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Choose Champion Build:
- ONE SHOT DELETION
- The Tank Bank One Shot
- Not A One Shot, But Sustained
Recommended Items
Spells:
Ignite
Smite
Items
Ability Order
Backstab (PASSIVE)
Shaco Passive Ability
Threats & Synergies
Evelynn
Dangerous due to largely being unable to know her position. Early invades are generally safe, but after level 6 it is best to avoid 1v1's against her. When counter ganking, try not to be too near your laners and do not use ult until she uses hers, as it gives her a bigger shield.
Change Log
5/9/2017 - Updated the build slightly due to the recent item changes.
6/16/2017 - THIS GUIDE WILL BE ARCHIVED UPON THE LAUNCH OF PATCH 6.13 DUE TO THE REMOVAL OF MANY OF Shaco's AP RATIOS AND HIS MAGIC DAMAGE FROM Two-Shiv Poison CHANGING TO PHYSICAL DAMAGE
REDS
Magic Penetration - Allows for your magic damage to ignore some of the enemies' magic resist when you gank them or skirmish the enemy jungler.
YELLOWS
Scaling Armor - Shaco is fine with either Scaling or Flat Armor, I prefer scaling because I mix in Scaling Health for more late game survivability.
Scaling Health - Shaco doesn't build much Max Health, so putting some in his runes is a good way to increase survivability in the late game. The longer you stay alive in fights, the more chance you have to out play the other team.
BLUES
Ability Power - This is your damage stat with this build, so you want as much of this as you can get.
QUINTS
Ability Power - This is your damage stat with this build, so you want as much of this as you can get.
These are the masteries you want to take. Thunderlord's Decree is the best key stone for the AP build, as it allows for maximum burst potential and leaves little room for counter play. It also heals you once you have Hextech Gunblade.
Pros
+ Lots of Vision + Has a Fear Mechanic + Does Not Need Flash so he can use an offensive spell instead. + Two-Shiv Poison is an execute. + Highly Mobile + Hybrid Scaling, making him highly versatile. + Great Split Pusher with High Burst Damage + Strong Early Game and 1v1 Power. Shaco is a great solo queue pick. With the known lack of communication in solo queue, and the the tendency for solo queue players to tilt when the enemy team makes strong plays in the early game, Shaco can be used to abuse those facts and decimate the morale of the enemy team and gain a psychological advantage for his team. His high mobility and burst damage, along with his ability to take Ignite and Smite allow for unparalleled early ganks and 1v1 power, almost guaranteeing his team First Blood. His mobility also allows him to counter jungle consistently to put the enemy jungler behind, not to mention he can kill most enemy junglers in a 1v1 if they try to contest the camp. |
Cons
- Poor late-game - Susceptible to CC - Fairly Squishy - High Learning Curve - Has a Bad Rep in the Community - Most of Shaco Play is Mind Games As per all champions, Shaco has his strengths and weaknesses. Compared to other junglers, Shaco has one of the most dangerous early games in League of Legends. This is typically offset by by a slightly bad Late Game, but due to changes that isn't nearly as bad of a late game as it used to be, and no longer starts around the 20 minute mark. He is however quite squishy and doesn't tend to build a lot of tank items, as he is a damage focused champion. Burst champs like Syndra, Veigar or Kha'Zix can easily kill Shaco if he gets caught out or doesn't time his stealth from Deceive properly. In the right hands, these weaknesses can be overcome and Shaco can be a highly effective carry throughout the game. 1111111111111111111111111111111 1111111111111 1111111111111111111111 |
FLASH
Flash is actually an optional spell for Shaco. He is one of the few champs in the game who doesn't actually need it for mobility. If you're uncomfortable on Shaco you can take this just to have it for safety, but most people who know how Shaco works will perceive you as new to the champ, but hey, maybe that's part of your mind game.
IGNITE
Ignite is an extremely useful, offensive Summoner Spell that allows you to inflict massive damage on an enemy even if they get away from you before you can ensure a final blow. Ignite is what I take most often because it allows for more kill pressure and faster, easy snowballing.
EXHAUST
Exhaust is a go-to for me on Shaco if I feel Ignite won't be necessary for whatever reason. The attack speed and movement speed slow, as well as the damage reduction is extremely helpful since Shaco is fairly squishy, and even though Exhaust is considered a defensive summoner, it can provide a lot of kill pressure for you as well.
The Aggressive Start
This is the order you want to clear in if you're looking to be a little bit aggressive in the early game. Just go to each camp in the order listed by its number, and it's worth looking to gank any time you're crossing the river, particularly if you have double buffs when it happens. This is how you will best maximize the kill potential when you gank. I recommend this path if you feel at all comfortable on Shaco as it lets you regularly deny the enemy jungler his camps. If you feel safe enough to do it, you can take more than just the buff camps too. Also, when you go into the enemy jungle, even if they already took the camps, be sure to ward if you have one so that you can see if/when they come back. Best times to recall are after camps 5 and 10, unless you had a gank/skirmish before then and deem it necessary.
The Passive/Safe Start
This path is much safer and can actually be used to confuse the enemy jungler early on, as they will expect you to take camps, but you won't. So if they attempt to take your red because they expect you to take theirs, your red won't be there. You can also mix the two paths together (i.E. Your Red, your Blue, your Gromp, their Red because you saw them at yours) to maximize on that unusual start. You may also encounter them invading your jungle and be able to collapse on them with your nearby laner(s). But if you only follow this route, just go by the numbers. Recall after camps 5 and 8 unless you had a gank/skirmish before then and deem it necessary.
Vision Control
Counter jungling is always best done when you can ensure your safety in the enemy jungle. The best way to do that is to ward, usually with a Control Ward or with a Jack In The Box, and sweep with Sweeping Lens/ Oracle Lens to eliminate enemy vision. If you see the enemy jungler at his Blue buff and you're near his Red side jungle, then you can safely assume you'll get away with taking a camp or 2 from his Red side. Likewise, if you see the enemy jungler at his Blue buff and notice he's low HP, you can typically get a kill and take the buff if you're nearby. So anytime you venture into the enemy jungle, try to put out some sort of vision.
Map Awareness
So how do you know it's safe if you don't have vision in the enemy jungle yet? Part of it is knowing the typical route of the enemy jungle champ, but if you don't know that, then you can wait for them to show on the map. If they show bot lane for a gank, you can assume safely that his top side is open for invasion and vice-versa. If you see the enemy jungler gank mid from the top side, you can assume he's going to head to his bot side after the gank and you can then ward his top side to gain vision control. You can also counter gank if you're nearby the lane the enemy is ganking, and then if you kill the enemy jungler, his entire jungle is open for business until about 12 seconds after his respawn timer. You can also get a good look at the enemy jungler's HP if they show on the map, and if they're low you can likely invade them for a kill and a free camp.
Communication
If you want to invade and you're unsure about it, but you have a laner who could use a buff, especially if their enemy laner is dead, communicate for them to come with you and try for an invade on the buff of choice. This will give you a 2v1 advantage if you encounter the enemy jungler and even if you don't get the buff or a kill/assist, you can at least get some vision down so you can keep an eye on that spot. You can also communicate with your team to learn the location of the enemy laners. For example, if you notice the Orianna mid went missing, find out if she backed and what her HP/Mana was like. If she had a good amount of either and she didn't recall, she's likely getting Blue from her jungler, meaning red side is free.
Know Your Jungle Timers
Knowing jungle timers is very important when you're thinking about counter jungling, especially since it can play into the other tips I've talked about. First buff will usually respawn around the 7 minute mark. If you know what buff they took first, you can use that knowledge to your advantage. Example: The enemy Lee Sin took Red buff first. It's 6:53 on the timer and he's ganking bot lane by his Blue buff. This means in about 7 seconds, his Red buff is gonna be yours for the taking. Likewise, if it's 6:53 on the game clock and you don't see Lee Sin, it's safe to assume he's on his red side, so you can probably take Gromp or a non-buff camp from his blue side. If you're super sneaky and already have vision of his Red, you can move to it as it's about to spawn and cheese him out of his red buff.
Here's A Chart To Show Possible Gank Options Before Outer Towers Are Gone:
Here's A Chart To Show Possible Gank Options After Outer Towers Are Gone:
Some Situational Gank Ideas
The Double Gank
The way this works is under a few conditions:
-
Enemy Tower Is Low
Enemy Laner Guaranteed to Recall or Die to First Gank
Your Teammates Don't Back After First Gank
How it's done:
-
Gank, from any position, the enemy laner(s). Works best on a solo lane.
Push down the first tower with your laner(s).
Walk backwards, away from the tower as though you're leaving the lane.
Make sure your laner(s) stay.
Wrap around through the enemy jungle and sit in a bush, over a wall, or both directly next to the lane.
As soon as the enemy laner(s) rerturn(s), immediately gank again with your teammates.
Why should I do this?
-
Because it is very frustrating to die twice in a row, once as soon as you come back to lane.
Because it can tilt the enemy laner(s), which makes them play worse.
Because it's a lot of easy gold.
The Clone Dive
Situation Where This Works:
A single enemy laner is under their tower, at low health. (below 50% with no heal ability other than a potion is optimal)
Your ally laner(s) are pushed close to the enemy tower.
You have Hallucinate off cool down.
Your ally laner(s) know this is happening.
How it's done:
-
From a bush in the jungle behind the enemy tower, use
Ping that you're going in, or if you have voice communication just say it, and then send in the clone as your laner(s) collapse in with it under the tower.
The clone will die, and so should the enemy laner, as long as nothing unexpected happens.
Be sure to keep your clone towards your enemy laner's escape route so that when it dies, the boxes will fear the enemy back toward your allies.
If the enemy laner starts to get too far away, use Deceive and finish them off.
Why should I do this?
-
No one likes to die under tower.
Because it can tilt the enemy laner, which makes them play worse.
Because it's easy gold.
Because you can then make a team play on an objective.
Because if it happens bot lane, it will make the other enemy laner nervous to come completely to their tower.
Wait for the engage, You're not an Initiator. Wait for the fight to start, and then use your Q - Deceive to stealth through or around the enemy team and take out the high priority squishies. (ADC, Mid Lane Mage, etc)
Join with your team only after the high priority enemies are dead. At that point you can help take out the tank, support, etc. and then push for towers or take objectives.
As AP Shaco, you're very good at the hit and run tactic in team fights. Charge up your Luden's Tempest and hit someone with an Two-Shiv Poison who has low health. Deceive and run to the back of the enemy team and place a Jack In The Box a few paces behind them. E the closest enemy towards you and run away, using Deceive if you have it off cool down. Then go in and delete another squishy target or help burst down a tank. Deceive to get out if you get low, but keep charging Luden's Tempest and using it with your Two-Shiv Poison.
As the Hybrid Build, you're better off deleting 1-2 squishy targets and then running to another lane to split push. You'll be very hard to 1v1 and you can take towers extremely fast, especially utilizing your Hallucinate. Try to go in and delete the highest threat, squishy champs and then push another lane as hard as you can. Regroup with your team in the event of an Ace favoring your team.
Gank your losing solo lane as early as possible, once you know you can get the kill. This gives them an advantage and makes them feel like you will be there.
Actively look to get First Blood as you need your power spike as early as possible to avoid falling off.
Do not be afraid to tax your laners. If you get the kill on a gank, it's okay to walk away, but if you only get an assist or there was no kill, take the CS to avoid getting behind.
As with any Jungler, if you see the enemy Jungler show themselves on the other side of the map, look to counter jungle the side you're on. This puts them behind if they do not get kills/assists on the gank attempt, and keeps you from getting behind if they do.
Gank winning lanes, this will press their advantage further and force the enemy laners to pay attention to your winning laners, allowing your losing laners to catch up (hopefully).
Ward everything. Your jungle, their jungle, and river. Your boxes act like small-range wards.
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