Talk:Vel'Koz/@comment-24621260-20140302222819/@comment-10428734-20140306211705

Seraph is definitely not bad, but I'd only get it if I really need the shield. Not really easy to stack and you don't need the mana (Velk is not particularly mana-hungry, you can get away with Dorans or Morello). No way you replace Zhonya by this through, the stasis is still largely more valuable than the shield. A good thing about Tear is that you have high base damage so you don't need a lot of stuff early game.

About mana, I think Morello is a good option for the very cheap AP and CDR. A full Athene is definitely not needed unless you need MR badly (Abyssal being bad because the aura range is too short). Another good thing with Morello is that you can proc its passive very easily with your ult. Imo this item is really underestimated on most mages, especially with all these Mundos going where they please in the top lane.

However, I would buy Void a bit earlier, probably before Rabadon. Considering a standard MPen stuff (runes, masteries, Sorcs, Guise), the passive from Void alone gives +20% magic damage against enemies with 60 MR and +30% magic damage against enemies with 130 MR. As you can see, it is extremely cost-efficient even when the enemies do not have that much MR (mind MR runes too). You need a lot more AP to make Rabadon better, and even then your AP scalings are not that high. Don't get me wrong, Rabadon is still mandatory but it is definitely a late game item for Velk.

With a mid game Void, the MPen from Guise and your innate true damage, you can get rid of top lane tanks pretty quickly at the stage where they should peak, even if they rushed Visage. That alone can be a huge asset for your team.