People are playing ARAM all wrong

Ignoring all the trolls who will comment on playing ARAM at all, I find too many people are playing and building in a manner for Summoner's Rift. I thought I would share a few things I feel are advantageous.

Tip #1: never build tear (especially if your Karthus)! I feel like this is every AP's go to starting item. I get it "I'm going to be spamming abilities, so I need mana." Two things:

1. If you are AP and don't need the heavy engage from Mark/Dash (Such as Morgana or Fiddlesticks) then you should take Clarity, Clarity is incredibly efficient, and provides a huge boon to yourself and your team.
2. The new health relics provide AOE health and mana, and spawn at 2:00. If your team goes damage instead of mana then it's likely you can push the lane towards the enemy turret. That means you can benefit from not one, not two, but three health relics! They however will only get one. And don't be afraid to back up to pick up the relics; the faster you grab them, the faster they respawn, the more advantage you build. My typical go-to is 1 amplifying tomb 1 blasting wand 2 health pots. I feel like they're the most versatile starting items; it provides plenty of AP, sustain, and you can build into many paths depending on the situation.

Tip #2: don't be selfish! Speaking of taking Clarity, remember, more than Summoner's Rift, ARAM is a team game. Many times on Summoner's Rift K/D is a big identifier as to how a lane is performing. In ARAM don't focus on your own K/D.

1. If you're a tank, don't worry about getting flamed by your teammates, Engage! In Summoner's Rift ADC's are paired with a support that usually provides some kind of CC so they can get into position. I hate playing when people are more scared about dying, than defending turret. I've seen plenty of games where the tank is afraid of dying, hides by turret with a 3/2 K/D, and then blames the ADC for not doing damage. Nothing is more frustrating than being an ADC on Howling Abyss and not being able to walk forward without being barraged with CC and being melted.
2. Speaking of which, body blocking is a thing. Sometimes your life is worth less than others on your team, figuratively and literally. Let's be honest, we're all going to die. If you can stall the 4/0 Caitlyn from drying, the kill gold will be less. and perhaps someone on their team may have to wait for an additional death before completing an item. Now don't needlessly throw your life away, but it may be better they stay in lane and continue to get CS than you.
3. Oh and about CS: give the minions to the pokey-est, AOE-est champions. If you want your team to output the greatest damage, let Ziggs clear the wave. Look there is only one lane, and everyone wants the cannon minion. Truth is if Tahm Kench keeps stealing CS, your team is going to lose. Keep that pressure on by giving the CS to your AP carry. Now there comes a point when the scale tips, and you'll have to judge it. At some point that champ will become a target for the other team, and if you don't have the comp to keep him safe, consider switching the champ that's killing the minions. Also judge by how much kill gold everyone is getting. If Ziggs is getting all the CS and the kills, but Jhin isn't doing much, give some CS to him before he falls off. Regardless, Zac shouldn't be fighting people for CS ever.

Tip #3: build for advantage. So it is ARAM, and there is a chance you'll get an all AD or all AP team. Perhaps one of you could change. But let me suggest some overlooked items. **1) Gargoyle Stoneplate. **There is a good chance nobody has read this far, but if you have, this is a gem. Some of you probably don't even know what this is. With it's passive active, Gargoyle Stoneplate provides more MR and Armor than any other item in the game, save Frozen Heart which provides 100 armor, and Thornmail which provides the same amount at 80. No single item provides the same amount of MR. Now, I'm not saying rush this item, especially because it provides zero health, however the aura on this thing is massive, which means if you are engaging it's likely that it will be active. If you're a tank and facing a mixed team of AP and AD few items will prove more valuable. Not only that, but its several hundred gold cheaper than many tank items, plus if you go down the inspiration tree you can cut off another 250 gold if you're into that sort of thing. I find this as a useful second item after building a health item like ROA or Crystal Scepter. **2) Rylai's Crystal Scepter. **Speaking of which if your team has minimal CC, someone should probably buy this. That slow is perfect to help your team engage/disengage quickly, even though its only a 20% slow. Your ADC's especially will thank you. 3) Mortal Reminder. Honestly this is on here to discourage Morellonomicon. Morellos on an AP is great, given they usually have AOE abilities, however if there is only one person you are concerned with, Mortal Reminder gives a longer lasting Grevious Wounds, and I find Bloodletter's Veil to be very valuable to increasing the sustainability of squishy APC's. 4) Ghostwalkers. I don't see people using this as a disengage as much as I do. If you're a tank, when you engage you obviously will pull a lot of aggro. Being able to escape, and reposition can be the deciding factor between winning and losing. 5) Zeke's Convergence. This isn't the greatest item. However, if nobody can take Rylai's, you need the CC, and your ultimate is relatively short, this can be tremendous. Linking to your ADC can also help them peel their aggressors while you focus on defending other players.

Honestly there's plenty of little things that I think could make ARAM more competitive if the community was more vocal about strategy. There is very few guides, steamers, or information about ARAM, though the community is large. I think this is largely due to there not being any ranked play, but I think having a discussion is a good start. If you disagree, or feel you could give some suggestions, I'd love to hear them. I am always trying to grow as an ARAM player. Thanks!