8/19/2011

I have changed the sections "Purchase Order", "Mastery Trees", "Early Items", "Core Items", "Choosing Final Items", and "Summary" to fit with my new item build. Completely reverting my idea of starting with Doran's Blade of being a good starter, I have changed it to fit the current "meta", just cause, I can. I read some Mastery Tree notes from the comments, and changed all the item sections to fit with the new Wriggle's Lantern build I have created for him. I have also changed the "Skill Sequence" section, I wanted to change it to more AoE damage, rather than 55 more damage on a single target.

8/11/2011

Renamed guide to "Plague Jungles' King", felt it was better. Removed one of the builds simply because, I found Warmog's on both builds to be more useful, being said there is no need for two builds. Just 2 different starting paths are now in my guide. Depending on which one you choose, you will still have the item choices for Final Items section.

Here are the Patch Notes for Wukong :

• Wukong will now attempt to attack a target champion after using Nimbus Strike.
• Cyclone Attack Damage ratio increased to 1.2 from 1.
• Wukong is now properly considered melee for items and spells that differentiate between melee and ranged characters.
• Fixed a bug where Crushing Blow was shredding the target's base armor rather than total armor.

8/2/2011

Added "Difference In Builds" and "Masteries" sections to the guide. Fixed up on some information in the "Core Items" section and have finally finished up the item descriptions for "Choosing Last Items", hoping that those descriptions will give you an idea on how to choose your last items. Guide is officially finished and is bound to be updated with the upcoming fixes, tweaks, nerfs, or buffs that come with Wukong, the Monkey King. Enjoy!

8/1/2011

Guide has been released. Will be updating guide more tomorrow, focusing on looks of the guide and adding some more information regarding the "Choosing Last Items" section of the guide, as of now, it is released!

Feel free to send in your example games!

Wukong - Plague Jungles' King

Wukong is a fun, melee and bruiser classified champion, he's got quite the kit, an escape maneuver, gap closer, AoE knock up, and an attack booster. He is a powerful attacker depending on how well he is built, and how long he actually lives in the fight. The longer he lives, the more damage can be dished out.

Please read all the information about how he is played and why I build him how I build him.

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Greater Mark of Desolation Greater Quintessence of Desolation Greater Mark of Desolation Armor Penetration Marks for your build, because you want to maximize your damage, I take these instead of Flat Damage Marks because, it's too easy to counter the Damage late game, and this is a great item early game and late game depending on which build you decide to choose. Greater Seal of Armor Armor seals in both builds because I always start him the same way, with a Regrowth Pendant, meaning early game he will be exposed and called squishy, taking some Armor runes should cover a handful of damage from an AD attacker. Greater Glyph of Magic Resist As far as Glyphs go, same idea from the Seals, except this would be covering the AP caster portion in lanes, overall a good choice and goes well with his passive. Greater Quintessence of Desolation Same as the thing for Marks of Desolation, you get 25+ Armor Penetration, and it helps a lot early game. Greater Quintessence of Health Health Runes never hurt on this squishy character, early game this will hopefully bunk you up to around 600, works with both builds for a little boost in attack from your Atma's Impaler.

Good Choices

Ghost I prefer this simply because, the mastery point is much easier to get than flash and it's good for escaping and initiating with Cyclone. You do gain some movement speed from your ultimate but I don't find it that noticeable, so this could boost up your attacking on a champion. Exhaust I find this good, all around game, this can be used to slow down and you can initiate on this skill's usage, or you can use it on someone, Warrior Trickster away, and leave a happy monkey man. Flash It's very useful, I also find it a need to get when facing a Jarvan IV in ranked play, not a bad choice at all. Another good spell to either help you get away or get closer, get close, initiate, get the kill, and run out, or just get closer to a safe spot. Teleport It's a good spell if your team has no one with this spell, it can be used to backdoor sometimes, you could rely on that stealth you have to get away but it's only 1.5 seconds so keep that in mind, used to save turrets or take turrets, basically. Cleanse This skill is not used with many for Wukong but, don't underestimate it's power. Grabbing Ghost and Cleanse, your ultimate will be untouchable, letting it run as long as it can. Ignite You can also get this skill if you want to finish off a running champion, he doesn't pack a powerful punch and this could be used to grant you the kill you had insisted to get. Bad Choices I don't have explanations for all of them but, wasting one of your two summoner skills on these spell isn't the ideal choice to make, he isn't a fast jungle but he can, I find him a dominate laner, so be a laner. These spells all pair better with a Jungler, Tank, Support, or Twisted Fate.

[Passive] : Stone Skin Wukong's armor and magic resistance are increased by 4 / 6 / 8 for each nearby enemy champion. [Q] : Crushing Blow Wukong next attack will deal additional physical damage and will reduce the enemy's armor by 30% for 3 seconds. [W] : Warrior Trickster Wukong becomes stealthed for 1.5 seconds and leaves an uncontrollable decoy that doesn't attack or move on the place he activated it. The decoy will deal magic damage to nearby enemies after 1.5 seconds. [E] : Nimbus Strike Wukong dashes on a cloud toward a target enemy and sends out images to attack up to 2 additional enemies near his target, dealing physical damage to each enemy struck. He also gains an attack speed bonus for 3 seconds after using this skill. [R] : Cyclone Wukong's staff grows outward and he spins it around for up to 4 seconds, dealing damage every half second and knocking up enemies once per cast. Wukong gains 5% movement speed bonus every half second for the duration of the spell, with the bonus disappearing once he stops spinning. Why Nimbus Strike First? Simply, it causes more harass damage, more AoE damage, and even though Crushing Blow does more total damage, I prefer if you are fighting 1v1, using Crushing Blow and basic attacking with Youmuu's Ghostblade because of the armor reduction that it grants. Level 9 Total Damage : 120 Bonus AD : 50 Maxed Nimbus Strike / Level 2 Crushing Blow (240 + 40) + (120 + 60) = 460 Maxed Crushing Blow / Level 2 Nimbus Strike (105 + 40) + (120 + 150) = 515 Level 4 Crushing Blow / Level 3 Nimbus Strike (150 + 40) + (120 + 120) = 430 Level 4 Nimbus Strike / Level 3 Crushing Blow (195 + 40) + (120 + 90) = 445 It's only a 55 damage difference from the max single target damage, with this, you will do more damage against a whole team, which @ Level 9, some skirmishes should be starting around the map. It's kind of like the reference, Quantity over Quality, trade in 55 damage, for more damage around more players. Standard Combo Nimbus Strike -> Crushing Blow -> Warrior Trickster Attempt @ Kill Combo Nimbus Strike -> Ghost/ Exhaust -> Cyclone -> Crushing Blow -> Nimbus Strike

Philosopher's Stone Cloth Armor -> Madred's Razors Not only is this a part of the recipe for your Wriggle's Lantern, it also gives you the option to get 5 Health Potions, which provides so much more sustain in your lane, allowing you to farm longer than usual, when you get low enough just pop one of these, continue farms, and if you run out, recall, if you don't have enough for at least a Madred's Razors and Boots, you're doing it wrong. Boots This is just a little boost in movement for Wukong, having some more movement speed can follow up on ganks if you are solo lane or chase down someone who is already low. Philosopher's Stone I usually go for the Philosopher's Stone because the gold per 10 is a good choice for him, get some more lane sustain cause he has no life steal or heal related skill built in like many melees do. It also grants the mana regen so if you plan on harassing you'll have some mana being regenerated as you are harassing. He has a gold heavy build so, granting this will help speed up the process. Game Start - + 5 - 475 Gold As Game Progresses - + + Philosopher's Stone - 1875 Gold This is for the first build path. There isn't much damage to this set but there is some sustain after you get your Philosopher's Stone and Boots.

Wriggle's Lantern Why a Wriggle's Lantern? Some might question this, but I'll explain to this, you can proc a 500 damage boost on creeps, giving you a farming advantage, some armor, lifesteal, and a free ward every time, the current one runs out. This is also a huge part in the current "meta", I have nothing else to say except I believe it's worth the 1600 gold for the bonuses. Mercury's Treads These choice of boots are a great match, now this can change to whatever you want, I prefer these because the CC reduction is nice along with the MResist bonus, pairing with your runes and passive well against an AP caster. Trinity Force This is such a great item, it procs well with his Crushing Blow as far as the Sheen part goes, gives you a slow from the Phage, and some speed and critical chance. Pairing Youmuu's Ghostblade This gives you cooldown reduction, armor penetration, and an attack speed/movement speed active buff, what this allows you to do, is in your ultimate, activate, faster AoE Damage, and if your just chasing someone in general, this + Phage, perfect chasing tools. As far as item builds go, this is just roughly how you should build each one as you go along. Item Sequence Phage 1100 Sheen 900 Mercury's Treads 1250 Trinity Force 3333 The Brutalizer 1337 Youmuu's Ghostblade 2800

RECOMMENDATIONS

This is what I do, you are not REQUIRED to follow, but it's an option that I personally use.

Let me explain this, I go for a Shurelya's Battlesong for the CDR, the speed buff active, and cause I already have part of the recipe, why? Ultimate, chase down, and running away capabilities. I know it's a weird item but, if no one on your team plans on building it, grab it, you might find yourself stuck in a few situations where it's run or hunt, Warrior Trickster + Shurelya's Battlesong = "Where the hell did he go?" Next up, the old Warmog's Armor + Atma's Impaler combo, why? Surviving ability increases, damage increases, and armor increases, just a good final two items on him, that I go.

ALTERNATE OPTIONS!

3 Options - Sell the Wriggles after you get your 5 main items.

Damage Oriented Items

x x x x x

Black Cleaver

It just adds more and more armor reduction to the enemy champion you are facing, sound familiar? Yes, I find it to pair well with his, bugged Crushing Blow, with Black Cleaver, this will definitely be an item that contributes to the kill.
Item Recommendation : 8/10

Infinity Edge

Just granting you even more damage and more critical chances, that's not priority but you can find yourself dealing a kill blow with dealing a critical last hit to an enemy champion. Almost granting you 100 attack damage. It is costly and you can find yourself doing better with other damage items, for less.
Item Recommendation : 7/10

Bloodthirster

These builds have absolutely no lifesteal whatsoever, so picking up Bloodthirster could be the answer to your problems. As someone mentioned below, your health at this rate is just, so heavy, I don't really see myself needing to DPS/Lifesteal my way back to full health, but it does grant a nice damage/lifesteal boost when maxed out, but it's very easy to lose all of that. When you build this item last, it's just not as easy to get 40 minion farms unless a few of your inhibitors are being pushed hard, it's still an item choice nonetheless.
Item Recommendation : 5/10

Frozen Mallet

Adding this item to your health pool, not only increases your chances of living, but increases your damage. Not only that, it gives you the slowing ability, well a more amplified version of it. There really isn't that much to say except the health is what makes the item, the item for Monkey King.
Item Recommendation : 7/10

Madred's Bloodrazor

Your tanky as ever and they are probably getting much more health related items, with this item, you could possibly be maximizing your damage now. I mean, you've got all the HP in the world, adding this with the Youmuu's Ghostblade active, you will be hitting so fast, so hard, I mean this item is a bit expensive but, you'll be amazed at the wonders it will do for you.
Item Recommendation : 7/10

Warmog's Armor + Atma's Impaler

I think this is a must on him, his surviving, eh, not that high, relies on Warrior Trickster, what this will give you is a HUGE health boost, and a nice damage boost coming from the Atma's Impaler, I run this build every time I play him, this is the point of the game at where, if you die, your team could lose, if you live, your team could win, what this does, lessens the chance of dying, and increases the chances of living.
Item Recommendation : 10/10

Anti-Carry Items

x x x x

Guardian Angel

This being paired with an item like Black Cleaver could be all you need to finish off the game, giving you an extra life, with all the health you have currently, you already are a tough one to kill, this will help you in finishing off what your team started, or getting away and living to fight another day.
Item Recommendation : 7/10

Thornmail

Say the team has a strong AD carry like Ashe, Corki, or possibly a Vayne, grabbing a Thornmail and pairing it off with something like Frozen Mallet can easily be the solution to those problems, because I find them to be shredders when it comes to fights, easily taking out anyone 1v1, with them slowly killing themselves when they shift focus onto you, you can easily counter cause it will be taking them a while to kill you.
Item Recommendation : 6/10 - I can't really say, this is really depending on your enemy team's carry.

Force of Nature

This is needless to say a great item on Monkey King. The massive health regen boost along with the Magic Resist, this item could be why you AFK farm your way back to full health, I mean, shutting down a bit of the AP damage done on you and also granting you health as a fight goes on or is ending.
Item Recommendation : 7/10

Quicksilver Sash / Banshee's Veil

Quicksilver Sash is for the suppressors, Warwick and Malzahar, specifically, you don't wanna be caught in one of their ultimates, it also works well for any kind of stun, the less time you spend disabled, the more damage you can deal, simple as that. As I see it, unless those two are on the enemy team, there really isn't any need to build it cause a Banshee's Veil pretty much keeps you covered for the most part.
Item Recommendation : Warwick / Malzahar QSS - 8/10 BV - 7/10

Early Game

With a Madred's Razors and Philosopher's Stone, you can keep your harass/farm up. Don't go for harassing every opportunity you see, have some composition with a team mate and work on getting a kill, save your Mana for that. After you get your full skill set, try to harass with Nimbus Strike, Crushing Blow, and if he fights back, Warrior Trickster out. Just keep up with farms cause you want to get as much gold as possible, Madred's Razors, simplify that ability for you.

Mid Game

By now, you should have gotten a few parts of your Trinity Force, if not the entire item. With this, you can find yourself doing a heck of a lot more damage, getting a lot more kills, and gaining more money as you go along, to build Monkey King, you will need a lot of gold. For he just doesn't excel at much, currently. Try to build your way up to the Youmuu's Ghostblade, after getting that, you have more damage, more chase, and more cooldown reduction.

Late Game

Late game is where he progresses, once he's got a Trinity Force, getting kills will be easy for you. His Crushing Blow is fixed as far as bugs go, so you find yourself doing a ton more damage. Try to have someone initiate before you as far as teamfights go, you want to be the person that doesn't let anyone escape with Cyclone, putting out some heavy damage along with a knockup for the enemy team.

Wukong is a super fun champion to play and can only do damage if you play him correctly. There are many ways of maneuvering around your enemy to get damage done that the longer you keep it up the faster a kill is going to be guaranteed. I hope these two builds will really help you define the things Monkey King is capable of. The longer he is alive, the longer the damage output will be.