Apo11o and I are inclined to make the case that Aery is only good for games where you are playing to bully in lane — the defensive capabilities of Aery are lacking compared to FoL (especially when you consider Aery can only be shielding a singular person at once). Let’s assume one final time a champion with an attack speed of 0.9 and a FoL full-heal value of 50 HP, which gives an ideal heal of 155 HP over 4 seconds. A level 15 champion with Aery would need 175 AP to cast a 155 HP shield (120 base + 55 from the AP ratio). Aery scales quite poorly, with only a 20% AP Ratio. We can surmise that Aery will be cast once on a single target in a 4 second time period, as Aery has travel times to and from target champions, and will usually persist on the target for 2 seconds. Keep in mind, this is a scenario that is tilted far in the favor of Aery, and yet when you take into account all the factors (how much AP needed, FoL is multi-ally healing), Aery falls short from a defensive standpoint.
Recommendations
One of the first criteria for a good Font of Life champion is one that is (or has the potential to be) able to easily apply the mark and/or apply it to multiple enemies.
Enchanters and some melee supports are great for utilizing FoL. For enchanters, look to build magic or defense items that provide HP like Rod of Ages, Ardent Censer, Protector’s Vow, etc. Ultimately, FoL is a rune that fits well with playstyles that aim to play slow — such as long-range team compositions that look to play at a distance as well as compositions that play to peel for carries. Enchanters can also consider buying Warmog’s Armor at some point. Warmog’s provides 700 HP (more than any other item), and its passive is perhaps best used in a slower-paced playstyle. This recommendation may sound ridiculous; however, Warmog’s synergizes extremely well with FoL and can thus be effective. For melee champions, tank items that grant bonus HP are generally good purchases.
Champions who build Rylai’s Crystal Scepter or similar movement-impairing items immediately become FoL marking machines. Such items are especially effective on non-traditional support champions, as they allow champions who normally are unable to easily apply the mark to do so far more consistently. Obviously, in this circumstance, one would be required to rush whatever item provides the slow. One example we theorized is Orianna; while she is able to apply FoL with Command: Dissonance (2) and Command: Shockwave (Ultimate), building Rylai’s gives her solid HP and Ability Power stats alongside a more consistent application of FoL marks (although perhaps players might find that rushing Rylai’s on Orianna specifically is not optimal). Apo11o takes this a step further and contends that an Orianna support and Yasuo ADC in the Dragon Lane might be viable or even strong, as Yasuo’s Steel Tempest counts as an auto-attack. Additionally, Yasuo can act as a “ball carrier” for Orianna, allowing him to cast his ultimate, Last Breath, via Orianna’s Shockwave (which knocks enemies in the air).
Other Notes
Frozen Mallet can allow any champion reliant on auto-attacks to apply FoL marks (and receive its effects).
For ADC’s playing with a FoL support, particularly one that can apply the mark quickly and/or to multiple enemies at once, it is highly recommended to build Runaan’s Hurricane. Assuming optimal circumstances, the ADC can get up to three times the amount of healing than without the item.
We believe Font of Life should currently be one of the best runes on Ashe (if not the best). Being able to heal from level 1 on every auto-attack sounds broken on paper.
Not all champions are created equal. Some champions will be better than others at proc’ing marked targets, and some will be worse. Most ADC’s (apart from Jhin), and bruiser champions such as Fiora, Jax, and others can fairly easily achieve respectable healing from auto-attacking marked targets.
One Font of Life user per team is likely sufficient, and we feel that more than two users is an excess.
Though previously noted that many champions that use FoL prefer to play a slow playstyle, that does not mean you have to play the entire game at an overall slow pace. To be clear, by forcing your enemies to sacrifice building high-damage items through purchasing lower-damage items that instead provide grievous wounds, you should look to capitalize on your team’s own relative damage advantage by playing a high-tempo playstyle, focused on vision control and being first to objectives.
Conclusions (tl;dr)
Font of Life is strong in the right circumstances. We believe that it is at the very least viable, and its strength depends on how well you and your team play around it. Grievous wounds are its strongest counter; ergo, play a high-tempo game in order to diminish the value the enemy team gains from building them. For enchanters and peel supports, FoL is almost always better than Aery, and can be superior to Aftershock. ADC’s should almost always buy Runaan’s Hurricane when playing with a support using FoL.
Thanks for reading. A ton of time was spent doing the due diligence putting this analysis together, so all shares and such are appreciated. Thanks to apo11o for being a big part in theory-crafting, in-game testing, and footage review. Thanks to Halinator and apo11o for editing/proofreading this article. Thanks to Halinator, YourDoomsDay0, and iJets for helping out with in-game tests.
We’re currently working on Riftech, a pipeline that provides prospective players, analysts, and coaches an opportunity to be exposed to Wild Rift in a competitive environment/mindset. We’re still getting things set-up, but if you’re interested and/or want to learn more, the Discord is linked here. At this time in the Riftech server, you can find all of my previous analytical works and also interact with other NA players and analysts, several of whom were involved in professional Vainglory. We’ll be pushing more info in the coming weeks, so stay tuned.
If you’re interested in any previous or future works of mine, I am most active on my Twitter (and Medium now).
— Q
