Wukong General Guide by Nikkei

Introduction

THIS GUIDE IS A WORK IN PROGRESS, WILL ADD MORE SOON.


Hey there. Glad you were able to stop by. Welcome to my little corner of builds.
Before I open the doors, let me first warn you, this is my first build guide.

Should also warn you I'm fairly low ELO.

My name is Griggory Manbear, I've been playing since early S2. Back in those days.. Boy. What fun. Anyone grow up in League always playing with their thousand win level 30 friends? Not fun, right? Well I'm here to tell you it gets better.

This guide will be mostly focused toward low ELO players, as I'm sure there's much better guides for Wukong out there, but this is based on my experience, and what I've come to learn in my area of ELO.

First things first, don't treat this guide as the be all end all, if you feel it deserves to be treated like that. Think of this more as an idea. Everything in this guide is simply the way I do things, but it is definitely open to interpretation. Develop your own style and build that you're comfortable with. Item sets are your friend!

I am open to any and all criticisms, feedback, or ideas you care to submit, and I will consider them all as payment for you reading this guide. Thank you for taking the time to do so, by the way. Appreciate it!

With all of that out of the way.. Welcome, to Wukong!

Pros and Cons

Pros

• Has a strong early game against many popular top lane picks.
• Can quickly destroy an ADC in teamfights.
• Has one of the best escapes - in my opinion.
• Will often win exchanges with his Crushing Blow.
• Tons of fun to play when you learn him.

• Is often focused in teamfights due to his high damage output, and his fantastic initiation.
• Tends to be a bit more squishy than other Wukong builds.
• Escape is easily shut down by champions with a reveal ability. Such as Lee Sin, or Caitlyn.
• Is countered by but really, what top lane isn't countered by Killer Croc?

Popular Match Ups / Counters

Oh hooray! My favorite part. Now, honestly, I hate 90% of these champs because of how often I play Wukong.

- I really hate Killer Croc. He's going to out sustain you through the entire laning phase with his Cull the Meek, you won't catch him with Cyclone because of his Slice and Dice, and his stun Ruthless Predator is going to be a massive hassle. Early on you won't have to worry too much about this match up, but be extremely cautious when he hits 6. If you want to go in for a kill on him, make sure you have your jungler there to back you up, as he is definitely going to win the exchange if you don't play dirty. Always make sure you keep tabs on his rage bar. If it goes through more than half of the bar, there's a good chance he'll get very aggressive, as his abilities will do more after he has 50 rage. Watch out for Dominus as well, as he will deal continuous AoE damage, and you won't be able to kill him easily without help. Always let your team know when he uses this skill, and try to coordinate a teamfight before it comes off cooldown.

- Everyone hates playing against Riven. In my experience, it has always been a skill match up. Early game you're going to do great against her, you might even get a kill. Maybe. What you need to watch out for is the Riven player's first back. Depending on how they do, they either come back roughly the same, or suddenly extremely strong. Once again, you're going to want to play safe after 6, but don't let her snowball. Instead, try to get yourself to snowball, and don't be afraid to ask your jungle for help.

- The biggest reason he counters you is because of his Tempest / Cripple. This AoE, if it lands on you, will reveal you even while invisible. This match up mainly requires you to anticipate over react. If you can make him use his Tempest / Cripple without using your Decoy, you'll be fine.

- He's a counter to Wukong the same way he's a counter to most melee AD champs. His Counter Strike. Try not to get into straight fights with him, unless he has much less HP than you do. His passive, Relentless Assault will hurt a ton. I find that you can easily lure out his Counter Strike then go in with Crushing Blow for a bit of damage.

- He's going to destroy what little bit of sustain you do have with Hemorrhage, his Decimate out ranges Crushing Blow, Apprehend is going to make escape difficult, and Noxian Guillotine is really going to screw you over if you're not careful. Don't take unnecessary risks with this match up. As with most so far, try to get your jungle to help out if you really need to take him down. If you're at low HP and you manage to escape, hug your turret, or go back immediately. I almost always opt to go back, as he can dive very easily with Noxian Guillotine. He's going to win lane. Exchanges will definitely tip in his favor, but late game you're going to do more for your team, so try not to feed him, and just farm up!

- It's everyone's favorite top! Yes indeed ladies and gentlemen, Garen, The Might of Demacia. He has a silence with Decisive Strike, which is also a speed boost. He can negate a lot of your damage with Courage, and he'll push a hell of a lot harder than you with judgement. As with Darius, you really need to get cautious when Garen hits level 6. His Demacian Justice is much more powerful than Darius' Noxian Guillotine, as it will do damage based on how much HP you're missing. Imagine Garen as the older brother that always beats you up. Your spin - cylone - will beat his - judgement - in terms of damage and utility, but he gets his at level 2 or 3, and has a fairly low cooldown on it.

- Nasus will mostly ignore you. His biggest priority is going to be farming up stacks with Siphoning Strike. This is a no no. Try to deny as much farm as you can against Nasus, and really use Crushing Blow as much as you can. His slow, Wither, is going to put you out of business for the duration. Try to stay out of Spirit Fire as this will negate your passive Stone Skin pretty heavily, while also doing damage over time. As with Renekton, you're going to want to play cautiously at level 6. His Fury of the Sands is very similar to Renekton's Dominus. With many Nasus players, they will take teleport to really assert dominance in lanes that need it. Watch for this, and if you absolutely have to, don't hesitate to use Cyclone to cancel the teleport.

Summoner Spells

Flash is going to double as both a surprise initiation - Flash to Cyclone - as well as a strong escape, especially when paired with Decoy.

Ignite is a good way to secure a running kill, and an especially good pair with Cyclone, as it just adds even more damage to your ultimate. Use with some caution however, as you might not be able to secure the kill with it.

Skills Explained

Lets get this train wreck started.

In this portion I'll go through all of Wukong's skills, and explain why they're good, tactics for using them, etc.

- Stone Skin: Increases Wukong's Armor and Magic Resist for each nearby Champion.

Now, lemme level with you for a second. This passive is fantastic. It makes you difficult to kill in teamfights - but not invincible, so caution is still necessary! This passive has such a synergy with his ultimate it's not even funny.


- Crushing Blow: Wukong's next attack deals additional physical damage, gains range, and reduces the enemy's Armor for a short duration.

Probably my favorite skill in the game, and is always going to be the first skill you pick up. This skill will make your early game trades against many champions extremely good, more often than not ending in your favor. This is also a good poke ability for Wukong, as it has a slightly increased range, allowing you to safely smack your opponent from behind your minions. This will also work on towers, so spam the hell out of it when pushing their turrets.


- Decoy: Wukong becomes invisible for 1.5 seconds. An uncontrollable decoy is left behind that will deal magic damage to enemies near it after 1.5 seconds.

This is your escape. It's also in a way used for chasing, but it doesn't get you far. You'll see a lot of good Wukong players use this, by not using it. Weird, right? Let me explain. Many Wukong players when running away, will try to get to a bush, then just stop moving. This makes the enemy think you've used your W, and they'll continue in the direction they think you've gone. Then, if necessary, you can actually use it and get away. You won't be levelling this much throughout early and mid game, as you would expect.


- Nimbus Strike: Wukong dashes toward a target enemy and sends out images to attack up to 2 additional enemies near his target, dealing physical damage to each enemy struck.

This is your gap closer. There's not really much to explain with this. You can use it as an escape by activating it on a minion, if you're seriously extended thinking you'd get the kill, but then getting surprised by the enemy jungle. This skill is also part of a combo, which I will explain later on.


- Cyclone: Wukong's staff grows outward and he spins it around, dealing damage and knocking up enemies. Wukong gains movement speed over the duration of the spell.

Welcome to Initiation City. Population: You. Now, lets be straight. This is a pretty damn good ultimate, especially when paired with Nimbus Strike as you will be able to get in for a quick, clean initiation on the whole enemy team, do your damage, and get out with Decoy. What you will have to remember about this ultimate is that it gives you a responsibility. Your team will expect you to initiate teamfights, and not doing so could lead to a butthurt ADC. Practise with it, learn to use it properly, and you'll be spinning your way through low ELO in no time. Also, remember how I said his passive has an amazing synergy with this? That's because you'll be in the middle of the enemy team, meaning your passive will be used to the fullest!


Now for the combo, the fun stuff! Once you hit three, your combo will be E then Q, then W, and you make your way out. This will eat so much mana, but it's a very effective way to win an exchange every time. Those who know Wukong well will expect this from time to time, and have at least one skill ready for you, depending on who they're playing. In terms of your teamfight combo, it depends on what team initiates. If you're the one doing the initiation, you want to go in with Nimbus Strike and immediately go into Cyclone, however, if they have initiated on your team, you need to focus on taking out the carry. Your level 3 combo will do nicely. As a reminder; Nimbus Strike + Crushing Blow + Decoy and walk your monkey butt out of there.

Since you've finished this book of a chapter, lets continue!

Runes

Runes
Greater Mark of Attack Damage 9	Greater Seal of Armor 9	Greater Glyph of Magic Resist 9	Greater Quintessence of Attack Damage 3

• Greater Mark of Attack Damage - This is what I like to take with Wukong. These can easily be switched out for greater mark of armor penetration. These will also help you last hit much more easily.
• Greater Seal of Armor - Very good pick up on Wukong. Without these, his early game is horrible against AD champs. My go to pick for seals.
• Greater Glyph of Magic Resist - These can also be switched out for Greater Glyph of Scaling Magic Resist. I personally prefer flat resist, especially when going up against champions such as .
• Greater Quintessence of Attack Damage - I personally always go for three of these. Those who find their early sustain to be lacking can switch out one or two for Greater Quintessence of Life Steal. Just remember; the easier it is to farm, the more farm you get, the better you do in lane.