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Garen Build Guide by BushBox

Top BEST Garen guide season 11 | matchups included | Mid & t

Top BEST Garen guide season 11 | matchups included | Mid & t

Updated on November 19, 2020
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League of Legends Build Guide Author BushBox Build Guide By BushBox 236 23 592,085 Views 10 Comments
236 23 592,085 Views 10 Comments League of Legends Build Guide Author BushBox Garen Build Guide By BushBox Updated on November 19, 2020
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Runes: Conqueror Garen

1 2 3 4
Precision
Conqueror
Triumph
Legend: Tenacity
Last Stand

Resolve
Conditioning
Overgrowth
Bonus:

+9 Adaptive (5.4 AD or 9 AP)
+9 Adaptive (5.4 AD or 9 AP)
+65 Base Health

Spells:

1 2
Core summoner spells
LoL Summoner Spell: Flash

Flash

LoL Summoner Spell: Ignite

Ignite

Threats & Synergies

Threats Synergies
Extreme Major Even Minor Tiny
Show All
None Low Ok Strong Ideal
Extreme Threats
Ideal Synergies
Synergies
Ideal Strong Ok Low None
Introduction to Garen

Introduction to Garen


Garen is a pretty easy champion to learn and is very good for climbing. He has a high damage, high sustain, and a tanky kit. I reccomend playing him because of multiple reasons: He is fun to play because his item and rune choices are limitless. He can build so many items in the game and he has multiple good runes. My second reason is that he can show you what you need to improve. by this I mean if you play Garen his simple kit will feel natural to play and easy to learn therefore you can focus on macro mechanics like when to trade with the enemy laner, and when to back off and sit at tower and farm the lane out. There is a streamer who many of you may have heard of and is very notable in the Garen community that is Riste, Riste is a challenger Garen otp. He also has a Twitch stream. Click here for his Twitch stream. It is clear Garen can be very good in the right hands. In this guide i'll go over combos, Runes, items, matchups, and off meta builds as well as a Q&A.
Pros & cons & FAQ
PROS

+ Can be a lane bully
+ Easy kit to learn
+ Large item pool
+ Very tanky
+ Deals lots of damage
+ Shred's through tanks
CONS

- Can get poked out of lane
- can fall off late game
- very immobile
- CC counters him
- grevous wounds stop passive

FAQ


Q- Why should I play Garen?
A-You should play Garen because he is a high damage champion that can solo carry games when mastered. He's semi mobile, has a very simple kit, and is anyone can learn him in 10 or so games. Because of this I recommend Garen for everyone and even if your a veteran League player Garen can point our your mistakes like wave management, when to trade, and when to splitpush. For these reasons I recommend picking up Garen.

Q- Is Garen good in every elo?
A- The simple answer is no. Yes Garen is a good champion but his simple kit and very brain-dead play style can be a big downside. In low elo's Garen dominates. but when you get to around diamond he starts to not really be a power pick anymore.

Q- Does Garen have any bad matchups?
A- YES HE DOES! if you wanna play Garen you have to be extremely patient. In some matchups you can do nothing but sit at tower and try to farm. Most ranged matchups play out like that and sometimes Garen is really not fun to play in them situations. But when you are ahead and when you are doing good Garen is so fun to play.

Q- What does Garen provide throughout the game?
A- Garen is pretty decent throughout the game. His early game is so so depending on the matchup but he can usually make up for it with good roam and well times rotations. His mid game is his prime. By 15 maybe 20 minutes (post turret plates marks the mid game) he can do more since small teamfdights will break out and he can focus the carry. Late game he's pretty weak but he's not bad at all. He does though get countered to most adc's late game. Like a Vayne and Quinn can kite him till the end of the earth. Due to this he's easier for adc's to target in teamfights. So in conclusion Garen id decent throughout the game but his strongest point is the mid game.
Why Garen middle?
Garen middle is so much better than Garen top for multiple reasons. For anyone looking to try out Garen i'd reccomend you play him mid over top. Same with veteran Garen players. If you've played him for a long time top then try mid it's a lot better!
my reasons:

1. Garen mid can roam.
Garen mid is a powerhouse when roaming. You can roam bot with the rune Predator and pick up kills for you and your bot! You basically push in the minion wave head towards bot and when your in the tribrush or close to the brush across from it you activate predator and chase the enemy adc down with Q and the movement speed gained from predator.

2. Garen has winning matchups
Having a winning matchup top besides Wukong is a Garen mains dream. When you go mid Garen you have so many favorable matchups such as Zed, Sylas, and Katarina. Garen mid basically preforms well against assassin champions. Thats why Wukong is Garen tops only winning matchup. Yes Zed, Katarina, and some other mid laners have more mobility than you but you have the resistances to make them uneffective against you.

3. Less confusion on what runes to take
Since there is so many viable runes on Garen its hard to decide what runes to take. WHen you go Garen midyou take Predator 99% of games (unless its some off meta mid laner). Predator allows you to roam and get to lane a lot faster. New Garen players get confused when I say you can take Phase Rush, Grasp of the Undying, Conqueror, or Predator. Yes these three other runes are very good but Garen mid utilizes predator much better than top Garen.
Garen combos
This is the section where I talk about the combos you can pull off with all of your ability's and summoner spells. It will start off with easy combos then get itnto some more advanced tricks.

Easy Phase Rush Q+E+ Bami's Cinder- This combo is ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY to know if your taking Phase rush. Basically if your wanting to take short trades this is the combo for that. Say against a Darius you can't take long trades so you go in and automatically hit him with your Q then E him and run away with the proc of Phase rush. You can also do this with Randuin's Omen. You use the active on Randuin's omen and Q+E and run away.

Easy W+E before getting stunned- If your against a Camille or a melee top laner that can stun you this is necessary to know. basically right before getting stunned you W to block some damage then E so their forced to take damage when your stunned. This does not work on say a Kennen that can stun you from far away.

Easy Stealth Q- Stealth Q is when your spinning on an opponent and you hide your Q in the animation of your E. You can use this to surprise silence enemy's and its very easy to learn.

Medium Q+ Flash+Ultimate- This really isin't hard but if you don't flash in range to land your ultimate and their to far to chase with Q then you done screwed up. This can be useful when your enemy is very low health but to far away from being auto-attacked to death. basically you flash, Q if you need to gap close then ult them. If you have Ignite You can Flash+Q+ignite+ult and that should kill them. The reason this can backfire is that most low hp targets are gonna be under their turret and if you flash and don't ult then you wasted flash and you probably took a turret shot or two. With no flash that means your prone to getting ganked.

(Rip flick of the wrist you'll forever be rembered as the hardest Garen combo :/ )
Runes
Resolve tree

I don't normally take this rune but when I do it's against matchups where I have to play aggressive like Tryndamere or any tank matchchups like Ornn or Maokai. It give's me sustain in lane which is always good but taking Phase Rush or Predator can be a lot better. This is not a bad rune to take though.
I take this as my first keystone on the Resolve tree since I usually split push some time in the game. This can also be useful when you and your bot lane trade and the enemy's tower is still up.
I like taking this if i'm not up against a ranged opponent since Second Wind is better for them situations. I do take this if the enemy team is very mixed damage (example 2 AD 3 AP).
I take this when i'm against a ranged opponent since you'll proabaly be poked a lot so someone like a Teemo or a Vayne I would take this against.
I take this in most melee matchups or where the enemy team is full AD and mostly melee champions.
I always take this for my third keystone since the other 2 just aren't worth taking on Garen. Plus it makes me slightly more tanky.


Sorcery tree

This is one of Garen's best rune pages. It scales very well thanks to you taking Transcendence and Gathering Storm. Phase rush let's you get you out of bad situations. Due to Conqueror being added as a new viable rune for Garen this rune page has fallen off a bit. The matchups he used to take it in such as Darius or Renekton he take conqueror now. Nevertheless this is still a good page for Garen but if the team is tanky be sure to take conqueror.
I always take this if my lane opponent is AP based. If you don't take this and you have a AP lane buy Hexdrinker early on. The shield on both of these will save your life.
I take this when I take phase rush since if I need a quick escape and Phase rush is on cooldown I can ult and run away. And it can gap close if the enemy is really low you can ult them then chase them down with the bonus movement speed bonus.
I take this really only for the extra 10% cdr and the extra damage. it also gives you a nice level 10 power spike that most top laner's aren't expecting.
I like taking this as my second keystone since it enhances the movement speed of phase rush and my boots.
I ALWAYS take this if I go Phase rush. Phase rush is Garen's best scaling rune page and this is one of the reasons why. This keystone scales so well and its a must take.



Domination tree
Predator is one of Garen's best rune pages. It allows him to do so much such as roam, gap close, and go in fast to dive the enemy carry in a teamfight. This is the only rune page I take for Garen mid since it allows me to roam bot and get our bot lane ahead (You can also roam top but in the meta right now its whoever has the winning bot lane wins.). You can also use it to get to lane fast if you had to take a bad back and the enemy mid is pushing the wave under tower or if the enemy has a lot of pusing power at all like a Talon.
You wanna take this as your first keystone since you get that sweet sweet lethality and magic penetration when you use your Q.
I take this or either Eyeball Collection. I take this to get more vision on the map and can even be used to backdoor the enemy base with Teleport
I prefer to take this over Zombie Ward since it gives me more damage and more damage is never bad on Garen.
I take this over any of the hunters because it allows me to use Nimbus Cloak if i'm taking that. If im not I still take it because I would rather my ultimate be up more than my items, or have more movement speed, or have a little bit of healing since I already have that in my kit.

Precision tree
Recently Garen's E got a slight rework allowing him to fully stack conqueror in only 5 spins. This obviously is the best rune for shredding through tanks like Ornn and Malphite. I think this is a top only rune though since you don't see many tanks mid. I only recommend taking this against pure tank champions and not bruisers that get tanky like Darius or Renekton. This rune is going be great for all Garen players because now he has proper tank shred.
This is one of the best runes for teamfighting because when you kill an enemy you get 12% of your health back and its great for sustain.
Im still not certain on this yet. I feel like its great because of it synergy with Garen's E but if the enemy has tons of cc like Morgana or Amumu then maybe Legend: Tenacity will be better for the situation.
As I brought up in the section about Legend: Alacrity this rune is great for teams with a lot of cc. Its totaly up to you which one you choose but I go with Alacrity unless the enemy team has lots of cc then i'll go Tenacity.
This rune is fantastic. Not only does it give you AD but you deal more damage to low hp champions which means your ultimate does more damage.

Inspiration - I don't reccomend taking inspiration as your main keystone anymore. It got nerfed and its better taking Predator against ranged matchups now.
Item guide

Starting items

Doran's shield is Garen's best starting item. It gives him health, health regeneration which synergises well with Garen's passive, and it helps last hit. I don't reccomend gaeeting any other starting item execpt early rejuvination beads.
This item is good for lanes that are a big AD threat like Tryndamere. The bonus 15 armor it gives can be very useful and it builds into core items like Dead Man's Plate.

Mid game items



PHAGE
Phage is an essential item for Garen. It build's into item's such as Black Cleaver and Trinity Force. You can usually afford it on your first back or at least the two component's. I recommend this being your first early item you buy if your not taking Phase Rush (if you are rush a Bami's Cinder ).
GO THIS ITEM WHEN YOU TAKE Phase Rush! This item apply's a stack of Phase rush every second. I usually get this on my first back if i'm taking Phase rush. If you need to keep pushing waves into the enemy tower you can get this item to since its better than Tiamat on Garen.
This item is very helpful against matchups where their an AD threat. It builds into core items like Dead Man's Plate and Thornmail. Its very good against champions like Zed and Talon early on since they usualy pick up a Serrated Dirk.
Bramble vest is an extremely versatility item and the Grievous wounds it applies on enemies is handy but I prefer Executioner's Calling. Since Executioners calling is cheaper and can be built into Mortal Reminder and the only thing Bramble vest can be built into is Thornmail which is a very situational item. if the enemy is ahead and they are an AD threat then feel free to build bramble vest.
This Item is helpful in matchups where the enemy is very autoattack based. So matchups like Tryndamere and Jax this item would be good. It also builds into Thornmail so thats a bonus if you need to build that.
The only time I get this item is when im building into a Sterak's Gage Otherwise I really dont buy it often and would prefer to buy a Phage or Sheen. Since Garen can apply on hit effects Frozen Mallet might be a viable option, and this builds into it.
This item is a lifesaver. The little shield it gives you can really help in tight moments. I love building this against any AP champions. So this item is very good against someone like Teemo, Vladimir, Swain and any other AP mages. It also builds into Maw of Malmortius which is a lategame hexdrinker.
This item I only take against someone who heals heavily or has lifesteal. So someone like a Fiora or a Nasus. Its also good against Vayne or Twitch (basically anyone who build's [[blade of the ruined king) lategame if you want to pick it up.
This item is one of Garen's go to magic resit item. It build's into Adaptive Helm and Spirit Visage two core magic resist items for Garen.
I've been building this item recently against the new Mordekaiser because it stops his ultimate completely. If the enemy team is extremely CC heavy and is mostly magic damage I recommend building this. So for example a Sona, Kennen or an AP Neeko

CORE ITEMS



Garen has a huge pool of items to build throughout stages of the game, but he has the most choices when it comes to late game. Garen can build heavy damage items such as Youmuu's Ghostblade or he can build more defensive items such as Dead Man's Plate if the situation calls for it. With a bunch of items to choose from itemizing for Garen properly can be daunting. That's why i'm here to help you choose the right items fit for your situation.


Offensive items for Garen


TRINITY FORCE
This item may seem troll on Garen and it's just not. In my opinon it's much better than Black Cleaver. It gives me everything I need. It gives attack damage, attack speed, health, and two passive on it that are fantastic. The Sheen passive is great because you can proc it with Q then E on the enemy for extra damage. The Phage passive also is very good since it can help you kite. I always build this item on Garen mid. Anytime your ahead you also wanna build this item.


BLACK CLEAVER
The black cleaver is an extremly good item on Garen. Most Garen players build it as their first item but I choose not to most of the time. Since I play mid lane Garen there isn't a lot of beefy champions with armor like there is top. If the enemy team is stacking armor later in the game, sure go for it since it will help out. Also if your adc is ahead and they don't build The black cleaver then you can build it to help them out more. If you have an adc like Miss Fortune then building it isn't necessary unless she's massively behind.


STATIKK SHIV
Currently Statikk shiv is the best crit item on Garen. it give's a massive ammount of attack speed which is great on Garen because of his E scaling with it. it also gives you crit chance, movement speed, and the energized passive which is useful. I'd choose it over any other crit item. its cheap and also can be swapped out for a Stormrazor lategame.


PHANTOM DANCER
Phantom dancer has recently been added as one of Garen's core items due to his E scaling with attack speed. This item is great for his E and I reccomend building it right after Trinity Force or Black Cleaver. You may say "Isin't this item just like Sterak's Gage?" And to that I say yes. Its like Sterak's but since its cheaper its better as a 2nd item compared to Sterak's.


YOUMUU'S GHOSTBLADE
Youmuu's ghostblade used to be great on Garen. Now its so so. It's not as good but its still a good option if the whole enemy team is squishy and have no front line or tank. It's not as good anymore because items like Phantom Dancer just seem to do its job but better. Ever since the 9.20 changes Phantom dancer has been the go to damage item after Trinity Force. So i'd recommend building Phantom dancer except when all of the enemy team are squishy.



MAW OF MALMORTIUS
Maw of malmortius is a fantastic item on Garen. It can be built from Hexdrinker, my go to early game magic resist item. It also gives you a good shield against magic damage. It also procs against physical damage targets with a hint of magic damage so its almost a universal shield. I recommend building this when items like Spirit Visage aren't an option. That is when you want to play aggressively or when your team doesn't have enough damage.


WIT'S END
Wit's end has recently become a viable item choice on Garen due to the 9.20 buffs. Wit's end gives 50% attack speed and some magic resist. This attack speed obviously is very good for Garen and the passive that you get when your below half health helps a lot especially when used with Conqueror healing.


MORTAL REMINDER
Mortal reminder is a situational item just like it's brother Lord Dominik's Regards. I build it against mainly heavy healing team comps. Such as when they have a Twitch, Varus, or Vayne adc. I build it mainly because of adc's healing but sometimes it's not a bad idea to build it such as tanke sthat heal a lot such as Maokai or Dr. Mundo.


LORD DOMINIK'S REGARDS
Just like Mortal Reminder, lord dominik's regards is a situational item. I usually don't build it since Black Cleaver is a much better option. If you so choose to still build this and not the Black cleaver then i'd recommend taking it against very tanky champions like (tank not AP) Malphite, Shen, and other champions who stack armor throughout the game.


defensive items for Garen


DEAD MAN'S PLATE
Dead man's plate is an staple item on Garen. It gives armor and movement speed which are both things that make Garen thrive. the passive can make your Q's hit like a truck since its building up movement speed and damage on your next attack. I get this usually second item after Black Cleaver or Trinity Force depending on which one I went that specefic game. This can also be purchased as a first item. If your against someone like Zed who is mobile and builds lethality items like Youmuu's Ghostblade this item is great. the passive allows you to gap close and he's relatively squishy so your Q will defenitaly hurt him.


STERAK'S GAGE
Since Garen is a juggernaut you proabaly saw this item coming. I reccomend building this item EVERY GAME! When your low you get a massive shield that can save your life. It also gives health and attack damage. It's a must get on Garen.


GUARDIAN ANGEL
This item is good when your very ahead and don't want to loose your bounty. Its good on Garen since it gives armor and attack damage. It is also good against Darius because if hes ults you with Noxian Guillotine and executes you when you have the guardian angel passive up he will NOT get his ultimate reset.


THORNMAIL
This is yet another good armor item on Garen. It gives so much stats like grevioud wounds and an attack speed slow. Its very good against adc's since they usually heal a lot and attack fast. A prime example of this item being good against adc's take Jinx. If you've ever seen a Jinx atack a full tank Rammus you know what happens. The two core items it builds from, Bramble Vest and Warden's Mail are very good early game items.
Jinx vs thornmail rammus



RANDUIN'S OMEN
This item is similar to Thornmail. It gives an attack speed slow so its good against attack speed reliant champions like Tryndamere and Vayne. Though this item is good I prefer thornmail because it gives me grievous wounds while this item does not. But if the team has basically no healing (very rare in this meta) then by all means go for randuin's omen.


SUNFIRE CAPE
The only time I build this item is rarely. It seems good on Garen but the only reason is because it procs Phase Rush. basically when taking phase rush choose between sunfire cape (for an AD heavy team) or Abyssal Mask (for an AP heavy team).


SPIRIT VISAGE
This is one of Garens best magic resist items. It works with his passive healing along with the Conqueror healing you'll get if you take it. i usually build this if the enemy team isn't building grievous wounds and i'm not so ahead I can buy Maw of Malmortius.


ADAPTIVE HELM
Adaptive helm is the perfect item when Maw of Malmortius nor Spirit Visage is a viable choice. You will build this against AP assassins such as Evelynn, Ekko, or Fizz. It's passive which allows you to survive an assassination attempt by an AP assassin.
Matchup chapters

FIORA


Fiora is one of the hardest matchups for Garen. Her Riposte is extremly broken and her ultimate Grand Challenge can be very annoying. For runes I like to take Conqueror. Taking this rune lets you have some trading potential with Fiora and is very good on Garen currently. I take Flash and Teleport for this matchup. I take teleport because late game it can nullify her map pressure but I take it since Ignite isn't worth running since you just want to farm it out and not to trade often. I start with Doran's Shield then I make sure to build a Bramble Vest. This will reduce her healing and anyone else who heals on the enemy team. I also build Ninja Tabi after getting my Bramble vest for extra armor. When trading with Fiora make sure not to waste your Ignite (if you decided to take it) or your Demacian Justice since her riposte can block both of them. A good time to trade is when her riposte is down and she has no Grand Challenge or Ignite. Another good time to trade with her is when your jungler is coming in for a gank. Try not to trade with her when she has her Riposte which is on a 24 second cooldown on level one ( her riposte gets a two second cooldown every time she puts a level in to it). Also don't trade with her when she has her ult or ignite. Her ult will screw you over very badly and she can win a 1v2 jungle gank with it so do care.

VAYNE


The Vayne matchup is just as bad as the Fiora matchup if not worse. She has a dash, self peel, true damage, and an ultimate that can cancel yours. I take Predator along with Second Wind and Overgrowth. I take predator to try to run her down with the active. I start Doran's Shield. I get Ninja Tabi early on since shes a AD reliant champion. when she has her Blade of the Ruined King don't fight her 1 on 1 unless your very fed. I try not to fight her at any point in the game since she can kite you very easily and she does true damage. The best you can do in this matchup is try to sit under tower and farm it out and hope that you get jungle assistance throughout the game.

DARIUS


The Darius vs Garen matchup is notoriously hard for Garen to win since Darius is such a strong lane bully. I take Conqueror for good dueling potential with Biscuit Delivery and Perfect Timing. The stopwatch may seem troll but it's very good. There's a special interaction with Guardian Angel and Darius ult Noxian Guillotine. When you die to his R he gets a reset normally but if you have GA he will not get a reset on his R. For items I start Doran's Shield and rush Bramble Vest to reduce his QQ healing which can turn the tides of a jungle gank to his favor. Then I rush standard items such as Trinity Force and Statikk Shiv. Rember to not fish him level 1 since he can cheese you with his passive and take first blood for himself. If you play this matchup well I believe any Garen player can become the alpha god king.

KAYLE


Kayle is another hard matchup but not as bad as Fiora. her kill pressure is not as bad but just like Fiora's Riposte Kayle's Divine Judgmentcan negate Garen's Demacian Justiceand she can take your tower very quickly. I take Predator because it allows me to gap close easier. For summoner spells I take either Ignite for a better 1v1 potential or Teleport so she doesn't take your tower as quickly. Against Kayle I start Boots and Health Potion (four of them). After this I make sure to get Mercury's Treads and Spectre's Cowl. I try not to trade with Kayle but if you do make sure her Divine Judgment is down. If it is you can have a shot at trading with her.

KENNEN


The Kennen matchup is just dreadful. His laning phase is very dominant and his CC you cant do much about. for runes I take Predator. I take Ignite and Flash against Kennen. I start 3 Rejuvenation Beads and a Health Potion. I rush Hexdrinker and get Mercury's Treads after that. Try not to get caught up in his passive Mark of the Storm. When you have 3 little balls floating around you don't get near him because like Tahm Kench when he gets 3 stacks of his passive up on you he can stun you. Try to focus him in teamfights since he is a huge threat in them.

ILLAOI


For just about every melee top laner Illaoi is a nightmare to deal with. She has very good healing,she can poke easily with her tentacles, and she scales decently well into the late game. For Garen this is no exception. For runes I take Predator for my primary rune and Second Wind and Overgrowth. I start the three Rejuvenation Beads. The rejuvenation bead also builds into raptor's cloack so that's another reason why you should go the 3 rejuv beads.

GNAR


Gnar is similar to Teemo but a lot more tanky and does not build AP but instead tank items and damage items such as Black Cleaver and Frozen Mallet. Make sure to take Predator for your main keystone rune along with Second Wind and Overgrowth. I start out buying a Doran's Shield. If Gnar has his jump then there's not many options for you to make a move so just hope your jungler comes top often. Gnar does not have a mana bar but instead he has a rage bar that fills up over time. When it is full he will transforme into mega gnar. In his mega gnar form he gains his ultimate that HE DOES NOT HAVE IN MINI GNAR! So when fighting mini Gnar keep in mind you have the level 6 advantage basically. But his ultimate is similar to Poppy's Heroic Charge and it will stun you if he pins you against a wall. SO in his mega gnar form I like to keep my distance and let the timer on it run out.


AATROX


Recently Aatrox has underwent some changes to his kit and thus made this matchup harder for Garen players. I take Phase Rush as my primary rune and for secondary I take Conditioning and Overgrowth. I start Doran's Shield and try to play pretty passive. I make sure to get a Raptor Cloak on my first back along with a Bami's Cinder if I can afford it. The Raptor's cloak is for escaping his The Darkin Blade (His Q).The movement speed bonus lets me have a better chance of dodging them. The armor is good for this matchup too since Aatrox builds Black Cleaver as his first item. After this I usually build a Dead Man's Plate followed by a Sterak's Gage. Make sure later in the game to buy an Executioner's Calling to stop his crazy healing. You really don't have to build it early game unless he is massively ahead but do keep in mind late game his healing WILL be a problem if you do not buy this.


RENEKTON


Renekton is a win lane loose game champion since he falls off pretty hard late game. I take Grasp of the Undying and take Biscuit Delivery. Make sure to start Doran's Shield and take take Ignite. Make sure NOT to buy Refillable Potion but instead buy plenty of Health Potions. You buy the health potions because if your below 50% health Renekton can all in you so easily. So taking the biscuits and the health pots lets you have more sustain then if you didn't take biscuits and bought refillable potions instead. If Renekton gets really fed early on and doesen't fall off late game make sure to gets an Executioner's Calling since his Cull the Meek will heal him.


JAYCE


After the buffs to his ultimate Jayce has been a staple in top and mid lane. I take Phase Rush along with Second Wind and Overgrowth. I get a Bami's Cinder and a Raptor Cloak as well if im behind. After all that build into a Dead Man's Plate the go usual build. Try to avoid his poke in his cannon stance and ask for jungle ***astince.


KLED


Kled is a real pain in the side since he has lane dominance and he can roam with his ultimate Chaaaaaaaarge!!!. I take Phase Rush along with Conditioning and Overgrowth. Try to dodge his Beartrap on a Rope and keep in mind it can go through your minions. If he seems low don't fight him since he proabaly has Skaarl the Cowardly Lizard up and will most likely win the trade or kill you. If he roams just try to push the minion wave in and get tower plates. There is a few videos of Riste playing against Kled so i'll link one Click here for the Garen vs Kled full video.


NASUS


Nasus is a very good matchup to take Phase Rush in because post level 6 he will probably have a good bit of Q stacks and he will try to all in constantly. Utilizing phase rush to bait out his ult Fury of the Sands can set up good windows for ganks and trades that benefit you. I start Doran's Shield and I make sure to get Bami's Cinder to proc phase rush easily. Try to get armor because his Q Siphoning Strike really hurts so i'd recommend getting a Dead Man's Plate sometime in the game. try to Q him when he goes up for CS so he can't use his Q therefore delaying his scaling. Make sure not to get caught in his E Spirit Fire because it reduces armor by a ton. Try freezing the wave at your tower because nasus can't go up to CS due to jungle pressure or taking a tower shot. Nasus is pretty immobile so jungle assistance is pretty easy to get due to him being a ticking time bomb and being very slow early on.


TEEMO


Teemo is a cancer champion but that doesn't mean playing against him is unwinnable. I take either Predator or Glacial Augment. Personally I prefer Predator but either is fine. Predator lets me run him down easily and glacial augment just lets you stick to him. Make sure to take Second Wind for one of your secondary runes because its very useful against Teemo. Start Doran's Shield. I try to get a Hexdrinker on my first back and get Mercury's Treads after my hexdrinker. You can try to all in him level 1 if he doesn't start his Q Blinding Dart because he has no blind. Your all in potential becomes even better if you have Ignite. Once he gets his Q try not to trade with him or overextend. If your try to fight him and go to far back he'll chunk half your health and you wont get barely any of his since you were blinded. He will chase you down with his W Move Quick. Just try to play safe and don't die for CS please.


QUINN


Quinn is pretty similar to Vayne but vayne is a much better champion compared to Quinn. Take Predator along with Second Wind and Overgrowth. I start Doran's Shield and try to rush a Ninja Tabi then followed up by a Dead Man's Plate. When in lane if your trying to chase her and she uses her E Vault don't chase her. The best thing to do is disengage because it slows you and if she kites well its a recipe for disaster. If her passive Harrier. Her passive really hurts and it's one of her main sources of poke. If she try's to roam with her ultimate Behind Enemy Lines try to get tower plates to punish her. I've tried taking Exhaust against her and Nimbus Cloak and it seems to work pretty solidly. It may work for other tough range matchups like Vayne, Teemo,and Kennen.


NEEKO


Neeko is a really annoying champion to play against and the new neeko top strat is just awful. Basically she goes Press the Attack and builds items like Blade of the Ruined King. I like to go Predator along with Second Wind and Overgrowth. I start Doran's Shield and rush Ninja Tabi or Mercury's Treads (depending on what she builds. If she takes Press the Attack she will most likely build AD. If she takes Arcane Comet she'll go an AP build). You can try runing her down if she doesn't have her E Tangle-Barbs. If you get caught up in her E that let's her set up her Q Blooming Burst and her ultimate Pop Blossom. So if you dodge her E you should be just fine.


AHRI


I take Predator against Ahri and nake sure to not get hit by her E Charm because thats where her full combo is at. Start Doran's Shield and get a Hexdrinker early on in the lane. You can build it into a Maw of Malmortius but I prefer to skip that and get Adaptive Helm since she is an AP assassin.


YORICK


Yorick similar to Nasus and that he outscales you pretty fast. Once he's gotten his Trinity Force he'll split push most of the game. For runes I take Predator. I would take Phase Rush but since he has his cage Phase rush is near useless if the Yorick player is good. I start Doran's Shield and get a Executioner's Calling sometime in the game because of his Q healing. Early on try not to get locked in his Cage because then he can summon the Eulogy of the Isles(the maiden) or his ghouls on to you.

URGOT


With the new 9.20 Garen buffs the Urgot matchup went from being very favored into his side to a 50/50 matchup. For runes I take Conqueror. This allows me to shred through most of his armor and take him down with ease. I take Conditioning and Overgrowth for my secondary runes. I build Trinity Force usually but later on in the game I might pick up a Black Cleaver to shred even more armoroffofhim. I'll especially do this if the enemy team has another tank like a Shen support that stacks armor. Keep in mind Urgot has an ultimate so don't take trades that get you down to much or else you'll probably die to his Fear Beyond Death unless you can dodge it with flash.

TRYNDAMERE


The Tryndamere match up is a little favored in Trynd's side a little bit but for the most part its a skill matchup. I take Grasp of the Undying against tryndamere and I start with a Cloth Armor and four Health Potions. And try to get your jungler to start the oppisite buff of top side because you DO NOT want tryndamere to build up Battle Fury. This will make the early levels harder for you and slimming your chance of winning lane. I like to go Warden's Mail to slow his attack speeed. Keep in mind his Undying Rage will make it where Demacian Justicecan not kill him! So if he has ult and you want to ult do care that he can stop yours. I have a video on my Youtube channel of me vs a Tryndamere and i'd be fantastic if you'd check it out if you like that stuff.
matchup video here



MORDEKAISER


Mordekaiser recently got reworked and in my opinion he's a lot stronger. I've been using Predator for my rune along with Conditioning and Overgrowth. Start Doran's Shield. I always always rush a Quicksilver Sash because the active on it removes the effect of his ultimate. I may build a Hexdrinker but I tend not to because the QSS is already 800 gold. He does have a poke advantage due to his Q Obliterate. I don't see him being a huge threat to Garen unless he gets some major buffs.


CAMILLE


Camille has a pretty good lane phase and a great late game. For runes I take Glacial Augment because she is so slippery due to her Hookshot and Wall Dive. I start Doran's Shield. Camille is pretty tricky to figure out and a lot of lower elo Garen player's really have a hard time with her. So her passive Adaptive Defenses is a shield that when she autoattacks a champion she gets a shield. In trades you must autoattack her before she autoattacks your or your Q will be useless. To play around her hookshot you must E and W the very moment before she lands on you. This will force her to take damage from your E. And please don't try to Flash out of her ultimate Hextech Ultimatum.


YASUO


The Yasuo matchup is pretty easy as long as you play right. I take Predator for my rune of choice. and Conditioning and Overgrowth as my secondary runes. I START Doran's Shield and if i'm behind I'll pick up Ninja Tabi earlier on. Other wise get a Dead Man's Plate sometime in the game. Early avoid his Q Steel Tempest and If you dodge his tornadoes you'll be good. Also don't fight him when he has minions to move around in. I just uploaded a video to my YouTube channel that showcases the Garen vs Yasuo matchup.
Video matchup here



VOLIBEAR


Volibear is pretty easy but if you build the wrong items your just gonna loose the lane. I take Predator along with Conditioning and Overgrowth. Start Doran's Shield and rush either a Executioner's Calling if you ahead or there is little AD on the enemy team. Or rush Bramble Vest if there is some AD on the enemy team. I prefer bramble vest but executioner's isn't a bad option either. Be careful around his tower because he can flip you under it and make you take turret aggro.


ZED


Zed isn't much of a threat since once you start to get armor you outtank his damage. Start Doran's Shield and get Ninja Tabi early on to reduce his damage. Play safe the first outing since you don't have much armor. Try to take trades when his W Living Shadow is down so he can just W out of your attack range.
Extras
Where to find me!
if you want to find my content at other places I have a YouTube channel.Click here for my YouTube channel Thank you for getting to the end of the guide and I hope it helps you in your upcoming games!

Sources I used while making this guide!
Riste's stream
Riste's YouTube
FSat's guide (also on Mobafire)
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League of Legends Build Guide Author BushBox
BushBox Garen Guide
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