The League Jungle, for N00Bs

[quote=TheSofa]Hi all! I've been dying to ask this question for a long time, and now that [[Nocturne]]'s on free rotation, I'd like to ask: "What on earth actually goes on in the jungle?" I don't even know what I don't know. Like... What does [[Smite]] do? What are the Red/Blue buffs? What happens when I kill big monsters? Who is the Dragon? What does he give? Why is it so important to kill him 5 times? What are scuttles? Who is Baron? Which camps to I start in? Who goes the jungle? What is the jungler's role? Hit me with it! Thanks all, TheSofa[/quote]

[quote=VexRoth]In soloqueue at least, your jungler is your wild card. What I mean by that is you usually have vision of the enemy laners which are generally Top, Middle, ADC + Support. You know where they are at most of the time. The champion in the jungle you typically don't have vision on at least during the early stages of the game so you don't know where they are going to pop up unless you ward the entry points to your lane or deep in the enemy jungle. The jungler farms neutral creep camps (neutral meaning they won't naturally attack you unless you attack them) to start. However, if they see an opportunity they will try to gank a lane. Which basically means to create a 2v1 or 3v2 in a lane. A nasty surprise package if you will that the enemy laner is not expecting. If they don't see a gank opportunity there are a couple of things they might do. -Go back to base and buy items -Continue farming their jungle -Ward -Counterjungle (farm the enemy jungle or jungler or both) -Countergank (show up where the enemy jungler will be to make it a surprise 2v2 or 3v3)...this generally requires good vision and good game knowledge....you'll know a good really jungler when they are moving around the map in a way that puts them in position to stymie the enemy jungler's gank attempts. If you are interested in [[Nocturne]] go check out PsiGuard's guide here on Mobafire on the champion. There also a good basic intro video by Meteos (formely C9's jungler) and another decent one by Cyanide (?formerly jungler for Fanatic?) on youtube, though be advised the runes and masteries on both are dated.[/quote]

[quote=TheSofa]Thanks Vex :) I have read through Psi's [[nocturne]] guide. I will definitely check the other two out! So... what is in the jungle?[/quote]

[quote=VexRoth][quote=TheSofa]Thanks Vex :) I have read through Psi's [[nocturne]] guide. I will definitely check the other two out! So... what is in the jungle?[/quote] You are welcome. I'm probably only going to have time to explain this piecemeal, so hopefully others will jump in to answer your questions. A lot can be discovered on LoL wiki. E.g. look up Crest of Cinders and Crest of Insight to learn more about Red Buff and Blue buff. You'll also get more detail than I can recall of the top of my head. The jungle is a special area of the map that has lots of twists, turns, and crevices in it. Oh and bushes, we mustn't forget the bushes which are good hiding spots for champions and wards. Some teams are better off fighting in the jungle than out in the open. [[Rumble]] is classically a good jungle fighting champion. Your side of the jungle is mirrored on the opposite side of the map. The main differencs on sides with respect to the jungle is the location of The Rift Herald (and eventually Baron Nsahor) and the Dragon. For years it has been normal for the Bot lane to consist of an ADC + support because between you and your jungler that gives you three champions to take dragon. But they recently introduced The Rift Herald for an objective that increases the importance of Top lane and with games being really short at the moment, The Rift Herald is by some measures a more important objective than Dragon.[/quote]

[quote=VexRoth]Some info on the various buffs and camps that are in the jungle Some of this info may be a little dated numbers wise [[Rift Scuttler]] http://www.mobafire.com/profile/vexroth-588862/blog/rift-scuttler Red Buff http://www.mobafire.com/profile/vexroth-588862/blog/red-brambleback Gift of the Toadstool http://www.mobafire.com/profile/vexroth-588862/blog/gift-of-the-toadstool-revisited-patch-5-7 Blue Sentinel http://www.mobafire.com/profile/vexroth-588862/blog/blue-sentinel Nature Spirit http://www.mobafire.com/profile/vexroth-588862/blog/nature-spirit Gift of Heavy Hands http://www.mobafire.com/profile/vexroth-588862/blog/gift-of-heavy-hands Razor Sharp http://www.mobafire.com/profile/vexroth-588862/blog/razor-sharp[/quote]

[quote=LevasK]Like... What does [[Smite]] do? What are the Red/Blue buffs? [spoiler][[Smite]] is primarily used for securing objectives, such as [[Dragon]], [[Baron]] and buffs, as well as helping you clear the jungle and granting you different buffs based on which champs you choose to use it on. Blue buff is the [[Ancient Golem]] located on the west half of the map on the blue side and on the east half on the red side, if you use [[Smite]] on it, you'll receive a buff that grants you a lot of mana/energy regeneration, as well as 10% CDR. (Upon smiting it, you gain mana) Red buff - [[Red Brambleback]] is located on the opposite half from blue buff, smiting it grants you a true damage DoT buff, that applies a slow.(Upon smiting it, you gain health)[/spoiler] What happens when I kill big monsters? [color=#ff0000]You gain gold and if you use smite, you gain a different buff, you can hover over the camp to learn what the buff does.[/color] Who is the Dragon? [color=#ff0000]Dragon is one of the 3 "Boss Monsters" on the rift, similar to Roshan.[/color] [[Dragon]][color=#ff0000] gives a stacking, team wide buff, that stacks up to 5 times with the 5th stack amplifying the buffs from the previous stacks and giving your team a true damage DoT on all attacks.[/color] What are scuttles? [[Rift Scuttler]]s [color=#ff0000]are 2 neutral monsters that roam the river and grant a vision/movement speed shrine when killed, as well as giving you 50+ gold.[/color] Who is Baron? [[Baron]],[color=#ff0000] like Dragon, gives a team wide buff, that is specifically designed to aid you in sieging/pushing, since when a champion with a baron buff is near a minion it gets significantly buffed.[/color] Which camps to I start in? [color=#ff0000]Usually you want to start which ever champ your duo lane is closest to, most commonly, it will be[/color] [[Ancient Krug]][color=#ff0000] when you are on blue side and[/color] [[Gromp]][color=#ff0000] when on blue side.[/color] Who goes the jungle? [color=#ff0000]There are loads of champs that can jungle, almost every champion in the game can, but for an easy jungle champion I would recommend trying out[/color] [[Xin Zhao]][color=#ff0000]. His ganks are good pre-6, he has built in sustain and his damage is relatively high, even if you build him tank + he's very easy and straightforward.[/color] What is the jungler's role? [color=#ff0000]The role of a jungler is a simple one - objective control. Your job and the reason behind you taking[/color] [[Smite]] [color=#ff0000]is exactly that, ganking is optional, however I'd recommend investing some time into it, as the games tend to be snowbally now days.[/color][/quote]

[quote=Devampi]well hopefully levasK answered most of your questions. I would recommend started jungling before you hit lvl 30 but not too soon as without masteries (and runes but you can jungle without them only takes longer) will make it really hard. A lot of champions can go into the jungle. the machete/talisman enchantment's (jungle starting item which gives bonus to clearing the jungle camps and when upgraded enhances your smite depending on choice) also have a useful one for every sort of jungle ([[runeglaive]] for AP jungles, [[warrior]] for AD, [[cinderhulk]] for tanks and lastly we have [[devourer]] that is more for farming and hybrid jungles) my recomendation for starter jungles would be: [[amumu]] and [[warwick]][/quote]