I've been playing Garen longer than Darius. I've seen my fair share of Off Tank Garen's that were pushovers compared too my Tank Garen, especially in team fights. My Darius main build has been branded "bad" because he never played AD Offtank Darius and played Tank only. Well I'm making this build for you guys too decide which Darius build you think works better and thoughts about improvements on it as well. There is no "one size fits all builds" against others team Composition, but "one size fits most" is what I'm looking for achieving right here.

I'm personally not familiar with the Rune system like most other champion builders are and I don't have the runes I've listed currently. However, the runes I've chosen for this build are things I consider very important.

The first build, "Heavy Hitter Darius" I chose the Greater Mark of Desolation; Armor Penetration can make all the difference in the world against a team of squishy champs who buy armor for better sustain in fights, honestly armor means nothing against the Darius Dunk, but you can end fights that much faster.

The second rune I've picked is, Greater Seal of Fortitude. The Seal of Fortitude is something that works well for the item selection and in general simply because, having less health in team fights can cause a lost team fight if you die before "dunking" their ADC/MID. Also, who wouldn't like too have an extra 48.15 health when your level 1? Having that much extra HP can help a lot if you have an invade jungle fight.

The third rune I've picked is, Greater Glyph of Vigor. Now I was on the fence with my Glyph choice, I try picking runes that one might not get with other means like Masteries or from the store. The Glyph of Vigor was my favored choice thus far since having extra health regeneration while waiting out of combat can help ever so much in case you find yourself in a situation where you run out of health pots.

The last rune I've picked is, Greater Quintessence of Desolation. Even though I've already picked the Desolation rune for my Mark, I figured that armor penetration is so important, taking the extra stats is needed.

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The second build for a tankier Darius, I chose the Greater Mark of Resilience simply because, what's a tank without armor?

The Second rune for Darius is the similar as the first, Greater Seal of Vitality. I decided progressive health when one levels up is better for the long run since you should be able too take more hits the later level health boost works better than the Greater Seal of Fortitude.

The Third rune is, Greater Glyph of Warding. Just because you have armor for physical attacks doesn't mean you can ignore the armor against magic damage. Having a semi-balance choice in resists is what most tanks need if the team has both AD and AP champions.

The Last rune is Greater Quintessence of Resilience, The more armor you have is important since most champions still deal AD even with their auto attacks.

The Masteries for both builds should be pretty self explanitory. The first build is set up so I can deal a lot of damage over the course of each attack while having some sustain with the defense chart. The second build is the revise of the first with the same 9 point similarity as the first, but focused more towards longer sustaining ability with going defense

For me, Darius skill sequence is relatively easy too pick. I utilize his Q right away and max it out first because let's be honest, Darius is gonna be in a lot of fights, and will most likely be chosen for the first ganked. Having your Q first is more beneficial than your W or E first.

His W is very nice, but early game when you don't have a lot of items in your inventory that compliment this power means upgrading it can wait a little bit longer than your Q.

Your E can mean the turn of battle, not just because of the armor penetration either. The ability to bring champions closer for your melee range means you can stack your passive that much faster.

Darius' R-Ult is pretty self explanatory, max it out each level it's open!

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When I play Darius most people don't like getting in close with me so I end up doing a burst combo by starting off with my Q->E providing they are in range, if not I Flash towards them then E->w, having your W ready before you pull makes it that much more effective and quick to start the hemorrhaging. After performing this combo they should be really close towards getting your Ultimate's maximum potential which is very important in a team fight because the sooner you can kill the enemy champion, the faster you can get the dreamed "PENTA-DUNK" and who doesn't like the sound of that?

Most people you see playing LoL have their own preference for what they use for each champion. Darius is pretty basic for spell choices. You can either chose Flash, Ignite for gap closing and extra DoTs in case you can't finish them off with the Ult because you don't have it for some strange reason.

Some choices too consider might be; Surge for that Extra attack speed, Exhaust if you wish them too die at your feet with lowered defense with the Summoners Wrath combo, or Teleport for situations where you need too help your team mates in a fight across the map, or you want too get back too your front lines after a necessary spending spree.

Probably one of the biggest choices out there that can mean the most in any situation and have completely different results depending on what you need each game.

I've just recently modified my items because it was "similar too my ADC build" and was causing doubts with my friends, and the first build is what I'm gonna start running now.

Starting off in most LoL games will be with your Boots of Speed and 3 health potions. Most people recommend getting a pair of "Doran's *Item*" and they are defiantly helpful at the very early stages. My first item combo I go with after the start of game purchase is the Phage, this item is a key for him since it helps with health and damage, but it's super helpful with the slows, making escape just that much harder. After the Phage I upgrade the boots, before I was running Berserker's Greaves so I could get the extra bleeding going on right away, but I'm gonna try the Ninja Tabi for top lane again.

After getting those core items, this is where the situational purchases matter most! If you have been getting kills right and left it's probably wise too work on getting the Bloodthirster, If you are having issues with less health and not getting the health regeneration, getting Warmog's Armor should be the next item. If you get the Warmog's, consider getting Atma's Impaler for the defence and damage you get with the extra health you just got from Warmog's.

The very end of the game, provided the team hasn't lost or quit before the 30min mark, this is where upgrading the Phage is super helpful! Having the Frozen Mallet is even more useful since EVERY attack now slows opponents move speed, keeping them within range at all times now, it helps with your health pool ever more so.

The last item, which is mainly just for fun because Your team probably won the game at this point can either be the Phantom Dancer or Guardian Angel. I've chosen the Phantom Dancer because I love getting a big Critical Chance and the extra movement speed keeps you in the fights plus, the attack speed means a lot more damage at greater speeds. Choosing the Guardian Angel is an item I find very trolling and not worth buying, but if your ult's almost of cd and you die SECONDS before it's back, having the G.A can mean, they die instead of you.

This build is something I'm considering trying in the near future. I've chosen the standard starting pack with Boots of Speed and 3 health pots. Instead of choosing a "Doren's *item*" for the follow up item, I've chosen the Heart of Gold. Heart of Gold is necessary towards Randuin's Omen which I got on Garen EVERY time I played him, so having an increased gold choice is very useful early game. With the Heart of gold, I recommend buying either the Chain Vest or the Rejuvenation Bead so you can wok on Warden's Mail.

About halfway through is where I'll upgrade my Boots of speed into Ninja Tabi or possibly the Mercury's Treads, all depending on what the enemy team chap selection is comprised of, either AD or AP. I also upgrade into Warden's Mail making Randuin's Omen that much closer for completion. Another option good for Darius would be getting the Hexdrinker so your spells can get a little extra help. Next would be wise for choosing another health regen armor, and it truly depends on which team comp you are fighting. Either start working on getting the Force of Nature, or the Warmog's Armor.

Late game items should be Thornmail because it gives you A LOT of AD resist, plus it helps against basic attack damage and dealing it back at the "caster". This is also the point where you should finish the Maw of Malmortius and Randuin's Omen. Your final armor can vary honestly, I chose Guardian Angel for this build because it helps with both types of Attacks and gives you a "second chance" fight, you could pick Sunfire Cape or even Madred's Bloodrazor if there's someone else with higher health than you. If you felt like slowing the enemy's attack speed, consider picking up the Frozen Heart as well.

Truthfully choosing armor is pretty situation dependent, it matters on situational awareness and timing for what you need now and later on.