Aatrox Counters: Who Beats Aatrox

Updated for patch 26.21. Ability details come from Riot’s official game data for this patch.

Aatrox counters are champions who step out of the sword swings and cut the healing that comes with them. He’s a 175-range fighter with a three-part slam, a chain that drags you back, a dash that heals him for damaging champions, and an ultimate that raises his Attack Damage and healing, so mobility inside his Q and Grievous Wounds decide most of this lane.

We picked these five by laying his patch 26.21 ability text next to theirs, nothing more (no stats sheet in sight).

Why is Aatrox hard to counter?

• Deathbringer Stance (passive): periodically his next basic attack deals bonus magic damage and heals him, based on the target’s maximum Health.
• The Darkin Blade (Q): he slams his greatsword down for physical damage, up to three times, each swing with a different area. Cooldown 14/12/10/8/6.
• Infernal Chains (W): he smashes the ground, damaging the first enemy hit. A champion who doesn’t leave the impact area quickly is dragged to the centre and damaged again. Cooldown 18/16.5/15/13.5/12.
• Umbral Dash (E): passively he heals when damaging enemy champions. On activation he dashes in a direction. Cooldown 9/8/7/6/5.
• World Ender (R): his demonic form fears nearby minions and gives him Attack Damage, increased healing and Move Speed. A takedown extends it. Cooldown 120/100/80.

Aatrox is a geometry problem. Three swings of The Darkin Blade, each with its own shape, and Infernal Chains to hold you in whichever shape comes next. Dodge one and he repositions with Umbral Dash for the second. Then the healing: Deathbringer Stance heals off the attack, the passive half of Umbral Dash heals every time he damages a champion, and World Ender increases all of it while handing him more Attack Damage and Move Speed. Where does it break? He has one real dash, the Q swings have wind-ups you can read, and every bit of his sustain is healing, the exact thing Grievous Wounds exists to cut.

Which champions are the best Aatrox counters?

Fiora

Riposte (W) parries all incoming damage and disables for a short time, then stabs, and the stab stuns if the parry blocked an immobilizing effect. Infernal Chains drags, The Darkin Blade’s swings come with a wind-up, and Riposte turns either one into a free trade for her. Duelist’s Dance (passive) restores Health and grants Move Speed when she strikes one of the marked weak points on a champion, which means she sustains in a lane against the champion who’s supposed to out-sustain everyone. Lunge (Q) is a short dash for moving between Q shapes, Bladework (E) slows with the first attack and crits with the second, and Grand Challenge (R) reveals all four of those weak points and heals her and nearby allies if she hits them or he dies. Honestly, she’s the matchup he dreads.

Renekton

Ruthless Predator (W) with more than 50 Fury slashes three times and stuns for 1.5 seconds, and a stunned Aatrox doesn’t finish his third swing. Cull the Meek (Q) heals Renekton for a portion of the damage it deals to everything around him, with more above 50 Fury, so the early sustain war isn’t one-sided. Slice and Dice (E) is a dash in and a dash out, two movements against Aatrox’s one, which is how Renekton leaves the Infernal Chains area quickly before the chains pull him back. His passive, Reign of Anger, makes Fury pile up quicker as his Health drops. Dominus (R) grants bonus Health and damages enemies around him while generating Fury over time. The catch is World Ender. Renekton’s window is before level 6, well, mostly before.

Kled

Skaarl, the Cowardly Lizard (passive) takes damage for Kled, and when Skaarl’s Health runs out Kled dismounts rather than dies, then remounts at full courage with a portion of Skaarl’s Health. That’s a second Health bar against a champion whose damage comes in three big swings. Bear Trap on a Rope (Q) hooks a champion and yanks them toward Kled if the shackle holds, which pulls Aatrox out of the position his Q shape needs, and Jousting (E) dashes through a target and back again. Violent Tendencies (W) gives massive Attack Speed for four attacks, so the trade after a dodged Q is short and loud. Chaaaaaaaarge! (R) brings a shield with it. Thing is, dismounted Kled deals less damage to champions, so the dismount is a reset, not a win.

Irelia

Bladesurge (Q) dashes to a target and heals her, and its cooldown refreshes if the target is Marked or dies to it, so in a lane with minions she has a dash available almost on demand, and dashes are how you exit a Darkin Blade area. While she charges Defiant Dance (W), she shrugs off part of the physical damage coming in, and every Darkin Blade swing is physical. Flawless Duet (E) stuns and Marks anyone between the two blades, Vanguard’s Edge (R) Marks a whole team and leaves a slowing wall, and Ionian Fervor (passive) stacks Attack Speed as her spells land. Does Aatrox ever get to swing three times at her? Not if the minion wave is alive. In practice that’s the whole lane.

Pantheon

Aegis Assault (E) makes him invulnerable to damage from the front while he strikes repeatedly with the spear. Face the sword and the third slam does nothing (the loud one, the one with the knock-up). Shield Vault (W) dashes to a target and stuns, which lands during the Q wind-up, and Mortal Will (passive) empowers his next spell every few spells or attacks, so the stun or the Comet Spear (Q) hits harder on a schedule. Grand Starfall (R) is a leap across the map that has nothing to do with the lane and everything to do with being somewhere else when World Ender is up. Funny enough, a Pantheon who never fights Aatrox at level 6 has already countered him.

How do you play the lane against Aatrox?

• Step toward the sword. Each swing of The Darkin Blade has a different area, and the edges are where the damage is. Standing inside the swing arc, close to him, misses the sweet spots.
• Leave the Infernal Chains area at once. A champion who stays is dragged to the centre and takes the damage a second time, and dragged is where his next Q lands.
• Trade right after the third swing. The Q is a 14 second cooldown at rank 1, and an Aatrox between Q casts is a melee champion with one dash.
• Buy Wounds before his second item. Deathbringer Stance, the passive half of Umbral Dash and World Ender are all healing, and Grievous Wounds cuts every one of them.
• Don’t give him the takedown during World Ender. A takedown extends the form, and the form means more Attack Damage, more healing and more Move Speed for longer.

Which items counter Aatrox?

Grievous Wounds first, because three different parts of his kit heal. Executioner’s Calling costs 800 gold, gives 15 Attack Damage, and applies 40% Wounds for 3 seconds on physical damage; it finishes into Mortal Reminder, 35 Attack Damage with 30% Armor Penetration, or Chempunk Chainsword, which trades the penetration for 450 Health and suits the fighters who lane against him. For the tank in the matchup, Bramble Vest at 800 gold applies the same 40% Wounds whenever his attack hits you, and Deathbringer Stance is an attack, so the heal that was supposed to land arrives cut. Want more? Thornmail upgrades it to 75 Armor. The Darkin Blade is physical, and Plated Steelcaps’ 25 Armor and 10% less damage from attacks cover the passive’s attack as well. Randuin’s Omen is the late pick for tanks, 350 Health and 75 Armor with Humility slowing nearby enemies by 70% for 2 seconds, which is enough to walk out of a Q shape. What about Magic Resist? Only the passive deals magic damage, so skip it. Every item here has a page in our items database, and Sunfire Aegis is where a tank who intends to stand in the swings should start.

When is Aatrox at his weakest?

Between the third swing and the next Q. The Darkin Blade is 14 seconds at rank 1, and once the three slams are done he has Infernal Chains, one dash and basic attacks until it returns. That’s the trade window, and it’s long early. Later the cooldown drops to 6 seconds at rank 5, so the window shrinks as the game goes on (which is the real reason the lane is about the first ten minutes).

And whenever Wounds are on him. His healing comes from three places, the passive, Umbral Dash and World Ender, and one debuff cuts all three (handy, that). An Aatrox with 40% Wounds on him during World Ender is a champion whose ultimate is doing half its job. Real talk, that’s when he dies in lane, not before.

If the top lane is still an unknown to you, our guide to LoL roles covers what the position is for. His cosmetics are on the Aatrox skins page, and his life on the Howling Abyss, where there’s no lane to dodge in, is in the Aatrox ARAM guide. Put simply, the best Aatrox counters have a dash for the sword and a Bramble Vest for everything else.

FAQ

Who counters Aatrox the most?

Top laners with a dash and a stun, or a parry, who also carry Grievous Wounds: Fiora, Renekton, Kled, Irelia and Pantheon.

Does Grievous Wounds counter Aatrox?

Yes. Deathbringer Stance, the passive of Umbral Dash and World Ender all heal him, and Wounds reduce healing. Bramble Vest and Executioner’s Calling both put 40% Wounds on him, lasting 3 seconds.

Can Fiora parry Aatrox’s Q?

Riposte parries all incoming damage and disables for a short time, so a swing of The Darkin Blade timed into it deals nothing, and if the parry blocks Infernal Chains the stab that follows stuns him.

How long is World Ender?

Riot’s description doesn’t give a duration, only that a takedown extends it. Its cooldown is 120 seconds at rank 1, 100 at rank 2 and 80 at rank 3.

Did these picks come from statistics?

No. Each one comes from reading Aatrox’s patch 26.21 abilities against the other champion’s kit, without win-rate data.