Earning gold in League of Legends can be a long and tedious process but spending it is a whole other story. After all, you wouldn’t want all that hard work to go to waste on a useless item right?
One metric that works best when figuring out where to spend gold, is Gold Efficiency. In simple terms, it measures exactly how efficient an item is in terms of its stats. The way to calculate it is by dividing the sum of the gold value for that particular item’s stats by the price of the item which you would have to pay in the shop. To convert it into a percentage, the ratio is multiplied by 100.
Generally speaking, an item with Gold Efficiency greater than 100% is considered to be efficient.
In today’s article, we will be looking at the seven most gold-efficient items in League of Legends.
The seven most gold-efficient items in League of Legends are:
- Shard of True Ice
- Pauldrons of Whiterock
- Bulwark of the Mountain
- Black Mist Scythe
- Frostfang
- Guardian’s Blade
- Guardian’s Hammer
Shard Of True Ice (411.25%)
No surprises here. Support items are one of the most useful items you can get and The Shard of True Ice is quite literally the best of them with a jaw-dropping Gold Efficiency of 411.25%, the highest in the game.
To get any support item, you will buy its base version and complete Support quests, which in turn will allow you to upgrade it and get a beastly item at the end. In the case of Shard of True Ice, you will need Spelltheif’s Edge, which will first be upgraded to Frostfang and then to Shard of True Ice.
Shard of True Ice is a legendary item and works best with AP Support such as Seraphine or Soraka. It will cost you 400 Gold but can be sold at a reduced price of 160 Gold.
Shard of True Ice’s unique active will surround your allies with a blizzard for four seconds which will slow down enemy movement speed by 30%. It will increase ability power by 40, health by 75, and mana regeneration by 150%. You will also get 3 additional gold for every 10 seconds.
Pauldrons Of Whiterock (372.92%)
Joining our list in second place is yet another support item. Pauldrons of Whiterock is a legendary item that has an efficiency of 372.92%. It works best with supports that are trying to assist the lane instead of harassing the enemies.
The item costs 400 Gold and can be sold for a reduced price of 160 Gold. Pauldrons of Whiterock will increase attack damage by 15, health by 250, and give 100% health generation. Additionally, it will also increase earning of gold by 3 for every 10 seconds.
In order to get this legendary item, you will need Steel Shoulderguards which will then be upgraded to Runesteel Spaulders and then finally to Pauldrons of Whiterock. When combined with Force of Nature or Knight’s Vow, the item gives the best run for its money.
Pauldrons of Whiterock works extremely well when used with champions such as Taric or Maokai.
Bulwark Of The Mountain (350.42%)
Bulwark of the mountain is yet another legendary item with an efficiency of 350.42%. It costs 400 Gold whereas it can be sold for 160 Gold. Primarily, it is used for defense. (https://aaronkirman.com)
You will need Relic Sheild which will be upgraded to Targon’s Buckler and then finally to Bulwark of The Mountain. It is best for supports opting for lane assist such as Taric or Janna.
Bulwark of the mountain is quite a good item as it will increase your champion’s ability power by 20, health by 250, and will give 100% base health generation. It will also give 3 additional gold for every 10 seconds. If you want to make the most use out of it, then combine it with Redemption.
Black Mist Scythe (350%)
In fourth place, we have Black Mist Scythe with an efficiency of 350%. Like the above items, Black Mist Scythe is also a legendary item, costing 400 Gold whereas it can be sold for 160 Gold.
To make this item, you will need to upgrade Harrowing Crescent which will first be upgraded by using Spectral Sickle. Black Mist Scythe is a magic item that will increase attack damage by 20, health by 75, and mana regeneration by 100%. Its passive allows you to earn extra gold as well.
You can make the most use of it by combining it with Infinity Edge. It works best with champions like Senna and Pyke.
Frostfang (221.98%)
Frostfang is an epic tier item being 221.98% Gold Efficient. You get it from upgrading Spellthief, which can be further upgraded to get Shard of True Ice. It costs 400 Gold and can be sold for 160 Gold.
Using it will increase ability power by 15, health by 70, and base mana regeneration by 75%. Like other passive items mentioned in this list, you can earn 3 extra Gold per every 10 seconds using Frostfang.
Frostfang is a magic item that works best when it is combined with Chemctech Putrifier. A viable strategy is to use it for only those supports which are effectively able to harass in-lane, such as Swain and Lux.
It is relatively not a popular item, as players who use it have a win rate of 29.6%. Due to this, it is commonly sold in the late game.
Guardian’s Blade (194.74%)
Having an efficiency of 194.7%, in sixth place, we have Guardian’s Blade, a starter item which means that it cannot be used to make any other items. It belongs to the legendary tier and costs 950 Gold. It can be sold at a reduced price of 665 and is exclusively available at Howling Abyss.
Guardian’s Blade can increase attack damage by 30, ability haste by 15, and health by 150.
It works best with tanks, assassins, and fighters. After the latest game update, it sells for 70% of its original cost.
Guardian’s Hammer (190.6%)
Last but not least, we have Guardian’s Hammer in seventh place with an efficiency of 190.6%. It is the counterpart of Guardian’s Blade and costs 950 Gold, whereas it can be sold at a reduced price of 665 Gold.
It counts as a Legendary tier starter item which can increase attack damage by 25, health by 150, and increases life steal by 10%. Guardian’s Hammer works best with top-lane and mid-lane champions. It is best to make use of it for Assassins, Marksmen, and Fighters.
Conclusion
Using the metric system of gold efficiency is quite useful as it can accurately give us an idea of what exactly the item is worth relative to others. We listed mostly support and starter items on this list which will mean that they are worth the highest in terms of value when it comes to value.
Therefore, if you are looking for the highest Gold Efficient item in the game, then you should go with Shard of True Ice. However, this item is incentivized for support primarily which means that you can get the most out of it by using it with a champion like Janna or Sona.
On the other hand, if your champion is mid-lane such as a tank, then go with Guardian’s Blade or Guardian’s Hammer as these items are best suited for offensive strategies. At the end of the day, all items have their pros and cons. You can use them to their fullest by creating combinations and using items together. So experiment and see what works best for your strategy.
That brings us to the end of the article. Our data for today’s list was collected from League of Legends wiki and the stats mentioned are all up to date for this month. Thank you for reading.
Here is a list of the most versatile champions in LoL for you to check out.
