Kayle vs Aatrox
Skill matchup
You are stronger late game. Farm safe and avoid early trades.
Build vs Aatrox
Build adapted to this matchup
Recommended items for Kayle: Nashor's Tooth, Dusk and Dawn, Rabadon's Deathcap, Boots of Swiftness, Shadowflame, Guinsoo's Rageblade, Terminus, Rylai's Crystal Scepter.
Starting items
Core build
Standard
Summoner spells
Anti CC
Other options
Power Spikes
Strength by game phase
Aatrox's abilities
Passive, spells and ultimate
Periodically, Aatrox's next basic attack deals bonus magic damage and heals him, based on the target's max health.
Cooldowns
Cooldowns by spell rank
| Level | Q | W | E | R |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 14s | 18s | 9s | – |
| 6 | 10s | 18s | 9s | 2m |
| 9 | 6s | 16.5s | 9s | 2m |
| 11 | 6s | 15s | 9s | 1m40 |
| 16 | 6s | 12s | 7s | 1m20 |
| 18 | 6s | 12s | 5s | 1m20 |
Playing as Kayle
Tips to maximize your impact
- Play safe early
Play safe early on: Divine Ascent (passive) empowers your autos with each level, adding range, speed and waves of fire.
- Save your W for ganks
Save Celestial Blessing (W) to escape a gank or hold your lane: it heals you and an ally, and gives you both move speed.
- Push once you get fire waves
Push the wave as soon as you unlock your waves of fire: Divine Ascent (passive) adds them to your autos, and minions go down much faster.
- Ult the ally they're focusing
Cast Divine Judgment (R) on the ally being focused, at the last moment: they become invulnerable, then the area around them damages enemies.
Playing against Aatrox
How to counter and exploit weaknesses
- Avoid the edge of his blade
Stick to him or step out of range when he casts The Darkin Blade (Q): only the edge, at the end of each swing, knocks you into the air and deals full damage.
- Get out of his chains fast
Leave the Infernal Chains (W) zone before it closes, with a dash if you have one: otherwise you get pulled back to the impact point and take the damage again.
- Trade after his blade
Take a trade right after the three swings of The Darkin Blade (Q): it's his only knock-up, with a 14 to 6 second cooldown depending on rank.
- Short trades
Take short trades: Umbral Dash (E) heals him for part of all the damage he deals to champions, so a long trade favors him.
- Respect his level 6
Once he hits level 6, back off when he casts World Ender (R): he gains AD and increased healing, and every takedown extends its duration.
Other Kayle matchups
Patch 16.21.1