Who counters Skarner in Wild Rift?

Skarner's strongest Jungle counters in Wild Rift are Nidalee, Lillia, and Amumu. For example, Nidalee: Javelin Toss (1st) and Pounce (2nd) let Nidalee pressure from outside the reliable range of Ixtal's Impact (3rd) and Impale (Ult). A missed charge leaves Skarner exposed to her ranged poke and repeated repositioning.

Who is Skarner good against in Wild Rift?

Skarner is a favorable matchup into Wukong, Talon, and Kha'Zix in the Jungle role. For example, Wukong: Wukong's Cyclone (Ult) brings his divers together, giving Impale (Ult) a chance to suppress him and the allies following his engage in one cast. Track the real body through the clone, then use Ixtal's Impact (3rd) to pin him against terrain after his mobility is spent.

Jungle · Wild Rift Guide

Skarner Jungle

Skarner Jungle Guide

Jungle

Updated for Patch 7.3E

S Tier

Best Build

Quick snapshot of the default setup for this guide.

How to play

Gank through unexpected walls Your 3rd ability lets you charge through walls. Approach from an unexpected angle and push the enemy into another wall to stun them.
Keep attacking to trigger your passive Basic attacks and your 1st ability build three Quaking stacks for damage over time. Your 2nd ability shields and slows; it does not add stacks.
Drag caught enemies toward your team Use your ultimate when allies can follow, then move the targets away from safety.

Guide author

Royal

Royal has reached Rank 1 in EU and NA, and Legend and Sovereign on the Chinese server. Created by Royal with input from high elo and professional players and the WildRiftGuides Discord community.

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Strengths

Impale (Ult) suppresses and drags up to three champions, making grouped fights and objective chokes his best terrain.
Ixtal's Impact (3rd) crosses terrain and converts a wall collision into a stun, giving his ganks and counter-ganks unusual angles.
Shattered Earth (1st), Quaking's maximum-health damage, and Seismic Bastion's (2nd) shield give him a reliable clear and durable frontline presence.

Weaknesses

Ixtal's Impact (3rd) and Impale (Ult) are telegraphed, so mobility, spell shields, and crowd-control immunity can deny the engage.
Ixtal's Impact (3rd) stops on the first champion hit, allowing a frontline blocker to keep a carry away from the wall stun.
Impale (Ult) is his major teamfight cooldown; a missed or resisted cast leaves him easy to kite and low on group control.

ITEM BUILD

Best Wild Rift build for Skarner Jungle, including items, runes, summoner spells, and skill order.

STARTING ITEM

Ruby Crystal

The Health supports Skarner's opening clear and health-scaled kit while the new Smite burn provides recurring camp damage.

BOOTS

Armored Advance

Armor and health help him survive the terrain charge and the focus that follows a multi-person Impale (Ult).

CORE BUILD

Heartsteel

Stacks permanent health from trades, and his shield is a percentage of maximum health, so both grow together.

Unending Despair

Damages nearby enemies and heals him for it, which is especially valuable after a multi-person Impale (Ult) puts several champions around him.

Thornmail

Build this when Skarner needs armor and anti-heal. Entwine applies Grievous Wounds from his own damage as well as enemy attacks, so Shattered Earth (1st) and Ixtal's Impact (3rd) can tag the targets he is dragging into a prolonged fight.

Amaranth's Twinguard

Build this when you are fighting in the middle of the enemy team and need both armor and magic resist. A multi-person Impale (Ult) keeps Skarner in combat long enough to activate Twinguard before the grouped enemies focus him down.

Gargoyle Stoneplate

Build last for armor, magic resistance, and a shield that scales with bonus health. Activate it as enemies focus Skarner after his engage, covering the return damage when a multi-person Impale (Ult) leaves him surrounded.

SITUATIONAL ITEMS

Randuin's Omen

Build this when the enemy team has multiple crit champions. Crit reduction protects Skarner while he reaches a clustered backline and drags several enemies toward his team.

Chainlaced Crushers

Boot swap against heavy magic damage and crowd control, which lands before his charge connects.

Force of Nature

Build this when the enemy team has two or more AP champions. The move speed also helps him close the distance his charge needs.

Frozen Heart

Build this against attack-speed carries. Ixtal's Impact (3rd) and Impale (Ult) bring Skarner close enough to apply its attack-speed reduction, helping him and his nearby teammates survive repeated attacks.

RUNES

KEYSTONE

Ice Overlord

Ixtal's Impact (3rd) stuns one target against terrain, while Impale (Ult) suppresses up to three, so the zone lands on almost every engage.

PRIMARY

Unshakeable

His terrain charge and multi-person pull take him into the enemy team, which is when this gives the most.

Bone Plating

His engage puts him on the frontline, and this blunts the first answer while Impale (Ult) is dragging several enemies.

Overgrowth

Permanent health from camps grows both his durability and the percentage-based shield on his W (2nd).

SECONDARY

Transcendence

Ability haste means more terrain charges, shields, and opportunities to control a group with Impale (Ult).

SITUATIONAL RUNES

Legend: Haste

Take this over Transcendence against durable teams that keep fighting in narrow terrain. More frequent Shattered Earth (1st) and Seismic Bastion (2nd) casts help Skarner repeat his area damage while refreshing his shield.

SUMMONER SPELLS

MAIN SPELLS

Flash

Flash before Impale (Ult) to change the cast angle and catch a clustered backline. Skarner cannot use Flash during Impale (Ult), so commit the reposition before its wind-up finishes.

Smite

You are playing Jungle, you always take Smite. Monster damage upgrades from 600 to 1000 after 8 consumed Eco-system Protection stacks and to 1400 after 20 total.

SKILL ORDER

Skill Priority Order

1
Q
1st Ability
2
W
2nd Ability
3
E
3rd Ability

Wild Rift matchup guide for Skarner Jungle, covering favorable lanes and difficult counters to prepare for in ranked.

Good Matchups

These champions are favorable matchups for this pick in Wild Rift. You have advantages against them and can play more aggressively.

Skarner Counters

These champions counter this pick in Wild Rift and can be difficult matchups. Learn how to play against them or consider banning them.

Wild Rift game strategy for Skarner Jungle, from early lane control through mid and late game map play to final teamfights.

Early Game

Levels 1-8

Use Shattered Earth (1st) as an attack reset and spend its three empowered attacks; the third adds 11% maximum-health physical damage. Build Quaking stacks with basic attacks and those empowered hits, or recast the 1st ability as Upheaval (1st) to throw the boulder. Seismic Bastion (2nd) adds damage, a shield, and a slow, but does not apply Quaking. The passive's percentage-health damage is capped against monsters but still contributes heavily to large camps. Do not wait for level five to gank: Ixtal's Impact (3rd) can cross a lane wall, grab a champion, and stun them against terrain before Impale (Ult) is learned. Enter ganks through terrain with Ixtal's Impact (3rd), steer into the target, then drive them into the nearest wall for the 1.5-second stun and cooldown refund. If no wall angle exists, end the charge where Seismic Bastion's (2nd) slow and a thrown Upheaval (1st) can keep them in range. Respect roots and knockups on the approach because they detach the grabbed target before the wall collision.

Mid / Late Game

Levels 9+

Clustered objective entrances are where Skarner can turn one Impale (Ult) into control over several champions. Take that trade in an even game and contest both when your team is ahead on early fights. Dragon is worth prioritising only when your team can hold the longer fights that soul asks for. Between objectives, collapse through terrain and look for clustered champions rather than tunnel-visioning one carry. Prepare Shattered Earth (1st) before Impale (Ult) to automatically throw Upheaval (1st), the 1st ability's recast, in the ultimate's direction for extra area damage and a slow. Impale (Ult) itself also applies Quaking; the prepared boulder adds another hit. Late game you are both initiation and counter-engage. Flank through terrain for an Ixtal's Impact (3rd) wall stun, or hold Impale (Ult) until multiple champions enter its trapezoid. Skarner gains 40% movement speed during a successful Impale (Ult) but the targets remain only 1.5 seconds and are placed a short distance forward when it ends, so turn toward your team immediately rather than expecting a long cross-screen drag.

Teamfights

5v5 Combat

Prepare Shattered Earth (1st) before casting Impale (Ult) so Upheaval (1st) fires automatically through the same group. Enter through terrain with Ixtal's Impact (3rd) or Flash before Impale's (Ult) wind-up, use Seismic Bastion (2nd) for the shield and slow, then angle the ultimate across as many champions as possible. Impale (Ult) suppresses and drags up to three, so a frontline target is not wasted if the same cast also catches a carry or support. Drag the group toward your damage dealers, out of an objective pit, or away from their own backline. A clean two- or three-person Impale (Ult) is usually worth more than waiting forever for one perfect carry.

Skarner Jungle