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Shaco
Patch 16.2.1
JungleDifficulty
Hard
Strength
Early
Mid
Late
Win Condition
Snowball the early game by tilting the enemy jungler via invades. Transition into a split-push threat or an assassin that removes the enemy ADC before every major objective fight.
Playstyle
Shaco is a psychological assassin who thrives on chaos. You aren't meant to fight fair; you're meant to invade, tilt the enemy jungler, and appear behind lanes when they feel safest. Your goal is to end the game before the enemy can group and buy enough Sweepers to find you.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths
- +Unmatched early game gank paths with invisibility
- + allows for a leashless, healthy, and extremely fast first clear
- +Elite objective control—you can solo Dragon early using to tank
- +Passive slow makes you one of the stickiest early-game duelists
Weaknesses
- -Extremely gold dependent—if you don't get early kills, you become a walking ward
- - is your only escape; if you use it to engage and don't kill the target, you're dead
- -Heavily countered by Oracle Lens and Control Wards in the mid-to-late game
- -Very fragile—one crowd control ability usually ends your fight instantly
Abilities
Always move to the back of your target. Your autos and deal bonus damage from behind. When clearing camps, drop and kite the monster so it turns its back to you.
This is your bread and butter. It's a blink AND invisibility. You can cast or without breaking the stealth. Use it to bypass common ward spots by jumping over thick walls.
The boxes are your lifeblood. Place them behind enemies during ganks to fear them into you. They can also block skillshots like Blitzcrank hooks or Lee Sin Qs if you time the placement perfectly.
Passive: Your autos slow enemies. Active: You throw the shiv for damage. NEVER lead with the active unless you need the slow to reach them. Save it for the execute damage when they are below 30% HP.
You disappear for 0.5s when casting, making you untargetable. Use this to dodge ultimates. Control the clone to bait enemy spells; if the clone dies, the mini-boxes from can win a teamfight alone.
Teamfight Role
Chaos-based Assassin
Do not initiate. Wait for the fight to start, then into the backline. Your job is to kill or force the ADC out of the fight. Use to create confusion and soak up enemy cooldowns.
If your team is behind, use and defensively to peel for your strongest carry. The fear from boxes can stop divers in their tracks.
Combos
Standard Gank
towards enemy -> behind them -> Auto-attack () ->
Jump in with , place the box where they will run to, backstab them, and only use once they are low or out of range.
The Ultimate Bait
-> Move clone towards enemy -> in opposite direction
Make your clone act 'human' by clicking directly on the enemy. While they waste spells on it, use to reposition for a real assassination.
Fast Burst
-> while invisible -> Auto from both ->
Casting doesn't break stealth. This lets you appear with a twin instantly, doubling your backstab damage before the enemy can react.
Box Trap
(stack 2-3) -> to bait -> away
Set up a nest of boxes in a bush. Throw at a carry to annoy them into chasing you, then over the boxes so they run straight into the fear.
Power Spikes
| Spike | Why |
|---|---|
| Level 1 | With 3 boxes from placed at 0:50, you have the fastest level 1 clear in the game. |
| Level 3 | You have all your basic tools. This is your peak window to invade the enemy's second buff and kill them. |
| Level 6 | allows you to solo Dragon or Rift Herald safely and gives you massive outplay potential in 1v1s. |
| Level 9 | Maxed out provides significant execute damage and a heavy passive slow for chasing. |
| Level 11 | Rank 2 has a much lower cooldown, allowing you to force more frequent skirmishes. |
Tips & Tricks
- • makes you untargetable—use it to dodge Karthus ult, Tower shots, or Veigar ults.
- •You can Smite while in invisibility without being revealed.
- •Always place slightly behind the enemy during a gank; if they run, they get feared; if they stay, you backstab them.
- •The clone from procs backstabs—try to sandwich enemies between you and your clone.
- • passive slow is lost while the ability is on cooldown. If you're winning the chase, keep autoing and don't throw the shiv.
- •Holding 'Alt' or 'Ctrl' allows you to control the clone. If you stop moving and only move the clone, 90% of players will think the clone is the real you.
Common Mistakes
- ✕Throwing at the start of a gank→You lose your passive slow and the execute damage, allowing the enemy to simply walk away.
- ✕Using aggressively without vision→You have no way to escape once the invisibility ends, leading to an easy collapse by the enemy team.
- ✕Ignoring positioning→You lose roughly 20-30% of your total damage output, failing to secure kills you should have won.
- ✕Placing too close to minion waves→Minions will trigger the box, wasting the fear and damage on useless targets.
- ✕Not controlling the clone→The clone will stand still or walk in a straight line, making it immediately obvious which Shaco is the real one.
AI-generated guide • Patch 16.2.1 • Cached