Can we get more CDR items that don't have mana/mana regen?
I think the CDR offerings in the game are too often linked to mana/ mana regen, which ends up putting a lot of builds in a rough spot if they'd prefer to get their mana or CDR elsewhere but still need the Morello/Grail/Frozen Hearts of the game for the other stat. It's been this way for awhile, but with the recent removal of one manaless CDR item (DFG) and the PBE patch notes showing even more mana/CDR items, I figured I'd raise my concern now. To more clearly explain the situation, I'll start by looking at the popular options for mana/CDR builds, then I'll take a look at the alternative items for each stat to show how they don't really stack up. Lastly, I'll probably ramble a bit about the void left by DFG (not just the nuke!) and how new items could fill it, especially for the champs who don't utilize morello/grail very well. (Btw, as the item list works out, I'll be focusing on AP casters, but this is relevant to AD casters too as they lack a Morello analogue)
The usual suspects (mana/CDR builds) Morellonomicon - Good mana regen & CDR, on an 80 AP item, with a useful passive all for 2300 gold. Pretty great. *Grail *- Good CDR, with the best mana regen you can buy, defensive stats and AP, another mana restore passive, 2700 gold. Core on some builds. *Frozen Heart *- Good CDR, big chunk of mana without needing to charge up, great defense, awesome aura. Not for everyone, but really strong on some.
Mana alternatives RoA - Really efficient combo of health/mana/AP that requires time to charge. AA/Seraph's - Really efficient combo of shield/mana/AP that requires time to charge (less on some than others) Gauntlet - Frozen Heart with less armor, more AP, and a utility/damage proc instead of the aura. Niche item, depends on kit.
CDR alternatives Spirit Visage - One of the top 2 general-purpose MR items in the game, even better on sustain kits. Locket/Banner - Great team-friendly items, but at the price of self stat efficiency Brutalizer/TBC/Youmuu's - Great if you're an AD caster or occasionally ADC. Not all that common of a purchase, all considered. Ionian Boots - Readily available source of 15% CDR, but comes at the expense of hard to itemize stats in place of mobis or sorcs. Stinger/Zephyr/Nashor - Only bought on AA-reliant champions who also don't want to build crit (or as a boots replacement on 6 items) GP10 upgrades - Only the support really buys these. Twin Shadows/Mikael's/Zeke's/Censer - Mostly support items, not efficient enough for most roles (rarely purchased there). WotA/Essence Reaver - Good on about 2 champs each.
Some of you are probably finishing that list and thinking "Hey, that's actually a lot of choices", and you're right. Where's the problem? It's trying to make a CDR build efficient when using items in the 2nd & 3rd groups. Morello/Grail are great for those casters who rely on regen more than mana pool, and while Frozen Heart provides a good chunk of mana, it requires the buyer to commit to an entirely-defensive item (and a team-oriented one at that). RoA/Seraph's are much better choices for mana pool casters, but if those casters want to itemize CDR, they're now forced to either double down on mana (group 1 items) or double down on defense (group 3 purchases). Ionian boots are a notable exception, but this prevents the caster from getting Sorc Shoes, which is a lot to give up imo. This also all applies to manaless casters, who don't want to buy anything in groups 1 and 2, but are then forced to buy gimmicky items for CDR or WotA, an item whose strength is debatable. (Before you get to groaning about how manaless champions are bull, please consider that their kits are usually limited for this fact by having less powerful CC/utility, and also consider how much blue buff and group 1/2 items close the gap between manaless and mana-using champs).
Moving Ahead: Perhaps the mana/CDR items Riot's releasing on PBE (far from final, I know) will help mana pool casters itemize CDR, but manaless casters are still pretty much at the mercy of WotA or Ionian boots, especially now that DFG has been removed (actually bad on most manaless casters, but still). I think it would be nice if the replacement item(s) for DFG included CDR for this reason. Additionally, (and getting off topic), I think it'd be a shame if Riot threw the baby out with the bathwater here. Sure, the %HP nuke was problematic, but the damage amp debuff would be pretty interesting (maybe on a support item), and the %HP damage was nice considering the only alternative, Liandry's, does that damage in the most unrewarding way possible (only %current HP, as a DOT, in non-stacking, low amounts).
tl;dr: While Morello/Grail are great sources of offensive CDR in builds that use moderate amounts of mana, equivalent itemization is lacking for builds that don't need mana regen or those that need mana pool instead. In these builds, itemizing CDR forces the player to double down on mana or double down on defense, both of which come at the expense of damage potential relative to the builds of their mana-regen-using counterparts. I hope that, with the removal of DFG and the announcement of these new CDR items on PBE, that Riot will fill those itemization gaps to allow for CDR builds on champs with non-moderate mana needs. Although I'm focusing on AP champs, this also applies to AD champs, as they lack any analogue to morello/grail.
Thanks for reading, feedback is always welcome!