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Nidalee Build Guide by Janitsu

Jungle Nidalee in a (Pea)nutshell (Cheatsheet updated, 8.11)

Jungle Nidalee in a (Pea)nutshell (Cheatsheet updated, 8.11)

Updated on June 9, 2018
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League of Legends Build Guide Author Janitsu Build Guide By Janitsu 25 2 348,244 Views 62 Comments
25 2 348,244 Views 62 Comments League of Legends Build Guide Author Janitsu Nidalee Build Guide By Janitsu Updated on June 9, 2018
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Introduction
Runes
Abilities
Summoner Spells
Items
Jungling
Gameplay
Summary




Hello everyone and welcome to my Nidalee guide here on Mobafire! I am a moderately known veteran of Mobafire a somewhat veteran player as well. I have been playing Nidalee ever since I began playing League of Legends and I have loved the character during the good and the bad times. She is a unique champion who has a lot to offer for her team.
I will explain the way Peanut plays Nidalee (which is also the way I have been playing her for a while now) and explain different item builds and situations as well as I can.






Electrocute is the new Thunderlord's Decree and while I think that Dark Harvest is decent on Nidalee, getting Electrocute is way better in general and it's easier to proc. Therefore I'd suggest you run it in your games.

Sudden Impact synergises really well with Nidalee's Pounce since you can basically have 100 % uptime with the 4 second cooldown, since the ability has 5 seconds effect time. Cheap Shot isn't really good since you have no CC and Taste of Blood isn't necessary with your Primal Surge.

Zombie Ward is absolutely magnificent on any jungler in my opinion, as you can easily deward enemy jungle and get your own wards in there without having to have a trinket or Kleptomancy. Ghost Poro is also decent, but I think that you should basically always run Zombie Ward.

Relentless Hunter is the only thing you can really take, as it is the only rune that actually benefits you.

From the Sorcery tree, you want to get Transcendence to mimic the season 7 rune setup and to maximise your CDR. Waterwalking is really good, as you spend most of your early game hovering around the river.





P – Prowl

Ability Description


This is a great ability for a jungler since you can easily utilise bushes when you are jungling and ganking. The Hunted target is also rather suspetible to your damage since you deal increased damage to them and you have more ways to get to them.





Q – Javelin Toss / Takedown

Ability Description


This is your main ability in the human form and your execute when you are in cougar form. You should use this ability sparingly as it is really easy to dodge unless you have a good spot to throw it from. Once you hit it they will become Hunted and you can easily Pounce on them to get closer to them and then just simply use Takedown.





W – Bushwhack / Pounce

Ability Description


You use Bushwhack in the jungle to trigger your Hunted and get reset on your Pounce. You want to place the traps in a way that you can proc them when you need to get the reset and when they deal the maximum amount of damage. I do not recommend starting with Bushwhack if you are inexperienced jungler since that would mean that you basically must start raptors for it to be anyhow better. You should use Bushwhack to check bushes and make sure you are not in any foreseeable danger. Pounce is your main mobility ability since you can pass over walls with ease using it. It is also your way to get to your enemies.





E – Primal Surge / Swipe

Ability Description


Primal Surge has a great synergy with Athene's Unholy Grail and Ardent Censer and it will be your main ability in teamfights once you hit the point where you can't really dive anyone of their carries in the fight. Use it on your ADC or other similar champion ( Lucian mid, Quinn top etc.). Swipe is a part of your cougar combo and you usually want to use it before Takedown as Takedown deals increased damage based on the missing health of the enemy.





R – Aspect of the Cougar

Ability Description


This just changes your form and it is one of the few ultimates you have available from level 1.







The only options you have as a jungler. There are no other viable options and if you even think about anything unorthodox you should get instant terminal astrocytoma.






Tracker's Knife - Runic Echoes is your main choice for your jungle item since it allows you to be aggressive and allows you to counterjungle and countergank more efficiently and more safely. You should build it most of the time and substituting it only if you feel like dueling is
a higher priority way of playing for you in that game.



Boots are rather straightforward. If you get 30 % CDR from other items than boots, you don't need Ionian Boots of Lucidity. Until the,
they are the best general choice for you to take. Ninja Tabi is good when they have auto-attack-reliant champions that are ahead and Mercury's Treads are the best choice when you are rendered useless by the amount of CC the enemies have.

Athene's Unholy Grail is a core item and essential to your gameplay. Athene's Unholy Grail gives AP,
MR, CDR and the great passive. The passive gives you stacks based on the damage dealt to enemy champions. Using Primal Surge consumes these stacks and increases your healing.

Ardent Censer gives you its broken passive. When you heal someone, they get bonus attack speed and a drain on their autoattacks. The item also gives movement speed, AP and mana regen which are all great. It's very inexpensive and rewards teamplay greatly. It also fixes Nidalee's rather bad teamfighting in the late.

Lich Bane is the other alternative for Sheen item. Sheen has great synergy with Takedown and Nidalee's innately low cooldowns and really compliments her playstyle.

Void Staff is for situations when you are ahead and the enemies are getting magic resistance. It will increase your damage by far the most once they start getting their second magic resistance item.

Zhonya's Hourglass is a great item when you find yourself lacking armor and when you need to deny enemy abilities (such as Zed's ultimate or Veigar's ultimate). It gives a ton of AP and also 10 % CDR, which in turn allows you to change your boots to something else.

Iceborn Gauntlet you should probably get this or Lich Bane as a part of your item build. Great item against AD despite you overcapping the CDR once you have this, Ardent Censer and Athene's Unholy Grail. Great choice for a more tanky Nidalee and for when you keep getting killed by their ADs.

Rabadon's Deathcap is the ultimate AP item. Wouldn't recommend unless you are lightyears ahead.

Haunting Guise gives you flat magic penetration that helps you deal damage once they get moderate amounts of magic resistance. Not really better than Void Staff in most cases, though.

Banshee's Veil allows you to block one spell but it is also really easy to proc. Gives you magic resistance and AP and CDR though, so not completely worthless item as a whole. Consider this item against multiple APCs.

Spirit Visage makes better suited for the frontline when your team needs it. Also increases your own healing on yourself and makes it therefore a decent choice. You should avoid getting it though, since it really limits your damage and takes one spot from the inventory.

Randuin's Omen gives you an edge on their ADCs. Not really a usual go-to item though.

Thornmail is similar to Randuin's Omen, only better against AD champions generally. Reduces healing, which is nice.






Jungle routes




Blue Side



Red Side


When you are playing blue side, you want to go something similar to this: red buff > wolves > blue buff > gromp/gank > gank. The route may differ from game to game and you might get invaded or something similar so this isn't some holy testament, you need to adapt.

When you are playing red side, you want to go something similar to this: blue buff > gromp > red buff > gank. I've found that this is the best way to get an early lead since your bot lane can pull blue and you can easily take gromp when you are level 2. This is a really fast level 3 and easy gank to either mid or top.







As Nidalee you should be looking to countergank and counterjungle as much as possible. Nidalee is really strong in the early game, has a great clear and her damage is outstanding. She does fall in the late game but this is fixed with Athene's Unholy Grail and Ardent Censer to a point. You should focus on farming and ganking simultaneously which will really inflate your gold gain.

You are a diver in the earlier teamfights. You look to kill the enemy carries with a well aimed spear and then proceed to back off and heal yourself or your own carries. You can splitpush decently and your capabilities of skirmishing are great.

Nidalee's limits depend on your playstyle and build. You should play her enough to find out your strengths and limits and to become a better Nidalee overall. She isn't easy to play and mastering her is something you can't do overnight. Once you get used to her rotations, they will be rather easy for you and you can focus on tracking enemy jungler and summoner spells.





This was my guide to Nidalee! If I helped you, please leave an upvote :). (it really helps)

If you have any questions, leave them in the comment section. I will answer to my best knowledge :).
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