How the hell do you jungle nowadays?

LaserDeathBlade·5/24/2016, 9:58:06 PM·4 votes·1,921 views

I faintly remember a time when I wouldn't mind filling Jg, but nowadays I never put 'Fill' for fear of winding up in the Jungle.

Here's what I'm struggling with ... :

AD support/Tank junglers are almost unplayable. My primary jungler is J4 and he can barely hit lvl 3 before getting executed. I've tried so many different builds / runes / masteries, but no matter what he clears slowly and dies whenever.
Ranged junglers are too dominant. Kindred / Graves / Nid / Fid barely take damage in the jungle, clear super hella fast, and are easily pulling off lvl 3 ganks with high damage and mobility while I'm back at fountain stocking up on pots. The problem with ranged junglers is that god knows when I pick Graves jungle my team comp is going to look like Teemo + Zed + Graves + MF + Soraka and we'll be left with no tank, CC, engage, or really anything.
Bot lane is always Ezreal/Lucian, AKA ungankable
Mid lane is rarely some immobile, low damage, squishy mage, AKA also ungankable
Ganking top outside of the first lvl 3 gank is akin to trolling because then you just lose Dragon + Bot lane + half of your base, plus a 0/3 top laner does the same thing as a 3/0 top laner anyway.
I feel like I'm so much more likely to die in a gank than ever before. Missing an E-Q on J4 is almost certain death, landing an E-Q is like 50-50 chance of death.
After dying like 1 time, I get outscaled by jungle camps and just can never farm again.
Defensive options are just so bad. Cinderhulk is like way worse than the other enchantments for almost every champion. It gives no movespeed, no cooldown, no resistances, and it doesn't even do good damage. Not only did almost every tank item get nerfed, damage junglers farm way faster and do more damage = more kills + more money + more levels. I find that the only way I stay relevant is going Warriors + Black Cleaver + Hexdrinker
The unsportsmanlike behavior is insane. Maybe I'm just way worse at jungling this season, but almost every game I feel obligated to camp top or else he'll rage quit. Jungling just feels like playing the global betch where if a lane's losing I'm just expected to show up underleveled and underfarmed to gank and somehow not die.

Sounds like you are just having trouble with the new jungle. It's a lot more 'Mission Impossible' than it used to be a long time ago, but you can still do it with correct strategy. A lot of it has to do with choosing your smites correctly.

#First Couple Clears

You must always start with a leash on either Gromp or Krugs, and smite that camp.

Start Krugs -> Red for survivability and early ganks, Gromp -> Blue for clear speed or if you must have the mana. Gromp + CDR improve the clear speed, while Krugs + HP regen (Red) improve your ability to maintain your HP and regen by the time you gank.

Kill the smaller Krug first, always. Kill the smaller Raptors first, unless smiting the big one. Kill the big Wolf and the the big buff monsters first regardless. You will find this really helps you pull off first clear with enough HP to gank.

Scuttlecrab does not fight back, and is very easy to kill when you have CC. It's free gold and experience without losing health, and offers you the chance to lifesteal and gain vision. It loses its armor when CC'd, and takes 25% bonus damage while CC'd, including true damage. Stun + smite + auto is enough to 1-shot scuttle level 2-3.

Reset autos when you can, cast spells between autos, and CC the monsters right as they are swinging down at you. This will improve both your speed and your survivability.

sucks, except on mana+caster junglers (Fiddlesticks, Amumu). Take item 1041

whenever you can.

is also worthless. Take item 2003

for your first clear.

Runes: Flat armor seals greatly help in the jungle. Scaling health are OP late game, but only if you're on a jungler that has no problem with the early clears. Attack speed marks also help (they apply Krugs faster and supply more DPS) unless you need the AD scalings. I tend to pick up movement speed quints for ganks and navigation, but pick up combat quints if you feel like you need them.

For masteries, you can improve your early clear with the following. Pick up as many as you need, but not too many, as many of these masteries trade off movement speed, champion damage, or other utility for clear power. like to go 18/0/12 or 12/0/18 on standard junglers, but go otherwise if your clear is fine with another set-up.

Ferocity: Fury, Double-Edged Sword, Vampirism, Battering Blows.

Cunning: Savagery, Secret Stash (this one trades off buff duration, be careful).

Resolve: Recovery, Tough Skin, Runic Armor, Perseverance (less Smites, careful).

#Ganks

Smiting Raptors and acquiring Red provides huge gank potential. You often hit 3 before mid, so Krugs (smite) -> Red -> Raptors (smite) can allow you to gank mid.

I honestly take these on almost every jungler. They are great with ganks. Sweep as you come in, and if spotted, de-ward and go around for the re-gank.

Come in from the back or the side, and don't engage with your gap closer. With J4, for example, walk up, W, auto them, then EQ as they dash/CC/flash away.

WALK AHEAD OF HIM as you auto. Pretend you're kiting him back to his tower.

Ask your laners to engage first. Ping well in advance, so they can start the fight before you come in. A laner starting the fight can blow the enemy's cooldowns and keep them from noticing you come in. Be careful though, as your laner needs to have decent HP before doing that.

Keep track of (and ask teammates to keep track of) the enemy's summoners. Ganking a no-flash/heal/barrier/exhaust lane is free kills.

Enemy botlane is Ezreal Janna? Fuck it, mate.

You're pre-6 Warwick? Fuck it.

You have no CC and the laner has no CC? Fuck it.

Laner is pushing? Fuck it.

The above can be done, but only with coordination and good players/experienced junglers.

Top is a very snowbally lane. Ganking it is not trolling, it's game-winning. That being said, don't go top when your support is dead, the entire enemy team is up, and Dragon is alive.

If you kill top and he has TP, tell your top lane to stay and avoid shoving, and wait in the river bush. When the enemy laner TPs back in, gank again. Free kill + free tilt + freelo.

Don't leave kills. Ever. You have to be extremely confident about the gank, your champion, and the enemy's power to leave a kill. If there is a fight, bite to kill. Who cares? Team gold, and it's all very useful. You can make it up for them by not taxing, if that makes you both happy.

Go around the back. Through the tribush, or around the rocks mid. Makes ganking much easier.

If they start running back as you run over a ward spot, either sweep or call it off. You made presence, you're fine.

If they flash, don't dive unless the kill guaranteed. That's a successful gank. Come back soon for the kill.

#Counter-Jungling

Completely clear the enemy buffs, but leave the little Wolves/Raptors/Krug. The timer is important on the buffs, but you can set the enemy back by leaving the little monsters otherwise.

Take your buffs ASAP. Take the enemy buff if it's up and he shows up on the other side of the map, especially if he tries Red start -> gank bot. That's a free Blue if you can get there, and you can rob him from one of his first buffs. Similarly, don't show up when your buffs are up unless it's worth the risk and/or you know the jungler can't get there in time.

Smite Wolves to defend, smite enemy Wolves to invade. Great vision bonus in the jungle.

#Other

For the love of God, please, please, please, don't use your Smite when there's a Dragon fight coming up. And go to the damn Dragon fight. And give your top Herald.

Camping a lane is not being a noob, it's winning the game. Camping wins. Fed teammate and tilted opponent, given it's successful. You don't have to be premade to camp, you just need a good reason to (CC, easy lane, dangerous enemy, snowbally teammate).

If your mid lane can use it, and you don't need it, try giving your mid first Blue. That's right, first. A level 3 Ahri with Blue buff is auto-tilt.

I think that's about it, off the top of my head.

Jungling is a huge role, and while there isn't much micro involved, it takes a lot of game knowledge and decision making to pull it off. Don't be discouraged if you can't pick it up right away. It's a very difficult role in its own way, but it's very rewarding when it's done right. You are, in a way, the team's leader. You influence all lanes, call shots for half the game, and decide what the team does early. And it's a lot of fun, because every game is different. Don't give up on it, keep practicing. Good luck!

How the hell do you jungle nowadays?

25 Comments

Sounds like you are just having trouble with the new jungle. It's a lot more 'Mission Impossible' than it used to be a long time ago, but you can still do it with correct strategy. A lot of it has to do with choosing your smites correctly.

I think that's about it, off the top of my head.