Talk:Maokai/@comment-8506165-20140414105213

I've decided that Chalice is really just core on a tanky Maokai. Sure, you can take all the blues if you have a manaless mid, or if the enemy jungler's very bad with their buff timers and you end up wearing theirs every time it's up, or if your midlaner actually understands that you're a goddamn tree and you need blue more than they do, but even then it has a downtime, and with Mao's mana costs your pool just doesn't last that long during that time. I've tried just running big ticket mana items like IBG and Frozen Heart, but it doesn't really solve the problem that you empty your mana pool > you're now basically a really tanky minion until it regens. So to sustain your ultimate, keep up E-harass or really do anything meaningful aside from just WQing you need to have a decent amount of mana regen.

So... yeah, early Chalice on Maokai and you no longer have to cry a little internally when midlane asks for blue (either over giving it away or the argument that will ensue when you take it), you have a small dose of MR and you can just sit on it for ages before upgrading to Mikael's or Athene's as you prefer. Can leave it as your sole MR choice or add a Visage or an Abyssal if their AP's dangerous. Sure, it's not exactly standard on tanks, but I'm sure every Maokai player here has known the frustration of a teamfight starting when you're on half mana and losing it because you run out. A slightly less tanky Maokai with mana as opposed to a really tanky one without? I'll take the former, please~