@Riot, Support Itemization and Sightstones
So I was reading a post about the new Zeke's Herald changes and the poster said that good supports just don't get AP when Sightstones and utility is far more useful.
This gave me an idea, let's rework Sightstones entirely. Now before you panic I want to make something clear, NEVER WILL THE ACTIVE EVER CHANGE, EVER.
Step 1: Get rid of Ruby Sightstone. (I'll come back to this) Let's give each Sightstone an upgrade more like an enchantment or a trinket upgrade to fill that void or add a few to help out in other situations.
By this point you may be confused why I said "each sightstone" when I just said to get rid of ruby sightstone. Let's look at jungle enchantments for a second, each one fills a different role and the end product is exactly the same cost as the others.
Step 2: New Sightstones that are built from different items. Each one gives a different stat. They can be named after different gems, Ruby Sightstone builds like the current one does and gives health, Sapphire Sightstone could build from a Sapphire Crystal and give mana, etc. There could be one for almost every stat if we really wanted to, good luck naming them after different gems then. I defer to riot and more imaginative people for names if the gem naming scheme idea doesn't work out.
It is incredibly important that each level of Sightstone (if multiple levels exist) each have the same cost, so Ruby Sightstone might be Ruby Crystal + 400 while an AP Sightstone might be Amp Tome + 365. The cost could be higher if needed but I suspect for an entry level Sightstone 800 is still good
This idea does many things, it allows magey supports to build some AP (perhaps not much but some nonetheless) but still leaves the HP option available for other supports. It also allows some fun trolly supports to build whatever stat they want to build and STILL have a Sightstone. (You have no excuse now kill lane supports!) Not to mention other champions in other lanes can pick one up if they need it. A Lee Sin can get an AD Sightstone or the jungler can get one for whatever stat he/she wants.
Step 3: Upgrades/Enchantments. Now my first idea was to just have an upgrade to each sightstone that would fill the void left by removing Ruby Sightstone, ie, one that uses the same recipe item as before to raise the stats and give an extra ward but as I'm writing this it is apparent that there are other options.
The new Sightstone upgrades could work like the old Ruby Sightstone does for the regular Sightstone which would still be fine, mission accomplished as far as I'm concerned. However you could, for example, allow upgrades that would use bigger items, such as a giants belt for a bigger HP item that might be attractive to some tanks. Or perhaps 3 levels instead of 2, the third giving just stats, or perhaps the second giving stats and the third giving the extra ward.
This leads me to my other idea for upgrades which may still work in conjunction with the first, Enchantments: Much like upgrading a trinket or boots, perhaps the Sightstones could have enchantments that could say, give you an extra ward, increase your on map wards by 1 (so 4 wards at once instead of 3) give you a pink on a cd when you shift click the item or something. There are many possibilities here.
I believe the key to making AP items attractive to supports is to give them attractive utility. This idea might make Sightstones attractive to other roles as well as just support. I would love some feedback on this idea, possibly even from a rioter if they have the time.