Here’s everything you need to know about Ambessa Medarda, the Matriarch of War, as a playable champion!
Ambessa Medarda is coming to League of Legends as a champion! Check out the Ambessa Medarda ability rundown here as well as a couple insights from her designer.
Ambessa Medarda: The Matriarch of War
Ambessa is intended to be a fighter-bruiser for either the top lane or the jungle. No numbers for her abilities are available at the time of writing, but her durability, mobility, stickiness, and seemingly endless energy might make her another K'Sante.
She is the first champion to go from Arcane to League of Legends. Ambessa will also be released as a playable champion for League of Legends: Wild Rift. She might not be the last Arcane champion though, as her daughter Mel may soon follow.
Passive - Drakehound's Step
Entering an attack or movement command while casting an ability will cause Ambessa to dash a short distance once the ability is cast. Casting an ability grants her next attack bonus range, damage, and attack speed, and refunds energy.
Q - Cunning Sweep / Sundering Slam
Ambessa sweeps her twin drakehounds in a semicircle in front of her, dealing bonus damage to enemies hit by the blades. Striking an enemy will transform the next cast of this ability for a short period of time, causing her to slam her twin drakehounds down in a line in front of her, dealing bonus damage to the first enemy hit.
W - Repudiation
Ambessa gains a shield, briefly braces herself, and then slams the ground to damage nearby enemies. If she blocked any non-minion damage while bracing herself, this ability will deal increased damage.
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E - Lacerate
Ambessa whips her twin drakehounds around herself, damaging and slowing nearby enemies. Initiating Drakehound's Step from this ability causes her to strike a second time at the end of its dash.
R - Public Execution
Ambessa blinks to the farthest enemy champion in a line of her choosing and suppresses them upon her arrival. She then slams the enemy into the ground where they take damage and are stunned.
When will Ambessa Medarda be a playable champion in League of Legends?
Ambessa will be added as a playable champion on November 6, 2024 with League of Legends patch 14.22.
Ambessa's development
Maxwell "Riot Yelough" Perlman, game designer at Riot Games, outlined some behind-the-scenes experiences while working on Ambessa Medarda as a League of Legends champion.
"Season 1 of Arcane tells us who Ambessa is via the gravity of her presence, her interactions with her daughter and a flashback, but it never shows her actually in combat," Riot Yelough said. Then, the development team worked on three approaches to Ambessa as a champion:
- A lightweight fighter focused on proactive play and outplay potential.
- An exploration of the twin drakehounds.
- Centering around her military prowess. She would be about macro play, smart decisions, and engage.
Riot Yelough concluded that the final form of Ambessa we see now is the result of mixing all of the best pieces of those approaches. "[We] used them to create what we believe is a visceral, novel, and engaging combat style that players will love to sink their teeth into."
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