League of Legends offers a wide variety of starter items. While designing them, Riot sought to provide players with tools for every scenario and situation.
You see, League of Legends can already create unique predicaments right off the bat. What you buy in the start can have a massive impact on the Laning Pase outcome. That is why Riot designed several good items to help you combat every position you find yourself in.
Sustain is a significant issue in the Laning Phase. Outlasting your opponents is crucial to achieving an advantage in XP and gold. In the early game, sustain is gained chiefly from potions, and we’re here to talk about those.
There are two types of potions in League of Legends – Health Potions and Refillable Potions.
There’s also the Corrupting Potion, but that is a category of its own that deserves a separate article.
So, which one is better, you might ask? Well, that is precisely what we’re going to glance over in this brief article, so keep reading to find out.
Firstly, we will go over each potion’s price and utility. Then we will face them head-to-head at the conclusion. Let’s get started!
Also read: What Does OTP Mean in League of Legends?
Health Potion
- Price: 50g
- Sell: 20g
- HP Restored: 150 over 15s
The health potion is among the oldest items in League of Legends proper. It has remained essentially the same throughout the years, with the last significant change being in Season 5. Yeah, over 7 years ago.
This item is definitely meant for Champions that only need temporary sustain. It has a solid HP restoration rate and can be lifesaving at times. However, it is consumed upon use, and once you use it – it’s gone. This means that you might be inclined to purchase more over and over again, depending on the situation.
If you get into this sort of predicament, it might become quite costly to waste money on health potions continuously. This is a major detriment to the single-use nature of the item and can make people stay away from it and go for alternatives.
Refillable Potion
- Price: 150g
- Sell: 60g
- HP Restored: 125 over 12s
This item is basically a health potion but with charges. As the name suggests, it refills upon your return to the base. Due to its higher cost, Champions who usually start with any of the Doran items are primarily avoided by Champions.
Since the items all cost about 400-450 gold, there is simply not enough left for a Refillable Potion. At first glance, it might seem uneconomical to purchase the Refillable Potion, as it costs as much as 3 Health Potions while offering less than two in volume.
However, the refillable nature of the item means you might get around 5 or 6 regular potions out of it by the time you’re done. Afterward, you can sell it to gain 60 gold back, which effectively costs you 90 gold, less than two proper health potions.
Also read: What Does KS Mean in League of Legends?
Which One Is Better?
In general, I’d consider the Refillable Potion a better item. This is only a broader perspective, and things will differ in the specifics. As I’ve said above, the Health Potion is simply a must-have if you don’t have the gold for a Refillable. Going into the Lane without any reliable sustain source is just asking to lose.
Therefore, the Health Potion finds its proper uses in scenarios where Refillable Potions are simply unobtainable. It is a saving grace implemented by Riot for this exact purpose.
In any other case, and in cases where continuous purchases of Health Potions would be detrimental to your economy – you should get a Refillable. It provides you with excellent sustain, basically infinite uses, and even cash back upon your discarding of it.
Though Refillable might be a generally better item, the Health Potion remains one of the most important items in the game due to its low cost and use in critical scenarios.
Final Thoughts
Both of these items are great and have their own uses. As with most items in League of Legends, each fits specific scenarios best. Sometimes, there is no need to compare items directly, as any item is bound to find its use in some scenarios – even in absurd ones.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this quick article and found it informative, and I wish you all the best on the Summoner’s Rift.
