So who builds Archangels as a first item these days?

Linna Excel·Feb 25, 2019·1 votes·1,332 views

Let me preface by saying I know that is popular because it gives a bunch of stats right away. In an apples to apples comparison it gives 90AP and 600 Mana. only gives 50 AP and 650 mana. However it also scales better because you get at least 1% (later 3%) of your mana pool as AP and you get up to 1400 mana total. So you get 92/1400 just from the item alone. In an apples to oranges comparison Ludens gives you the AoE damage every now and then while Archangel's gives you the mana refund (bigger spells vs more spells) and the upgrade gives you the shield.

So does anyone actually buy Archangels, if so on who? That delayed payoff is a pretty big hit IMO, which I saw as I was playing around with it in normals the other day.

2 Comments

PopcornBunniFeb 25, 20192 votes

It's an item for mana-hungry battlemages

For Anivia it's an absolute 100% must have, same for Ryze . It can also be an option, depending on the build, composition, and requirements, for Lissandra Taliyah Cassiopeia

You could possibly try a battlemage style Annie with it utilizing her E and the low cooldown on Q to harass, but she's generally better going with the stronger burst because of her absurd AP ratios.

Lastly it could be a foundation in a Transcendence build, but the options for that outside of Galio or Malphite are pretty weak.

SeenanFeb 25, 20191 votes

As a first weapon, no. It's basically only for champions like Ryze and Ezreal...Maybe Karthus. Ezreal wouldn't even make it if it couldn't stack with Muramana. Most of the mana costs aren't very applicable enough to warrant something like Archangel's.