League of Legends - Jarvan IV Champion Strategy and Item Build Guide

Jarvan IV

Basic Information

Champion Stats

Lore

Skills

Icon	Description
	Martial Cadence INNATE: Jarvan IV’s initial basic attack on a target deals bonus physical damage. This effect cannot occur again on the same target for a short duration.
	Dragon Strike  (Target Range: 770, Collision Radius: 90, Cost: 45/50/55/60/65 Mana, Cooldown: 10/9/8/7/6)– ACTIVE:  Jarvan IV extends his lance, dealing physical damage and lowering the Armor of enemies in its path. Additionally, this will pull Jarvan to his Demacian Standard, knocking up enemies in his path. Extends Jarvan IV’s lance dealing 70/115/160/205/250 (+120% bonus Attack Damage) physical damage and lowering the Armor of enemies hit by 10/14/18/22/26% for 3 seconds.If the lance contacts Demacian Standard it will pull Jarvan IV to its location, knocking up enemies in his path. This effect can be triggered even while immobilized.
	Golden Aegis (Effect Aegis: 625, Cost: 30 Mana, Cooldown: 12) – ACTIVE: Jarvan IV calls upon the ancient kings of Demacia to shield him from harm and slow surrounding enemies. Grants a shield that absorbs 60/85/110/135/160 (2/2.25/2.5/2.75/3% Jarvan’s maximum health bonus shield per enemy champion hit) damage for 5 seconds, and slows surrounding enemies by 15/20/25/30/35% for 2 seconds.
	Demacian Standard (Target Range: 860, Cost: 55 Mana, Cooldown: 13/12.5/12/11.5/11) – Jarvan IV carries the pride of Demacia, passively granting him bonus Attack Speed. Activating Demacian Standard allows Jarvan IV to place a Demacian flag that deals magic damage on impact and grants Attack Speed to nearby allied champions.  PASSIVE: Gains 15/17.5/20/22.5/25% Attack Speed.  ACTIVE: Throws a Demacian Standard to a nearby area dealing 60/105/150/195/240 (+80% Ability Power) magic damage to enemies. The Standard lasts for 8 seconds and grants surrounding allied champions 15/17.5/20/22.5/25% Attack Speed.
	Cataclysm (Target Range: 650, Effect Radius: 325/825, Cost: 100 MAna, Cooldown: 120/105/90)  – ACTIVE: Jarvan IV heroically leaps into battle at a target with such force that he terraforms the surrounding area to create an arena around them. Nearby enemies are damaged at the moment of impact. Heroically leaps to an enemy Champion dealing 200/325/450 (+150% bonus Attack Damage) physical damage to nearby enemies and creating an arena of impassable terrain around them for 3.5 seconds.Activate again to collapse the terrain.

Strategy

• Jarvan IV’s go-to skill combo is his (E) Demecian Standard and (Q) Dragon Strike. This is his initiating and disengaging tool, and provides good crowd control in the form of a Knock Up to enemies who are in Jarvan IV’s way towards his standard.
• Strike enemy laners with (Q) Dragon Strike to lower their armor and making them more susceptible to more damage from Martial Cadence (passive).
• Take note of Jarvan IV’s Martial Cadence (passive) during your laning phase. It is useful for last-hitting creeps and dealing damage to opposing champions. Remember that it deals bonus damage on the very first auto attack, and it cools down for a short duration.
• Jarvan IV’s (W) Golden Aegis provides a good shield that absorbs decent damage from enemies and slows them for a short duration. Use this when dueling in the top lane, or when you initiate a team fight to slow multiple enemies.
• (R) Cataclysm can displace multiple enemy champions inside your pit. Use this to contain enemy tanks and disablers, or offensively to trap the enemy carries while your team follows up with their skills and damage.
• (R) Cataclysm can lock in even your teammates inside the small area. Be careful not to include your allies during clashes, especially your team’s carries to avoid feeding them to your enemy team.
• Enemy champions can also escape your (R) Cataclysm with a Flash or most gap-closing skills. If this happens, remember to press (R) Cataclysm again to remove the arena wall around you and continue your pursuit.
• You can build Jarvan IV as a tanky initiator or a swift single-target assassin of squishy targets. Take note of your team’s composition, as well as the enemy’s lineup, to better think of what item build path you need to take.

Runes & Masteries

COMING SOON

Summoner Spells

Top Lane		Jungle
Flash	Teleport	Smite	Flash

Item Builds

Top Lane

Starter Items 1
Doran’s Shield	Total Biscuit of Rejuvenation	Warding Totem

Starting Items 1

These items are taken for players who want a relatively safe lane to farm their gold and get their items.

Doran’s Shield – This item provides early bonus health and health regeneration, which is sufficient when your enemy laner tends to initiate small skirmishes up top.

Starter Items 2
Cloth Armor	Total Biscuit of Rejuvenation x 3	Warding Totem

Starter Items 2

These items are bought to deal with Attack Damage-oriented champions in-lane.

Cloth Armor – This item provides decent bonus armor, essential for mitigating the enemy laner’s damage during small skirmishes. Cloth Armor also builds into Chain Mail, an essential item Top Jarvan IV needs for his core item, Gargoyle Stoneplate.

Total Biscuit of Rejuvenation – This item provides health and mana regeneration. Use the biscuits wisely – it is best to use a biscuit when your health pool is just about to hit the half mark.

Starter Items 3
Corrupting Potion	Warding Totem

Starter Items 3

This item build is for the more offensive-minded players. This lane is risky, as it leaves you susceptible to taking more damage should you whiff your skills.

Corrupting Potion – This item recovers health and mana when used. This also enhances Jarvan IV’s auto attacks to deal an additional burning magic damage that deals damage over a short duration. Use this item to initiate the skirmish at top lane.

Core Items
Tiamat	Gargoyle Stoneplate	The Black Cleaver

Early Items

Tiamat – This item greatly assists Jarvan IV’s farming capabilities while in-lane. It provides him with health regeneration and Attack Damage, as well as a passive that gives his auto attacks cleave. It also has an active spell that deals Attack Damage in a small area in front of Jarvan IV.

Gargoyle Stoneplate – This item significantly bolsters Jarvan IV’s ability to take incoming damage from enemies. Most Jarvan IV initiates will need him to use most, if not all, of his skills. After he has engaged the enemy, he can activate Gargoyle Stoneplate’s spell to mitigate a good chunk of damage he’s taken, while he waits for his skills’ cooldowns to refresh and let him bring the hurt on the enemy team.

The Black Cleaver – This item gives Jarvan IV bonus Health, Attack Damage and cooldown reduction. It also shreds opponents’ armor and synergizes with his Martial Cadence (passive), (Q) Dragon Strike and (R) Cataclysm.

Full Item Build
The Black Cleaver	Gargoyle Stoneplate	Titanic Hydra
Guardian Angel	Mercury’s Treads	Maw of Malmortius

Core Items

Titanic Hydra – This item builds off Tiamat, and gives him strong laning pressure. Titanic Hydra gives him Bonus Health, Attack Damage, an empowered auto attack, and an active spell that lets Jarvan IV damage enemies in a cone in front of him. This item synergizes with Gargoyle Stoneplate, as it provides a decent Health bonus, further adding to Jarvan IV’s tankiness.

Guardian Angel – This item increases Jarvan IV’s Attack Damage and armor. More importantly, it gives him a passive that resurrects him should he take fatal damage after a couple of seconds. Given Jarvan IV’s tanky nature, having Guardian Angel makes him even harder to kill.

Mercury Treads – This boots upgrade covers Jarvan IV’s magic and crowd control resistance, enabling him to further contribute to his team during team fights.

Maw of Malmortius – This item complements Spirit Visage as another item to mitigate magic damage. Maw of Malmortius gives bonus health, Attack Damage, magic resistance and a magic shield that protects Jarvan for a short duration when his health reaches below 30%. It also gives him additional damage, lifesteal and spell vamp as long as his health is low on health.

Situational Items
Ninja Tabi	Thornmail	Spirit Visage

Situational Items

Ninja Tabi – For enemy team who comprise primarily of Attack Damage-based champions, Ninja Tabi decreases their damage against Jarvan IV.

Thornmail – Another item that deals with Attack Damage-based champions, Thornmail additionally inflicts Grievous Wounds to those who auto attacks Jarvan IV, weakening their lifesteal and health regeneration.

Spirit Visage – This item covers Jarvan IV’s magic resistance problems. Spirit Visage gives additional health, magic resistance and cooldown reduction, as well as increase his health regeneration from his auto attacks and heals from his teammates.

Jungle

Starting Items

Starting Items
Hunter’s Machete	Refillable Potion	Warding Totem

Core Items
Skirmisher’s Sabre	Long Sword	Boots of Speed

Skirmisher’s Sabre – This item is for more offensive-minded players. It lowers the damage output of enemies who Jarvan IV casts its spell to. Skirmisher’s Sabre also provides an additional true damage buff to Jarvan IV for a short duration, which ignores armor and magic resistance.

Core Items

Full Item Build
Skirmisher’s Sabre: Warrior Enhantment	Mercury’s Treads	Duskblade of Draktharr
The Black Cleaver	Guardian Angel

The items listed above are for Jarvan IV players who want to capitalize on his Attack Damage output. This item build makes him a bit squishy, but lets him deal good Attack Damage burst against single targets.

Skirmisher’s Sabre: Warrior Enhancement – This item bolsters Jarvan IV’s damage during ganks. It gives him bonus Attack Damage and cooldown reduction, as well as an active spell that greatly amplifies his damage against an affected enemy.

Duskblade of Draktharr – This item further increases Jarvan IV’s single-target damage. Duskblade of Draktharr bolsters his Attack Damage, and lowers their armor with his auto attacks. Its other passive lets Jarvan IV spot enemy wards and dispatch them accordingly.

The Black Cleaver – This item further enhances Jarvan IV’s damage output. The Black Cleaver gives bonus health, Attack Damage and cooldown reduction. Its passive also makes Jarvan IV’s physical attacks deal armor reduction.

Guardian Angel – Given that jungle Jarvan IV can be built offensively or defensively, Guardian Angel is a staple defensive item that also provides decent Attack Damage. It can also resurrect him should he take fatal damage.

Situational Items
Stalker’s Blade – Cinderhulk Enhancement	Gargoyle Stoneplate
Dead Man’s Plate	Youmuu’s Ghostblade

For Jarvan IV players who tend to play him as a jungle tank, these items ensure you live through your ganks and initiates to further bring the pain for your team.

Stalker’s Blade: Cinderhulk Enhancement – This item bolsters Jarvan IV’s health and gives him a damaging aura that hurts enemies so long as he is near them.

Gargoyle Stoneplate – This item synergizes with the Cinderhulk Enhancement of your jungle item. Gargoyle Stoneplate provides bonus armor and magic resistance, and an active item spell that significantly increases your maximum health. This is vital especially when you’ve started a team fight and your skills are in cooldown.

Youmuu’s Ghostblade – This item enhances his movement in the map, a necessity for quick ganks and lane pressure from the jungle. Youmuu’s Ghostblade gives decent Attack Damage and movement speed.

Dead Man’s Plate – This item provides bonus health and armor. Once fully charged, its wearer gains bonus movement speed and when the wearer auto attacks an enemy, it deals bonus damage and slows for a short duration. Dead Man’s Plate enables Jarvan IV to stick to enemy targets.

Playing Against

• Be wary where Jarvan IV places his (E) Demacian Standard – he can quickly use his (Q) Dragon Strike to knock up enemies for significant damage.
• Jarvan IV is deceptively tanky, thanks to his (W) Golden Aegis. Be careful when engaging him for small skirmishes.
• (Q) Dragon Strike deals decent damage during the laning phase and it goes through units. It is best to be on your toes when he has not yet casted this skill.
• Jarvan IV’s (E) Demacian Standard + (Q) Dragon Strike combo can be hindered with hard displacement skills.
• (R) Cataclysm can trap multiple enemy champions. It is best to scatter during team fights in order to lessen this chance. If you’re caught inside Jarvan IV’s (R) Cataclysm, you can use gap-closing skills or your Flash summoner spell to get out of the pit.

Hard Counter

Top Lane

Renekton – Renekton has strong engage and skirmish skills in Cull the Meek, Ruthless Predator, and Slice and Dice. Once he has rage, his skills gain increased damage, and gives Cull the Meek a boost in his heal when damaging enemies.

Yorick – Yorick can spam his skills on Jarvan IV such as Mourning Mist and Last Rites, effectively zoning him out of the lane and recall to heal. He can also trap Jarvan IV with his Dark Procession – good Yorick players can time their skills when Jarvan IV uses all his skills in-lane.

Jax – Jax is one of the champions who can handle Jarvan IV’s damage when dueling. In skirmishes, he can dodge his auto attacks with Counter Strike which can stun enemies after a short charge, all the while he is charging his Empower to bolster his Attack Damage. If Jarvan IV decides to disengage, Jax can follow up with Leap Strike.

 Jungler

Vi – She can interrupt Jarvan IV’s (E) Demacian Standard + (Q) Dragon Strike combo with her Vault Breaker skill. She can also lower Jarvan IV’s armor with her Denting Blows coupled with Excessive Force. Assault and Battery also homes in Jarvan IV even when he manages to cover some distance, so long as she casts it on him immediately.

Lee Sin – Lee Sin can invade J4’s jungle and mess up his jungling path. He can displace Jarvan IV’s initiates with his Dragon Rage ultimate, safeguarding his team against Jarvan IV’s damage. Lee Sin is also elusive in the jungle – he can use Sonic Wave and Resonating Strike to deal decent damage, and Safeguard and Iron Will to dash out of Jarvan IV’s (E) Demacian Standard + (Q) Dragon Strike combo.

Strategy video

COMING SOON

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