Best Karthus Jungle Build & Guide (51.1% Win Rate)

Best Karthus Jungle Build & Guide (51.1% Win Rate)

By Marcus Chen

March 21, 2025 at 04:40 PM

Karthus Jungle is a powerful AP carry that excels at farming and global pressure. With a 51.1% win rate across 2,089 matches, here's the optimal build:

Core Build:

  • Summoner Spells: Flash + Smite
  • First Items: Blackfire Torch > Sorcerer's Shoes > Liandry's Torment
  • Full Build: Add Shadowflame > Rabadon's Deathcap > Void Staff
  • Ability Order: Q > E > W

Optimal Runes:

  • Primary: Dark Harvest, Cheap Shot, Grisly Mementos, Ultimate Hunter
  • Secondary: Axiom Arcanist, Gathering Storm
  • Shards: Adaptive Force, Adaptive Force, Health Scaling

Strong Against:

  • Pantheon (63.6% WR)
  • Amumu (62.5% WR)
  • Rengar (60.9% WR)

Weak Against:

  • Skarner (37.0% WR)
  • Gwen (37.5% WR)
  • Talon (38.3% WR)

Key Tips:

  • Focus on ganking overextended lanes with low health enemies
  • Toggle E on/off when farming jungle to conserve mana
  • Watch minimap constantly for R opportunities on low health targets
  • Best synergy with Naafiri (52.6% WR) and Jayce (51.3% WR)

Alternative Build:

  • Runes: First Strike, Cash Back, Triple Tonic, Cosmic Insight
  • Items: Same core but swap Void Staff for Zhonya's Hourglass
  • Current WR: 51.6% across 153 matches

Situational items should be chosen based on enemy team composition and game state. Consider building defensive items like Zhonya's Hourglass against heavy AD comps or Malignance against AP-heavy teams.

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