User blog comment:AtheistUntoDeath/Which of these Champions would win? part 6/@comment-1272757-20140606224207

I see a lot of people proclaiming that Pantheon would win due to being the very best of his people, who live for fighting wars at 10-to-1 odds and do combat with weapons made of Runeterra's very essence. But they seem to be forgetting a great deal about Olaf.

Olaf hails from Lokfar, which in his lore is described as a place where "rage is the only fire to warm frozen bones, blood is the only liquid that flows freely, and there is no worse fate than to grow old, frail, and forgotten." Now let's reiterate; this is a place in Freljord, which on its own is known for its hostile and unforgiving conditions. Lokfar has given birth to a population of warriors who live for the thrill of battle and the idea of a glorious death. This is a key difference between Lokfar and Rakkor; while both have given birth to a population that thrives off of battle and war, Lokfar is a place where the very elements are a constant and unrelenting enemy.

Continuing on to Olaf specifically, he is a warrior among warriors even in the harsh environment of Lokfar. He is described as having achieved no end of glorious victories and achievements; he is so vicious and powerful that his greatest fear is that nothing will be able to kill him. While Pantheon is the paragon of a people who have fought wars against incredible odds (including against the also-bloodthirsty City-State of Noxus), Olaf has fought Freljord's greatest beasts and monstrosities in the hopes of achieving a great death, only to black out in the midst of battle, and then wake up to find the carcass of his enemy in his wake. The one specific instance mentioned in his lore is his defeat of an enormous "frost serpent" said to have killed thousands, man and ship alike. Again and again Olaf would through himself at beasts of similar or greater scale, only to fell them amidst his own frenzy.

After trying and failing to find his death in facing monstrosities that sound like they come straight out of Ragnarok, Olaf decided to find an EVEN STRONGER enemy to face. Now here is a key difference between Pantheon and Olaf: Pantheon has fought in wars "10 to 1"; Olaf took on the entirety of the Winter Claw by himself. And what happened? Olaf literally cut a swathe through the scores of enemies thrown at him until he found himself facing Sejuani herself, a clash that "rocked the glaciers with its force". And even then Sejuani could not defeat him; it was only through her charisma/sheer force of will and the offer of finding Olaf his glorious death that Sejuani was able to placate Olaf.

Olaf's berserker fury causes him to strike harder and faster as he becomes more injured, while those "normal axes" of his have torn through enemies made of much greater stuff than Pantheon thanks to the sheer force of Olaf's strength and throws. While Pantheon's magical weapons grant him a powerful form of defense, Olaf is capable of sustaining himself in the midst of battle and gains greater restoration the closer to death he is, something Pantheon could never do. And absolutely no amount of magical protection will protect Pantheon from Olaf's greatest strike, which can tear through absolutely anything and only serves to fuel Olaf's frenzy. And when Olaf blacks out and goes on an unrestrained rampage, Pantheon has absolutely nothing he can throw at Olaf to stop him from getting at and absolutely mauling Pantheon.

In truth, Pantheon's magical weapons are arguably one ofthe only things he has going for him, if perhaps a greater level of speed and agility and some level of tactical intelligence (which is debatable and has never really been displayed). Olaf is stronger, more durable, absolutely vicious, and above all reckless bordering on suicidal. Normal tactics won't work on a man who is completely unafraid to die, and will throw himself into even the most violent assault to split his enemy in two. Both men are the absolute epitomes of battle and bloodlust among their people, but Olaf hails from a place where the elements themselves are after your head, and you can only survive through battle and hope to die a death that will lend itself to legend. Pantheon comes from a place where civilization exists and there are (albeit strained) food sources that can be shared among the populace, and people fight with weapons enhanced by magic.

There is no doubt that both live for battle, but where Pantheon thrives for the sake of war by itself, Olaf fights for the most basic reason; life and death itself. Ultimately I feel Olaf has been more honed by the hostile environment he comes from, and would be able to overcome the power of Pantheon's arsenal. The only way Pantheon would be able to feasibly win is by fighting smart, finding a point where Olaf is at his absolute weakest and throwing his spear to pierce Olaf's heart. Nevermind the fact that such a strike would have to hit and even THAT might not be enough to fell the berserker.