Merc's on AP carries

[quote=EvilDice]Been seeing this a lot at IEM, from both NA and European teams. This isn't really too bad of an idea and could actually amount to more damage in some situations because a Void Staff is standard on all AP carries. Thoughts on this?[/quote]

[quote=JEFFY40HANDS]Grabbing mercs isn't a terrible idea, but the reason Sorcs can tip the balance is due to early/mid game resists. AP carries typically end up around 30MR I think same with most AD carries, Sorc boots give a flat 20 Mpen+ ~9.5 from Mpen marks. So squishie vs squishie they can hit for true damage essentially. For a relative price an AP carry can assure high damage on targets with the amount of Mpen they would have until late game. Without Sorc boots grabbing Mercs can seriously hamper an AP champ's damage. Consider the number of nukes with reliable escapes. I can think of Le Blanc/Gragas/AP Ezreal however Annie/Malzahar/Brand/Ryze don't have built in escapes. The traditional AP choices right now are Annie/Brand/Malzahar, without an escape except their summoner spells they are left hanging in the wind, but their damage output is substantial. The question is "Can I as x AP carry keep myself well positioned at the outset of every teamfight or possible teamfight?" if you can then Sorc boots will be your answer. Inexpensive and a rather solid investment in terms of benefiting your nuke potential. To the retort that "You can't DPS when you're dead, merc treads can save you" that is true but Malz/Brand/Annie all have some serious damage, if they get their combo off they assuredly just ruined some guys day. If they die, they die. Merc treads isn't going to do much more than possibly let you escape bad positioning for a few moments. But chain CC still gets you killed with or without mercs. 85% of the time I'd say get Sorc boots. 15% of the time get mercs ONLY if the enemy team is purposely stalking you and trying to keep you locked out of your damage combo. Annie just needs to Tibbers+Incinerate to get her damage out there Disintergrate is her single target skill (if I'm not mixing up the names) so it's not as important per say. But if you're locked out of casting anything then you've pretty much already lost.[/quote]

[quote=Lugignaf]Should you sell your Sorc shoes later game, once you've gotten the void staff if you need Merc treads?[/quote]

[quote=JEFFY40HANDS]That sounds reasonable...Unless the whole enemy team is stacking MR.[/quote]

[quote=Kolraider][quote=Lugignaf] Should you sell your Sorc shoes later game, once you've gotten the void staff if you need Merc treads? [/quote] /thread[/quote]

[quote=Trojan995]Merc treads on carries is definitely great, but sorcerer's shoes gives great early game damage - so it's kind of a toss-up. I'd say choose boots based on the situation more than anything.[/quote]

[quote=Searz]With enough CC I'd consider them. But if you really need the damage to win your lane Sorc is prolly still the best choice.[/quote]

[quote=Zeprido][quote=Trojan995] Merc treads on carries is definitely great, but sorcerer's shoes gives great early game damage - so it's kind of a toss-up. I'd say choose boots based on the situation more than anything. [/quote] You can always sell your SS to pick up mercs or cd boots based on your needs. SS is more of an early/mid game item when the enemy team does not have MR, and is only useful late game vs other carries.[/quote]

[quote=EvilDice]One thing you gotta note though is that if you get merc's you are going to now have MR. That basically nullifies the sorcs of the other AP carry... So merc's in theory could actually be used against AP carries that are stronger than you in lane, so their nuke isn't as strong. Just a thought.[/quote]

[quote=Searz]Yea, if you're losing your lane or simply are a lategame champion they're a great choice.[/quote]