As League of Legends is getting close to having 160 playable champions, it should come as no surprise that some of these characters stand out more than others, either through their designs, abilities or play styles, but only a handful of those champions are unique from all three angles.
One champion who does manage to stand out from all three perspectives is none other than our favorite Nordic kid and his trusted Yeti, known as Nunu & Willump, who we’ll also be referring to as simply Nunu.
Among the strengths of this champion we need to mention:
- the possibility to “double Smite”, as his Consume (Q) ability deals 80 more true damage to monsters than Smite
- being able to cross the map at formidable speeds even in the early game
- naturally having a high damage output, even when building strictly Tank items
Despite occasionally bumping into a Nunu player on Mid or Top, the Boy and His Yeti belong in the Jungle, where the Consume ability can be used at its maximum potential, and the building movement speed from W is fully exploited.
These being said, let us guide you through the best Summoner Spells, Runes and items for Nunu & Willump, before jumping into the main subject of this article, dissecting the most effective Jungle routes and clearing strategies for the Boy and His Yeti!
Enjoy!
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Summoner Spells
Ghost + Smite
Although Flash is the most common Summoner Spell for Laners and Junglers alike, similarly to champions such as Hecarim, Ghost is the superior Summoner Spell, as it provides added movement speed which synergizes much better with Nunu’s kit and Runes than any other alternative.
The Best Nunu & Willump Runes
The best performing Runes for Nunu can be found in the Sorcery tree, as the Boy and His Yeti prefer getting their defensives from items alone, using the Runes to gain a rather strange mix of utility-focused stats.
For the Keystone, players should be taking Phase Rush, followed by Nimbus Cloak, Celerity and Waterwalking.
Nunu can activate Phase Rush with ease, with the rest of the Runes focusing on boosting the resulted movement speed and the effects of Ghost even more.
As for the secondary Runes, head over to the Precision tree and select Triumph and Legend: Tenacity, increasing Nunu’s survivability in extended combat. More raw defense Runes such as Bone Plating and Overgrowth are also viable, but the value of those stats becomes rather insignificant once we take a look at Nunu’s build.
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The Best Nunu & Willump Items
Starting Items: Hailblade + Refillable Potion
Mythic Item: Sunfire Aegis / Frostfire Gauntlet
Core Items: Defensive Boots, Dead Man’s Plate, Abyssal Mask
Finishing Options: Gargoyle Stoneplate, Randuin’s Omen, Force of Nature, Spirit Visage
Optional pick: Mejai’s Soulstealer, Demonic Embrace
Choosing between Mythic options should ultimately boil down to personal preference, but the vast majority of players will have a more enjoyable time building Sunfire Aegis, as it further increases tenacity, a quintessential stat for Nunu & Willump.
Abyssal Mask and Dead Man’s Plate are the absolute core items for the Boy and His Yeti, allowing the rest of the build to focus on counteracting the enemy team’s potential carries and win conditions, as nearly all defensive items work well with this champion.
Notably, picking up a Dark Seal early into the game as well as building a Demonic Embrace as perhaps the 3rd or 4th item will add some bonus damage to Nunu’s kit, but these are best used when the enemy team’s composition allows you to give up on a specific resistance item to make room for the Demonic Embrace.
The Best Skill Order for Nunu & Willump
Q > E > W > R
Q is going to be your primary clearing tool, as it deals huge chunks of damage to the Jungle monsters, on a relatively low cooldown, providing Nunu with some healing as well.
The Best Jungle Paths for Nunu & Willump
The Boy and His Yeti can clear the Jungle with nearly unmatched efficiency, largely thanks to the “Consume” ability, yet that does not mean that players should be spending too much time farming up. Instead, convert the effectiveness of Nunu’s clear speed into map presence, as you can swiftly clear your Jungle and then focus on pressuring all Lanes continuously, a feat which the enemy Jungler is unlikely to be able to match.
We are going to cover the most advantageous starts from each side, but players should keep a few factors in mind when deciding upon where their Jungle pathing should start. These are:
- Which laners are going to provide more help in clearing the first camp?
- Counter-jungle opportunities, based on where the enemy Jungler is likely to start.
- Which lane would you like to gank first, depending on both the allied and enemy champions.
Nunu’s ganks are most effective starting with LVL 3, as Snowball Barrage is going to provide some additional slow and control to your ganks.
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Red Side, Red Clear
Starting our clearing routes from the Red Side’s Red Buff, we need to point out the fact that regardless of starting position, Nunu won’t realistically struggle at clearing the Jungle, simply because his kit was intended to do it near-automatically.
Begin by securing your first buff using repeated Qs to tear down its HP bar, before heading towards the Raptor camp. Make sure to start up your W from a respectable distance (which is the second spell you’re going to be investing in, despite it being the last you max) to get the most out of its damage, before systematically consuming all of the mobs.
Next on the list are the Wolves, where players should apply the same strategy as with the Raptor camp, keeping both charges of Smite for later.
As for the fourth camp, we reach the Blue Buff. Using the same approach of spamming Q whenever it is available, paired with Nunu’s E ability, take down the Blue Buff’s HP below the Smite threshold, and execute it using the Summoner Spell.
Shift your focus towards the Gromp, battling it the same way you did the Blue Buff, but holding on to the second Smite charge. Gromp’s healing combined with the one you get from Q will leave players with an almost full HP bar.
Lastly, start rolling up a snowball using W and break the Scuttler’s shield upon impact, using Q and Smite in rapid succession to basically delete it.
From this position players are free to gank either Mid or Bot by starting up their W and perhaps Ghost (if the Lane is in a favorable position).
Red Side, Blue Clear
Now switching the starting position to the Blue Buff, not much is going to change in terms of pathing. Indeed, the added assistance gained by having two allies’ support is somewhat impactful, but Nunu is among the few champions who can solo the Jungle without breaking a sweat.
After securing the Blue Buff, charge towards the Gromp and start chomping away at it using Q. Even if you start running low on Health, Gromp’s healing will take care of that for you.
Heading towards the multi-mob camps, more specifically the Wolves and Raptors, as shown in the image, players will follow the same strategy, charging in with W, casting Q whenever available and ultimately hitting the mobs with repeated shots of snowballs from E. Although the multi-mob camps should not pose a threat, feel free to use the Refillable Potion if you suspect the enemy Jungler of invading.
For the fifth camp, it is time to secure the second Buff by slaying Red, casting the second Smite charge onto it. With the healing from Smite and Consume (Q), players should be left with plenty of Health to step into the River with, especially when considering that Nunu’s tempo is faster than most other Junglers’.
Lastly, tear down the Scuttler’s HP by breaking its shield and using Smite and Q consecutively, before looking for an opportunity to gank.
Blue Side, Blue Clear
Switching over to the other side of the Map, Nunu’s ideal Jungle clearing routes don’t exactly change that much, as the two possible routes virtually mirror the previous ones.
Starting with the Blue Buff, once again chomp through its HP bar using Q, before doing virtually the same to the Gromp, with the added damage from your now unlocked W.
Like previously, your 3rd and 4th camps are going to be the multi-mobs. Applying the same principles as beforehand, crash a W snowball into the camps and follow it up with repeated casts of Q whenever it is off cooldown, using E in the meantime.
In order to complete the clear, head towards the Red Buff and shred through it using Smite and Q, before finishing your first clear by securing the gold, experience and vision granted by the Scuttler, which Nunu can 100-to-0 in no time using the second charge of Smite.
This position is once again opening up the path towards quick, effective ganks on Mid or Bot.
Blue Side, Red Clear
For the final clearing route, starting from the Blue Side’s Red Buff camp, have your two allies assist you in the first clear, accelerating your tempo as much as possible.
Following the Red Buff, players have the Raptors and Wolves on the list, clearing both camps similarly, by smashing a W snowball into the mobs before using Q on the larger monsters to minimize the incoming damage.
Start slaying the Blue Buff as the next objective, using Smite to accelerate the clear, before shifting your focus towards the Gromp, which is going to heal you back up to near full Health.
Now lastly, step into the River with a massive snowball (W) and secure some vision for your team, along-side the added bit of gold and experience from the Scuttler, before charging towards either Top or Mid for a very early gank!
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The Best Tips and Tricks for Nunu & Willump
- Against monsters and non-champion units, Nunu & Willump’s Q increases its healing by 50% when below 50% Health. In the Jungle, occasionally checking your HP bar before casting Q can convert into a considerable amount of extra healing over the course of an entire game.
- The only ability Nunu & Willump players need to actually practice is the Biggest Snowball Ever! (W), which can be a bit more challenging to direct for first time players. A few runs across the River and Jungle in the Practice Tool can give more than a decent insight to how the aim mechanics of this ability operate.
- As opposed to most other Jungler, Nunu & Willump do not necessarily need to reset after the first gank, considering just how quickly the duo can navigate the River with W and Waterwalking. Unless the enemy laners set some vision, the Boy and His Yeti can run back and forth between two lanes through the River to execute a total of three ganks in quick succession, which will very likely draw the opposing laners mad.
- With “two Smites” (Q and the Summoner Spell) Nunu & Willump can secure major objectives such as Dragons and Barons with great effect, as experienced Junglers can also steal these objectives from the enemy team, given that Q deals more damage to monsters than the Summoner Spell.
- Channeling Absolute Zero (R) from bushes doesn’t reveal its AOE, but the enemies are likely to notice the slow. Instead of hunting for takedowns, hold on to R until the enemies have used up most of their hard CC, only casting it in the midst of combat.
Finalizing Thoughts
Despite his popularity only rising in recent times, the Boy and His Yeti remain one of the most iconic duos in the entire game, being able to provide nearly any team composition with an impressive amount of pressure across the Map.
Players should most of their early game efforts towards ganking as often as possible and securing early Dragons. Few, if any, Junglers can match Nunu’s Dragon-slaying power, meaning that players can very easily secure at least two early Drakes, accelerating their team’s potential for a Soul.
Later on, the Boy and His Yeti can initiate combat by flanking the enemy team using W. Ghost, Dead Man’s Plate and the movement speed Runes are all going to enhance the power of Biggest Snowball Ever!, especially when looking at it as an engage tool.
With this we are going to be concluding our Jungle clearing and pathing guide for Nunu & Willump, the Boy and His Yeti, urging all readers to explore our website for more League-related content, including similar guides!
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