Okay, so I’ve been messing around with some off-meta stuff in the jungle lately, and let me tell you, Aphelios jungle is… an experience. It’s not something I’d recommend for your ranked climb, but if you’re looking for a fun, challenging, and frankly, pretty weird time, buckle up.
I started by looking at his kit. Aphelios, right? The weapon-swapping ADC. How the heck is that supposed to work in the jungle? Well, his clear is actually surprisingly decent, especially once you get the hang of his weapon rotations.
My First Few Games… Ouch
My first few games were rough, I won’t lie. I got invaded constantly. I mean, who wouldn’t invade an Aphelios jungle? I was basically a walking, talking free kill for the first 10 minutes. I died, a lot, to pretty much every meta jungler out there. Lee Sin? Forget about it. Xin Zhao? A nightmare. Even a freakin’ Amumu gave me trouble.
I quickly learned that I needed to be super careful about my pathing. I couldn’t just full clear like a normal jungler. I had to prioritize getting my weapons in the right order, especially Gravitum (the purple one, for root) and Severum (the red one, for sustain).
The Rotation Struggle
The biggest hurdle was definitely figuring out the weapon rotations. I spent a good chunk of time in the practice tool just trying to get a feel for which weapons worked best for clearing which camps. Here is the order of weapons I used:
- Calibrum(green)
- Severum (red)
- Gravitum (purple)
- Infernum (blue)
- Crescendum (white)
And honestly, that rotation is still something I am still tweaking. There are just so many combinations with the 5 guns and you’re basically at the mercy of the ammo system.
Ganking… with Guns?
Ganking was… interesting. Early on, it was basically impossible unless the enemy laner was seriously overextended. Gravitum was my best friend for early ganks. That root, even if it’s short, can be enough to set up a kill for your laner. Later in the game, once I had a few items, I could actually start to duel some people, which was a surprise.
I experimented with different builds, too. At first, I went full AD, like a normal Aphelios. But then I realized that a bit of attack speed and even some tankiness could be helpful. After all, I was going to be in the thick of things, and I needed to survive long enough to actually deal some damage.
The “Aha!” Moment
The turning point came when I started to really understand how to use Crescendum (the white one, with the chakrams). That weapon is insane for objective control. I could solo dragons and even Rift Herald surprisingly quickly, as long as I had the right weapon setup and stacked the chakrams efficiently.
The Verdict?
So, is Aphelios jungle viable? Probably not. Is it fun? Absolutely. It’s like playing a completely different game. You’re constantly thinking about your weapon rotations, your positioning, and how to maximize your damage output. It’s a high-skill, high-reward playstyle, and it’s definitely not for the faint of heart.
If you’re bored of the same old jungle picks and you’re looking for a challenge, give it a shot. Just don’t blame me if you lose your promos.
