Garen Jungle Spin to Win

Weird Pick #143

March 2021

This one's an interesting meme that's somehow found some success. Even a handful of pro players have picked it up in solo queue, but it's not a widespread phenomenon by any means. As a champion with powerful early game and decent clear speed, Garen jungle is something that's consistent, but not terribly feared. This can lead to enemy teams underestimating its potential and at worst, lead to some sweet kill steals with your ultimate.

Guide to Playing Garen Jungle

Check out how to play him below!

How to Play Garen Jungle

Abilities: E, Q, E, W then prioritize R > E > Q > W
Summoner Spells: Smite
Flash
Starting Items: Scorchclaw Pup, Refillable Potion
Strategy: Standard jungle paths and ganking pattern. Make sure to avoid linear stuns as you approach since he has minimal mobility outside of his speed boost.
Core Items: Stridebreaker
Plated Steelcaps
Dead Man's Plate
Thornmail
Sterak's Gage
Force of Nature

Garen Jungle Runes Setup

Primary: Conqueror, Triumph, Legend: Haste, Last Stand

Secondary: Nimbus Cloak, Celerity

How It Works

Stridebreaker

+40 attack damage
+25% attack speed
+450 health

Cleave: Attacks deal physical damage to nearby enemies.
Breaking Shockwave: Deal physical damage and Slow nearby enemies by 35%. Gain 35% decaying Move Speed per champion hit for 3 seconds.

This item still carries the build, but it asks more of you than it used to. Breaking Shockwave doesn't close the gap for you, so you have to arrive already on top of somebody, out of a brush or from behind their wave. Once you're there it's the whole gank: the slow pins them, the move speed you gain off every champion you clip keeps you glued to them, and Judgment [E] does the rest while they walk. Land it badly and you're a Garen jogging at somebody. Land it well and they're dead before their jungler turns around.

Strong 1v1

Early game, you can expect that his 1v1 is decent in river, and 2v2 melee skirmishes are generally in his favor. While his clear speed isn't all that fast, it's comparable to average junglers and his health at the end of it all is respectable.

Potential Pitfalls

Low Early Crowd-Control

Before your Scorchclaw Pup finishes growing and Stridebreaker comes online, Garen's gank ability is limited to how fast he can get in and stay in. While he's strong in skirmishes, this again relies on the enemies willing to actually fight him.

Late-Game Snowball Reliant

Late game, even a moderately strong Garen will start falling off unless he's snowballed sufficiently to facetank the enemy lines. While this isn't a feature unique to Garen, just keep in mind that the longer the game draws on in neutral farm mode, the less it favors him.

Countering Garen Jungle

Play mobile champions that can avoid linear ganks.

Conclusions

Garen Jungle is a viable pick that's capable of clearing jungle effectively. Overall, he's not super strong until he picks up his items, but is certainly capable of fighting early if enemies underestimate his potential.

Suggested Tier: Mid Tier 2

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Garen Jungle Spin to Win | Weird Pick #143 | Runes Items Build Guide

Weird Pick #143