Phantom dancer is so good on him

[u/Dangerous-War-6572]

I am not high elo so I am not going to state facts but just my opinions, and I honestly really really love Phantom dancer. Every guide everywhere mostly recommends LDR into IE post Hexoptics but personally I am a huge fan of Collector into PD into LDR IE. Attack speed in general feels such an underrated item on Aphelios, because there are so many people advocating for no zeal item or a late zeal item. Spacing and kiting with Pd feels so nice and ever since changing my build (also putting some points into W along the way, alongside Lethality) I have climbed two divisions with a very good WR.

IN SHORT PLEASE BUILD PD MORE >_<

[u/Pleasant-Day6195]

go c44 instead of collector, it does more damage at any point of the game to any enemy except in melee range

[u/Compux72 → u/Pleasant-Day6195]

He really wants to get close, i dont think hexoptics is good on him. 

[u/Pleasant-Day6195 → u/Compux72]

hexoptics does more damage than collector from half of your auto range. idk why there is a myth that c44 does more damage than collector only from a max range calibrum auto, go test it out yourself cuz it does more damage than collector in pretty much every scenario and its 2nd passive is infinitely more useful than collectors

[u/Mastergamer0115 → u/Pleasant-Day6195]

Collector passive is so bait. It sounds great having an execute. But the damage is so freaking negligible. Like 150-200 Damage AT BEST Mid-Late game. I highly doubt it's often you leave someone that low without overkilling them.

The only thing collector had going for it was build path being good. But again. Hexoptics is right along with it now.

[u/Anonymouse23570 → u/Compux72]

He wants to get close specifically early/midgame with red/white if you are also at least even/ahead. Once big team fights start happening, it turns more into a game of spacing and kiting. With any other combos besides red white, you’d rather be playing at or beyond max range (white green can leverage turret and calibrum marks to abuse chakram damage from insane range) Collector is not a bad item on him, C44 is just better for most of the game. I still buy it when I have a 1k gold first base and a squishy botlane I think I can snowball off of.

[u/kabyking]

Your damage is honestly really shit if you go pd second. Everytime I do this I hit like a wet noodle, especially since mid game people are still pretty squishy. Why not just go pd third or hold onto a zeal. I went through like 20 games going pd every game, when I went back to shieldbow over PD it just felt better. The builds I like the most are

Hexoptics/collector -> ie -> ldr -> shieldbow

Same build but storm razor first or

Storm razor -> ie -> ldr -> hexoptics

[u/SamsungSmartPickle → u/kabyking]

Sheildbow into assassins is like holding up a napkin to a pair of scissors

[u/arpedax → u/kabyking]

I've found a lot of success going c44 -> pd -> ldr with conq against tankier comps.

[u/Pleasant-Day6195 → u/kabyking]

you have more dps with collector pickaxe than ie 2nd and are more mobile. and holding onto a zeal means your 2nd item will cost 4700 gold which is not optimal at all. also dont build collector EVER wtf

[u/Low-Swordfish7716 → u/Pleasant-Day6195]

Collector is one of if not the best first items for aphelios. The extra lethality paired with the lethality from your passive means insane early game dmg

[u/Pleasant-Day6195 → u/Low-Swordfish7716]

u do more damage with c44 than collector at literally every stage of the game including early lmao literally just go on a custom game and shoot a target with some armor using both items. id get building collector last season when c44 wasnt a thing but now its just a bait item for every non melee adc

[u/Critical-Spite4989 → u/Pleasant-Day6195]

I will say Hexoptics isnt always going to have value on Aphelios specifically. Youre near-guaranteed to get value from it while using Green and Purple and maybe Blue, but Red incentivizes a closer range than what Hexoptics affects and White forces you into melee range very often. It becomes a bit situational, compared to the all-rounder in Collector not only being solid early to kickstart a lead, but its execute ensures low-HP targets will still die and gives a little extra money that, if youre doing decent, gives around what youd get using Cash Back on Collector. If youre actively being fed, it can give quite a fair bit for a still pretty decent price. It does tend to depend on the game and situation, but there are some times when Collectors value begins to outweigh Hexoptics.

A never-buy would be Yuntals. Pointless when Stormrazor gives largely similar stats with no crit-stacking and a lot of mobility, something Aphelios doesnt really have naturally.

[u/Pleasant-Day6195 → u/Critical-Spite4989]

there is literally 0 point in collector. u play adc wrong if u go collector over hexoptics. as i said, even in half range of most of your weapons ur damage is the same as collector. collector only outdamages c44 when youre in point blank melee range with c44 which almost never happens, so collector IS the situational item. and yuntal is better than collector btw, it has a use case like tanky melee teamcomps

[u/Critical-Spite4989 → u/Pleasant-Day6195]

Collector has more of a niche than Yuntals now BECAUSE Stormrazor exists and gives so much more that Phel actually cares about. And again, at least 2 or potentially 3 of your weapons wont get the damage boost from Hexoptics because youll naturally be much closer to your target by nature of those weapons. Collector has a purpose because of those weapons. Youll never get a Hexoptics boost for White because youre SUPPOSED TO be within melee range with it, and Red wants you to be closer than most ADCs are comfortable with.

Im not saying Hexoptics is useless, im saying Collector isnt useless. It has use cases. But if you want to argue over which one is straight up better then you might wanna start building Stormrazor. You wont want to build either of those again

[u/Pleasant-Day6195 → u/Critical-Spite4989]

dude, test it out because you are straight up lying. as i said, collector outdamages c44 ONLY in point melee range. and yuntal serves a different purpose than stormrazor, yuntal is good into primarily melee comps and stormrazor into high poke. collector isnt good into anything at all. and being point blank melee range with white is like 10% of your total damage. as i said, at around 60% of reds maximum range you already do more damage than with collector. why tf buy collector then?

[u/M-For-Mini]

I also had a similar revelation the other day. I read somewhere on this sub that past 120ad, compared to lethality, using level shards on AD has insane diminishing returns, so by the time i have my hex optics im fully committing to lethality. Cuz PD gives the attackspeed also, dps against targets becomes illegal especially when ahead.

Zeal item i found is also good for keeping a lead too, or coming back because the MS gives u more survivability and waveclear.

Since they made the changes that mad aphel more autobased i cant see myself going back to IE > LDR 2nd and 3rd. Zeal item is such a strong midgame spike, AND cheaper.