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Essence Reaver

FestusPower·7/22/2014, 12:36:55 PM·2 votes·1,170 views

Essence Reaver is a new item that was added in Patch 4.10. It's an alright pickup for AD casters.

Or at least it would be.

In Patch 4.12, Essence Reaver gained another damage buff from Patch 4.11, where it received a damage buff to 60 AD. Now it has 80. A damage buff isn't what it needs. What it needs is to actually be a viable pickup in the early - mid game, where mana issues are real problems. As it currently stands, Infinity Edge is where AD itemization has moved to. Dispute it if you want, the nerfs around all of the other AD items and the huge buffs on Infinity Edge means that AD champions with the highest ranges could make the most use out of it, with the least negative impacts to their build, which is why Kog'Maw and Tristana are now top tier picks. With that in mind, AD itemization around all other champions who don't have high ranges and can't make the best use out of Infinity Edge (ex., Vayne who's weaker now because of the BOTRK nerf) have sub-optimal build paths trying to compete with the more superior Infinity Edge rush.

Now why did I even talk about that? Because right now, it's an incredibly viable pickup. Essence Reaver is not. Pretend we're talking about Ezreal . If an Ezreal player was having mana issues in lane, the first thing he should think about is a Manamune. Why is that? Because it is an affordable option in the early game which gives him a larger mana pool + mana regen when he needs it. By that time, if you're going to finish the Manamune (which you should), you have the mana you need to transition well into the mid game, and Essence Reaver is no longer an item you need to build, because you have all the mana you need to fight. It's an incredibly cost efficient item for what it's worth, and for what it contributes to a characters stats. Even if this Ezreal had the money, he likely wouldn't be thinking, "I need an Essence Reaver right now". He'd probably have Iceborn / Trinity force on his mind, or Infinity Edge, or Armor pen to save up for later on.

What I'm saying with all of this is, that if you need mana as an AD caster, Manamune is always better, because it has an affordable recipe item in the early game which contributes to the thing you need as an AD caster -- mana. You simply cannot afford an Essence Reaver in a timeframe of which it would be the most useful. Stop buffing the damage on Essence Reaver, and give it a mana-on-hit recipe item that would actually make people choose whether or not they want Manamune or Essence Reaver as an early game pickup. Obviously it should be far weaker than the finished product for balance's sake, but it would make AD mana regen items more diverse across the board. It would actually be an item to consider if that were the case.

4 Comments

Sluiceway7/22/2014, 5:18:35 PM1 votes

I find the opposite is true, that essence reaver is a good item on caster ADCs, and on champs like Jayce as well, because it does not have the long build up time that tear of the goddess has. The main weakness of blue ezreal, for example, is that it takes him so long to be relevant in a fight, and the essence reaver solves that by giving him more damage early. What I am worried about is that non-caster carries will pick it because it has both lifesteal and mana regen and equal base damage to the BT(which has already fallen out of favor as a first buy) and I-edge. I have seen a few Caitlyn's I have supported building an Essence Reaver already, and I am concerned what will happen after the lcs players get their hands on the most recent incarnation of the reaver.

Also, Bork was buffed in the 4.10 patch, going from 5% heath on hit to 8% at the cost of lifesteal going from 15% to 10%, which works out to be about the same overall lifesteal due to the increased damage.

Linna Excel7/22/2014, 8:06:13 PM1 votes

I really wish riot would comment on this.

The Hexmage7/23/2014, 2:04:07 PM1 votes

It is true that the Essence Reaver is a good item, but the problem is which item is replaced. For example, look at the build of Graves: item 3006 item 3031 item 3046 item 3153item 3035 item 3026

  • item 3006 Berserker's Greaves: Gives attack speed and mobility. It's irreplaceable.
  • item 3031 Infinity Edge: This is the same as the Berserker's Greaves, it is not replaceable.
  • item 3046 Phantom Dancer: Attack speed, critical strike chance, and some movement speed. Is only replaceable by the Statikk shiv because it provides almost the same statistics. But the Essence Reaver doesn't give attack speed or critical strike chance or movement or speed, so you can't replace it.
  • item 3153 Blade of the Ruined King: Now is irreplaceable, but before it could be replaced by the old Bloodthirster.
  • item 3035** Last Whisper**: Like the Infinity Edge or Berserker's Greaves, it's irreplaceable.
  • item 3026 Guardian Angel : The defensive item that is usually replaced by the Banshee's Veil. The Essence Reaver is not a defensive item, but it can replace the Guardian Angel, the problem is that in late game this item is not very useful because the ADCs like Graves or Ezreal no longer have mana problems.

As you see, it is very difficult to replace an item of an ADC, but I see about two solutions, but there are not very effective:

  1. Add to Essence Reaver much damage as the old Bloodthirster (I don't like this idea).
  2. Convert the Essence Reaver in an item as the Phantom Dancer: Attack Speed​​, critical strike chance, and movement speed, but with cooldown reduction and his passive. It would be more or less like this: ** 40% Attack speed, 20% Critical strike chance, 4% Movement speed, 10% Cooldown reduction, and his unique passive.**