Ok, let's pit your 5 AA staff/Rab Cap, vs. 6 Rod of Ages (masteries/runes ignored for simplicities sake)

AA/RC Build:
HP: 1908
MP: 4240
AP: 1320
Q will hit for approx: 733

RoA Build
HP: 5688
MP: 5590
AP: 480
Q will hit for approx: 673

As you can see, the numbers aren't all that different, however i will kill you in 1 spell rotation, whil surviving yours with not only some health, but more than half of my remaining health.

Note: numbers taken from leaguecraft.com's champion builder.

edit: Also 1 AA staff and 5 RoA gives approx 760 damage on Q

ofc you say that spoon becaz i need a 1/4th max damage tank nuke .....this has got to be due to fail tanks i go nearly untouched ever match from lvl 1 with my freind hes a tank ( Rammus)

....got to be joking ....18%....the only way to increas your damage past this is 5 AA-Staff's and a Rad Cap -.- ( it dont get better then this ryze is not a tank )

aaa i see you always act like a dousj.
Balancing defence and mana, with health, MR and Armor is the best build
for ryze in my opinion.
Since the changes to ryze, mana is more important than AP.
Ergo lich bane, sheen and rabadons are a waste of money.

You would all sow get crushed like a bug...

Stop making builds, for everyone's sake.

Read the patchnotes please

Why don't you have a banshee/frozen heart ect? AP is useless for ryze now.

buy the time you make the nooby health item ill have my AA-staff and i simple out nuke you Soaking up CC is for your tank/enisheator your stun is to help them help YOU not to help you Kill champions you have a 2 sec MASSIVE nuke for that ....use Q then Q some more let your tank worry about the health /CC control 1 Mord with a Rylaus Crystal Sceptrt will stop nearly anything TRYING to get to yoiu if not get someone else to play your mord....becaz your tank is failing your team

nothing your going to do is going to add more damage to ryze ( 1 of the best nukes in game) the 5 AA-staffs and a Rad Cap.....its that simple

Apparently you are new to Ryze, his AP ratios are rather terrible, and it is much more effective to build high mana items on him. RoA adds 88 damage to Q, where as Rabadons only adds 40 (and that's taking into account the passive).

Sure your saying that you'll have a pretty decent nuke and the tank should soak up the damage, but in team fights if you get targeted you will go squish into the ground and you will get targeted, Theres no use being a ryze with a ****load of ability power and dying very very quickly without doing any damage to the opposing team, you can snare them before they get to you but that is about it. Plus If they have a lot of CC then your pretty much done for, unless your versing a bunch of feeding noobs.

You say the RoA is so bad its not, its a pretty decent item that gives you a lot of health and mana and still goes well with your archangels and if you dont like the RoA then grab a Banshees veil instead they're both good items.

aperintly your new to LoL the best and only way to max your AP is AA Staff's with a Rad Cap.....down grade all you want but you noobs build tank **** on a Nuke.....fail Try befor you troll noobs its a Beast Nuke build (no 1 can use a AA-Staff better then Ryze) so um ....L2Build a champion Health is form your Tank and Rod Of Ages is the most useless item ( unless ofc your Singed)