Hello everyone and welcome to my very first guide on Solomid about Jayce, The Defender of Tomorrow! Jayce is a very fun and versatile champion who has the unique option of changing between a ranged form and a melee form to both fulfill very different situations in battle. I have put alot of work into the making of this guide and I hope you all enjoy :D


-Stormsurgez

Pros:

+ Very versatile champion
+ Good burst
+ Good movement speed options
+ Health % based nuke
+ Nice free defensive stats in hammer form
+ Great farmer
+ Fun to play


Cons:

- Lacks Sustain
- No true ultimate spell
- While in cannon form you are rather squishy
- Takes some practice to get used to

Since Jayce can use a ranged and a melee form this opens so many options to use in the appropriate situations. For farming and poking mostly rely on useing cannon form, and when the fight really starts going then switch to hammer form to cause the most damage and chaos you can do.


As for the play style of Jayce he can mostly relate to champions such as Nidalee for her decision of when to poke at ranged and when you go into the fight head on, and Jarvan for going in quick combos for burst damage then backing without taking much damage. So combining these 2 styles you get Jayce who can choose to sit back in ranged form and poke you opponent down, or to go in for melee damage that will be devastating to whoever you are fighting.

The masteries used are to complement Jayce the best by increasing his damage and making him a bit more tanky. Also the reason there you take magic pen in the offensive tree is because a number of Jayce's spell do magic damage + the cool down reduction from the mastery before really helps him out because since Jayce has so many spells at his disposal the sooner they are back up means more options will open up to you.

Greater Mark of Desolation/Greater Mark of Strength(+1.66 armor penetration/+0.95 attack damage)
- the armor pen will help alot against tanky enemys and help you preform better late game if the other team trys to build some armor and the flat AD will help you with last hitting and winning trades early on.

Greater Seal of Resilience(+1.41 armor)
- These are so great for top lane because top lane is all about trading and the extra armor will be a big factor to who comes out on top in the exchange.

Greater Glyph of Shielding(+0.15 magic resist per level)
- The MR per level will help you scale into late game where the other team's AP carry will be a big factor in battle.

Greater Quintessence of Strength(+2.25 attack damage)
- The flat AD will help you win trades early on to show your dominance in lane and also will help out with last hitting.

[title]Explanation:[title]

: No other spell can compare to the utility that flash has with so many offensive and defensive options. Also flash works well with hammer form's E by being able to get in proper position to knock your oponent away from safety.

: Great way to be able to add to your burst damage and finishing off an opponent.


Other summoner spell options:

: Good to insure your opponent wont get away or just to bring some extra CC/damage mitigation to your team if they are lacking it.

: Good for being able to chase down some high priority targets and combined with cannon form's E you will be moving extremely fast.

: I would only recomend taking this if you know that the lane is going to be rather slow and it is unlikely many kills will happen on either side. So taking teleport opens many options of teleporting down to help in ganks, counter ganks, split pushing, and dragon, all of which can really help your team out.

Jayce gains 40 movement speed for 1.25 seconds and ignores unit collision each time Transform is cast.



A nice little speed boost to help you run away, catch up to your opponent for the kill, and to be able to get back to lane quicker



- To the Skies!

Jayce leaps to an enemy, dealing physical damage to his target and to enemies in the area, slowing them for 2 seconds.


- Shock Blast

Fires an orb of electricity that detonates upon hitting an enemy or reaching the end of its path, dealing physical damage to all enemies in the area of the explosion.

If Shock Blast is fired through an Acceleration Gate, the area of effect, missile speed and range will be increased, and its damage will increase by 40%.



Hammer Form- A short range gap closer with an AoE slow which can help you get into position to unload your damage and get a good angle to knock your opponent away with hammer form's E.

Cannon Form- an decent poking ability which it's true potential shines when shooting it through your cannon form E for amazing range and damage. It is also great for softening up the other team before a team fight has even started.



- Lightning Field

(Passive): Jayce regenerates mana each time he strikes an enemy while in Hammer Stance.
(Active): Creates an electric aura, dealing magic damage over 4 seconds to nearby enemies.


- Hyper Charge

(Active): Jayce gains a burst of energy, increasing his attack speed to maximum for 3 attacks. These attacks deal varied damage depending on rank.



Hammer Form- Ongoing AoE damage to help your damage while in melee range, also very good for pushing a lane and when there is no enemy threat nearby the passive mana gain per hit in hammer form can keep you in lane longer and ready to fight.

Cannon Form- A quick attack speed steroid that decays after each shot, this is a good skill to use when an enemy ventures too close to you that they are in your auto attack range in cannon form so punish them with a fast barrage of auto attacks before they get out of range.

Important note: The attack speed buff stays with you even when you change forms, so you can active the spell before you switch to hammer form for extra burst potential in melee.



- Thundering Blow

Deals magic damage equal to a base amount plus a percentage of the target's maximum health, knocking the target back a short distance. This damage is capped against monsters.


- Acceleration Gate

Deploys an Acceleration Gate for 4 seconds, increasing the movement speed of all allies who pass through it for 3 seconds. This bonus fades over the duration.



Hammer form- An extremely power spell that does huge damage because it deals damage based on maxium health of your enemy. This spell is also great counter agression by your opponent if they are coming in to do damage or to push a ganking jungler away to buy you some time. Finally it is amazing for ganks from your own team by being able to get the proper positioning you can knock your opponent away from the safety of their tower/team.

Cannon Form- An AoE speed boost which can help you/your team engage or run away and makes your cannon form Q be able to do some serious damage when shot through it.



- Transform: Mercury Cannon

Transforms the Mercury Hammer into the Mercury Cannon, gaining new abilities and ranged attacks.
The next attack in Cannon Stance reduces the enemy's armor and magic resist for 5 seconds.


- Transform: Mercury Hammer

Transforms the Mercury Cannon into the Mercury Hammer, gaining new abilities and bonus armor and magic resist.
The next attack in Hammer Stance deals additional magic damage.



This is what makes Jayce unique, the ability to switch between melee and ranged is what makes him so versatile. Also the mark of a good Jayce is being able to have the knowledge of when to use which form/abilitys in the apropriate situation.

NOTE: The first strike from the passive in both forms has a longer auto attack animation than normal so you will have to get used to this for last hitting compared to your normal auto-attacks

Hammer Form- The passive makes you more tanky so you are able to be in the front lines as a bruiser where I feel Jayce shines the most. The first strike of extra damage is nice to use to win trades with your opponent or even help you last hit at your tower.

Cannon Form- The first strike armor/magic resist shred can be very useful, so if possible if you are going to trade with your opponent try to shoot an auto-attack at them first to tip the advantage into your favor before the exchange has even started.

Leveling priority: >>>>>> (R>>Q>>E>>W)



Why R first?

• The reason behind the priority of leveling R is simply because of the passive armor/magic resist you get in hammer form because to fulfill the duty of a bruiser you need the extra protection to be able to be right in the middle of a fight without being instantly blown up.

Why Q Second?

• The reason to level Q Second is because by haveing a lower cooldown on Q in hammer form it allows you to stick you your opponent better and by having more damage for cannon form's Q it allows your poke to be extremely devastating.

Why E Third?

• The reason to level E Third is because of the huge damage it does in hammer form. Damage dealt based on maximum health is insanely valuable and in addition to the knock back you will want this spell to have a low of a cool down as possible. Also the speed boost in cannon form can greatly benefit your team by being able to use it more often.

Why W last?

• The Reason to level W last is because in hammer form it can not compare to the damage of E or the utility of Q. Also in cannon form you dont really need a huge attack speed boost because the base boost at lvl 1 is still quite great so you can hold off to ranking it up untill later on.

+ - Fairly standard opening items for bruisers and works very well with Jayce because at lvl 1 you should be in cannon form for last hitting so having the extra movement speed allows you to get out of range of any early agression from your opponent.

or - Both options are great for Jayce to help with his survivability since alot of his damage will come from being in the middle of the fight with hammer form. To make the decision of which boots to take make sure to take into consideration your lane opponent, how you are doing in lane, and look ahead in the match to see who else you will be facing in fights later on.

- This is a great all around item for Jayce because all of the stats it gives benefits him greatly especially the cool down reduction since a number of Jayce's spells have long cool downs.


If you find that you are/know you are going to be having difficulty in lane then what I recomend is to swap out the brutalizer for one of these items below to help you out:

- If struggling against an AP champion-then I would recomend buying a hexdrinker instead of the brutalizer to mitigate the amount of damage they are doing to you, also in that situation it would be a good idea to buy mercury treads.

-If you need some sustain/extra armor then I would recomend wriggle's lantern to be able to stay in lane longer and hopefully outlast your opponent.


>>-Trinity Force is a great item of Jayce and it is what really skyrockets his damage with so many great stats that synergizewell with him. Also by buying phage first it makes it much easyer to chase down your opponents.


- A good upgrade for the brutalizer to further increase the stats it gives you, and hey whats better than a champion with a movement speed boost and attack speed boost? Even more movement speed and attack speed boosts! The boosts will make you be able to stick to your target even more than before.

Note: If you bought hexdrinker or wriggles instead of the brutalizer skip the ghost blade.

- A very solid tanky item to build up your armor and magic resist to survive the damage of late game carrys and the passive revive will help you get right back into the action.


-Here are a number of good late game items for Jayce. Depending on the situation choose which items will help you out the most against your matchup and to help out your team.
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LvL 1: Stay in cannon form and just play passive and focus on last hitting. If needed counter any melee agression or ganks by useing E in hammer form to gain distance and if needed run with Cannon form's E.

LvL 2-5: Continue on farming, however now as you gain more of your spells it gives you more options for abusing with Cannon form E-Q combo and if they venture in too close to you then punish them with a barrage of auto-attacks using then attack speed boost from W. Also you can do some quick engages of jumping in with a Q-E combo in hammer form to wear them down to the point of going in for the kill.

LvL 6+: Continue on being more agressive now and trade with your opponent in short engages. Be careful now because your opponent will of gained their ultimate while you do not have a true ultimate spell so take that into consideration while engaging from now on.

This is when Jayce's damage really gets rolling. At this point show your dominance in lane to force your opponent to be passive or be heavily punished and killed. Also at this point you can shove out your lane to go roam and help out your team by ganking, invading, and come down to help out at dragon.

You will now to be force to be reckoned from your damage and team presence with as you complete some of your late game items. From now on try to stay with your team as much as possible and try to poke the enemy team with cannon form's E-Q combo to soften them up.

As a team fight starts use cannon form's E speed boost to help out your team and shoot a barrage of auto attacks at overextended enemys . Now as the enemy's carrys get into the fight it is time to shine as a bruiser, pick your target and charge on into them and try to knock them into your team while inficting as much damage as possible. From this point on just go down the ladder of highest priority champions to take out but also keep an eye on your own team's carry in case they need help and a quick hammer form E can do wonders to save the carry's life.

Here is a quick montage of kills I made showing off the abilitys of Jayce

Note: This is in spectator mode so some of the time I dont really have vision on them (I realize now that I should of turned the other teams vision off but oh well, I can fix it for next time XD )











Also here is a link to my youtube channel if interested http://www.youtube.com/LightningStrikez99

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(cannon) E>Q>W>R(hammer)>Q>W>E +auto attacks +flash/ignite as needed

When you know you can kill the target then this combo will bring the maxium damage possible.

Note: this is an ideal situation so shorten the combo as needed if you think you can kill them with out it.


-Start in cannon form and make sure your cool downs are up

-Once you have a clear line of fire use a E-Q combo to do some damage right away

-Charge after them and pass into your speed boost and activate W for the attack speed increase and know that the attack speed buff will carry on even in hammer form

-Change into Hammer form for even more speed and close the gap on them

-Once in range jump to them with Q and activate W while swinging some auto attacks with the attack speed boost from cannon form's W you used a few seconds ago

-Finally if you can knock them further away from safety with E or if low enough then exicute them with the raw damage of it

-If they manage to survive then change back into cannon form and shoot a barrage of auto attacks at them

• Thundering Blow can do almost as much damage as a smite so use it to try and last hit baron or dragon.
• The passive armor/magic resist you get from hammer form could be enough to save your life from an impending doom spell such as Karthus's ultimate, Zilean's bomb, Vlad's ult, etc so if possible make sure you are in hammer form and not cannon form when the damage hits.
• In cannon form a trick is that you can shoot your Q then mid air use E on it before it gets out of range. This way it can surprize your opponent and give them barely any time at all to react to the empowered shot.
• The attack speed buff from cannon form's W will stay with you even when you change to hammer form.

I will be making laning match up descriptions for common top lane picks but it will take awhile to do with so many champions so I will update it a bit at a time.


Below I have descriptions of laning match-ups with common top lane champions on how you should face them and some tips to use against them. Also If you want some advice on some more uncommon picks feel free to leave me a comment about it.

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-(easy) You are able to bully Cho'gath quite easily with your thundering strike so the only thing you have to look look for is dodging his Q and denying his sustain from his passive as much as possible. Early game it is very easy to kill Choo'gath and he cannot fight back very well, so continuously abuse him with hammer form Q-E combos to get him to the point of being killable. Also use your movment speed to your advantaage to dodge his Q and W by getting good positioning.
-Simplfied: Bully him early on, dodge his Q, use thundering strike on him as much as possible.

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-(medium) Very early game Jax can pump out alot of damage against you so you will need to be careful. When facing Jax the trick to beating him is to have good timing with thundering strike. To be able to come out on top in trades the instant Jax jumps to you you will need to knock him away to mitagate his damage and to hopefully avoid his stun. Once you have gotten a few levels under your belt I would recomend even staying in hammer form a bit more often instead on your normal cannon form to farm so you can have a much quicker reactuion time to his jumps and be able to trade better against him.

-Simplfied:Be careful early game, knock him back when he jumps to you, stay in hammer form more often.

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-(easy) To beat Renekton all you have to do is just keep on kiting him untill he has used his cool downs which opens the door to burst him down. Stay at range vs him as much as possible and make sure you do not stand near your own minions so he cannot double dash to you. When he uses his ulimate knock him away with thundering strike and continue to kite him untill it wears off.

-Simplfied: Stay at range, avoid his dash ins, knock him away when he ults.

-(easy)Just put out as much ranged pressure on her as you can to slowly whittle her down to the point where she is killable since she has no natural sustain, and if she trys to come at you then a quick hammer form E will ruin her combo and make her think twice before attacking you again. Make sure that when she pops her ultimate try and retreat because this is when she has a chance to kill you

-Simplfied: stay in ranged form, counter her agression with hammer form E, retreat if needed.

-(medium) You need to be very careful in this lane because of Rumble's huge potential for damage. To beat him it will be a matter of dodging his slowing taser and staying out of range of his flamethrower as much as possible. So try and stay back and abuse him from far away. A trick to use against rumble is to watch for when he overheats because since he cannont use spells during that time it is the perfect opportunity to go in for a quick hammer form Q-E combo and get away without being punished by his flamethrower.
-Simplfied: AVOID FLAMETHROWER,stay at range, watch for when he overheats.

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Thank you all vey much for reading my guide! I have put alot of work into making the guide and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did making it. I will try to keep the guide updated as much as possible and If you have any questions feel free to ask and I will try to get back to you as soon as I can.

So without further ado good luck in the fields of justice with Jayce, the defender of tomorrow and thanks again for taking the time to read my guide :D

-Stormsurgez

August 4th 2012-The guide is now public!
August 5th 2012- Added Cho'Gath, Jax, Renekton, Riven, and Rumble laning match-up descriptions
August 6th 2012- Added a Jayce Montage
October 25th 2012- Updated Runes and Spell Order