As someone who played a fair amount of marksman in season 4 I was building Statikk Shiv a fair amount, and I (often incorrectly) tended to rush it straight out. This didn't always work, but I discovered that I tended to be ahead of the enemy team's marksman, even if they were farming more effectively than me. When I looked back at this phenomenon I deduced it was mainly down to my purchase of the item Avarice Blade early in the game. I plan on giving you the knowledge of this oft overlooked item to increase your advantage in lane.

Avarice Blade is an item, built out of a Brawlers Glove and 400 gold, which gives the player 10% Critical Strike Chance. More interestingly the item gives the player +3 gold per ten seconds and +2 gold per kill. Avarice Blade builds into either Youmuu's Ghostblade and Statikk Shiv.

To understand the true value of Avarice Blade you must understand how currency is earned. Alongside the 19 gold gained every 10 seconds (assuming that you don't take gold runes) you gain the majority of your gold by killing minions. Minions will walk down each lane in waves, spawning first at 1:30 and every 30 seconds following. The money you earn from the three main minion types is below.

NB. Super Minions are not discussed as they are almost always irrelevant when it comes to the Avarice Blade.

Melee Creeps: Spawn in groups of three every wave and give 19.8 gold per last hit. This amount will increase by 0.2 gold every 90 seconds.

Caster Creeps: Spawn in groups of three every wave and give 14.8 gold per last hit. This amount will increase by 0.2 every 90 seconds.

Siege Creeps: Spawn solo every third wave and gives 40 gold every last hit. This amount will increase by 0.5 every 90 seconds.

With these figures in mind, and the idea that you cannot have a decimal for gold, meaning the value is rounded, we will have a look at how Avarice Blade can help players of varying skills.

Lower tier players tend to last hit less, as their games tend to have more killing and dying as well as less mechanical ability. Let's assume that a player spends all their starting gold and heads to lane and that this player is fairly weak at last hitting. The player will farm three minions in each wave, two melee and a caster, as well as a siege instead of a melee in every third wave. This means that the player will take 8 waves to get enough gold to buy an Avarice Blade (assuming they do not kill or assist in any kills).

Every wave after Avarice Blade is purchased the player will make 6 more gold from last hits and 9 more gold from passive gold, totalling 15 gold. This would mean that the player would make an equivalent of another siege minion every three waves. The item will make a profit when sold at 581 gold, which will be after 39 waves. In this case the item does not seem to be very gold efficient.

Middle tier players tend to last hit more but not perfectly, as their games tend to have longer laning phases and less skirmishing in lane. Let's assume that a player spends all their starting gold and heads to lane and that this player is fairly average at last hitting. The player will farm four minions in each wave, two melee and two caster, as well as a siege every third wave. This means that the player will take 7 waves to get enough gold to buy an Avarice Blade (assuming they do not kill or assist in any kills).

Every wave after Avarice Blade is purchased the player will make 8 more gold from last hits and 9 more gold from passive gold, totalling 17 gold. They will also make 10 gold every siege wave, meaning an increased total of 19. This would mean that the player would make an equivalent of almost another melee minion every wave. The item will make a profit when sold at 581 gold, which will be after 33 waves. In this case the item does seem more efficient, as the player can afford to go one minion down each wave and keep relative gold parity.

Top tier players tend to last hit near perfectly, as their games tend to have longlaning phasese. Let's assume that a player spends all their starting gold and heads to lane and that this player is perfect at last hitting. The player will all minions in each wave as well as a siege every third wave. This means that the player will take 6 waves to get enough gold to buy an Avarice Blade (assuming they do not kill or assist in any kills).

Every wave after Avarice Blade is purchased the player will make 12 more gold from last hits and 9 more gold from passive gold, totalling 21 gold. They will also make gold every siege wave, meaning an increased total of 23. This would mean that the player would make an equivalent of more than another melee minion every wave. The item will make a profit when sold at 581 gold, which will be after 27 waves. In this case the item does seem more efficient, as the player can afford to go one minion down each wave and keep gold parity.

Overall the item Avarice Blade gives a fair amount of gold utility. It must be remembered that the item also gives Critical Strike so it is more valuable than the gold gain. The item can also be built early and upgraded later to make all the gold it gains be gained, rather than just that after 581. Avarice Blade is oft overlooked and is a good option for those forced back with 800 gold, and so is deserving of attention.

Thanks for taking the time to read this and feel free to comment on this guide.