Mollok has quite a few issues at the moment. The first of which is his vulnerability. As a monster, he is vulnerable to trample revenge damage, making him weak to pikes. He also has a tendency to run into hordes of units, get stuck and take massive amounts of damage. Of course, as a troll he stands out a lot more and can get easily singled out by archers and heroes. A couple of potential solutions to this would be:
- Improved armour (especially to pikes and arrows)
- Removing the trample (Aulë's suggestion)
- Higher deceleration (Necro's suggestion)
However, Mollok also has a role problem. He is currently a mix of mass slayer and building destroyer. However, the Witch King and Khamul fulfil these roles already and do it much better than Mollok. This leads to Mollok not really having a proper use, which combined with his tendency to easily die, leads to him being underused. Also, from a logical point of view, it doesn’t make sense that Shatterer, a building killing move, is available for his sword as well. This is why I feel that Mollok’s abilities also need a rework.
Mollok would attack with his Sword, something that is unusual yet iconic for a troll, especially since he managed to give Aragorn a challenge with it. I felt like the Hammer was not needed, as Khamul is a more effective and unique Building Killer for Mordor.
Level 1: Consume – Mollok grabs a target unit (will not work on heroic units) and consumes it, regaining 50% of his health. This ability immediately gives Mollok some longevity (obviously, the amount of health recovered and cooldown can be changed according to balance). It also has its origins in the book version of Return of the King:
“The great troll-chief that smote him [Beregond] down bent over him, reaching out a clutching claw; for these fell creatures would bite the throats of those that they threw down”
Level 3: Rage – Mollok charges towards a target unit or hero, knocking over all units and heroes in his path. The current idea for this ability (damage boost over time) would've led to Mollok being able to do too much (tank, support trolls, disrupt and damage). I've therefore changed it to this to enhance his disruption abilities. With his he can knock units and heroes, allowing your orcs and trolls to deal extra damage in that time. It could also be used against rows of archers to prevent them from attacking. The drawback to this ability would be Mollok accidentally charging into pikes, so the user would need to be careful about choosing a target.
Level 5: Troll Chieftain - Every 30 seconds, Mollok roars, improving the damage, armour and speed of nearby allied trolls by 15% for 15 seconds (passive). When activated, the target enemy troll is permanently converted to serve Mordor.Currently, the trolls of Mordor are quite underused thanks to their weak armour. I feel like this ability would help to improve the trolls, while also giving Mollok a clear role in the faction. It also reinforces the idea of a troll chief that was present in the books at the Black Gate.
Level 7: Leap – Mollok leaps to the target area and creates a shock-wave that knocks back units and heroes in a medium radius and deals minor damage.I’ve changed the effect of leap to reduce the Mass Slaying impact that Mollok would have (after all, Mordor already has the Witch King and Sauron). Instead, he is more of an disrupter, disrupting enemy forces and allowing your orcs to press the advantage. By knocking over an enemy army, the ability allows your trolls to move unobstructed for a small time as well, supporting Mollok's role as a troll leader. However, it is a dangerous ability as, once the army recovers, Mollok is left surrounded, and so it would need to be used carefully. This ability also references Mollok’s appearance in the films, where he manages to fight and knock over Aragorn.
Level 10: Assault Troll - Mollok temporarily summons three trolls from the Trollshaws, with one troll wielding each weapon. This ability is staying mainly because it reinforces Mollok’s role as a troll leader. By having each troll have one weapon, it can be more versatile (but won’t be immediately devastating when combined with Troll Chieftain’s bonus as you won’t be able to immediately destroy massive armies)
Overall, I have reworked Mollok into a troll supporter and unit disruptor with minor tank abilities. Both Troll Support and Tank are roles that are currently not in Mordor. I hope that this combined with improved armour would be enough to make him more worthwhile. I look forward to hearing your opinions!