Alright so with GP, depending on matchup u either go ham for grasp or first strike proc, or u play it safe. Either way, perfect recall is 700g aka sheen, if u die before getting 700g, then its gonna be very hard to comeback from that. I recommend cocky plays aka lvl 2-3 all ins cause people often dont expect your damage ( passive burn + barrel + Q and grasp/ first strike proc). If u manage to get first blood, ur on great way to stomp the lane cause sheen is basically love for GP. If u are in favorable position and matchup, u always want to first poke enemy down with Q grasp/FS, and when u get them about to half hp, thats the time when u look for potentional kills. Setup barrel and try to hit it, because if u do hit the barrel on 50% enemy, its pretty much always a kill (flash - AA passive - ignite - Q). This all in is very good against unfavorable matchups because it gets u sheen faster and it will put u in more or less even position. Lvl 2-3 all ins are id say worth even if u die (kill for kill), because then u get that sheen, and people often dont really respect GPs damage (and then they go on reddit to cry about gp OS ing them). U have solid kill presure pre 6, so u should always first poke them first and then look for kill.

With ulti, all ins and fights become so much easier, u got that slow and a bit of damage from R, and ofc u can look for cheesy 1hp kills across the map. With good poke and again barrel setup, u can bait enemy into u, and then when u pop the barrel, R and they are gonna be very slowed giving u opportunity to even kite them if u want (GP passive), and most of the time u will have damage to 1v1 almost everyone (depends if u are behind or not). Lvl 7 is when u get huge powerspike (decay), thats when can go ham even more and look for favorable 1v1's. I also recommend using your R for wave clear, cause yeah u wont have it for some time, but ur ultimate isnt too much other than AoE slow, but it can be cheesy wave clear tool to prevent enemies from getting tower.

Lvl 13 is basically the strongest gp gets ( mad decay). This is the time u have the biggest kill pressure and even if u screw some barrels, u can still comeback with other barrels due to that decay rate ( something people often dont respect enough). If u get lvl 13 early, it should just be ggs for u cause if u get to this level early in game, rarely is there someone who can stop u or outdamage u. Try to farm up xp (gold too) fast as possible as lvl 13 is one of ur biggest winning cons for u and secret success of many good gp mains.

As i mentioned earlier, u either play it safe or ham, depending on matchup. U always want to favor xp and cs more than just kills, because a lot xp will get u to lvl 13 the fastest ,logically. If u are against basic mage, u try the all in tactic and if that works, u should have smooth sailing from there. Against assassins its basically the same as u can cheese them a lot and i would say that some assassins u can even outdamage early. However, against tanks, if u know and feel confident that u can get that early all in, do it, if not then better just play it safe and farm up for mid-late game. Tanks are not a issue in early game but due to often hard cc and ofc tankiness, u would not always be able to get them early. All in all, if u know u can, u go for it , if not then safe cs, ur goal is mainly to get as much gold and exp u can.

There is not much to say about GP late game. Its basically one shot fest. Here it all depends on objectives and overall team game. U as a gp in late game have power to delete mages and carries, and thats what u should do. If u get hella fed and transition ur early lead to mid-late game, u will probably have 4-6 items to enemy opposing 2-3, giving u those juice one shots. Even if u are behind, remeber, one good GP barrel can change the game.

As a GP main/otp https://www.leagueofgraphs.com/summoner/eune/Kurch%C3%ADna#championsData-ranked), i advise u to play gp cocky. If u are new to GP, it will take u some time to learn him, but believe me, its gonna be totally worth it. I never got bored of GP and its a champion that can completely turn games. Its also very fun champ to play when u get to know how to play him (always cream when u get those juicy one shots). In current state of league, GP is pretty good and it will get u good results if u put good effort.

GP mid is superior to GP top (opinion) cause u are mainly closer to main objectives and it gives u more freedom. It just puts u in more free postion to get into teamfights rather than top.

Skins are preference ofc, but captain GP is something speciallll (love it), also pool party gp with those goofy watermellons.

I mostly go prowlers since its currently the best option for one shot. U always want to get sheen on first back aka 700g as that will give u a huge powerspike. Boots are optional/situational but Ionian's are the best in my opinion, second mercuries. Reason why prowlers is superior to duskblade is because it gives u option to go ham if u are ahead, you can just jump on enemy mages and carries and delete them, and overall prowler's give u potential for maximum damage. Yeah invisibility from duskblade is nice but it doesnt help GP that much as prowler's or even immortal does. Shieldbow is better than duskblade not only cause it gives u more survivability, but it also gives u faster way and option to go crit build (with shieldbow u can rush full crit easily). Shieldbow is safer pick for games where u want to be in back and spit huge crits and when u fall behind, while prowlers is primary as it gives u option to go ham, especially if u are ahead as it gives u huge kill pressure all the time. Triforce builds are mostly extinct on mid GP, but even now and then it can be useful for games where u opt for more stats and attack speed (go triforce if u intend to splitpush mostly). If u are a confident and see opportunity to get fed and go max damage possible, then after sheen, buy tear second, stack it, and then go for muramana and swap it for collector(anytime u opt for muramana, swap collector out). So, perfect recall is sheen-ER-Ionians-prowler-collector-infity-dominiks.

In the current meta and state of league, GP mid is pretty good. This guide is for MID, but if u get into matchups against champs i mentioned, then u can also play it same way on top. Reason is simple as i said, GP mid has more freedom and is closer to more events in game (objectives, early fights), that is especially in current meta, and where often early cheeses and fights can decide games in low-mid elo. GP is pretty much in always solid state and hes not meta champ. GP mid is what got me to the highest rank i achieved, mainly because as mid GP, enemy midlaners dont see often GP on mid and they dont respect u as much, thinking that they can destroy u and dont really know how to play against u. Also, mid GP has bigger snowball and carry potentional as if u win for example 2v1 (which is very easy) against enemy mid and jungle, u will often have no problem stomping that game, where as top GP, its harder to transition ur lead overall, regardless if u are fed or not. If u are in lower elo, GP mid is especially good because if u get early lead, u can easily turn the game in your favor with those early fights. As GP mid, u can also roam bot and help your botlaners, or toplaner, or even your jungler, simply u will always have more freedom and time to react and be useful rather than GP top. (look for roams on bot as u can easily win dragon fights, simply, the bigger the fight, the better, because of your AoE).

When you are behind as GP, its gonna be hard to comeback, especially if u die before getting sheen. Game is still winnable but if u lose hard in lane, u will essentially be kinda useless. Best thing to do is even before u start to fall behind, setup yourself for safe plays and just farm that exp/gold. GP is a champ that scales mad good, so not everything is lost if u got oblitarated in lane, farm up, get items, get lvl 13, and you are bound to comeback in mid to late game and one shot them. With GP its all bout the time it takes u to get your items and XP, so try to minimize that time u need to get items and xp asap. Even if u die to enemy laner, thats when u shift your playstyle to farming and u will get items pretty fast (Q plunder+waveclear). If u somehow fail to comeback, worry not cause even GP who is behind is still very useful; his barrels for waveclear, ultimate for teamfights or helping your team engage or disengage with your R. Also, one good way to play GP when you are behind is being close to your tower and always letting the enemy push, this being the reason because u can easily win and survive dives with your barrels and thats one of your biggest chances for comeback, as your barrels slow and do huge damage and your W helps a lot with cleansing the CC or healing a bit up, so try to bait enemies into cheesy dives.

In this guide, im not gonna tell u how to do or perform any of those tricks (ghost barrel, two part etc...), mainly because this guide sorta requires u to have at least basic or familiar knowledge of GP. Reason also is because those tricks have learning curve and it will take u some time to perfect them and utilize them all the time. Yeah u can play and stomp with GP without any of those tricks, but i'd say that for best possible outcome, eventually u will need to master at least some basic tricks (passive reset, triple, two part, ghost), as those tricks are very useful. Once again people often don't see GP that often and u can easily suprise them with those combo's, giving u also that factor of surprise. If u are casual GP player and want to main him or even become otp, tricks are what make u that infamous GP god. I'm gonna credit Solarbacca here, and if u want to learn those tricks asap, i recommend watching this video (not whole 3h video lol). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XhG91wJnh4&t=2083s&ab_channel=Solarbacca
Good luck fellow pirates

I will try to keep this guide updated to the current standards and meta of a game. I will post any updates on build and playstyle based on my experience and game at the time, that is if it gets too different from current playstyle.