INTRO!!!!
WELCOME!!!!! I'm not an Elitest but katarina is my main and favorite champ ever since i bought her and it kills me when people play her bad. This is my first guide so if its not the best well let me know and i'll see what i can do. I'll try and update it as i keep improving but so far what i've got seems solid so look through comment vote but just have fun. WELCOME TO THE JUNGLING KATARINA GUIDE!

WHAT TO FIND:

Intro

Overview of Katarina

Pro's and cons

Runes

Ability Explanation

Summoner Spells

Item explanation/alternatives

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Katarina is an AP assassin. Because of this she is a good mid and solo top champion, but with her rework and new AOE Sinister Steel she can now be a viable Jungler. Making Katarina the new AP assassin jungler. With her quick ganks and decent sustain after Wriggle's Lantern. Now without further or due lets dive into the jungling world of Katarina i hope you don't mind sharp edges....

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PRO'S
+BURSTY GANKS
+Clears camps quickly
+Movement buff
+Great early damage
+Mana less (biggie)
+Can be AD or AP
+Great for Gap closing

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CON'S
- Pretty CD reliant early on
- Focused in team fights
- No CC reliant early on lanes for it
- Squishy
- Slow pre boots
- Weak Ganks pre 6

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Reasoning: These Marks give you great early power with your spells. Since Katarina is AP based this will ultimately help her clear jungle camps while also giving her early damage on champs since most don't have spell resist so early on setting up successful ganks.

Greater Seal of Vitality
Reasoning: More health = more damage your allowed to take before having to go back. I take these to give me more health as i level up letting me have a better sustain in jungle. Can be replaced with Greater Seal of Armor


Reasoning: Katarina is very CD dependent being AP yes she does do some well placed auto attacking for some slow damage but ultimately CD dependent. More CD reduction means spam spam away watch the kills pile up goes along great with her passive Voracity.


Reasoning: MORE MORE AP!!! 3 of these leads u to 15 AP at level one talk about hard hitting ganks same reasoning as Greater Mark of Ability Power leads to your abilities hitting much harder.

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Katarina's passive makes her a death god in team fights. On every assist or kill her normal Abilities are reset. This also reduces her Ultimate's cooldown by 15 seconds making 2 kills or assist at max level lets you ult again.


Katarina's Q throws an AOE blade that leaves a mark on the target much like akali's Mark of the Assassin. When triggered by an ability or auto attack will deal additional damage. This should be your opener to get the mark out on everything possible.

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Sinister Steel
Katarina's W this is her new ability after her rework. This sends out a flurry of blades all around you also giving you a short speed buff. This new aoe is easily spammable due to its short CD. Great for farming your jungle creep camps and triggering all your marks from Bouncing Blades.




Katarina's E or as my friends called it in a match i owned them in her "poof". Short summery this is Kat's gap closer placing her directly behind her opponent. Now I use this as a ganker/escape ability since you can jump to friendly and enemy targets.




Katarina's R or ultimate. This is a hard core team fight winner right her. You go into a ball and throws knives into the 3 nearest champs dealing a high amount of damage. This is a channeled ability so go in after a team fight is initiated to avoid being CC'd out of it. Practice helps you for this and don't be afraid to use this willy nilly it has a short CD and can set you up for future kills or just getting a champ off lane.

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MAIN SUMMONER SPELLS

Required for any jungler lets you secure your big creep mobs such as Blue/Red/Dragon or for that awesome steal on baron to troll the other team!



Because of shunpo you have flash already I take Ghost because it lets me get around the map very quickly for those times bot just got wiped out or you need that speed to engage a poorly place team fight. Also Kat isn't the fastest champ at 395 movement speed this helps her make up for it.

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Alternatives

You have a personal flash its your E. But hey if you don't agree with ghost and you need that extra get away through a wall, replace Ghost with Flash.



Because you don't get a hard CC till your Rylai's Crystal Scepter replace your movement spell I.E Ghost/Flash and make it so your opponent can not get away.



Any other spells i have no mentioned should NOT be used and therefore should not be worried about.

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CORE BUILD

Ok so this Above build is my usual Katarina build has great damage good sustain a cc of sorts and some magic pen for dem tanks U DONT FOCUS. :D


ALTERNATIVE ITEMS

This is for when your getting solo'd out alot in those games your dominating at become completely shut down. This is a more AD/ survivability build.

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Explanation of Items:
This is a must for most junglers plus you get a free ward every 3 min. The armor, AD, Life steal, and lastly the Minion proc make you have amazing sustainability while clearing Jungle Camps as fast as possible.

These are the Basic AP shoes for most AP champs 20 spell pen need i say more? can be switched out for Mercury's Treads for heavy cc team.


This is a must to make up for kat's lack of a CC. Rylai's gives you alot of benefits a slow whenever you hit. AP making your abilities hit even harder, and lastly overall some much needed health to keep you alive and "poofing".


ZOMG! Ok this is Kat big hitter. This gives kat the most damage out of all her items. The Plus 140 AP plus the passive of increasing your AP by 30% can easly give you 200 AP which is awesome damage perfect for the quick bursting gank.

ahh the gunblade one of my favorite items for Kat to bad you get it so late. There is much Controversy over this item and when to buy it personally i buy it last. It cost so much early game where the money can be spent better elsewhere. Kat use every stat from the AD the AP spell vamp and the slow on the active you can never have to much CC to secure those high valued kills. Defiantly a buy but it can wait till late game.

This is a fairly new item I've been picking up. The active stacks with how much AP you have and with a full build can take away half of your apponents health with it. The plus 80 AP is just a bonus and sine you have a [[Rabadon's Deathcap] this last item can put you over 800 AP easy.


ALTERNATIVE ITEMS:
I take these when you have a heavy CC opponent team where its just stun stun slow slow how the heck am i supposed to get away. Kat is an assassin she should be in and out not standing there taking it to the face.

For those times you are taking it to the face replace Rylai's Crystal Scepter with this it will give you more health some more AD for auto attacks and you still get your cc slow.

If your just getting owned and i mean annihilated in team fights this is how you stop this. Hit your ult then your Hourglass watch you channel your ult without getting hit and focused. Watch the enemy team QQ as you play clean up on their faces. replace Rabadon's Deathcap with this.


Team stacking magic resist and your Sorcerer's Shoes not handling it well bump off Deathfire Grasp and throw in this puppy. Gives you some survivability and the spell penetration to get you through those fights and tear your enemy to shreds.

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So here you see how to start your jungle have somebody HARD!!! leash blue for you and just continue through the numbers and gank when u can.

Wards are numbered in priority
Wards 5 and 6 are primarily to keep track of the enemy jungler no jungler=no real need to ward but map awareness never hurts.

STEPS:
1. Have the laner initiate
2. Run in and Bouncing Blades
3. Shunpo to the desired target
4. next sinister steel run ahead of your target smash your R or Death Lotus and watching Killing spree show across your screen or go for the second target and see double kill.
5. Do a /dance and go buy stuff

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Katarina Is very squishy early on before Wriggle's Lantern you need to choose your ganks well.
Skip Golems till level 5 or 6 whichever you prefer their health and damage is more of a risk then a reward early on and what they give you really isnt any help at all so I usually skip them entirely till later on.

Counter jungling
This is something i do not see enough of. If you see the enemy jungler bot and their camping there don't just stand in your jungle and watch, your Katarina dangit. Run into their jungle show it who's the real boss take wraiths or a blue/red buff. Make them Fear you.

Dont push a lane
If somebody has to go off lane its the junglers job to watch it this doesn't mean push a lane it means reset it. This comes with practice but the object is to make the minion stay at mid lane.

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TIPS:
Cant reach that just out of range target? No problem Shunpo to a minion right behind them and hit sinister steel immediately letting you catch up and keep attacking for that kill.

Katarina IS SQUISHY! For team fights don't go in first. Let your tank initiate count to 4 and then Shunpo into the frey and Death Lotus to hear the words PENTAKILL!!!

Always Watch your lanes and have good map awareness let teammates know when your coming for a gank or when your gonna give them a buff.

Give up blue! Yes Yes blue is very nice on kat for the cd reduction thats why you take it for the first 2 spawn after that give it to your mid. He/she will make better use of it then you will. Share the love.

Warding
You have a Wriggle's Lantern use it. Its a free ward keep a ward at key places I.E Dragon / Baron Nashor or top/bot lanes by bush if they cant afford one or are getting camped.

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Well I guess this is the end of this guide. I hope you liked it and it was helpful in your gameplay. I'll update it as i see fit and figure out more things as much as i can. Don't be shy tell me if you have some input i wont mind and I'll take what you say into consideration.


SPECIAL THANKS:
Mobafire for letting me make this guide.
Nocturne Cr8erd
Ezreal Woulfram
Graves Kodenn
Karthus Geranguas
Volibear Mirr
Zyra RoyalAtreyuX
Shaco Doctorspy
Akali thegreatall




and the countless countless people I have played against to hone my skills at Katarina the queen of poof.

I hope you have as much fun reading this guide as I have creating this.

I'm sad to say I have now retired this guide. Kat jungle was fun, while it had lasted. But come S3 the jungle and items have changed to much that now Kat jungle is practically useless. I have now archived this guide, just for personal reasons. Stay sharp everybody.