Blitzcrank theorycrafting

[quote=Urscythe][quote=DuffTime] He's getting too caught up in the passive. It's what Singed players do too, and it's easy to do. But, it's not worth it at the end of the day. I'd recommend a good old sheen / glacial shroud rush to all new Blitz players. [/quote] I usually buy Chain Vest and then a Null Magic Mantle before building Glacial Shroud, unless I'm positive I won't need the MR. After that, I either turn the mantle into a Hexdrinker or the vest into a Shroud depending on what's needed more (more AD/MR or more armor/CDR.) Usually Shroud first, but not always. Problem with Manamune is people look at it, go "omfg 1000 MP awesome" and forget how long it takes to build that passive. Manamune looks AMAZING on paper, but is quite underwhelming in practice for all but a few heroes.[/quote]

[quote=Urscythe]Been toying with a Phage build, omitting Sheen entirely. Start with boots+potions, build Philo Stone as soon as you get the 800, buy Phage next, then Aegis of the Legion, and upgrade your boots whenever. You can get all this for about 5,000 gold, or just above it, which makes it a viable mid-game core. It gives you moderate AD, utility via Phage, plenty of effective HP via straight HP boosts and armor/MR from Aegis, and allows you to progress to late-game items if the game goes long. Buy a Frozen Heart, complete Frozen Mallet. Add Atma's Impaler if the game just won't end, maybe add Warmog's in there for trololol. With all tenacity items now providing 35 Tenacity, having a Philo Stone means you can turn it into a Miracle for your Tenacity, allowing you other options than just merc treads for boots. Boots of Mobility are extremely nice to have with Overdrive, allowing you to pretty much cross from top to bot in a few seconds, giving you excellent map presence. Cons: - Lack of Sheen means less early/mid-game burst. You won't get 400 base dmg Power Fists. - Lack of Sheen means you don't get that extra 200 Mana at the start by doing crystal+potions and means you'll have 250 less Mana to play with in general. Pros: - Phage debuff gives you more utility for your team. With Phage slowing them, someone you hooked is guaranteed to die horribly if they can't Flash out or get their team to bail them out. - Phage provides a nice boost to your HP early on, making you less reliant on Mana Barrier to survive early battles. - Lost MP from not having Sheen/crystal can be made up by taking scaling Mana quints. Blitz's exceptionally high base stats mean HP quints are not needed and Overdrive obviates the need for movement speed quints. - Phage turns into Frozen Mallet in the late game, providing a large HP bonus and extremely good presence in a battle by adding an automatic permaslow to your existing insane CC presence. Obviously, this only applies if you're playing Blitz as a tank and not a bruiser because bruiser Blitzcrank rushes Trinity Force, which kinda makes Sheen versus Phage pointless. I just think that Phage is more useful for a tank Blitz because it turns into Frozen Mallet late-game, which provides a huge HP boost and better utility than 400 dmg Power Fist hits. Sheen doesn't turn into anything but Trinity Force, which is suboptimal for a tank-build Blitz.[/quote]

[quote=samgoeslol]okay i switched to playing sheen + catalyst now. its stronger earlygame but somewhat takes yr lategame carryingpower down. Dont say im lowering the average blitz lvl dude. i might use fail builds but im still a huge threat to my enemies every game. In some situations i would still use manamune if i get early kills, since the sustain it gives you is just awesome. greez sam[/quote]

[quote=DuffTime]^ I don't use catalyst :P Sheen GLACIAL SHROUD is what I use. The CDR makes a huge difference. Upon obtaining glacial shroud and my Merc treads, I finish Trinity Force. Then I finish Frozen Heart, and generally at this point build an MR item like QSS, BV, or FoN. Next item I build is Atma's, and I buy a green pot when I finish Atma's. From here you've got a lot of options. *Shrug.[/quote]

[quote=Urscythe][quote=samgoeslol] okay i switched to playing sheen + catalyst now. its stronger earlygame but somewhat takes yr lategame carryingpower down. Dont say im lowering the average blitz lvl dude. i might use fail builds but im still a huge threat to my enemies every game. In some situations i would still use manamune if i get early kills, since the sustain it gives you is just awesome. greez sam [/quote] Never, ever buy Manamune. Never buy Tear of the Goddess. They're terrible on Blitzcrank. Don't use them. I'm not a fan of Catalyst on Blitz, either. Philo Stone gives you the income you need and takes care of your laning mana/HP problems and turns into Shurelia's later. Rod of Ages is useless on Blitz and Banshee's Veil is horrifically overrated on pretty much everyone. And, no, you're taking the Blitz game down by building bad items like Manamune. You say you're a threat to the team even with shit items? Guess how much more of a threat you'd be if you were buying good items? Newbies to Blitzcrank should always do Sheen -> Glacial Shroud -> Trinity Force [b]EVERY SINGLE GAME[/b] until they're comfortable with Blitz. It's a powerful build that gives you nice survivability, plenty of mana so you can afford to miss your Rocket Grabs, and lets you still be dangerous even without a hook. Mana Crystal+potions -> Sheen+boots -> Chain Vest -> Zeal -> Glacial Shroud -> Phage+Trinity Force -> Frozen Heart Add MR in there if it's needed. Usually Negatron Cloak, and finish Quicksilver Sash if that's not enough. You might want to finish boots before Trinity Force. Mercury's Treads are the best bet.[/quote]

[quote=NicknameMy]Or if you are the support, you should build [[Heart of Gold]] and [[Philosopher's stone]]. After that [[sheen]]. Then [[glacial shroud]]. After that, [[Trinity Force]]. Then, hmm... Oh, and don't forget [[oracle's elixir]] and [[sight ward]].[/quote]

[quote=DuffTime]It's not that Manamune is AWFUL. It's just not optimal. You'll get plenty of mana for your passive, and more useful benefits with other items. A solid Blitz build might be... Boots of choice -> Sheen - > Glacial -> Negatron -> Phage -> Trinity -> Frozen Heart -> Banshee's veil -> Atma's -> Warmogg's. That's a strong build if you ask me.[/quote]

[quote=NicknameMy]If you are the 0 farm support?[/quote]

[quote=DuffTime]Then just get the glacial shroud and don't build damage.[/quote]

[quote=Urscythe][quote=NicknameMy] If you are the 0 farm support? [/quote] You still rush Sheen. If you're planning on having no income it's even more important because it's the best bang for your buck item you can get as Blitz. Blitz works best on a hyper-aggressive CC-heavy lane, not as a replacement for Taric on a "babysit Ashe for 20 minutes" lane. You should be getting plenty of farm through the time-honored method of kicking the shit out of the enemy lane and farming their jungler when he's stupid enough to show up.[/quote]