Talk:Aatrox/@comment-33235263-20171002160033

I see theres a debate about Phantom Dancer vs Rageblade, and as an Aatrox main I decided to chime in.

Phantom Dancer - movement boost, % damage reduction, AS and Crit.

Rageblade - Stacking AD/AP/AS, and at max stacks every other strike procs W

In the well-made post by DoubleSlap, he/she makes the claim that Phantom Dancer is the better option, although "it does not contribute to Aatrox's tankiness or sustain".

I too have tried Phantom Dancer several times and still struggle to find how it benefits me more than just getting Death's Dance, Black Cleaver, or even Trinity Force

Playing as Aatrox I have come to the conclusion you must commit to either tank or sustain against the team you are playing.

For these reasons I must respectfully disagree.

DoubleSlap is not wrong though. AS is super important, and since Aatrox is all about AA, crit does wonders for his damage output. As an item however, Phantom Dancer is inefficient simply for taking an item slot.

Instead, set up your rune page so you automatically start with the boost Aatrox needs so much. ~20% Attack speed and ~5% crit is enough to GREATLY improve your lane phase.

Moreover,

When using Aatrox, you should be using Fervor of Battle as your Keystone at all times. This is a stacking mastery, which by default, will synergize with Rageblade, a stacking item.

Rageblade provides both damage AND attack speed, plus additional magic damage per AA.

The icing on the cake is that every other hit procs your W at max stacks.

This opens up gameplay for Aatrox more than Phantom Dancer because at max stacks you can effectively heal with Blood Thirst and nuke with Blood Price within 4 hits, as opposed to 6 hits.

Paired with Spirit Visage/Thornmail/Either Hydra, which are all MUST HAVE items, you will be able to take on multiple foes at once.

Best, youll have both tankiness and sustain.

This is why imho, Rageblade > Phantom Dancer