Gangplank Gets Shipshape with a New Model and Animations
By Rahares [1]
Avast, summoners!
As part of our continued commitment to keeping League of Legends a fun and engaging experience, we will be updating yet another of our classic champions with a salty new model and some truly seaworthy new animations. Like 
Kayle, 
Janna, and 
Tryndamere before him, 
Gangplank, the Saltwater Scourge, will be the next champion of the League to walk down the plank (err... runway!) sporting some knavish new looks. We think you'll like the cut of his jib!
Stay tuned for more information on Gangplank's new model and animations when he's released in the upcoming patch!
Champion Update: Gangplank
Gangplank rules Bilgewater through a mix of fear, violence and cunning. Where he sails, death and ruin follow, and such is his infamy and reputation that the merest sight of his 
black sails on the horizon causes panic among even the hardiest crew.
Despite his notoriety and savagery, Gangplank commands absolute loyalty from those who run with him. Many of his trusted lieutenants have gone on to become renowned captains or brutal gang leaders in their own right, but they remain loyal - more than willing to fight alongside him - granting him an unmatched power-base within Bilgewater. Nevertheless, there are those who would dare challenge his rule. Gangplank relishes these moments, going to war with 
pistol and 
blade in order to show everyone that Bilgewater is still his, and his alone.
We're giving the dread pirate lord of Bilgewater a gameplay overhaul and a fresh coat of paint in time for the upcoming event. Along with a new kit that keeps the 
ca-ching in the bank and adds some 
powder-ful new interactions between his abilities, we've spruced up his bio with a look into the man behind the Scourge of Twelve Seas myth.
Larger-than-life corsair kings tend to accumulate tall tales the way a warship picks up barnacles, but the tenuous balance of power in Bilgewater hinges on everyone believing the stories told about him.
Gangplank was brought down by the machinations of the bounty hunter 
Miss Fortune. His ship was destroyed with all of Bilgewater watching, killing his crew and shattering his aura of invincibility. Now the gangs of Bilgewater have risen up, fighting amongst themselves to claim dominion over the port city. [2]Despite receiving horrific injuries in the explosion, Gangplank survived. Sporting a multitude of fresh scars, and with a newly crafted 
metal arm to replace his amputated limb, he is now determined to rebuild his strength, reclaim what he sees as rightfully his - and to ruthlessly punish all those who turned against him.
- Abilities
- Trial by Fire
movement speed. Destroying a Powder Keg instantly refreshes Trial by Fire.
- Parrrley
Silver Serpent that he can use at the shop to upgrade 
Cannon Barrage.
- Remove Scurvy
- Powder Keg
slows and spreads the damage of the attack to all nearby enemies. Other casks within the zone will chain explode. If an enemy destroys the cask, it defuses the explosion and grants gold.
- Cannon Barrage
Signals Gangplank's ship to fire waves of cannonballs at an area. Each wave deals magic damage and slows enemies. Cannon Barrage can be upgraded up to three times.
Death's Daughter fires an initial mega-cannonball in the center of the area of effect.- Raise Morale gives allies within the area of effect additional movement speed.
- Fire at Will increases the rate of fire over the duration of Cannon Barrage.
- In-Lane
Gangplank might be a murderous malevolent seamaster in Runeterra, but in-game, he's opportunism in the (salted) flesh. We often reference windows of power, and Gangplank's updated gameplay heavily rewards him for maximizing his. His passive, Trial by Fire, hits like a warship's ram in trades, with the true damage DoT capable of chunking meaty portions off his opponent's health bar. With the accompanying speed burst, he has the potential to stomp in and saunter out of quick duels.
Learning to play the Powder Keg minigame is crucial for both Gangplank and his opponents. He has higher range than other melee fighters, and a ton of potential burst damage with chained gunpowder cask explosions, but the key there is potential.
When Gangplank triggers the last hit on his cask, it explodes for substantial AoE damage, but even more significantly, it re-procs his passive. Skilled Gangplank players will set up casks ahead of planned trades and skirmishes to maximize their burst. But careful counterplay will allow opposing champions to defuse the gunpowder cask with a last-hit of their own, denying Gangplank his explosion and sudden fire-stick stabbing.
- Teamfighting
The updates to his gameplay pattern solidify Gangplank's primary role as a potent split-pusher, as he can contribute meaningfully to a teamfight from across the map without needing to use a 
summoner spell to join the fray.
When split-pushing, GP needs to be mindful of his surroundings, even more than someone like 
Shen or Tryndamere, who have built-in 
dashes or 
spins that can put a solid wall between them and their pursuers. While 
Remove Scurvy keeps him relatively safe from individual crowd control, he won't outrun most gap-closing enemies without using his ult unless he steals an opportunistic passive proc.
In situations where split-pushing is weak and team-fighting the strongest option, Gangplank benefits from strategic planning and careful positioning of his Powder Kegs. In many cases, Remove Scurvy'll let him skirt the frontline and dive the squishies with a crit-loaded Parrrley.
Depending on his build, Gangplank can tank damage and crowd control with his W, or look to pelt opponents with Parrrley crits and powerful sustained melee DPS. By using the Silver Serpents he earns with Parrrley, he can upgrade Cannon Barrage. Depending on which upgrades you choose, GP can help his friends make their escape, attempt to 
zone apart the enemy team, or 
concentrate fire on an unprotected target. Because the upgrades stack, you can even do all three over the course of a long enough game.
- Champion Insights
- by Statikk
Although already entertaining to play, Gangplank's gameplay lacked a deep mastery curve and interesting counterplay for his opponents.
Outside of slight optimizations such as Parrrley farming, Remove Scurvy timing, or Cannon Barrage placement, Gangplank never really had a unique tool he could invest in mastering over time. When we thought about new toys we could give Gangplank, we focused on the most fun moments Gangplank was already having. One topic came up over and over again: buying items like 
Statikk Shiv or 
Ravenous Hydra and being able to Plunder several enemies with a single Parrrley. With this update, we added explosive barrels to Gangplank's arsenal so he can do just that and more. There's nothing like setting up a chain of barrels to utterly decimate unsuspecting enemies.
Whenever we add a new mechanic to the game, we strive to make it just as fun and interesting for opponents as it is for the champion using it. As sly and clever as Gangplank can be with these explosive barrels, we wanted to ensure that enemies could also interact with them and potentially outplay Gangplank at his own game. Whenever Gangplank places an explosive barrel, enemies also have the opportunity to attack it in order to defuse it - it's a race to the finish to see who gets the final hit which can end in an explosive finale or a sputtering dud.
Overall, Gangplank will retain a lot of the classic things we have all come to know and love, but with the addition of some new upgrades - quite literally as he'll be able to upgrade his Cannon Barrage - Gangplank will be just as menacing as ever.
Gangplank returns and the event end draws near
By Paul 'Pabro' Bellezza [3]
The orchestrated spectacle of the Dead Pool's destruction led many to believe that the dread reaver Gangplank perished in the flames. But what is dread may never die, and Gangplank returns to reclaim what he believes to be rightfully his.
Fitted with a new limb to replace the one he lost, the Saltwater Scourge will soon rain cannonballs down on Summoner's Rift again after a brief stay on the PBE.
Since this is the first time we've done something so dramatic with story and theme, we're commemorating the event with the Captain Gangplank skin depicting the dread pirate from before the events of Bilgewater: Burning Tides. All players who own and play (or have already played) an entire matchmade game as Gangplank during the event will receive the Captain Gangplank skin for free.
Captain Gangplank reflects a simpler time, when one uncrowned reaver king ruled over Bilgewater with an iron cutlass and a fearsome love of scrimshaw. While base Gangplank has been irrevocably changed by Miss Fortune's masterful scheme, the 
Captain Gangplank skin hearkens back to before the pirate's bloody fall.
With Gangplank's return imminent and the conclusion of the story trailing the choppy wake behind Bilgewater: Burning Tides' stern, the end of the in-game event draws ever closer.
Bilgewater: Burning Tides sails over the horizon in just over a week, stowing in its hold the bundles, merch sales, icon rewards, and game modes. Whether you're looking to brawl in the black market, add the free Captain Gangplank skin to your wardrobe, or acquire any other Bilgewater spoils, you've got until August 10 at 2:00 AM PDT.
We hope you've enjoyed the journey so far, and we'll see you on the battlefields!
Champion insights roundtable: Gangplank
By RiotExLibris [4]
TLDR: As part of our ongoing commitment to keep League of Legends fresh, we often update champions both visually and in their gameplay. If you followed along with the Bilgewater: Burning Tides event, you know that with Gangplank's champion update, we went even further. Catch up on the story here, or if you're already a Bilgewater veteran, dive into a conversation between the devs behind the update below.
Can't get enough of the Gangplank dev insights roundtable? Bilgewater: Burning Tides may be over, but the Saltwater Scourge lives on. Is one-hitting minions something you wish? Let us know in the comments below and we'll see you on the battlefields.
Gangplank Dev Insights Roundtable Longform Version
By RiotExLibris [5]
If you've wandered here unawares, this is the longer, mostly unedited version of the Gangplank developer insights roundtable. Walls of text aren't for everyone.
Media
| Captain Gangplank's Theme |
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