League of Legends - Niche Picks - Jungle Urgot

Sometimes the best way to have fun in League of Legends is to try something so crazy and out of the box that it bewilders your opponents, and even sometimes your own team. I’m talking about comps like kill lanes bot or wacky jungle picks, things that nobody knows how to counter pick, and nobody is sure how to play against. This time, we’ll be going with Urgot jungle.
Right off the bat, picking Urgot jungle in champ select, especially draft, will throw everyone off. Some of your teammates may be skeptical, and your opponents won’t know what you’re doing until they see your smite in the loading screen. In the LCS, Urgot has been picked up by Keane of Gravity Gaming in the mid lane. Urgot’s ability to kite and poke from a distance has proven quite beneficial to teams, especially with some mana in his build.

Runes

To fill out your rune page, you’ll want to take nine Armor Penetration marks. On Urgot, no matter the position, armor penetration is the most important stat. Though he has ranged auto attacks, most of your damage comes from your Q, so helping it pack a punch is vital. If you’ve got a Brutalizer your E + Q combo nearly does true damage to people without armor like AD Carries, some mids and supports.
Next grab nine Greater Seals of Armor to help you make it through those jungle clears and of course stay alive in fights. They’ll help soak up damage from all of the damage you’ll take trying to land just one more long range Q on the backline.
For blues grab nine scaling Magic Resist Glyphs. These are there for the ganks and later skirmishes and teamfights. They won’t help you out immediately, but they’re an investment in stayin’ alive later game. As Urgot you’re not that mobile besides kiting, so it’s nice to have some tank stats to hold the line.
For Quintessences, you can either grab three Attack Damage or three Movement Speed, it’s up to what you want in each game. Attack Damage is there for some more damage in your attacks and Q, while Movement Speed can help you move around the jungle and map faster. Urgot’s ganks can be great, but the keyword is can. Getting to a position where you can land your E [Noxian Corrosive Charge], activate W [Terror Capacitor] and throw out a few Q’s [Acid Hunter] to slow your targets isn’t always easy. With some quicker feet you can sneak up on your opponents faster, but at the cost of a little damage. If you know your allied lanes can follow up your slows with reliable damage, more speed isn’t a bad idea.

Masteries

For the most part, it’s a normal AD 21/9/0 mastery page, with some slight variations. The first, and nearly most important to Urgot is to put 4 points into Sorcery for the extra Cooldown Reduction. Though he’s AD, Urgot depends completely on his abilities for his damage and utility. Next grab the two points in Butcher and Feast for the damage on the jungle. The rest are just normal AD mastery points. Over in the defensive tree, you’ll want to grab points in Enchanted Armor, Veteran’s Scars and Oppression. Oppression is good for Urgot in particular because it reduces damage taken from enemies slowed from effects like your W. Lastly grab Tough Skin and Bladed Armor for the damage back on to jungle creeps.

Items

Offensive Build

Upgrade your Hunter’s Machete to Ranger’s Trailblazer with the Warrior enchant. It has literally every stat that Urgot could need, the AD, CDR and more Armor Penetration. The rest of this build is for if your team doesn’t need another tank and/or is lacking damage. If you get ahead, feel free to grab that Tear of the Goddess for a Manamune, but if you’re hurting for gold it could be best to swap that one out for a Locket. When you can, go Last Whisper for the AD and the unique passive that ignores enemy armor. After Black Cleaver, other honorable mentions include Trinity Force, or Iceborn Gauntlet, but you’ll definitely want to have a Frozen Heart, even on the offensive build.

Tankier Build

In situations like this, your team is in need of some tank. After finishing your jungle item, pick either Mercury’s Treads or Ninja Tabi, whichever fits best. Then grab Frozen Heart (it’s a staple on Urgot) before heading to Locket of the Iron Solari. Then Randuin’s and a Banshee’s if you really need it. Don’t pick up Spirit Visage; its unique stats and effects don’t help Urgot out at all. When it comes down to it, offensive or tankier build, always have at least one defensive item, because if you’re looking to ult a high priority target near the backline, a squishy ulting Urgot is signing a death warrant.

Skill Order

For the most part, start E -> Q -> W for your first three abilities. If you’re looking to invade with your team, grab W first. If you’re able to put down an autoattack or two with the slow from a W, it’s a guaranteed Flash or kill. For the rest of the game, here’s your skill priority: R > Q > E > W.

Skill Tips

Throw an E down to siege objectives like Dragon and Baron from a distance. The long range allows you to weaken your opponents as they Drag before you go in yourself.
You can use your E to facecheck bushes.
Your ultimate is tricky in 5v5 fights, it may get you killed more often than not. Look to use it more for ganks and picks.
If you’ve got red buff early game, depending on who’s top lane, it’s an easy Flash or kill, coupled with your W.
Once 6, head bot for a good ult on the squishy support or AD Carry, just make sure you communicate with your bot lane to be ready to follow up.
Your ultimate is a suppression, so if you’re up against champions like Katarina or Malzahar you can stop their channeled ults by using yours.

Jungling

When it comes to actually doing work in the jungle, you’ll want to do what you can to kite camps. Truth be told Urgot’s jungle clear is pretty mediocre, but is still doable. Be careful about counterjungling. Urgot can’t do it outright, but if you’re smart about vision and timers, at the very least you can throw down an E/Q and harass them off their camps. If you catch the other jungler or he finds you, do your best to immediately kite towards your nearest ally and call for help (unless you don’t need it). If you can get your lanes to collapse on you, the fight is yours no problem, but if your opponents react faster, you’re in a sticky situation. Urgot is great at slowing and kiting around, but only against one target at a time. Being chased down by multiple opponents can become overwhelming with Urgot’s lack of definite mobility. However, if you catch people out and you have the health advantage or element of surprise, you should do just fine.

Robert Wery