Seeing as wits end is the more used item then ionic spark, I shall compare them.

Ionic spark = 125 dmg/4 hits. Hits up to 4 people= 500 dmg (max) + Hp
Wit's end = 42 dmg/1 hit. Hits 1 person. 4 hits = 168 damage + Mr

Ionic = more damage
Wit's = more tankiness

In the current meta there are few people who can really use ionic spark. Usually only top can get it. And even then, it just provides more damage then resistances... Which when you need an off-tank/bruiser for top is kinda important... In the end it all really just boils down to team comp, sometimes its good and sometimes it sucks.

As well, wits end will always beat ionic spark as an item 1v1, but when you team fight in the jungle/for baron/drag, it's a different story.

Ionic spark replaced a damn good item.
~1950 gold
60 IAS
100 damage every 4 hit
Active: 30 Apen for 6 seconds (And can't be dodged)
I wish they'd bring back SoTD, it was miles better than this thing. (For other purposes)

Ionic is best for pushing. It's not for damage, health, or MR, or anything. It's for pushing.

Which is why you saw TPA buy one on Shen in the finals; he wanted to be able to instantly shove his lane so he could go back to his team and shove a different lane, harder.


Oh and no, IS didn't replace SotD. IS fills an entirely different niche.

Shen is the only champion that can really use Ionic Spark to the point that it's better than Wit's End on him.

All the others, Wit's End is a better choice unless your opponents have very little magic damage.

You're still thinking in terms of in a fight against champions; Ionic is not for that, it's for shoving lanes quickly. Any champion who cannot clear minions efficiently benefits from the Spark. Shen only gets the biggest benefit because his ability to splitpush without abandoning his team is insane.

Think about how you use it in the game mode it was designed for (Dominion).
It works exactly the same on the Rift.

Thing is, the only reason you should want to shove a lane quickly is either if you're a champion who can mulch towers or you need the minion farm. The first type usually have some sort of AoE for that; Nasus has Spirit Fire, Wukong has Nimbus Strike, all AP champions have at least 1 AoE spell (and yes, they mulch towers, usually around the point they have more than 300 AP), and the list goes on. For the second type, the only champions I know of who farm so poorly that they'd need an item to help are Poppy and Fizz; Poppy gets more benefit from Tiamat than Spark, and Fizz frankly can't be bothered to use either one even if he's building AD.

So Ionic Spark is negated by an innate piece to more than 90% of champions.

The reason they removed SoTD is because Ionic spark was so similar (It wasn't) and SoTD was underused.

Mmm I guess it does find more of a home in Dominion.... but it still stands that its primary purpose is for pushing.

lol

The reason they removed SotD was because they got rid of Dodge, and SotD exited primarily to negate dodge (with its active).

Kid, you weren't around when they did this, I'd bet. I was around back when we could stack Capes of Suns on an incarnation of Evelyn who had a stun and loved to jungle with Revive/Smite. You know, back when SotD was in and you mostly bought it because the other team had Jax.

I was there back then, thanks for assuming everything. SoTD did a lot more than just negate dodge. I was there when you couldn't lifesteal off shields, I was there when Janna's ult had a slow, I was there at release leblanc, I was there when Malphite was considered ****-tier. I was there when Sunfirecape Eve was about as broken as Sunfire Garen. I was there when Phantom dancer was a noobtrap on Jax.

As for SoTD, go check the announcement forum. Info about it's removal is probably still there if you dig deep enough.

The removal of SoTD and Stark made my Sion build far more expensive and more difficult to use. Build I had used for months before they removed SoTD. Looking for a replacement, I thought I'd be able to use stark by swapping runes around but they also removed it a little later.

Not everybody is new to these forums pal.
Oh, and I used to buy SoTD for the 60% IAS and the 30 Apen. The anti-dodge was a bonus.