Best & Worst Season 8 Mage Starter Items & Upgrades: Breakdown & Rating

Discussing the SMITE Season 8 Mage Starter Items and their upgrades. Breaking down and rating Conduit Gem, Vampiric Shroud and Sands of Time as well as their upgrades. Archmage's Gem has been the most popular starter upgrade so far, but what about items like Gem of Focus, Sacrificial Shroud or even The Alternate Timeline?
#SMITE #Mage #Starter
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[@travisgibson4952]

Y’all should really try gem of focus on ra. I find it to be super fun when its mixed with his passive movement speed on use of abilities

[@dragontyron]

I've been doing this since starter was a thing lmao Doom Orb + Charon's Coin + Gem of Focus = ZOOM

[@Master1Morrison]

MY favorite starter is definitely is that movement speed gem one I feel it’s super easy to keep up with Janus and have had such a good time with it going in and out of walls spamming his unstable vortex also with sol since you can keep using her 1 to keep her heat up throughout the late game

[@mr.drakanator]

I am dying for a buff to Alternate Timeline. It’s an incredibly interesting item that I want to be good, but the passive is far too weak and absolutely doesn’t justify a 10 minute cooldown

[@DukeSloth]

I think they're REALLY scared to buff it since the difference between it being useless and OP is so small. I wouldn't be surprised if they rework the passive entirely.

[@SkepticRyo]

@@DukeSloth I think a small bracer effect where it procs when you are on low health would be more interesting and easier to balance imo. LoL guardian angel revives you at 50% hp and 30% mana on 5 mins cooldown but league doesn't have aegis. I think there would be no issues reducing the cooldown but imagine an aphro with this item+aegis+ult, that's 5 seconds of invincibility.

[@ans-dq9xh]

@@SkepticRyo but the prob of a bracer is the anti heal

[@dragontyron]

@@SkepticRyo Bracer effect would be interesting, yeah. It doesn't really have to be _small_ either imo, since a bit of antiheal would gut the item.

[@garrettf1412]

@@dragontyron (just replying to you to continue this thread but talking to all whom mentioned it) I think you could make the healing of the item immune to antiheal effects so that it would actually work as intended, but I think this "bracer" idea would work well with mages, similar to how book of the dead works as well. And stacking the 2 effects on a god like Hera, that would add some SERIOUS survivability.

[@NocturnalForge]

Gem of Focus on morri is so fun, you move so damn fast in your stealth

[@Baghnal]

Vampiric / Bloodsoaked is incredible on Artio. Solo and Support. She's mana hungry, a tank and all 6 abilities are AoE. Fixes all of her problems and makes her even tankier than she already is.

[@duvie1]

Pendelum of ages is huge imo right now. gives 190 power now, even more than tahuti even before the nerf when you're at 100-91% mana

[@Nitefelina]

Feel like it makes a late Game Aphro even more annoying to deal with.

[@aperturehela4976]

This on Yemoja is fun, she doesnt reduce the passive so she can have perma 190 power for free

[@jacobjerny7502]

But it’s bugged. It only gives 10% cdr instead of 20

[@Nitefelina]

@@jacobjerny7502 lol of course it is... The other gem is better anyways. Mid to late game Aphro is spamming abilities anyways and will keep that extra 9% flowing with ease.

[@theskeptic777]

@@aperturehela4976 wait wtf-

[@alexander6421]

Gem of Focus Lowkey underrated

[@ShaiGonzalez]

Thanks for all the work and effort dude, congrats on the great work

[@avalanche1484]

I don't know for sure, but I suspect Gem of Focus indicates that it only gives a stack for abilities to cost mana to prevent stance switchers from abusing it. I'm fine with that, and stance switchers like Hel still greatly benefit from it because they have 6 abilities. However, someone like Agni gets screwed because now he only has 3 abilities that can proc it which I think is a shame. If his ult did proc it he'd have 6 abilities which would make it a more interesting option.

[@LichCrypt]

Here's an idea: Alternate Timeline on Baba Yaga. You can easily double dip on stacking items, including defensive options, so the loss of power is mitigated. You can get Thebes or Urchin for defensive options along with your one or two high power stacking items. Add just some solid pen options, and you'd have a mage that can frontline while still dealing good damage and if you get bursted in a teamfight you get to come back with enough health to still be somewhat useful. In theory, it should work.

[@rathscendance]

I don't know about alternate time line but I have run a nearly full stack build on baba with coin, thoth, sash, thebes and obviously book that wasn't half bad and usually threw chronos pendant in there for cdr but this year there is starters so probably pendulum for the cool down would be good.

[@SuperSonicBlur]

I think for me the thing Id like to see properly written out would be how much damage you have to do before sacrificial shroud starts being a net gain on hp. Napkin maths says 5% of 2200 is 110 hp cost. So on the 15% lifesteal + 15% more damage I'm curious where the turning point is for damage you need to deal. Hell with Bancroft's + typhoons it feels like it's the perfect synergy. Give you more burst and put you lower so Bancroft's + typhoons gives you more burst.

[@wirelessenvy3827]

I feel like Sacrificial Shroud is actually kinda huge on Hades Solo. By the time you get to upgrade it, your damage should be falling off against anything that doesn’t have the health of paper, so the extra damage should make you huge.

[@RobBomford]

Having played some games where this came into play, 100% yes

[@insanehades53]

I prefer warriors axe over shroud

[@rathscendance]

On my hades solo I actually go Pythagoras, sacrificial, typhons, lifesteal boots, with mantle and printing so I have 20 percent pen, 30 percent cool down so my ult is up a lot and can still kill squished and survive late game, hades solo is way better this season I feel than last season

[@TheBenjamin501]

I tried sacrificial shroud on merlin with typhons and oh. my. god it was just so kuch fkn damage

[@kylepence2066]

Anyways duke love the videos and just wanted to say you inspired me to start my own channel soon. So thanks on that and thanks for the great content

[@guru187]

I’m a fan of gem of focus on solo Barron. It just makes sense

[@donteatglass3472]

I like the Gem of Focus and Spear of the Magus combo. Just spam enemies to death. Also Pendulum of Ages works pretty well on Kukulkas as you'll buy mana items for extra power anyway, so you pretty much always get the full power of the passive.

[@doomedarts]

I don't think Blood-Soaked Shroud and Death Toll can quite be compared, as one is based on abilities and the other on basic attacks. I've been using the Shroud on Ah Puch and it felt great. He has large area abilities that can easily hit a lot of enemies, and the physical protection + the HP regen is great when you're being focused by assassins, for example, which happens a lot as AP doesn't have any escapes and is usually seen as an easy target. I've been capable of killing or at least making enemies retreat this way. Combining the Shroud with the purple boots, Typhoon Fang and sometimes Soul Gem, I've been healing around 13k in Clash games. I think the shroud might work well for other AOE based gods like Merlin, maybe.

[@crabbygamer1809]

Cerberus and sacrificial shroud is honestly super good for solo.

[@DK-Nations]

Also found the new Hercules aphrodite combo its cerb+aphro=you don't die lol

[@Sacred9000]

think pendelum of aegis would be good on kuku if you're going into a book build

[@twistedbrothertwin]

They should update the text in vampiric. It doesn’t really specify it procs of off EVERY enemy hit.

[@PouncinZebra]

What about Pendulum of Ages on Kukulkan, then build a full Mana/Pen/Power build? More mana, the more power x2

[@Sharkwater88]

Vampiric shield seems perfect for Barons whole kit. Any reason why not?

[@DamnStraightGaming]

People hate on Sands of Time but I love it. The mp5 is incredible, and the 20% CDR from Pendulum of Ages makes it worth it for me personally

[@YugiSupersaiyan]

What I want to know is whether Blood-Soaked Shroud can go over the Magical Lifesteal Cap. That and Typhon's Fang should give a pretty heavy Power boost.

[@invalidname.pleasetryagain122]

It cannot

[@BruteSparta]

It maxes out its stacks at 99, not that you'd ever realistically get to that point in a game because that stacks don't last long enough.

[@jasonsavage8494]

I've tried alternate tineline once or twice in solo. Sands of time on someone like sobek really isn't too bad given the cooldown and a bit of power for clear is nice, and then lategame you get an item with more of both defenses than spirit robe, the same cooldown, and a bit of power to round things off. The passive will 'probably' be useless, at best you'll just be a 1s distraction as you respawn in place and just get finished off, but on someone tanky with good survivability it can come in as a cherry on top of what actually aren't bad base stats for solo lane guardians. I was able to 2 for peel and 1 to safety once, next time I just died again immediately though.

[@aperturehela4976]

Blood Soaked Shroud on Baba Yaga is funny, dont think they've patched it but each tick of her ult procs it

[@frufru4860]

Been using that every game, cause Baba is so spammy, and so that or the hourglass one is best for her

[@jettblade]

Anyone else have the problem that Sigil of the Old Gods has no stats on the base item since the patch?

[@DK-Nations]

Cerberus and artio are scary asf with these items I've been playing my diamon cerb and artio everywhere

[@AceBountyHunterRex]

Which ones are you referring to specifically?

[@DucktorHeyDucktor]

Does gem of focus work with switching stances, namely artio?

[@DukeSloth]

The stance swap itself? It shouldn't since the condition for stack is that the ability has to cost mana. But you can use abilities from both stances to stack it, yes.

[@tychobrandsma2929]

Blood soaked is good on change or he bo

[@StarboyXL9]

Pendulum of Ages appears to be broken FYI, it only gives 10% CDR instead of the 20% it advertises.

[@si1v3rcoyote84]

what about ah puch with upg shroud. he can drop those bodies on himself and heal, gain mana, and have a cooldown decrease.

[@Elysian_Song]

which starter do you guys think will be the best for tiamat?

[@dragontyron]

Gem of Focus. Ability spam keeps the stacks up, mitigation and MS help keep her alive, and the T1 Conduit Gem helps her abysmal early clear.

[@dragontyron]

Yeah, they really should make Blood-Soaked Shroud give you %heals instead of the 12 flat. Most of the other starters shift to % numbers when upgraded.

[@Hycinl]

Now here's where I ask a simple question: Can Mage ADCs in Mid benefit More from Death's toll then they would from Vampiric Shroud?

[@DukeSloth]

I mean, I discuss that in the video. It's a double-edged sword, really. But especially next patch, when Death's Temper is fully fixed, it's definitely up for consideration.

[@giantdad8468]

Merlin and agni could use shroud since they both have a lot of aoe i think agni can stack off of his ult

[@LipluvsU]

Pendulum of ages would be more of useful item it gave penetration per 10% mana. 2 or 20 pen at max mana would be really helpful at that stage of the game or even 1.5% would give 15% at late game would make it soo much more useful

[@kylepence2066]

Could zhomg qui use upgraded vamp well?

[@Zidzyz]

Any god with built in healing or that you will build lifesteal with will make upgraded vamp worth it. The main problem is that Zhong is also really good with Sundering Axe and extra prots on him help a ton

[@kylepence2066]

@@Zidzyz i figured but i was thinking could you do some weird shit with it since your ult and your 1 2 and 3 all have some good aoe

[@DukeSloth]

He's one of the better users for it, yeah. If it's actually good is another question. He already has built-in heal anyways, so sustain is usually not what he lacks.

[@kylepence2066]

@@DukeSloth the only reason i ask is cause ive been playing zhong solo since like season 3 and have always loved it. So i was thinking some sort of warlocks vamp upgraded Bancrofts mantle build with ig that makes sense. Like stright healing and defense with a wee bit of damage

[@benwil6048]

11:00 how about Zhong

[@jackteahan3981]

would blood-soaked shroud be worth it on Tiamat maybe? mid or solo maybe

[@ambermurray2496]

I like it on zhong.

[@DukeSloth]

Somebody toyed around with it on PTS, it didn't seem super impactful so far. Gem of Focus is just INSANE for her and also comes with better early clear via Conduit Gem, so it's hard to justify other choices. I'll have a video about her general and solo performance tomorrow!

[@jackteahan3981]

@@DukeSloth Awesome, I did try gem of focus and it felt very strong, probably goes well with her kit anyway with the damage mit.

[@twistedbrothertwin]

Alternate timeline is terrible, it only activates one time every 10 minutes, and you can’t even buy it until level 20 around 17 minutes in already. Unless you’re playing with and against bots, you m might be able to get it to Proc one time before the games completely over. That passive would be better on a normal starting item, because even then you might only proc it 3 times a match.

[@daddyethan]

I'll stick by my guns in this one, sacrificial shroud is bordering disgusting on gods who's abilities can hit multiple times like zeus, raijin etc. I've once killed a discordia and rama as zeus with just my 1 and 3 it's the funniest shit ever especially when you build spear of magus along with it, to see it with your own eyes go the regular 2 flat pen (one being magus,) rod, boots, ob shard and then compare the ult damage difference with sacrificial shroud on Raijins ults vs archmages gem, you'll notice how raijins ult's damage almost enters 1k per drum swing while with archmages it's still at 600 on ra bot and only can hit for 900 once with fully stacked gem passive.

[@dragontyron]

I think that's intentional; Sacrificial Shroud _should_ give you the highest bonus because you're chunking yourself every time you use it. A full kit rotation costs you 20% of your health!

[@rathscendance]

I've actually ran sacrificial on gods like kuk where the ult can 1 shot easily late if I have the setup, plus if I feel like the enemy juggler is going to try and early aggress then the prots are really nice early game

[@lesserknown5138]

Hi

[@orionar2461]

PS4 makes it impossible to find vampiric shroud for any mid. Literally cannot find it unless a make a time selection myself for a god out of a match

[@amaziiin]

the last tab in the store has all the starters at the top

[@blainefiasco8225]

Makin septer should be renamed to Meme septer.

[@Venom15911]

I feel like the only tree I even build fully and don't sell back are the two gems and Sacrificial Shroud. And even then Gem of Focus is very situational. Most of the mage starters just don't seem worth it :/

[@MADDcartman]

Maybe hi-Rez should just hire you to adjust items. They seem clueless in this area. From patch to patch it’s just figuring out which item is best. Instead of choosing different styles of play you almost always have to go with the broken items.

[@lolwhatever7307]

Its impossible to balance moba. Do you really think gamedevs are so stupid? As you may know dota and lol are also disbalanced. Its just a nature of game with many options.

[@dragontyron]

They're not actually that bad at it, though. The thing about metagames is that there will _always_ be something considered "optimal," and the job of a game designer is to ensure that players can compensate for not picking the optimal route through their own gameplay, or a rock-paper-scissors style of counterplay. While yes, sometimes they'll slip up and let something really gnarly into Smite, for the most part they do a good job of keeping gods and items on par with each other.

[@blainefiasco8225]

So long story short, Gem tree it the best

[@awake4852]

Second

[@kylepence2066]

First

[@alexanderschiegl2901]

Alter du bist doch deutscher!

[@distraction2803]

I don't want Alternate Timeline to be weak. I want it removed. Completely. Forever. Make room for a different upgrade, get that revive mechanic away from me.

[@alexanderjohnson6178]

All this video showed me was the mage starter items are by far the worst set

[@Dj_equinox]

i never upgrade starter items

[@shinobiforhonor9762]

Unpopular opinion: sell ur starter and get a real item unless ur playing nuwa.

[@jasonsavage8494]

That's unpopular for a reason. What's the next 'unpopular opinion' - never buy boots, just get 1st item speed pot?

[@jasonsavage8494]

@Jonkathan P you got me there bro. 4 katana Arthur support incoming, brb off to ranked its time to frag.

[@rathscendance]

Hi rez made it impossible for most gods to not run boots because years ago it was supports who went winged blade and relic dagger and then there were jugglers like baka who ran stone cutting fatalis and it was too good, and there is all the movement speed nerfs to the rings for magical adcs, and even travelers and tilapia got needed, the list is long lol