Since its launch, the Power Chalice has always been seen as a support item and usually prioritized last by players when crafting items. Generally, the common mindset of most players is to complete primary damage items like the Archangel’s Staff and Rabadon’s Deathcap before considering support items. However, on the Chinese server, the Power Chalice is regarded as a very hot damage item. So why is there this meta? Let’s find out.
First, we need to remember that many skill damage-increasing items were heavily nerfed in Season 6 of Teamfight Tactics. For example, the Archangel’s Staff had its critical damage reduced by 10%, and the Rabadon’s Deathcap received a nerf in skill damage stats gained per second. Clearly, when such powerful attack items are nerfed, players must look for other items to replace them.
Then, the Chinese players discovered that the skill damage stat provided by the Power Chalice is extremely high and sufficient to replace the above items. The effect of the Power Chalice is to provide 35 skill damage to the champion holding it and 2 adjacent allies; this number increases to 70 if that unit has 2 of these items. Meanwhile, Rabadon’s Deathcap only provides 75 skill damage for one champion. It can be said that 2 Power Chalices are nearly equivalent in value to 3 Rabadon’s Deathcaps.
This means that crafting multiple Power Chalices will provide your team with an enormous amount of skill damage. This becomes even more dominant when many team compositions in the current meta need this stat for the whole team. Therefore, if you can obtain 1-2 Power Chalices, you can almost guarantee a spot in the top 4.
First is the Innovator composition with many champions needing skill damage stats like Heimerdinger, Seraphine, and Orianna. Even a support champion like Janna needs this stat to enhance the healing ability for the entire team. Therefore, if you’re aiming to build an Innovator team, the Power Chalice is an essential item.
Next is a 4 Scholar composition with key champions like Heimerdinger and Lissandra also requiring the Power Chalice. A similar story occurs with the Mage team when this composition has too many champions capable of dealing strong damage. In fact, with the large amount of skill damage provided by the Power Chalice, you may not need to craft the Archangel’s Staff for Viktor or Lux, but instead use defensive items like the Quicksilver.
In summary, with a series of spell damage increasing items being nerfed, the immense skill damage provided by the Power Chalice is incredibly valuable. Therefore, as long as you focus on magical damage dealing carries, this item is a “must-have” that gamers should prioritize.