Strategic Diversity in the Jungle: The Carry Style Jungle

Currently, Jungle Tanks are now more relevant than ever, and Bruiser damage dealers are still strong. There's one more class of junglers we're forgetting.

As a jungle main my three favorite junglers are Zac, Vi, and Master Yi. Before the changes, at least in solo queue, when ever I played Yi I'd always feel like I had an impact. Even after Feral Flare nerfs and the introduction of pre nerf Devourer, around mid game I could still be relevant even if I wasn't dominating. Nowadays it seems that if you're going to be a farming jungler, you're screwed because your only choice is to get ahead. Unfortunately, the best way to get ahead is to successfully gank. This becomes a problem when you're playing someone like Master Yi, Shyvanna, Warwick (pre 6), Jax, etc. Whose ganks are lackluster, even with chilling smite. Changes to help the farming jungler will finally let League of Legends Achieve: S T R A T E G IC D I V ER S I TY

These are no means definite solutions as much as they are ideas in the right direction. Riot has been trying to balance farming junglers for a long time, so I don't expect to have come up with some solution. There's more to it then meets the eye, but hopefully strides can be made to finally get all types of junglers on relatively equal terms.

These are my opinions.

• Across the board on all Smites, make it give bonus experience on enemy camps killed. In conjunction with farming is counter jungling. Unfortunately, even with the jungle changes, it's barely even worth it. There's so many camps, that putting the effort into counter jungling as opposed to ganking lanes, can come bite your team in the ass. (See C9 vs T8) Increasing experience gain on smiting and killing camps in the enemy jungle will finally give a reason to counter jungle/prevent it. Adjusting the numbers, this allows counter jungling to get an advantage over the other jungler, but also become more of a threat in general. Better yet, there's counter-play to this. Warding, using teamwork, and Skirmishers Sabre would be optimal strategies for shutting down a counter jungler. Things that might make you cringe in solo queue, but ultimate make the game a better experience.

• Change up Poachers Knife. As of right now. Poachers knife is utterly useless. Althought it seems great on paper, counter jungling is near worthless for the effort you put into it, especially for just 20 extra gold (for reference, a ward kill is worth 30). Hopefully, a change in bonus experience from counter could help, but there still wouldn't be a reason to take it over one of the other more useful smites. Let Scavenger effect happen on camps in your own jungle - minus the smite cool-down reduction, or some sort of other aspect that gives extra gold. Suddenly, a farming jungler can start getting extra income. Since this gold generation is tied to smite, it's not going to go completely overboard, but there's still a definite fear that other non farming junglers start taking it and start farming. People like Zac and Vi are scary as is, but giving them more farm for free isn't a good idea. Other adjustments would probably need to be made, but changing scavenging smite into a sort of 'I can't gank well, but I can clear the jungle well" item seems like a good direction to go. It could also lead to strategies focused on counter jungling and shutting the jungler down as methods of counterplay instead of the now, were it's common place to almost ignore the jungle when farming.

• Buff the other smites (excluding trail blazer). There needs to be other reasons to pick Chilling and Challenging Smite if there's going to be a jungle item that just gives you more gold. Something like increasing chilling's slow or challenging smite's damage reduction/damage. Rangers would be in a good state because it's absolutely necessary for weak junglers who are just completely slow/die otherwise. Increasing the cost to change your jungle item might be necessary to stop people from switching to a changed scavengers for mad cash.

• A change to Devourer might be good. Flare/Wriggles gave lifesteal and a ward, right now Devourer just does more damage. Giving it a ward essentially gives you more gold, and healing can open the door for more orthodox junglers. Take your pick.

Right now the meta is almost perfect. Top, Mid, ADC, and Support can pretty much pick what ever they want. All that's left is the carry style jungler being relevant. It might take some work, but it's worth it if it means League of Legends having maximum diversity.