Talk:Xerath/@comment-27.252.187.37-20120902162857/@comment-77.249.233.124-20120908140344

"on par with Kennen and Vlad" : not really, Xerath is very mana hungry, Kennen and Vlad aren't. Also they are a lot more mobile than Xerath is and has skills that are a LOT easier to land.

Xerath's passive is weak as shit. 15% of your AP is what early game? 3-5 armor? That isn't going to keep you in the lane. Also the fact Xerath can't do anything when an enemy is in his face doesn't bode well for him either.

Top laners should be tanky and bursty? Tanky, maybe. Bursty, no. A top needs to have sustain and stay in that lane as long as he/she needs to, Xerath doesn't have enough mana to stay there and he definitely doesn't have enough HP.

Chalice/Athene's used to be a favorite on him for me, but to say he never needs to leave the lane isn't true. Especially against tanky top champs you need to poke an awful lot to get them low.

Vlad is one of the few mages that can survive in the top lane and that is only if you build him properly. I remember having a very hard time getting a hang of top laning with Vlad and still certain opponents are too much for me to handle (Yorick -.-). The only real advantage Xerath has is his range and I doubt that's enough (especially early game he will have a very hard time holding the lane).