Junkrat Build Guide by LPhure

Junkrat Build Guide

By: LPhure
Last Updated: Apr 10, 2019
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Junkrat

Build: Endless Sustained Damage

Level 1
Level 4
Level 7
Level 10
Level 13
Level 16
Level 20

Threats to Junkrat with this build

Threat
Low
High
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Threat Hero Notes
1
 Yrel Tanks and frontline heroes are really easy to catch with a Mine. Traps will also limit their movement when placed in a lane. Hard cc will get Junkrat absolutely destroyed given there is damage to follow it up. Soft cc, like a slow, are no problem to escape from via Concussion Mine.
1
 Uther Support heroes are a good target to hit multiple heroes with Frags since they are always in the proximity of allies. Certain supports need to be in range of Concussion Mine in order to land their own cc; can be caught and are a good target to catch
1
 Thrall Melee Assassins want to close the gap and get up close to deal big damage. Traps limit their movement/escape. A well placed Mine can put them closer than they wanted to be. Very easy to abuse with long range frags and AA's
2
   No Threat
3
   No Threat
4
 Raynor Ranged AA Assassins are Junkrat's weakness. Their moderate sustained damage can eat up a lot of Junkrat's health. Mining them closer to you puts you in greater danger and can be difficult given most of them have good mobility.
5
   No Threat
6
   No Threat
7
   No Threat
8
 Chromie Backline burst mages are susceptible to poking and Junkrat's burst. Their damage is typically stronger and faster than Junkrat's.
8
 Zagara Solo Lane opponents are a polarizing matchup. Depending on the enemy, an aggressive player will ultimately win out against Junkrat. You will need a helpful gank to WIN the lane; Junkrat can TIE the lane if the opponent isn't aggressive. Manage your frags for lane control vs enemy damage.
9
   No Threat
10
   No Threat

Junkrat

Build: Traps - Zoning

Level 1
Level 4
Level 7
Level 10
Level 13
Level 16
Level 20

Threats to Junkrat with this build

Threat
Low
High
Show all
Threat Hero Notes
1
 Chromie Every mage is afraid to be trapped and doesn't want to trigger one because of their lack of mobility and fragile nature.
2
   No Threat
3
 Illidan A trap can discourage an illidan from jumping an ally. If you're feeling like he's targeting you instead of using mine to save yourself, throw a trap behind you and as you run towards your gate/fort run through the trap so he gets caught up.
3
 Genji A big trap in the middle of the team is a way to catch genji mid jump or mid E.
3
 Malthael A trap will snag him after wraith strike. This can be better than trying to put distance with the mine as he can always .
4
   No Threat
5
   No Threat
6
   No Threat
7
 Anub'arak Scarabs are known to trigger a trap. Can easily burrow to safety as well.
7
 Murky A good dummy to remove traps.
7
 Medivh Can't trigger traps easily, but can save the target once trapped.
7
 Garrosh Can't trigger traps eaily, but can throw an ally out of danger.
7
 Nazeebo Zombie wall can trip a trap but it's not very worth while to do so.
7
 Tracer One trap laying on the side of a lane can be enough to force Tracer to change the direction in which she blinks in for attacks. Can recall out to safety.
8
   No Threat
9
 Azmodan Can very easily trip a trap with a daemon warrior.
9
 Rexxar Misha can trigger traps easily and followup stun.
9
 Zagara Very easy to trigger a trap. Several options to do so.
9
 Zarya Free shield charge off of traps especially if she takes the unstoppable shield.
9
 Nova Clones can trigger traps.
9
 Samuro Clones can trigger traps. If he is trapped, can phase into a safe clone
9
 The Butcher Trap will not stop the Butcher's charge!! Mine is the only option
10
   No Threat

Junkrat

Build: Wave Clear -Solo Lane

Level 1
Level 4
Level 7
Level 10
Level 13
Level 16
Level 20

Threats to Junkrat with this build

Threat
Low
High
Show all
Threat Hero Notes
1
   No Threat
2
 Probius Good wave clear and lane control with turret. Don't target pylons, focus on clearing the wave and poking. It's easy to accumulate more damage than Probe, stay healthy and try not to Hearth at all.
2
 Ragnaros Poke/mine him trying to stack Q. You can win this lane.
2
 Sonya Decent wave clear, Mine/trap doesn't stop whirlwind. Keep poking and clearing with Frags.
2
 Thrall Melee Hero with poor wave clear. Good poking through Lightning. Poke him and aim to catch him with a mine.
3
 Greymane Exploit GM's lack of sustain and not great wave clearing. Poke and clear waves efficiently.
3
 Illidan Weak wave clear, good damage but easy to peel from.
3
 Sgt. Hammer Easy to mine her out of range and poke. Use Frag launcher's range to clear minions while staying out of her range.
3
 Tassadar OK wave clear. Get damage while his shields are down and AA the minions. He can't push hard.
3
 Tyrande Poor wave clearing. Not really a solo laner? Don't get poked and push the lane.
3
 Xul Decent wave clearing and pushing ability. Utilize Junkrat's splashing AA's to clear his skeletons. Easy to Mine.
4
   No Threat
5
 Artanis Artanis is resistant to damage, but his wave clearing is not spectacular. You would win the lane but be careful not to get cubed into tower range.
5
 Falstad Good poke, OK waveclear, and Lightning rod makes you not want to mine him closer to you. Global prescience makes it hard to push out a lane.
5
 Gazlowe Difficult matchup against a good Gaz. Good wave clear and lane control. Poor mana management is how you win the lane. Can tie but hard to win.
5
 Gul'dan Great wave clear and sustain. Easy mine target to put under your towers.
5
 Nazeebo Even matchup. Similar wave clearing ability. Hard to mine him given his long range abilities and traps can be tripped by zombie wall.
5
 Rexxar Misha makes life difficult. She can trip traps with no consequence and can absorb Frag damage. Focus on clearing the wave and poking Rexxar.
6
   No Threat
7
   No Threat
8
   No Threat
9
 Abathur Abathur + Anyone will make the solo lane difficult. Try to clear minions quickly so they can't push any structure damage
9
 Azmodan Great waveclearing and pushing ability. Hard to win and tie the lane. Gank is needed to not lose the lane outright.
9
 Murky Good wave clear, can control a lane by respawning from egg. Neglecting your lane will lead to a lot of lost exp and big structure damage! Getting close enough to AA a puffer will get you slimed! Frags can hit the puffer. Try to limit your damage and try to mine the globe minion towards you for heals.
9
 Sylvanas Great wave clear and very strong pushing ability. Junkrat can't do anything about it except clearing the lane. An aggressive Sylv will push straight to towers. You absolutely need help from allies to prevent her from pushing too hard.
9
 Zagara Good lane control, OK wave clearing, good poke with Hunter Killer. Can push well through overwhelming lane control. Try to poke her and guide the Hunter Killer to be cleared by your towers. Hard to clear creep; could use Mine but it's very not worth it. Frags need to REST on top of the creep to clear it.
10
   No Threat

Hero Overview and Talent Standards Top

* Matchups listed in the 1st build contain general matchups against Junkrat.
** The 2nd build contains notable matchups for how well a hero is deterred by Steel Trap.
*** The 3rd build contains solo lane matchups and how well Junkrat does against them. Enjoy!

Change Log




Junkrat -Junker Demolitionist

Junkrat Hero Spotlight
- Strong displacement, area control, natural wave clear, and poking ability

- Fragile, like all mages, can be killed easily and very susceptible to AA damage.

- Hard to gank with his range, mine escape, and a trap on the flank to spot an incoming enemy.

- Junkrat is a B+ on my tier list. There are stronger mages and better solo lane heroes to pick. His gimmicks don't fool seasoned players in HL.

Traits

- Total Mayhem Comparable to Archangel's Wrath. Higher total damage, but harder to make all 5 connect unless the enemy is standing idle on top of your corpse for 1 second.

- Basic Attacks Splash Great wave clearing ability. Aim for the middle ranged minion or melee minion to effectively push out a lane.

- The default trait button 'D' will detonate a mine when it's out.

Frag Launcher

- Good poking ability to disrupt objective captures, proc shields or regens, and dismounting.

- Fire a frag immediately after an AA for efficient wave clear or damage dealing

- Diamond Pro Tip Always maintain 3/4 Frags to start the cooldown to reload 4 Frags. Before the cooldown completes, unload all 3 to effectively have 7 possible frags available.

- Unloading all 4 frags at once leaves Junkrat walking around without any poke ability for almost 10 seconds. If the damage is not making an immediate impact or is healed away almost instantly, use them elsewhere (clearing minions, structure damage, etc.)

Concussion Mine

- Amazing offensive and defensive utility (The best ability in the game?). Can launch enemies behind walls, out of position, or into the team for an easy kill. Defensively, the Mine can hard peel, a TB Varian for example, off of your allies. The Mine can also save yourself!

- Can be hidden in bushes and under heroes in fights for an unexpected surprise. One trap in the bush and a mine placed correctly for maximum distance is an effective anti-gank combo.

- Target trajectory is affected by distance from the centre of the mine and also their position in relation to the centre. Standing on top of the centre will send them straight up.

- There is enough time from an enemy stepping on a trap to throw a mine behind them and launch them in the direction of your choosing.

Steel Trap

- Great zoning ability and area denial especially in tight corridors and choke points.

- General placement: Put the trap on the open (gankable) side of a lane outside of the pathing of the minions. Additionally, if there is brush on the open side like in the Cursed Hollow top lane. Use the trap as a scouting ward to prevent a sudden gank.

- Grants vision in a small area wherever placed.

- Can be tripped by minions, monsters, and certain summons( Raynor's Raider Banshee yes, but not Wisp)

RIP Tire

- Strong controllable burst damage. Good knockback. Damage and knockback vary depending on how close the enemy is to the centre of the explosion.

- Can be destroyed! Jumping with the tire makes it more difficult to be destroyed (it can be like trying to target Raynor's Raider). I like to jump the tire when I'm getting close to my target to ensure they are being hit by the absolute centre of it for maximum damage and it won't be so easily AA'd.

- To get over walls easily, jump earlier with momentum. If you're touching a wall without any forward momentum, you'll struggle to get over.

Rocket Ride

- Higher total damage than RIP Tire, requires Total Mayhem to hit for maximum damage. Commonly taken and rightly used as an escape given it's utility. If it looks like you're gonna get pinched, cast it early and gtfo!

- Great overall for solo lane work. The true value of this heroic is dealing damage in a team-fight while recalling back to base to deal with any lanes pushed in. 150% move speed after explosion is meant for heading into a lane that needs attention.

- Rocket should only be used mid-fight if it will kill a crucial hero (a carry or the healer). Don't use just for damage because doing so will put your team at a disadvantage as you have effectively removed yourself from the fight: 5 Heroes - Junkrat = 4 Heroes

Diamond Pro Tip To ensure the rocket hits, follow your target by spam clicking on top of them in the direction they're heading. Click a lot, and click fast like you're playing SC2. Don't click + drag movement because using that method makes it harder to react to a juke and leads to a lot more enemies escaping the damage radius.

Level 7: Big As

- Best option at 7
- The 50% increased radius is the reason why you take this talent. It prevents slim heroes (the majority of which are assassins) from slipping through a trap placed in a choke point.
*For talent alternatives, see Notable Talent Alternatives

Level 13: Bogged Down

- Best option at 13
- Adds an additional cc to enemies hit by a mine. Almost guarantees a kill if they are flung towards your team.
*For talent alternatives, see Notable Talent Alternatives

Endless Sustained Damage Build Top


This build is intended to maximize Junkrat's damage output through Frag Launcher and Endless Nades. The decent continuous damage is supplemented by RIP-Tire burst for finishing enemies.

Endless Nades The superior damage pick at 16, keeping you constantly firing nades into the enemy. Hitting at least 2 enemies with all 4 charges will refresh the cooldown, giving you a full set of frags. Spread Volley is not optimal for damage. The 2 additional frags usually miss the target unless they walk into it or land on terrain causing them to deal no damage. Enemies would need to be within melee range before all 3 frags will contact them on first bounce.

BOOM POW The faster the Mine is available, the faster you gain the ability to hard peel or get a free kill by catching an enemy out of position. Performing these actions in the late game can be both game saving and game winning moments.

Talent Alternative Level: 4


- On large spread out and quick maps such as Warhead Junction, Towers of Doom and even Sky Temple, gameplay doesn't allow for fast and efficient stacking of Taste For Explosions. Even stacking to half completion doesn't reward a ton of damage so instead take Bonzer Hits for the bump in mine damage and stronger knockback.

Trap Zoning Build Top

- This build emphasizes Junkrat's ability to control an area through Steel Trap. Traps control an area by preventing the enemy from entering or initiating in a way they want to:
(ex: E.T.C. -> Powerslide -> Mosh Pit)

- All traps have 5 vision! A trap can act as a ward to watch boss or camps. 3 Traps out at a time can completely control areas of certain maps and make enemies more predictable in their actions.

- This build is not a damage build and shouldn't be used in such a role. This is an insane CC build for Junkrat to help his allies win map objectives.

Wave Clear Solo Lane Build Top


- If push comes to shove, Junkrat is a viable candidate to solo with his strong natural wave clear, lane control, and ability to peel away from ganks Concussion Mine or spot them coming through Steel Traps.

- Junkrat has superior lane defending capability through Rocket Ride and later Puckish Scamp. If an enemy is split pushing during an objective for example, ride the rocket to first get some damage in to help the team secure the objective and ride to the lane that needs attention.

- Spread Volley Good for wave clearing, taking camps, and padding your damage stat.

- The danger of a solo lane Junkrat is his low health and no sustain. Try to limit the amount of damage you take by poking from afar and using Concussion Mine to push enemies away from globes.

How to Lane With a Big Brain


1) My technique for Junkrat is to leave the enemy minion wave a step outside of my tower range.
2) Next I try to Concussion Mine the enemy under the towers, or wait for them to overextend thinking they can kill me while taking tower aggro.
3) Once they realize this was a mistake, I finish them with Frag Launcher

*4) If the enemy doesn't push the lane just sit back and soak; Don't kill minions!!! Sit there and do nothing while the minions kill each other AKA SOAKING!
*5) If the enemy leaves the lane to rotate mid or w/e, wait until you confirm via minimap they have vacated and....PUSH the lane and get damage on those structures! Watch the minimap for heroes that are rotating to stop your push! A trap on the flank can also warn you of an incoming gank.

Notable Talent Alternatives Top

Level 7: Tricky Shuffles

The 15% move speed won't help escape danger as well as a Concussion Mine jump will. 15% move speed will also not compensate for poor positioning or map awareness. The only strategy associated with this talent is to get the move speed and try to toss a mine behind an enemy quick.Recommendation: Big As has greater utility, making it harder on enemies to play around Steel Trap and more often than not, forcing them to trip the trap.

Level 7: Sticky Wicket

Very good against heroes with no mobility as it effectively increases the duration they're cc'd. This is terrible against certain heroes whom have mobility! For example: Genji cannot Swift Strike while rooted. If he were instead slowed by 90%, he could Swift Strike to safety. Recommendation: Very situational; Can be very effective against tanks, bruisers, and a team loaded with no mobility heroes. Overall, taking this talent will nerf your traps. Stick to Big As!

Level 13: Chattering Teeth

Gimmicky talent that can catch inexperienced heroes or those unfamiliar with Junkrat. At higher ranks, players can exploit this talent to guide a trap outside of a choke point or into a lane minion. Recommendation: Ripper Air is fantastic mobility
The slow from Bogged Down is more useful and will more often lead to kills

Level 16: Burst Fire

This used to be my default pick. Great for single target burst damage especially for when enemies get caught in Steel Trap, guaranteed 3 frag hits! I eventually realized that restricting Frag Launcher to burst fire leads to a ton of damage falloff. In terms of damage, Endless Nades will give more damage over a longer period of time given you can hit at least 1 enemy with each Frag. Burst Fire delivers the damage of 3 nades in the time it takes to fire 1, but if you miss....oh man that is huge damage lost. Recommendation: Endless Nades is the superior choice for damage. Spread Volley is good for wave clearing, camp taking, and fooling players into believing you're a genuine top damage dealer!

Level 20: Extra Oomph

The extra knockback distance is a niche benefit that is a nonfactor in most situations. RIP-Tire is for securing a kill with burst and if you want knockback you'll get it from Concussion Mine. The cooldown reset is memes and requires a lot of team coordination and enemy lockdown (wardens_cage, Graviton Surge) to achieve the full reset. Recommendation: Very niche, good against clones. In general, take BOOM POW because it has better utility in all situations and increases Junkrat's ability to swing matches with Concussion Mine.

Level 20: Cannonball!

I see a HUGE number of Junkrats duped into thinking this is a top tier talent. The larger radius is absolutely useless if you're accurate with Frag Launcher. The purpose of this talent is to increase the likelihood of splash damage to nearby enemies? Okay but players aren't constantly grouped closely to one another and if they were, Extra Oomph would be the better pick for instant resets. Recommendation: Good on small maps with tight areas to drop Frags on tightly grouped enemies. For wider utility take BOOM POW for reasons listed above

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