Guide · Top

Jayce Guide

the Defender of Tomorrow

Fighter

Marksman

Tier C Top

Jayce, the Defender of Tomorrow, is a fighter and marksman champion that is demanding to master. Across our 1555 analysed ranked games, Jayce is mostly played in Top (67% of its games), and more rarely in the Jungle (23%) and in Mid (11%), with a 50.6% win rate in that role: tier C among Top champions (#36 of 51, ranked by win rate). Jayce's damage is mostly physical (78%): armor is the best defensive answer against this champion. Win rate varies with game length: 52.3% in short games (under 25 min, 369 games) versus 44.7% in long games (over 35 min).

Averages measured over 1037 Top games played with Jayce, from our ranked Solo/Duo data collection.

Combos and how to play

Jayce switches between two forms: Hammer (melee) and Cannon (ranged), gaining movement speed with each switch. Each form has its own abilities: in Hammer he leaps, damages and knocks back; in Cannon he fires a long-range orb and speeds up his attacks. His strength comes from mastering the weapon switch at the right time.

Harassment in Cannon form

E › Q › W › AA AA

When: You are at range and the enemy is in line.

The Acceleration Gate increases the speed, range and damage of a Shock Blast passing through it. Hyper Charge raises your attack speed to its maximum for several attacks.

The Hammer dive

R › Q › W › E › AA AA

When: An enemy is within leap range.

After the ultimate, To the Skies! leaps you onto the enemy, damages and slows them; Lightning Field and Thundering Blow (magic damage, knockback) complete.

Engage and retreat

R › Q › R

When: An enemy is in range and you want to harass them and then get away.

The first switch to Cannon reduces the enemy's armor and magic resistance, the switch back to Hammer deals bonus magic damage: alternate to take advantage of these bonuses.

Laning phase

The Cannon lets you harass safely with Shock Blast; switch to Hammer to dive with To the Skies! when the enemy is within burst range. Switching weapons gives a brief movement speed boost: use it to get away or close in.

Common mistakes

• Staying too long in a single form: Jayce's strength comes from switching.
• Leaping in Hammer form without an exit: you end up in the middle of the enemies.
• Forgetting that the ultimate has a very short cooldown (6 s): switch weapons as soon as the moment is right.

Riot's official tips for playing Jayce

• Be sure to switch stances often. It will enhance your attacks and grant you quick bursts of speed.
• If you find yourself taking lots of damage, try using Jayce's Hammer Stance, as it grants you additional defenses.
• For increased range and damage, try casting Shock Blast through the Acceleration Gate.

Build, runes and summoner spells

The most-played core build is Youmuu's Ghostblade, Serylda's Grudge, and Voltaic Cyclosword (67 games, 58.2% win rate).

Youmuu's Ghostblade+Serylda's Grudge+Voltaic Cyclosword

67 games · 58.2%

Youmuu's Ghostblade+Serylda's Grudge+Serpent's Fang

42 games · 45.2%

Youmuu's Ghostblade+Serpent's Fang+Voltaic Cyclosword

32 games · 43.8%

Summoner spells

Flash + Teleport51.7% · 660 games

Flash + Ignite48.9% · 348 games

Exhaust + Flash50.0% · 28 games

Most-played runes

Stormraider's Surge + Inspiration

51.5% · 390 games

Primary tree · Sorcery

Manaflow Band86%

Absolute Focus70%

Scorch52%

Secondary tree · Inspiration

Triple Tonic54%

Cosmic Insight51%

Shards

Adaptive force98%

Adaptive force99%

Health62%

Grasp of the Undying + Inspiration

48.5% · 305 games

Primary tree · Resolve

Demolish99%

Bone Plating68%

Overgrowth75%

Secondary tree · Inspiration

Triple Tonic72%

Cosmic Insight70%

Shards

Adaptive force96%

Adaptive force100%

Health77%

Conqueror + Inspiration

56.4% · 117 games

Primary tree · Precision

Presence of Mind92%

Legend: Alacrity85%

Last Stand63%

Secondary tree · Inspiration

Biscuit Delivery46%

Triple Tonic46%

Shards

Adaptive force97%

Adaptive force100%

Health50%

For each row, the most picked rune among the games played with this page (share of games in brackets).

Which items to build against the enemy team?

We sort every game by the enemy team's damage. These are Jayce's completed items and their win rate in each situation; "▲" marks an item that does at least 3 points better than its usual win rate.

Mostly magic-damage enemy team54.5% · 299 games

At least 50% of their damage is magic

Youmuu's Ghostblade 52.7% ▲

Voltaic Cyclosword 51.0%

Serpent's Fang 59.2% ▲

Eclipse 56.4% ▲

Serylda's Grudge 64.4% ▲

Edge of Night 58.3% ▲

The item that stands out most is Serylda's Grudge: 64.4% win rate, +12 points versus its usual win rate.

Mostly physical-damage enemy team52.1% · 267 games

Less than 35% of their damage is magic

Youmuu's Ghostblade 51.6%

Voltaic Cyclosword 56.4%

Serpent's Fang 56.1% ▲

Serylda's Grudge 47.2% ▼

Eclipse 48.9%

Black Cleaver 69.2% ▲

The item that stands out most is Black Cleaver: 69.2% win rate, +19 points versus its usual win rate.

Balanced enemy team47.3% · 471 games

Mixed physical and magic damage

Youmuu's Ghostblade 46.8%

Voltaic Cyclosword 54.2%

Serpent's Fang 47.0% ▼

Serylda's Grudge 49.5%

Eclipse 48.8%

Bastionbreaker 60.0%

No item clearly stands out in this situation: the usual build remains the reference.

Counters and matchups

Who counters Jayce in Top

Irelia Jayce: 39.1%23 games

Irelia has the edge in 61% of the 23 Top duels against Jayce. See the Irelia guide.

Malphite Jayce: 40.0%30 games

Malphite has the edge in 60% of the 30 Top duels against Jayce. See the Malphite guide.

Camille Jayce: 40.0%20 games

Camille has the edge in 60% of the 20 Top duels against Jayce. See the Camille guide.

Yone Jayce: 50.0%16 games

Yone has the edge in 50% of the 16 Top duels against Jayce. See the Yone guide.

Ambessa Jayce: 54.2%24 games

Ambessa has the edge in 46% of the 24 Top duels against Jayce. See the Ambessa guide.

Who Jayce is strong against

Olaf60.7% · 28 games

K'Sante59.6% · 52 games

Gragas58.8% · 17 games

Ambessa54.2% · 24 games

Yone50.0% · 16 games

How to play against Jayce

• Jayce can attack in melee or at range. Pay attention to his stance and weapon color to know how he is going to attack.
• If you see Jayce drop his Acceleration Gate, be careful, he is probably about to cast Shock Blast.
• Jayce is strong in the early game. If he gains the advantage, play defensively.

Win rates measured over direct same-role duels; only matchups with more than 15 games are listed. See all of Jayce's matchups.

Abilities

PassiveHextech Capacitor

When Jayce swaps weapons he gains Move Speed for a short duration.

QTo the Skies! / Shock Blast

Hammer Stance: Leaps to an enemy dealing physical damage and slowing enemies.

Cannon Stance: Fires an orb of electricity that detonates upon hitting an enemy (or reaching the end of its path) dealing physical damage to all enemies hit.

WLightning Field / Hyper Charge

Hammer Stance: Passive: Restores Mana per strike. Active: Creates a field of lightning damaging nearby enemies for several seconds.

Cannon Stance: Gains a burst of energy, increasing Attack Speed to maximum for several attacks.

EThundering Blow / Acceleration Gate

Hammer Stance: Deals magic damage to an enemy and knocks them back a short distance.

Cannon Stance: Deploys an Acceleration Gate increasing the Move Speed of all allied champions who pass through it. If Shock Blast is fired through the gate the missile speed, range, and damage will increase.

RMercury Cannon / Mercury Hammer

Hammer Stance: Transforms the Mercury Hammer into the Mercury Cannon gaining new abilities and increased range. The first attack in this form reduces the target's Armor and Magic Resist.

Cannon Stance: Transforms the Mercury Cannon into the Mercury Hammer gaining new abilities and increasing Armor and Magic Resist. The first attack in this form deals additional magic damage.

Frequently asked questions

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