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Recommended Items
Spells:
Ignite
Flash
Items
Ability Order
Deathbringer Stance (PASSIVE)
Aatrox Passive Ability
Introduction
Aatrox is a top laner who can be built as a marksman, a tank, or half of both. I believe his potential comes as a tanky DPS champion, and this is what I will be talking about in this guide. With his powerful sustain and amazing steroid on his ult. He has become my favorite champion in the game.
I am GoodPlays from NA. I am currently in Gold V. My rank is not good enough in League, but I do hope my guide is, as this is the first guide I have ever made.
+ Great killing potential.
+ Blood Well is like a free Guardian Angel.
+ Amazing steroids from both Blood Well and Massacre.
+ Arguably the best sustain in game.
+ Highest melee range with Massacre.
+ One of the best and fastest split pushers.
+ Looks cool without a skin.
Cons
- Dark Flight can be interrupted.
- Can be easily countered with items and spells.
- Can be forced to build defensive early if enemy gets an advantage.
- Blood Well is useless without stacks.
- Healing reduction can hurt him.
Runes
Greater Mark of Attack Damage - Flat AD will help you secure many, many kills.
Greater Seal of Armor - Vayne will deal less damage, and so will other physical damage dealing champions.
Greater Glyph of Scaling Magic Resist - Early game, mages don't have the damage they will have late game, that's why I prefer taking scaling MR.
Greater Quintessence of Attack Damage - Large amounts of Flat AD may lead to enemy rage quit. Beware summoner. I would take this over Greater Quintessence of Life Steal for a more aggressive lane phase, it will secure you a lot more kills.
Double-Edged Sword - Many of you are wondering why I put no points on this. While you deal more damage with this, you also take more damage. Your spells also take away your health, so this may take away too much for what it gives.
Fury - Attack speed on Aatrox Self-Explanatory.
Sorcery - A little bit of cooldown reduction kills nobody.. except your enemies.
Butcher - Helps you last hit.
Brute Force - The more AD Aatrox has, the deadlier.
Martial Mastery - Early AD to help you secure your first blood.
Warlord - Increases bonus AD by 5%. By late game, your AD will be massive.
Devastating Strikes - Aatrox benefits from both armor pen and magic pen. Pretty good.
Executioner - Hate it when enemies escape with low hp? This mastery is for you!
Havoc - Name says it all. Wreak havoc upon your enemies.
Defense
Enchanted Armor - This will be pretty big along with Randuin's Omen, Spirit Visage and Guardian Angel
Block - Vayne will deal 6 less damage by the time she hits her third strike.
Unyielding - Now Vayne will deal 12 less damage by the time she hits her third strike.
Veteran Scars - Katarina's hidden passive, now for Aatrox.
Juggernaut - Dr. Mundo used to be tanky, and then came Aatrox with new masteries.
Acceptable summoner spells
Flash - There are over 9000 possibilities with this spell. The only limit is your imagination.
Ignite - Helps you secure kills and get you fed. Victory is only a matter of time for you.
Exhaust - Good spell if you want to peel, or protect yourself from an enemy Vayne. This spell, in other words, can help make plays or save your life.
Item Sequence
Before you question my build, please allow me to explain why I picked those items, and not other items for Aatrox.
Starter items
Gives 8 AD, 80 Health, and heals 5 hp every basic attack.It synergizes extremely well with Aatrox' play style, the sustain is also really powerful as well. |
Gives early Health and HP/5. Very useful against poke champions. Take this item against hard poke champions like Kennen. Invisible text! |
Take this item for a more passive play start. Can be later upgraded into Ravenous Hydra. Invisible text! Invisible text! |
Boots
Great item if the enemy consists of many auto-attack reliant champions. Can also be a great item against top lane ranged AD champions. Invisible text! Invisible text! |
Great item if the enemy team has a lot of CC, or is just magic damage heavy. The problem with Aatrox is that if can't use his auto attacks because he is under cc effect, he is very vulnerable and unable to lifesteal his health back up. |
Core Item
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Attack speed, AD, Life steal, and a passive that can either save your life or help you stick to your enemy. Every stat this item gives is extremely beneficial, attack speed helps you use Blood Thirst / Blood Price more often. And the lifesteal further increases his survivability. A must get for Aatrox. |
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Defensive Items
AoE Slow, Health, and Armor. One of the best defensive items against AD champions, it also gives more armor than Sunfire Aegis. It also stops AD carries from kiting you efficiently.Get this if the enemy team is based on auto-attacks or if the enemy has a Vayne. Invisible text! Invisible text! |
Health, MR, HP/5, CDr, and 20% increased healing from all resources! That means your lifesteal, and your revive from Blood Well/ Guardian Angel will all heal you for more! This is probably the best defensive item for Aatrox. |
Ending Items
AoE damage, AD, and Life steal, synergizes well with Massacre. I get this item over Bloodthirster because it helps me split push faster. Using the active at the wrong time may slow you down from your Blood Thirst/ Blood Price. Start this over Blade of the Ruined King if you with to establish lane dominance. |
Want to piss enemies off with two revives? For real though, it further upgrades your defense. What makes this item so special on Aatrox is that Guardian Angel procs first over Blood Well, that means you won't lose the attack speed passive on your first "death" |
Seventh Item
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A seventh item? Wow I suck at Math. No, actually, after your full build, you sell your boots for a Zephyr. You lose some MS, but the other stats you gain make it worth it. If you do have trouble catching up with champions who kite you in team fights (like Vayne) then all you have to do is use the active part of Blade of the Ruined King on them. Only replace this item with your boots if you are confident you'll do fine without the extra movement speed. |
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Dark Flight - Maxing this will give no other benefit other than damage. The utility remains the same. Max it Last. Start with this skill if you are going to invade.
Blood Thirst / Blood Price - Other people usually don't max this first. I will explain why I max this later on in this guide. Start with this skill if you are not going to invade. I will explain why later.
Blades of Torment - Take this skill third and max it second. The only reason you will want to max this first is if you depend more on poking/pushing. Explained late in Laning Phase.
Massacre - Level up when possible. This is one very powerful ultimate. Use it wisely though, for example, use it as soon as you jump on Vayne.
Aggressive
High Risk, High Reward
Assuming you did not invade and started with Blood Thirst / Blood Price. I will tell you a story of what will and should happen. One day, an Aatrox went to lane with his sword on Blood Price. He was taking his cs happily, while filling his Blood Well. Sometimes his enemy was foolish enough and got too close to Aatrox. Aatrox was able to land a few basic attacks on his enemy. Aatrox hit level two before his opponent and put a point onto Dark Flight. He then jumped onto his enemy using Dark Flight, his sword still on Blood Price brutally attacking his enemy while Igniteing him. His enemy foolishly flashed away, but Aatrox flashed after him, getting first blood. Good for him!
If anything else happened otherwise, do not worry about it. You should keep jumping on him every time he gets close to you. Try not to miss a lot of cs doing this.
Passive
Low Risk, Low Reward
If you want to lane defensively with Aatrox, you'll want to start with Blades of Torment and max it. You should poke constantly with Blades of Torment until they are weak enough for you to secure a kill without much trouble. Or you can use Blades of Torment to get cs from afar if your opponent is playing over aggressive on you.
Anti-Passive
Med Risk, Med Reward
This playstyle requires you to max Blades of Torment as well. You will be using it to wave clear as hard as possible. If you are inexperienced with wave clearing and you are worried about loosing cs, this is not recommended for you. Once you clear the entire wave, and you have no minions to farm, you will go to Wight/ Double Golems if you are in the BLUE/PURPLE team respectively. It is the most prefered playstyle in higher elo.
Notice: Always remember to ward and look at your mini map. Blaming your team for no MIAs isn't going to make you or them do any better.
Aggressive
Aatrox is similar to Rengar, jump on their carry( Vayne) with Blood Price and obliterate them. If you get focused, do not worry about it, you should be willing to lose Blood Well or Guardian Angel in exchange for their carry.Passive
Or you can play Aatrox as a team player, being on the front line on your team, instead of being in the back line on the enemy team. Focusing the right target is extremely important to winning the team fights. Even while peeling, it is a complicated process which requires you to understand your opponent's nature and who they plan on focusing. While peeling, and staying on the front line, it is best to keep your sword on Blood Thirst as you will be taking a lot of damage, but still extremely hard to kill. Which will give your team the advantage. If you are playing defensive you may need to include Randuin's Omen as part of your build. The AoE slow will help you in tough situations as well.
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Jax Explanation: With his Counter Strike, it is impossible to initiate on him unless he wastes it. Jumping on him with his Counter Strike available will probably get you killed. |
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Lee Sin Explanation: He will debuff you with Tempest / Cripple, a super effective spell against Aatrox. He also absorbs some of your damage with Safeguard / Iron Will. If you can shut him down early, the lane is yours. |
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Camouflage |
Teemo Explanation: If you thought Aatrox looked like a devil, you have probably never seen Teemo. He will harass you all day, and his Blinding Dart will make you look like a fool, making you unable to auto attack. If he pokes you with Blinding Dart and you are still healthy, immediately jump on him and kill him. |
Camouflage |
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Riven Explanation: Riven can out-damage you, out-cc you, and shield your damage. Not to mention both your ultimates are similar in many ways. If she starts with a red pot. You go nowhere near her. There is no timing on when to jump on her, so you'll have to outsmart her. Once you get a clear advantage. You pretty much won against her. |
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Fiora Explanation: Aah yes, the grand duelist. Fiora can Riposte your third strike with Blood Price, making you lose the health equal to the amount Blood Price costed you, and the damage Riposte did. Which can surely kill you in the early game. |
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Pantheon Explanation: With Aegis Protection, Pantheon can block at least two basic attacks. He can time the second block with Aegis of Zeonia. He can also poke you hard with Spear Shot. Once you hit level 6, you should win the trades as his ultimate was not made for dueling. |
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Fizz Explanation: Has healing reduction with Seastone Trident and can easily outplay you with his mobility. When against him, do not initiate on him. Let him jump on you, if he harasses you with Urchin Strike you attack back Blood Thirst / Blood Price and Blades of Torment and when he uses Playful / Trickster to run back, follow him with Dark Flight and end him. He should not be able to burst you down either, you're tanky and he's an assassin. |
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Kennen Explanation: This guy is harder than deal with than Teemo, he will poke you, and if you try to initiate on him with Dark Flight, he will dodge it with Lightning Rush, best thing you should do is land Blades of Torment first, then follow it up with Dark Flight. Once he hits level 6, he can stun you twice, try not to engage on him unless you are fully prepared. Start with Doran's Shield for this match up. |
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Taric Explanation: He can build Randuin's Omen and Frozen Heart completely countering you, he can stun you to stop a good engage from you. Any poke you do to him, he uses Imbue. His Shatter and Gemcraft stack with armor, meaning he can counter you and dish out massive damage. You have two options here: Have your jungler camp top, as he has no escapes, or switch lanes with your mid laner. |
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If an enemy gets the best of you, you may want to build defensively extremely early in the game. Otherwise you either miss out on a lot of farm, or you feed hard.
*Sometimes when you are struggling to keep your health above zero with Blood Thirst. It is best not to use Dark Flight or Blades of Torment as they will cancel your auto attack.
*If you have trouble landing Dark Flight, wait till level 3 and use Blades of Torment first. It will make landing Dark Flight easier. The good news is missing it won't be as risky.
Note:
I would deeply appreciate feedback.
A: Blood Well is a massive source of power for Aatrox. It gives an amazing 55% extra attack speed. And Aatrox being auto attack dependant, it is very important that his Blood Well remains full, even in death. Which is why Blood Well is not like a Guardian Angel.
Aatrox' image - By Elixean (Deviant Art)
Proofreading the guide - Vultage (Mobafire)
Pixel Aatrox' image - By Eviscus (Deviant Art)
Helped with coding "Counters" - DoomGlad (Mobafire)
Provided in-depth information with Aatrox' laning phase - Rykami (Mobafire)
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