Champion Stats
| Role | Assassin / Mage |
| Difficulty | |
| Blue Essence | 1575 BE |
Why High-Elo Players Smurf with Nidalee
Low elo players struggle immensely against Nidalee's two greatest strengths: poke pressure and invade tempo. They consistently walk in straight lines, allowing you to land max-range Javelins (Q) that chunk them for 50% of their HP before a fight even starts. Furthermore, they do not ward their jungle entrances, which lets you track the enemy jungler, steal their camps, and kill them on their second buff. Nidalee's clear speed allows you to 'lap' the enemy jungler—you will be level 5 while they are barely level 3. This XP gap makes you unkillable and lets you one-shot them with a simple Cougar combo.
The Level 1 Cheese
First Blood Strategy
The 'Trap-Start' Area Denial. Start W (Bushwhack) instead of Q if you have a team with CC or expect an invade. Place traps at every entrance to your jungle and on the enemy's raptor ramp. This gives you Level 1 vision that is invaluable. For pure damage, Start Q. Invade the enemy's top-side buff if you know they started bot. Land a max-range spear from the darkness (fog of war) onto the buff/champion. This steals the buff or forces them to base. Alternatively, placing a trap under the enemy's first camp (Raptors/Wolves) triggers the 'Hunt' passive, letting you invade aggressively at Level 2 with increased movement speed.
The 'Pay-to-Win' Skin Advantage
'French Maid Nidalee' is the classic smurf skin (Spears are hard to see). 'Headhunter' has the best sound effects. 'Snow Bunny' is for the OGs. 'Super Galaxy' is clunky.
When They Ban Nidalee
Backup Pick: If Nidalee is banned,
Elise for the dive/burst.
Graves for the invade/tempo.
Lee Sin for the mechanical expression.
Rune Setup
Best Runes: Dark Harvest (Scaling) or Conqueror (Dueling). Electrocute works for pure burst. Sudden Impact is mandatory. Secondary Sorcery (Waterwalking) for river skirmishes.
Skill Priority
Order:
Q → E → WMax Q for the spear damage. Max E second for the heal/attack speed buff. W last.
Mastering Nidalee's Kit
Q Javelin Toss / Takedown
Human: Javelin Toss (Max range = Max damage). Cougar: Takedown (Execute damage based on missing HP).
Human: Bushwhack (Trap). Cougar: Pounce (Jump). Pounce resets almost fully if you kill a unit or jump to a Hunted target.
Human: Primal Surge (Heal + Attack Speed). Cougar: Swipe (AOE Damage).
Aspect of the Cougar. Shape shift. Low cooldown. Triggers sheen/passive resets.
Matchup Tips
Easy early, Hard late. Invade him 24/7. If he gets items, he runs you down.
Skill. She can dodge spear with Q. Invade her marks. Whoever bursts first wins.
Vs Lee Sin
Skill. Dodge Q or die. If you hit spear, you win.
The Ego Check
WARNING: Stop jumping in blindly! This is the #1 mistake of bad Nidalee players. Just because you landed a spear does NOT mean you have to press W (Pounce) instantly. If you jump into 5 people to execute a support, you will die. You are extremely squishy. Use your Human form to poke and heal until the target is isolated or low enough to guarantee a reset. Also, AIM YOUR SPEARS. If you cannot land Q, you are not a champion. Practice predicting movement, not just aiming at where they are standing. A Nidalee who misses spears is just a minion with a heal.
When to Queue Dodge
Dodge Rengar or Kha'Zix. They burst you faster than you burst them. You are squishy. Also Poppy works to stop your jumps.
Teamfight Role
In teamfights, you are a poke mage until someone is low. Chuck spears from the side. Heal your ADC with E (huge attack speed buff). Only go in (Cougar Form) when a squishy is Marked and below 50% HP. Jump in, execute, Jump out/Zhonya's.
The 'Disrespect' Build
AD Nidalee Top (The Bruiser). Trinity Force -> Blade of the Ruined King. You auto-attack them to death and use Cougar form Q to execute. Nobody expects the hybrid damage.
Power Windows
Level 3 (Full kit unlocked). First Item (Lich Bane/Shadowflame). You fall off late game unless insanely fed, so end fast.
Tilt Factor
Throw spears from fog without showing yourself. They panic when they lose half HP from nowhere. Spam 'Meow' in all chat.
Recent Patch History
| Patch | Date | Type | Changes |
| V14.14 | Jul 17, 2024 | ADJUST | W nerfed, E adjusted |
| V14.10 | May 15, 2024 | BUFF | Q buffed, W buffed |
| V14.5 | Mar 6, 2024 | NERF | Q nerfed, Base stats nerfed |
| V14.3 | Feb 7, 2024 | BUFF | E buffed, Base stats buffed |
| V14.2 | Jan 24, 2024 | ADJUST | Base stats adjusted |
Safety Tips
Safety isn't an accident. It's a deliberate process. By the time you log in, the account is already 'cleared' by Riot's systems.
