Initial Thoughts On Karolina?

She definitely looks fun but after how rng ragrolled me this titan reset? I do not have any will to hoard anymore.
Sick champ tho.
Thoughts?

Comments

Hoitado

She’s pretty fun. I was fortunate enough to pull a 7* and her damage is good I’d say but her being a Hard Zola counter is more than enough for me

EdisonLaw

When I tested her, I was surprised. You do have to get somewhat used to her playstyle though, especially spacing.

JackTheSnack

She’s a nuke. Deals with some pretty nasty tech defenders. Needs awakening to really get full benefit to punish armor up buffs

peixemacaco

Weak

Keep her away from Sun rays and you defeat Karolina easily

BKSwisherSweet

Nico is better

WednesdayLength

Pulled the 5 star and she feels really good. Enough utility to counter specific fights and a lot of damage very easily

EdisonLaw

Weak

Keep her away from Sun rays and you defeat Karolina easily

I think he was asking about on attack

NONYABIZZ

So after some strict testing in battlegrounds I would say im not as impressed as I expected. It might be a skill issue but if it is then its a skill issue for a large amount of the bg players I've faced as well.

The problem is I am yet to see a GREAT Karolina fight from both me or my opponent. Hopefully its cos we're all getting used to the champ so I'll give her the benefit of doubt.

Simply because of the sun mechanic. From ccp videos it seemed as if it was so easy but the way RNG has been screwing with me in battlegrounds. The sun is ALWAYS APPEARING BEHIND THE OPPONENT. Which is exactly what you don't want. Especially against aggressive defenders or defenders that require you to wait out certain effects like photon and bullseye. I just did a 50s photon fight but it was so hectic and got hit a bunch of times. She definitely has the nuke level damage she is just a drag to play when the sun keeps pointing in the direction of the opponent which is not what you want.

Especially with this current footloose node that requires you to wait a bit. Why is the sun only going "RIGHT" im trying to wait for bullseyes instinct to run out, how am I supposed to stall photon, you cannot even use the passive stun cos photon misses.

I think she will struggle in metas that stall you a bit or power gain metas (which happens to be every meta) cos you have to bait alot of specials which will hinder your positioning ALOT.

These are just my initial Thoughts and I hope im wrong and its because I'm just getting used to the champion.

TotemCorruption

I don't have her so can't say from personal experience.

Everyone seems to think she's OP, but whenever my opponent uses her, the results are underwhelming.

Not saying she can't be great, but part of being great is getting great results by players who lack skill.

NONYABIZZ

https://forums.playcontestofchampions.com/en/discussion/comment/2875114#Comment_2875114

And that's exactly what im talking about. I've used her a bunch of times and I've witnessed my opponent use her a couple as well. Never has a fight from either of us been done well. If she wins its cos the other messed up alot harder than I did.

She requires a very passive AI. Its very hard to play around defensive mechanics when you're fighting to stay within the suns range. Especially since the sun just loves to go in the direction of the opponent.

TheUglyone123

https://forums.playcontestofchampions.com/en/discussion/comment/2875154#Comment_2875154

I haven’t had too much of an issue, even with passive AI. She is finishing act 9.3 fights and elder eq fights in a minute and a half. The heavy charge during her combo allows you to stay in the sun and charge up. Also, her glancing is incredible. If you are not parrying the opponents specials, your damage will be significantly lower. She’s definitely a champ to get used to, but I love her versatility and damage

WhatsGoodEnglish

I got extremely lucky with an early access bundle so I’ve had her since release. She’s phenomenal but she does have a learning curve. For one, you need to train yourself to parry/block the specials you’re used to dexing so you can put the energy vulnerabilities on the defender to maximize her damage. Also to stay in the sun you need to do short 2-3 hit combos then dash back and parry or light intercept. I usually don’t do the heavy until the timer is close to expiring.

She is a nuke but there are some metas that she will not be good for. The meta where everyone got inexorable when you blocked a hit was terrible for her because you couldn’t get to the sun. She can struggle with unstoppable a little but you can learn to play around it. Her ability to glance and take virtually no damage is what makes her really busted and her SP1 can save you by giving you a bunch of those iridescence buffs so you can continue to glance if you’re in a fight where you have trouble getting into the sun

She’s easily my favorite champ this year but I fully admit she’s not for everyone as many of you will discover

EdisonLaw

https://forums.playcontestofchampions.com/en/discussion/comment/2875182#Comment_2875182

That’s the thing, with a lot of these 2025 champs, their play styles are unique, like Maker or Mr Knight or even Zola

NONYABIZZ

https://forums.playcontestofchampions.com/en/discussion/comment/2875239#Comment_2875239

Unique isn't always a good thing. knight and zola are unnecessarily stressful and very restrictive.

I like karolinas playstyle tho I hope that I can get better with her because I was going to r4 her immediately. Glad I kept her at r3 and tested her first.

EdisonLaw

https://forums.playcontestofchampions.com/en/discussion/comment/2875246#Comment_2875246

Karolina is so far the only champ I've seen that actually benefits from a passive AI

WhatsGoodEnglish

Lowkey I’m glad to see so many of you complaining about her and saying she’s hard to use. It may mean that she won’t get nerfed and people won’t ban mine in BGs

NONYABIZZ

https://forums.playcontestofchampions.com/en/discussion/comment/2875629#Comment_2875629

Another reason I didn't r4 mine instantly (im glad I didn't haha) was cos she was gonna be banned since 1. Shes a rank 4 and 2. Shes new and has that new champ "OP" impression on the community. Her being r3 means I get to sneak mine in almost every match and since she isn't banned I've gotten to actually use and test her.

Had I r4'd I'd have been here under the impression shes CRAZY BUSTED and invincible because that's the narrative that's been pushed since her release.

She's going to take a while to master and thats not a bad thing. If I master her and someone else hasn't stolen that gem from me then shes right up there for that nomination.