What is U.R.F.?
The Ultra Rapid Fire game mode was first introduced for April Fools on April 1st, 2014. The game mode takes place on Summoner’s Rift where each player spawns with the “Awesome Buff of Awesomely Awesome Buffing” buff. This buff turns League of Legends from an objective focused game into an arcade style death match. Here’s what the Awesome Buff of Awesomely Awesome Buffing does to each champion on the Rift:
- Mana & Energy costs are removed. Abilities are free to use.
- Health costs are reduced by 50%
- Everything has 80% (capped) cooldown reduction.
- Everyone has 25% tenacity, +60 movement speed, +50% attack speed multiplier (+100% for ranged champions).
- Critical strikes do 225% base damage (from 200%)
- Players earn 500% more passive gold gain.
- Everything deals tons of damage, and has tons of health.
As you can imagine, this buff is capable of creating chaos on Summoner’s Rift.
There are a few global de-buffs that Riot have cooked up to keep things semi-balanced on the battlefields of URF:
- All direct healing effects are 50% less effective at the beginning of the game, increasing by 1% every 30 seconds (Up to 100% effective at 25 minutes).
- Non-ultimate shield scaling ratios reduced by 50% (except Udyr and Diana. Because we can.)
There have also been some URF specific balance changes made to combat abusive champions, which you can read about here.
Champions to Try in URF Mode
There are a variety of play styles you can try out in URF, but the ones I have seen enjoy the most success are mobile mages. Look for champions who already have relatively low cooldowns with the normal 40-45% cooldown reduction cap – these champions will virtually have no cooldowns in URF.
LeBlanc
LeBlanc is the definition of a mobile assassin mage. With 80% CDR, LeBlanc can use her Distortion (W) and Mimic (R) to dash around the map without ever getting caught. Bursting multiple targets from 100-0 is a real possibility considering how little time it takes for Mimic (R) to come off cooldown.
Diana
Although not quite as mobile as LeBlanc, Diana makes up for it with her tankiness earned by spamming Pale Cascade (W) to create shields. She can insta-gib targets too. Normally a Diana player would be in trouble when they miss a Crescent Strike (Q), but with 80% CDR, you’ll be just fine in URF.
You May Like
Ekko
Top lane tank Ekko has come and gone. The time is now for full AP Ekko in URF mode. You may be surprised at the insane damage output that comes from an Ekko equipped with a handful of AP items. Thanks to URF, Ekko will be able to Phase Dive (E) almost infinitely. No squishy target is safe against that kind of all in.
Ezreal
Whether you decide to build AP or AD Ezreal, that’s up to you. Either way you’re going to be able to spam Mystic Shot (Q) over and over as soon as the animation finishes. Ezreal is the URF kite god. It’s difficult to be put in a bad situation with 80% CDR on Arcane Shift (E). The only threat to an URF Ezreal is champions with burst and gap closers. Beware the Ekko/LeBlanc!
Fizz
Fizz is almost always perma-banned in URF. Here’s what his typical URF combo looks like: Urchin Strike (Q), Seastone Trident (W), Playful/Tricker (E). Now repeat that over and over again, and make note that every time Fizz uses Playful/Trickster (E) he’s invulnerable. It is difficult to kill an URF’d up Fizz. The best strategy is to ban him in champion select.
Katarina
You know why.
Sona
Not a mobile assassin mage, but if you want to break out a support champion in URF, Sona is probably your best bet. You might need a backup keyboard, though. Q-W-E-Q-W-E-Q-W-E-R-Q-W-E. This is your life as a Sona player in URF mode. Don’t get it twisted, you do a lot of damage too. Just don’t get busted before you can get it off.
Pantheon
Another solid alternative to AP assassins, Pantheon offers constant DPS from Spear Shot (Q) and frequent crowd control from Aegis of Zeonia (W). Where Pantheon finds problems is closing the gap. You’re probably not going to land a stun on an Ezreal. Like, ever.
Honorable mentions: Ziggs, Karma, Zed, Brand, Galio, Gragas, Hecarim, Kassadin.
Look for URF to come out sometime in the afternoon today (Friday, April 22nd) and try out these champions! Good luck, and have fun.
