https://imgur.com/l81hzFj.png

The placement of your tentacle is crucial, this one determines where you can fight and if you can fight.
And poor tentacle placement can be dramatic, if a tentacle is in a wrong spot, this shifts the next tentacle out of reach to protect you.

The first tentacle you place before your tower help you to place the others, especially when you come back from the red by your lane.

It's difficult to have a good tentacle placement safely when you come back by the river.

Level 1

Use your Tentacle Smash to take the first 3 minions, and try to damage your opponent at the same time. Or try and stack Grasp and allways go on them with W.

Level 2

Your level 2 is bad, just take minion without trading too much.

Level 3

Now you can trade in the majority of match up, but don't miss your Test of Spirit (E)! If you dont hit it, dont trade.

It's difficult to come for the first scuttle, your tentacles are not in the river to help you.

Level 6

If Leap of Faith is up keep the lane pushed. Most of the Times the Jungle will join and help enemies TOP. Try and hit E and when everyone is in Ult Range cast it. If you can bait a double kill on the jungler you probably win your lane instantly.

Throw your Test of Spirit at your enemy when they try to last it, if you miss it run away.
Pushing the lane is very nice, you want to be a lightning rod for the enemy jungler.

From the base you have the choice, Split push or group to fight around an objective.

How you determine that ?


Match up based

If your enemy top laner is strong in team fight you want to split push, to stop him from Teamfighting.
If your enemy top laner is a strong split pusher you want to contest the push, go fight with your mate and come back to stopping him.

Put a pressure before Baron or Dragon is necessary, if you Teleport is up you can force your opponent to make a choice :
Lose a tower or lose the Dragon/Baron, and if they react in the wrong way, or slowly, you can take both.

Before Split

Ask yourself why am i splitting, what is the goal ? If your answer is good, you will progress.
Again, your pressure is a necessity, you need to learn how to use it.
Split pushing requires awareness to your enemy's movement on the map, you can distract them to secure objectives. ANd its a powerfull Toll for Winning games. Try and distract people. Its sometimes worth Dying for it.

Remember you need your tentacles.

You allways wanna fight around your Tentacles you are basically a minion without them. Proc your E and try to kill the Spirit. That puts a lot of pressure on them. If you kill the Spirit the target is getting slowed. You can even Kill Enemies by Killing the Spirit.
Attract your opponent allow your mate to DPS properly, the main goal is winning the fight, if you die for it, it's fine.

You need to know your damage and how much damage you can take and how much you heal. Play Play Play and lear it.