All Types of Junglers and How to Play Them

Before we begin, I’d like to point out that this article is written for casual players which understands the basis of the game. If you are a newbie and would like to understand how to jungle and play effectively, make sure to check out our League of Legends Objectives In-depth Guide first! 

Jungle Objective Decision-Making

While junglers are often associated with flashy ganks and skirmishes, their true impact lies in their ability to dictate the flow of the game through objective control. Here are the key factors to consider when making objective-related decisions:

• Stay aware of enemy movements, lane states, and objective timers. This knowledge allows you to anticipate potential conflicts and opportunities.
   
• Analyze both your team's strengths and weaknesses, along with the enemy's win condition. Some teams excel at early skirmishes, while others thrive with late-game team fight compositions. Adapt your objective focus accordingly.
   

Striking a balance between ganking, farming, and taking objectives is crucial. Prioritize the tasks that best align with your current win condition and your jungler's strengths. You may wonder how, let's get right into it! 

Defining Your Champion’s Strengths

You need to understand what kind of champion you are playing, before being able to decide which objectives to go for and when, depending on the situation. The best decision for one champion is simply the worst for another.

How to Define Your Champion? 

To define your champion strengths, even if not the type; you need to ask yourself the following questions:

1. Do I scale with Level or Items?
    
2. Do I have crowd control?

Item-Scaling Champions

• If your champion gets stronger with items, that often indicates that your capabilities and base stats are stronger compared to champions that scale with levels.
   
• Due to its item-spike aggressive skillset, champions of such kind can simply force early objectives right after the item spikes. (eg. Serrated Dirk Rengar)

Level-Scaling Champions

• Champions that get stronger by levels need to play the game slower, as their spike points arrive way later compared to others.
   
• Giving up first drake/voidgrub is inevitable and is the best option for such kind.
   
• Try to take as many resources as you can with the least risk, as these kinds of champions often get invaded; focus on protecting your resources instead of rushing into objectives.
   
• After you reach your level spike (eg. Evelynn Level 6), you can freely roam around the map and slay/contest the objectives with your team.

Champions With Crowd Control

• If you have a decent amount of stuns, roots, and so on; doesn't matter if your champion scales with levels or items, your gameplan completely changes.
   
• Use the capability of setting up ganks with your crowd control to punish the enemy laners that play aggressively.
   
• After a successful gank, check for opportunities with your team to slay the objectives such as Drake and Voidgrubs
   
• If enemy laners are playing defensively, try to create an invade with your team members who have lane advantage.

Champions Without Crowd Control

• The champs that lack crowd control are often stronger in 1v1 combat.
   
• Make sure that your champion matches the criteria as a 1v1 combater, if not; then your champion requires level or items to scale up before any serious combat.
   
• These champions often do a decent amount of damage to objectives, yet are bad at early objective team fights.
   
• Sneak executing an objective is of the utmost value for this kind of junglers, as they lack team fighting strength.

Jungle Types and Objective Focus

The things we have spoken of are the simplified version of a much more advanced topic. Let's break down how specific jungle archetypes should approach objective prioritization and strategies.

Mage Junglers

No matter what type of mage you are playing, some facts don't change; keep these in mind:

• Mage junglers often have mid-fast clear speed and a decent amount of damage to camps. Killing a drake before the enemy team realizes is always a possibility.
   
• Mage junglers are often invaded and caught by assassin and bruiser junglers, even with decent clear speed; attempting neutral objectives should be done with caution.
   
• Mage junglers don't work well with auto attacks, therefore playing with your cooldowns and kiting objectives is always the optimal decision.
   
• They are strong around allies with crowd control, prioritizing plays around such teammates provides them best outcome.
   
• Mage junglers scale really well, yet their damage is present in the early game aswell. Ganking when opportunities arise speeds up their scale potential.

Scaling Mage Junglers: 

The most enjoyable type of mage junglers if you ask me, AFK for 20 minutes then start creating chaos!

• Your primary goal is to reach your core items and scaling potential, not the objectives but the resources. 
   
• Play cautiously in the early game, focusing on securing camps and maintaining safe positioning.
   
• Ask for vision from your laners to secure your territory.
   
• Play around strong laners of yours, and take advantage of their lead to execute early objectives.
   
• Prioritize Dragon control only when you can safely contribute, and look for potential counter-invade opportunities when the enemy is trying to steal your camps. 
   
• In the later stages of the game, your objective focus should ramp up as your potent AoE damage becomes increasingly valuable in team fights around objectives.

Early Game Mage Junglers: 

Want to be unpredictable? Try playing a mobile early game mage jungler and be a mystery!

• The early game-focused mages should aim to capitalize on their strong early clear speed and ganking potential. 
   
• Due to their early strength and adaptability, playing from fog and being in unexpected positions is the key.
   
• Prioritize pressuring lanes and securing early objectives after ganks. 
   
• Don't overextend; Mage champions lack sustainability, and an extended fight that you are in the middle of has a high chance of going downhill.
   
• Try invading before execution of objectives as unless you zone the enemy jungler from the fight, it is quite risky to contest long-standing fights against bruisers.

Assassin Mage Junglers: 

A little bit of struggle, for long-term pressure into enemy carries, sounds worth it!

• Focus on isolating and eliminating priority targets with your explosive burst combos. 
   
• Coordinate with your teammates to set up quick kills near objectives. 
   
• Do not start objectives before securing kills, as your champion prioritizes and gets strong from kills instead of neutrals.
   
• Your mobility and burst damage allows you to secure unexpected kills and create windows of opportunity to push for a fast objective take. 
   
• Use vision control and creative pathing to enter fights from unexpected angles, catching the enemy off guard and disrupting their objective defense.

Hypercarry Mage Junglers: 

Even just the feeling you get for ulting after 3 items as Karthus, makes it entertaining!

• Hypercarry mages have one goal – scale into the late game and unleash devastating strength, skip the first objectives unless enemies make a mistake.
   
• Prioritize safe farming and avoid getting caught out of position. Communicate with your team to request peel and protection while clearing camps. 
   
• Play around with your laners who have crowd control if you want to secure an early objective.
   
• Hypercarry Mages do decent early-game damage as well, their sustainability is what makes them weak in the early stages, therefore if you are playing with a frontline; your problems are solved, making you a strong combater even in the early stages.
   
• When you reach your core items and have support from your allies, your ability to control team fights and eliminate multiple targets makes you an asset for securing the objectives.

Support Mage Jungler

There’s just one!

• Make sure to play around your team as your champion doesnt have decent amount of  damage like other mage junglers.
   
• Skip early objectives, unless you have a bruiser laner or an engage support which you can build up a lead with.
   
• Play with your item spikes, use your peel to take advantage of enemy ganks and counter gank.

Assassin Junglers

No matter what kind of assassin jungler you are playing, these facts don't change:

• You have a burst unlike any others, make sure to optimize that by making plays before deciding to slay an objective.
   
• Assassins often have great mobility tools, even if the player is unable to make objective plays, they can try to sneak one and get out unharmed if spotted.
   
• Bushes are your best friend, no matter what the scenario is; heading straight to an objective is less valuable compared to camping in a bush until an opportunity arises.
   
• In every tier of plays, assassins are considered high risk; take that to your advantage by forcing plays and using your strengths to slay objectives.
   
• Assassins have different spike points, with levels and items both. Invading after your champion becomes dangerously strong is always a valuable option to notice.

Early Game Assassins with Instant Spike Points:

5 Seconds alone in combat with any champion, and they are slain.

•  These assassins (eg, Rengar) crave early dominance.
   
•  Prioritize securing kills in the opening minutes to snowball your lead. 
   
• Start Tracking Early: Know the typical starting camps for common enemy junglers (red buff or blue buff) and establish initial vision.
   
• Invade Intel: If you successfully invade, check the state of enemy camps to understand their pathing direction.
   
• Invade aggressively after reaching your power spikes, and force early Dragons and Voidgrubs after assassinating the enemy to cement your advantage.
   
• Do not start any objective unless you have earned a kill or an assist right before that.
   
• Focus on Drake, as bot lane is your highest snowball potential.

Scaling Assassins: 

One moment ago you were the weakest link, now look what your champion has become!

• Play more cautiously in the early stages, focusing on farming efficiently to reach your core items and level. (eg, Evelynn, Kayn). 
   
• Pay close attention to respawn timers on high-value jungle camps to estimate enemy movement.
   
• Consider which lanes are most vulnerable or most valuable to gank based on the enemy team composition and lane matchups to gank on low risk high reward positions .
   
• Look for safe counter-invade opportunities when the enemy jungler is weakened or occupied elsewhere.
   
• Secure vision in the enemy jungle to track their movements and plan your attacks if the enemy is not aggressive.
   
• Do not engage in an early neutral objective contest (scuttle, herald, dragon, voidgrubs) without spike points.
   
• After spike points, make sure to assassinate the enemy before starting an objective as assassins are weaker in open positions!

Control Assassins: 

It can kill you and can prevent its ally from dying.

• Your goal is to create winning conditions for your team. 
   
• Use your crowd control (eg, Rek'Sai, Elise) to set up kills, peel for your carries, and disrupt the enemy formation around objectives.
   
• Unlike other assassin types, you should use your team as a stair to get objectives, the general rule of assassins applies to this kind as well.
   
• Use your CC to create chokepoints and cut off enemy escape routes. Warding along common flanking paths can alert you to their movement.
   
• Coordinate with your teammates, and use your CC to turn the tide of team fights around major objectives, opening opportunities for your team to secure them.
   
• These champs are stronger in 2v2 combat compared to other assassins, making plays around the top lane and taking voidgrubs is the most optimal path.

Chase Assassins: 

You are not getting away from them.

• Utilize superior mobility (eg, Talon, Qiyana) to flank enemies, isolate vulnerable targets, and secure quick kills before any objectives. 
   
• Constantly scan the mini-map for enemy movements. Chase assassins can quickly close gaps and capitalize on mispositioned opponents.
   
• Secure vision around key objectives to create ambush points and exploit enemy missteps.
   
• These champions can gank at the opposite side of an available objective before heading to contest the objective due to their high mobility.
   
• Your mobility also allows you to quickly join your teammates for an objective battle or split push in a side lane to draw enemy attention.

ADC Assasins

• These champions excel at early invades and aggressive game plan as they have range and a decent amount of early damage.
   
• Make sure to know your matchup, towards any type of champion that scales; these ADC assassins can give a hard time with invasions and ganks.
   
• Skip objectives in exchange of getting kills/resources as your champions has insanely high value if it claims enough gold.
   
• Avoid teamfighting, as any assassin champion, look for pics instead and start objectives after successful execution.

All-In-One Assassins:

You have everything you need if played accurately!

• Target selection is key for these high-risk, high-reward assassins (eg, Nidalee). 
   
• Coordinate with your team to identify priority targets, and utilize vision control to find an opening for your devastating burst.
   
• You can freely start any objective without the obligation to assassinate with these picks, yet assassinating first is always optimal.
   
•  Once you've committed to the assassination or zoning, push your team to capitalize on the numbers advantage and secure an objective.

Tank Junglers 

No matter what type of tank you are playing, some facts don't change; keep these in mind:

• Tank junglers are not good at solo slaying objectives, ganking first and getting assistance from the team is always the best way to go.
   
• Tank junglers are not the best 1v1 fighters, going for an invade with the intentions of zoning the enemy jungler is not possible.
   
• Tank junglers are not capable of rotating and deciding on their own plays, they are obliged to follow up with the team, unlike other jungler types.
   
• Tank junglers are good at follow-ups, do not try to secure kills on your own unless you are a rammus into full AD enemy team!
   
• Almost all tank junglers have area of affect damage, which is optimal to slay the voidgrubs quickly.

Scaling Tank Junglers: 

One of the weirdest types in the game, it's a tank; but it needs time to get tanky.

• Prioritize safe farming and reaching crucial items or levels that increase your tankiness or utility (eg, Zac Level 9). 
   
• As you and your team grow stronger, your potent AoE crowd control becomes increasingly valuable in team fights around objectives, allowing you to take the lead on objective control in the later stages of the game at your spike points.
   
• Skip the first objectives if the game is being played slowly, as your champion needs that time to scale up.
   
• Don't focus on the weaknesses of your champion even with the information given, as tanks are great at follow-ups; if one of your lanes is hard winning, the path to objectives opens up.
   
• Dont try to go for an invade even when you are getting invaded, as tanks clear speed is not efficient enough to be able to steal camps and leave enemy territory unharmed.

Early Game Tank Junglers:

The most difficult tank jungler type to play against, as they punish every mistake you make.

• These tanks boast strong early crowd control and damage, making them a high risk in the first 14 minutes of the game especially. (eg, Nunu, Rammus). 
   
• Their ganking potential allows them to pressure lanes and establish early leads, such as spam ganking a side lane and creating pressure, slaying objectives over them.
   
• Coordinate with your teammates to set up early kills near objectives and secure an advantage. 
   
• Build on this momentum to continuously gank and deny the enemy's resources.
   
• Targeting a specific lane and continuously ganking there has great results for this type of champions, make sure to choose your target wisely.
   

Mid-Game Tank Junglers: 

Acceptable early-game strength, good team fights, decent damage; what else do you need?

• Strike a balance between farming and ganking, scaling towards team fights, and prioritizing objectives after successful ganks as your champions have it all; but not so much. 
   
• Adapt your playstyle and itemization based on your team's needs, power spikes, and the enemy team composition. 
   
• Look for opportunities to set up decisive team fights around objectives, optionally after level 6 using your crowd control and ability to soak up damage to pave the way for victory.

Teamfight Tank Junglers: 

These types of junglers are a big problem, especially when they flash onto your carry.

• Focus on initiating favorable fights with your powerful AoE engage abilities, as these champions are more favorable at river fights compared to ganks. 
   
• Disrupt the enemy backline, zone their carries, and peel for your team's damage sources during such fights. 
   
• Your ability to force engagements around objectives like Baron or Dragon is crucial, allowing your team to take decisive action and secure a lead. Make sure to take advantage of that and engage through difficult situations for victory.
   
• Make sure you are engaging in a spot which your team can follow up.

2v2 Dominating Tank Junglers: 

The pressure these junglers put on assassin junglers is outrageous.

• These tanks excel in early skirmishes and duels in the jungle or around lanes (eg, Sejuani). 
   
• Coordinate with your laners to set up kills, build an early lead, and invade the enemy jungle. Make sure to not create a team fight as it is not the champion's peak point. 
   
• Their strong early-game presence allows them to quickly dominate objectives like Voidgrubs and Dragons, building an overwhelming advantage.
   
• The core strength of these champions goes from playing around top lane objectives mostly, as they are strong at 2v2’s more than 3v3’s.

Bruisers

No matter what type of bruiser you are playing, some facts don't change; keep these in mind:

• Bruisers are strong in combat, contesting objectives is almost always better compared to taking them as a response play to enemies.
   
• Even the weakest bruisers are a strong force into mage junglers as long as played accordingly. 
   
• Bruiser junglers are better at one-on-one combat, compared to teamfight in the early stages of the game.
   
• Long-term combats are in your favor, dont hesitate to extend the fight to have a favorable outcome.
   
• Invading before objective control is optimal unless you are facing a highly mobile enemy.
   
• Bruisers can be tanks or assassins at the same time; depending on your itemization.

Early Combat Bruisers: 

Why do they have slow and crowd control?

• These bruisers (eg, Olaf, Xin Zhao) thrive in early fights. 
   
• Force skirmishes in the jungle, invade the enemy territory, and secure early objectives like Dragons and Voidgrubs.
   
• Gank lanes aggressively to establish dominance and create opportunities for your team to claim objectives.
   
• Look for possible river fights, contesting the scuttle, or chasing the enemy jungler down if your laners have priority.
   
• Track the enemy jungler to identify where they started. Consider mirroring their path to force early duels and contest their camps on the opposite side of the map.

Item Spike Mid-Game Bruisers: 

Entertaining game style with %50 of the game killing NPC’s and the other %50 the enemies.

• Farm efficiently to reach your core items. 
   
• Once you hit your power spikes, aggressively pressure the map, seek out favorable skirmishes, invade the enemy jungle when they're weakened, and prioritize objectives.
   
• Skipping the first/second neutral objectives uncontested is the best option to have as your champion is not shining yet!
   
• When you are facing ADC junglers, be extra careful and ward as much as possible since their invade potential might cause you to fall behind.

Assassin Bruisers:

They scale, assassinate, not bad at long-term fights either, what else is needed?

•  Look to isolate and eliminate squishy targets. 
   
• Exploit enemy mistakes with your burst damage, and punish overextending enemies by engaging them.
   
•  Coordinate with your team to capitalize on those kills for quick objective takes. 
   
• Be mindful of your survivability, as assassin bruisers often have less tankiness than other bruiser types.
   
• Going for invades has less value as these champions have higher impact with ganks compared to invading.

Drainer Bruisers:

These champions have insane value in Emerald and below, as enemies don't buy grievous.

• Focus on farming and scaling to your full potential, yet keep in mind that early combats are in your favor as well in many matchups. 
   
• Play for extended team fights and drawn-out skirmishes around objectives by baiting enemies in. 
   
• These are some of the easiest champions to take objectives with, as they are quite destructive at 1v1 combat and early skirmishes just like early-game bruisers!
   
• Your sustain grants you an advantage in counter-invades and allows you to survive longer in crucial team fights around Baron or a Dragon Soul.

Conclusion:

With all the types having different decision-making standards, it's clear to say that the game has many options offered for every kind of playstyle. Keep your knowledge at a high level and get those objectives for a better win rate!

Want to learn more?

This guide has only unveiled a glimpse of the strategic depths of the game. From champion-specific tactics to advanced objective control and champion synergies, there's always more to learn.

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