Talk:Malzahar/@comment-25517398-20141009051655/@comment-8468980-20141009182842

DFG isn't a bad item on any mage who can burst but it's really not core on Malz. CDR is great on Malz, but not so great that you buy two CDR items or CDR boots in lieu of Sorc boots. Athenes or Morello's is all you need for CDR.

His AP ratios and his base damage are his strongest kit features you should be itemizing for (Deathcap, Void, and Haunting Guise are great), aside from that you can't afford to go full glass cannon past laning phase. Zhonya's and rylai's or roa are a must for late game if you want to be able to survive during team fights.

Wota is garbage on him as it is on 90% mages. If you really need hp sustain in lane then buy an RoA  and examine your positioning. Xyph recently commented on spellvamp's poor effectiveness on the new boards mentioning they were even considering removing the stat altogether for S5 and possibly slapping some boosted regen on the few champs who buy it.

Malz isn't a strong lane bully the same way that Xerath or Syndra can simply out range and CC opponents, nor can he drop a full combo for 75%-90% hp like Brand or Annie, in order to trade well you need to out play opponents by tagging them with Q then going in for a free E. If your opponent isn't falling for this then you can try to farm safely with E once you sink about three levels into it. He deals a lot of damage, but he cannot reliably kill with out his ulti.