4/26/2011 - Guide Posted ; Fixed details ; edited to reflect further gameplay
4/29/2011 - edited to make up for useless amounts of excess spell penetration.
4/30/2011 - edited the masteries to more thoroughly reflect testing, the defense tree adds more survivability, and the loss of utility talents doesn't affect Rumble hardly at all, as to be expected

Rumble is the Fantastic new champ, akin to the Chipper from HoN, he's your new favorite AP melee character.

One thing you'll notice on Rumble is that overheating can happen easily with CDR, BUT can be advantageous when you want to push.
Another notable fact is his fairly low AP ratios, BUT his high base damage on abilities
He's addictive as hell, and is my new favorite combo *****

I chose armor, CDR, Forts, and magic pen. magic pen is standard on any caster, but the cdr is EXTREMELY benificial on rumble here. as a manaless champ the best option seemed like a little extra armor early on, so i went with armor seals, and so far as I can tell these runes make rumble quite a tanky little boss early game.

Being a new fella, most people don't realize that rumble will hurt you bad if he's in range, so these tankish runes maintain that philosophy. Can't tell you how many people have just ran right up to me early game, only to be hit with a slow and unable to get away.

spell pen is a must for almost any spellcaster, and cdr just adds more to love.

combine the utility tree for extra cdr and more summoner spells, you get a genuinely amazing character.

I chose to avoid the defense tree because I think with the runes and item build I chose, he's tough enough, and needs to build an advantage early with farming, and being able to chase well. The cdr from the offensive and utility trees gives a whopping 9% plus the 6% from runes gives you the equivalent of some lucidity boots, and gives you perfect cooldown timing for keeping in the danger zone and procing those bonus effects.

a tanky mastery set up would be fairly effective though. after some tooling around, I can still maintain chasing and damage with a 9/21/0 tree, but I personally enjoy the buffs and cdr in utility, so I can pump out abilities fast if the need arises.

Edited; added a LOT more spell pen

the added spell pen is damn necessary, people are starting to build more resistance, and with high base spell damage, he doesn't really need AP to damage.

may look standard, but is tried and true, even for a first day. the sunfire melee combo works fantastic, combined with rylai's makes a hard hitting tanky damage caster.

or as I like to say, you'll be pulling off some stupid **** and getting away with it.

too many stuns? banshee's veil
added a zhonya's to cope with the need to be close up for fights, plus the stasis adds a lot off fight survivability, if you remember to use it.

It's key to remember that Rumble is an offtank caster, and will be a target because he is new, and because he is feared.
the zhonyas isn't 100% necessary, but the AP and armor seemed like a good choice to me.

the rylais combined with the slow of your ult, or your electro prods pretty much slows whomever you hit to a stand still. combine your flamethrower with sunfire and you just drain the enemies health away

lichbane has decidedly been revealed as "no big deal", the bonus damage is negligible, seeing as how you can't proc when overheated.

I personally enjoy having the slow shot early on for a nice advantage early game. the stacking slow can lead to an early gank, or just a good amount of survivability to prevent ganks on yourself.
factoring in skill usage during non-combat, you can proc the bonus electro prod effect for some massive slowing early game, which will be very advangtageous for whomever you are laning with.

otherwise till I get my ult I stick with flame throwing and electro prodding, then i stick my guns into flame and the shield. at that point in the game, you start using your shield WAY more often and do your standard ult leveling asap.

the shield ability doesn't seem too useful, but the speed buff maintains some heat, and gets you around the map fairly well.
using initial heat from the shield, two prods for a slow, and flamethrower adds the bonus damage, which can wipe a creep wave, or cause massive bits of damage to any champs who decided to walk in front of you.

after 6 the priority sticks to r > q > w > e

honestly I stick with exhaust and ghost casue melee range is a real pain in the neck to stick with. exhaust to keep em close, and ghost to keep hugging them and burning there ***es. you become quite the chaser, with your shield, a slow, and these spells, you'll be nigh unstoppable.

alternatives of course include

Flash - a quick gap closer, decent on rumble, but cant cross as much distance as a good ghost.
teleport - seriously good on anyone considering the size of summoners rift
cleanse- a getaway tool, not too necessary, but helpful when lots of stuns are thrown your way
ignite- great for when you just CAN'T get there and need that kill

All in all you farm with your flame thrower, using shield and the stun prods to stay in the DANGUH ZONUH!

your biggest weakness is silences and slows, so close the gap or stay out of a long range fight.

using your ult for some good zone control works fantastic and keeps em close, plus burns for quite bit


Just remember, close the gap and stick to your guns, *****ing out mid or beginning of a fight will only end in failure. As Rumble the most important thing to do is make a choice and stick with it, cause your flamethrower only hurts the way you face, and using it whilst prodding will work VERY well, but turning tail just voids any health you just contributed to not doing anything. I CANNOT stress this enough.


if you want to tell me what I did wrong, go out and say it, otherwise have fun, and good luck with rumble, any tips for the build would be cool, but lets keep it constructive.