User blog:Deshiba/The preseason

Good day fellow summoners, (LONG ARTICLE WARNING, LOOK FOR THE TIPS SECTIONS FOR FAST AND CLEAR READ)

With a new season, there are new possibilities within the League of Legends. These possibilities are a blessing to some and a bane to others, since change doesn't always work for the better. So today I want to spend a little time going trough these changes and what they mean. For those interested, you might get some tips from this, and for those who think I am full of crap, you get to shout at me in the comments section.

Jungle
Now most of us know that there have been a lot of changes in the jungle, in general it's become harder to clear it. In my opinion this is valid 'cus, let's be honest, it was too easy in season 3. But with the changes to the jungle there have also been changes to and jungling items to compensate for the increased difficulty. So why is it then, that with all these changes, I see the majority of people still clinging to the "old ways"? Here are some things I think you should seriously consider doing if you are jungling.

Smite(less)
A lot of junglers still cling to the idea of clearing the first buff without using smite, without understanding why they were doing it in the first place. In season three if you cleared the first buff smiteless you could actually clear the other buff with smite to get double buff and level 3 without any hassle and proceed to gank. In the preseason however the experience gains changed so you wouldn't get level 3 unless you cleared a smaller camp with your 2 buffs. Now you might be of the opinion that you got screwed, Riot has however, thought about things for a change.

The answer to this conundrum has come in the form of a reduced cooldown of smite. Making it possible for you to use it more often... But how does this actually help you!? By smiting the first buff! This accomplishes a couple of things: It takes less time to clear the first buff, which has you taking less damage and takes less time off your team mates (so they don't miss farm). It gives you a more efficient clear route, by clearing a small camp in between your buffs and having smite for both buffs. It gets you to level 3 with double buffs in preseason the fastest and with the least health lost.

Jungler Type
Another thing that changed is that you now have a clear definition in jungler types. Not just AP or AD, but rather Late game tank, Early game ganker and speed farmer. The choices don't just come from which champion you chose, but also in the form of which items you purchase. It'd be good to think about these things before you even start the game. The first of that being "what does my team need?" and secondly "in what capacity would I fill this role the best?". Now this is not an easy choice to make, but it's one you should consider.

Items
The champion defines your role, but the item defines your capacity. As mentioned before, the new items are roughly split into three categories, namely Tank, Ganker and Farmer. The way I see it they are split like this: Now you could still choose between Jungler types mid game, grabbing Spectral wraith over Ancient golem on if the team needs you to gank more often. Or grabbing Elder lizard over Wriggle's on when someone is loosing lane badly and the jungler isn't putting that much pressure. In my experience though, it's better to pick one role before hand and setting your runes and masteries to go along side that role rather then changing the plan mid game. Rule of thumb though: Needs over Wants.
 * The go to items for tanks that focus on dominating late game. It gives you a clear mix between ganking and farming by giving you a timer in the form of Conservation stacks. When you have the max 80 stacks you should clear 2 camps, when the 2 camps are done you should gank... Clean cut order: Gank -> Clear 2 -> Repeat.
 * The main farming and counter jungling item, for junglers that want to oppress the opposition. It gives you three things to do; FARM FARM FARM FARM FARM FARM FARM! Warding and Counter jungling. A lot of people underestimate what depriving the opponent of gold and gank opportunities actually does for your team. (it's really hidden OP when used well, just my opinion though)
 * The go to items for Ganking junglers with a version for AP and AD respectfully. These are actually the items you should go to when your team is screaming for ganks as they give sustain and damage stats so that you can gank more often, even the gold passive rewards you for ganking more then jungling.
 * The main farming and counter jungling item, for junglers that want to oppress the opposition. It gives you three things to do; FARM FARM FARM FARM FARM FARM FARM! Warding and Counter jungling. A lot of people underestimate what depriving the opponent of gold and gank opportunities actually does for your team. (it's really hidden OP when used well, just my opinion though)
 * The go to items for Ganking junglers with a version for AP and AD respectfully. These are actually the items you should go to when your team is screaming for ganks as they give sustain and damage stats so that you can gank more often, even the gold passive rewards you for ganking more then jungling.
 * The go to items for Ganking junglers with a version for AP and AD respectfully. These are actually the items you should go to when your team is screaming for ganks as they give sustain and damage stats so that you can gank more often, even the gold passive rewards you for ganking more then jungling.

Support
I'm tired, this is coming up. Expect an update within 24 hours Deshiba (talk) 17:55, November 27, 2013 (UTC)