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Spells:
Ignite
Flash
Ability Order
Mortal Will (PASSIVE)
Pantheon Passive Ability
Intro

Hades had a giant dog with three heads in order to keep the order in and out of the underworld. A fearsome beast able to massacre whoever brave enough to come near it. Its name was:
CERBERUS
Years passed and during the Ulysse's journey it was necessary for him to communicate with his dead ancestors in the uderworld for advice on how to return home. In the grand battle that followed Ulysses prevailed and Ceberus was slain.
This event made Hades boil with anger. So he went to Thermopylae in a search of a grand warrior. A dead warrior. He found a body of a slayed Hoplite named Άκροσφαιρος(name given by its success in the ancient olympics).
Hades took his dead body, and poured the old soldier's soul inside it.
Eyes glowing but his heart not beating. Hades named him Πάν8ειον(Pantheon). A fearsome warrior with no remorse or feelings.
Its reason of creation was simple. To haunt down Ulysses and bring his head on a pike. This was not justice but revenge.
When the Gods of Olympus learned of this treacherous act they exiled Hades, and stripped him of his powers. It was forbiden to resurrect dead souls as the fate of every person could not be changed or be undone.
With his last words he made

And so the Son of Hades was born. Ready to fill the underworld with the souls of the dead.
-Honor the dead, fight like hell for the living-

Well, before I analyze why

In the past,


Now, after

Also, because


More or less,



Bruiser

In general, bruiser

Hands down the best way to play

I've been working on a way to maximize the characters potential in every single step of the game. The item path and decisions are an outcome of huge experience and effort to deliver the best possible build that a
Pantheon player can use.
The guide is based on Solo top,both Ranked and Normal.
Please READ the guide. You will find all the answers you need as well as information on how to use and play with this build effectively.
The build evolves during the game around 3 main things:
-Lane sustain.
-Survive Ability.
-Damage.
All three of them are accomplished by making the right choices and by matching 3 items together.
This is combination we have seen a lot for characters like
Lee Sin or
Jarvan IV but rarely seen on
Pantheon.
Like a Phoenix rebirthed from its ashes Pantheon comes to dominate solo top and take the role he deserves in the competitive scene.

The guide is based on Solo top,both Ranked and Normal.
Please READ the guide. You will find all the answers you need as well as information on how to use and play with this build effectively.
The build evolves during the game around 3 main things:
-Lane sustain.
-Survive Ability.
-Damage.
All three of them are accomplished by making the right choices and by matching 3 items together.



This is combination we have seen a lot for characters like



Like a Phoenix rebirthed from its ashes Pantheon comes to dominate solo top and take the role he deserves in the competitive scene.
PROS
-Fatal finisher. -Highly durable. -Good initiator. -Fun to play. -Build in "teleport". -Roflstomping joke and taunt. |
SPACE | SPACE |
CONS
-Item and team dependant. -Easely countered. -No build-in escape mechanism. - ![]() |
I prefer a more offensive approach on Masteries since we aim for more defence in items, so I can achieve balance between damage and sustain.
:Free attack damage while
Ignite is off cooldown. Helps with last hitting and harassing. Not bad.
:Again some early game damage. Not much difference but every little bit helps.
:Helps stacking up your
Aegis Protection and lasthitting consecutive low health minions.
:Awesome mastery works perfectly with your abilities.
:Small amount of AD, I use this to reach
Lethality.
:Empowers your criticals significantly and helps finishing off low health enemies.
:It works nicely with the regeneration you have from
Regrowth Pendant making you much more durable in lane.
:Scales insanely well with Greater Mark of Desolation and Greater Quintessence of Desolation.
:More damage against low health enemies. I like.
:The lower cooldown can save your @ss.
:I use this mastery to reach further down to
Meditation
:Helps a lot against
Pantheon's early game mana starvation.
Spending your 9 points wisely:
There are two main options that I suggest.
Initiator.
I do this in order to preserve a point for
Weapon Expertise witch i believe cannot be skipped. Its trully a must because as a bruiser you must be able to pack a punch for the softer targets.
Offence













Utility





Spending your 9 points wisely:
There are two main options that I suggest.

I do this in order to preserve a point for

The rune setup follows the same phylosophy as the whole build. Survive ability combined with damage.
Precision
Fleet Footwork
Phase Rush
Greater Mark of DesolationGreater Mark of Desolation.These runes are absolutely fantastic! They are exelent for countering early armor and securing your damage throughout the game.
Greater Seal of Resilience.Defenetly a must have to counter attack damage oriented champions, as most solo top champions are.
Greater Glyph of Shielding.As a true bruiser you must be able to withstand the damage inflicted on you. And as you will face a blend of damage types, so must your runes develop around that fact.
Greater Quintessence of DesolationGreater Quintessence of Desolation.Same logic as with Marks. The total Armor penetration you have on lvl 1 reach a outstanding 25 Arp!(31 with
Sunder
).
Precision
Fleet Footwork
Phase Rush
This setup allows for exelent harassment, but weakens later in the game. Its a good setup if you are facing more squishy solo top opponents like
Talon.
Precision
Fleet Footwork
Phase Rush
Personaly I wouldn't run this, but it could work if you like charging around like a dummy. Still, you will deal next to no damage early game, especially if your enemies invest on
Ninja Tabi and
Wriggle's Lantern.
Runes




Greater Mark of DesolationGreater Mark of Desolation.These runes are absolutely fantastic! They are exelent for countering early armor and securing your damage throughout the game.


Greater Quintessence of DesolationGreater Quintessence of Desolation.Same logic as with Marks. The total Armor penetration you have on lvl 1 reach a outstanding 25 Arp!(31 with

OPTIONAL CHOICES
Spear Shooter
Runes




This setup allows for exelent harassment, but weakens later in the game. Its a good setup if you are facing more squishy solo top opponents like

Meat shield
Runes




Personaly I wouldn't run this, but it could work if you like charging around like a dummy. Still, you will deal next to no damage early game, especially if your enemies invest on


TOP TIER

















NOT RECOMMENDED













I recommend


All the other Top tier summoner Spells are viable. So if there is another combination that works better for you feel free to test out yourself and find what suits you better.
TOOLS OF FATE

This passive is what gives Pantheon its great durability on solo top. Most solo top opponents and junglers are attack damage oriented and since it procs very ofter you shrug off much of the incoming damage. With this block you can take towerdiving to the next level.
Aegis Protection can block:
-


-


-


-


-



-


-


-


-


-


-


-


-


-


-


-


-


-


-



This spell is just fantastic! Thats what makes Pantheon able to outharass most solo top opponents. With its low mana cost and short cooldown its awesome for zoning out opponents and finishing off heavily damaged foes.
Characteristics:
-Cannot be blocked.
-Its damage raise dramaticaly through spell ranks.
-Benefits greatly from Armor Penetration.
-Deals 150% damage against targets with less than 15% health.
-Its doesn't apply on-hit effects.

This spell synergizes perfectly with



Characteristics:
-Instantly refreshes

-Covers all the time you need to cast

-If aimed before


-The stun duration remains the same in all spell ranks.

Active: Pantheon channels for 0.75 seconds and deals 3 swift strikes in a cone in front of him. Each strike deals 13 / 23 / 33 / 43 / 53 (+0.6 per bonus attack damage) physical damage, and they deal double damage to champions.
Just awesome and feared by all fragile characters.


On Rank 1 without any extra damage it deals 26*3=78 damage in only 0.75 seconds! If you can pull out the same damage with autohits inside 0.75 secs on lvl 1 with 54 basic attack damage that

Characteristics:
-Low cooldown on hight ranks.
-Perfect synergy with

-Passive bonus makes farming ridiculously easy.
-Awesome when combined with an AOE damage teams(





The spell which made

Characteristics:
-Huge range.
-Great synergy with


-Takes the enemy by surprise.
-Can force the enemy to use its flash.
-Very high damage if the foe is caught in the center.
-Allows great map control.
ABILITY SEQUENCE
In my personal opinion there are two ways that work better when playing bruiser

The first one is more damage oriented,while se second is based on faster stun cooldowns.
Executioner
This is the main ability sequence I use.I max


The spell that gets maxed second is

The spell that's maxed last is

Of course upgrade your

Stunner
The basic logic is the same. Outharass and outlevel your opponent. There is one major change though.We max


This reduces our overall damage but enhances our crowd control ability greatly by gaining


I suggest using this ability sequence when:
-The enemy team has very versatile and agile characters like



-If your team has plenty of damage but moderate to low crowd control, for example




-If you prefer attacking during the stun duration instead of casting


CORE
Everything we need to do our job effectively as a bruiser is inside this amazing combination. The way they synergize together is just astonishing! By mixing these items together we get massive Health, reliable damage and extra mobility. Its the perfect balance between survive ability and damage for 









STARTING ITEMS
![]() ![]() |
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![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
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![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |













MOVEMENT SPEED CHOICES







DAMAGE ITEMS
Zeke's Herald.
You don't need it. If you want lifesteal its better to take
Bloodthirster instead. In general this item does not fit
Pantheon very well. So unless you build a trollish attack speed oriented
Pantheon dont spend your hard earned gold for this.
![]() This is a fatastic item for ![]() ![]() |
SPACE |
![]() A great early game item for countering attack damage characters. Cheap and trustworthy can turn a bad start around. Helps greatly sustaining yourself in lane because with every last hit with your passive critical will heal you for around 40 health. Its like having ![]() |
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![]() This is an item we are all familiar with. It provides a large amount of attack damage and lifesteal. I don't find myself using it very much for bruiser ![]() |
![]() Very expensive but extremely deadly as well. It works perfectly with ![]() ![]() |
SPACE |
![]() I have to admit this item is amazing. With this and your masteries you reach 50% Arp(46% precisely). Use ![]() |
SPACE |
![]() ![]() ![]() |
ARMOR ITEMS
![]() This item is quite nice for its price although its underestimated. It provides health, damage and resistances as well as a very usefull aura. If you want some more tankyness you can take it instead of ![]() |
SPACE |
![]() Get this if you have serious mana problems with ![]() ![]() |
SPACE |
![]() I believe this is more of a mindf@ck item. Its somehow an anti focus item. It might prove useless or it can win you the game under rare circumstances. I use this item if I am on a long kill strike and have clear advantage over my opponents. Buying this will break their morale. |
SPACE | SPACE | SPACE |
![]() My favorite armor item for bruiser ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
SPACE |
![]() ![]() |
MAGIC RESIST ITEMS
![]() A nice mix of Magic resist health and mana. The passive is a bit unreliable but it helps when jumping in because most people use their interrupts first to protect themselves. Although ![]() |
SPACE |
![]() Just an awesome item. Works perfectly when combined with the core. You get 100 health regen per 5 seconds by matching it with ![]() ![]() |
SPACE |
![]() Stop laughing!!! This item may be bad for a more AD oriented ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
OTHER OPTIONS
![]() This is not an item you want. Ok it offers some nice bonuses like health,mana and health regeneration and a usefull active but if fits better at your support.This is just not good enough to replace other items. |
SPACE |
![]() This item was never a good choice for ![]() ![]() |
SPACE |
![]() Thats a very good item for bruiser ![]() ![]() |

You don't need it. If you want lifesteal its better to take




In this chapter I will show you the builds I have tested and used as bruiser

BASIC
Item Sequence






Health Potion
50

Nomad's Medallion
850

Boots
300

Stealth Ward
0

Stealth Ward
0

Heart of Gold
825

The Brutalizer
1337

Mercury's Treads
1250

Giant's Belt
900

Warmog's Armor
3100

Chain Vest
800

Atma's Impaler
2300

Phage
1100

Trinity Force
3333

Guardian Angel
3200

Youmuu's Ghostblade
2800
This is the build I find myself using most of the time. Provides protection against both Attack damage and Magic resist making it a perfect combination for most games. Its very rare to see a team only AD or AP oriented. Also you have great mobility combining




ADVANCED-DAMAGE
Item Sequence






Health Potion
50

Nomad's Medallion
850

Boots
300

Stealth Ward
0

Stealth Ward
0

Heart of Gold
825

Long Sword
350

Long Sword
350

The Brutalizer
1337

Mercury's Treads
1250

Giant's Belt
900

Warmog's Armor
3100

Chain Vest
800

Atma's Impaler
2300

Phage
1100

Trinity Force
3333

Youmuu's Ghostblade
2800

Infinity Edge
3450
You want to crush some skulls? Want to kill that annoying





ADVANCED-RESISTANCES/HEALTH
Item Sequence






Health Potion
50

Nomad's Medallion
850

Boots
300

Stealth Ward
0

Stealth Ward
0

Heart of Gold
825

Aegis of the Legion
1100

Mercury's Treads
1250

Giant's Belt
900

Warmog's Armor
3100

Chain Vest
800

Atma's Impaler
2300

Phage
1100

Frozen Mallet
3100

Guardian Angel
3200
This build makes



LAST WHISPERER
Item Sequence






Health Potion
50

Nomad's Medallion
850

Boots
300

Heart of Gold
825

Mercury's Treads
1250

Giant's Belt
900

Warmog's Armor
3100

Chain Vest
800

Atma's Impaler
2300

Sheen
900

Trinity Force
3333

Pickaxe
875

Last Whisper
1450

Warden's Mail
1000

Randuin's Omen
2700
This build was the prodrome for theBASIC. That was my main idea before evolving it later on. Its perfect if you want to be very tanky early game,rushing







BLOODTHIRSTY
Item Sequence






Health Potion
50

Health Potion
50

Health Potion
50

Nomad's Medallion
850

Heart of Gold
825

The Brutalizer
1337

Berserker's Greaves
1100

Giant's Belt
900

Warmog's Armor
3100

Chain Vest
800

Atma's Impaler
2300

Phage
1100

Frozen Mallet
3100

Bloodthirster
3400

Youmuu's Ghostblade
2800
This is an old build of mine revamped and recreated to fit in the current game. Its a build that can bring a lot of destruction to the other team because it combines very high damage along with lifesteal to sustain yourself inside the fight. I use





In this guide you are not the classic AD oriented
Pantheon who plays more like an assassin trying to catch the enemies soft targets off guard. You are a BRUISER. You have to understand that you have a diffrent role inside the team. If you don't like this kind of change do not jump into conclusions comparing one to another. Because they are designed for different purposes.
Spear Shot first while maintaining yourself inside range of
Aegis of Zeonia followed by a
Heartseeker Strike aimed on as many enemies as possible.
In order to use your
Grand Skyfall effectively:
Grand Skyfall is a great skill for intiating a fight but works wonders for clean up as well. You must think and act fast when you want to use your Skyfall. Try predicting your enemy's moves and land on their heads by surprise. Also because its cast time got greatly reduced during the
Pantheon remake it can be used for escaping gangs and sticky situations as well.
If you see you are getting cornered by the enemy solo top and jungler run fast inside the bushes and use it in a random location inside its range on your side of the map. If they don't have an interupt this is a secured escape.
Cover the Blue Buff or the Red Buff depending on which side you are and what your jungler needs.
As soon as the enemy creeps arrive enter last hit mode.
Use
Spear Shot on the enemy champion. This is a good measure to see how easely he can be killed.
If he is too bulky wait untill lvl 3 and only counter attack if he gets close enough. Otherwise continue throwing spears at his face.
Try to zone out your opponent in order to outfarm and out level him. Even if you get only one kill you are directly ahead.
Don't overextend too much.
Pantheon does not have mobility steroids so if you get caught by Red Buff only a miracle will be able to save you.
If your opponent solo top starts to push the lane you can start auto attacking but be aware not losing last hits.
Harass your enemy every time he goes close enough to farm. Auto attack him if you have creep advantage.
As much as you can don't overextend because
Pantheon is vunerable to gangs. Only if you know where the enemy jungler is you can move towards his turrent.
You main priority is Farming>Harassing>Slaying
Farming under the turret
-For melee minions let the turret hit them twice and get the last hit by auto attacking or throwing a Spear shot.
-For caster minions:On the first 3 levels hit them once, then let the turret add 1 hit and take the kill with an auto attack. You can also let the turret hit once and then use your
Spear Shot to finish it off. Later on use only your basic attacks.
-For siege minions just wait enough untill they reach low health and finish them off with a basic attack. Turrets deal reduced damage on siege engines so last hitting them wont be much of a problem.
Even if you get pushed a lot there is no need to get frustrated.
Pantheon can recover easely from a bad start and your Philosopher's Stone and
Heart of Gold provide a standard income of gold so you won't get undergeared. What's more important is not giving away kills to the enemy solo top or jungler.
When you go back to base make sure to purchase a couple of Sight Wards. I usually take two so I can stay in lane for longer periods. I place a Sight Ward inside the bushes in the river close to my lane. I prefer this because most people tend to camp in there before they appear for a gang.
Also a very helpful Warding guide can be found Here.
Turret Diving
Before you turret dive your opponent you much check a few things:
-Your target must be under 30% health at least.
-Check the position of the enemy jungler. If he is not visible and you don't have a ward in the river its preferable not to dive. A 2v1 fight under the turret will get you killed.
-If your target has both
Exhaust and
Flash and they are both out of cooldown your chances to have an successful towerdive fall dramaticaly.
-Make sure that you have your
Flash out of cooldown. Thats extremely important because you might need a fast getaway if something goes wrong.
-If you can dive with
Grand Skyfall do it. Its an unexpected move and will deal extra damage to your target.
-Kill most of his creeps before going in and try having as many of your creeps alive as possible.
Towerdiving effectively is not an easy thing and not all targets are susceptible. Enemies with stuns or with skills that add durability like
Renekton and
Nasus are very difficult to kill even on low health. So sometimes its better not to take that risk.
When getting towerdived
-Stay as close to your turret as possible so the enemy will have to walk a longer distance to get out of the turret range.
-Stun with
Aegis of Zeonia and throw a
Spear Shot while he is stunned.Try to kite him around the turrret in circles.
-If your death is certain and your enemy is at low hp use your
Ignite if its off cooldown to attempt to take the kill.
-In case of a towerdive by two enemies focus the one that's getting hit by the turret and try to kite them as much as you can.
How to kill
-Throw your
Spear Shot often to lower your opponents health. After you have Philosopher's Stone you can use it almost every time its off cooldown.
-Always check the minimap. You don't want to get caught in a 2v1 fight.
-Its preferable to have more than 190 mana available and your
Ignite out of cooldown.
If you have 190 mana you are ready to engage. Start buy throwing a
Spear Shot. Move closer to your target and stun with
Aegis of Zeonia and use your
Heartseeker Strike. Auto attack the target immediatly after your
Heartseeker Strike its finished. Your stun lasts 1 second flat if the enemy does not have
Mercury's Treads. The cast time of
Heartseeker Strike lasts 0.75 seconds. This means you have 0.25 secs to unload a free attack. Afterwards move in between attacks and maintain range for your final
Spear Shot. If you need to use
Ignite to finish off your target do it. I sometimes throw it anyway if my enemy has a build in heal like
Gangplank or to just make sure that my target will die.
-If you still have enough mana and health stay on the lane and farm. Otherwise return to base.
This is a guideline and cannot precise enough for every single fight.
IMPORTANT:Get as much kills and cs as you can during the laning phase. Because after it has ended your primary objective is to get your AP and AD carry fed, not yourself.
This is where tactic and good decisions determine the outcome of the game. Even if you had an ideal start you should not get ahead of yourself or act selfishly. Your primary target is to help your team mates to recover from a bad start(if they had one) or just maintain the advantage you gained in the begining.
Map awareness
I believe that map awareness gets more and more important as the game evolves because the lanes break your enemies could be just anywhere.
-Even if your support is buying wards you should do the same when able. I like warding Dragon and the enemy Red buff. This helps the team greatly to assemble a gang and get some free buffs and gold. Taking Oracle's Elixir is a very good idea for breaking the enemy's Sight Wards. This might not sound so important but its extremely helpful for giving free space for your team and prevent enemy gangs. Its better to be safe than sorry.
-Always be aware of your team mates positions in the map. You must know who will be able to help you in case of a fight or when to use your Grand Skyfall. So stop yelling in chat "Why noone help me". Know when to engage and when not.
-Be ready 24/7 to use your skyfall if needed. Its a spell that can really turn the tides inside a fight. And for a successful Skyfall map awareness is key.
-Be aware of your enemies movements. If you spot the enemy carry getting Red buff and his team is not covering him jump inside-kill him and take the buff. The tricks you can pull out with
Grand Skyfall and proper warding are endless.
Protecting
-Always try to help a ganged ally, unless its an obvious lost cause.
-Cover your carry while its taking buffs. Do not think that because its on your side of the map its safe. Anything can happen.
-If your enemies are focusing your carry too much try to have your
Aegis of Zeonia ready to defend it.
-Never leave your team behind. Chasing around fleeing targets while leaving your team vulnerable is a very bad idea.
-When able try to block enemy skill shots from poking your AD or AP carry. You will definitely lose less health than they will.
-If your death can save your team mates do it. Its better to take one for the team instead of having 2-3 or even 4 of your team mates dead.
Initiating
-First one in-last one out.
-Position yourself in front of the team. Be the leader of your team. Ping and communicate with your team and focus a single target every time.
-Either work as a bait and allow your team to flank the enemy, or flank the enemy yourself along with your team mates.
-If the target you focus is going down very fast its good to use your
Ignite to foil a healing attempt from the enemy support.
-Make sure that the enemy you tag with your
Aegis of Zeonia is accessible by your team mates.
-Don't use
Aegis of Zeonia carelessly. If you don't position yourself correctly you may get cut off from your team.
-
Grand Skyfall is a great initiating tool. If the teams are facing each other trading poke spells its a good time to cast
Grand Skyfall and allow your team to collapse on the marked target. Aim your
Aegis of Zeonia before you land so you can jump immediatly upon your target.
Stun priorities:
2)Target close enough to your team to obliterate
3)Position for Heartseeker
If you manage to pull out all of them in the same time you managed to do the perfect dive. Otherwise just try to at least do one of these three objectives.
The time when good team setups win the game. You must act smart and work with your team as one.
Group Up
-Never go alone. Don't get caught out of position. You don't want to leave your tean on disadvantage.
-Gather your team. Don't be scattered around the map. Most of the time the team that wins the battle is the one who has numerical advantage.
-Ambush lonely targets every time you get the chance. Don't give them space to breathe.
-Never chase down lonely targets if you don't know where the rest of the team is.
-Don't get baited. If you see an enemy alone farming on a lane with his teammates nowhere to be found it could be a trap. And sometimes one ace is enough to lose the game.
Team work
-Its your job to initiate, facecheck or anything else the team requires of you.
-Be aware of your carries status inside the fight. Don't let them get shredded by characters like
Shaco or
Talon.
-If you need to buy Sight Ward,
Vision Ward or
Oracle's Elixir go ahead. Don't expect everything to be done by your team mates. You have to contribute to your team in every possible way.
-If your team has enough crowd control you can start a stun chain by leading with your
Aegis of Zeonia.
Pantheon is very team reliant late game. You have to understand the nature of this problem and stick with your team.

BASIC SKILL SEQUENCE
You use 


In order to use your

-
Target it slightly behind your enemy.
Cover choke points and escape routes.
Trap the enemy team between you and your team.
Towerdive enemy champion.
Finish off a foe who escaped your range.
Defend Turrets.


If you see you are getting cornered by the enemy solo top and jungler run fast inside the bushes and use it in a random location inside its range on your side of the map. If they don't have an interupt this is a secured escape.
Early Game
Cover the Blue Buff or the Red Buff depending on which side you are and what your jungler needs.
As soon as the enemy creeps arrive enter last hit mode.
Use

If he is too bulky wait untill lvl 3 and only counter attack if he gets close enough. Otherwise continue throwing spears at his face.
Try to zone out your opponent in order to outfarm and out level him. Even if you get only one kill you are directly ahead.
Don't overextend too much.

If your opponent solo top starts to push the lane you can start auto attacking but be aware not losing last hits.
Harass your enemy every time he goes close enough to farm. Auto attack him if you have creep advantage.
As much as you can don't overextend because

You main priority is Farming>Harassing>Slaying
Farming under the turret
-For melee minions let the turret hit them twice and get the last hit by auto attacking or throwing a Spear shot.
-For caster minions:On the first 3 levels hit them once, then let the turret add 1 hit and take the kill with an auto attack. You can also let the turret hit once and then use your

-For siege minions just wait enough untill they reach low health and finish them off with a basic attack. Turrets deal reduced damage on siege engines so last hitting them wont be much of a problem.
Even if you get pushed a lot there is no need to get frustrated.


When you go back to base make sure to purchase a couple of Sight Wards. I usually take two so I can stay in lane for longer periods. I place a Sight Ward inside the bushes in the river close to my lane. I prefer this because most people tend to camp in there before they appear for a gang.
Also a very helpful Warding guide can be found Here.
Turret Diving
Before you turret dive your opponent you much check a few things:
-Your target must be under 30% health at least.
-Check the position of the enemy jungler. If he is not visible and you don't have a ward in the river its preferable not to dive. A 2v1 fight under the turret will get you killed.
-If your target has both


-Make sure that you have your

-If you can dive with

-Kill most of his creeps before going in and try having as many of your creeps alive as possible.
Towerdiving effectively is not an easy thing and not all targets are susceptible. Enemies with stuns or with skills that add durability like


When getting towerdived
-Stay as close to your turret as possible so the enemy will have to walk a longer distance to get out of the turret range.
-Stun with


-If your death is certain and your enemy is at low hp use your

-In case of a towerdive by two enemies focus the one that's getting hit by the turret and try to kite them as much as you can.
How to kill
-Throw your

-Always check the minimap. You don't want to get caught in a 2v1 fight.
-Its preferable to have more than 190 mana available and your

If you have 190 mana you are ready to engage. Start buy throwing a









-If you still have enough mana and health stay on the lane and farm. Otherwise return to base.
This is a guideline and cannot precise enough for every single fight.
IMPORTANT:Get as much kills and cs as you can during the laning phase. Because after it has ended your primary objective is to get your AP and AD carry fed, not yourself.
Mid game
This is where tactic and good decisions determine the outcome of the game. Even if you had an ideal start you should not get ahead of yourself or act selfishly. Your primary target is to help your team mates to recover from a bad start(if they had one) or just maintain the advantage you gained in the begining.
Map awareness
I believe that map awareness gets more and more important as the game evolves because the lanes break your enemies could be just anywhere.
-Even if your support is buying wards you should do the same when able. I like warding Dragon and the enemy Red buff. This helps the team greatly to assemble a gang and get some free buffs and gold. Taking Oracle's Elixir is a very good idea for breaking the enemy's Sight Wards. This might not sound so important but its extremely helpful for giving free space for your team and prevent enemy gangs. Its better to be safe than sorry.
-Always be aware of your team mates positions in the map. You must know who will be able to help you in case of a fight or when to use your Grand Skyfall. So stop yelling in chat "Why noone help me". Know when to engage and when not.
-Be ready 24/7 to use your skyfall if needed. Its a spell that can really turn the tides inside a fight. And for a successful Skyfall map awareness is key.
-Be aware of your enemies movements. If you spot the enemy carry getting Red buff and his team is not covering him jump inside-kill him and take the buff. The tricks you can pull out with

Protecting
-Always try to help a ganged ally, unless its an obvious lost cause.
-Cover your carry while its taking buffs. Do not think that because its on your side of the map its safe. Anything can happen.
-If your enemies are focusing your carry too much try to have your

-Never leave your team behind. Chasing around fleeing targets while leaving your team vulnerable is a very bad idea.
-When able try to block enemy skill shots from poking your AD or AP carry. You will definitely lose less health than they will.
-If your death can save your team mates do it. Its better to take one for the team instead of having 2-3 or even 4 of your team mates dead.
Initiating
-First one in-last one out.
-Position yourself in front of the team. Be the leader of your team. Ping and communicate with your team and focus a single target every time.
-Either work as a bait and allow your team to flank the enemy, or flank the enemy yourself along with your team mates.
-If the target you focus is going down very fast its good to use your

-Make sure that the enemy you tag with your

-Don't use

-



Stun priorities:
2)Target close enough to your team to obliterate
3)Position for Heartseeker
If you manage to pull out all of them in the same time you managed to do the perfect dive. Otherwise just try to at least do one of these three objectives.
Late game
The time when good team setups win the game. You must act smart and work with your team as one.
Group Up
-Never go alone. Don't get caught out of position. You don't want to leave your tean on disadvantage.
-Gather your team. Don't be scattered around the map. Most of the time the team that wins the battle is the one who has numerical advantage.
-Ambush lonely targets every time you get the chance. Don't give them space to breathe.
-Never chase down lonely targets if you don't know where the rest of the team is.
-Don't get baited. If you see an enemy alone farming on a lane with his teammates nowhere to be found it could be a trap. And sometimes one ace is enough to lose the game.
Team work
-Its your job to initiate, facecheck or anything else the team requires of you.
-Be aware of your carries status inside the fight. Don't let them get shredded by characters like


-If you need to buy Sight Ward,


-If your team has enough crowd control you can start a stun chain by leading with your


In this chapter I will try to give you advices on how to play and counter most of the solo top opponents you will face as
Pantheon.
This chapter relies on my personal opinion and experience. This is a guideline and it cannot be precice enough for every single fight.
Difficulty:Easy
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:
+
,
+
Akali is a surprisingly easy opponent for
Pantheon. This is an outcome of her weak early game. She is fairly squishy and without any crowd control. Very easy to handle overal.
She will probably start with
+
. This means that you should be carefull not getting auto attacked when you have
Mark of the Assassin on yourself.
Even with 3x
she won't be able to sustain herself if you do your job right.
After she reaches lvl 6 be carefull.
Shadow Dance transforms her from an easy target to a stone cold killer. Do not stay in lane with low Hp. She will just eat you alive.
Tips:
-Stay out of her
Twilight Shroud.
-Use your
Heartseeker Strike to damage her inside the
Twilight Shroud.
-Don't get auto attacked while you have the debuff from
Mark of the Assassin.
-If you get auto attacked while you have
Mark of the Assassin on yourself at least try to get
Aegis Protection charged to negate the physical damage from the basic attack.
-If you shut down
Akali from the begining you are already halfway to victory.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:
+
Cho'Gath can be described with a single word. Annoying. His passive
Carnivore provides him with exceptionally durability. He is a worthy opponent for
Pantheon.
Cho'Gath has a great variety of starting items available, he is exeptionaly durable in lane even without them. If he has
+
for summoner spells you are going to have company in your laning phase 24/7...
If you manage to sieze control over your lane and render him unable to use
Carnivore you must turn on the heat and use your
Spear Shot as often as possible. If he stays he dies, if he goes back you have an immediate level advantage. Win-win situation.
If
Cho'Gath is munching on your creeps healing up through
Carnivore do not use your
Spear Shot. No reason to dry yourself out of mana and gain nothing.
Avoid his super annoying
Rupture no matter what. Especially after lvl 6.
Cho'Gath is a nasty motherf@cker and you should not underestimate the power of his
Feast. Be extremely carefull. Don't end up being Feedtheon.
Try to take him down with your jungler. Don't let him stack up his
Feast.
Tips:
-Back to basics. Avoid
Rupture.
-Try to zone him so he can't make use of
Carnivore.
-Be aware of the angle he attacks the creeps. Avoid getting hit by
Vorpal Spikes as much as you can.
-
Vorpal Spikes deal 80 damage when maxed, equal to an
Infinity Edge. Keep that in mind. Don't underestimate his attacks.
-If you can't zone him focus more on last hitting. Attack
Cho'Gath when your jungler arrives.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:
+
Dr. Mundo is a character with good durability although he is very rarely seen in game anymore. Because of his unreliable crowd control, health costs and item dependency he can be shutted down fairly easely if dealt properly.
I believe that
Dr. Mundo is a character that tests the Summoners kills. So there could be a great difference in difficulty from one
Dr. Mundo player to another.
Avoid his
Infected Bonesaw easely by moving around your creeps. Avoiding this ability is your first step to win your lane.
Attack him every time he tries to farm. Don't give him space to breathe.
Throw your
Spear Shot every time he uses
Heart Zapper. Its good to harass him as much as you can when he uses this spell. He will sustain heavy health loss because you combine your damage along with the sustained health loss he inflicts on himself.
Blunt Force Trauma gets easely countered by your
Aegis of Zeonia. Also its duration is too low to deal significant damage.
Dr. Mundo has a very low attack speed. You should be more afraid of
Heart Zapper.
Try having your
Ignite ready to negate the effectiveness of
Maximum Dosage.
Dr. Mundo can recover from a bad start. Do not underestimate his power after lvl 6.
Never towerdive
Dr. Mundo if you dont have
Ignite ready.
Tips:
-His main harassing tools are
Infected Bonesaw and
Heart Zapper. Both easely avoidable.
-
Heart Zapper reduces your stun duration. Do your combinations fast.
-
Ignite is your best friend. But don't use it on him unless he has
Maximum Dosage active or he is less that lvl 6.
-Don't make the fight like a sabotage match.
Dr. Mundo is extremely durable because of
Goes Where He Pleases so fighting like this is not to your benefit.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:
+
,
+
Honestly my experience against
Fizz is limited. Some things to have in mind is that a skilled
Fizz is very difficult to harass and even more difficult to kill due to his awesome mobility.
Try to attack him very early. Use
Spear Shot as much as you can. After he aquires
Playful / Trickster play more defensively.
Fizz excels on attacking the enemy withough giving the ability to retaliate due to his
Urchin Strike+
Playful / Trickster combo.
Follow
Fizz while he is performing
Playful / Trickster and use
Spear Shot or
Aegis of Zeonia+
Heartseeker Strike+
Spear Shot to win the exchange.
Don't waste your time chasing
Fizz around. His mobility can be used to bait you and get you ambushed by his jungler.
Tips:
-Use your
Spear Shot before he gets
Playful / Trickster.
-Focus on farming as much as you can.
-Don't let him auto attack you.
Seastone Trident enhance his attacks.
-If he is level 6 and your health is less that 50% recall back to base.
-
Chum the Waters can be avoided if you are fast enough. Do not use
Flash while you have the debuff on yourself, because it will move
Chum the Waters to your location.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:
+
Galio is a force to reckon with. He can deal significant damage and take a lot of punishment at the same time. A strong, bursty champion.
Resolute Smite deals very painful damage. Avoid it as much as you can. Its good to start with
for extra mobility.
Bulwark makes
Galio exceptionally bulky. Don't use your
Spear Shot while
Bulwark is active.
Resolute Smite followed by
Righteous Gust can bring a lot of pain. Don't get hit by both simultaneously.
After
Galio is 6 be extremely careful.
Idol of Durand along with his jungler can get you killed.
Tips:
-Never stay still. Always move. Last hit with
Spear Shot if needed.
-
Galio can push your lane very hard. Auto attack if you have to.
-
Resolute Smite+
Righteous Gust deals very heavy damage. Along with that it reduces your movement speed. Don't get caught out of position because you won't be able to outrun your enemy.
-
Galio is a slow character. Outmaneuver him with early game mobility.
-If you use your
Aegis of Zeonia the same time he uses
Idol of Durand you will stun him and his ulti will be wasted.
Difficulty:Easy
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:
+
Gangplank is a very good asset for every team. But he is one of the easiest enemies you can have on solo top so shutting him down and ruining his game is one of your main priorities.
Your
Aegis Protection blocks
Gangplank's main harassing ability,
Parrrley(Yay).
Try to recharge your
Aegis Protection fast because
Parrrley has a very short cooldown.
If you can, force him to use
Remove Scurvy to heal up before you use
Aegis of Zeonia, so he will have no way to avoid your stun.
Don't get caught out of position by the enemy jungler.
Gangplank can deal loads of damage early game and the slow from
Grog Soaked Blade will make your escape very very difficult.
Never towerdive
Gangplank after he reaches lvl 6.
Cannon Barrage can be devastating under the turret. Also it applies slow so making your way out of the turret is much more difficult.
Tips:
-Keep your
Ignite to finish him off and make
Remove Scurvy useless.
-Don't give him any kills! Its very important to shut down
Gangplank very early.
-Attack him if he goes in melee range to farm.
-Be extremely aware after he gets
Cannon Barrage. It can turn the fight to his favor.
-Don't waste your time chasing
Gangplank. He is very hard to catch up because of
Raise Morale.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:
+
,
+
Garen is a character we are all familiar with. Godly early game and weak late game. His power should not be underestimated.
Make careful use of your mana pool.
Perseverance makes
Garen very durable in lane.
Try to harass him at least every 7 seconds to prevent him from healing up through
Perseverance.
You
Aegis Protection will absorb the damage of
Decisive Strike but you still get silenced.
Don't use your
Spear Shot while
Courage is active.
Avoid his famous
Judgment. Don't stand near your creeps while its off cooldown.
Keep your distance.
Decisive Strike+
Judgment is a very devastating combination.
After
Garen reaches lvl 6 don't go toe to toe.
Demacian Justice is known for its unforgiving damage against low health characters.
If you destroy
Garen's early game he will be useless later on.
Tips:
-Try shutting down
Garen very early.
-Harass him often.
-Don't let him zone you with
Judgment.
-Kite him around.
Garen does not have a gap closer.
-Recall if you are low on health.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:
+
Irelia is a very effective solo top character. She is able to sustain herself with
Hiten Style and shred your defenses with true damage. A very worthy opponent overal.
Harass
Irelia very early. Zone her out as fast as possible.
Retaliate every time she tries to farm with
Bladesurge.
Don't let her farm so she wont be able to heal through
Hiten Style. Also be aware of the active. It allows her to heal true damage with every hit. Do not underestimate her attacks.
Don't towerdive
Irelia. Especially after she gets lvl 6. Her
Equilibrium Strike along with
Transcendent Blades can get you killed.
Tips:
-
Pantheon can deal more damage than
Irelia early game. Use this to your advantage and don't let her farm.
-Zone her to destroy her sustainability.
-Don't get caught out of position.
Equilibrium Strike along with the enemy jungler can get you killed.
-Have your
Ignite ready to get the upper hand when she uses ther
Transcendent Blades.
Difficulty:Hard
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:
+
,
+
Jarvan IV is the ball breaker of solo top. Very difficult to kill, zone and shut down in general he combines great flexibility with considerable damage.
Jarvan IV is able to deal significant punishment without any damage items. He is very dangerous in any way. Don't do stupid mistakes.
Jarvan IV increases his armor passively with
Demacian Standard. Don't dry yourself out of mana if you see that you can't take him down.
Don't throw your
Spear Shot while
Golden Aegis is active. It will absorb most of the damage if not all of it.
Jarvan IV can make you an easy prey for his jungler if you get caught by his
+
.
Have your
Flash ready to avoid
Cataclysm.
Keep your distance.
Jarvan IV is a very capable distance closer.
Tips:
-Focus heavily on farming
-Use
Spear Shot every time
Jarvan IV tries to farm.
-Wait for your jungler to attemt to kill.
-Don't use your
Flash unless you really need to. Try having it ready for his
Cataclysm.
Difficulty:Easy
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:
+
Jax is a very powerful opponent late game. But because he is very item dependant and has a very weak early game he can be shutted down easely.
Don't be afraid of his
Leap Strike+
Empower combo. In the past it was devastating but after the recent nerfs it tickles.
Use your
Spear Shot often.
Jax has no way of sustaining himself in lane.
Do not let him farm. Attack him every time he goes close to your creeps.
Avoid auto attacking
Jax while
Counter Strike is active.
Don't let him land consecutive attacks. Both
Grandmaster-At-Arms and
Relentless Assault need time to stack up. Use this to your advantage.
Try not giving him kills early on.Because
Jax has a gap closer he can synergise very well with his jungler during a gang.
If you shut down
Jax early on you are halfway to victory.
Tips:
-Harass
Jax with
Spear Shot very often. Destroy his farming potential.
-Have a Sight Ward in the bushes near the river so you can dominate the lane even more easely.
-
Jax is very weak early game. Your damage output is significantly higher.
-Do not give him any kills! Even if you die only once he will be directly ahead.
-Be careful after
Jax reaches lvl 6.
Grandmaster-At-Arms enhances greatly his damage output.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:
+
Lee Sin is a formidable choice for every team. Able to lane and jungle effectively he is a major threat to your team.
There is a very high skill cap on
Lee Sin's playstyle. There can be major differences between each summoner.
Back to basics. Avoid
Sonic Wave / Resonating Strike.
By avoiding
Sonic Wave / Resonating Strike you disable him from using his abilities ti harass you effectively
Do not use
Spear Shot while the damage absorption from
Safeguard / Iron Will is active.
Harass him every time he tries to last hit. By zoning him you render useless the lifesteal from
Safeguard / Iron Will.
Invest on early game armor like
Ninja Tabi or
Wriggle's Lantern if needed.
Be very carefull after
Lee Sin acquires
Dragon's Rage. If he kicks you back to his jungler you are f@cked.
Tips:
-Use your creep wave to win early game exchanges.
-Don't allow
Lee Sin to combo his abilities.
-Don't stand to auto attack him if you have the debuff of
Tempest / Cripple on yourself.
-
Lee Sin is not item dependant. He is a force to reckon with.
-Don't get caught by
Lee Sin and his jungler. Unless you want to roll a cigaret during the ressurection timer.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:
+
Leona is a very sturdy character with loads of crowd control and interrupts. Rarely seen on top since she can aqquire many roles. But as she is a Rakkor herself be sure that this will be a tough fight.
Leona is very durable but she lacks damage. Damage her severely through the levels to win your lane. By level 4 she should be at least with half health.
Be aware that both
Shield of Daybreak and
Zenith Blade can interrupt your
Heartseeker Strike.
Don't stand near
Leona while
Eclipse is active. It can deal considerable damage early on.
Use your
Spear Shot often but don't harass her while
Eclipse protects her.
Do not over extend.
Leona has a very powerful array of crowd control which can lead to your demise during a gang.
Tips:
-Win the lane with your damage output.
-Don't over extend.
-Be extremely aware of her
+
+
+
. It can deal a lot of damage and have you pinned down for a very long time.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:
+
Although
Malphite can put some great annoyance on top, he is not a real threat against
Pantheon if you play against him correctly.
Enter farming mode. Don't lose a single creep if possible. Don't waste your time harassing
Malphite.
If you want to harass
Malphite you need to cast
Spear Shot twice. One to break
Granite Shield and the second to just tickle him a bit. Its just not worth it.
Ask for many early gangs to seize advantage to your lane.
Because
Seismic Shard transfers a percentage of your movement speed to
Malphite chasing him won't help much.
Malphite does not have enough damage to push you out of the lane,unless you get hit idiotically by
Ground Slam.
Don't stay close to your creeps to avoid harassment from his
Brutal Strikes.
Be extremely aware for enemy gangs. Because if you get hit by
Unstoppable Force his jungler can easely finish you off.
Don't stay in lane with low health. Especially after
Malphite gets lvl 6. His
Unstoppable Force+
Ground Slam+
Seismic Shard combo deals a lot of damage early game.
Don't count to your turret for protection.
Malphite is a very potent turretdiver.
Tips:
-Farm like a boss.
-Attack him only if you have creep advantage.
-Don't waste your time harassing
Malphite.
-Communicate with your jungler for very early gangs.
-Don't get caught out of position.
Difficulty:Hard
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:
+
,
+
Maokai is a very difficult opponent to have against. He is able to sustain himself awesomely and deal considerable amounts of damage. A skilled
Maokai can turn your balls to planets.
Even if you have
Aegis Protection active
Maokai will still heal himself with
Sap Magic if he attacks you.
Avoid Arcane Smash if he casts it without
Twisted Advance. A simple right or left turn is enough.
Don't use your
Flash while he jumps on you with
Twisted Advance because you will drag him with you.
Sapling Toss is easy to avoid if you are on constant awareness. If you are not you probably lost the lane already. Its his main harassing ability and deals painful damage if the sapling explodes on you.
Require early gangs from your jungler and zone him out if able so he wont be able to heal with
Sap Magic
Do not over extend because if
Maokai's jungler ambushes and you get caught by
Twisted Advance its probably the last thing you will ever do.
Don't towerdive Maokai after he reaches lvl 6.
Vengeful Maelstrom and
Twisted Advance will make it a lethal experience.
Tips:
-Play carefully and be on constant awareness.
-Coordinate with your jungler to shut
Maokai down.
-If able, zone
Maokai to prevent him from healing himself.
-Have good map awareness and use wards 24/7.A 2v1 fight will get you killed.
Difficulty:Hard
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:
+
,
+
Mordekaiser is a true game changer. Able to turn fights to 4v6 and take a lot of punishment is a very good choice for teams with heavy crowd control.
Mordekaiser is a very difficult opponent for
Pantheon on solo top. That's because
Pantheon's harassment is cooldown based, which allows
Mordekaiser to absorb the damage through
Iron Man by using his abilities.
You have 5 seconds to farm after
Mordekaiser uses his
Siphon of Destruction.
Stay away of your creep wave as
Mordekaiser can use it to harass you.
Use your
Spear Shot to farm from distance if needed.
Assault
Mordekaiser heavily in the first levels with
Spear Shot because he doesn't have enough damage to power his shield up yet. Later on take a more defensive approach.
Be aware that
Mace of Spades can jump from near by targets to yourself. Also don't let
Mordekaiser hit you with
Mace of Spades if you are alone.
Mordekaiser's damage raise dramaticaly through spell ranks and levels. Don't under estimate his damage output, especially after he reaches lvl 6 with
Children of the Grave.
Request early gangs to seize advantage over your lane.
Mordekaiser can push your lane very hard, but you can use this to your advantage if you know how to farm under the turret. It also leaves him vulnerable to gangs which can work in your favor.
Tips:
-Harass early, focus more on farming after he reaches lvl 4.
-Don't give
Mordekaiser any kills early game, he can win a game on his own if fed.
-Do not go toe to toe against
Mordekaiser after he acquires
Children of the Grave.
-Avoid unnecessary harassment. Coordinate with your jungler to win the lane.
-If you manage to push
Mordekaiser away from your creep wave you can destroy him because he won't be able to charge up his shield.
Difficulty:Easy
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:
+
Although
Nasus is a character able to change the whole game, he is very easely shut down and countered if his early game gets ruined.
Don't let
Nasus farm. Always attack him with
Spear Shot and auto attacks whenever he tries to get a last hit.
By zoning
Nasus you don't allow him to sustain himself with
Soul Eater and you destroy his damage as he is unable to stack up
Siphoning Strike.
Aegis Protection blocks
Siphoning Strike completely(Yay).
Do not over extend.
Wither's incredible slow makes you an easy pray for enemy gangs.
Avoid attacking
Nasus if he has more creeps that you in lane. The extra damage from the enemy minions can make you lose the exchange.
Don't ever ever towerdive
Nasus after he gets lvl 6. NEVER. His
Fury of the Sands in combination with
Wither will most likely get you killed.
Tips:
-Shut
Nasus down, otherwise he will crush your team.
-Do not let him farm. Harass him heavily.
-Be extremely aware for enemy gangs. Don't give him space and kills/assist early on.
-Towerdive with caution, don't towerdive after
Nasus is lvl 6.
Difficulty:HARD
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:
+
Nidalee is a pain in the @ss. Seriously, she is so annoying. A skilled
Nidalee can destroy you in lane.
Because
Nidalee is a ranged character she can easely break your
Aegis Protection 24/7.This makes your passive next to useless.
Although Atmog's
Nidalee does not deal much damage with
Javelin Toss / Takedown she will throw it in your face if you are out of position. Avoid it you must!
After you have Philosopher's Stone use
Spear Shot every time its off cooldown. Force her to heal up several times with
Primal Surge / Swipe to get out of mana.
After
Nidalee acquires her
Aspect Of The Cougar keep your distance. A single combination of her cougar form abilities can drop you to almost half health.
Don't chase
Nidalee after she gets lvl 6. Its just a waste of time.
The abilities of
Aspect Of The Cougar don't require mana, and thus she can use them endlessly.
Tips:
-Don't let
Nidalee auto attack you all the time, because you will get forced to recall.
-If you managed to drop her health have your
Ignite ready to disable her
Primal Surge / Swipe if you jump in for a kill.
-Never towerdive
Nidalee after she acquires
Aspect Of The Cougar.
-Don't use
Grand Skyfall to attack
Nidalee, unless you are using it to return fast back in lane.
-Stay focused and farm as much as possible.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:
+
,
+
Nunu & Willump is an annoying character, able to harass very frequently his opponents and sustain himself through heavy healing.
Use your
Spear Shot to retaliate if its certain that you will get hit by
Ice Blast.
Spam your
Spear Shot very early before
Nunu & Willump acquires
Consume.
Zone
Nunu & Willump to prevent him from casting free spells with
Visionary, or heal via
Consume.
Ice Blast deals exceptional amounts of slow. Don't get caught out of position by the enemy jungler because the slow from Red Buff and
Ice Blast will get you killed.
Make
Absolute Zero useless with the stun provided by
Aegis of Zeonia.
Tips:
-Use your
Spear Shot to farm if needed to avoid harassment.
-Zone
Nunu & Willump and coordinate with your jungler to destroy his laning phase.
-Don't allow
Nunu & Willump to outlevel you, because his harassment will become too powerful for you to handle.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:
+
Poppy is a very sturdy character. Her damage output can execute your carries and her durability allows her to withstand a lot of focus fire.
You
Aegis Protection only blocks the physical damage part of
Devastating Blow.
Harass
Poppy as much as possible with
Spear Shot. Force her away from your minions.
Stay away from walls. Her combo of
Heroic Charge+
Devastating Blow can evaporate your health.
Don't count on your turret for protection, because
Poppy can disable it with
Diplomatic Immunity.
Towerdiving
Poppy is not a good idea because of
Valiant Fighter,
Paragon of Demacia and the stun of
Heroic Charge can get you killed.
Tips:
-Force
Poppy to back off from your minions with heavy harassment.
-If you manage to shut down
Poppy you've done a big step towards victory.
-Her stun from
Heroic Charge can leave you vulnerable for a gang.
-Don't stay in lane with low health, because
Poppy can finish you off with
Diplomatic Immunity under the turret.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:
+
,
+
Renekton is a very durable character. You need patience and awareness to win him on solo top. Luckily his moves are very predictable so as long as you play carefully you will eventually get the upper hand.
Always pay attention to
Renekton's Fury bar. Be carefull fighting him when its above 50%.
Don't get hit by
Cull the Meek. Its very easy and predictable and easy to avoid. But it will cut a considerable portion of your health, especially if he has more than 50% fury.
Aegis Protection block the damage of
Ruthless Predator but you still get stunned.
Don't stay close to your minions.
Renekton can use
Slice and Dice+
Cull the Meek+
Slice and Dice to get in your creep wave to farm and heal in the same time. Throw your
Spear Shot while he performs this move to negate his healing. But don't go too close. He can stun you with
Ruthless Predator and harass you by using
Cull the Meek if you are standing amidst your minions.
By early game armor items if needed.
Don't towerdive
Renekton after he reaches lvl 6. His stun from
Ruthless Predator and the extra health he gains from
Dominus makes turret diving a very bad move.
Tips:
-Don't stand amidst your creep wave.
-Use
Spear Shot every time
Renekton goes close to farm.
-Don't turrent dive
Renekton unless he has very low health.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:
+
,
+
,
+
Riven...hmm.. Well she is a very strong character if you learn how to play her, or she can become a feeding machine if not. The difficulty between a skilled
Riven and a newcomer
Riven can be enormous.
You
Aegis Protection helps a lot not getting harmed from
Riven's
Runic Blade.
Use your
Spear Shot early and often.
Riven has no way of healing herself up in lane, so burning out her health potions will be very easy.
After
Riven gets lvl 3 expect increased harassment. Her combination of
Broken Wings+
Ki Burst+
Valor allows her to lower your health while she takes minimum damage.
To avoid
Riven's harassing combo its preferable not to stand amidst your minions. Keep your distance at all times and try to lower her health first with
Spear Shot.
Don't use your
Spear Shot while the shield from
Valor is active.
Riven's awesome mobility can turn her to an escape artist. You must coordinate with your jungler effectively to take her down.
Recall back if you are low on health. Don't give her any kills early on.
After
Riven reaches lvl 6 be extremely carefull. Her combo along with
Blade of the Exile can get you killed if your health is recklessly low. Also she is a very potent towerdiver. Don't count your turret as serious protection.
Tips:
-Retaliate every time she tries to farm or attack.
-Destroy her laning phase to make her useless for the whole game.
-Do not allow her to zone you or get ahead.
-
Riven is very item dependant on terms of survive ability and damage. Use this to your advantage.
-NEVER stay with low hp in lane.
Blade of the Exile deals executing damage if your health is below 20%.
Difficulty:Hard
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:
+
Rumble is a very strong all around character. He is able to deal loads of damage over time and still be tanky enough to sustain a lot of beating.
Always keep your distance and farm with
Spear Shot if needed tp avoid getting harassed by
Flamespitter.
Don't waste your
Spear Shot while
Scrap Shield is active. Also keep in mind that the extra speed
Scrap Shield provides can be used by
Rumble to harass you with
Flamespitter.
Avoid getting hit by
Electro-Harpoon because this is the ability that allows
Rumble to harass you effectively.
The Equalizer paired with the damage of
Flamespitter can evaporate your health. Have your
Flash ready for quick escapes. Don't underestimate
Rumble's sustained damage.
Tips:
-Keep mana to farm from distance if needed.
-Coordinate with your jungler to win the lane.
-Outmaneuver
Rumble by using early game mobility.
-Don't stand inside
Flamespitter. Its his main harassing ability and it deals a lot of damage.
-Don't get caught out of position with
Electro-Harpoon, as it can allow the enemy jungler to catch up and finish you off.
Difficulty:Easy
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:
+
,
+
Although
Sejuani is a strong champion in team fights, she does not have the sustain or damage to win against
Pantheon on solo top.
Aegis Protection will block
Sejuani's basic attacks, but
Frost is applied.
Sejuani is a very predictable character.Avoid her
Arctic Assault easely by standing away of your creep wave and just dodge right of left.
Arctic Assault is the alpha and the omega for
Sejuani because its the ability that allows her to use her other skills effectively. Understand the importance of dodging that spell.
Northern Winds are easely avoidable, just don't stand amidst your creep wave. But if you get hit by
Arctic Assault+
Northern Winds its gonna be painful.
All of
Sejuani's spells synergise very well with enemy gangs. Her incredible slow and stun from
Glacial Prison can get you killed if you are out of position.
Tips:
-Be always ready to dodge
Arctic Assault.
-Farm from distance if needed.
-Use your
Spear Shot often.
Sejuani has no way to heal herself unless she uses her health potions.
-Do not over extend. You will die if you get caught out of position by all this crowd control.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:
+
Shen is a sturdy character able to heal up and lane and harass repeatedly. A skilled
Shen can be a very difficult opponent to beat.
Avoid getting hit while
Ki Strike is active. If your
Aegis Protection is up then you will block the physical damage, but magical damage will be inflicted.
Do not auto attack
Shen. And in general don't go very close to him during the laning phase.
Shen can literaly spam
Vorpal Blade. Don't stand in his range all the time. If you keep getting hit you will be forced to recall.
Use your
Spear Shot to kill the ranged minions if needed. Avoid getting close. If he taunts you with
Shadow Dash inside his creep wave you have lost the exchange.
Don't throw your
Spear Shot while
Feint is active.
Be aware that
Shen can use
Stand United as an escape mechanism.
NEVER turret dive
Shen.
Tips:
-
Shen is deceptively durable even when he is low on health.
-Don't get caught out of position with
Shadow Dash.
-Farm from range if needed.
-Don't push the lane but don't let
Shen gather an army of minions either.
-Don't get repeatedly harassed.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:
+
,
+
In my opinion
Shyvana is a great overal character. She is able to deal crazy amounts of damage while being very difficult to kill. Thankfully due to her weak early game she is manageable.
Shut down
Shyvana. Thats a very important step towards victory.
Sadly
Aegis Protection doesn't block the second attack of
Twin Bite.
Keep your distance.
Shyvana can harass you easely with
Burnout if you over extend too much. Keep in mind that it increases her movement speed as well.
Flame Breath is easely avoidable. Don't get hit to minimize the health loss during an exchange.
Shyvana has no way to heal herself back. Throw your
Spear Shot often.
Keep your health as close to maximum as possible after
Shyvana acquires
Dragon's Descent. Her ultimate is what makes her so deadly.
Luckily
Shyvana has next to no crowd control. This doesn't mean you should over extend though.
Tips:
-Attack
Shyvana and force her out of farming range as fast as possible.
-Keep your distance to so she can't get you with
Burnout.
-Stand amidst your minion wave to win the exchange if she tries to assault you with
Twin Bite and
Burnout.
-
Shyvana can use
Dragon's Descent only if her fury bar its full, and therefore its easy to guess her next move.
-Be extremely carefull when fighting
Shyvana after she is lvl 6.
Difficulty:Hard
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:
+
,
+
Olaf is a bulldozer. He has remarkable sustainability and unmatched burst with
Reckless Swing. A very difficult opponent for
Pantheon on solo top.
Olaf is extremely deadly when on low health because of
Berserker Rage. Don't count on your
Aegis Protection.
The only way to shut down
Olaf is to kite him around all the time. Don't let him get close enough. He is very devastating in melee range.
You must avoid
Undertow. Its pojectile is rather slow so its easely dodged if you are on constant awareness.
Olaf can regenerate a lot of health with his
Tough It Out. If you can't bring him down don't dry yourself out of mana with
Spear Shot.
Reckless Swing can destroy your health early game. Kite
Olaf around to prevent him from casting it on yourself.
Never stay in lane with low health, and never goe toe to toe against
Olaf!
Don't waste your
Aegis of Zeonia if
Olaf has
Ragnarok active, unless you desperately need to charge
Aegis Protection.
Tips:
-Keep your distance.
-
Olaf lacks escape mechanisms. Take advantage of this and assault him early with your jungler.
-Farm with
Spear Shot if needed.
-Don't give
Olaf early game kills. He is very item dependant mid and late game, so messing up with his early game will decrease his effectiveness.
Difficulty:Easy
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:
+
,
+
From my experience
Singed will either win the game for his team with successful moves, or he will fail dramaticaly and become an easy target. But definitely he is not a character to be underestimated.
Singed is a very predictable character. By keeping your distance and playing carefully you can easely control the lane with
Spear Shot.
Poison Trail is easy to avoid. This also means you should not let him come to melee range to use
Fling to throw you back.
Singed has no way to heal himself in lane. Cut through his health pool with
Spear Shot to either force him to recall or kill him.
Singed synergises extremely well with enemy gangs. Don't over extend.
Farm with
Spear Shot if needed to avoid
Poison Trail.
Don't play aggressively early game by jumping on him with
Aegis of Zeonia.
Poison Trail deals a lot of damage and will make you lose the exchange.
Be extremely carefull after
Singed acquires
Insanity Potion. Recall back to base if you are low on health.
Tips:
-Farm from distance.
-Don't over extend.
-Play passively untill you have harassed him enough.
-Don't chase
Singed.
-Shut down
Singed as fast as possible.
Difficulty:Easy
Main damage type:Varies
Preferable starting items:
+
Sion appears very seldomly on top, and when he does he is played as AD most of the time. But even if he is AP he can de easely controlled due to his weak early game.
Zone
Sion as fast as possible to prevent him from expanding his health pool with
Enrage.
If
Sion is AD destroy his
Death's Caress with a
Spear Shot when he uses it. If he is playing AP keep your distance untill it wears off.
Have your
Ignite ready to render
Cannibalism useless.
His
Cryptic Gaze cannot be avoided. Don't over extend at all costs.
Tips:
-Try to zone
Sion as fast as possible.
-Harass him heavily with
Spear Shot.
-Be extremely carefull after
Sion reaches lvl 6.
-Its vital to shut down
Sion very early, because he has the power to trully dominate later in the game.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:Hybrid
Preferable starting items:
+
Skarner is mainly a jungle character but he may appear on top as well. He is fairly easy in the first couple of levels, but he becomes more and more deadly as the game develops.
Don't go close to
Skarner as much as possible so he won't be able to use
Shattered Earth
on yourself.
Avoid using
Spear Shot while
Seismic Bastion is active, unless you want to break his movement speed effect.
If able, try to zone
Skarner so he can't sustain himself with
Ixtal's Impact.
NEVER over extend.
Impale is a pain in the @ss and it can be used to drag you inside his turrent or get you killed during a gang. Also it has various bugs with
Flash. The main reason why
Skarner is so dangerous after he reaches lvl 6.
Tips:
-Avoid going close to
Skarner
-Be aware that the movement speed from
Seismic Bastion can allow
Skarner to come close and pile up his abilities. Break the shield to end its effects if needed.
-Don't push the lane.
-If able, don't get hit by
Ixtal's Impact.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:
+
,
+
Talon is a very bursty and fun to play character. He can be very effective if he gets fed early on. And that's why you should be very carefull against him on top. Shut him down as fast as possible because he is a major threat for your carries.
Predict when
Talon is about to use
Rake. He usually moves closer to the minion wave and yourself when he is about to use it. If you throw
Spear Shot from the end of its range you can harass him withought giving him the chance to retaliate.
Aegis Protection blocks
Noxian Diplomacy (yay).
Talon gets a lot stronger after he has all of his main abilities. Be cautious after he reaches lvl 3 or 4.
If needed, use a
Vision Ward or
Oracle's Elixir during his
Shadow Assault.
Even if you die once,
Talon will be directly ahead if you, making victory in your lane very unlikely.
Tips:
-Be carefull after
Talon reches lvl 4.
-Don't get harassed needlessly with
Rake.
-Communicate with your jungler for very early gangs.
-
Talon can deal devastating damage if you play carelessly. Immediately recall to base if you are low on health.
Difficulty:Easy
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:
+
,
+
Tryndamere is a crit and damage master, able to evaporate squishies and chase the course of a game. But due to his team and item dependancy he is very easy to shut down and manipulate.
Zone
Tryndamere immediately.Don't let him heal by stacking up
Bloodlust.
Harass
Tryndamere all the time with
Spear Shot, even auto attack him if he goes close to farm.
Buy Wriggle's Lattern for more damage and sustain if you need it. Consider taking
Ninja Tabi as well. It helps greatly since
Tryndamere's damage output relies totally on auto attacks.
Coordinate with your jungler for early gangs.
Tryndamere has rather slow attack speed without items, making
Aegis Protection more effective.
As always, keep your ignite ready to finish off
Tryndamere when his
Undying Rage wears off.
Tips:
-
Pantheon has a much stronger early game compared to
Tryndamere. Use this to your advantage and crush his laning phase.
-Don't over extend carelessly. The slow from
Mocking Shout won't let you get away during an ambush.
-Don't stand like a fool and auto attack
Tryndamere while his
Undying Rage is active. Five seconds might be enough to take you down considering that he has full fury.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:
+
,
+
Volibear is a very durable character and he can become a true beast if you let him farm or get fed. A skilled
Volibear can turn the tides of the game.
You can easely decrease
Volibear's effectiveness by just keeping your distance(preferable standing behind your caster minions). He needs to be in melee range to deal damage.
Even if
Volibear uses
Thundering Smash he won't be able to catch you if you don't over extend stupidly.
The active of
Frenzy
cannot be blocked by
Aegis Protection.
Don't tower dive
Volibear unless you have
Ignite ready. Its a mistake that I've done a couple of times myself and it never ends up well.
If
Volibear manages to throw you back during a gang, you are probably dead.
Tips:
-Farm from distance if needed.
-Don't underestimate
Volibear even if he is on low health.
The Relentless Storm is a pain in the *** early on.
-Pay attention of
Volibear's movements. He is quite easy to predict.
Difficulty:Hard
Main damage type:Hybrid
Preferable starting items:
+
Warwick ia a character that his playstyle has evolved greatly over the last year, and thus creating his infamous brother:Lanewick. Lanewick has a very strong early game and he is able to deal a lot of damage even without items. A strong opponent overal.
Hungering Strike cannot be blocked by
Aegis Protection. Pain, keep your distance.
Don't let
Warwick stack up his
Eternal Thirst on you. Also don't dry yourself out of mana. He can take outstanding amounts of harassment.
After
Warwick reaches lvl 6 he becomes extremely dangerous.
Infinite Duress can get you killed easely during a gang or a toe to toe encounter. Buy
Quicksilver Sash later on if needed.
Have your
Ignite ready to prevent
Warwick to heal up if you go for a kill.
Tips:
-Harass and farm from distance.
-Communicate with your jungler for early gangs to seize control over the lane.
-Don't turret dive
Warwick after he reaches lvl 6.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:
+
,
+
Wukong is very fun to play and effective against every team. As a solo top opponent he is easy to predict, but deadly if you don't play carefully.
Aegis Protection blocks
Crushing Blow (yay).
Stand away from your minions to avoid
Nimbus Strike.
After
Wukong reaches
Warrior Trickster he can use his main harassing combo:
Nimbus Strike+
Crushing Blow+
Warrior Trickster to damage you while taking minimum health loss. Stay away from his
Warrior Trickster and move towards his escape route to retaliate.
If you throw
Spear Shot before
Wukong uses his
Warrior Trickster the spear will him him even if he is invisible
Cyclone deals heavy damage and leaves you vulnerable for some time. It can really turn the fight to his favor unless you have a clear advantage over him.
You can purchase and use a
Vision Ward to mess up
Wukong's movements.
Tips:
-Throw
Spear Shot often.
-Predict
Wukong's movements and learn to identify the true
Wukong from his
Warrior Trickster.
-Never turret dive
Wukong, especially if he has
Cyclone ready.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:
+
,
+
If you fight against
Xin Zhao, you should know that you must not engage in a long fight. He has very good sustain and damage through auto attacks. Harass from distance and wait for the perfect opportunity to engage.
The 3rd attack of
Three Talon Strike will knock you up even if
Aegis Protection is active.
Try to zone
Xin Zhao, don't allow him to heal up with
Challenge.
Xin Zhao can attack a minion twice with
Three Talon Strike and then jump on you with
Audacious Charge and knock you up to harass you. If you have
Aegis Protection ready you can prevent this move.
Keep your distance and don't over extend.
Don't feed
Xin Zhao because he becomes a true nightmare if you let him get ahead.
Tips:
-Farm from distance if needed.
-Have your
Aegis Protection ready, always.
-Don't dry yourself out of mana if you can't zone
Xin Zhao.
-Don't engage
Xin Zhao in long fights.
Difficulty:HARD
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:
+
Its preferable not to pick
Pantheon if the enemy is playing
Yorick solo top. Its the most difficult enemy you can have. His tremendous amount of harassment and his abnormal sustain is just...pff.
Even if you have
Aegis Protection active
Omen of War will trigger if
Yorick attacks you.
Don't stand amidst your minions.
Use the bushes for protection.
Omen of War,
Omen of Pestilence and
Omen of Famine lose target when you are out of sight. This helps greatly avoiding some harassment from his consecutive ghoul spawn.
If
Yorick pushes your lane too much use
Heartseeker Strike on the enemy minion wave if needed.
Don't dry yourself out of mana.
Yorick heals a ****load on himself every time
Omen of Famine is casted.
Ask from your jungler to gang as fast as possible. Strike
Yorick very hard on the first levels because he gets really powerful with every lvlups.
Don't count on your turrent for protection.
Yorick is a superb turret diver with his ghouls and
Omen of Death. He is just a true nightmare.
Tips:
-Just don't pick
Pantheon if the enemy team has
Yorick solo top.
-Farm from distance. Move in and out of the bushes to avoid harassment.
-Assault him heavily with your jungler as fast as possible.
-Cross your fingers.

This chapter relies on my personal opinion and experience. This is a guideline and it cannot be precice enough for every single fight.
Difficulty:Easy
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:






She will probably start with



Even with 3x

After she reaches lvl 6 be carefull.

Tips:
-Stay out of her

-Use your


-Don't get auto attacked while you have the debuff from

-If you get auto attacked while you have


-If you shut down

Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:








If you manage to sieze control over your lane and render him unable to use


If



Avoid his super annoying



Try to take him down with your jungler. Don't let him stack up his

Tips:
-Back to basics. Avoid

-Try to zone him so he can't make use of

-Be aware of the angle he attacks the creeps. Avoid getting hit by

-


-If you can't zone him focus more on last hitting. Attack

Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:



I believe that


Avoid his

Attack him every time he tries to farm. Don't give him space to breathe.
Throw your






Try having your



Never towerdive


Tips:
-His main harassing tools are


-

-


-Don't make the fight like a sabotage match.


Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:




Honestly my experience against


Try to attack him very early. Use





Follow






Don't waste your time chasing

Tips:
-Use your


-Focus on farming as much as you can.
-Don't let him auto attack you.

-If he is level 6 and your health is less that 50% recall back to base.
-



Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:











After


Tips:
-Never stay still. Always move. Last hit with

-

-


-

-If you use your


Difficulty:Easy
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:



Your



Try to recharge your


If you can, force him to use


Don't get caught out of position by the enemy jungler.


Never towerdive


Tips:
-Keep your


-Don't give him any kills! Its very important to shut down

-Attack him if he goes in melee range to farm.
-Be extremely aware after he gets

-Don't waste your time chasing


Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:





Make careful use of your mana pool.


Try to harass him at least every 7 seconds to prevent him from healing up through

You


Don't use your


Avoid his famous

Keep your distance.


After


If you destroy

Tips:
-Try shutting down

-Harass him often.
-Don't let him zone you with

-Kite him around.

-Recall if you are low on health.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:




Harass

Retaliate every time she tries to farm with

Don't let her farm so she wont be able to heal through

Don't towerdive



Tips:
-


-Zone her to destroy her sustainability.
-Don't get caught out of position.

-Have your


Difficulty:Hard
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:








Don't throw your





Have your


Keep your distance.

Tips:
-Focus heavily on farming
-Use


-Wait for your jungler to attemt to kill.
-Don't use your


Difficulty:Easy
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:



Don't be afraid of his


Use your


Do not let him farm. Attack him every time he goes close to your creeps.
Avoid auto attacking


Don't let him land consecutive attacks. Both


Try not giving him kills early on.Because

If you shut down

Tips:
-Harass


-Have a Sight Ward in the bushes near the river so you can dominate the lane even more easely.
-

-Do not give him any kills! Even if you die only once he will be directly ahead.
-Be careful after


Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:



There is a very high skill cap on

Back to basics. Avoid

By avoiding

Do not use


Harass him every time he tries to last hit. By zoning him you render useless the lifesteal from

Invest on early game armor like


Be very carefull after


Tips:
-Use your creep wave to win early game exchanges.
-Don't allow

-Don't stand to auto attack him if you have the debuff of

-

-Don't get caught by

Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:




Be aware that both



Don't stand near


Use your


Do not over extend.

Tips:
-Win the lane with your damage output.
-Don't over extend.
-Be extremely aware of her




Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:


Although


Enter farming mode. Don't lose a single creep if possible. Don't waste your time harassing

If you want to harass



Ask for many early gangs to seize advantage to your lane.
Because




Don't stay close to your creeps to avoid harassment from his

Be extremely aware for enemy gangs. Because if you get hit by

Don't stay in lane with low health. Especially after




Don't count to your turret for protection.

Tips:
-Farm like a boss.
-Attack him only if you have creep advantage.
-Don't waste your time harassing

-Communicate with your jungler for very early gangs.
-Don't get caught out of position.
Difficulty:Hard
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:






Even if you have



Avoid Arcane Smash if he casts it without

Don't use your



Require early gangs from your jungler and zone him out if able so he wont be able to heal with

Do not over extend because if


Don't towerdive Maokai after he reaches lvl 6.


Tips:
-Play carefully and be on constant awareness.
-Coordinate with your jungler to shut

-If able, zone

-Have good map awareness and use wards 24/7.A 2v1 fight will get you killed.
Difficulty:Hard
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:










You have 5 seconds to farm after


Stay away of your creep wave as

Use your

Assault


Be aware that





Request early gangs to seize advantage over your lane.

Tips:
-Harass early, focus more on farming after he reaches lvl 4.
-Don't give

-Do not go toe to toe against


-Avoid unnecessary harassment. Coordinate with your jungler to win the lane.
-If you manage to push

Difficulty:Easy
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:


Although

Don't let


By zoning





Do not over extend.

Avoid attacking

Don't ever ever towerdive



Tips:
-Shut

-Do not let him farm. Harass him heavily.
-Be extremely aware for enemy gangs. Don't give him space and kills/assist early on.
-Towerdive with caution, don't towerdive after

ATMOGS NIDALEE
Difficulty:HARD
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:




Because


Although Atmog's


After you have Philosopher's Stone use


After


Don't chase

The abilities of

Tips:
-Don't let

-If you managed to drop her health have your


-Never towerdive


-Don't use


-Stay focused and farm as much as possible.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:





Use your


Spam your



Zone





Make


Tips:
-Use your

-Zone

-Don't allow

Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:



You


Harass


Stay away from walls. Her combo of


Don't count on your turret for protection, because


Towerdiving




Tips:
-Force

-If you manage to shut down

-Her stun from

-Don't stay in lane with low health, because


Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:





Always pay attention to

Don't get hit by



Don't stay close to your minions.







By early game armor items if needed.
Don't towerdive



Tips:
-Don't stand amidst your creep wave.
-Use


-Don't turrent dive

Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:









You



Use your


After




To avoid


Don't use your



Recall back if you are low on health. Don't give her any kills early on.
After


Tips:
-Retaliate every time she tries to farm or attack.
-Destroy her laning phase to make her useless for the whole game.
-Do not allow her to zone you or get ahead.
-

-NEVER stay with low hp in lane.

Difficulty:Hard
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:



Always keep your distance and farm with


Don't waste your





Avoid getting hit by






Tips:
-Keep mana to farm from distance if needed.
-Coordinate with your jungler to win the lane.
-Outmaneuver

-Don't stand inside

-Don't get caught out of position with

Difficulty:Easy
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:




Although












All of


Tips:
-Be always ready to dodge

-Farm from distance if needed.
-Use your


-Do not over extend. You will die if you get caught out of position by all this crowd control.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:




Avoid getting hit while


Do not auto attack



Use your


Don't throw your


Be aware that


NEVER turret dive

Tips:
-

-Don't get caught out of position with

-Farm from range if needed.
-Don't push the lane but don't let

-Don't get repeatedly harassed.
Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:




In my opinion

Shut down

Sadly


Keep your distance.





Keep your health as close to maximum as possible after


Luckily

Tips:
-Attack

-Keep your distance to so she can't get you with

-Stand amidst your minion wave to win the exchange if she tries to assault you with


-


-Be extremely carefull when fighting

Difficulty:Hard
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:










The only way to shut down

You must avoid






Never stay in lane with low health, and never goe toe to toe against

Don't waste your




Tips:
-Keep your distance.
-

-Farm with

-Don't give

Difficulty:Easy
Main damage type:AP
Preferable starting items:




From my experience








Farm with


Don't play aggressively early game by jumping on him with


Be extremely carefull after


Tips:
-Farm from distance.
-Don't over extend.
-Play passively untill you have harassed him enough.
-Don't chase

-Shut down

Difficulty:Easy
Main damage type:Varies
Preferable starting items:



Zone


If



Have your


His

Tips:
-Try to zone

-Harass him heavily with

-Be extremely carefull after

-Its vital to shut down

Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:Hybrid
Preferable starting items:



Don't go close to


on yourself.
Avoid using


If able, try to zone


NEVER over extend.



Tips:
-Avoid going close to

-Be aware that the movement speed from


-Don't push the lane.
-If able, don't get hit by

Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:





Predict when






If needed, use a



Even if you die once,

Tips:
-Be carefull after

-Don't get harassed needlessly with

-Communicate with your jungler for very early gangs.
-

Difficulty:Easy
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:





Zone


Harass


Buy Wriggle's Lattern for more damage and sustain if you need it. Consider taking


Coordinate with your jungler for early gangs.


As always, keep your ignite ready to finish off


Tips:
-


-Don't over extend carelessly. The slow from

-Don't stand like a fool and auto attack


Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:






You can easely decrease

Even if


The active of


Don't tower dive


If

Tips:
-Farm from distance if needed.
-Don't underestimate


-Pay attention of

Difficulty:Hard
Main damage type:Hybrid
Preferable starting items:





Don't let


After



Have your


Tips:
-Harass and farm from distance.
-Communicate with your jungler for early gangs to seize control over the lane.
-Don't turret dive

Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:







Stand away from your minions to avoid

After






If you throw




You can purchase and use a


Tips:
-Throw

-Predict



-Never turret dive


Difficulty:Medium
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:




If you fight against

The 3rd attack of


Try to zone






Keep your distance and don't over extend.
Don't feed

Tips:
-Farm from distance if needed.
-Have your

-Don't dry yourself out of mana if you can't zone

-Don't engage

Difficulty:HARD
Main damage type:AD
Preferable starting items:


Its preferable not to pick


Even if you have



Don't stand amidst your minions.
Use the bushes for protection.



If


Don't dry yourself out of mana.


Ask from your jungler to gang as fast as possible. Strike

Don't count on your turrent for protection.


Tips:
-Just don't pick


-Farm from distance. Move in and out of the bushes to avoid harassment.
-Assault him heavily with your jungler as fast as possible.
-Cross your fingers.
As any character,
Pantheon is a very strong pic for countering specific opponets, but he can get shut down against some solo top enemies. You shold know when its preferable to play him to be as effective as possible.
Because of
Pantheon's strong early game he can easely shut down characters that require farming and items to be effective.
Akali can't burst you down without items and she is easy to beat if you play well.
Gangplank can't even hurt
Pantheon because of
Aegis Protection and he can get easely outfarmed and outleveled.
Nasus makes himself susceptible to harassment because of his need to stack up
Siphoning Strike to be effective.
Jax is very item dependant and he doesn't have enough damage to kill you early on.
A skilled
Mordekaiser can make your like miserable on top. As he gains more levels on
Siphon of Destruction he gets very difficult to harass and kill. Not to mention
Children of the Grave.
Nidalee has super sustain and her ranged harass makes it very difficult to farm without getting poked. She gets extremely powerful after level 6 with
Aspect Of The Cougar which makes 1v1 fights very unlikely to win.
Because of
Olaf's true damage and sustain its better to pick a chatarcter who can heal up insted. He can deal crazy damage so playing against him is pure pain.
Never pick
Pantheon if the enemy team has
Yorick solo top.
Yorick has unrivaled harassment and sustain, and he can win the lane with minimum effort on his side. If you encounter
Yorick in blind pick follow my instructions on the previous chapter and hope for the best.

EASY TO COUNTER
Because of








PAINFUL OPPONENTS
A skilled





Because of

Never pick




This is a guideline.In the end the summoner's skill is what determinants the outcome of every fight.
//Q:Why play
Pantheon as a bruiser when he is a much more dedicated melee caster?
//A:The bruiser role is hands down the best way to play
Pantheon in the current meta. His durability inside the fight makes him exelent for the job and because he can stay in the fight for longer periods he contributes much more to the team.
//Q:Is
Ignite and
Flash so much worth it? Wouldn't
Exhaust or
Teleport be a better choice for solo top?
//A:For me and for my playstyle it has worked better.
Exhaust is a great alternative though if your solo top opponent does not have build in healing effects. Still, the kills that
Ignite can grand you early game are trully invaluable.
//Q:Why not use mana regen Seals or Glyphs?
//A:I prefer the extra armor and magic resist instead. Helps much more winning those crucial early game exchanges. For me, the mana regen from the masteries is more than enough.
//Q:Why not leveling up
Heartseeker Strike first if it deals more damage than
Spear Shot?
//A:
Spear Shot is much more reliable, helps more harassing your opponent effectively and it also benefits greatly from spell ranks.
Heartseeker Strike is more item reliant and its easely interrupted. Aside from that its not mana efficient since it needs to be paired with
Aegis of Zeonia to be effective.
//Q:Why do you use
Greater Glyph of Scaling Magic Resist instead of
Greater Glyph of Magic Resist??
//A:Ap characters gain more and more damage with levels early on, so its better to take magic resist/lvl to defend yourself better when they reach their maximum effectiveness.
//Q:Why you are so obsessed with Greater Mark of Desolation and Greater Quintessence of Desolation? You could use AD Marks or Quints instead.
//A:Most of your solo top opponents will start with around 40 Armor(sometimes more). If you start with AD runes your
Spear Shot just tickles, but with 31 Arp it deals close to full damage. Arp is just awesome for
Pantheon's kit.
//Q:Why not use double
Doran's Blade instead of Philosopher's Stone and
Heart of Gold? You get 20 AD and 200 health in a much cheaper price.
//A:Depends on the game. If you want to play more agressively and you plan to finish the game as fast as possible double
Doran's Blade. Still you lose some sustain and tankyness early on.
//Q:Why do you buy
The Brutalizer? Its a mediocore item and it looks more like a waste of money.
//A:
The Brutalizer is a great item for every single situation. It works awesomely with your spells and its very cheap. If you build it fast you will literaly destroy your solo top opponent just because of this item. Makes any attempt for early game armor useless and it allows dealing true damage to the enemy carries. And it can be build to
Youmuu's Ghostblade later in the game which synergizes perfectly with your item setup. For me,
The Brutalizer is defenetly worth it.
//Q:Why do you choose
Force of Nature as your 6th item? Is it so important to take this specific item every time?
//A:First things first. You build the items that fit better in the current game. You should never always follow the exact same item path because every game is different. The main build is merely a guideline. The core is what matters most and it cannot be changed. As for the 6th item specificaly, you should choose to either get an armor or a magic resist item depending on your needs. I choose
Force of Nature because it works perfectly with
Warmog's Armor and
Trinity Force, giving outstanding health regen, awesome mobility and of course a sh@tload of magic resist.
The 6th item in every build is more or less situational. You must always build according to your needs.

//A:The bruiser role is hands down the best way to play

//Q:Is




//A:For me and for my playstyle it has worked better.


//Q:Why not use mana regen Seals or Glyphs?
//A:I prefer the extra armor and magic resist instead. Helps much more winning those crucial early game exchanges. For me, the mana regen from the masteries is more than enough.
//Q:Why not leveling up


//A:



//Q:Why do you use


//A:Ap characters gain more and more damage with levels early on, so its better to take magic resist/lvl to defend yourself better when they reach their maximum effectiveness.
//Q:Why you are so obsessed with Greater Mark of Desolation and Greater Quintessence of Desolation? You could use AD Marks or Quints instead.
//A:Most of your solo top opponents will start with around 40 Armor(sometimes more). If you start with AD runes your


//Q:Why not use double


//A:Depends on the game. If you want to play more agressively and you plan to finish the game as fast as possible double

//Q:Why do you buy

//A:



//Q:Why do you choose

//A:First things first. You build the items that fit better in the current game. You should never always follow the exact same item path because every game is different. The main build is merely a guideline. The core is what matters most and it cannot be changed. As for the 6th item specificaly, you should choose to either get an armor or a magic resist item depending on your needs. I choose



The 6th item in every build is more or less situational. You must always build according to your needs.
This is the end for my
Pantheon guide. Thanks for reading my guide. It has been a large effort to create and complete this guide.
Any feedback and constructive criticism is encouraged and highly accepted.
Grammar and syntax errors may occur. If you want to feel free to correct me in the comment section. Having a really hard time finding them.
Thanks to IceCreamy and his awesome review :) His review shop can be found here.
Aesthesia is a real life friend who introduced me to league of Legends and WoW. Sharp minded but lazy as f@ck. Helped greatly on creating this build.
These guys make the game fun and enjoyable. Good characters and with awesome sence of humor. In the end, LoL is much more fun when playing with friends.
If you found my guide useful it would be nice to give a thumbs up :) If not vote accordingly. Any kind of feedback is much appreciated!

Any feedback and constructive criticism is encouraged and highly accepted.
Grammar and syntax errors may occur. If you want to feel free to correct me in the comment section. Having a really hard time finding them.
CREDITS
Kudos over kudos over kudosX2 to jhoijhoi and his guide about Making a Guide. Trully a bible for writing a completed and well looking guide.
Thanks to IceCreamy and his awesome review :) His review shop can be found here.
Aesthesia
sparkxoris
Awakendeath
Spasior
Korwaks
Buncys
Dupolec
Skigo
sparkxoris
Awakendeath
Spasior
Korwaks
Buncys
Dupolec
Skigo
Aesthesia is a real life friend who introduced me to league of Legends and WoW. Sharp minded but lazy as f@ck. Helped greatly on creating this build.
These guys make the game fun and enjoyable. Good characters and with awesome sence of humor. In the end, LoL is much more fun when playing with friends.
If you found my guide useful it would be nice to give a thumbs up :) If not vote accordingly. Any kind of feedback is much appreciated!
Gl & Hf Summoners
08/06/12
Updated.
23/03/12
I think about merging Son of Hades with Phalanx Hoplite. Don't know if its a good idea yet. It would be nice leaving a comment with your opinion.
16/03/12
I clap my hands for all those who vote down without having the balls to justify why.
10/03/12
Did a spell check again, still if you find any grammar mistakes it would be nice to tell me about them. Having a really hard time fixing them up
05/03/12
I would like to thank all you guys for your support and for putting my guide on the top 10 of the month!
Its very refreshing to see that your work is appreciated :)
28/02/12
Added Change log chapter.
Changed the song in the intro, I tried to find something that would fit with the storyline. Anyway I just love this song so I thought it was worth sharing.
Updated.
23/03/12
I think about merging Son of Hades with Phalanx Hoplite. Don't know if its a good idea yet. It would be nice leaving a comment with your opinion.
16/03/12
I clap my hands for all those who vote down without having the balls to justify why.

10/03/12
Did a spell check again, still if you find any grammar mistakes it would be nice to tell me about them. Having a really hard time fixing them up
05/03/12
I would like to thank all you guys for your support and for putting my guide on the top 10 of the month!
Its very refreshing to see that your work is appreciated :)
28/02/12
Added Change log chapter.
Changed the song in the intro, I tried to find something that would fit with the storyline. Anyway I just love this song so I thought it was worth sharing.
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