Of the few times I've played support and have managed to acquire this item at late game, I've tended to resourcefully use this as much as possible until my team encounters a baron fight/steal situation which demands me to ward the whole area taking up all four of my charges.
I never have a chance to actually test this 'ward recharge' myself as the final fight at baron regardless of which team wins ends the game almost every time at that point as a result of a team ace.
I'm curious what actually qualifies as 'visiting the shop' in order for me to recharge my sightstone.
Do I need to recall to the spawnpool to qualify as a recharge? Or do I have to physically open the shop and purchase an item every time?
P.S. I am dreadful at support so I tend to avoid it.
Best Answer
@Raven Dreamer's answer is actually misleading.
Blue: Shopping Zone
Green: Healing Zone
Specific to OP's question, the Sight Stone will not recharge unless you move inside the red zone (stepping on the line also counts).
The reason Reaper is incorrect is because, as you can see, the blue shopping zone is centered around the shop keeper and not the center of the spawn circle. This lets you buy while you stand outside of the spawn fountain (to the top left) and also unable to buy even when standing on the fountain (to the bottom right).
Here is a quick and dirty list of what applies to each zone: (Keep in mind, to get each zones effect, you only need to at least step on the boarder)
Red: Recharge Zone - BOTH red and blue sight stones - Crystalline flask - Homeguard Boots (There is an invisible cool down on Homeguards)
Green: Healing Zone - Rapid health restore (ignite effects still cut this healing in half) - Rapid mana/energy restore - Fountain laser will hit enemies inside this zone
Blue: Shopping Zone - Interact with the store