Choosing the right jungle item is important, especially when some champions can use more than one of them efficiently. Each item has its own advantages and disadvantages. In this guide I will be explaining what each item does, which item I would choose for what champion, and my reasoning behind it.

In order to make an article I think reflects the thoughts and analysis of more than myself, I decided to converse with my jungler. Occasionally you will see a view 1 and view 2 on a certain subject; one representing my thoughts and the other representing my jungler’s opinion.

What are the Jungler Items?

There are three spirit items for junglers, plus one not included in the spirit item line. They are:

• Spirit of the Ancient Golem (SotAG)
• Spirit of the Spectral Wraith (SotSW)
• Spirit of the Elder Lizard (SotEL)
• Wriggle’s Lantern / Feral Flare

Previously, all three spirit items could be built out of a Hunter’s Machete into a Spirit Stone. In patch 4.11 Riot changed SotAG so that it would be built from Quill Coat, a buff that would make clearing the jungle with tank champions easier. This is because previously the damage from the passive “butcher” allowed champions to do more damage to monsters as a percentage. When a champion builds purely tank stats, they do not benefit from this passive and begin to clear slower and slower. Wriggle’s Lantern, an item that highly benefits auto attacking junglers, can also be built from Madred’s Razor, starting with a Hunter’s Machete. Picking which jungler item to build is highly situational. Choosing the best one is important in helping you jungle efficiently, gank efficiently, and/or aid early game dominance.

Spirit of the Ancient Golem

• +200 Health
• +20 Armor
• +10% Cooldown Reduction
• UNIQUE – +25% Bonus Health
• UNIQUE – Sapping Barbs: 60 HP5 and 45 MP5 for 5 seconds whenever taking damage from a monster and they bleed 5% of their maximum health over 3 seconds (max 150 damage)
• UNIQUE – Conservation: Generate conservation stacks every 1.5 seconds, up to 80 – killing a large monster will consume 40 stacks and grant one bonus gold per stack
• UNIQUE – Hunter’s Ward: Places a stealth ward that reveals the surrounding area for 180 seconds (180 second cooldown, 600 range)
• Cost: 2,000 gold

For its stats, SotAG is a very efficient item. Although the 200 health gained from the item is only about half of a Giant’s Belt, the rest of the cost is made up of unique passives that undoubtedly make the item worth it. For example, the conservation stacks can give enough additional gold that the item becomes more cost efficient. By supplying additional gold, junglers can also work quicker on additional key items such as Randuin’s Omen and Banshees Veil. For slower junglers, such as Nautilus and Maokai, the 5% bleed passive makes clearing less painstaking and much faster without having to build offensive stats. Because of this new update to SotAG, many non-meta junglers are making a comeback into the game, allowing them to clear the jungle much faster than they used to.

I feel that SotAG is your go-to type of jungler item, and a perfect match for health-stacking junglers. If you are not sure what item to choose, or if you do not know if your champion utilizes the other two spirit items well, choose SotAG. Most of the time if you are unsure, choosing SotAG should be fine, unless you have a glass-cannon (building fully damage) jungler such as Master Yi or Tryndamere. Out of all three spirit items, SotAG is the most universal choice because most junglers do not build pure damage. Due to the lower income, most junglers will opt for tank stats because offensive stats are near useless in melee form in most instances. Some exceptions include the following: building a team composition around damage junglers, having a champion that does nothing except damage (Tryndamere and Master Yi), and if the jungler is significantly ahead and building damage will help ganks become more successful.

Spirit of the Spectral Wraith

• +50 Ability Power
• +10% Cooldown Reduction
• UNIQUE – Spirit Drain: Grants 2 ability power for every large monster kill, max 15 stacks
• UNIQUE – Butcher: Against monsters, deal 30% bonus damage, restoring 6% of damage dealt as health and 3% as mana
• UNIQUE – Conservation: Generate conservation stacks every 1.5 seconds, up to 80 – killing a large monster will consume 40 stacks and grant one bonus gold per stack
• Cost: 2,000 gold

SotSW is somewhat of a niche item. There are not many meta junglers that can utilize it well. The only champion I can think of that this item would be a must buy would be for certain champs that can utilize all of these stats, such as Fiddlesticks, Amumu, Elise, and other uncommon junglers. It grants an additional 15 ability power plus the standard 50 ability power, many unique passives, and 10% cooldown reduction for only 2,000 gold. Like all Spirit items, they are relatively efficient with the given stats and gold from conservation. I have almost never used this item since I prefer SotAG on champions that can use both this and Golem, and I rarely play AP junglers. As stated above, the item is still efficient.

Spirit of the Elder Lizard

• +30 Attack Damage
• 10% Cooldown Reduction
• UNIQUE – Incinerate: Deals an additional 16-50 (based on level) bonus true damage over 3 seconds upon dealing physical damage
• UNIQUE – Butcher: Against monsters deal 20% bonus damage and restore 6% damage dealt to monsters as health and 3% as mana
• UNIQUE – Conservation: Generate conservation stacks every 1.5 seconds, up to 80 – killing a large monster will consume 40 stacks and grant one bonus gold per stack
• Cost: 2,000 gold

View 1:
SotEL is undoubtedly the weaker of the three spirit items. The offensive stats are mediocre, especially since Wriggle’s Lantern can out scale this item relatively quickly once it transforms into a Feral Flare. Assuming you get this item at around level 8, the Incinerate true damage do only 10 damage a second, barely a noticeable amount. In addition, the 30 attack damage can be replaced easily by a few longswords, and the cooldown reduction can be replaced by a similar item. Only junglers that need a small damage boost early should buy this item.

View 2 (My opinion):
SotEL is an excellent early game item and offers decent stats for the cost. As with all Spirit items, SotEL gives conservation stacks which means that you can easily gank a lane, go back to farming and receive additional gold from the time you weren’t farming. Comparing to wriggle’s lantern, I believe AD is more useful than attack speed because AD increases the damage of AD skills and auto attacks, while attack speed only benefits auto attacks.

The same applies to Feral Flare as well. SotEL offers true damage from both auto attacks and skills, while Feral Flare gives off magic damage on just auto attacks. Because the champion is unlikely to build AP penetration, the magic damage is definitely gimped. While SotEL is definitely mediocre late game, its job is to give a big boost early game. Champions that benefit this item are those who gank a lot, duel a lot, or have spammable abilities. A particular champion in mind is Kha’Zix, who benefits from SotEL greatly. Because the true damage is over time, applying it rapidly does very little. Kha’Zix can apply it using his Void Spikes and add additional poke damage without wasting reapplications of Incinerate.

Wriggle’s Lantern

• +30% Attack Speed
• +12 Attack Damage
• UNIQUE – Maim: Basic attacks against monsters deal 75 bonus magic damage and restore 10 health
• UNIQUE – Gain 30% increased gold from monsters
• Cost: 1,800 gold
• Changes into Feral Flare at 30 large monster kills

Feral Flare

• +30% Attack Speed
• +12 Attack Damage
• UNIQUE – Maim: Champion kills, assists and large monsters slain will grant Feral Flare stacks – Basic attacks deal 25 (+1 per Feral Flare stack) bonus magic damage and restore 10 health, and minions and monsters take triple the magic damage
• UNIQUE – Gain 30% increased gold from monsters
• UNIQUE – Places a stealth ward that reveals the surrounding area for 180 seconds (180 second cooldown)

View 1 (My own):
Wriggles Lantern/Feral Flare is a bad item because the AD gained is pathetic and you lose out on better dueling and ganking potential. On the other hand, The item allows you to gain more money, clear the jungle faster, and infinitely scale up. Judging from a risk-reward point of view, I believe that Wriggles is a terrible item because the damage you do extra only really benefits auto attacks. This makes you weak early on because of low base AD/low attack speed at the cost of more money and better scaling.

I think the reward of getting magic auto attack damage is not worth the loss of additional lane pressure and dueling capabilities because the reward is not good enough and the risk is just too high. Ignoring lanes means that your team is also taking a loss by your lake of presence and the enemy can potentially use this to freeze lanes and starve your team. At this point, it does not matter how strong you get. Because your dueling capabilities are gimped, fighting 2v2 or counter ganking is normally a poor decision that could cause your team to lose harder. This means that contesting various objectives and buffs around the map is not a solid smart option.

On the other hand, SotEL gives a more flexible option to farm or gank and can easily be used depending on the situation (which in my opinion is one of the most valuable features of a strategy-based game).

Finally, The reward of getting additional auto attack damage is nice, but is not worth it because you most likely will not build magic penetration. While SotEL does true damage, Wriggles and Feral Flare provides magic damage, which is reduced by 40-50% to most champions by base stats alone. Although this gives you mixed damage (harder to itemize against), it still is reduced, while SotEL’s damage cannot be reduced.

I believe that the risk of being severely gimped early on is not worth the reward of getting more magic auto attack damage that is reduced because of magic resistance.

View 2:
Wriggle’s Lantern/Feral Flare is a great item, especially for auto attackers. Although nerfs have increased the stacks required to transform into Feral Flare and the damage and attack speed have been lowered, this item is still a must buy for auto attacking junglers, especially Master Yi. The bonus gold gain per monster is highly invaluable with fast farmers. This item increases attack speed by 30%, a worthwhile stat since the faster you attack, the more damage you do from the Maim passive.

For example, with just one auto attack (25 damage) Feral Flare does almost as much damage or more in three seconds of Incinerate. Because Feral Flare infinitely scales, there is no need to sell this item late game, unlike SotEL.

I would definitely pick up Wriggle’s Lantern/Feral Flare over SotEL mainly because SotEL is underwhelming in terms of damage, and Feral Flare outclasses it in every aspect. Most champions that use SotEL generally can also use Wriggles/Feral Flare, but most opt not to because they prefer to gank. A few champions can utilize both, such as Rengar, Lee Sin, and Master Yi. However, the choice is up to you.

Which Item Should You Pick?

Like all gold generation items, you can only have one, so you have to choose wisely. Some champions have multiple options when it comes to these gold items. I will name a few and give the reasoning behind my choices.

Amumu

Amumu can work well with both SotSW and SotAG. I would choose SotAG because you are the front line. Without tank stats, you would get blown up almost immediately. Although I have seen quite a few Amumu players buy the AP item, generally it is not worth it because your W does enough percentage maximum health and provides enough damage for a tank. In ganks and teamfights, crowd control and tank stats should be prioritized over a small amount of damage. Unless you are far ahead in gold, SotSW is not worth it.

Cho’Gath

Buying SotAG is undoubtedly the better choice on Cho’Gath. He benefits greatly from the 200 health. In addition, the +25% bonus health stacks with his ultimate, making him a very tanky foe.

Diana

Even though Diana is not played very often in the jungle, she is still considered a jungler and can jungle decently. She works the best with SotSW, especially since tank stats will not benefit her greatly because of weak tank stats, and damage will give her more of a presence in teamfights. She is also AP and benefits less from SotEL’s incineration which only procs on physical damage.

Mundo

Mundo is another health stacker, so he should definitely buy a SotAG. Unlike Kha’Zix, his cleaver is single target, therefore he does not benefit as much from the true damage poke than Kha’Zix does.

Elise

People have been building SotSW and SotAG on Elise. However, she benefits more from tank stats than pure AP since she has no magic resist scaling and has poor AP ratios. She benefits more from magic penetration because only her Volatile Spiderling (W) has good scaling and the damage is mostly coming from the percentage damage on both Neurotoxin and Venomous Bite (Q). You are better off buying magic penetration from Liandry’s Torment and Sorcerer’s Boots. Most junglers tend to be tanky, and Elise does not have the innate tankyness that some junglers do. If she dies before she can put out any damage, then it is not worth buying SotSW. Although building Doran’s Blade when ahead is relatively common, building into a spirit item first is still what I would recommend. I would choose SotAG on Elise. Her base damage is good enough without SotSW and her cocoon provides significant utility when used properly.
Note: Having no magic resist scaling means that HP is less efficient on her, but I feel like she can use every tanky stat she can get. SotSW is still a good item to get because hp is less efficient.

Evelynn

View 1:
Building SotEL used to be possible with Evelynn (and still is!), but it is not purchased as much since the true damage only applies on physical damage. However, it is still an option, since she auto attacks quite a bit. That leaves SotAG and SotSW (Not Wriggle’s since her power comes from ganks), and since Evelynn needs some early power, SotSW is a better choice.

View 2 (my own):
I think SotEL is the better item to get because she does enough auto attacking to warrant SotEL’s true damage and bonus AD. SotAG does not benefit her because she loses out on her ridiculous early game power and ganking potential (being stealthy is amazing). SotSW gives her good extra damage on her abilities, but the AP amount is too small to give her ultimate a significant boost and her abilities are just a small portion of her damage. Evelynn’s damage definitely comes from the combination of hate spikes (Q) and auto attacks. I think because hate spikes also scales off AD, SotEL giving additional damage to auto attacks and spells is better than giving additional damage to spells alone.

Fiddlesticks

Plenty of Fiddlesticks players agree that reaching Zhonya’s first is the most important. Building SotSW is the only option. However, many people opt out of building a spirit stone item completely since building them slows down your late game build. This is up to your discretion, since I do not play Fiddlesticks often. I would choose to start building right into Zhonya’s since your ultimate is your main damage source and you must stay alive for it. Also, buy a few Doran’s Rings if you have mana problems since Doran’s Rings are cost efficient and cheap since you receive health, mana regeneration, and AP from a simple item.

Hecarim

Since Hecarim has a spammable AOE physical damage ability, buying a SotEL is the best choice, since it is the only item he needs to do decent damage. Otherwise, his damage output would be pitiful.

Jarvan IV

Jarvan has one of the more versatile build options. Both SotAG and SotEL are great on him, not so much Wriggle’s Lantern since he strives for both early game dominance in ganks and decent clear speeds. Wriggles will only slow him down since he needs to farm to obtain stacks and he is more of a gank jungler. If building SotAG, buying a few Doran’s Blades is fine. Building SotEL and then building tanky would be fine too. However, I would go with SotEL to more easily clear the jungle early game, especially since his physical damage abilities apply the burn damage.

Jax

Jax is one of the first champions on my list that I believe works well with Wriggle’s/Feral Flare. His auto attack based kit and empowered third strike synergizes extremely well with the bonus magic damage on the Feral Flare. In addition, he has a decent clear speed, so farming stacks should not be an issue. Although SotEL works very well too, I would still choose Wriggle’s/Feral Flare for Jax.

Karthus

I consider Karthus a rather unconventional jungler, but he can be played as one. The only spirit item possible for him is SotSW. He can also opt out of a spirit item and just run a standard build of Catalyst/Tear, but that might take longer with fewer farms.

Kha’Zix

Kha’Zix does not work well with any other jungle item, especially since he is not an auto attacker. His void spikes work well with SotEL, especially since they are a huge part in his clear speed and apply on multiple targets. Kha’Zix does not farm enough to warrant Wriggles. SotEL is the only probable option. To stay alive as Kha’Zix, it is better to kill your opponent faster than mitigate damage.

Lee Sin

Before the Hunter’s Machete, Wriggle’s was a necessary buy for Lee Sin. Now, most Lee Sins build SotEL for more damage or SotAG for tankyness. I would build SotEL and then after build full tank items. SotEL complements his early game strength very well and allows his ganks to be more successful.

Malphite

Malphite is not played as much due to a slow clear time and high mana costs. Getting SotAG is the most ideal. However, due to AP Malphite becoming popular, I would actually try building SotSW, since the AP would work well with him.

Maokai

Even though Maokai is getting more play top lane, he is still a viable jungler. On jungle Maokai, I would not build AP. His kit, especially his ultimate, is better used for absorbing damage. Besides, health allows you to tank much more with the ultimate. Although he is built with some AP top lane, in the jungle, you are generally expected to be the tank on the team, so I would build SotAG.

Master Yi

Master Yi brings to the table plenty of auto attacks. His abilities, being physical damage, work very well with SotEL. However, since he is able to farm quickly and efficiently, Wriggle’s Lantern seems the most promising. Without damage, he literally does nothing because he adds to CC and has few tank options from his skill set. I believe Wriggle’s Lantern is the way to go in almost all cases because ganking without CC (without red) is hard on good opponents.

Nasus

Nasus’ main power derives from his Q stacks, so building additional damage is not necessary. Build a SotAG.

Nautilus

Building a SotAG increases Nautilus’ clear times and adds to his innate tankyness. AP Nautilus may be possible but not effective for jungling.

Nocturne

Many people have built both Wriggle’s Lantern and SotEL on Nocturne. Building SotEL would benefit Nocturne’s spells and passive. However, since he farms more rapidly than many other junglers and can obtain stacks quicker, Wriggles is a far superior choice. Furthermore, because he relies heavily on “pushing the issue” (I.E. stealing buffs or getting in the face of players) and ganking with his ultimate, Nocturne may not be as confrontational as other junglers and would prefer to farm up and wait for the perfect opportunity.

Nunu

SotAG is a much better choice than SotSW because in the jungle, Nunu is played more as a support than an actual mage. He does not really need AP from SotSW since he is more of a utility jungler, and building tanky is a far better idea for teamfights. The extra ward is helpful for counterjungling and skirmishes, too.

Pantheon

Champions like Pantheon like to build SotEL mainly because they utilize AOE spells as their primary source of damage. For example, Pantheon’s Heartseeker strike applies the true damage far more than a single target spell or auto attack. SotAG may also be built, however, buying SotEL and then building straight tanky is a much better choice.

Rammus

Buying SotAG on Rammus allows him to clear his jungle faster than before. Other options are not as optimal on him, since he does not need damage to be a hindrance to the enemy.

Rengar

Both SotEL and Wriggle’s are viable options. However, since Rengar is a single target burst DPS champion, buying Wriggle’s and farming stacks is a far superior option since Feral Flare adds additional magic damage per attack instantly, instead of over a certain period of time, like SotEL.

Sejuani

Like Rammus and Nautilus, SotAG helps clear times. However, AP Sejuani is a viable option, so SotSW can also be built. Remember, viable does not always mean the best option. I recommend SotAG.

Shaco

Shaco, being an assassin, thrives on critical strikes and burst damage. Just like Rengar, he can build both but is better off building a Wriggle’s Lantern and using the bonus magic damage on each attack.

Shyvana

Although Shyvana has not been played in the jungle recently, she is still a viable option. SotAG is the standard item on her. However, I believe that Wriggle’s is a good choice on her since she has a speedy clear time and deals partial magic damage.

Skarner

Like Hecarim, Skarner has a small spammable AOE attack, rendering SotEL the best option. SotAG is also an option because Skarner has good base damages and builds tanky in the end anyways. I recommend SotEL because Skarner’s early game and mid game power should not be wasted.

Trundle

Trundle relies on auto attacks and therefore utilizes Wriggle’s well. Wriggle’s gives Trundle the attack speed to stick to his target and provides the only damage he really needs.

Tryndamere

Tryndamere is much like Master Yi. Buy a Wriggle’s Lantern on him.

Udyr

Definitely a quick farmer, he should get stacks fast. Since Feral Flare adds more damage to his Q than SotEL, buy a Wriggle’s Lantern.

Vi

View 1 (My Own):
Vi can definitely use Wriggles, SotEL, and SotAG. I have tried Wriggle’s Lantern on her and I think it does not complement her early game burst and gank potential very well (although it is definitely an option). I think SotAG is a better choice because she benefits from tank stats because she is a big front liner (she is most likely the main initiator for the team). I think SotEL is the best option because it complements her ridiculous early game dueling prowess, her amazing ganks pre and post level 6, and she clears faster based on damage early on (because she typically builds another damage item like tri force or Blade of the Ruin King). I recommend SotEL.

View 2:
Vi can utilize SotEL. However, it is much better to just build tanky, particularly because she already does so much damage. Unless you are fed, building a SotAG is much better.

Volibear

A rather uncommon pick, but nonetheless one of the best tanks in the game, Volibear scales the best with health items, especially SotAG. His W does a percentage of his max health in damage. Coupled with a few other health items, he is an unstoppable tank.

Warwick

With Blade of the Ruined King and Wriggle’s, Warwick is a dangerous late-game carry, especially with his innate sustain and ridiculous damage.

Wukong

SotEL is the best choice for Wukong, especially since the true damage synergizes well with his E and R. Furthermore, Wukong is extremely squishy early on and benefits more from trying to kill his opponents faster rather than mitigate as much damage as possible. It makes his early game damage shine better and allows him to gank more successfully (Being stealthy is great).

Xin Zhao

Although Xin has not been played too much in the jungle, he is still a viable. Wriggle’s Lantern is an obvious pick for him since his abilities empower his auto attacks.

Zac

Zac regains health from his bloblets depending on a percentage of his health, so the more health he has, and the better. Get a SotAG.

Conclusion

Choosing the correct jungler item is incredibly important, especially in the early game when this item is the only item you have. Most of the choices are situational, especially SotSW, working only as a niche for certain champions. Both Wriggle’s and SotSW have their advantages and disadvantages, but it all depends on your champion. SotAG is a universal item, and it works on virtually every champion. When in doubt, build SotAG. You cannot go wrong with being slightly tankier, since the tanks on the team are generally the junglers.

Trell’s Statement

“I do not want people to memorize or take my word as law in this article.” I think being able to make your own decisions and choices is the way to truly become a better player. Because of this, I want you to comment and critique my analysis. This will make me and you better players in the end.