Aphelios is one of the most unique champions in League of Legends. Instead of four separate abilities and an ultimate, this champion has a selection of five different weapons that are suited to specific ranges and situations. Because of this, Aphelios often has a weak early game. But towards the middle to later phases of the game when he can acquire items, the Weapon of the Faithful is one of the most powerful ADCs in the game.
As with all champions in League, Aphelios is going to require different items and runes depending on his situation in-game. That said, however, Aphelios has many items that will make the champion extremely powerful and bring out the best results in-game.
Runes
Precision
Conqueror: Given that Aphelios is going to be frequently using basic attacks, this rune will allow him to generate Conqueror stacks and adaptive force. Once the champion has gathered the maximum Conqueror stacks, he will begin healing back eight percent of the damage he deals to enemy champions. This is going to make dueling Aphelios one-on-one difficult, especially once he has the items to deal devastating damage.
Overheal: Given the bonus healing precision grants, running Overheal is a great idea for Aphelios. This rune will allow the champion to gain a shield for some of the healing that is granted on him after he reaches maximum health. Because Aphelios excels alongside a support champion who has a healing ability, this is going to grant him substantially more durability in a combat situation.
Legend: Bloodline: Successfully taking down enemy units is going to grant Aphelios legend stacks that will see him gain 0.6 percent bonus life steal. This small amount of life steal may seem like not much. But partnered with Overheal, this can result in Aphelios building quite a shield over time.
Coup De Grace: When playing in the bottom lane, the two champions are going to find themselves in combat often. Due to this, having a rune like Coup De Grace can grant Aphelios a small advantage over his opponent in dueling. This rune allows the champion to deal bonus damage to enemies below 40 percent health. This can often be enough to turn the tides and with exchanges in the lane.
Sorcery
Nimbus Cloak: One thing Aphelios lacks is the ability to escape in a threatening situation. Because his kit is all weapons and not a lot of utility, he is going to need to use summoner spells to escape losing battles. Nimbus Cloak grants bonus mobility by granting champion additional movement speed after casting a summoner spell as well as the ability to pass through units.
Gathering Storm: This rune is going to make Aphelios stronger as the game progresses. Every 10 minutes of game time, the champion will gain bonus AD, making him more powerful the longer the game goes on.
Bonuses: +10 percent attack speed, +9 adaptive force, +6 armor
Starting items
Doran’s Blade
A common choice for the majority of ADC champions in the game, Doran’s Blade is a great first item for Aphelios. This is going to see the champion gain some early bonus damage that will assist in farming minions and landing poke damage against enemy champions. On top of this, the item will also see additional health and life steal for Aphelios, adding to his durability should a combat situation arise early.
Health Potion
Being in the bottom lane where there are going to be two enemy champions most of the time, it is very wise to take Health Potion. This is going to allow the champion to heal off the damage he might receive while farming early in the game. Aphelios is a champion who needs to acquire gold early to build items and power spike, so having the option to take some damage and heal it back is going to assist him in the laning phase.
Core items
Runaan’s Hurricane
Another stat that is going to be key to high damage output with Aphelios is attack speed. The speed at which he can attack directly affects the amount of critical damage he is able to output and how much damage he can deal overall. Runaan’s Hurricane is going to increase his attack speed by 40 percent, critical strike chance by 25 percent, and movement speed by seven percent. On top of this, the item will see Aphelios fire two targets at once with his basic attacks, allowing him to take on multiple opponents with ease or farm minions at a higher pace.
Immortal Shieldbow
The mythic item Immortal Shieldbow is the perfect pairing for Aphelios’s kit. With its bonus attack damage, attack speed, critical strike chance, and life steal, it’s an undeniably great fit. The unique passive ability grants a shield for Aphelios when he falls below 30 percent health. The item also empowers the other legendary items within the build, granting extra attack damage and health.
Berserker’s Greaves
Another item that will increase the attack speed on Aphelios, Berserker’s Greaves offer 45 attack speed on top of the increase in movement speed common with all boots in the game. This bonus movement speed is going to allow the champion some extra mobility that just isn’t granted with his stock kit.
Late-game items
Infinity Edge
Infinity Edge is one of the most popular items for ADCs due to its high damage and critical strike increase. Granted that all Aphelios’s attacks are counted as basic attacks, having an item that will increase the frequency of critical strikes is going to be especially important. Infinity Edge boasts stat increases of 80 attack damage and 25-percent critical strike chance—but its unique passive is where the item gets its value. This item will see critical strikes deal 225 percent damage instead of the regular 200 percent damage.
Bloodthirster
Once you’ve got sufficient damage in the build, it is worth building Bloodthirster to add some complementary life steal. The item grants Aphelios 55 attack damage, 20 percent bonus critical strike chance, as well as 20 percent life steal. While its healing is paramount, the Bloodthirster also grants a shield that can come in helpful when dueling.
Guardian Angel
Guardian Angel grants 40 attack damage and 40 armor. It also has a unique ability that revives its user with 50 percent health and mana upon death. This is going to allow Aphelios to become much more effective in a teamfight where he will often be targeted first by enemies due to his high damage output.
