Houston, we have a problem: there's a new champion with the damage/mobility of Akali, the survivability of an off tank, and a sprinkle of utility. Forgive me for my abstinence SoloMid community, but I have been enjoying my summer a little too much. But do not fear, TooLeegitToQuit is back and he's here to shed some light upon this lunar disciple. Just like the rest of my guides, this shall be a jungle guide. That's not to say Diana isn't viable (or arguably better) in lane, but my expertise lies in the jungle so that's where my endeavors will be focused.







Diana is an assassin jungler, excelling in damage and mobility. However, unlike most assassins, she comes equipped with a considerable amount of durability and a unique utility spell. With these traits in mind, it's important to build Diana in a manner that would accentuate her qualities. That said, my build will primarily revolve around increasing her damage, however, it will also have hints of tankiness and utility because she will inevitably be caught in the middle of the fray.

Pros:

• Fast clear time
• Resilient
• Mobile
• Strong burst damage

Cons:

• No innate sustain
• Requires farm/kills to truly do well
• Has small boobs
• Assassins don't really have a place in today's competitive meta

It's taken me a considerable amount of testing to ensure these Masteries are optimal, but I can assure you they're very strong. Opposed to my old 21/9/0 build: with my new, 9/12/9 setup, you sacrifice only a small amount of damage, but you gain more survivability and remedy a great deal of your mana issues thanks to 9 points utility. This foundation allows us to customize our item build to adapt to any setting.

If you have some tankier lanes and would like to bring more damage to the picture then feel free to use 21/9/0, but you'll have to gear for more mana or have a team comp that will allow you to have the Blues. Or, you could go 21/2/7 for some jungle resilience and still have some mana.

As previously mentioned, my aims are to maximize Diana's ability in the jungle. So, these runes accomplish that task quite nicely.

• Marks: The attack speed helps her clear time a good deal because of . Although, if you want to run Magic Pen then by all means go ahead. Magic Pen won't help your jungling, yet it will improve your ganks and team fights (which is arguably better).
• Seals: Armor is essentially in the jungle to negate damage.
• Glyphs/Quintessences: AP is the best option here because it scales well with each of her abilities.

This is for obvious reasons. Any good jungler runs Smite because of the jungle/objective control.



Flash is helpful for general mobility during the game. Great for escapes and initiation. It pairs really well with her .



Since you're an assassin, it's your job to jump on a carry and blow them to shreds. Obviously, Exhaust makes this task that much easier to achieve. If your team doesn't already have an Exhaust then consider picking one up.

Diana has increased Attack Speed. Every third strike cleaves nearby enemies for additional magic damage.

A great passive for the jungle, the AOE damage significantly helps her clear time. Yet due to the nature of team fights, my build does not revolve around this passive as it will be difficult to get off auto attacks as a bursty assassin.

Note: This passive does not have a counter like other moves in the same category. This is because unlike like other moves similar to it, it does not actually stay proc'd. For example, Master Yi's Double Strike passive will count up to its 7th strike and then you're ready to apply the double hit. However, with this move, once you get to the 3rd strike you only have 3~ seconds to apply the damage or it fades away. Nevertheless, you can either count or look for the glowing animation on your weapon to determine when it's ready to proc.

Trick: This passive works on towers. So keep that in mind if you're thinking about pushing.




Diana swings her blade to unleash a bolt of lunar energy, afflicting enemies with Moonlight and dealing damage in an arc before exploding.

An awkward, yet interesting skill shot design. I suggest you not worry about hitting people along its pathing, rather, just try hitting your desired target(s) at the end of the reticle. Nonetheless, this skill is great for the jungle because it's AOE damage.

Trick: You can land this over walls to give sight on monsters or champions. If you connect, you can follow up with to navigate over walls and increase your clear time. Likewise, if you're attempting to escape through the jungle you can apply this same trick to a jungle camp and over to get away from chasing foes. Additionally, this will work for checking brushes instead of having to face check.






Diana creates three orbiting spheres that detonate on contact with enemies to deal damage in an area. She also gains a temporary shield that absorbs damage. This shield is refreshed if all three spheres detonate.

Another very beneficial skill for the jungle (and elsewhere). The AOE damage is great for clear time and the shield is amazing for damage mitigation.

Trick: When receiving a leash on buffs, wait to use this ability until you start taking damage so you don't waste the shield.






Diana draws in and slows all nearby enemies.

It took Riot long enough to integrate this type of move, but better late than never. This ability works wonders during ganks and team fights.

Trick 1: Since it pulls enemies towards you, this ability actually can act as an interrupt. So when necessary, try holding on to this ability for that pesky or ultimate.

Trick 2: Although this ability pulls champions towards you, it can actually be used as an escape tool. The pull animation takes about a second to complete and it slows. So if someone is in range of you and you're trying to escape, then you can cast this to slow them down and get away.





Diana teleports to an enemy and deals magic damage. Lunar Rush has no cooldown when used to teleport to a target afflicted with Moonlight.

A fairly straight forward ultimate. It's great for closing the gap on those carries and can come in handy for escapes as well. It works off the "Moonlight" feature which is placed on enemies when you hit them with . If you want to sustain your damage and mobility then don't immediately cast twice because it will put it back on cooldown. You can wait until your is off cooldown and continue to along with the cooldown of . However, if you're attempting to burst down a carry (assuming you have the damage to do so), then you can immediately cast this move twice to pull off a considerable amount of burst damage.

Trick: This range on this ability is actually long enough to jump from over the wall to Dragon/Baron. So you can potentially pull of some clutch steals by jumping in, using and then out to safety.

This skill order gives her a great clearing time and strong ganks. 2 points in is enough for the jungle and maxing first gives her great damage during the jungle and ganks. In rare circumstances (e.g., vs. ), you can consider maxing first for the shield.

For the most part, Runes, Masteries, and Skill Order are cookie-cutter for Diana. That is, most people would agree the set up is optimal. However, when it comes to item builds, that's where most people start disagreeing. That said, I'm sure my build may meet some criticism. But I shall do my best to explain the rationale behind my build. As mentioned, this build is focused on your primary role as an assassin, yet giving you enough survivability and utility to perform this role safely and effectively. Keep in mind, that's not to say that other item builds aren't viable. If you have the proper team composition you can pull off a more carry oriented build. Yet, chances are you won't be getting quite as much farm in the jungle and you'll want some survivability and utility to help out your real carries.




I recommend starting boots because it increases clear time and helps your ganks/escapes. Diana has plenty of damage mitigation with so any other starting item is unnecessary.






The small boost to your AP will help your abilities and the GP/10 will be helpful for getting your other items. You're eventually going to get a so grab this on your first recall so you can start accruing gold.



Pick this up next for stronger ganks and a faster clear. Also, the additional mana is helpful as well.



Most of the time I prefer for the damage. Yet if they have a good amount of CC/AP consider going .





Start building towards this next for the HP and slow. The slow works well with your kit and the HP is so you don't get blown up immediately.



You'll always want to get regardless of team composition. However, if for whatever reason someone on your team isn't building then you should pick before . In the event you need to get the , then pick it up before .



If you/your team needs more damage then complete this item. You can cast the active during to maximize your burst damage. If you're having a hard time in team fights, then go for before completing this.



Another item that works well with your kit/task. The armor rounds off your defensive stats, the AP benefits each of your spells and not to mention the invaluable active. Since you're an assassin you're obviously be diving in on carries and this active will enable you to jump in, get off your burst/CC, and then drop aggro for a couple crucial seconds while your moves cool down.



Assuming you didn't build , then pick up one of these as your last item. If you need more damage, then go for the . If they have heavy MR, then finish up with . If you're carrying and want to seal the deal, then complete your build with for obvious reasons.

This video is from StoneWall008. His item build is debatable and admittedly still in the works. Nonetheless, this video is here to give you a tangible grasp on Diana before you start playing her.

Forgive me for this, but I'm going to be significantly less detailed than I usually am in this section because my other guides have plenty of information about general jungling/ganking. So I'm just going to mention your route(s) as Diana. If you wish to learn more about jungling and ganking as a whole then please consult my guide.

Standard Route: Wolves > Blue > Wraiths > Wolves > Red > Wraith > Gank/Counter jungle. In the event you don't acquire level 4 from this route (this happens when your leash stays too long and takes XP) then try going to steal their Wolves or do your golems if you're uncertain about invading.

Counter Jungling: Assailant: Diana has some of the quickest clear times right now so you can counter jungle very effectively. Additionally, you're also a strong duelist because of your . However, you severely lack escape mechanisms so be cautious about counter jungling. Either ask the aid of your teammates or only do it when you know the location of their jungler. Your only method of escaping is your or doing your combo onto an adjacent monster/minion.

Victim: As mentioned, your jungle speed makes it so that you aren't the victim of being counter jungled. Although, regardless of jungle speed, every jungler is susceptible to being counter jungled when you attempt a gank because you reveal your location and their jungler can steal your camps because you're obviously not there.

Additionally, because you're a Blue dependent jungler (at least on your initial clear) it's important for you to prepare for an invasion by the other team. Communicate with your teammates to set up scout so that you don't lose your Blue. Of course, every now and again there's that invasion that you can't really stop (e.g., the feared ). In the event you aren't able to get your Blue then you can do a Standard Red route or perhaps attempt to counter steal their Blue.

Ganking: Diana is a fairly solid ganker. She's not the best, but she does bring a wide variety of elements to a gank. She has very strong damage, a wonderful gap closer with , she can potentially dive a turret because of her , and she brings CC with her . Let's take a brief look at how to perform a gank on the lovely Diana.

As always, determine the proper ganking route by keeping track of their wards (this is the part where you might need to consult my other guides). Once you're in position for a gank there are a few different ways you can initiate. Ideally, it would be best to hit them with and then follow up with . However, certain scenarios won't allow you to use first because of it's small range. For example, if they're getting too close to their tower it would be better to just jump in and CC them to apply pressure and perhaps blow a summoner spell or two rather than waiting to get into range for your .

Okay folks it all comes down to this. My entire build revolves around Diana's performance in team fights. As mentioned, if you build her glass cannon you aren't going to be able to achieve your role as an assassin against any type of competent team. Fortunately, we've built an assassin with strong damage, yet with enough resilience and utility to ensure she can do her role effectively.

As an assassin (quasi-bruiser as well), it's your job to jump onto vulnerable carries in the effort to burst them down. However, much of the time their support will stop that from happening. So at the very least it's your job to suppress the carry while your team does their part. Let's take a look at how we can make this happen.

Because you're not the most durable person on your team (well, hopefully you're not) it's not really your role to initiate. Although, if someone on their team is clearly out of position then you can seize that opportunity to take that person out. You have a very quick gap closer, amazing burst damage, and CC; so taking that person out of the battle should be relatively easy with some help from your team. If you have a great initiation comp (e.g., and so on) then you actually can initiate with them if you're confident in their followup.

But if your team somehow manages to have poor initiation, then I suggest you allow the team fight to commence through whatever means and you wait on the outskirts for just a little bit to ensure that you're not instantly killed. If a fight is starting then wait for a good time, such as their carrying being isolated or a lot of their cool downs have already been blown, then take that chance to dash onto a carry and do what you do best, kill them. If you land follow up with your , then . If done correctly, you can get this combo off in around a second. You can easily burst a carry down from full to 0 if they don't have too much magic resist. If you don't think you can burst them down with a single combo, then make sure to cycle your and so that it doesn't go on cool down until you're able to finish them off.

Diana is a well rounded and fun champion that brings a variety of elements to a gank or team fight. She may not do the most damage, she may not be the tankiest, she may not have the most CC, but she can do a little bit of everything, and she can do those things quite well. With all these traits combined, she possesses a strong kit that many have learned to fear. And hopefully you've learned a thing or two from this guide and you're now ready to instill that fear yourself.




Comments: If you have any criticism for my guide I genuinely embrace and welcome it. However, I cannot make necessary changes and address your concerns if you don't provide me with reasons for your disapproval. This guide wouldn't be where it is today if I didn't receive any feedback. That said, I am thankful for those of you that share your questions and discuss things in a mature, intellectual manner.