HEARTSTEEL Ezreal

First game I played with HEARTSTEEL Ezreal was around 1 AM on a Wednesday, right after the skin dropped in patch 13.22. Locked it in for a ranked game, bot lane, and my support immediately pinged the splash in champ select. Ezreal already has like 20 skins at this point and I wasnt expecting much. But the boy band aesthetic hit different than I thought it would.

What the skin actually brings to the table

So HEARTSTEEL Ezreal turns him into this pop star frontman type. Leather jacket, styled hair, the whole idol package. The model swap is clean. Ezreal’s base silhouette stays readable but everything gets that music industry polish. Think K-pop trainee who just debuted.

The VFX are where Riot put the work in. His Q fires these stylized musical note projectiles that leave a trail of pink and purple particles. Looks good in lane, reads well in teamfights. W marks the target with a HEARTSTEEL emblem that pulses before you proc it. Not gonna lie, the W-Q combo feels more satisfying with these effects than most of his other Epic skins.

E blink has new particles too. Quick burst of stage light energy when he shifts. Nothing crazy but it keeps the theme consistent. His R sends this massive wave of sound energy down the Rift. Big pink beam with musical motifs baked in. Seen it snipe people from base and the kill cam looks great every time.

The recall is the highlight though. Ezreal does this whole performance sequence, mic drop included. Been spamming the recall in Diamond games just to flex on the enemy ADC after winning trades. Voice lines stay base, no new VO, which is the standard Epic treatment. Fair enough for 1350 RP.

The HEARTSTEEL line and release context

HEARTSTEEL released November 8, 2023. Late season 13. The whole HEARTSTEEL skinline came out alongside the virtual boy band thing Riot was pushing, similar energy to K/DA and True Damage but with a more grunge-meets-pop direction. Ezreal fits the pretty boy role naturally. Kinda feels like he was designed for this concept from the start.

Splash art credit goes to Bo ‘chenbowow’ Chen, Julia Yurtsev, and Jennifer Wuestling. Three artists on one splash and they cooked. The composition has Ezreal front and center with that confident idol pose, stage lighting behind him. (Random aside: this splash was my Discord profile picture for like two months straight.)

9 chromas total if you want variety. Tanzanite is my pick, the deep purple gives the whole outfit a darker edge that reads better against the Rift’s green tones. Rockstar chroma goes hard too with the pink and blue split. Ruby is fine but honestly its the safe choice and doesnt stand out much from the base palette.

Shop has it. 1350 RP, permanent availability. Standard Epic pricing.

Where HEARTSTEEL Ezreal sits in the lineup

Real talk though. Ezreal has too many skins. Everyone knows it. So the question isnt whether HEARTSTEEL Ezreal is good, its whether its good enough to beat out Star Guardian, Battle Academia, and Porcelain Protector in your rotation. Could be wrong here but I think it holds its own against most of those.

The music theme gives it a unique lane presence. Playing this skin, the VFX pop in a way that most of his catalog doesnt match. Star Guardian still wins on pure spectacle. But HEARTSTEEL has this cool factor that the more fantasy-oriented skins lack. Different vibe entirely.

Played maybe 30 games with this one across season 13 and into 14. The Q particles never got old. That ranked game where my Kayn inted three times pre-6 and I still carried teamfights from the backline, this was the skin equipped. Good memories with it. The recall animation alone makes laning phase more fun, especially when you’re zoning the enemy ADC off cs and styling on them between waves.

Might be overthinking it but the auto attack animations feel slightly smoother with this skin. Probably placebo. Either way the skin reads well in chaotic teamfights where you need to track your Mystic Shots through five champions and a jungle clear worth of minions.

Should you buy it?

Verdict time. 1350 RP feels fair for what you get. New VFX across the full kit, solid recall, strong model. No new voice is the only knock and thats true of every Epic. If you main Ezreal and want something modern that isnt another fantasy or sci-fi theme, HEARTSTEEL Ezreal is a top three pick in his catalog. Skip it if you already own Porcelain Protector though, because at that point you’re just hoarding Ezreal skins. (Sidebar for Ezreal one-tricks specifically: you already bought it, I know.) Worth 1350 RP if you main Ezreal. Simple as that.