Boots, Boots, and more Boots

Mystakin·10/7/2015, 12:39:38 PM·1 votes·529 views

I've been playing since the beginning of Season 2, and even after that long time, I've still got a lot to learn. One of the biggest things that always seems to get me is the choice of boots to make most games. There are plenty of games where I know what boots to choose, but there's still a lot where I'm still taking to much time to decide what to choose, and even then sometimes it doesn't seem like the right pick. How can I better choose what boots to pick in any matchup?

4 Comments

Kaxi10/7/2015, 1:39:17 PM2 votes

Basic rules are pretty basic. Boots are all about either amplifying your build or role OR counterbuilding the enemy composition.

:BOOTS WITH BOOTS: [More Movement, Please] -item 3117 Boots of Mobility are the go-to for most junglers, supports, and roaming assassins that need to get around the dead zones of the map quicker. Remember that movement is gutted to Speed 1 boots item 1001 during combat. -item 3009 Boots of Swiftness are nice for the heightened movement speed and slow reduction (ie against ZOC slow comps that may include Ashe, Kog'Maw, Lulu, Nunu, etc) OR for overriding innate self-slows (ie Tahm, Vi, Varus). These are also good for champions that want Boots of Mobility but don't want to sacrifice in-fight movement bonuses.

:DEFENSIVE BOOTS: [Fighters, Tanks, or just plain Counter Building] -item 3111 As good as Mercury Treads are, I don't really build them anymore because of Elixir of Iron and masteries and go for a stat that I may need more. However, these give that extra MR and Tenacity to those who won't go with the tankier route. -item 3047 Ninja Tabi are excellent in a lot of situations since almost every team will have an ADC that will Auto-Attack.

:OFFENSIVE BOOTS: [Give me that dps!] -item 3006 Berserker's Greaves are almost required on most traditional ADCs. (Caster-carries like Ezreal, Urgot, and even Lucian can build Lucidity and be just fine, though.) -item 3020 Sorcerer's Boots are for damage dealers that either thrive on base penetration (ie Rumble or Elise) or already have a 20% CDR item (Athene's and Morello). This can also be really good to snowball a magic-damage lane if you don't quite have enough for that NLR but need the mobility instead of brute damage. -item 3158 Boots of Lucidity are fantastic when your core build doesn't include innate CDR or just needs that extra top-off (like hardcore damage builds that don't go for a 20% CDR item).

Francisco Pires10/7/2015, 12:59:49 PM1 votes

I usually take mobility boots if I wan't to roam a lot (as a jungler or a mid laner like talon). Sorcerer shoes on Ap champions (mages or assassins). I take mercury treads if they have a lot of hard cc, swiftness if they have more slows than stuns/snares, etc... I only take ninja tabi if my lane opponent is ad and he's dealing a lot of damage, berserker greaves on adcs. I'm not even close the best player in the world, but this is just my opinion

Maximum Morde10/7/2015, 1:20:33 PM1 votes

Merc treads are never a terrible idea I'd you aren't sure. They aren't always the best choice but they are never bad.