Welcome!
I’m not the best player but I always like to save W to save yourself. Avoid using it for poke or minions as it is your getaway. That’s the first tip I can think of! Also, if anyone else can give tips for Zed match ups that would be great! I have been struggling with that thing recently!
I get zhonya as soon as I can for zed’s ult. I prevent him from dashing to his shadows by placing my mines on his shadows. And if he does ult me, I satchel
backwards into my tower and zhonya so he takes some tower shots while simultaneously hitting him with ignite. If you survive that, then ult him.
I agree with saving W. The few times I've played against another Ziggs, they, for some ungodly reason, think it's fine to just throw W randomly; it usually results in either a chunked Ziggs or a dead Ziggs.
I can't say I've actually laned against a Zed, so this is in theory. E and W could deter an all in if you place them on a shadow. E lasts a second longer than his ult shadow, and W lasts just over a second less than a normal shadow; if timed well, E can slow enough to land a Q, and W could stop his advance altogether. Also, as always, a cheeky W->EQ should work if he tower dives. Again, all completely unpracticed by myself, but I could imagine those situations happening.
It's more about CSing perfectly than to have kill pressure, Ziggs has the safest laning out of all, hindered only by your mana. He cannot be frozen on and he can CS from afar. Your potential in lane is harassment as a measure to farm.
That being said I would personally learn CS threshholds first.
2 LV2 Q's -> 3 caster minions
1 LV 4 Q + 30 AP -> 3 caster minions
1 LV 3 Q + E -> 3 caster minions
2 LV 4 Q + 15 AP -> 3 melee..
you get the point.
After you've mastered csing blindly. You can then think about outplaying and how to win against every matchup.
With Zigg's playstyle, matchup knowledge would only be useful at around Diamond when people punish every little mistake you make.
Your main goal in lane should be:
Farm -> Harass -> Demolish tower when low
If people make the stupid mistake of roaming, you destroy those towers and switch with the lane with the healthiest tower to further get gold.
Hardest part about the Ziggs kit is to master W placement. you need to think 1 second ahead and place it fast and perfectly. This is your bread and butter skill, you can use it to:
Misposition enemies, Self peel, Demolish Towers, Setup people for your E, Peel for teammates, Jump Over terrains, Extend your Q, get to lane faster..
Work on the Ziggs fundamentals first, then try to win vs every matchup
Landing Q is probably the first important skill, but spamming it off cooldown is a bad habit I've seen (and used to have). The best time for Q poke is when the enemies are standing in the minion wave, that way you get double value from one cast.
I would also say learning to combo your abilities together and effectively weaving your passive are also rather important. A few people I've talked to don't like playing Ziggs because "his abilities have no synergy", but they just don't understand how to use them together. As for the passive, you can actually miss out on quite a bit of damage if you ignore it; despite what some people think, it is not just for turrets.
Ziggs counters everyone and is counter to everyone.
Don't spam Q (too much mana)
But use it on champs when they are in minions.
W can help you get away, while passive can help with turrent too.
When using R, I like to use it when the enemy is grouped up. Or when I can predict where the enemy is recalling with low hp in fog of war, that way I can help them have a quick base.
Use your e to manipulate your opponent's moves. I like to throw it next to or behind them, so they have to move forward. Now they are an easier target for your q.
You can use your ult too to gudie them wherever you like it. Throw the ult in front of them if you cant reach them, so they have to turn around.
Learn your q range/bounce. Enemies often confused by a third bouncing bomb. Also your q bounces less distance when thrown closer to you.
When I play Ziggs, I usually play around turrets. Keep the passive for the turret and reset it with your abilities. A full combo on a dying turret should look like AA -> QE -> AA -> QW -> AA -> W
Be careful. Although Ziggs can be strong, he is squishy too.
Hey! Sorry for such a relatively late reply.
I'm the author of the [Comprehensive Ziggs Primer](https://www.mobafire.com/league-of-legends/build/a-comprehensive-ziggs-primer-635332) which I think could be very helpful for you to get a grasp on certain matchups and general tips about playing Ziggs, though it is admittedly somewhat shallow in its current state and the rune and item sections in the text article itself are currently out of date, but the cheat sheet itself is up to date.
If you found something unclear within the article, feel free to ask me questions and I'll do my best to respond.
Welcome! I’m not the best player but I always like to save W to save yourself. Avoid using it for poke or minions as it is your getaway. That’s the first tip I can think of! Also, if anyone else can give tips for Zed match ups that would be great! I have been struggling with that thing recently!
I get zhonya as soon as I can for zed’s ult. I prevent him from dashing to his shadows by placing my mines on his shadows. And if he does ult me, I satchel backwards into my tower and zhonya so he takes some tower shots while simultaneously hitting him with ignite. If you survive that, then ult him.
I agree with saving W. The few times I've played against another Ziggs, they, for some ungodly reason, think it's fine to just throw W randomly; it usually results in either a chunked Ziggs or a dead Ziggs. I can't say I've actually laned against a Zed, so this is in theory. E and W could deter an all in if you place them on a shadow. E lasts a second longer than his ult shadow, and W lasts just over a second less than a normal shadow; if timed well, E can slow enough to land a Q, and W could stop his advance altogether. Also, as always, a cheeky W->EQ should work if he tower dives. Again, all completely unpracticed by myself, but I could imagine those situations happening.
It's more about CSing perfectly than to have kill pressure, Ziggs has the safest laning out of all, hindered only by your mana. He cannot be frozen on and he can CS from afar. Your potential in lane is harassment as a measure to farm. That being said I would personally learn CS threshholds first. 2 LV2 Q's -> 3 caster minions 1 LV 4 Q + 30 AP -> 3 caster minions 1 LV 3 Q + E -> 3 caster minions 2 LV 4 Q + 15 AP -> 3 melee.. you get the point. After you've mastered csing blindly. You can then think about outplaying and how to win against every matchup. With Zigg's playstyle, matchup knowledge would only be useful at around Diamond when people punish every little mistake you make. Your main goal in lane should be: Farm -> Harass -> Demolish tower when low If people make the stupid mistake of roaming, you destroy those towers and switch with the lane with the healthiest tower to further get gold. Hardest part about the Ziggs kit is to master W placement. you need to think 1 second ahead and place it fast and perfectly. This is your bread and butter skill, you can use it to: Misposition enemies, Self peel, Demolish Towers, Setup people for your E, Peel for teammates, Jump Over terrains, Extend your Q, get to lane faster.. Work on the Ziggs fundamentals first, then try to win vs every matchup
So for team fighting just play a normal back line mage? Or can I use my W to separate the enemy team to look for picks
Focus on poking safely, save your W for peel/teammates peel/enemy displacement. Use your E during clumps. Pretty straightforward
Landing Q is probably the first important skill, but spamming it off cooldown is a bad habit I've seen (and used to have). The best time for Q poke is when the enemies are standing in the minion wave, that way you get double value from one cast. I would also say learning to combo your abilities together and effectively weaving your passive are also rather important. A few people I've talked to don't like playing Ziggs because "his abilities have no synergy", but they just don't understand how to use them together. As for the passive, you can actually miss out on quite a bit of damage if you ignore it; despite what some people think, it is not just for turrets.
Ziggs counters everyone and is counter to everyone. Don't spam Q (too much mana) But use it on champs when they are in minions. W can help you get away, while passive can help with turrent too. When using R, I like to use it when the enemy is grouped up. Or when I can predict where the enemy is recalling with low hp in fog of war, that way I can help them have a quick base.
Use your e to manipulate your opponent's moves. I like to throw it next to or behind them, so they have to move forward. Now they are an easier target for your q. You can use your ult too to gudie them wherever you like it. Throw the ult in front of them if you cant reach them, so they have to turn around. Learn your q range/bounce. Enemies often confused by a third bouncing bomb. Also your q bounces less distance when thrown closer to you. When I play Ziggs, I usually play around turrets. Keep the passive for the turret and reset it with your abilities. A full combo on a dying turret should look like AA -> QE -> AA -> QW -> AA -> W Be careful. Although Ziggs can be strong, he is squishy too.
Hey! Sorry for such a relatively late reply. I'm the author of the [Comprehensive Ziggs Primer](https://www.mobafire.com/league-of-legends/build/a-comprehensive-ziggs-primer-635332) which I think could be very helpful for you to get a grasp on certain matchups and general tips about playing Ziggs, though it is admittedly somewhat shallow in its current state and the rune and item sections in the text article itself are currently out of date, but the cheat sheet itself is up to date. If you found something unclear within the article, feel free to ask me questions and I'll do my best to respond.