Jungle Guide for 5.22

I keep seeing a lot of posts of people complaining that the new Jungle is too difficult, but I feel that a lot of that is people who are looking at things the wrong way or not thinking outside the box.

I will admit, I am unranked (for personal reasons), but everyone I play with agrees that I am, at the very least, an excellent Jungler.. certainly have room for improvement I'm sure, but I've never once had a hard time even back in pre/early season 5 when everyone said it was "impossible" - even with champs like Khazix.

So I decided to write this Jungle Guide... mostly just tips to help those struggling to get by with clears and their builds. Take it how you will, and feel free to contribute or criticize. Granted there are plenty of exceptions to all of this like champs with excellent sustain - nautilus, shen, warwick, graves (lol), etc. But for the most part if you follow this guide it should help you get by with those champs you do struggle with.

THE GUIDE

SUSTAIN TIPS:

1. Always buy Hunter's Machete first, still - Despite the recommendation on many champs to get Hunter's Talisman first, it's still entirely better to start with a machete for best/fastest clears, bonus exp, and better sustain as a result of said fast clears. Mana sustain isn't really that much of an issue with the right runes/masteries and clearing approach.

You should pretty much ignore most of what's "recommended" anyway, and build what works best for that champ, and particularly, for YOU.

2. ATTACK SPEED RUNES - Extremely extremely important. Almost no matter WHAT champion you play (exceptions: Lee Sin, 'maybe' Pantheon, etc), even as an AP Jungler. You need to be running attack speed for the fastest/best clears, which in turn gives you better sustain (due to not dying before the camp does lol).

The best base setup for pretty much 'every' jungler is AS marks (or quints if using AD marks/ADC), Armor seals, and whatever quints/glyphs are preferable to the archetype of the champ. For instance AP quints/glyphs if AP, AP/armor/movespeed quints if tank with CDR or Scaling MR or both, glyphs, etc.

**It's important to understand that you should be building for the best clears, so that you're not behind when you actually do try to gank. What's better? Having some extra magic pen runes that 'may' help a tiny bit mid-late game, but being 3 levels behind everywhere anyway? Or being close to same level with more items finished, and actually being able to gank optimally?

3. Proper Masteries - I see a lot of people with the mindset that you HAVE to get runic affinity, and run 12+ points into the Cunning tree as a result of this. IMO (or possibly just personal preference) I feel as though RA is slightly overrated. I usually give away my 2nd or 3rd buff(s) anyway. Sure it helps with Baron buff too, but is that worth a bit of extra clear time, and thus possibly more successful ganks/objective control? More of a mana heavy mid-laner mastery anyway IMO.

Taking masteries like Tough Skin and Veteran Scars will help a great deal with sustaining, and a great deal more as a Jungler overall. Even masteries like Recovery and Perseverance can help your sustain a bit on first clears. Also consider getting more attack speed and Fervor if you go 18 into Ferocity. IT HELPS.

As well, you don't HAVE to run 12 points into a secondary tree. You can run something like 18-6-6, or 6-6-18 (if you must have Runic Affinity). Savagery certainly helps clears too, so it's not all bad to go this route.

4. Back early if you have to - It's ok to back early and upgrade your refillable potion for instance, if you have to. Better to be able to hit a Benchmark first, but it's still far better yet than executing or being useless when you do go for ganks/objectives. And the potion will make it so you can practically sustain infinitely from that point on, thus you catch up.

Otherwise, if not low, it's best to not back until you can reach the next item upgrade you're after, and possibly then some (wards, boots).

OTHER JUNGLE TIPS

5. Consider ganking early - Pretty much regardless of what champ you're playing, if the enemy is pushed, or your teammates can setup a good gank for you to come and get an early kill or assist, this can get you set for a while, and allow you to have better map presence. As early as level 2, if you think you can pull it off.

If nothing else, practice it... play with people you know, or if you have teammate champions you know can help you to accomplish this.. Letting the enemy laners push up, thresh lantern, bard journey, supports with lockdown, etc, all viable strategies for this.

6. Help the lane AFTER you successfully gank - Several ways of doing this, and all are very important. Let me put it this way, when you gank a lane successfully, and either you or the lane gets the kill, dont just 1 and done and leave it at that. Go off and do other things.

A) Help them shove the wave into tower, this gives both of you exp, and denies a LOT of farm, gold/exp, to the enemy laner. It also ultimately resets the wave back to the center or near center of the lane for them to continue freezing or what have you. Just be sure they're OK with it - say "let's shove" or ping turret. Some people just want to keep it frozen... even if it's less optimal than forcing a TP or denying farm. Shrug. B) If possible, take the turret. Don't just gank, say "nice job" and go back to the Jungle. Get those objectives, apply that pressure. Very easy to do right now... C) If they have to back, hold the lane for them (but last hit/freeze - don't shove).. don't underestimate that bit of gold and especially lane exp that you get. Something that is a bit harder to get in the Jungle. Do this for laners even if you don't gank for them first. D) **Come Back. Regank that lane, camp if you will. Their summoner spells are likely down, they're behind now.. it's easy to get yourself and the laner fed this way, so you can both carry. A bad strategy that people seem to follow is to gank a lane successfully... then go try and help one that's losing bad. Keep ganking the first lane, and then ONCE you're ahead enough, go help elsewhere. Chances are that losing lane gank is going to be unsuccessful or end in both of you dying anyway. Of course there's plenty of exceptions to this, you don't always want to just completely disregard some lanes.

7. WARDING Used to be that I would buy a pink every first back, and 1-2 green wards every subsequent back til 9 (for trinket upgrade). Would use the pink to ward my own Jungle to help against invaders, and place greens at either dragon, or even more often enemy buffs. Can't really do this anymore since greens no longer exist, but you can still make attempts to ward as such with offensive pinks/yellows.

This did a few things - gave me vision for potentially invading and stealing said buff and/or killing the enemy jungler or getting a flash out of them. It also helped to give my teammates the knowledge of what side of the map the enemy jungler is on. The best is when an enemy mid goes to take blue, and I ping my mid to come help me steal it and/or kill them, or steal it for myself.

Also, every other reason for warding :D

8. Dragon/Rift Herald isn't THAT important The buff is nice, sure. But it should not be #1 priority over teammates lives, turrets, inhibs, etc. And much much less, the Rift Herald as well. Especially considering how difficult it is to kill for a one person buff. And unless you are absolutely CERTAIN you can get either of these uncontested (early on, unless you're ahead), don't bother.

The way I see it.. the objectives priority goes in this order.

Inhibs > Baron > Turrets > Dragon > Rift Herald

I would also argue that if quite far behind, you should not bother going for Dragon/Baron/Herald if there's even a remote chance of contestation. If anything, try to steal it safely, or at the cost of 'only' one life. Anything more is not worth getting put further behind at all. One Dragon buff won't turn the tides of a bad match... but getting objectives like other turrets, or successful ganks elsewhere, while Dragon is being done certainly can.

One strategy I like to use is actually this in reverse... if we're very far ahead, I like to wait on getting Dragon. I actually hold off on it until the enemy team uses the same poor logic and tries to use it to "turn the tides" and then just ping my team to murder them all :D Remember? I use wards.

END OF (gigantic) GUIDE

Well I hope this helps, even if it's just a few people... and isn't just a complete waste of 30 minutes lol. Certainly wrote a lot more than I originally intended.

Good Luck Junglers.