Looking for APC/Mage champion suggestion

Maximus Paine·8/10/2016, 10:05:05 AM·8 votes·2,236 views

Hello, I'm fairly new to the game. I have been reading about different champions, but I'm far from knowing them all.

I have become most familiar and have been playing with ADCs like Ashe and Jinx. I would like to explore going Mid. I understand the Mid player is usually preferred to be an AP damage champion in order to balance the physical damage the ADC will provide. Correct?

if this is correct, I would like to explore ranged Champions which produce AP damage for going Mid. The idea is playing a champion which is as much similar to the ADCs I have come to learn. There's also, something about "casting spells" that I don't find as relatable or fun as shooting stuff. :-) I think Annie should be an option, but it's used so often as a Bot that everybody knows her too well.

Which champions do you think I should check out?

Thanks all.

58 Comments

Vik4prez8/10/2016, 12:33:54 PM4 votes

You might consider Cassiopeia as an option. She is the most similar to an ADC play style as a pure mage can get, as she provides quick, consistent damage with her spells, but she can become tedious due to the spammy nature of her kit.

For a more standard-ish mage, I would actually suggest Viktor Viktor as a possible option. His kit has spells that can be spammed for a fairly reliably steady bit of low-ish damage, as well as more typical mage spells that have decent range, high damage but fairly long cooldowns. He takes a little getting used to, especially after the mid year mage update, and he got some less-than-spectacular "changes" (nerfs) to his ultimate recently that are a bit annoying, but all in all he is a really strong mage.

If youre interested in more of a burst mage style of play, Syndra Syndra is pretty strong at the moment. She takes some getting used to as well, since her kit has a bit of a mini-game built into it in order to maximize its damage potential with her ultimate, but all in all she can deal an extremely high amount of damage in a very short window of time.

Veigar Veigar is another really strong burst mage, and he might actually be stronger than Syndra in terms of his ability to burst a single target since his ultimate is an execute, but he is less safe than Syndra due to how his only form of zone/crowd control functions.

As a final option, you can consider Ahri Ahri , who has the tools in her kit to play like a mage when she wants, but also as a highly mobile assassin when the time calls for it as well.

Just my 2 cents.

Def Not A Kaiju8/10/2016, 10:15:48 AM3 votes

try varus. hes an ADC caster that was originally designed to be mid. dies hard to assassins tho (but so does everyone else) and is rather imobile (but so is ashe).

if you want to pick up a mage, i suggest annie.

if you want an assassin, try zed.

if you want to piss people off, try sion.

RagingRocket8/10/2016, 10:32:43 AM3 votes

Azir is a good example of an ap champion that plays kind of similar to an adc with positioning and ap damage instead of ad damage but needs to be played a lot to have a hand with him and make crazy plays.The new Ryze is really strong without anyone knowing it but it is the same case with Azir you need to play some games to get the hand of him.If control mages is not the style you are going for in the mid lane you can try utility mages like Arhi,Karma and Lissandra while not as much damage as control mages they are more easier to play and they help their team with their mobility on the battlefield.Now if instead of mages you want to play ap assassins your options are Kassadin,Akali,Fizz and Leblanc,If i were you I would try out Leblanc since she is the most safe assassin in the game.If you want to play an ad mid because your team have a lot ap damage you can play Varus since you are an adc main you are more likely to better with him.

Mhihnj8/10/2016, 1:03:36 PM2 votes

I started as veigar when i went mid then slowly built up from there. Lux, Ziggs and Xerath are also pretty good

Sylvant8/10/2016, 1:08:54 PM2 votes

I advise you to focus on the main characteristics of mages and pick one which fits them in high degree. Im talking for features such as good AOE damage and ability to contribute in team fight, good burst, CC, range, mobility to some degree, a champion which is between the strong of the day and not an off meta pick. Consider how hard/skill shot dependent a char is and avoid such. A good example for such can be Lux, she can go very well, but she can also fall behind with few missed spells. Annie is kinda simple and looks like a good pick. Xerath sounds nice to me, altho skill shot dependent. Vel is good for his ability to spam his spells and not rely that much on missing one, but he is kinda off meta. You should also consider what champs you are likely to encounter on mid. Zed can be a pain to play against as a newly learning mage, if you are unable to pressure him, he is gonna score good farm and shortly dominate you. Here comes champs like Liss, which have good counter play against him

Wheatloaf8/10/2016, 1:17:09 PM2 votes

I will always suggest Vel'Koz. Who doesn't like geometry and giant death rays?

But really, that's just my personal preference. If you're not sure what you want from a mage, just try out whoever is on free week until one day, someone catches your interest.

GrReaper968/10/2016, 2:18:16 PM2 votes

Id say pick up as hes currently quite strong

OnanThaMan8/10/2016, 2:26:12 PM2 votes

Galio counters most ap champs you'll face, and can give Talon/Zed a run for their money, he isn't expected either(low pickrate and whatnot). Plus he's alway been strong, has great wave clear, and his shield makes him tanky as hell. He has drawbacks of course, ill list some of them if you respond saying your interested, but he is just great champ to have in your corner.

Here's my build when i play him: item 3027 item 3001 item 3065 item 3089 item 3135 item 3020 , if your against an AD midlaner swap out the abyssal for a Zhonya's.

Only Play Darius8/10/2016, 4:29:48 PM2 votes

The three best midlaners for players new to the role are Yasuo Zed Leblanc . The first 2 are AD but there are plenty of AP toplaners, junglers, and offensive supports to fill the magic damage in your comp, so pick what you like. If you really like ADC then Cassiopeia is an option but she is incredibly hard to play and probably not good for a new player. Katarina is a great AP champion if you don't like the top 3.

Amelie8/10/2016, 6:54:59 PM2 votes

I would advise checking out free week champions first, you don't want to waste IP on a champion you might end up hating. That said, this week's free APCs are not good for beginners at all.

The only APC similar to ADC playstyle is Azir, since a lot of his damage relies on auto-attacks. But he's also hard to play well and master.

If you don't like casting spells, you probably won't enjoy the mage class that much, honestly. But some basic/simple ones are gonna be like Annie, Brand, Karma, Morgana, and Ziggs. Most of people's suggestions in this thread are much, much more difficult to play in the beginning.

Astôlfo8/10/2016, 11:02:06 PM2 votes

Azir is the iconic AP Attack Speed Carry (APC basically). However, he's immensely difficult to learn and play and depends heavily on a good team comp. Also, he's just utter trash and absolutely horrible and incredibly weak right now thanks to continuous nerfs over the last 2 years even when he never was good any time in those past 2 years (outside of LCS). Cassiopeia is the other main AP fast-sustained damage champion I can think of, with her poison burst things.

If you didn't mean fast sustained damage and just an AP champion that can carry in general, then: For ranged: Taliyah Lux Malzahar LeBlanc (somewhat, not really) Brand Vel'Koz Ahri Annie

are all fairly decent picks.

ChíckenDaddy8/10/2016, 2:16:08 PM2 votes

I'm not sure sense I haven't played myself, him but one of my friends who is a adc main plays a lot of Karthus whenever he mids. also Cassiopeia is good and has a adc feel to her, except you press e instead of right clicking.

ScissorsNstuff8/10/2016, 11:08:08 AM2 votes

Ahri

Valhalla Rising8/10/2016, 11:36:00 AM2 votes

Corki seems like what u are looking for(build AD but deal magic).

Other than that Veigar is the only mage I would give a 10/10 score to, all others 9 or less.

Aeszarck8/11/2016, 8:33:29 PM1 votes

There are a couple marksmen (ADCs) that can be brought mid. Along with the ones Jelly Mac listed (Ezreal, Varus, Urgot, and Corki), Jhin and Quinn can be brought mid. Ezreal is a slippery, long ranged caster who can either build attack damage or ability power when going mid, and is therefore extremely versatile. He lacks waveclear, however. Varus is a long ranged sniper with no escapes but terrifying long ranged damage. Since he's being played mid, he doesn't rely on his auto attacks as much as he does on his spells. Urgot is a medium ranged anti-assassin middle laner. He does lots of sustained damage with his auto attacks and the Acid Hunters that he weaves in between them. Corki is a hybrid damage medium ranged marksman who relies almost as much on his abilities as he does on his auto attacks. Jhin is another long ranged sniper. He like Varus except he relies on his auto attacks more because his poke doesn't do as much damage and is longer cooldown. Unlike these other marksmen which build like AD casters (relying mostly on spells to do damage), Quinn builds more like an assassin when played middle lane, jumping on people and doing bursts of damage with her spells and auto attacks.

Aside from Ezreal's AP build and Corki's hybrid build, all of these champions build attack damage. Attack damage champions can be brought mid, but they're rarer than ability power champions. This is partly due to the fact that ability power champions fill the niche that middle lane requires better, and partly due to the fact that the other lanes find it harder to choose sources of AP. Most top laners are attack damage based, aside from a few ability power based tanks such as Maokai, Galio, Nautilus, and Cho'Gath, some close ranged mages such as Karma, Lissandra, Lulu, and Ryze, and a couple of other hard-to-classify champions like Rumble, Teemo, and Singed. Jungle is mostly attack damage fighters, though there are also ability power assassins like Elise, Fizz, Ekko, and Diana, ability power tanks like Nautilus, Cho'Gath, and Sejuani, and Gragas, and then odd champions like Fiddlesticks. Most supports deal ability damage, though only few itemize for more, such as Karma, Annie, and Brand. Most bottom laners don't do ability damage; the only two that do noticeable ability damage are Corki and Mordekaiser.

AcidTheWarlock10/27/2016, 10:37:42 AM1 votes

If you want to 1v1 Ryze is your man.

Maximus Paine10/27/2016, 10:57:09 AM1 votes

Hey people!

I re-visited the thread and remember all the useful advice here that is still of value going forward. Just so you all know, I tried Ahri, who was the apparent the first choice, on free week. I didn't really feel a connection immediately. :-) However, the second choice on the list was Lux, and I studied her and watched games and video. She had great performance, good at Mid and a possible Sup, which are the two roles I was considering as my secondary.

I bought her, even if I didn't try her out first, but was able to get the hang of her abilities in a few games. They are not complicated and very useful - root, shield for her and allies, ranged AOE dmg and a killer ulti - can't ask for much more on one champion. I also learned the concept of a combination with her. :-)

Overall, it's going well. I still have Ahri on a short prospect list with a couple others to try. I want to master 2-3 champions for two roles first, before buying a bunch.

Again, thanks for the help.