Hi everyone, this is my first guide here on Mobafire and I'm just here to share some of my thoughts on how to build Nidalee. I find that Nidalee can be sometimes underestimated and many view that tank Nidalee isn't a viable build, that thought is wrong. It is actually possible to build Nidalee tanky and this is due to the fact how her cougar form gives her 30 armor and magic resist.

The second build I feature here, is more of an aggressive build which focuses on good skill shots while taking out the survivability from Nidalee. Although I hardly play the second build and usually play the first one instead since it becomes more of a harass than a carry, which is more fun in my opinion.

The third build here is quite new and I was inspired by my friend who built it like this. It focuses on precise spear throws and does insane amounts of damage while keeping a good amount of MP at all times. (Not sure about this one in the current meta...)



Credits to jhoijhoi for the template, which you can find here.

[18.02.2012] added this changelog and two pictures showing the viability of these two builds

[22.02.2012] changed the masteries for AD Nidalee to accommodate for the mastery changes (deadliness)

[02.03.2012] added new section to explaining why Nidalee is a bad choice for middle lane

[06.03.2012] implementing a new build for Nidalee which is still in testing...

[13.03.2012] reworked the hybrid build and took out kage's lucky pick

[16.03.2012] added more information regarding AP Nidalee's masteries

[24.03.2012] implemented yet another new build for support Nidalee

[01.04.2012] changed support Nidalee's masteries and changed order of item build on AP Nidalee

[17.07.2012] changed the AD Nidalee build slightly after atma's got nerfed hard and updated little bits here and there. overhauling support Nidalee's build

[03.10.2012] changed a lot of things on this guide

spaaaaaaaaaaaaaace

Pros + Good sustain with heal, can solo top + Somewhat tanky + Can harass with spear and counter jungle + Pounce can jump through many things (Jarvan, Veigar, terrian) + Can either build ad tank or hybrid + Well-laid traps can give you map awareness and random assists + Can easily chase opponents down + With passive, ghost and pounce, Nidalee transforms into Nyan cat

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Cons - No CC, not really good in teamfights - Quite useless early game without cougar form - Mana hungry (not with this AP Nidalee build) - Spears can be hard to land - Needs to be well-farmed to be good - High skill-cap - People assume that Nidalee can go middle lane

So basically Nidalee works in any of the three lanes other but would be better off solo top. It is possible for Nidalee to solo mid, although this makes little use of her passive since the two rivers aren't really touched upon while laning in mid. It is much better if the middle lane is left for either the AP or AD carry to lane instead. When Nidalee gains her cougar form the ability combo of Pounce, Swipe and Takedown make it really easy to get minion kills and allows her to get farmed.

Another benefit from laning in the top lane is that this allows for a better placement of the traps which can be used to stop ganks and counter jungle.Since the first build is an AD based build, this allows for Nidalee to become a great pusher while in a solo top lane. As soon as AD Nidalee hits level 6, then the pushing begins and teleport can be used to gank other lanes. As a result of this, Nidalee is then able to disappear from the lane and enter the jungle instead. This aspect of counter jungling will be further discussed later on in this guide.

I've played and been in some games where Nidalee was laning at mid. I'm here to say that this is a bad choice and that it would be better off if other champs take this role instead. Let's start off by explaining the skills.

movement speed increase in the bush? seems nice right? but notice how there are no bushes in mid lane and that while laning you'll hardly go there? some may argue that placing Nidalee at mid lane allows her to gank top/bot more easily due to the increase from movement speed, but this is only when the lane is pushed far enough such that mid lane can be left (Nidalee aint that good of a mid lane pusher).

seems like a good lane harasser right? No, the problem with laning at mid is that along with minions and the small space in mid lane, it becomes extremely hard to land a spear unless the lane is completely clear of minions. This problem doesn't occur as much in the top/bot lane as there are more angles and area for Nidalee to throw her spear.

since Nidalee is laning at mid, the places where she can put traps are mainly the top and bottom bush in the mid lane. The traps put there isn't much efficient due to the fact that they are long strips and it can become hard to gain map awareness from that. In addition to this, the presence of mid lane is quite important, therefore it is not ideal for Nidalee to run off into other parts of the map to set up her traps.

Basically the masteries chosen here are pretty common since it gives nice boosts for AD Nidalee. The reason for taking swiftness and runic affinity is to clear the enemy jungle and run away from them.

In order to maximize the damage output from Nidalee, the utility masteries points are switched for offensive masteries instead where AP is now the main point of this build. The attack speed is to make last hitting easier in the early game whilst the armor penetration is useful in late game for Javelin Toss / Takedown

same as the masteries for hybrid Nidalee

why not mana and mana regen? this is since there is archangel's staff and that early game mana problem will easily go away. So in this case, deal even more damage :)

• greater quintessence of desolation: typical AD runes
  
• greater mark of desolation: even more armor pen
  
• greater glyph of vitality: since atmog's are used this results in more AD but also useful for that extra survivability and force of nature.
  
• Greater Seal of Magic Resist: more magic resist makes you more tanky.

• Greater Quintessence of Ability Power: again typical AP rune
  
• Greater Mark of Precision: after this new rune was introduced it allows for both armor and magic pen, much more efficient compared to mixing and matching
  
• Greater Glyph of Scaling Ability Power: makes the spear damage even more insane
  
• greater seal of replenishment: since this build will be utilizing both the human and cougar form spells quite frequently, mana regen helps for more spamming

• Greater Quintessence of Ability Power: again typical AP rune
  
• Greater Mark of Magic Penetration: more magic penetration = more damage, need to say more?
  
• Greater Glyph of Scaling Ability Power: makes the spear damage even more insane
  
• greater seal of replenishment: keep on throwing those spears
  

Teleport: Nidalee pushes quite fast already and can disappear from her lane with ease

space Ghost: to chase and run away while counter-jungling

space Ignite: great finisher kills people who are near death

space Flash: useful for escaping Exhaust: slows people down and makes them deal less damage.

Well since AD Nidalee will be most fixed on going into the jungle to steal buffs and just jungle creeps after she gets her cougar form, the ghost allows for easy escape as well as catching up to those who escape inside the jungle. However, the most important thing to note is that AD Nidalee has a really weak spear chuck so it really isn't going to pick off anyone unless they are like one hit from death. Ghost just works much better in teamfights since it allows Nidalee to run away and bait off those players who are desperate and greedy.

In the case of hybrid and AP Nidalee, she can just flash throw her spears to pick off enemies since we all know how they can two-shot people. Furthermore, AP Nidalee isn't really tanky so she should be standing at the back of the team in teamfights and can flash away to safety.

• : start off with this and some potions for better sustain early game
  
• : overall a good item that provides life steal and a free ward while doing extra damage on minions
  
• : the tenacity and magic resist adds onto the sustainability
  
• : by this point damage is needed and this is a minor item that will be eventually built into trinity force
  
• : browsing through the jungle should be an easy task by now and through farming creeps, more hp
  
• : since Nidalee is lacking some CC, this item is quite good overall in increasing overall stats as well as giving a potential slow
  
• : not only does this further increase Nidalee's tankiness the increase in movement speed is significant for escaping and chasing opponents. This item replaces wriggle's lattern as by this point of the game it serves little use.
  
• : makes Nidalee even harder to kill, pounce Nyandalee pounce!
  

• : doran items are useful considering their price and how summoners can start with these as first items
  
• catalyst the protector: getting this item early on allows it to make use of its passive to increase the sustain of this fragile Nidalee
  
• : since this build revolves around AP damage as well, spell penetration causes Nidalee's spear to rip through squishy opponents
  
• : since damage is valued in this build, this item is taken such that Nidalee can maintain her sustain whilst gaining AP for damage and heal
  
• : after getting some sustainability, Nidalee still lacks some damage and this is taken to make up for that
  
• : there is no mana cost for using cougar abilities therefore it is easy to rack up stacks to allow for more spear damage
  
• : from having a high AP and good chasing abilities, this complements Nidalee's Javelin Toss / Takedown
  
• : this is the last item in this build since Nidalee is more of a late game character and there is little use of this item early on when sustainability is more useful
  
• : since this build is aimed to have a bit more sustain...spell vamp will be added instead of more damage
  

• : doran items are useful considering their price and how summoners can start with these as first items
  
• : helps with mana problems and is eventually built into Archangel
  
• : since this build revolves AP damage and intense spear throwing, be prepared to chip away the hp of enemy champs
  
• : builds AP to Nidalee and gives her that 3% AP based off mana
  
• : gives AP Nidalee even more mana...make enemy champs continue to recall or better yet kill them.
  
• : the mana to AP conversion stacks but not the mana bonuses...still stacking this is nice for even more damage
  
• : if you've got this far your AP should be insane and with this you increase your survivability. Watch as you gain health while they your target lose theirs.
  
• :to be honest, this item and will of the ancients are interchangeable in terms of order. The reason I put this as the last item is since if your this far...you'll be likely doing tons of damage and wouldn't really that magic resist.
  

Possible alternatives to the items listed above will be updated...

The main thing about Nidalee is no doubt her unique pounce and how it is possible to jump around certain places of the map, this will be updated at a later date.

mainly talking about Javelin Toss here...read above

mainly talking about Bushwhack here...read above

One of the most infamous skill that Nidalee possess is the ability to jump across certain terrain, making her a champion with excellent mobility for chasing and escaping opponents. One other use for this skill is to harass enemy champs with it during the laning phase. It is possible to pounce at an enemy and , combo them.

As a result of having great mobility, and laning ability, Nidalee is able to often disappear from the lane and enter the other side's jungle instead (enhanced when promote is taken). From this Nidalee can place her traps and go around stealing the red and blue buffs from the enemy. This works extremely well with the AD build since wriggle's lantern is built early on for easier minion kills.

In cases where there is no jungler on the team (there shouldn't be), it is possible for Nidalee to take on the role instead after getting wriggle's lantern and reaching level 6. Nidalee can have good map-awareness with her placement of traps and also from the position it is possible to finish off opponents directly from the jungle, picking up the easy kill.

Basically, this guide is to show how Nidalee is quite versatile and how one decides to build her ultimately depends on the team composition and what is more needed for the team. I personally prefer the first build as it focuses more on supporting the team through counter-jungling and tanking rather than being a damage dealer (suited for other champions). Anyways, thanks to anyone who read this guide up to this far. I hope this guide helps you in game :)

Credits to jhoijhoi for the template, which you can find here.