the thing i don't like when i play xerath is that if they start with boots they can 100% dodge your q,
and the q hitting before e at long ranges =(

try to focus on farming then, it should be easy since you have the range. vsing a xerath, they will immediately no your q and be ready for it, use it when they least expect it.

His ult completely changes the way he's supposed to play. It just turns him into: ult up: kill things. Ult down: kill time. At least Veigar has to concentrate on last hitting.

It really feels like his W was thrown in to stop him from having 4 damage abilities.

Also, he has the highest lvl 6 burst out of any champ, if you get two points in E, because W is a noob trap.

AP kog'maw does everything xerath does, but better. Kogs line nuke slows for a hefty amount, and persists for a few seconds. His R is always up, and is always at long range ( no need to anchor himself for a range boost). Kog doesn't have down time due to short cooldows, and the ability to autoattack from 700 units away. His ult can be used to scout bushes, and grants vision of targets after a hit.

So why should I pick xerath over kog? Because he has a single target stun that requires a setup spell? Because he gets a bit of armor from building AP? I don't see it.

I like xerath as a concept (ranged AP siege nuker?), but the execution is just lackluster and unrewarding.

I will be looking into his passive and what is possible in that realm. However, there are a few more pressing issues that need to be handled. Unfortunately we don't have infinite time at the office. Priorities and all that. I am pretty sure that we are actively looking at some quality of life change(s) for him.

Consider giving him a stacking passive of +Range on his spells when he hits with his spells. His W, while a sizable boost, doesn't give an artillery feel. It's just a poke enhancer that slows him down in teamfights. Re-engaging with him is a real problem, with the 1300 range not being all that its cracked up to be when first trying to poke at max range anyway, and the delay for entering/exitting it.
This could be drastically OP, but it would reward a seiging Xerath for actually staying in W instead of trying to cancel it ASAP when the front lines clash to flash up in DFG/Ignite range.

One idea I had for making Xerath more Xerath-like is to improve the effects he gains from W. Right now it just increases range, but there's just so much more that could be done with it. in terms of buffing his abilities. Eg: when under locus of power, all of Xerath's skills deal an amount of DoT, or their cooldowns are reduced, etc

You really want to feel powerful when you get into that stance, and give opponents a reason to start running and dodging.

Xerath is amazing, and currently he is my main. Don't **** with him please.

Yeah the MR reduction isnt OP at all. Try void staff then say that again.

The one thing that always bugs me is the lack of being able to break out of his W stance simply by right clicking. That would be a huge QoL improvement.

As for his new passive... maybe something that rewards his style of being a long range assault. Bonus damage based on how far the target is from Xerath when he hits them? It could be minor as to not overly increase his power, but just reward the idea of "living on the edge" between just missing and just hitting.