Hi,I'm Nathan, I'm 17 and I'm currently a Silver Garen main and my summoner name is NathanatorThe1st if you'd like to look at my match history. Last season I got to Gold promos but unfortunately didn't make it to Gold. I started League in 2018 and did not play much until last year. I was trash, like really not good, I had some pop-off games here and there but almost everyone in my games was trash. But I realized how bad I was and with the help of my brother, I started improving and learning different things. I watched YouTube videos, Twitch streams and dedicated myself to becoming better and till this day I'm still trying to improve and climb the ladder. Recently climbing has been slow and I sometimes I just play for a few hours ending up where I started. Anyways I have become extremely good at Garen,I feel like I almost know him inside out (although sometimes I make mistakes in terms of using the champ), my mechanics and laning as him are great. I hope you can learn from this guide and look to carry and win games with him.

1) Why mid?
Well first off, toplane is like an island, so playing him top will not allow him to be as effective. In addition, his match-ups are bad toplane. So I go mid because it gives him better match-ups and I'm able to roam and affect the state of the game.

2) Why jungle?
I always thought Garen had potential to be a jungler because of his E and the clear it provides and he could either be a damage dealer, tank or bruiser. I actually started playing Garen jungle last year even before the rework came out. The new E change really helps his clear now and I can really feel the difference. One of the reasons why I play him jungle is because if I'm autofilled he is my best champ and since he has the ability to jungle, why the heck not. I feel like it has died out now but not many people know to how play it or against it. That is why I feel like it is a strong pick because of his versatility and because I know how to play him.

The first step is to start red side. I personally prefer red side because of the health regen and the camps are easier to clear with spin on red side. I experimented with blue side before but although you get cooldown reduction, I feel like health regen is better. So what you want to do is try to full clear whatever side you are on, go for scuttle or one more camp then scuttle. Look to see if you have a gank opportunity and continue clearing as level 6 is where Garen thrives because of the execute. I personally like to try to wait till I have 1550 gold which allows me to buy blue smite and Bami's cinder. Sometimes you might have to back before then if a gank went south or you messed up your clear or you died. I do not solo dragon, I usually wait for my team to help me as Garen is not as tanky early on and does not that much damage. Once you get Bami's Cinder or Cinderhulk you may be able to solo it but make sure that you are full hp and spamming your abilities. Rift is much easier to solo if ganking is not possible or the dragon has already been taken. Then after that you basically look to tank in teamfights, help your team take towers and give over your blue buff (and red if you adc or toplane is strong).

Pros:
1) You avoid bad matchups while in Jungle.
2) If someone tries to counter pick you thinking you are toplane, your toplane may be able to counter pick them.
3) Provides versatility.
4) Scales really well mid-late game.
5) Helps with vision control as you are a tank and will most likely not get engaged on.
6) Ultimate helps finish off ganks.

Cons:
1) Clear is not the best in the game and your health is usually low if you don't use health potions. (Make sure to use smite and grab scuttle to get back your health)
2) You fall behind if your team is losing hard.
3) Ganks are not the greatest but can be effective if you have blue smite and silence them.
4) Not able to solo dragon early.