Best Wukong Build Guide | Runes | Spells | Items in League of Legends

Wukong is a tanky bruiser that will dive in the middle of a teamfight and knock all enemeis airborne while shredding their armor with black cleaver!

Updated on Mar 05, 2024
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Best Wukong Build Guide | Runes | Spells | Items in League of Legends

Wukong the monkey king is a bruiser that can also be built like a tank in league of legends. Wukong jungle is great at empowering his win conditions. Thanks to his invisibility from his warrior trickster ability, he can frequently do a surprise gank. Learn how you can be a good asset during team fights and beat the enemy jungler when it comes to ganks. This Wukong guide will help you master the monkey king!

Best Wukong Build

Wukong is expected to dive into a team fight and survive long enough for his team to deal with the enemy team. His passive already makes him tanky the more enemies are around and building defensive items around this passive will make him extremely tanky.


1

Best Wukong runes

Wukong's kit allows him to hit multiple enemies and knock them all up and instantly stacking Conqueror. The heals and bonus damage from Conqueror allow Wukong to dive into the enemy team and burst them.

Best Rune Path

Precision

Inspiration

Best Keystone

Conqueror

Best Slot 1 (Rune)

Triumph

Magical Footwear

Best Slot 2 (Rune)

Legend: Alacrity

Cosmic Insight

Best Slot 3 (Rune)

Coup de grace

Legend: Alacrity stacks with his nimbus strike when clearing early-game jungle camps. Wukongs frequent ganks can also immediately stack this rune's effects. Coup de grace will ensure that you can win those early game 1v1 with the enemy jungler if you ever or they decide to counter jungle.

The inspiration rune set however allows Wukong to focus on the defensive or early offensive items instead of buying early-game boots. Cosmic insight allows Wukong to use smite quite often and utilize the item passives more.

Best Wukong Rune Shards

When it comes to rune shards, the attack speed adaptive force combo is pretty standard given that Wukong is an auto attack-reliant jungler. You will only be able to feel the effects of rune shards during the early game as the mid and late-game will have you building items that will dwarf the effects of these rune shards.

Best Rune Shards

Effect

Offense

+10% Attack speed

Flex

+9 Adaptive Force

Defense

+6 Armor

Best Wukong Summoner Spells

When it comes to summoner spells, a smite should never be forgotten as a jungler as this will be the main source of your level. As the best of all Summoner spells, flash should also be used on Wukong as you can use this for a quick initiate and ult follow-up knocking enemies up.

Best Spells

Icon

Flash


Smite


Flash can also be used as a quick disengage for Wukong as you can immediately use it after you dash away with your W, giving you enough space between your opponent and yourself to escape.


2

Best Wukong Abilities Order

Crushing blow is first to be maxed in this skill order as this will be the main source of your physical damage and the reduced defensive stats it inflicts on your enemy will allow you to deal more damage with your next abilities. The crushing blow can be immediately followed by a Nimbus strike for more burst damage and attack speed making it the next ability to be maxed.


3

Wukong's warrior trickster doesn't have that much value and is only used to play mind games on the enemy or to extend the range of your ultimate making it the least prioritized ability to be maxed out. 

Best Wukong Items

Wukong's abilities all deal physical damage and to maximize the effects of your Wukong runes, you need to build bruiser items like the Black Cleaver or even the Sterak's Gage as a situational item. Plated steelcaps also allow Wukong to dive given that he has his W for quick disengage. 

Best starter Wukong items

To kick off this wukong build an Ember knife and a refillable potion is needed for a quick camp clear and sustain. The upgraded smite will make him even tankier during 1v1 scenarios. Make sure you only reset if you have enough for a warhammer. 

First Item

Second Item

Ember knife

Refillable Potion

Best Mid-game Wukong Items

The Divine sunderer is the perfect item for Wukong as he can easily proc the Spell blade effect. The bonus health will make Wukong even beefier for mid-game team fights. Plated Steelcaps and Death's Dance will allow Wukong to dive the top lane or even the bot lane during the mid game giving leads to his win conditions. 

First Item

Second Item

Third Item

Divine Sunderer

Plated Steelcaps

Death’s Dance


Death's Dance is really important to be rushed as the damage reduction from this item will prevent Wukong from being burst down. It can also be combined with the damage reduction from a red smite and Wukong's passive. 

Best Final Late game Wukong items

Wukong's value falls off during the late game as he can't deal that much damage anymore. Your only choice here is to build more defensive items so you can initiate for your team and avoid dying. The black cleaver allows Wukong to instantly shred the armor of his enemies using his ultimate and this is a staple for this item build if there are tanks in the enemy team.

First Item

Second Item

Third Item

Fourth Item

Fifth Item

Sixth Item

Divine Sunderer

Plated Steelcaps

Death’s Dance


Black Cleaver


Maw of Malmortius


Chempunk Chainsword


Guardian Angel and Sterak's gage are two great situational items and should only be built if your team has a huge lead against the team. Guardian angel as a third of the fourth item will greatly empower Wukong's engage and survivability. 

Best Champions to pair with Wukong

The knock-up from Wukong's ultimate allows these allies to quickly follow up with their AoE CC abilities. Cassiopeia can greatly benefit from Wukong's engage with her W and ultimate. Riven can burst enemies and join Wukong in the fray when it comes to disabling the enemy team and dealing AOE damage. 


Champion

Win Rate %

Icon

Cassiopeia

57.9%


Gragas

53%


Riven

52.7%


Strongest Champions Against Wukong

Rek'Sai has a high win rate against Wukong as he easily shreds through Wukong's stone skin. His sustain and burst are much stronger as with his ganking potential. Elise's Bursts will force Wukong to build Magic resist items stunting his build. 

Champion

Win Rate %

Icon

Rek’Sai

44.1%


Elise

44.2%


Udyr

45.1%


Weakest Champions Against Wukong

These enemies are extremely tanky but with Wukong's low cooldowns and constant armor shredding, they won't get to utilize their tankiness. Rammus' armor can be easily shredded by Wukong's crushing blow along with the black cleaver exposing him.

Champion

Win Rate %

Icon

Hecarim

51.7%


Rammus

51.6%


Vi

51.2%


 This Patch 12.18 by riot games gave Wukong an impressive win rate of 54.1% making him one of the top picks in the jungle, so be sure to abuse him before Riot games realize it and nerf him again.

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