League of Legends Season 4 Jungle Preview

Finals are over. Season 4 patch has been released. Yasuo is now on summoners rift. And I am now back from my ridiculously long hiatus with promised content. I'm sure a lot of you, maybe like two people, are interested in what I feel about the new jungle and game changes in general. In this article, I will go over the general theoretical changes that can be applied to most games due to the new patch.  

Check it out after the jump!

The One Year Solemn Update

Wow. I can't believe it's been a year. If you're reading this, I can't describe how much it means to me that someone actually reads this. Thank you.

There has been many positives of this blog for me. Especially the day when I got ~30k views on a single article thanks to Reddit traffic, the AMA I did back in September where I got a lot of good questions, and hitting platinum (not diamond) while playing against Destiny. It's been a very encouraging year for me, especially given the state of things a year ago for me. I still have a lot of things I want to write about, lots of articles I started and haven't finished, and a web series I would really like to find time for in Season 4. 

However....

I'm not going to try to hide it, i've been really slowing down my posts for the past month. I didn't write anything for the month of October and I didn't write anything for Season 3 Finals. What a shame. However, nothing is without good reason. Unfortunately, like many people who find their hobbies aligned with eSports I have been dragged back into the real world.  School, work, social life has really taken its toll on me. Furthermore, the disbanding of my team has removed a lot of my competitive drive that pushed me to write for this blog. Unfortunately, again, I don't have the time to work with another team.    

This doesn't mean i'm going to stop blogging. Unfortunately, the prevalence of my posts are going to be seriously hindered (I doubt anyone is even going to care). Which might mean my popularity is going to go to other bloggers like, oh god forbid, stonewall the rambling, concept-less machine. However, I hope to continue three things in particular: Understanding series, State of the Jungle series, and, begin, my web-series. Of course, this is actually a daunting task for someone who aims to maintain Diamond division, finish his last year of university, works part time, and wants to retain a social life.    

I wish everyone the best of luck in securing their Season 3 rewards. Hopefully I will meet a reader of mine in Solo Queue one day. I think I can successfully say that I have been a "real terror" this season. 

Counter Jungling Guide

You don't have to be a genius to figure out how dead that Amumu is; Chauster once told Doublelift something along the lines of "even jesus couldn't get you out alive because you were in that position to begin with, you just happen to have the mechanics to get out of it alive this time." While the quote directly refers to Doublelift's ability to survive terrible situations with pure mechanical skill, I feel like League of Legend players can really learn a lot from Chauster's wisdom especially when it comes to new junglers being counter jungled. Counter jungling is an application of knowledge and situational understanding of League of Legends; likewise, preventing counter jungling is the same.

Check out 'understanding counter jungling' after the jump. Warning: wall of informative text to follow

Junglers, Gold, and Cost Efficiency

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8j30SnAsSFg
(REST IN PEACE IN PEACE, RUNIC BULWARK)

Recently, it feels like Riot has been intentionally just nerfing junglers to the ground. Frankly, I am appalled by these changes to the jungle but, like every other jungler out there, been desperately finding ways to get around these changes. It seems Riot did not learn from the Udyr nerfs where they took away a part of his passive (dodge) and didn't replace it with anything else. While Riot has stated that they intend to find methods to give junglers more gold, I find it difficult to understand what they expect junglers to do at the moment.

Find my rant on Riot's jungle nerfs by clicking below.

Patch 3.8 Jungle Implications

Patch 3.8

This article goes through some of the changes for the recent version 3.8 patch and their implications on the current jungle meta. The recent patch has brought many changes to specific champions and, most importantly, changes to camps and jungle items that have serious implications to jungling. This is perhaps one of the biggest non-season patches for jungle changes I have ever seen; respectively, this article will be just as big. 

Check my thoughts on the changes after the jump!

Itemization in the Jungle Guide

With the introduction of item sets in the new patch, many players are looking to create item sets for their junglers! This post focuses theoretical and practical concepts for itemization for junglers.While it focuses on meta building for junglers in an initiating role, which is the most common role for junglers, it touches on building for champions in general. Ultimately, building in any role is dependent on the champion you play; however, there are certain concepts to follow which can be applied to mostly all junglers.

Learn more about understanding itemization in the jungle after the jump!

Basics of Jungling Guide

Everyone has to start somewhere. From low levels to low elo, everyone learning to jungle should understand the basics of jungling.

This article is aimed to inform new players who are attempting to learn how to jungle about the basics on starting in the jungle and starting effectively in the jungle. I will go over common champions played, runes, masteries, summoners, using smite, and jungle routes.

Learn the basics of jungling following the jump.

Patch 3.04 Jungle Implications: Runic Bulwark and Locket of the Iron Solari Analysis

This article goes through the changes in patch 3.04 with emphasis on the implications it has on jungling. There is specific emphasis on the comparison on the changes of Runic Bulwark and Locket of the Iron Solari. Will the changes in the 3.04 patch de-throne the jungle core items of Runic Bulwark and Locket of the Iron Solari? Should you still be building these items? Will we see different item choices in the LCS? Find out after the jump.

Ganking: Part 1 - Top Lane Guide

Welcome to a three part series on understanding ganking. One of the most frequently asked questions from beginner junglers is how and when should I be ganking? Although experience is the ultimate factor for a player to gage how and when a gank should be attempted, this article series will attempt to highlight some norms and conditions to ganking the top lane. The other two parts of this series will cover the other two lanes.

This article is dedicated to my previous top laner and current ADC from my team - HoopsScoops, who taught me the importance of influencing top lane instead of just leaving them on an island.

Learn the intricacies of ganking top lane after the jump!

Season 3 Patch 3.03 Jungle Implications

Patch 3.03

This article goes through some of the changes for the recent version 3.03 patch and their implications on the current jungle meta. The recent patch has attempted to touch the 'holy-trinity' of the Hybrid junglers. Furthermore, the change in the item Blade of the Ruined King brings some implications to the jungle.

State of the Jungle - Article 3

State of the Jungle: Article 3 - General Patch V3.02.0.30

State of the Jungle is an article series that details current meta changes in the jungle. It is aimed to inform players of all skill levels on how the jungle is currently played when effected by tournament results and solo queue formalities.

Check out what the LCS has brought to the jungling meta after the jump!

State of the Jungle - Article 2

State of the Jungle: Article 2 - Thresh Patch V1.0.0.154

State of the Jungle is an article series that details current meta changes in the jungle. It is aimed to inform players of all skill levels on how the jungle is currently played when effected by tournament results and solo queue formalities.

Check out the League of Giant Belts after the jump!

Premeditated Ordering Guide

What makes one Jungler more successful than another one? Do Junglers arbitrarily roam the map and gank lanes they think they can kill?

Eventually, players who have gained more experience in the game begin to understand that not doing something does not necessarily mean you are not at fault. If you want to be a successful Jungler, making the most of your time on the map means being able to achieve certain goals. A method I have personally used in Solo Queue, which may seem very intuitive, has helped me to become a more efficient and successful jungler.

Welcome to another part of my "understanding" series on premeditated ordering.

State of the Jungle - Article 1

State of the Jungle: Article 1 - Vi Patch V1.0.0.153

State of the Jungle is an article series that details current meta changes in the jungle. It is aimed to inform players of all skill levels on how the jungle is currently played when effected by tournament results and solo queue formalities.

Check out what the Season 3 changes have brought to jungling after the jump!

Preseason Balance Update 2 Patch Jungle Implications

Patch V. 1.0.0.154

This article goes through some of the Preseason Balance Update 2 patch notes and their implications towards the jungle and jungle champions. Although there has been many fixes, changes, nerfs, and buffs, I will be going through major changes with implications towards the jungle only. Albeit, I am glad to say that AD assassins, with the rise of Black Cleaver, have now all been nerfed. I did enjoy all the free ELO I got from snowballing AD assassins though.

Check it out, after the jump!

Season 3 Nocturne Jungle Guide

First, I would like to apologize for the lack of posts during the Christmas and New Years season. However, I have managed to create my first guide. The experience has proven to be much more exhausting and difficult than I have first imagined. I have worked in the past three weeks on testing and writing my Season 3 Nocturne guide. Although I still feel like Nocturne is a strong jungler, I do not feel that he was as strong as I first predicted. Furthermore, support junglers still hold a serious majority in the Season 3 jungle meta. Regardless, I still hold onto my previous opinion that he is one of the strongest carry junglers out there at the moment.

I hope everyone had an amazing Christmas and wish you all a successful Season 3 in the New Year!

Please enjoy my guide over at  Solomid Guides.

Gank Potential Guide

Don’t let this team be yours; learn when to gank properly and appropriately and stop the massacre.

One of the many decisions a jungler has to make is deciding when to gank. However, there are many factors when it comes to determining when to gank. The biggest difference between a low ELO and high ELO solo-queue junglers is the ability to recognize gank potential. Gank potential is the potential for a jungler and laner to successfully execute a gank. The ability to recognize gank potential will result to gank effectively and efficiently. Everyone has played with or against a jungler that appears to kill every lane he walks in and is constantly everywhere; this is not luck. In this article, I hope everyone can learn to be the jungler that is everywhere and nowhere at once.

Season 2 to Season 3 Clear Time Comparisons

A lot of people have been wondering about the changes to the S2 jungle and what it means for junglers, clear times, etc. Here is my personal chart on detailed clear times in S2 and S3 with notes. I hope people can use it to learn when and who to counter-jungle effectively and understand how the jungle has changed. I really tried to create a benchmark for champions in the jungle.   

Season 3 Final Initial Thoughts and Predictions

As per my other posts, Season 3 jungle changes have implications towards junglers. One can not simply go about the Season 3 jungle playing the same as they did in Season 2. However, I feel like the overall consensus of the change is more of a quality of play and viability change than a complete re-work of the Jungle. In short, there are no major changes in the upcoming patch. Moreover, these changes represent the direction that Riot wants to take for the game.  

Season 3 Jungle Camp & Income Changes

Season 3 Jungle Changes has, obviously, adjusted the camps. Although there are no physical changes such as removing, adding, or moving camps (personaly, I feel like switching wraith camp and golem camp would be a good idea in the S2 jungle), the proposed changes on PBE are still relevant and not without implications.