Now I know that Ive built a bulky , but I just wasnt happy with him. I got to thinking, what about a tank Panth? I know that Pantheon is a melee physical dmg glass cannon that relies on wicked items like and , but he has some nice tanking qualities IMHO. Also, his combo of skills make him a great initater.

Now even though this is a guide for tanking as Pantheon, but I have two different ways to play TANKEON. Each way to play fill the tank roll, only one is more traditional, and the other more... Chaotic. Just the way I like it. Remember that Im offering you two ways to play TANKEON, not just a bunch of situational items.

TANKEON: PURE TANK is the simple traditional balance of both Armor and MR. This is a great set up for any tank, but it fits Pantheon very well. When it comes to longevity, the first build is best for that. As the initater, these items help TANKEON do his job. Since Pantheon usually gets focused when he rushes or ults into a fight, this build will shock and awe the enemy team when they have to use each of their ults to kill you. Yes, thats a max of 5 ults to kill you. And for Panth, thats impressive.

TANKEON OPTION 2: OFFENSIVE/DEFENSIVE TANK This build is for those that want to have a 'bulkier' version of Panth. This build will allow for a more offensive play. This build uses items that give Health, Armor, and MR, but at the same time giving AS, LS, and DMG. This TANKEON is a lil more squishy, but has more of a balance of DMG and Longevity. This Panth cant always dive into a fight, so take care when planning a team fight or before Ulting into a team fight.

NOTE!!!

This build is great if you know how to tank or if you have a premade team. DO NOT, I REPEAT DO NOT, TRY THIS SOLO IF YOU DONT TANK OR DONT HAVE A PREMADE!! Po, I should have put in this disclaimer before you tried it lol Forgive me


We all know that I dont think and play like a 'normal player'. I like to take some champs to their limits. And TANKEON is a prime example of that. Such is the way of Chaos.

Pros of TANKEON

1. Far less squishy than the standard . TANKEON's duriblity is amazing. Being able to be focused and living longer than 3-5 seconds is great. This not only makes your presence in team fights longer, but allows TANKEON to continue to provide for his team. Aside from being more of an asset in team fights, he can also stay in lane longer. He can harass well and thats good. Pushing lane enemies out of range of XP or dmging them enough to make them recall. Either way, it pays to be tanky.

2. His ult is a great for team fights since it got its 'buff'. Said buff is your team can now see the AoE before you leap. This is a very nice to have as a tank, due to the fact that your bulkier mates can start a fight and keep the enemies in the AoE. Also, this is great for ranged and support champs with slow, snares, and stuns. This will allow you to do more dmg upon landing, and it keeps the carries or other targets in range of the CC and burst that Pantheon naturally has.

3. Can take harassment well. Just like any other tank, TANKEON can take the Laning Phase abuse. Ive found that, with the right items to start, TANKEON can take a lot of punishment before having to recall. Another good thing about being able to take harassment well, is that he can take the top lane in TT (Twisted Treeling), mid or solo lane in SR (Summoner's Rift). Thats good for any champ.


Cons

1. You sacrifice dmg for survival. But such is the way of the tank. Ulness you are . This gives you more time in team fights, but you will not be dealing the amount of dmg a normal Panth would. Now there is an upside to TANKEON, and Ill explain when I get to the Items chaper.

2. The lack of dmg output means your KDA ratio will be more tank like. Most tanks have more assists than kills, and usually have more deaths. Depending on how well your team plays that is. I say this, because Ive noticed thats how most game work. You get the assist from ulting into a fight and providing the CC. There are times though, when you are in a heavy AoE team, that you can time and get the kill. But most games will be lower kills, zero to maybe a 2-4 deaths, and usually 10+ assists. Now the deaths may vary. Sometimes, usually in pugs, the death count will be higher because no one has faith in TANKEON. But in premades, TANKEON has great survival since there is more faith behind him.

3. You are item dependant still. Panth is a glass cannon, we all know this. Thus he is item dependant. That said, TANKEON is no different. If shut down, or unable to farm effectively, TANKEON losses his effectiveness in team fights. This must be avoided at all times. This can only cause rage quitting from your team, QQ that TANKEON sux, and so on and what not. All things that we dont want to hear.

I like to lump these too together. Masteries are very differnt for TANKEON. Lets go over them shall we?

Offense

Tier 1: I choose Cripple and Deadliness. I take Cripple for a few reasons. This is great for CC in team fights and ganks. alone can mean the difference of getting a kill or not. Now adding Cripple, with its -10 armor and MR debuff, you only increase the chance of getting the kill. Not just for you, but for your team as well. This is a great mastery to have IMO. I take Deadliness for the offensive ability. Just because Im a tank, doesnt mean I cant have offensive stats. Having a few offensive stats can also help in terms of longevity.

Teir 2: I take Sorcery for the CDR. CDR is always nice. This will allow for more up time on my spells, and with a long CD for CDR is always good. There are times Ive went with Alacrity, and I dont think is there much difference. Either one works well, but I prefer CDr.


Defense

Tier 1: I take the Armor and MR masteries. Something that all tanks need IMO. Better to keep a balance of the two. It also helps with his early game survival. Its always better to be able to take harassment.

Tier 2: I take the Health Regen increased by total mana. This will help him stay in lane longer. He might have a shallow mana pool, but its better than nothing. Some might say, why not take the dodge instead? Simply put, I would rather have Health Regen over Dodge. After all dodge is only useful against melee attacks, and spells can be dodged. I also dont take the dodge since I dont use Dodge Seals. I see no point in taking this mastery if I wont be building on it.

Tier 3: I take reduced phsyical dmg, and reduced dmg from minions. They both help in many ways. It helps with early game harassment, and fighting minion waves isnt a challenge early on either. What do I mean? Well how many times have you dived on someone, got the kill and than minions rape you? It happens to everyone dont lie. These two masteries, IMHO, help me dive and take that minion dmg. Health Pots are handy too.

Tier 4: Vet Scars are great for TANKEON. TANKEON is fairly squishy early game, so this helps. And lets face it... Tanks need health, and Vet Scars help with that.

Tier 5: I take Ardor. I get this for many reasons. First the AS boost. This is great for helping his passive. Also, if I take the AS bonus from Offense, this will add to that. So it works out to aid me. Some say this is a questionable mastery, but I like it.

Tier 6: Of course Tenacity. This is great for tanks, and it helps with his squishiness. Defensive masteries work well for . Splash some Offense, and you have a mix of greatness.

Summoner Spells

is first on my list for a few reasons. First reason is that its great CC. CC is great for team fights, ganks, and of course the debuff from Cripple. That mix of CC and reduced defensive stats allows for massive dmg output early game. After all this is where Panth shines. The best part of the debuff is this. + = burst from hell. Land the standard stun combo with this, and you can easily burst a champ. You might get the kill or burst enough to force a recall. Either way is good for you.

The second reason I like this spell, is because of the reduced dmg during the duration. Thats great concidering that you can use this on carries that deal massive amounts of dmg. This saves dmg to TANKEON and his team. This helps him fill the role of the tank, and it makes him very viable in team fights.

is one of the best spells EVER. The QQ that arises when I take this is great lol. This is a great spell for many reasons. It gives TANKEON extra dmg for one. This extra dmg gives him a boost to his and . Now add and you got a recipe for pain. Also, this is good since it adds to his dmg output. It adds to the offense that he lacks. It might have a long CD, but its worth it if you time it right.

Second reason is that this is great for the team. If you have champs like or his lovely wife, you give them more power to bring the pain. This team buff is good to have since it powers mates that are in range. This is good for casters too. They might not hit hard, but even their auto-attack dmg is helpful. Sometimes its that one auto hit that is the difference between a kill or not.

One other thing that I like about this spell, is the pushing power you have. That small boost of dmg is great for pushing a turret or inhib. It gives 10-35 dmg, but all extra dmg is good dmg when you need to push.

Marks & Quints To get the balance of dmg and survival, I take ArP marks. These will help him since he doesnt have much in means of dmg. These will allow more of his physical dmg land, thus he still maintains some of his attack power that he is known for.

Seals I take Health Per LvL. These are good since he is squishy and as tank, HP is good. These also allow for longer lane time as well. Some might think that Dodge Seals would be good, and if you find that you fight a lot of melee teams, than by all means go for it. But I like to have HP Per LvL

Glyphs I take Flat MR. This helps cover dmg against casters, and thats important. Now I think that MR Per LvL would be good too since MR is a lil more expensive than Armor. So either work very well.

For those of you that dont know, I always take 3 ranks of a skill at lvl 5. I do this for the harassment purposes, or if Im playing support, to have better heals or buffs. When It comes to TANKEON, I take as my 3/5 skill. Some take since it got buffed, but the harassment is much better with SS.

I like to max out SS first for its harassment and last hitting for the kill power. This is great to have early on too, since you can deal great harassment dmg with the ArP runes. So it synergy is good there. Again, last hitting someone on the run is good too. Even though this is TANKEON, he still has some offensive power.

I only take one rank of is more than enough to play successfully. There was a recent nerf to the duration of the stun, but it doesnt matter. Stun+ will be more than enough to keep them in range of HSS.

Now for my reasoning for what makes a TANKEON a great tank. is a great was to start a fight. Since they made it to where his AoE is seen by his team before hea leaps, this allows the team to bait someone as close to the middle as possible. And once the enemy sees the AoE, they scatter. That is great since it disrupts team fights. Anyone over extended is focused by the team or has to run closer to the middle thus taking more dmg from TANKEON. This skill is great for starting team fights, baiting, ganking, backdooring, and almost anything else you can think of.

These are the typical items for any tank. That said, this is for those that follow the traditional tank role.

is a must. This item adds to his CC and that is a valuable asset as a tank. The stats is gives are great and the active is only that much better. That extra slowing works very well with HSS, keeping enemies in range of AoE effects, makes chasing/escaping easier (for both you and your team) and ganking clean up.

is a great item for any tank to have. The stats are good and they improve the effect of Randuin's. Thats always good too. With GA, you can play with a little more aggression. By leaping into a fight, you will be focused since you are Panth. But since you are the tank, it will take a lot of focus fire to bring you down. But since you will be focused, your team can do the dmg. If you should take that first death, all CDs are used and you cant be focused down in a flash.

lets face it... This is one of the best items for a tank. It gives good stats, and helps with longevity. This can save TANKEON from debilitating CC or those powerful ults that can devastate any champ. for example. This is a valuable item for anyone that is concidering being a tank, and you'd be a fool not to take it. Again, this covers allows TANKEON to last longer in team fights, and that is great when TANKEON gives up power for longevity.

is just another great item for any tank. Health and Armor are good for longevity and taking harassment. But the passive AoE dmg is great for farming. The AoE is why I prefer this item. Instead of using mana on HSS for creep waves, I stand there and auto attack and let the cape do the work. Also, having HSS on CD isnt a good thing. Its a main source of dmg, and if he is ganked, he will be waiting to use it. And thats never good. SFC is great for both longevity and farming.

is another great item to ensure longevity. CDR, Armor, and Mana are great stats. Armor for longevity and mana for better regen via Defensive mastery, Srenght or Spirit. The CDR is great for his Ult. Its nice to help spam SS so his passive has more uptime too. The passive is great too. 20% reduced AS will provide some longevity too. Its a great counter-measure against champs that benefit from high AS.

Mercury treads are my boots of choice. Although boots are influenced by a few factors. Ill explain that later in the guide. I take these boots due to the fact they give a defense against CC. Which we all know kills a regular Panth. Also, the best way to shut down any tank is to CC them out of a fight. These boots prevent you from being CC'd for too long. They also give MR which is good for Randuin's Active.

Situational Items Lets face it. Sometimes teams arent balanced with Magic and Physical dmg. And as the tank, you must itemize accordingly.

Heavy Phsyical Dmg

is great for a few reasons. The armor of course, but the passive is great. 30% of standard attack dmg dealt, is returned as Magic dmg. This is like the tank version of . This kills AS stacking champs and/or those that just hit really hard. This item, from my personal experience, can change the tide of a game. A simple answer to a common problem. Its total cost is 2k, but its worth it. There really isnt a better item for countering Physical dmg teams.

is great if your team is heavy in physical dmg. This can greatly inscrease the power of your team, along with giving them some more bulk. Might not be much, but one of the better items to benefit the team, and give TANKEON some viability. In the essence of Choas, it makes more sence to put this on a tank than a support. Some supports fall too quick when focused, so having auras on tanks makes more sence.

is great too. Armor and dodge are great when facing a lot of physical dmg champs.

Heavy Magic Dmg

is one of the better items. Speed, Regens, and MR. Awesome item to cover your ***. Its smaller parts are cheap to get, and it might be costly total. But it is very worth having against heavy magic teams.

this is an underestimated item. Its like having cleanse but without taking the spell. This item can be very effective, but it is highly situational as well. Dont over look this. It can save you in a tight spot.

These items for those that want to explore TANKEON, but not sacrifice as much power as the PURE TANKEON gives up. But at the same time, it will share items of the PURE TANKEON build.

IMO is a great item. The defensive aspect is the health and armor, while the offensive is the slowing active. Randuin's is one of the best tanking items hands down. The active might not seem like a good offensive thing, but it helps keep enemies close. That means more time in an AoE and adds to his CC. Since he lost a small fraction of his Stun, this makes up for that. A very effective item to have.

is another great item. This got a major rework. Instead of draining mana, this now give MR. Still get the magic dmg per hit, and the AS, but it give you more MR. Not the same caster hate it use to be, but it still has its perks

Just a tank item. No good tank leaves home without it. It's defensive attributes are obvious. But the second life it gives you is the offensive part. There are times that you die in a team fight, but if you had that second chance you could change the flow of a game. This item will give you that chance. You will be able to play more aggressive since you have that extra life lol.

is again, classic tanking item. But its farming power is also offensive. In the middle of a fight you are dealing steady dmg to everyone around you. Now add that to Aegis and Randuin's, you are increasing the time enemies are in range of the burn. Its a passive offensive kinda thing, but still highly effective.

One of my favorite items. It gives armor and crit, and its passive gives AD. And if I did the math right, it comes out to 58 dmg. Thats not the best, but remember that TANKEON gives up some dmg for survival. Its a fair trade IMO.

Mercury treads are the best boots ever for Panth in general. Its defensive passive is also its offensive power. If TANKEON spends less time CC'd, he can effectively tank and support the team. There are other options, but these are best.

Situational Items There are always items that can be used, but dont get priority. And here are a few that I choose for this TANKEON. I dont think there are any that fight according to Magic or Physical dmg teams though.

is awesome. Cheap to build and its LS can give you great lane time. The armor is great to taking harassment and it helps with Randuin's. Also its active is great for many reasons.

1. It helps with map awareness. This is good for watching key points for ganking and buffs. Keeping an eye on dragon and Baron is always helpful.

2. The ward you drop is great for Tele-Ganking. If you realy want to hardcore gank, than taking this item with mates with is best. You can drop this in a bush and have mates port to it and get the gank. Tele-ganking is one of the most effective ways to dominate and push a lane. This item is also cost effective since you dont have to spend money on wards. Unless there are stealthers around and you dont have Oracles.

3. Saves on buying wards lol.

Lets face it... This is a great Pure Tank and Off/Def item. It gives you great MR, and its active can save you in a tight spot. You cant beat that. Its not at the top of everone's list, but its still worth having if there is a lot of CC or debuffs on the enemy team.

is good too. the health regen is one of the best, and thats always good for a tank. But the buff and debuff it gives are the offensive power. This is great if you have more physical dmg on your team. I like auras, but only on champs that can take a beating, or can burst enemies fast. TANKEON is tough enough to have auras. Also, the AS and LS are good too. AS helps get Passive up faster, and LS keeps him alive. Its a win win item. More health regen and more survival.

is great too. Armor and dodge are great when facing a lot of physical dmg champs.

is a great item. Credit to Trojan for bringing it up. What I like about this item is the AD, MR and bubble. I think that this would be a great item both mid and late game. The MR is nice, and the bubble is more mitigation. It might be the difference between life and death. I think that this might be an item that can be rushed too. The bubble can last longer against AP champs at lower lvls since they dont have much AP. TAKE THAT RYZE!!

For each build, you will take . This is a great item for longevity in a lane. Since you take this item, you can easily go mid or solo lane. Since you are more likely to be harassed by ranged champs, the LS from minions will keep you alive. So due to high durability and being able to heal off minions, you are ready to lane.

Once you recall, you need to get and . Get back in lane ASAP. Stay in lane as long as you can and sit on that HoG.

Recall 2: Another HoG and sit on it. You will want to get at least 4 HoGs. Ill explain later.

Once you have 4 HoG, you will want to get Randuin's. From there you will have to sell one and than get GA. This next part might sound bad, but once you have Randuin's and GA its in the air. Ive have the idea, that while tanking, you build accordingly. That said, Randuin's and GA are the only items that need to be rushed.

Ok here Ill clarify stacking Hearts and farming. I like to stack Hearts for the gold purposes. Lets do the math.

One heart gives you 5 gold per 10 seconds. Thats 30gold a min. Thats nothing big. You can get that farming creeps.

Two hearts give you 10 gold per 10 seconds. So you doubled the gold that gives you 60gold a min. Thats still nothing much.

Three hearts give you 15 gold per 10 seconds. 90 gold per min. Thats a lil better.

Four hearts is 20 gold per 10 seconds. 120 gold a min. Thats not bad.

Now if you focus on Creep Counting/Last Hitting, very useful tools explained to me by HEAT, you dont have to worry about getting kills to get gold. You will be 'fed' off minions and the four hearts you have. That alone is more than enough.

Now if you happen to get mid or a solo lane, you will also be able to get assists or kills via your ult. This is a great way to get gold too.

Now as the game goes on, there will be times where giant creep waves will be in a lane. Using your ult is one of the best ways to handle these waves. You can save turrets from these waves, so its a win win deal. You might have used your ult, but you gain so much gold and XP by doing it. This tactic must be used when the team isnt engaged in a team fight. Winning team fights>farm creeps.

The best thing about TANKEON, is how he initates a team fight.

There are many times where teams meet in a lane and the only progress made is when creeps move in. Or when ranged champs drop some CC, get off a harssment shot, or fire a skill shot (hit or fail). TANKEON is the solution.

Riot made better. His team can now see the AoE of this skill. That said, you will want to place it behind the enemy, or as close to the over extended as possible. This will cause one of two things to happen. His team will either rush to the middle of his AoE to try and bait the enemy to take more dmg, or they will bait them so they over extend.

If they team baits to the middle, than the enemy will take more dmg since they are closer to the impact spot. This is a great way to start a fight due to Randuin's active, Aegis, and SFC. That combo will give your team an upper hand. And of course any mate with an AoE can help make team fights shorter. Very few champs can escape this set up.

If the enemy is baited to over extending, than when they see the AoE, they will be scattered. That is good since your team will not have to blow all CDs. Simple CC and small skills will be enough to get the kill(s). This is also good, since TANKEON can CC anyone that comes to help. Putting TANKEON between a few over extended and the rest of the team, is a great tactic and always meets with success.

Even his stun is useful too. Remember that this is a tank build and since Panth has great CC, your team should focus who you stun. Unless its a tank or course. He is a valuable asset to the team.

When Ive worked out all the kinks, Ill get some ranked games in and report in.

What makes a tank?

Durible, Able to start team fights, Support the team once a fight starts, and will sacrifice them-selves to ensure the team survives. A tank should always be in the frey and never in the back.

TANKEON has all these features and more. His passive, is one thing that helps with his tanking. It blocks one attack, and when you block a crit, its always funny. Or if you block and or , its even more funny.

TANKEON is one of my more chaotic ideas, but ask those that have played with it. Its choas can cause such confusion and QQ. If you want a tougher Pantheon that isnt a glass cannon, can take harassment, and can stand in the middle of a team fight and walk out? This is the Pantheon for you. And with 2 ways to play, Pure Tank and Off/Def Tank, you can choose which one is for you.

v1.0.0.111

now has a small AoE that deals full dmg, since it was impossible to deal full dmg.

v1.0.0.120

Gold per 10 items do not stack

v1.0.0.122

Ult can no longer jump the whole map.

v1.0.0.123 This patch makes TANKEON a lil more viable. More dmg, shorter CDs, and better scalings.

Pantheon

Heartseeker Strike
Now does a better job of hitting targets on top of Pantheon
Damage increased to 13/23/33/43/53 from 4/6/8/10/12
Scaling adjusted to a .6 bonus Attack Damage ratio from a .2/.25/.3/.35/.4 total Attack Damage ratio
Now fires 3 strikes instead of 5
Cooldown reduced to 10/9/8/7/6 seconds from 18/17/16/15/14 seconds
Mana cost reduced to 45/50/55/60/65 from 70 at all ranks
Channel duration reduced to .75 seconds from 1.8 seconds

Spear Shot
Damage increased to 65/105/145/185/225 from 16/28/40/52/64
Now scales off of a 1.4 bonus Attack Damage ratio from a 1/1.15/1.3/1.45/1.6 total Attack Damage ratio
Certain Death now causes Spear Shot to critically strike for 1.5x damage

Aegis of Zeonia
Cooldown adjusted to 13/12/11/10/9 seconds from 12 seconds at all levels
Stun duration adjusted to 1 second from .7/.9/1.1/1.3/1.5
Pantheon will now attempt to attack the target after using Aegis of Zeonia

Grand Skyfall
Jump channel time reduced to 2 seconds from 3 seconds
Land time reduced to 1.5 seconds from 2 seconds
Edge damage increased to 50% from 33%