This article will discuss how to become a smart and efficient Jungler in Season 15 through how to properly gameplan, control objectives, and transition from the early to mid and late game. I’ll explain some basic paths a player can take to maximize levels and uptime while also detailing how to approach each game differently through understanding roles within teamfighting and objective taking.
Playing Jungler in Season 15 is considered to be the most difficult yet rewarding role in League of Legends and requires an extremely high level of game knowledge and understanding. New players often struggle to succeed in a role that requires so much nuance and important decisions throughout the game. We’re going to cover what it means to be an efficient Jungler and how to set goals within each game.
Before the game even starts up, a player should already have a gameplan in mind based on the Champions that were picked. Typically each game will have one or two lanes that are the most volatile out of the three. Examples of this could be solo laners who don’t have teleport, or Champions botlane that have no mobility such as a Jinx or Ashe. Players may also decide to path towards lanes which have setup and crowd control such as hook abilities or stuns. Typically a Jungler will decide what side of the map to start based on these conditions and path towards the lane that is most volatile to Jungle ganks. A Jungler’s goal within each game should be to play towards these highly volatile lanes while also contesting the various objectives on the map.
The most efficient Junglers are able to quickly clear through their camps while also prioritizing objectives and helping out their laners. Every Jungler will either start on their Blue/Red Buff or Raptors/Wolves. They will then typically clear that quadrant of Jungle camps (Blue Buff: Gromp, and Wolves, or the Red Buff: Raptors, and Krugs) and then look to either gank a lane or finish their full clear.
Some Junglers such as Trundle or Jarvan IV are very strong after clearing one quadrant of camps and can look to pressure the map with their powerful level 3 spikes. However, most Junglers prefer to full clear and will then be level 4 to either fight for the scuttle crab or look to gank a lane. Smaller camps take 2 minutes and 15 seconds to respawn while the blue and red buff take 5 minutes. The reason clearing camps in order is so important is to ensure they respawn around the same time. In a perfect scenario, a Jungler will clear through their camps in order and then gank a lane or take an objective after.
Choosing whether or not to take an objective is another skill many beginner Junglers struggle with. The first objective that spawns on the map is the Dragon near botside at 5 minutes. Prioritizing dragons is one of the most consistent ways to win games as the bonuses they give are extremely powerful. However, there is risk that comes with contesting a neutral objective as the enemy team can also fight for them. The best rule of thumb for taking an objective is looking at your teammates and ensuring whether or not they have priority. Priority is a term that describes whether a laner has pushed out the minion wave and can rotate to help on the objective. If your teammates have pushed out their lanes and can get to the objective first, it’s safer to start the objective.
Although there are several nuances to this concept such as your teammates wanting to base to buy items or the enemy laners having global abilities, it’s an important rule to consider. There are also situations where you can contest an objective despite not having these conditions because the enemy Jungler is extremely weak. These in-game decision making skills are what separates a good Jungler from a great one.
The other important objectives throughout the game include Voidgrubs, Rift Herald, Atakhan, Baron, and Elder. The same concepts for objective taking apply, however there are other factors to consider as the game progresses. Concepts such as item spikes, vision control, cooldowns, and sideline play should all be considered when contesting an objective. Ideally the goal should be to spend all your gold prior to taking an objective, establishing vision around the area, and having all cooldowns available including everyone's summoner spells.
Transitioning from the early to mid game as a Jungler includes becoming more of a secondary support including helping your support get vision and protecting your teammates who are sidelaning, The goal should be to take Jungle camps during downtime and play around your teammates who are strong. Although each game plays out differently, your goals stay similar with fighting for objectives and helping carries transition into late game.
Late game Jungling also has several nuances; however, the general goal should be to establish control of powerful objectives such as baron and elder while setting up teammates to succeed. Most Junglers at this point of the game lack damage to carry a fight and instead focus on peeling or engaging for their carries while also winning the smite battles. Fully upgraded Smite does 1200 damage late game which is the most powerful tool for securing objectives. Most Junglers are able to combo their spells with Smite to maximize their chances of winning the battle. Champions such as Pantheon or Kha’Zix have Q abilities that easily combo with Smite and should always be used together. The best way to improve at Smite battles is to simply practice and play more games.
All the skills, concepts, and knowledge provided can be applied to any skill level Iron to Challenger. For players in the Iron-Gold skill bracket, the main focus should be learning how to properly sequence through Jungle camps and make decisions around which objectives should be taken based on the state of the game. Games at this skill level are usually chaotic and taking smart teamfights with more numbers and cooldowns will greatly increase the odds of winning the fight. Keeping a strong mentality and staying positive throughout every match is also important for staying consistent. For higher rated players, understanding how each of the lanes will play out while establishing control around objectives is the most consistent way to climb.
The concepts including camp sequencing, objective taking, and early to late game decision making can be applied to every game. League is an extremely complex and challenging game to understand. However, I hope each reader can take something they learned and apply it to their own games.
