Vel'koz is the perfect champion for me. I have played him religiously since release across multiple accounts over the years. He is never played in pro play for several reasons, but part of it is because he sucks mid since he can't side lane.

Vel'koz's premise is all about gaining knowledge, so I had an idea for an evolve mechanic that keeps his core identity in tact while giving him more flexibility outside of itemization.

New passive addition: After Vel'koz "researches" every member of the enemy team, (3x passive proc) Vel'koz will use his newfound knowledge to upgrade one base ability. This is in addition to his current passive

Q: initial bolt now holds in stasis for 2.5 seconds at max cast range before splitting. Q can be recast at any time during the stasis to split early. Q can be recast during stasis while channeling ultimate.

Essentially, this would be good for flashy plays, zone control, and poke comps by giving you more flexibility to plan Q angles and make long range picks. Imagine holding a Q over the wall, engaging with ult on a target, only for them to backpedal into your well placed Q split. Like the standard QR combo, but with more planning.

W: faster casting and quicker initial deploy speed

This would be good for team fight comps that duke it out in choke points. This would allow Vel to stack up passive stacks more rapidly on more targets when bunched. It would also be a good boost to wave clear against push comps.

E: Allows two charges to be stored

This would boost Vel's ability to side lane by giving him more self peel and set up options. It would also boost mid lane Vel'koz by allowing him additional protection against diving comps.

These evolutions would allow flexibility, but it would also reward Vel'koz being played mid, since having access to all lanes would allow him to research each player more quickly. I don't think Vel'koz is in a bad spot at all, but I'm curious what your thoughts are on how this would change his gameplay.

There has been endless discussion on this subreddit as to whether or not the feeling of Cha Qi, or even Cha zui (tea drunkenness) is a real thing. Some people swear by the euphoric, lifted, or high feeling described as "tea drunk," while others debate they have never felt something like this and it's classic "woowoo Eastern mysticism nonsense."

I would like to add my unique experience to this discussion and see what you all think about the picture I'm drawing.

To start, I have always been an advocate for the perspective that cha zui is a real thing. After a long session of sheng I would feel absolutely euphoric. Almost as if the world suddenly became beautiful, detailed, and colorful. My body would feel like it's floating, and I'd notice a pleasant buzzing in my fingers and toes. I could talk endlessly about this awesome feeling, and the shame it is that some people don't experience it.

Now, I am thirty years old and was just diagnosed with pretty severe ADHD. I have been depressed for my entire life and I figured that was simply the way my brain was wired. I had a constant, gloomy cloud above my head, and the feeling that tea provided was a necessary break from that depressing atmosphere my brain occupied. To those who don't know about ADHD, your brain basically has fried dopamine receptors, and after a long life of having this disorder everything in life felt grey. No reward, no feeling of accomplishment, no reason to strive for anything.

After my diagnosis I was prescribed a daily pill for ADHD. It's a stimulant that works to restore my brains ability to experience dopamine. And now, funnily enough, I no longer experience cha zui. That's right, like a switch was flipped I don't feel a damn thing from tea except for a mild energy boost. As it would happen, tea is also a stimulant, so it's possible my brain chemistry was what made me feel it so intensely.

All this to say, maybe we should shift the discussion away from whether or not it's real and more to the mechanism that make some people feel it and others not.

I'm curious to hear if this lines up with anyone else's experience with cha qi. Thanks for reading