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Kayn
Patch 16.2.1
JungleDifficulty
Medium
Strength
Early
Mid
Late
Win Condition
Power-farm to reach 7-8 CS per minute while taking 'drive-by' ganks to collect orbs. Once is active, use your mobility to pick off isolated targets (Blue) or dominate front-to-back teamfights (Red).
Playstyle
A power-farming jungler who evolves into a specialized carry. You start weak, but once you unlock , you become a map-controlling monster that ignores walls to find unique gank angles.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths
- +Unmatched jungle pathing and gank angles with
- +Extremely fast clear speed due to being AoE
- +Highly adaptable playstyle via transformations
- +Excellent at diving backlines or shredding tanks depending on form choice
Weaknesses
- -Very vulnerable to early invades before is unlocked
- -Predictable early game pathing as you seek specific orb types
- -Requires combat to unlock potential—falling behind makes orb collection dangerous
- -Highly dependent on landing to secure kills or peel
Abilities
Collect orbs by hitting enemies. Blue orbs from ranged champs give Shadow Assassin (burst/speed). Red orbs from melee give Darkin (healing/tank shred). If you get the 'wrong' form first, you must wait 4 minutes or keep collecting the correct orb type to speed up the timer.
A dash followed by a slash. Both parts deal damage. This is your primary clearing tool. Use into walls to shorten the animation and increase your total DPS against jungle monsters.
A line skillshot that slows. In Shadow Assassin form, the range is increased and you can move during the cast. In Darkin form, it knocks enemies up. This is your most important ability for lockdown.
Walk through terrain and gain a burst of movement speed plus a small heal. Taking damage or staying in a wall for more than 1.5s while in combat will kick you out. Use it to bypass common ward spots.
Infest an enemy you have recently damaged to become untargetable. Use to dodge high-damage ultimates or wait for your and cooldowns to return. Darkin form heals you; Shadow Assassin form resets your passive damage bonus and has massive exit range. You can Smite while inside an enemy with .
Teamfight Role
Shadow Assassin: Flank/Assassin | Darkin: Frontline/Drain-tank
Blue Kayn must use to flank and wait for enemy CC to be spent before entering. Red Kayn should stay in the thick of the fight, using on as many people as possible to maximize healing.
If your carries are extremely fed and you are Red Kayn, play as a 'peel bot' by using to stop anyone jumping on your ADC.
Combos
The Fastest Clear
into a wall → Auto-attack →
Casting directly against a wall cancels the dash portion, making the slash happen instantly. This significantly speeds up your jungle clear.
Shadow Assassin Burst
→ (while moving) → → Auto-attack →
Used to delete squishies. Since Blue Kayn doesn't stand still for , you can cast it while closing the gap with .
Darkin CC Chain
(Knockup) → → Auto-attack →
Standard Rhaast engage. Hit the knockup first to guarantee the rest of your damage lands. Use only when you need to heal or dodge a spell.
The Objective Steal
into pit → Smite → enemy jungler → over wall
A safe way to steal Baron or Dragon. makes you untargetable so you can wait for your team to help or for to come back up.
Power Spikes
| Spike | Why |
|---|---|
| Level 1 | allows for a very fast, leashless start on Raptors or Wolves, giving you pathing flexibility. |
| Level 6 | provides safety and dive potential, though you are still statistically weaker than most junglers until you get your form. |
| The Transformation (Avg Level 8-10) | Unlocking is your massive power spike. You go from half a champion to a top-tier threat instantly. |
| Level 11 | Rank 2 lowers the cooldown significantly, allowing you to play more aggressively in mid-game skirmishes. |
| Level 16 | Max rank makes Rhaast nearly impossible to kill in 1v2s and gives Shadow Assassin incredible assassination range. |
Tips & Tricks
- • grants vision inside walls. Use it to scout bushes or pits without actually entering them.
- •You can Smite while inside someone with . This is perfect for securing Smite fights while being untargetable.
- •Darkin is a knockup, which cannot be reduced by Tenacity. Use it to lock down high-tenacity targets like Garen or Irelia.
- •Shadow Assassin's deals bonus magic damage for the first 3 seconds of combat. resets this timer, so stay inside the enemy as long as possible.
- •If you're being chased, can dash over small walls if you are standing right against them.
- •Don't wait 4 minutes for the 'perfect' form if your team is losing. Having ANY form is better than being 'Base Kayn' for 15 minutes.
Common Mistakes
- ✕Forcing bad ganks just to get orbs→You die and fall behind in XP, which delays your form and items even more than just farming would.
- ✕Using too early as Darkin→You miss out on the massive %HP heal that can turn a fight when you are low.
- ✕Taking damage while inside a wall with →The duration is cut to 1.5 seconds, often leaving you trapped in the middle of the enemy team.
- ✕Ignoring lane priority for invades→Base Kayn loses almost every 1v1. If your laners can't help, you will lose your camps and your life.
- ✕Missing in Shadow Assassin form→You lose your primary burst and slow, making it impossible to stick to the target to finish the kill.
AI-generated guide • Patch 16.2.1 • Cached