Smite Build Guide: The Overarching Conquest Guide (S6, Patch 6.1 WIP)

Introduction

Recent Guide Updates:

2019/2/11: Guide is (mostly) current as of Patch 6.1, "Season 6." and added, minion info updated. ADC builds updated. Starting itemization adjusted here and there. Added a "Playing From Behind" section in the Lane Minions & Strategies section in the Conquest Overview chapter. Deleted the God Guides reference section as it was way too difficult to upkeep. Continued WIP, as maps need to be updated (waiting for SMITE Wiki to provide those).

Revision History

Recent Patches:

Patch 6.1, "Season 6." Multiple Conquest adjustments. Addition of Totem of Ku near Solo Lane. Multiple item and god balance. Merlin released.
Patch 5.25, "Vapor Wave." Bug fixes mostly. Prep for Season 6.
Patch 5.24, "Wielder of Excalibur." King Arthur released. Minor god balance.
Patch 5.23, "Godslayer." Minor god balance, Hades ult buff, Vamana ult buff.

*NOTE ON MAIN SEASON 6 CHANGES*

Season 6 hit on February 5th, 2019. There have been some adjustments to how Conquest is played compared to Season 5. Here are some of the key changes:

Cross-Play: PC, XBox One, and Nintendo Switch players can now team up to play with/against each other in normal (casual) Conquest and other modes. There is an option in the settings menu to restrict cross-play if preferred.
Role Queue: Normal and Ranked Conquest will now have role queue, where you select your top 2 roles. The system will try to match you up to give you one of these assigned roles (though not guaranteed).
Elixir of Speed: a new item for Conquest only. Costs 2,000 gold, and provides a permanent 18% movement speed boost. Does not stack with standard MS items such as Tabi/Greaves/Shoes, and is meant to replace those items and allow for an extra item slot for a different item.
New Objective: Totem of Ku has been added in the jungle next to the Solo Lane. Jungle entrances to the Solo Lane have been changed due to this addition. See the Conquest Overview chapter for further information.
Gameplay Adjustments: Minions spawn 1:00 after the game starts, instead of 1:30. Fountains boost MS during this countdown. Brute Lane Minions spawn differently. Kill bounty against enemy gods of higher level provide more XP and Gold. Gold Fury gets 3 total forms with different effects (see the Conquest Overview chapter for further information). Fire Giant has different attack sequences and adjusted stats. Jungle minions have adjusted stats.

Art by Getsukeii via DeviantArt

Welcome! This is a guide for SMITE's Conquest mode, designed to apply on a high level to general gameplay and tips, rather than focusing on individual gods or builds.

The most competitive and longest duration mode in SMITE, Conquest comes in both casual and ranked versions. It provides the ultimate conglomeration of all aspects of SMITE gameplay and strategy, including 1 v 1, jungling, build efficiency, counter-building, teamfighting, communication, and taking objectives.

This guide targets the following players:

New players looking for general information on the most competitive and comprehensive mode in SMITE
Regulars looking for a refresher or to possibly learn a helpful tip or two
Regulars that enjoy providing feedback, suggestions, and thoughts (thanks!)

Conquest topics that will be covered:

General rules and technical details
Overview and gameplay for each role, including popular starting items
Coverage of strategic gameplay elements, including warding, awareness, and communication

This guide is NOT designed to cover all of the intricacies and in-depth information required to be an extremely successful ranked player, though the basics contained herein can help you prepare. As such, it will not cover topics such as picks and bans, or individual god strategies. With the exception of the ADC / Carry, I will also not be discussing complete builds, as there are many variations for building and counter-building for each role.

*NOTE FOR TRUE BEGINNERS*

If you're a true beginner, and you've stumbled upon this guide, it might be better if you start at the very beginning. That beginning is:

BUGS (Beginner's Universal Guide to SMITE) by Aramey

Keep in mind that it IS outdated, but the core information still applies.

*NOTE ON TOXICITY*

SMITE is a MOBA. As such (unfortunately), you can expect to encounter toxicity in some of your matches. The easiest suggestion is to group with like-minded individuals / friends that are okay with you not being perfect (or anywhere close to...). Unfortunately, you won't always be able to do this.

If you're able to brush nasty comments off, more power to you. Another GREAT option is the in-game MUTE button!

However, you might find the following links helpful:

Team Dignitas: How to Deal with Toxicity

MOBA Monday: Toxicity in MOBAs

As a final thought before we begin, understand that I am not a pro by any means. This project is a love letter to a game I've thoroughly enjoyed, and have gathered as much information as I could from various sources and my own experience. You will not agree with everything contained herein, and with the plethora of information gathered, there are likely to be mistakes (let me know if you catch any!). The following contains information gathered through time and experience, and I hope you get something of quality out of this guide. So let's start, shall we?

Quick Tags

Conquest Overview
Roles: Duo Lane ADC (Carry)
Roles: Duo Lane Support
Roles: Jungler
Roles: Mid-Lane
Roles: Solo Lane
Warding
Awareness & Communication
Tier Lists
References & Definitions

Art by DustyMcBacon via DeviantArt

Conquest Overview

Legend:

Duo Lane (longer lane)
Mid Lane
Solo Lane (shorter lane)
Jungle Camps (Back/Mid/Fire)
Gold Fury,Fire Giant,
Oracle Harpies,Pyromancer
Damage Buff,Mana Buff,
Speed Buff, Reduction (Void) Buff
+Towers
+Phoenixes
+Titans

General Conquest Details

5 v 5, 3 lanes, jungle. All unlocked/free rotation gods are available.
Roles are requested before queue (2 preferred roles per player). Roles are officially assigned by the system upon entering into the lobby. Roles are: ADC (Carry), Support, Jungle, Mid, Solo
Start at level 1 with 1,500 gold.
*NOTE* All minions, structures and the Titan deal physical damage.

Standard Buff camps (first spawn at 0:30 except Speed at 0:25, buffs last for 2 minutes, camps respawn in 2 minutes after ALL minions are killed):

Protection Reduction Buff: If an enemy is within 55 units, applies a 10 protection debuff. For each enemy god past the first within 55 units of you, all enemies within that area will lose additional protections. 2 protection per stack, stacks up to 4 times. Usually taken first by the Support but can be picked up by anyone.
Damage Buff: 10% damage + 10 mag power / 5 phys power. The bonus increases to 15% when hitting enemy gods. Usually taken by the Mid-Laner.
Speed Buff: 10% move speed. Applies additional stacks of 2% move speed on each jungle camp kill/assist. Stacks up to 3 times, stacks last 15 seconds. Usually taken by the Jungler.
Mana Buff: 3 mana/second regen + 10% CDR. Restores 2% of your missing mana upon damaging a god with an ability. Usually taken by the Solo-Laner.

Special camps / buffs:

Fire Giant's Might Buff: 70 magical power, 50 physical power, 4% HP5 and 2% MP5, +25% damage increase to structures, 4 minute duration. Obtained by the entire team that defeats the Fire Giant. Spawns at 10:00, respawns in 5 minutes. At the 25 minute mark, the Enhanced Fire Giant replaces the regular version, providing 100 magical power, 65 physical power, and 30% increased bonus damage to structures, in addition to the other stats. Also allows players to ignore 50% of a tower's backdoor protection.
Oracle Harpies (across from the Gold Fury): If a team kills BOTH Oracle Harpies, that team is given vision of the Fury pit for 90 seconds. Spawns at 0:30, respawns in 3 minutes.
Pyromancer (across from the Fire Giant): When defeated, provides a buff for players leaving the fountain. Players gain +40% move speed for 15 seconds (entering combat immediately removes the buff). 90 second duration.
Totem of Ku (behind the Fire Giant next to the Solo lane): for the first 15 minutes of the match, a totem will appear near the Solo lane. Players can attack this Totem, and after enough damage is dealt the totem will favor a team. Towers for that team will provide 25 gold to each team member, as well as an empowering aura in all allied tower areas that boost movement speed (5%) and mana regeneration (+25 MP5) for 1 minute.

Game Phases:

A Conquest match consists of 3 conceptual phases: Early, Mid, and Late-Game. These are loosely defined by a combination of the following: match time, build and level progress, objective/structure status.

Early Game: AKA the "Laning Phase." Beginning at the start of the match, through the timepoint is roughly around 10-15 minutes. Player levels reach around 10, and builds consist of up to around 2 full items. The majority of roles (ADC (Carry) / Mid / Solo) stay in their lanes to farm for XP / gold. The Support will often begin to rotate through the jungle before the laning phase ends, and the Jungler will roam throughout. The Gold Fury and Oracle Harpies may be targeted at any time, especially if one team gains a temporary advantage (early kills).
Mid-Game: From the transition through the early game to around 20-25 minutes. Player levels are approaching 20, and builds are nearing completion (4-5 completed items). Players will rotate between lanes much more to support teammates either push or defend objectives. All mid-map objectives have increased importance. The Pyromancer and Fire Giant spawn at 10 minutes and should be watched closely.
Late-Game: From the transition through the mid-game to the end of the match. Players reach level 20, and builds are completed. Players will often roam in groups to destroy and defend objectives. Many fights are in groups, and if a team gains a huge advantage of numbers through successful teamfighting, the Titan is targeted to end the game.

Lane Minions & General Lane Strategies

Spawn every 30 seconds in each lane starting at time 0, consisting of 3 ranged-attack Archers (in the back) and a total of 3 of Swordsmen / Brutes (in the front).

Penetration stats have no effect.

The lane minions are the main source of gold and XP for the ADC, Mid, and Solo-Laners. They provide +50% gold on last-hit, but still provide gold on assist / proximity.

Since archers deal higher damage from distance, and have lower health, they should be the priority targets if you can't hit the entire wave.

Minions generally attack the closest target to them. However, they will switch targets to the enemy god if that god does damage to an allied god within their vicinity.

Key minion stats:

Lane minions deal 40% less damage to gods.
Minions prioritize towers, phoenixes, and Titans over enemy minions, deployables, and pets.
Minions reward additional XP and gold every 3 minutes, capping at 21 minutes.
Although minions do not have protections, per se, they take reduced damage
as follows: 10% + 1% per minute since the start of the match.
Flaming Minions: a special form of minion that spawn while an enemy phoenix is down in the opposite lane. These minions deal twice as much damage and have 200 more health than their non-flaming counterparts. Their damage reduction remains the same.

If your tower hits the minion at least once, you still get XP but receive ONLY 25% GOLD. It's this aspect of gameplay that shapes strategies for winning your lane against your lane enemy. Let's go over some of the strategies that can help you win your lane (or allow you to stop the bleeding, re: Playing From Behind):

Hard Pushing

Lane Freezing & Bullying

Proxy-Farming

Playing From Behind

Camps, Objectives & Structures

Camp, Objective, and Structure Details

Quick Tags

Conquest Overview
Roles: Duo Lane ADC (Carry)
Roles: Duo Lane Support
Roles: Jungler
Roles: Mid-Lane
Roles: Solo Lane
Warding
Awareness & Communication
Tier Lists
References & Definitions

Art by DustyMcBacon via DeviantArt

Roles: Duo Lane ADC (Carry)

Commonly Used Gods In The ADC (Carry) Role

The Hunters

The Others

General ADC Qualities:

Strengths

Weaknesses

+ High single target damage
+ Strong late-game
+ Highest potential sustained damage output

- Squishy
- CC abilities may be limited
- Reliant on Support early for protection/initiation

ADC (Carry) 101

Who: Hunters are the common choice for the ADC role, though there are some mages whose ranged basic attacks are strengthened within their kits, giving them some potential as well. Some assassins may also do well in this role, such as Kali, but they are not considered "common" picks.
What: The ADC (Attack Damage Carry) is aptly named. Due to their extremely high late-game damage via their basic attacks, it is possible for them to blow through enemies and "carry" their team to victory.
When: Many ADCs start out a bit weak. Almost all are powerhouses in the late game, with full physical builds based around stats such as attack speed, penetration, crit items and/or Qin's Sais.
Where: The ADC will usually stay in the Duo Lane for the first few minutes. The Support will likely be in the area, drawing sometimes from the waves, but often rotating through the jungle. As such, the ADC may find themselves mostly trying to get the upper hand on the opposing ADC in 1 v 1 situations. In the later stages of a match, they can bring their high damage to a teamfight, and are great at taking out objectives.
Why: If you have the patience to wait for the late game, and like the opportunity to absolutely blast enemies down, this role is for you.
How: ADCs generally want to build a bit of sustain (e.g. lifesteal) to help them with laning and 1 v 1 boxing, but focus mainly on building up attack speed, penetration, and enhanced damage.
Responsibilities: farm minions and camps efficiently to build and level up quickly, maintain constant pressure with poke damage, be opportunistic with god kills, destroy objectives, and above all, DON'T DIE.

Hunter Builds

*NOTE ON PROVIDED BUILDS* The ADC (Carry) will be the only group in this guide with full build discussion. Only Hunters are covered, as Mages can be built in a few ways with good but different effect.

I'll feature 2 standard build types with options, and some experimental builds that aren't fully in the meta.

+ Situationals

Basic Attack Tank Shred (Qin's) Build

This build doesn't rely on RNG, instead opting for reliable DPS via . It can work well for most Hunters that rely mainly on basic attacks, and is a solid build to counter enemy tanks in particular.

*BUILD NOTES*

Starter Items: Hunter's Blessing is a clear starter choice for most hunters. The extra damage on each basic attack is helpful for wave clear, while the attack speed once evolved is appreciated.

This build is probably better for gods that do not have AS steroids. There is a strong focus on attack speed here to take advantage of Qin's passive. Being able to build it up without having to worry about loss of efficiency in overcapping AS is helpful.
Lifesteal: Devourer's Gauntlet carries a low price for the end power and lifesteal once fully stacked. If you're concerned about getting ganked, have low mobility, or just prefer the early movespeed, you can get your choice of Tabi first.
Movement: You can consider both Warrior Tabi and Ninja Tabi, as both are functional. If your hunter relies heavily on abilities for wave clear and has good scaling, Warrior Tabi's higher power is good since Hunter's Blessing will provide some of the missing attack speed, and may be the preferred choice if the hunter has an AS steroid. Ninja Tabi is great for DPS overall, and will provide a smooth transition once main damage items come online.

*NOTE* Late-game with a full build, your boots should be sold. You'll "replace" it with Elixir of Speed, which grants a permanent 18% MS, but does not stack with MS from boots. Instead, it frees up an item slot so you can pick up an additional item as preferred.
Bridge Item (optional): Ichaival is a viable low-cost item, providing some flat pen and attack speed. The passive gives you an advantage when boxing, by taking power away from your target and giving some to you. Replace late-game.
Protection Reduction: The Executioner is the premier protection reduction item for basic attackers, increasing your damage output against both squishy and tanky gods. If preferred, or if you back and can only afford Exe, you can pick this up before Qin's Sais.
Main DPS: As a single standalone item, Qin's Sais provides the highest DPS increase compared to any other item. The passive adds damage to each attack that connects, and has increasing effectiveness against high-health targets. It requires high attack speed to get the most out of it.

Late game situational items include the following:

Elixir of Speed (Tabi replacement): Provides 18% MS, while freeing up an item space when you sell Tabi so you can purchase another item.
Odysseus' Bow (High Attack Speed / Teamfight Damage): Provides a huge attack speed boost to support Qin's Sais' passive. The chain lightning passive adds a teamfight element to increase your poke damage.
Atalanta's Bow (Movement Boost): Provides base and stacking MS boost for better escape, chase, and mobility when boxing.
Silverbranch Bow (AS Overcap Bonus): If you build high base AS to maximize Qin's, but also have a steroid that puts your AS over the 2.5 cap, Silverbranch allows you to get some benefit from the overcap by increasing power by a certain portion of the overcap value.
Titan's Bane (Anti-Tank): If facing a particularly tanky team, this item can cut deeply into their protections. Has some inefficiency when combined with The Executioner, but is still very effective at what it does.
Brawler's Beat Stick(Anti-Heal): is another good option if you want some anti-heal. The power and flat pen are also great for general damage output.
Asi (Lifesteal Boost): provides a boost to your current lifesteal, helping you more easily sustain in a fight, while also giving you some flat pen and attack speed, which are always useful.
Bloodforge (Power, Lifesteal, and Survival): another lifesteal option, but with high power as well. This one will give you a small shield and move speed boost when you secure a kill.
Witchblade (Basic Attack Counter): is a great counter to other basic attackers, providing a 40% attack speed swing (gives you 20%, takes 20% away from nearby enemies).
Other situational/counter items can be considered as needed.

+ Situational

Basic Attack Crit Build

This cookie-cutter build, similar to the one preferred by BaRRaCCuDDa, works well for most basic attack-focused Hunters. Provides great late-game basic attack DPS, and will chew through squishy enemies, though you need to watch out for enemies counter-building via items such as , , etc.

Watch out for overcapping attack speed with this build, when your god has an AS steroid.

*BUILD NOTES*

Starter Items: Hunter's Blessing is a clear starter choice for most hunters. The extra damage on each basic attack is helpful for wave clear, while the attack speed once evolved is appreciated.
Lifesteal: Devourer's Gauntlet carries a low price for the end power and lifesteal once fully stacked. If you're concerned about getting ganked, have low mobility, or just prefer the early movespeed, you can get your choice of Tabi first.
Movement: You can consider both Warrior Tabi and Ninja Tabi, as both are functional. If your hunter relies heavily on abilities for wave clear and has good scaling, Warrior Tabi's higher power is good since Hunter's Blessing will provide some of the missing attack speed, and may be the preferred choice if the hunter has an AS steroid. Ninja Tabi is great for DPS overall, and will provide a smooth transition once main damage items come online.

*NOTE* Late-game with a full build, your boots should be sold. You'll "replace" it with Elixir of Speed, which grants a permanent 18% MS, but does not stack with MS from boots. Instead, it frees up an item slot so you can pick up an additional item as preferred.
Boxing: Poisoned Star provides well-rounded stats with an emphasis on giving an advantage while boxing. The passive slows the enemy (making them easier to target), and also reduces the enemy's damage output by 20%, allowing you to stay in the fight longer.

Alternate Item (High Crit Chance): Rage provides a much higher crit chance, especially at full stacks. If you choose this route, after The Executioner, you should pick up Deathbringer.

Protection Reduction: The Executioner is the premier protection reduction item for basic attackers, increasing your damage output against both squishy and tanky gods.
Critical Chance w/ Enhanced MS and AS: Wind Demon provides more crit chance at a reasonable cost, while also enhancing MS and AS. Can be purchased after Deathbringer, if preferred.
Critical Chance Damage Boost: Deathbringer is a the premier crit item to enhance damage overall. Can be purchased before Wind Demon, if preferred.
Final Item Options (replace Hunter's Blessing, Tabi): Late game replacement suggestions include the following, depending on what you purchased previously:

Elixir of Speed (Tabi replacement): Provides 18% MS, while freeing up an item space when you sell Tabi so you can purchase another item.
Wind Demon (MS and AS): provides an additional measure of MS and a huge boost in attack speed, and as it will replace Hunter's Blessing, makes up for and adds to the AS lost from the blessing.
Brawler's Beat Stick(Anti-Heal): is another good option if you want some anti-heal. The power and flat pen are also great for general damage output.
Shifter's Shield (Power and Protections): Provides a good deal of survivability due to the added protections. While healthy, adds the highest power increase outside of Transcendence.
Qin's Sais (Anti-Tank): can also be considered earlier in the build, and is especially good against high-health enemies. Isn't synergistic with crit items, but can still be great for DPS.
Asi (Lifesteal Boost): provides a boost to your current lifesteal, helping you more easily sustain in a fight, while also giving you some flat pen and attack speed, which are always useful.
Bloodforge (Power, Lifesteal, and Survival): another lifesteal option, but with high power as well. This one will give you a small shield and move speed boost when you secure a kill. Can be considered as a replacement for Devourer's Gauntlet.
Other situational/counter items can be considered as needed.

+ Situationals

Ability Hybrid Build

This build is designed specifically to support Hunters that rely more heavily on their abilities and/or have high mana use. They include gods such as , , and , with slightly lesser emphasis on other gods such as , , and .

Item options after the core provide some added DPS functionality to support basic attack use.

*BUILD NOTES*

Starter Items: Mage's Blessing is functional for the hunter that relies heavily on their abilities for their main damage. The CDR it provides when evolved is synergistic with the CDR that Transcendence also provides, giving a great early CD effect for poke / harassment. However, you can still choose Hunter's Blessing, as it will help with any basic attacks you have to do to finish off waves. One final option is to start with Charged Morningstar (the tier 2 version of Transcendence, which will allow you to get Trans online ASAP.
Strong Wave Clear / Huge Mana Pool: Transcendence provides 10% CDR, making it a more functional item for ability users. Make use of the mana it provides by spamming abilities and getting as much poke damage as possible.
Movement: Warrior Tabi is the better option if focusing solely on ability use, though Ninja Tabi is not a poor choice...it can set you up if you plan to get Qin's Sais later in the build.
Balanced Stats: The Crusher provides a perfect variety of stats that are all generally beneficial for an ADC, including decent power, flat pen, attack speed, and bonus damage on ability use.
Lifesteal (optional): Asi is a low-price item providing no power but functional attack speed and penetration. The low price offsets the high price of Trans and finally gives you some health sustain for boxing or elongated stays in lane. It can be skipped if preferred, or purchased before The Crusher for earlier sustain.

These items form the core of the build. The rest of the build is situational and not fully established in the meta, as builds are experimental at this early stage of Season 5.

Consider these items to round out your build.

The Executioner: high penetration effect with basic attack DPS focus. Good to pair with Qin's Sais.
Qin's Sais: particularly helpful against gods that have built a lot of health; consider if facing a particularly tanky team, or just want to increase your basic attack DPS overall.
Brawler's Beat Stick: gives your abilities an anti-heal effect; useful against teams with a lot of healing and you have abilities that can affect more than one enemy at a time.
Odysseus' Bow: if you haven't built a lot of attack speed, this one item will provide a huge boost, and give your basic attacks some teamfight function.
Critical Chance: not particularly optimal in a Trans build, but crit chance items are powerful right now. If you do consider these, fitting Malice + 1 other crit item is probably your best bet.
If you haven't gotten any before this point, lifesteal is always an option. Asi is good for higher attack speed, while Bloodforge provides a large power increase and situational health shield.
Elixir of Speed (Tabi replacement): Provides 18% MS, while freeing up an item space when you sell Tabi so you can purchase another item. Do this after you have a full build.
Other situational/counter items can be considered as needed.

Experimental Builds

Gameplay Stages & Strategies

Starting Items

Starting Process & Early Game Considerations

Starting Process

Standard Start (w/ Support): The most common start will see both the ADC and Support together in the Duo lane. In these scenarios, the object is to clear the wave as quickly as possible to gain an upper hand on the enemy, providing you with a variety of options. This will be covered immediately below.

Head to the Duo lane (1) to start with the minion wave. The enemy Duo is likely to do the same.

When in lane, if your wave clear is stronger than the enemy's, you can try to force them under their tower. Use that pressure to get a head start on clearing the next wave, or invade their jungle to steal their Protection Reduction Buff camp (3*). Otherwise, secure your own Protection Reduction Buff camp (3) with the Support.

If you're continually outclearing the enemy, you can play more aggressively and look to consistently steal enemy buffs (3* & 4) and the Oracle Harpy camp (5) in-between waves. Be aware in the reverse situation, as you may want to contest if the enemy is trying to steal (or stay clear if they've got a clear advantage in early game damage and levels). If your Mid-Laner isn't clearing their Damage Buff (2), you may want to do so for them.

From this point forward, you'll mostly stay in lane in the early game, looking to farm as much as possible.

Early Gameplay Elements

*NOTE* The Support is likely to tend toward staying in-lane for the first few minutes to farm with and protect the ADC. However, the Support may look to supplement their early farm and clear some jungle camps here and there, with a higher possibility of early roaming. You should always be aware, but be even more so when you're alone.

Farming & The Minion Waves: Main priority is clearing the minion wave. If you can out-clear the enemy, you can be more aggressive while they still have to worry about the wave.
Your Support (the player): If you find yourself with an unfamiliar Support player, you may not know how aggressive they play, or how well they'll cover you when you're being targeted. Just be mindful, as you may need to adjust your aggression level to match theirs.
Your Support (the god): Did they choose a safe pick (such as Khepri or Geb), or did they go for a more aggressive one? Safe picks are great to force a stalemate if necessary, while some of the risky choices may help secure an early kill or two.
The Enemy Support: Are they staying in-lane or are they mostly in the jungle? If you don't know where they are, be extremely careful pushing the lane. Wards can definitely help here.
The enemy Duo: If both Supports are sticking around, how do they match up against your Duo team? Do you have a great early game, while they are both relatively weak? Consider the matchups, which can help you determine how aggressive you can be.
Missing enemies & the Oracle Harpy camp: Just be aware anytime lane enemies aren't where you expect them to be. Warn teammates when enemies are missing, and consider checking on the Oracle Harpy camp from time to time just to make sure the camp isn't being taken.
Zoning out the enemy: Keeping up the pressure in your lane, and preventing the enemy from easily walking into the jungle will really help your teammates out. Forcing them to stay defensive means you'll be pushing your lane a bit, so you'll need to be careful if you do so, but with wards and good jungle presence from your teammates, you won't have to worry as much about being ganked.
Warding: It is EVERYONE'S responsibility to Ward. Unless you're steamrolling the enemy and they're completely on their heels, it's a good idea to pick some up ASAP and keep wards on the near jungle / close objectives at all times, for your own safety. Consider picking up Chalice of the Oracle (costs the equivalent of 8 wards), consider picking it up for convenient and free refills every time you back. (More in the Warding section)
Backing: Generally, you'll back after clearing a wave when you have enough gold to buy a full item. Lifesteal items like Devourer's Gauntlet can help you stay out for longer periods, but you may also need to consider a couple of Mana Potions to fortify ability use. Don't get too injured, or you might have to back early (or risk dying, which is a no-no).

Mid to Late Game Considerations & Strategies

Mid-Game Power Spike

As the game transitions to the mid-game, ADCs often see a power spike. This is due to:

Items
Early-game ability-reliant hunters (e.g. Medusa and Neith) who have high base damage with lower damage scaling) transitioning into a more standard basic attacking ADC but with continued ability support
Leveling non-wave clear abilities

In this last case, let's consider the following example. In the early game, needs to focus on leveling to help her wave clear. She doesn't get a chance to use to good effect until she can start leveling , which she can do once her wave-clear is solid. Using Kaldr is critical to her damage output, so in her case, her power spike is closely related to ability-leveling.

As such, it's important to try to take advantage when possible while some hunters have a slight edge over other roles, which may rely heavily on items/full builds to help them deal with an ADC's damage output.

Gameplay Elements

Keep the resources coming: you always want to keep gaining XP and gold to out-farm the enemy ADC, no matter where you go. If you've gone into the jungle or changed lanes to possibly help in a teamfight, you should continue to clear waves / camps given the opportunity.
Stick together: there is power in numbers, so when possible, team up when facing enemies or attacking / defending objectives. It gives them at least a second target to distract them.
Warding: you'll be a prime target of the enemy, as they'll want to prevent you from getting fed and outleveling their team. If your teammates aren't warding, it won't hurt you to drop some in key locations, as it can warn you if the Jungler is stalking you.
Rotating: you'll probably want to start rotating from the Duo Lane at the first mid-game teamfight, as the ADC provides significant damage. At this point, you should be on the move constantly between lanes, but remember to try to stick with other teammates so you're not alone and an easy target.
Teamfighting: although a simple concept, it can be difficult to remember when you become a destructive force. With power comes...weakness. You're squishy. In a teamfighting situation, you should always be behind your front-line tanks. Let them protect you and set up kill opportunities with their CC abilities, at which point you can go in for the kill.
Objectives: this is the thing ADCs do best. Remember that downing objectives wins the game, and your sustained damage output is likely the highest on your team, so you should always be looking for opportunities to take down towers, phoenixes, etc. Also...if you've got good lifesteal, you may be able to easily solo the Gold Fury and Oracle Harpies.
Play to your strengths: although all ADCs can output great damage in the mid-to-late game, some gods have great teamfight potential with AOE and/or CC abilities (e.g. Neith, Medusa). Others have incredible objective and split-pushing potential (which will be discussed in the next section). Focus on what you're good at to help your team.

Key Gameplay Strategies (Objectives & Split-Pushing)

Top Split-Pushers

Split-pushing involves one or more players, separate from their main force, attacking lanes and objectives. Hopefully, the main force provides enough threat to keep the attention of the enemy team, allowing the pusher to sneak in and take down enemy objectives.

The strongest split-pushers are usually ADCs, though some Junglers can also do very well. The key is high power, good penetration, and a fast attack. Good mobility or escapes are also extremely helpful to get you to safety if the enemy converges.

There are three ways to split-push effectively.

Minions take the damage: this is the most common way. It requires you to push your lane by helping clear minions beforehand, and moving with your minions to attack the tower. Let them enter the tower's range first, at which point you can attack the tower without taking damage. If the enemy team isn't paying attention, you can finish the tower quickly, but because you'll probably have to help clear the minion wave beforehand, it can give the enemy advance warning of your location. Pretty much all ADCs should be able to do this relatively well.
Tank takes the damage: this one is risky, so requires good warding and distraction to limit your danger. If your team is ahead and attacking on multiple fronts, it may be enough to allow a tank with good physical protections to accompany you to take down an objective. You can bypass the minion waves if the tank takes the tower's focus while you attack, but since the tank is guaranteed to take some damage, be ready for the possibility they (and you!) may die from the tower or enemies before getting back to safety.
Kaldr: Skadi has a unique ~~buddy~~ ability that allows her to distract the tower and delay damage to herself. Right before entering tower range, send Kaldr in with Rune Of The Hunt. For a short time (4-5 seconds), it allows you to attack the tower without being focused.

Other Gods' Split-Push Strengths

Apollo is extremely effective, not because he can distract the objective (he can't), but because he can extract quickly with Across The Sky, either easily getting to safety, or better yet, dropping down into a teamfight almost immediately after destroying an objective. If he does need to tank a bit of tower damage, he can use Serenade, which at level 5 provides 50 protections.
Chronos has an amazing attack speed boost via Accelerate, which if triggered while Wheel of Time is in section IV, gives him a 35% magical power contribution to basic attacks. As a magical god, he does 120% of basic attack damage to objectives, so this is huge. His ult, Rewind, can save him from near-death and get him back in the fight with full strength.
Rama has an incredible attack speed steroid, and enough CC via cripples and slows to help create space between him and would-be killers.
Sol has great attack speed, and as a magical god, does 120% of basic attack damage to objectives. Her passive, Unstable Manifestation, gives her extra basic attack damage at full heat, and Disapparate can help her extract safely.
Ullr can get in quick with his move speed boost in melee stance, via Expose Weakness / Invigorate. When attacking the objective, he can boost his basic attack damage with Expose Weakness / Invigorate and has an inherent attack speed boost in his ranged stance. If an enemy threatens, he can stun, leap, and escape quickly with his move speed boost.

Misc. Info (Relics)

Relics

*NOTE* Relics can be upgraded at a price of 500 gold.

Here are suggested relics that should be of most use to the ADC.

Purification Beads	Using this removes CC effects and makes you immune to new ones for 2 seconds. 160 second CD. Upgrade decreases CD to 130 seconds. Anti-CC. Often a first choice, this can help you escape from pulls and other potentially deadly CC. Practically a staple for a hunter.
Aegis Amulet	Using this makes you invulnerable to damage for 1.5 seconds, preventing you from taking action, but allowing you to move. 180 second CD. Upgrade decreases CD to 150 seconds. Anti-Burst. This is a solid choice, often as the 2nd relic, when facing enemies (such as Neith, Thanatos, Scylla or Poseidon) with high burst potential that can be anticipated.
Heavenly Wings	Using this buffs the movement speed of allies within 55 units by 20% for 5 seconds and makes them immune to slows. 140 second CD. Upgrade provides immunity to basic attack slow penalty. Chase / Escape. Another relic that is often chosen first. Can be used offensively to chase a retreating enemy and secure a kill, or as an escape to create distance between you and the enemy. The upgrade provides a Haste effect, which can be extremely helpful when boxing.
Phantom Veil	Using this allows you and teammates within 35 units to pass through players and player-made objects for 5 seconds. Upgrade increases duration to 10 seconds, and provides a 15% damage reduction buff for 5 seconds. Escape from Barriers. This is a hard counter item to abilities like Odin's Ring of Spears and Ymir's Ice Wall. Extremely useful defensive relic that may be essential for any god without an escape ability (e.g. Artemis).
Sundering Spear	Using this fires a bolt that stops on the first god hit and deals 15% of the target's current health as true damage. CD 140 seconds. Upgrade increases damage taken by the target by 20% for 5 seconds. Risky Tank Killer. You can use this situationally at the beginning of a fight to increase your damage output against a single target. Especially with the upgrade, the increased damage they take can allow you to take them down very quickly. Risky because this is a skill shot. Only consider if you're steamrolling the enemy team and don't need any of the other relics.
Belt of Frenzy	All allied gods in a 70 radius gain a 10% increased Damage dealt to all targets, including objectives, and 15% Attack Speed increase for 5 seconds. 120 second CD. Upgrade provides an additional +10 Penetration to all gods affected and increases the duration to 8 seconds. Offensive Push. As a 2nd relic, the added damage this provides can help your team quickly defeat enemies or objectives.
Bracer of Undoing	Using this restores 40% health and mana lost within the last 5 seconds. 120 second CD. Upgrade subtracts 3 seconds from all abilities currently on CD. Personal Survival. As a 2nd relic, the health restore can save your life from high burst.
Magic Shell	Using this applies a shield to the owner and allies within 35 units of 100 health + 12 per god level for 3 seconds. CD 150 seconds. Upgrade also provides 2 stacks of Block, absorbing the next 2 basic attacks). Group Survival. As a 2nd relic, using this in a timely manner can save your bacon from a burst attack, and the upgraded Block can counter the enemy ADC.

Quick Tags

Conquest Overview
Roles: Duo Lane ADC (Carry)
Roles: Duo Lane Support
Roles: Jungler
Roles: Mid-Lane
Roles: Solo Lane
Warding
Awareness & Communication
Tier Lists
References & Definitions

Original contribution by:

DucksRock

Roles: Duo Lane Support

Commonly Used Gods In The Support Role

The Guardians:

The Others:

General Support Qualities:

Strengths

Weaknesses

+ Usually high protections/health
+ Some have great healing/sustain
+ Strong CC abilities
+ Great in teamfights

- Early game can be difficult
- Struggle to make gold
- Usually low damage
- Underappreciated

Support 101

Who: The most common class used in the Support role is the Guardian, for their strong CC abilities and tankiness. However, there is more than one way to support. Some Warriors have great potential, and some mages (healing such as Hel, or control such as Nox) can work as an alternative Support type. In the current S5 meta, select Assassins are also seeing good efficacy in the role.
What: The tanky Support is an early companion to the ADC. Later, they are expected to use their CC to initiate and/or tank in teamfight situations, and protect the other, more squishy classes. Other Supports that are more offense-oriented will use aggressive early play to gain an early advantage.
When: The Support role can generally remain relevant even when under-leveled, due to the nature of their kits providing support function rather than needing to focus on damage. Guardian's Blessing can help gold income to help with their build progress.
Where: The Support may assist the ADC in the Duo Lane for some portions of the early game, while also rotating into the jungle to clear camps and provide opportunities for ganks. Later, they will be looked to for defense and protection of squishier teammates, and should always be in the middle of a teamfight.
Why: If you ~~don't like being appreciated~~ love being the backbone of your team, helping others to personal glory, this role was made for you.
How: Supports generally focus on building protections, so they can bear the brunt of the enemy's attack. CDR (so they can use their abilities more often) and extra mobility (so they can get to where they're needed more quickly) are also helpful. Late-game, counter-building is extremely important.
Responsibilities: Watch the Duo-side jungle, protect the ADC in the early game, initiate and/or secure kills with CC abilities, rotate between lanes to support teammates and be in the front-line for all teamfights.

Gameplay Stages

Starting Items

Here are suggested starting items depending on class, and how aggressive you want to be. , which is the key starting item in almost any start, provides sustain, but more importantly, provides better gold return, as Supports are generally very reliant on items.

Suggested first relics, depending on need and god, include and for aggressive use, and , or defensively.

Standard Support Aggression Start: This start is good for any Support in general that is looking to be somewhat aggressive in the early game. + extra potions (usually s) round out the starting items, providing you with plenty of early sustain.

Guardian's Blessing, Chalice of Healing, up to 5x potions (your choice).

Standard Support Mobility Start: This start is good for for better early mobility, with a focus on rushing T3 Shoes/Boots. No chalices mean less use when backing, but allow for more free spaces to pick up s.

Guardian's Blessing, Shoes or Boots, Healing Potion x3, Multi Potion x3.

Standard Support Vision Start: Usually best used by Guardians and Warriors looking to play a more passive early game. provides sustain, but more importantly provides better gold return, as Supports are generally very reliant on items. + round out the starting items, providing you with early vision and good health sustain. To get the most out of your early vision, immediately buy and drop wards in key enemy locations (e.g. their damage buff), then go back to base to refill your wards.

Guardian's Blessing, Chalice of Healing, Chalice of the Oracle.

Healing Tank Support Start: For tanky gods that have healing in their kits (such as or ), a slight adjustment can be made by replacing with .

Guardian's Blessing, Chalice of Mana, Chalice of the Oracle or up to 5x potions (your choice).

Mage Support Start: For the occasional mage Support (such as ) that is looking for a different start, this one can provide you with strong aggression and wave clear potential, with the goal to out-push the enemy duo for early kills and/or more farm. The eventual CDR is also helpful for ability use.

Mage's Blessing, Chalice of Mana, either Chalice of the Oracle OR up to 5x potions (your choice).

Starting Process & Early Game Considerations

Mid to Late Game Considerations & Strategies

Misc. Info (Relics & Key Support Items)

Relics

*NOTE* Relics can be upgraded at a price of 500 gold.

Here are suggested relics that should be of most use to the Support.

Heavenly Wings	Using this buffs the movement speed of allies within 55 units by 20% for 5 seconds and makes them immune to slows. 140 second CD. Upgrade provides immunity to basic attack slow penalty. Chase / Escape. A relic that is often chosen first. Rather than to protect you, it's often chosen to provide further support and safety to the ADC. Can be used offensively to chase a retreating enemy and secure a kill, or (more often) used as an escape to create distance between you and the enemy. The upgrade provides a Haste effect, which can be helpful when boxing.
Meditation Cloak	Using this restores to the owner and his teammates within 35 units 75 health + 12 per level, and 30% mana. 120 second CD. Upgrade provides all allies hit with 30% reduced mana cost and 1 second reduced CD. Sustain. As a first relic option, this is often considered a crutch for people that find it difficult to manage mana well, but the small burst of health can also mean the difference between life and death.
Cursed Ankh	Using this reduces enemy healing by 50% for 10 seconds. 120 second CD. Upgrade increases enemy mana costs by 20% and their CDs by 2 seconds. Anti-Heal. A relic that is a hard counter to healing of all types. Consider as your second relic only if multiple enemies have healing capabilities which are obviously turning the tide of a fight, as other relics can often have more significant effects for your team.
Magic Shell	Using this applies a shield to the owner and allies within 35 units of 100 health + 12 per god level for 3 seconds. CD 150 seconds. Upgrade also provides 2 stacks of Block, absorbing the next 2 basic attacks). Teamfight Survival. This is a strong late-game relic option. Most effective in a teamfight, where you can activate on all nearby allies, giving them all a health shield similar to Geb's. Better as a 2nd relic, but can still be functional as a 1st choice. Upgrade is a nice counter to basic attackers due to the stacks of Block.
Blink Rune	Using this allows you to teleport short distances instantly. You have to be out of combat for 3 seconds before use. 100 second CD. Upgrade gives you a 10% damage reduction buff for 2 seconds upon use. Initiation / Set-Up. This is a teamfight initiation tool for Supports with strong CC abilities or AOE ults, such as Ares, Geb, Sylvanus, etc. The upgrade should be considered earlier than later, as the significantly lower CD makes you a more dangerous initiation threat. The upgrade is unnecessary, though.
Shield of Thorns	Using this reflects 50% of all damage you take, before mitigations, for the next 5 seconds back to its owner as magical damage. 160 second CD. Upgrade makes enemy lifesteal from you only 50% effective for the duration. Damage Reflection. This is a situational 2nd relic option. It is a hard counter item to low health / high burst enemies, especially ones with crit builds. If you're building tanky, you can withstand the damage, and 50% reflection (before mitigations!) will quickly make an enemy regret targeting you. Great item for Athena and Khepri, who draw attention with their taunts and pulls.
Horrific Emblem	Using this slows enemy gods within 55 units by 30% and also reduces their attack speed by 15% for 5 seconds. 120 second CD. Upgrade further decreases attack speed (by 25%), and decreases damage dealt by enemy gods within 35 units by 15%. Counter to Basic Attackers. This is a great 2nd relic option when facing multiple basic attackers. The slow can also help secure kills on fleeing enemies.
Bracer of Undoing	Using this restores 40% health and mana lost within the last 5 seconds. 120 second CD. Upgrade subtracts 3 seconds from all abilities currently on CD. Personal Survival. As a 2nd relic, if you're doing your job and soaking up damage in a teamfight, triggering this can restore a lot of health to you, helping you stay in a teamfight for an extended time to continue being the distraction you need to be.

Important Early Support Items

A Support's early job is usually to accompany their ADC for the first few minutes. There are some key items that are typically bought early in a match that provide a measure of offensive or defensive function. These will be covered below, but note that this list isn't necessarily comprehensive of ALL possible early items, just some of the most popular.

Gauntlet of Thebes	Pros: High dual protections and some health sustain. Evolved form provides a defensive AURA of 10 magical and physical protections to nearby allies. Cons: Requires you to accompany teammates to build stacks. Provides no initial protections. In evolved form, provides a great 60 magical and physical protections for you, and a small 10 magical and physical protections for nearby teammates. However, it requires you to gain assists on minion kills, so only consider if you plan on sticking with teammates in the early game. Due to the stacks providing protections, you should play safely until at least some stacks are built.
Sovereignty	Pros: Strong, immediate physical protection and health sustain. Provides a defensive AURA of physical protection and health sustain to nearby allies. Cons: Does not provide magical protection or mana sustain. Physical protection is helpful against physical gods, minions, and objectives, which can allow you to be more aggressive while a wave is up or to help you take a few hits from a tower to tank, and then back off and heal up with the help of the item's HP5. Best for Supports that stick close to their teammates to provide the aura. Better when the ADC is physical, and there are more physical enemies than magical.
Heartward Amulet	Pros: Strong, immediate magical protection and mana sustain. Provides a defensive AURA of magical protection and mana sustain to nearby allies. Cons: Does not provide physical protection or health sustain. Magical protection is only helpful against magical gods. This item can be combined with other aura items such as Sovereignty to provide universal protection to nearby teammates. Best for Supports that stick close to their teammates to provide the aura. Best to consider when magical threats are significantly higher than physical ones.
Jade Emperor's Crown	Pros: Solid physical protection and some health. Provides an offensive AURA that reduces physical power of nearby enemy gods, reducing their damage output. Cons: Can only be used by magical gods. Has no sustain of any kind. Needs aggressive play to be useful. This item is meant specifically for offensive play, as the aura is only effective against physical enemy gods. As such, it is an aggressive early item best chosen when the Support and their ADC have noticeably stronger earlier games than their counterparts.
Void Stone	Pros: Solid magical protection and some health. Provides an offensive AURA that reduces magical protection of nearby enemy gods. Cons: Can only be used by magical gods. Has no sustain of any kind. Needs aggressive play to be useful. This item is great against magical threats, and provides enhanced damage to nearby enemies for you and any other magical teammate. Best considered on Supports that have decent damage in their kits. Can be bought later in a build with good effect.
Stone of Binding	Pros: Has a moderate amount of balanced protections at a cheap price. Effective for early aggression. Cons: Can only be used by magical gods. Has no sustain of any kind. Needs aggressive play to be useful. Requires CC to activate the passive penetration. This is a bridge item meant for aggressive early play. While enemy protections are still low in the early game, this cheap item can come online more quickly than other full items, and can reward a strong early duo with a kill, or at least push enemies back so they have more options to farm or gank other lanes. Since it requires CC to activate, it's best purchased for gods with lots of CC in their kits.
Breastplate of Valor	Pros: High physical protection and a large mana pool, along with a very large chunk of CDR for high ability use. Cons: Does not provide magical protection, and has no auras to aid teammates. Most supports are reliant on their abilities to peel for teammates, set up kills, or provide other utility. As an early purchase, it's best for gods to counter stronger physical threat, with additional function in their abilities to aid teammates, such as healing (e.g. Sylvanus or Terra).
Genji's Guard	Pros: High magical protection and incredible mana sustain, along with good CDR for high ability use. Cons: Does not provide physical protection, and has no auras to aid teammates. The magical counterpart to Breastplate of Valor, this item is best chosen to counter strong magical threats. High reliance on abilities to aid teammates makes this item appealing, and the high MP5 means you usually won't have mana issues even without backing or using potions.
Oni Hunter's Garb	Pros: High magical protection solid mana sustain, overall damage mitigation and CC reduction. Cons: Does not provide direct protection, and has no auras to aid teammates. This item is great to counter magical damage, and also prepares you for late-game teamfights with the passive's damage mitigation.

Important Counter Items

A key component of operating as a Support is building items that work to counter dangerous enemies or enemy abilities. Most counter items are built in the mid to late game. The list below is not necessarily comprehensive, but covers the most popular items used for this purpose.

Hide of the Nemean Lion	Counters: Basic attack damage. This item reflects a certain portion of incoming damage from basic attacks, so is specifically used against basic attackers. It can be especially useful against critical damage builds. Combos well with Shield of Thorns and Spectral Armor, as well as abilities that force you to be a high threat, such as grabs and taunts.
Midgardian Mail	Counters: High basic attack speed. This item provides a chance to slow the attack and move speed of basic attacking enemies. The physical protection is helpful against all physical gods, while the health and attack speed slow provides universal survivability. Strong counter item to consider against high attack speed builds and magical ADCs. Combos well with Witchblade, as well as abilities that force you to be a high threat, such as grabs and taunts.
Pestilence	Counters: Enemy healing and lifesteal. This is the tank's anti-healing item. Specifically used to counter all healing and high lifesteal builds. The magical protection and health are also appreciated.
Spectral Armor	Counters: Critical damage. This item is specifically built to counter critical damage builds. Reduces the bonus damage from critical strikes by 50%. Combos well with Hide of the Nemean Lion.
Winged Blade	Counters: Enemy abilities inflicting slows. This is a selfish item that counters enemy slows. The movespeed is also helpful for rotations. If you find that slowing abilities are strongly hindering your ability to be where you need to be to help teammates, this may be the only item that can help.
Witchblade	Counters: High basic attack speed. This item provides a reliable attack speed slowing aura, along with other useful stats such as CDR and move speed. Strong counter item to consider against high attack speed builds and magical ADCs. Combos well with Midgardian Mail, as well as abilities that force you to be a high threat, such as grabs and taunts.

*SmoothHomie's Comprehensive Support Guide*

If you'd like to read another guide on the Support role, SmoothHomie has provided some great information and strategies. Check it out!

Comprehensive Support Guide S5 (Patch 5.21) by SmoothHomie

Quick Tags

Conquest Overview
Roles: Duo Lane ADC (Carry)
Roles: Duo Lane Support
Roles: Jungler
Roles: Mid-Lane
Roles: Solo Lane
Warding
Awareness & Communication
Tier Lists
References & Definitions

Original contribution by:

ThePerfectPrism

Roles: Jungler

Commonly Used Gods in the Jungler Role:

The Assassins:

The Others:

General Jungler Qualities:

Strengths

Weaknesses

+ Great mobility
+ High damage or gank ability
+ Element of surprise

- Usually squishy
- Requires gameplay adaptation
- Often weak teamfight presence

Jungler 101

Who: Assassins form the majority of common Jungler choices, for their high mobility and great 1 v 1 boxing potential. A select few Mages, Warriors, and Guardians can also fill this role, depending on how they're built.
What: The Jungler is a wandering role, constantly on the move in the jungle and supporting multiple lanes. Rather than assigned a set position, their roving nature makes this a complex role, and their presence can shift the balance of a fight or set up an easy gank.
When: The Jungler needs to be a potential threat for ganking the entire match. Early-game gods should try to get as many early kills and objectives for their team as possible, to put them ahead. Late-game gods should try to maintain pressure until they come into their power, at which point they should go where the enemy is weakest to take down objectives and create havoc.
Where: The Jungler will often start out by securing their Speed Buff. Their main functions after that are clearing jungle camps when they respawn, providing extra pressure in the various lanes to help push, and watching closely for ganking opportunities.
Why: If you like being sneaky and get a thrill hiding in the fog and stalking your prey, sign up here.
How: Junglers should focus on mobility first, to help with roving efficiency. Depending on their kits, power, penetration, and either attack speed or CDR are all stats that help them clear camps and gank quickly. Some can even build a protection item or two and remain dangerous threats.
Responsibilities: clear jungle camps, ward, gank lanes when opportunity knocks, and counter-jungle the enemy Jungler.

Gameplay Stages

Starting Items

Starting Process & Early Game Considerations

Mid To Late Game Considerations & Strategies

Early & Late-Game Junglers

Strong Early-Game Junglers

This section covers Junglers who specifically have a strong early game compared to others. It's helpful to know which gods can be played more aggressively at the start, so you can either take advantage when you choose them, or know to watch out if you're against one.

Some of these gods do not necessarily fall off in the late game.

Achilles is the newest god, and as expected of HR, starts out OP. He's got great base damage and incredible scaling, especially in his Shield of Achilles. Add to that a chainable executing ult, quick CD dodge/mobility, and self buffing/healing, and you've got yourself a solid early-game jungler.
Arachne: She has strong early game damage with her Venomous Bite, and her Web not only slows the enemy and increases her own speed, but breaking the web spawns two broodlings who also attack, helping her quickly take down her prey.
Artio: At level 1, she has double the abilities of gods that don't stance-switch. Her base damage is pretty hefty, and she has a lot of control in her kit, so she can build tanky and still be effective. Her damage definitely falls off late-game, and she should become a disruptor rather than a pure killer.
Awilix: She can clear a camp faster than anyone else throughout the game, with high overall damage to boot. However, to hit her abilities, she requires getting close to her opponent, so being aggressive with positioning is a must. She is the ultimate counter to gods with leaps, due to Gravity Surge, and has a lot of CC in her kit for devastating combos and tricks. She is highly effective with a team of knock-ups, letting her combos flow easily, and she remains strong throughout the match.
Bakasura: His true-damage Butcher Blades give him some strong threat as soon as it comes online, and it's likely you'll see some early kills. His damage falls off in the mid-game, but he really comes into his own when he gets his items online in the late-game.
Bastet: She has a great, high-powered bleed in Razor Whip, and her Pounce allows her to surprise the enemy and get back to safety if things quickly turn sour. When she hits level 5, her Cat Call spawns 3 kitties that, if placed well, can body-block the enemy and prevent them from retreating. Since many Mages and some ADCs don't have leaps, this can really help secure kills.
Bellona: Her early-game clear and damage is incredible. Take advantage and get the jump on enemies to give her a nice advantage.
Cabrakan: Solid base damage and control can help secure early kills, if he can surprise enemies.
Camazotz: Batman has a solid early game, as his abilities start with pretty good damage, while also having a lot of sustain / healing built into his kit. This makes him an early-game pest. His abilities have good scaling, though he's perhaps less of a threat late-game, but he can be extremely functional built with some protection items. That, combined with his healing, can allow him to outlast enemies.
Chernobog: The newest god, it is likely he will see some adjustments in future patches. As of now, his ultimate is very strong, allowing him to relocate himself to any enemy god for a gank. This makes him extremely strong as soon as he hits level 5.
Cu Chulainn: As long as you can keep stacks up, you're always a threat to go Berserk. His Vent Anger can provide consistently refreshing stacks of Bluestone Pendant, and he's tough to kill, so he can be pretty aggressive.
Fenrir: He has the ability to kill the enemy Jungler and Mid-Laner by level 2 when using his stuns correctly. His Brutalize is a hugely damaging ability early on, and can clear camps effectively. Can counter-jungle quite easily and safely with 3 escapes in his kit. Ragnarok requires Purification to counter, and anyone caught in his maw is sure to be dead with the right positioning (they can be literally dragged into tower shots and minion waves). It is a good idea to focus the Mid-Laner and ADC as they have little to no power early on.
He Bo is a risky pick as Jungler, because he doesn't have any real mobility. This means he has to play confidently and aggressively. He's got easy long distance poke, a very strong minion clear with low CD, and an incredibly powerful ult.
Nike: She has some really good damage from her Rend in the early game, and is a relatively safe pick due to her escape. Her cone basic attack is also helpful for clearing jungle camps. In the later game, her damage falls off a bit, but her passive takes over and helps the entire team's damage and move speed.
Odin: He has high early burst potential with his Raven Shout to Lunge combo. When he hits level 5, his infamous Ring of Spears can trap enemies for 6 seconds to help secure kills with a teammate. His damage potential falls off in the late-game, but his utility remains strong in teamfights.
Osiris: Although he doesn't have any special early mobility, he does the opposite to his enemies. Even at level 1, he has a significant, 3 second slow with his Sickle Strike. At level 3 with 1 point in all 3 of his basic abilities, he can stack slows and turn it into a stun, all the while continuing to do damage with his quick basic attack chain.
Ratatoskr: Multiple CC abilities are what make him deadly in the early game. He has a slow, protection reduction, a stun, and a knockup by level 5, while also being able to stay out and upgrade his Magic Acorn without having to go back to base. When completed, that acorn gives his abilities a bit of HEALING. He's the squirrel that has it all.
Ravana: He has high early burst potential in his Prana Onslaught along with a quick basic attack chain. When built with Frostbound Hammer he can really CC enemies to help secure kills, though his damage falls off in the late-game.
Susano: He has great early-game damage ( Storm Kata), control ( Wind Siphon), and chase potential ( Jet Stream). His damage falls off somewhat in the late-game, but his utility and teamfighting control remains.
Thanatos: He has one of the highest early game damage in the game with his Death Scythe and strong basic attacks. When he reaaches level 5, his partially global ult Hovering Death is an easy way to secure kills with enhanced mobility.
Thor: He has decent early game damage but incredible mobility. Laid across a lane, his Tectonic Rift can prevent an enemy from retreating for 4 seconds, during which time he and a teammate can make quick work of an enemy. When he reaches level 5, his partially global ult Anvil of Dawn allows him to drop right in on an unsuspecting enemy.
Ymir: Although his mobility is poor, his high base ability damage, combined with an extremely effective freeze, make him a powerful early game threat for ganks. His Frostbite allows him to clear camps quickly, and his natural tankiness makes him an unattractive target.

Strong Mid / Late-Game Junglers

This section covers Junglers who have a weak early game, but start really ramping up in power the closer they get to the late-game and full build. These include late-game hyper-carries such as and .

When playing these gods, it's best to play conservatively in the early stages, doing your utmost to farm efficiently both in the jungle and sharing lanes, and help your team in other ways besides pure damage. Make sure you ward constantly and help plan ganks until you come into your own power.

Ao Kuang: His ult's execute is always a threat once he reaches level 5, but his damage output really jumps as he builds power and penetration. With some enhanced attack speed, it makes Dragon Call a force in and of itself, and his Water Illusion gives him an easy means of escape.
Athena: She can actually be pretty dangerous early-game with her CC, but her base damage and scaling are also good. Once she has a bit of power and pen, she can output a good amount of damage.
Cernunnos: As with most hunters, his threat level is item-dependent. He's got a bit of mobility, as well as a stun, a slow, and a nice polymorphing ult, which gives him nice teamfight presence. Shifter of Seasons and his passive Heavy Glaive make him a pretty good jungle camp clearer with nice built-in lifesteal to allow him to stay out longer, so he's pretty solid early-game as well, at least with regard to rotations.
Da Ji: At level 1, she's extremely weak with her clear, but that improves fairly quickly (put 2 points into her One Thousand Cuts. That said, she's got good scaling in her abilities, meaning that more items with power significantly increase her damage output. She's probably strongest in the mid-game.
Erlang Shen: In order to be a decent threat, he needs multiple abilities to be leveled, and to have at least 3 or 4 items online, including Qin's Sais. Once he's online, he's high-threat.
Freya: Her damage output is extremely reliant on her items. Her main focus is attack speed and penetration, and when both Pulse and Irradiate are maxed, she does similar damage to a crit-based hunter.
Hun Batz: He has good scaling on his abilities, making him significantly more effective the more power he has. Has a teamfight-altering ult for the later stages of the game.
Kali: She is extremely item-dependent, as her power stems from her basic attacks. Often built with attack speed to get as many hits with Qin's Sais as possible, and when she focuses an enemy that's Marked for Death, she can knock them down one after the other. Considered a late-game hyper-carry.
Kuzenbo: He has a nice push ability that can drive enemies toward your side if you are able to sneak and attack from behind them. However, his main strength is going to be late-game when his Shell Spikes are leveled up...he can create a lot of disruption by getting in the face of high damage dealers, while surviving due to being tanky w/ defensive items.
Loki: He is extremely item-dependent, and wants as much as he can get of power and penetration for his amazing burst damage potential. His abilities do significantly more damage as they are leveled, and he can 100-0 an enemy almost more easily than any other god.
Mercury: With his attack speed steroid maxed (70%!), he can burst enemies down with a full crit build (which, incidentally, is EXPENSIVE).
Ne Zha: He requires Deathbringer to get the most out of his ultimate, Wind Fire Wheels, and crit items overall enhance his damage output via his attack steroid Flaming Spear, which ALSO has its own built in crit chance.
Nemesis: As a basic attacker, she's extremely reliant on items to support her damage output. As she reaches level 20, her ult also has a huge effect on her target at the start of a fight.
Poseidon: The jungle is his ocean. His passive, Changing Tides, gives him great inherent speed as he builds his Tide level up in the jungle, boosted by his Trident. It also gives him huge damage potential for when he flies out of the jungle to lock down an unsuspecting enemy with Whirlpool and obliterates them with Release The Kraken!
Serqet: Another god that is reliant on crit items, Deathbane gives you 3 quick chances at crit damage. Her damage late-game with a full build is incredible.
The Morrigan: Weak clear and general damage output in the early game is made up in the late game with good scaling and a greater choice of ult target effectiveness.

Misc. Info (Relics)

Relics

*NOTE* Relics can be upgraded at a price of 500 gold.

Here are suggested relics that should be of most use to the Jungler.

Purification Beads	Using this removes CC effects and makes you immune to new ones for 2 seconds. 160 second CD. Upgrade decreases CD to 130 seconds. Anti-CC. Often a first choice, this can help you escape from pulls and other potentially deadly CC. Practically a staple for a jungler.
Aegis Amulet	Using this makes you invulnerable to damage for 1.5 seconds, preventing you from taking action, but allowing you to move. 180 second CD. Upgrade decreases CD to 150 seconds. Anti-Burst. This is a solid choice as the 1st or 2nd relic, when facing enemies (such as Thanatos, Scylla or Poseidon) with high burst potential that can be anticipated.
Heavenly Wings	Using this buffs the movement speed of allies within 55 units by 20% for 5 seconds and makes them immune to slows. 140 second CD. Upgrade provides immunity to basic attack slow penalty. Chase / Escape. Another relic that is often chosen first. Can be used offensively to chase a retreating enemy and secure a kill, or (more often) used as an escape to create distance between you and the enemy. The upgrade provides a Haste effect, which can be helpful when boxing, especially for basic attackers.
Phantom Veil	Using this allows you and teammates within 35 units to pass through players and player-made objects for 5 seconds. Upgrade increases duration to 10 seconds, and provides a 15% damage reduction buff for 5 seconds. Escape from Barriers. This is a hard counter item to abilities like Odin's Ring of Spears and Ymir's Ice Wall. Extremely useful defensive relic that may be essential for any god without an escape ability (e.g. Ne Zha).
Horrific Emblem	Using this slows enemy gods within 55 units by 30% and also reduces their attack speed by 15% for 5 seconds. 120 second CD. Upgrade further decreases attack speed (by 25%), and decreases damage dealt by enemy gods within 35 units by 15%. Chase/Counter to Basic Attackers. This is a great 2nd relic option when facing multiple basic attackers. The slow can also help secure kills on fleeing enemies.
Blink Rune	Using this allows you to teleport short distances instantly. You have to be out of combat for 3 seconds before use. 100 second CD. Upgrade gives you a 10% damage reduction buff for 2 seconds upon use. Surprise Assassination. This is a very aggressive choice to quickly close gaps and pick off a vulnerable player. Can be used to get past the front line in a teamfight, or even chase a retreating player.
Sundering Spear	Using this fires a bolt that stops on the first god hit and deals 15% of the target's current health as true damage. CD 140 seconds. Upgrade increases damage taken by the target by 20% for 5 seconds. Risky Tank Killer. You can use this situationally at the beginning of a fight to increase your damage output against a single target. Especially with the upgrade, the increased damage they take can allow you to take them down very quickly. Risky because this is a skill shot. Only consider if you're steamrolling the enemy team and don't need any of the other relics.
Belt of Frenzy	All allied gods in a 70 radius gain a 10% increased Damage dealt to all targets, including objectives, and 15% Attack Speed increase for 5 seconds. 120 second CD. Upgrade provides an additional +10 Penetration to all gods affected and increases the duration to 8 seconds. Offensive Push. As a 2nd relic, the added damage this provides can help you quickly defeat enemies or objectives.
Bracer of Undoing	Using this restores 40% health and mana lost within the last 5 seconds. 120 second CD. Upgrade subtracts 3 seconds from all abilities currently on CD. Personal Survival. As a 2nd relic, the health restore can save your life from high burst.

*SmoothHomie's Quick Jungle Guide*

If you'd like to read another guide on the Jungle role, SmoothHomie has provided some great information and strategies. Check it out!

Quick Jungle Guide S5 (Patch 5.21) by SmoothHomie

Quick Tags

Conquest Overview
Roles: Duo Lane ADC (Carry)
Roles: Duo Lane Support
Roles: Jungler
Roles: Mid-Lane
Roles: Solo Lane
Warding
Awareness & Communication
Tier Lists
References & Definitions

Original contribution by:

GameGeekFanGreenevers

Roles: Mid-Lane

Commonly Used Gods In The Mid-Lane

The Mages:

The Others:

General Mid-Laner Qualities:

Strengths

Weaknesses

+ Strong late-game damage
+ Generally strong wave clear
+ Strong teamfight presence

- Squishy
- Can lack escape / mobility
- Usually ability-reliant

Mid-Laner 101

Who: almost all standard Mid-Laners are Mages. This is not only in magical / physical balance to natural preferences for other roles, but also because Mages have great ranged damage potential, many of which are AOE. Some ability-reliant hunters (e.g. Medusa, Neith) can also do well in this role.
What: Mid-Laners often need to have strong wave-clear potential. If they are weak in the early game but can force a stalemate until their power spikes, they can shift the balance of power in a teamfight, allowing their team to secure objectives.
When: with the wide range of abilities, strengths and weaknesses, some gods will find themselves more effective at certain times. It's important for them to take advantage of their strengths and push when they are able, without overextending themselves.
Where: as their name implies, they are mainly in charge of controlling the Mid-Lane and surrounding areas. They will venture outside their lane here and there (read: Mid-Camps, central objectives, gank attempts), but until the mid to late game when they group up to split-push and teamfight, they need to cement the center of the map.
Why: because...you like magical things. You like blasting things. You want to be Harry Potter or Gandalf...?
How: Mid-Laners need to balance mana consumption while always applying pressure to the enemy Mid-Laner. Focus is often on items that provide a deep mana pool, along with high power and penetration to maximize damage. However, some mages do well built a bit more tanky, and can be effective when building some health and protections.
Responsibilities: clear the minion waves, apply pressure with poke damage and by pushing towers without overextending, work with the Jungler to set up ganks, avoid ganks by the enemy Support and Jungler.

Gameplay Stages

Starting Items

Here are suggested starting items depending on which way you decide to build. Stacking items like and Warlock's Sash are common rush items, though most will start with the starter item .

Suggested first relic is usually or to help get out of potential ganks. Specific situations may call for .

Mages:

Standard Blessing / Book of Thoth Start: The benefit from for early wave-clear help is hard to pass up. Get T1 of to start working on the stacking item, which is great for high mana and power.

Mage's Blessing, Spellbook, 3x potions (your choice).

Book of Thoth Rush Start: If your main priority is to get online as soon as possible, get the T2 item and some potions. You are likely to experience some early wave-clear issues until you get the full item.

Book of Souls, 3x potions (your choice).

CDR Start: Another option is starting , which can be great for early pressure for gods with good distance poke abilities.

Mage's Blessing, Lost Artifact, 4x Potions (your choice).

Early Pressure Start: This start will prepare you for an early or , depending on your lane enemy and your god choice. can be a hard counter to healers, while some specific gods can easily get multiple stacks of Magus to deal true damage.

Mage's Blessing, Magic Focus, 3x Potions (your choice).

Sustain / Pressure Start: This start targets an early for health sustain and strong damage, especially when giving AND taking damage.

Talon Trinket, 2x Potions (your choice).

Standard Warlock's Staff Start: An alternate stacking item to Book of Thoth, provides a stronger focus on survivability due to the high health it provides when fully stacked.

Mage's Blessing, Uncommon Staff, 3x potions (your choice).

Warlock's Staff Rush Start: If you want to rush the Staff, consider this, though it's likely you will have early wave clear issues.

Sorcerer's Staff, 3x potions (your choice).

Hunters:

Standard Hunter-Mage Start: Choose this start for most hunters. The bonus damage from the blessing will help early clear as you build toward .

Mage's Blessing, Morningstar, 5x Potions (your choice).

Rush Start: If you want online ASAP, you can consider skipping a Blessing. Expect a bit of early wave-clear issues.

Charged Morningstar, 4-6x potions (your choice).

Starting Process & Early Game Considerations

Starting Process

Standard (Mid-Lane) Start: You will typically help your Jungler get an quicker start by helping clear their Speed Buff (0). Note that it spawns at ~0:25, slightly earlier than other jungle camps. Use your wave-clear ability and then head directly to lane.

Clear the first wave (1). Depending on who can clear more quickly, you can either decide, or you'll have to react to what the enemy chooses to do. First priority will normally be to contest or secure mid-harpies (2), but if they strongly beat you out and look like they might be attempting to steal the Damage Buff (3), that may become your priority.

If you're strongly out-clearing the enemy, you can attempt to go for their Damage Buff (3*) or at least steal the small minions. From there, you'll mostly focus on clearing waves and poking the enemy, while watching for gank attempts. Whenever the Damage Buff (3) is up, you want to try to secure it.

Keep an eye on enemy location, as you'll want to protect or secure the Oracle Harpies (4) if you see an opportunity.

Early Gameplay Elements

Farming & The Minion Waves: Should be your number one priority. Clearing the wave before the enemy allows you to safely poke the other Mid-Laner, possibly forcing them to back early, or hide under their tower, where they may lose some resources to their tower. Pushing them back also allows you to more easily secure mid-camps and buffs when they're up. You can also look to accompany the Jungler to hit nearby jungle camps, or clear them yourself if the Jungler is nowhere near.
Enemy Mid-Laner (the player): Try to judge the type of player they are. Are they extremely safe? Overly aggressive? If they push too far, you might try calling your Jungler for a gank attempt.
Enemy Mid-Laner (the god): Consider the matchup carefully. Do they have strong early-game presence via AOE abilities, strong poke damage, etc.? Evaluating the matchup properly can help you play with the most efficiency to avoid unnecessary damage, poke effectively, and gauge just how aggressive you can be.
The Oracle Harpy camp: Keep an eye on the Duo side jungle, specifically for the Oracle Harpy camp. The vision it grants if you can clear it is quite helpful. If you have a strong early game, and your Jungler and/or Support are also able to roam a bit, you may try to steal both minions, especially if your team gets an early kill and has a temporary numbers advantage.
Zoning out the enemy: Keeping up the pressure in your lane, and preventing the enemy from easily walking into the jungle will really help your teammates out. Forcing them to stay defensive means you'll be pushing your lane a bit, so you'll need to be careful if you do so, but with wards and good jungle presence from your teammates, you won't have to worry as much about being ganked.
Warding: Since both Junglers have to rotate through the Mid-Lane quite a bit, warding is a necessity for survival. More wards near the mid-camps and the lanes leading to the Mid-Lane can mean the difference between life and death. Dying early in the game makes it an uphill battle throughout the rest of the match. (More in the Warding section)
Backing: Unless you're hurt too much, try to back only when both the mid-camps and minion waves have been cleared recently and you have enough gold for a full item. You want to prevent any opportunities for the enemy to push your lane, so if needed, let your teammates know you're backing so either the Support or Jungler can fill in while you're away.

Mid to Late Game Considerations & Strategies

Teamfighting

Where all other roles have variable functions (roaming, split-pushing, etc.), a teamfight usually revolves around the Mid-Laner.

Usually the most squishy god besides the ADC (and maybe the Jungler), most Mid-Laners are built for high burst damage. Their abilities can quickly alter the course of a battle, which is why they're often the main target. Unlike the ADC, who does high, sustained single-target damage, this role often unleashes burst AOE effects and massive ultimates, making them extremely valuable teamfighters.

Use Protection: Wherever you go, you should always make sure a teammate (preferably a tank) is close. By yourself, you are extremely vulnerable to ganks by the enemy Jungler, or even the Solo-Laner, if they have a strong late game. Warriors can be the most annoying enemy to you, as they can kill you, while you can't kill them.
Aim Your Gun: As a Mid-Laner, you should treat a teamfight as "survival of the fittest." Although the enemy Support may be closer to you, your target should be the enemy squishies, while you allow your own Support to protect you from front-line damage. You should always let your tanks protect you while you hide in the backline, unless you're a hybrid mage with strong teamfight abilities or decent protections.
Tag-Team CC: The easiest way to set up a kill is to daisy-chain CC effects. If Ymir initiates with Frost Breath and Scylla can Sic 'Em, that enemy will be easily be locked down long enough to use I'm a Monster to demolish that unfortunate goal. Of course, CC is subject to diminishing returns, and you can read more about it HERE (see at the bottom).

Other Elements

Objectives: In force, you should always be looking to push objectives with your teammates. When it comes to the Oracle Harpies, Gold Fury, Pyromancer or Fire Giant, make sure you save your burst abilities for when they are at low health, as you don't want to give your enemies a chance to steal them.
Warding: Even if your teammates are warding the jungle, it won't hurt for you to drop a couple down to increase your vision. Early warning of attempted ganks will save your life. Chalice of the Oracle is a cheap 400 gold. Don't skimp unless you're steamrolling the enemy and constantly pushing them back...but it never hurts to be safe.

Misc. Info (Relics)

Relics

Quick Tags

Conquest Overview
Roles: Duo Lane ADC (Carry)
Roles: Duo Lane Support
Roles: Jungler
Roles: Mid-Lane
Roles: Solo Lane
Warding
Awareness & Communication
Tier Lists
References & Definitions

Original contribution by:

GameGeekFan

Roles: Solo Lane

Commonly Used Gods In The Solo Lane

The Warriors:

The Others:

General Solo-Laner Qualities:

Strengths

Weaknesses

+ Versatile gameplay
+ Balanced damage and protections
+ Generally strong teamfight presence

- Vulnerable to ganks
- More of a 1 v 1 than any other position

Solo Laner 101

Who: Warriors are often chosen for the Solo role, as they generally have a good balance of damage and survivability to hold their own. More than any other lane, however, a wide variety of gods/classes can be chosen with a good chance for success. It's more about how the individual gods match up.
What: More than any other lane, the Solo lane generally plays the closest to a 1 v 1 match. Threat from the Jungler is always a possibility, but the main objective is to out-play the enemy Solo.
When: Solo-laners may be stronger early or late. Early gods should try to take advantage and pressure the enemy, while the best strategy for late-game gods is to force a stalemate until you're stronger.
Where: As the name implies, of course. You won't stray often from the Solo lane until mid-game, when the teams start fighting more in groups.
Why: If you like 1 v 1 battles, this role is calling your name.
How: Most tanky Solo-laners will build a balance of survivability and damage. Counter-building the enemy Solo god - as well as the Jungler - is key.
Responsibilities: Clear minion waves, protect your tower, out-farm the enemy, work with your Jungler to secure kills in the early game. Be in the middle of teamfights in the late game.

Gameplay Stages

Starting Items

Starting Process & Considerations

Starting Process

Standard (Lane) Start: You're likely to start in the Solo-Lane by yourself. Head directly to your lane (1) to clear the first wave.

Out-clearing the enemy provides options for varying levels of aggression, so clearing quickly and efficiently is important.

If you can significantly out-clear the enemy, you can attempt a few things:

Continue attacking them with the help of your minions
Attempt to steal their Mana Buff (2), or get a head start on clearing your own Mana Buff (0) if it's spawned.
Take down the Totem of Ku. If you're winning lane/outclearing, it's unlikely to help you much, but it can help your teammates in their respective lanes.

If you are out-cleared, you'll need to react to the enemies' movements. More than anything, you want to protect your buffs.

Your main early objective is to stay in-lane, clear waves and poke the enemy, picking up the Mana Buff whenever it respawns. If your lane enemy leaves lane, be sure to warn teammates.

Early Gameplay Elements

Health/Mana Conservation: The Mana Buff will help your mana sustain, but you will still want to conserve when possible. Try to save potions as much as you can. If you run out and need to back, make sure you do whatever you can to get back to your lane ASAP (via Teleport Glyph, Heavenly Wings, or any other abilities that increase your movement speed).
Farming & The Minion Waves (Clearing Abilities): Try to farm efficiently. Main priority is clearing the minion wave. If you have strong clearing capabilities, focus on that first, and only attack the enemy god after you've cleared the wave, as minion damage really hurts at this stage.
Farming & The Minion Waves (Strong Early Game / Boxing): If you have weak wave clear but good early damage and boxing strength, you can consider bullying the enemy by forcing them away from the minion wave due to direct threat from you. This can make them lose out on farming and also allow you to clear safely while they go back to heal up.
Totem of Ku: If you've secured your own Mana buff and the minion waves are under control, you can consider taking the Totem of Ku, which is available for the first 15 minutes of a match. It will give your team a small amount of gold (25) along with a small buff for teammates while under their towers. If you've got an advantage in the Solo matchup and are not concerned about a gank by the enemy Jungler, it can be worthwhile, rather than standing around and just waiting for the next minion wave. It can also help teammates that have been pushed under their towers. However, it doesn't provide a strong enough bonus to make it worth a death, so don't take this or contest it if it's possible you could die.
Building & Counter-Building: Your main build focus should be to counter the enemy laner. It helps even more if both the enemy Jungler and Solo-Laner deal the same type of damage.
Zoning out the enemy: Keeping up the pressure in your lane, and preventing the enemy from easily walking into the jungle will really help your teammates out. Forcing them to stay defensive means you'll be pushing your lane a bit, so you'll need to be careful of jungle ganks. Wards and good jungle presence from your teammates can help, and you won't have to worry as much about being ganked.
Setting up a gank: If you've got a weak early game, you're likely to be pressured back toward your tower. In the case the enemy laner is being aggressive and pushing close to your tower, call for a gank from the Jungler, and bait them into concentrating on you (which means stay close to their ability range and not hiding way under the tower). This will make it easier for the Jungler to secure a kill or force them to back due to low health. Be ready to push back and help the Jungler.
Warding: You may want to ward the near jungle to protect yourself from gank attempts. The more aggressive you place, the more it can help your Jungler, but the more exposed you may be. Chalice of the Oracle is fairly cheap, and you should consider picking it up ASAP. (More in the Warding section)
Backing: Go back to base only when needed or you have enough to buy a full item. If you picked up Teleport Glyph, use it to get back to your lane ASAP.

It's a balance between being safe and being aggressive. A gank attempt by the enemy Jungler is always possible, so it's important to save escape abilities when possible. If your enemy is being aggressive and pushing toward your tower, it's safer for you to engage, since your tower is closer. They're also more exposed, so with the help of your own Jungler, you may be able to attempt a gank, or at least damage them enough so they have to back early, making them lose out on farming.

Mid To Late Game Considerations & Strategies

The main goal as you transition to the Mid-Game is to beat out your lane enemy (resources, kills, etc.) and take down the first tower. Your positioning will be more defined by this time. If you’re winning your lane, you can afford to be more aggressive and push the towers, roam a bit if you spot a gank opportunity, or play defensively if you find yourself falling behind.

Strong communication with your Jungler can be extremely helpful, as they can help you push the tower, gank an overexposed enemy, or give you support if you're being pushed hard.

Pay attention to where teammates are. If it looks like a teamfight is going to occur, you should probably be there to contribute.

Gameplay Elements

Keep the resources coming: a key to winning your lane is to out-farm the enemy. This includes clearing all minion waves ASAP, damaging the enemy when possible, making the enemy back often, and NOT DYING. Dying means you miss out on clearing some waves, while your tower is probably attacked. You always want to keep gaining XP and gold to keep yourself relevant, no matter where you go. If you've gone into the jungle or changed lanes to possibly help in a teamfight, you should clear waves / camps given the opportunity.
Relics: Think about getting a team-wide relic, such as Magic Shell, Horrific Emblem, etc., to help give your team an edge in teamfights. Another option, if you didn't get it first, is to get Teleport Glyph to help you jump to areas you may be needed quickly, given proper teamwork. One final relic you might like is Bracer of Undoing, for personal survivability.
Warding: Don't forget this. Continue to ward throughout the match! Key locations for wards are now more central to the map, and include objectives such as the Fire Giant.
Teamfights (Tanky / Strong CC) - Protecting Teammates: This is a priority. If you have CC abilities that help peel (e.g. slows / stuns), you should save them to protect your teammates, unless you've got the enemy on the run and your teammates are relatively safe. Also, if your teammates are being targeted, remember that you can body-block.
Teamfights (Bruiser / Strong Harass) - Pressure Enemies: If you have relatively weak CC but strong damage potential, the best defense may be a good offense. If you're a god like Bellona, Ravana, Osiris, Tyr, etc., and have built items like Frostbound Hammer, keep the enemy's attention on you rather than your teammates by being in their faces.
Teamfights - Positioning: you should be in the front-lines with your Support, drawing as much attention as possible to keep your high-damage teammates safer. Your damage output should be better than the Support, though, so if you see an opportunity to secure a kill safely, go for it.
Split-Pushing: if you and the Jungler or ADC see an opportunity to split-push, you may consider accompanying them to support by tanking towers/phoenixes, or protect them with CC/peel abilities.

Out-Strategizing The Enemy

Since the Solo lane is almost a 1 v 1 for a good portion of the match, outplaying the enemy isn't just winning your lane. Forcing them to back early can open up multiple options.

Steal Jungle Camps: Rather than just allowing you to push your lane, you can steal their jungle camps. These camps provide a way to help the enemy maintain farming, so taking this away from them can put them behind even more!
Ganking: If the enemy had to go back to base, they'll either have to use Teleport or run back, which will take time. You can consider rotating to another lane to attempt a gank.
Proxy-Farming: Only attempt if you have wards up and feel relatively safe after making an enemy back. Proxy-farming is pushing your lane, allowing your minions to take tower damage, while you go behind the tower to clear the next incoming wave much earlier than normal. This automatically gives you at least an extra 30 seconds where you don't have to worry about maintaining your lane, buying you time to rotate or do anything else you want to do.
Out-Maneuvering: As an example, let's say you've been out-farming your enemy. You force them to back yet again, you clear the wave, maybe proxy-farm the next one, and they've had to use their Teleport to prevent themselves from falling even further behind. If you have your own Teleport up, you are now free to go anywhere else to support teammates, likely in an out-numbered situation...that enemy you just left in the dust either has to run all the way to a fight, or leave his team at a disadvantage while he tries to catch up in lane.

Misc. Info (Relics)

Relics

*NOTE* Relics can be upgraded at a price of 500 gold.

Here are suggested relics that should be of most use to the Solo-Laner.

Teleport Glyph	Using this allows you to teleport to any allied tower or ward, without damage interruption, while being unable to move. You are still interrupted by hard Crowd Control. 200 second CD. Upgrade allows you to teleport to allied wards. Early Dueling / Strategic Repositioning. This is chosen as the first relic, only when there are no direct enemy Solo/Jungle gank threats that require Purification (such as a Fenrir). Helps get you back to your lane when you back, and later, via placed wards, can help you get to a teamfight ASAP.
Purification Beads	Using this removes CC effects and makes you immune to new ones for 2 seconds. 160 second CD. Upgrade decreases CD to 130 seconds. Anti-CC. Often a first choice, this can help you escape from pulls and other potentially deadly CC.
Aegis Amulet	Using this makes you invulnerable to damage for 1.5 seconds, preventing you from taking action, but allowing you to move. 180 second CD. Upgrade decreases CD to 150 seconds. Anti-Burst. This is a solid choice against enemies (such as Thanatos, Scylla or Poseidon) with high burst potential that can be anticipated.
Heavenly Wings	Using this buffs the movement speed of allies within 55 units by 20% for 5 seconds and makes them immune to slows. 140 second CD. Upgrade provides immunity to basic attack slow penalty. Chase / Escape. Another relic that is often chosen first. Can be used offensively to chase a retreating enemy and secure a kill, or (more often) used as an escape to create distance between you and the enemy. The upgrade provides a Haste effect, which can be helpful when boxing, especially for basic attackers
Blink Rune	Using this allows you to teleport short distances instantly. You have to be out of combat for 3 seconds before use. 100 second CD. Upgrade gives you a 10% damage reduction buff for 2 seconds upon use. Initiation / Set-Up. This is a choice for specific gods like Odin and Xing Tian to quickly close gaps and surprise enemies (especially groups of enemies). Upgrading this is generally unnecessary.
Bracer of Undoing	Using this restores 40% health and mana lost within the last 5 seconds. 120 second CD. Upgrade subtracts 3 seconds from all abilities currently on CD. Personal Survival. As a 2nd relic, if you're doing your job and soaking up damage in a teamfight, triggering this can restore a lot of health to you, helping you stay in a teamfight for an extended time.
Horrific Emblem	Using this slows enemy gods within 55 units by 30% and also reduces their attack speed by 15% for 5 seconds. 120 second CD. Upgrade further decreases attack speed (by 25%), and decreases damage dealt by enemy gods within 35 units by 15%. Chase/Counter to Basic Attackers. This is a great 2nd relic option when facing multiple basic attackers. The slow can also help secure kills on fleeing enemies.
Magic Shell	Using this applies a shield to the owner and allies within 35 units of 100 health + 12 per god level for 3 seconds. CD 150 seconds. Upgrade also provides 2 stacks of Block, absorbing the next 2 basic attacks. Teamfight Defense. This is a strong late-game relic option. Most effective in a teamfight, where you can activate on all nearby allies, giving them all a health shield similar to Geb's. Better as a 2nd relic. Upgrade provides a nice counter to basic attackers due to the stacks of Block.
Sundering Spear	Using this fires a bolt that stops on the first god hit and deals 15% of the target's current health as true damage. CD 140 seconds. Upgrade increases damage taken by the target by 20% for 5 seconds. Risky Duel Advantage. Because this only has offensive function, it's a risky investment. If you're confident in your ability to land this, it can give you a solid advantage when fighting enemy gods, helping you win your lane early. Consider upgrading early.
Shield of Thorns	Using this reflects 50% of all damage you take, before mitigations, for the next 5 seconds back to its owner as magical damage. 160 second CD. Upgrade makes enemy lifesteal from you only 50% effective for the duration. Damage Reflection. This is a situational 2nd relic option. It is a hard counter item to low health / high burst enemies, especially ones with crit builds. If you're building tanky, you can withstand the damage, and 50% reflection (before mitigations!) will quickly make an enemy regret targeting you.

Quick Tags

Conquest Overview
Roles: Duo Lane ADC (Carry)
Roles: Duo Lane Support
Roles: Jungler
Roles: Mid-Lane
Roles: Solo Lane
Warding
Awareness & Communication
Tier Lists
References & Definitions

Original contribution by:

Stuke99

Warding

Wards are your extra set(s) of eyes. A necessity for pros, and whose use and placement is an enigma for new players. That's why we're going to cover some warding basics.

Regulars: you can skip this section if you feel solid on this, or you can pretend you're young and innocent and continue reading.

First, some general info:

Wards costs 50 gold, and allows you to see normal enemy movement within 45 units. It respects line of sight and can't see through walls or stealth. Remains for 3 minutes or until destroyed (3 basic attacks). It is invisible to enemies and cannot be targeted unless Sentry Wards are used nearby. Can only carry 2 at one time, and only 2 wards of any kind can be active at one time from any one player.
Sentry Ward costs 120 gold, and does all of the things regular wards do, but ALSO allows you to see enemy wards, which additionally allows you to target and destroy them. Can only carry 1 at one time, and only 2 wards of any kind can be active at one time from any one player.
Chalice of the Oracle costs 400 gold, and provides you with a stack of 2 standard wards that are refilled EVERY TIME YOU BACK. If you value vision and use a ton of wards every game, this is a reasonably-priced consumable that everyone should consider purchasing.
When enemies enter the range of a friendly Ward, an audible *ping* can be heard, and a visual effect can be seen on the mini-map. Train your mind you react to this sound and glance at the mini-map every time you hear it.
Wards are commonly used in most areas of the jungle, and even in front of enemy towers. Sentry Wards are often used close to the Gold Fury and Fire Giant, and are also used to counter-ward commonly used areas.

Warding 101

Who: The correct answer is EVERYONE. In casual games, the reality is that you can't really depend on all teammates to ward properly, or even at all. Depending on team comps and skill levels, you might be able to get by with just the Support and Jungler warding, but that's asking for trouble. So, the more people that ward, the better off you'll be.
What: Pretty much went over the basics above.
When: Against a really strong/aggressive early-game Jungler, your team might want to place a couple of wards at the very beginning of a match. However, the time when things become more dangerous is usually when gods hit level 5 and their ults become active, and this is the point when wards become more essential. But ganks aren't the only concern...there are multiple strategic objectives that should also be watched and warded when possible.
Where: Good question. We'll go over it in detail below.
Why: Because you like spotting vulnerable enemies. Because you don't like to be ganked. Because you don't want the enemy team to get key objectives. Because you want to be a good teammate. Awww, how sweet.
How: Well, for starters, buy them at the fountain. But you can learn how best to place them, given the situation, in significant detail below.

Keep in mind, locations in the maps below are based on you being on the Order side, and the enemy being on the Chaos side. It may be obvious, but these locations should be generally reversed if you start in Chaos.

These locations are going to generally be very simple, and don't involve complex counter-warding...just looking to give you good vision of general areas.

For higher level Warding, check out this Warding 101 Season 5 video, by EmilZy, as it provides some in-depth thinking on warding at all stages (even pre-start via ), counter-warding, etc.

Early-Game Warding

This section will cover basic warding locations for all roles in the early to mid-game, when most objectives (e.g. Towers) are still up.

Duo / Solo Lane Warding

Mid Lane Warding

Jungler / Objective Warding

Late-Game Warding

As objectives start to crumble, the distance between safe areas becomes further and further away, opening up the game to a lot more random play. Players will be less likely to be found in their starting lanes, and there will be teamfights aplenty. Warding during this time really helps your team coordinate attacks, or retreat in an out-numbered situation.

Late-Game Warding

Quick Tags

Conquest Overview
Roles: Duo Lane ADC (Carry)
Roles: Duo Lane Support
Roles: Jungler
Roles: Mid-Lane
Roles: Solo Lane
Warding
Awareness & Communication
Tier Lists
References & Definitions

Art by SpiritAJ via DeviantArt

Awareness & Communication

A Conquest match can be very complex. Just considering yourself, you have to clear minion waves / camps, utilize abilities and mana in an efficient way, monitor gold to determine when to back, know build orders and how to counter-build, battle the enemy, watch out for other invaders trying to gank, etc. On top of all this, you have to realize that this is a map-wide struggle, and each of your teammates are going through the same thing!

Awareness

Maintaining general awareness of the various things going on in the game at any one time is thus a key aspect of gameplay. How can you expand your awareness beyond your own vicinity?

Besides relying on nearby wards pinging to notify you of enemy locations in the jungle, it's also important for you to use that nifty little mini-map in the top right corner of your screen...OFTEN. In fact, the general suggestion is:

Look at your minimap EVERY 5 SECONDS!

A quick glance can provide map awareness from your team's perspective, depending on the situation:

where your teammates are
where the minions are
timing for jungle / buff respawns
if enemies are contesting the same lane as a teammate
if enemies are alone or grouped up
if enemies are pushing an objective

However, if the enemy is out of the visual range of teammates, wards, and friendly minions/objectives, you won't know exactly where they are, making you and your teammates vulnerable to ganks and outnumbered situations. This is where team communication comes into play.

PC Communication Options

Typing to your team (start by pressing ENTER) can provide very specific details, but precious seconds are wasted while you stand still. There are two alternatives to typing.

The first communication option is using a chat program. SMITE has its own embedded system (which you can enable by going into Settings\Audio Tab and enabling in-game chat). Any people you're grouped with in a party (or if you're playing a ranked game) can use this feature.

You can also use a 3rd party program when playing with friends, including Discord, Twitch, Teamspeak, and Mumble.

Of course, talking isn't always preferred. Sometimes it's a language barrier. Perhaps it's sleeping roommates/parents/children/significant others. Maybe you've run into one too many toxic players. Whatever the case, your communication options don't end there.

The second option is built directly into SMITE, and doesn't require any talking or lengthy typing. In fact, it can be the quickest, most efficient way to communicate with your team. This is where VGS (Voice Guided System) comes into play.

PC VGS System

For full details, check out the Wiki page: VGS: Smite Wiki

Pressing "V" initiates the VGS system. When the full command is inputted, not only does it list the command in chat for reading, but a preset voice audibly issues the statement, making it an immediately useful notification for teammates.

The various codes take some time to memorize, and even further time to become instinctual, but learning this system is key to effective teamwork. Not only can it gather teammates to efficiently take down objectives, but it can counter enemy strategies

The following are examples of extremely helpful commands in various situations...not all commands are covered here:

Common VGS Notifications

Console Communication Options & VGS

Console players unfortunately don't have access to keyboards and thus can't type out complex commands or notifications. That said, microphones are generally very easy to obtain and set up, and it is highly, highly recommended to use them. Even if teammates aren't talking, it's very likely they can hear you.

As for the VGS system, as of Patch 5.3, it now has full VGS capabilities. Below are helpful visuals for both consoles for some of the main commands. The additional commands added for XBox and PS4 can be found HERE.

XBox One VGS Commands

PS4 VGS Commands

Quick Tags

Conquest Overview
Roles: Duo Lane ADC (Carry)
Roles: Duo Lane Support
Roles: Jungler
Roles: Mid-Lane
Roles: Solo Lane
Warding
Awareness & Communication
Tier Lists
References & Definitions

Art by AthenaAsa via DeviantArt

Tier Lists

Understand that tier lists are subjective. At the Pro level, god abilities and builds can be considered and analyzed almost to a science, but even at that level, things follow a trend. Trends (and the people that follow them!) can be fickle beasts, and each new game patch can alter the effectiveness of each god, item, build, etc.

The best way to consider a tier list may be as a general consideration of potential. Potential, though, depends not only on the god, but also on each player's skill level, the compositions of each team, and how well the teams work together.

At the casual level, then, there is a lot more leeway in everything. So, consult any tier list with discretion, but don't take it as gospel. Have fun, discuss with friends, and argue merits to your heart's content. That's part of what makes this game so fun!

Weak3n's Best Gods Heading Into Season 6 (2018/12/17)

More links to come as Season 6 gets underway and the pros publish their lists.

Quick Tags

Conquest Overview
Roles: Duo Lane ADC (Carry)
Roles: Duo Lane Support
Roles: Jungler
Roles: Mid-Lane
Roles: Solo Lane
Warding
Awareness & Communication
Tier Lists
References & Definitions

Art by DustyMcBacon via DeviantArt

References & Definitions

YouTube Channels, References & Tools

Here are some helpful YouTube channels of various players/streamers, as well as general references and tools:

YouTube Channels

General References & Tools

Abbreviations & Terms

Here is a list of some of the abbreviations / terms that are used in this guide:

Abbreviations & Terms

Gods & Roles:

ADC: Attack Damage Carry. Refers to a god (usually a Hunter) whose main form of attack is the basic one, and whose effectiveness usually peaks late-game, from having a full item build centered around max damage potential. Starts with the Support in Duo Lane.
Carry: To deal large amounts of damage and acquire many kills for your team. Some also use it as a substitute for Hunter, gold and item dependent gods that can be quite dangerous at later stages of the game.
Hyper-Carry: The extreme pinnacle of a carry. Able to absolutely demolish an enemy team given the right opportunity.
Jungler: A role usually played by an Assassin, whose main job is to farm jungle camps and roam, staying on the move to shift balances of power in favor of their team.
Tank: generally of the Warrior or Guardian class, built mainly with protection items. Generally plays the Support role. Also refers to someone who attempts to take the brunt of incoming damage to protect squishy teammates.
Bruiser: generally of the Warrior or Guardian class, built with both protection and damage items.
Squishy: Low HP / protection gods (usually Assassins, Hunters, and Mages)
Magical (gods): Guardians and Mages
Physical (gods): Assassins, Hunters and Warriors

Gameplay Elements:

100-0: To attack and kill a healthy enemy, usually by surprise and with burst damage.
Backdoor: To sneak behind enemy lines / tanks to attack the more vulnerable gods
Dive / Tower-Dive: To attack an enemy underneath their tower to attempt to secure a kill, while understanding that you will be taking potentially heavy damage from the tower
Farm: Pertaining to how quickly someone earns gold and XP.
Feed: When someone dies multiple times to their enemy, providing them with easy gold / XP and allowing them to be significantly stronger
FG: Fire Giant
Focus: To target a specific enemy in a teamfight
Gank: To attack an enemy while they are off-guard in hopes of getting a kill. Typically pertains to gods from other lanes, or the Jungler.
GF: Gold Fury
Harass: Attacking enemy gods while in the laning phase, in order to bring their health down to set up a kill or force them out of the lane.
Initiate: To be the first to engage in a fight
Invade: To attempt to contest a jungle objective that an enemy team is trying to get.
Nuke: To deal burst damage, often as an AOE and at distance
Overextend: To be in an unsafe location too far into enemy territory, which makes them prime targets for ganks
Poke: A form of harass using long-range attacks to cause small / moderate damage in order to weaken the enemy while keeping a safe position
Split-Push: To push in two different spots at once in an attempt to destroy an objective.

Ability / Stat Terms:

AOE: Area Of Effect. Refers to abilities that have the ability to hit an area, rather than a single target.
CC: Crowd Control. An effect from an item or ability that limits or prevents an opponent from moving or taking action. Examples include slow, cripple, freeze, and silence.
CDR: CoolDown Reduction. Usually from items, this reduces the time it takes for your abilities to become available again after previous use.
DoT: Damage Over Time. After an attack connects, an effect continues to deal extra damage for a set period of time.
HP5: Health (Hit Points) regenerated per every 5 seconds
MP5: Mana (Mana Points) regenerated per every 5 seconds
RNG: Random Number Generator. Term used for effects (especially crit items) that have a percent chance to activate. Sometimes frowned upon as this brings a bit of luck into an otherwise skill-based game.
Penetration: A stat that helps bypass an enemy's inherent or item-based protection. Applies only to the god using an item with that stat.
Protection Reduction: A debuff stat that helps bypass an enemy's inherent or item-based protection, be it magical or physical. Since it debuffs the target, it applies to all gods with that type of damage attacking the target.
True Damage: damage that bypasses all enemy protections. Can be provided by abilities, or in rare cases where items provide enough penetration against low protection enemies

Quick Tags

Conquest Overview
Roles: Duo Lane ADC (Carry)
Roles: Duo Lane Support
Roles: Jungler
Roles: Mid-Lane
Roles: Solo Lane
Warding
Awareness & Communication
Tier Lists
References & Definitions

Art by SpiritAJ via DeviantArt

Conclusion

So that's it! Thanks for reading! I hope it's been helpful and enjoyable. Please feel free to provide feedback...let me know if you think any information is incorrect (objectively, not subjectively), or if I've missed some key information or topics (though, keep in mind that this is meant mostly as an overview, rather than providing very specific gameplay elements). I update this guide regularly, so you're welcome to check back frequently!

Peace!

Branmuffin17