Black Cleaver
Legendary item · Patch 26.21 · numbers from Riot's Data Dragon files, refreshed every patch
Black Cleaver stats
- +45 Attack Damage
- +400 Health
- +20 Ability Haste
Passive and active effects
- Passive: Carve
- Dealing physical damage to champions reduces the target's Armor by 6% for 6 seconds. (stacks 5 times).
- Passive: Fervor
- Dealing physical damage grants Move Speed for 2 seconds.
Effect text as written in Riot's game data; for scaling effects, the in-game shop tooltip shows the exact numbers that match your current stats and level.
Build path
Champion guides with Black Cleaver
- Nocturne Nocturne ARAM build
- Olaf Olaf ARAM build
- Kled Kled ARAM build
- Hecarim Hecarim ARAM build
- Urgot Urgot ARAM build
- Illaoi Illaoi ARAM build
- Vi Vi ARAM build
- Jarvan IV Jarvan IV ARAM build
- Jax Jax ARAM build
- Lee Sin Lee Sin ARAM build
- Renekton Renekton ARAM build
- Wukong Wukong ARAM build
- Darius Darius ARAM build
- Yorick Yorick ARAM build
- Riven Riven ARAM build
- Ambessa Ambessa ARAM build
- Kayn Kayn ARAM build
- Gnar Gnar ARAM build Gnar counters
- Aatrox Aatrox ARAM build
- Briar Briar ARAM build
- Ornn Ornn counters
- Poppy Poppy counters
- Rammus Rammus counters
- Garen Garen counters
- Sejuani Sejuani counters
- Sett Sett counters
Gold efficiency
| Stat | Amount | Gold per point | Gold value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attack Damage | 45 | 35 g | 1575 g |
| Health | 400 | 2.67 g | 1067 g |
| Ability Haste | 20 | 50 g | 1000 g |
| Total stat value | 3642 g |
Gold efficiency = stat value ÷ item cost = 3642 ÷ 3000 = 121%. The gold per point comes from basic items of the same patch (for example, Long Sword: 35 g per Attack Damage). Passives and actives are not counted.
Black Cleaver patch history
| Patch | Change |
|---|---|
| 26.16 | Attack Damage: 40 → 45; Effect text changed |
| 26.11 | Effect text changed |
| 14.19 | Attack Damage: 55 → 40 |
| 14.2 | Effect text changed |
| 14.1 | Cost: 3100 → 3000 gold; Ability Haste: 30 → 20; Attack Damage: 50 → 55 |
| 13.3 | Attack Damage: 45 → 50; Health: 350 → 400 |
| 12.3 | Ability Haste: 25 → 30; Attack Damage: 40 → 45; Health: 450 → 350 |
| 11.13 | Health: 400 → 450; Effect text changed |
| 11.11 | Effect text changed |
| 11.10 | Effect text changed |
| 11.5 | Cost: 3300 → 3100 gold; Health: 300 → 400; Effect text changed |
| 10.24 | Effect text changed |
| 10.23 | Cost: 3000 → 3300 gold; Health: 400 → 300 |
| 9.19 | Renamed: The Black Cleaver → Black Cleaver |
| 7.9 | Effect text changed |
| 7.4 | Cost: 3100 → 3000 gold; Attack Damage: 50 → 40; Health: 300 → 400 |
| 6.9 | Cost: 3500 → 3100 gold; Attack Damage: 55 → 50 |
| 5.22 | Cost: 3000 → 3500 gold; Attack Damage: 40 → 55; Health: 400 → 300 |
| 5.8 | Attack Damage: 50 → 40; Cooldown Reduction %: 10 → 20; Health: 200 → 400; Effect text changed |
| 4.13 | Effect text changed |
| 4.11 | Effect text changed |
| 3.6 | Health: 250 → 200; Effect text changed |
| 2013 | Earliest record in Riot's Data Dragon (2013); the item is older |
We compare cost and stats patch by patch in Riot's Data Dragon files. "Effect text changed" means the passive or active wording changed in that patch.
Black Cleaver is a 3,000 gold fighter item in League of Legends that shreds enemy Armor: 45 Attack Damage, 400 Health and 20 Ability Haste in patch 26.21. Its Carve passive lowers a champion’s Armor by 6% per stack, up to 5 stacks, and Fervor gives you Move Speed whenever you deal physical damage.
How do Carve and Fervor work?
Carve is the Armor shred. Each time you deal physical damage to an enemy champion, their Armor drops by 6% for 6 seconds, stacking up to 5 times. Fully stacked, that’s 30% less Armor on the target.
Here’s the part that makes this a team item. The shred is on the enemy, not on you, so every physical damage dealer on your side hits that target harder too (your marksman will notice). One interaction worth knowing: Armor reduction like Carve is applied before Armor Penetration, so it stacks cleanly with a percent-penetration item such as Lord Dominik’s Regards on your marksman, and the two together leave a tank with far less Armor than either would alone. Abilities and attacks both apply stacks, as long as the damage is physical, so 5 quick hits are enough to max it out.
Fervor is simpler: dealing physical damage gives you a burst of Move Speed for 2 seconds. Data text gives no figure for the speed itself. Still, for a melee fighter chasing a target who keeps stepping away, it’s a welcome extra.
Is Black Cleaver gold efficient?
Very, at 121%. Thing is, the surplus comes from the stat line alone: 3,642 gold of priced stats inside a 3,000 gold item.
Using the same patch’s basic items as the yardstick, 45 Attack Damage at 35 gold per point is 1,575 gold, 400 Health at 2.67 gold per point is 1,067, and 20 Ability Haste at 50 gold per point is 1,000. That’s a 642 gold surplus, and the Armor shred and Move Speed come on top. Honestly? Few fighter items give more.
What does it build from?
Phage (1,100 gold), Kindlegem (800 gold) and Pickaxe (875 gold), with only 225 gold to combine. Phage is the usual first buy for a fighter, since it gives damage and Health together. The last component basically completes the item (the combine cost is tiny).
Nothing builds out of it.
What changed in recent patches?
A lot of back-and-forth. Riot’s data has it from 2013, and the Attack Damage alone has moved between 40 and 55 several times. The recent changes:
- Patch 14.1: cost 3,100 → 3,000 gold, Ability Haste 30 → 20, Attack Damage 50 → 55.
- Patch 14.19: Attack Damage 55 → 40.
- Patch 26.11: effect text changed.
- Patch 26.16: Attack Damage 40 → 45, effect text changed.
So after a big cut in 14.19, the item got a small part of that damage back in 26.16, together with reworded passives. Put simply, a guide from before 26.16 shows the wrong Attack Damage. For the history of other fighter items, see our LoL items database.
Who should build Black Cleaver?
AD fighters and bruisers who hit the same target repeatedly, especially in teams with other physical damage dealers. In practice, it shines when your marksman and jungler are AD too, because the shred benefits everyone who deals physical damage. Durable AD junglers fit the same pattern, since they tend to stay on one target long enough to reach full stacks while the rest of the team piles in behind them.
Who gets less out of it? AD assassins who burst once and leave (one combo rarely lands 5 separate hits), and teams where you’re the only physical damage source. Not sure your pick fits that pattern? Our champion guides cover individual kits. For a fighter who sticks to one target for a whole fight, Black Cleaver turns every hit into extra damage for the entire team.
FAQ
How much does Black Cleaver cost?
3,000 gold in patch 26.21, with just 225 gold to combine. It sells for 2,100 gold.
How much Armor does Carve remove?
6% per stack for 6 seconds, stacking 5 times, for 30% at full stacks.
Does the Armor shred help teammates?
Yes. Carve reduces the target’s Armor, so all physical damage from your team benefits.
What stats does it give?
45 Attack Damage, 400 Health and 20 Ability Haste.
What does it build from?
Phage, Kindlegem and Pickaxe.