Maokai excels as a jungler due to his potent ganking tools, courtesy of his ultimate (R), Q, and W abilities. As a tank, he effectively absorbs damage and delivers strong crowd control (CC), with every ability either stunning, knocking back, or dashing him toward enemies—ensuring he stays glued to his targets. His Q also deals substantial damage. He dominates all objective control: his jungle clear is effortless, and securing Epic Monsters like Dragon or Baron, while time-consuming, is safer thanks to his E (saplings) and R (Nature’s Grasp), which zone enemies away. His ganks are further amplified by the Phase Rush rune—landing R or E, followed by another ability or auto-attack, triggers a massive speed boost, making him relentless. He shines against tanks and ADCs, whom his CC can easily lock down. Prioritizing E second reduces its cooldown, enabling frequent sapling tosses to harass enemies, secure vision, and disrupt their plans.