Trouble in "Hell"? Not sure what to do to get better? A few simple tips will give you the head start in getting that Gold badge for Season 2.

Normally I would be giving advice on upcoming patch notes and how it will affect champions in the current meta, but I decided to do something a little different to help out those of you who may be stuck in this so called “Hell”.

First off,  I recently acquired platinum (1900 ELO, Top 1915) while my rating in Season 1 was non-existent and my rating for most of Season 2 was in the 1200-1400 brackets,  I managed to claw my way from 1250 all the way up to platinum at roughly +12 ELO per win (trust me… it was annoying).  But how do you do it?  There are feeders and leavers and AFKers and Ragers.  Below will be a guide, albeit long (its very long),  with a few of the basic tips along with general rules that you should always follow.  Future Articles will include the different lanes and most effective methods of winning them.

 

 

     #1 Ranked is not for everyone

  • While ranked is a major part of playing League of Legends, it is not for everyone.  The reason we have ranked is for people to test their skills to see how they match up against everyone else in the world in a HIGHLY competitive environment.  If you are not willing to put in the time to learn everything there is to learn about the game before starting ranked, then you should wait awhile. If counter picking, proper meta, and map awareness are not strong points in your gameplay, then you should wait awhile. I would recommend being able to win lanes in normal draft multiple times in a row while having all the knowledge necessary to “compete” in ranked before starting it,  even then i would recommend trying to locate someone (preferably a friend) who is fairly high in ranked already and have them play against you,  based on how well you do should give you an indication of whether or not you are ready. Ranked can be fun, but it is a very competitive environment and is not for the feint of heart.

 

     #2 Relax, dont rage

  • Probably THE most important rule in Solo Que and also the simplest.  While ranked is more competitive and you’re always trying to win and give 100%, getting angry will simply make you play far below your actual skill level.  Falling victim to anger will cause you more losses than teammates or bad plays.  If you lose 2 games in a row STOP.  You need to take a break or else you will continue on a downward spiral and be that Ezreal complaining he lost 200 ELO because of teammates.  Speaking of teammates that brings me to my next point.

 

     #3 Did you do your part? Or was nothing your fault?

  • Now dont take this the wrong way, you didn’t feed your lane,  you kept good CS, you warded… But then why did you lose?  Was it because all the team fights went wrong? Did bot lane not get enough CS/kills to help carry mid/late game?  What was the major contributing factor to your loss?  Now AFKers and Leavers aside because that is beyond our control,  what could YOU have done to help make the game easier for your teammates? Did YOU play to your full potential?  Self reflection and admitting when you screw up is the best way to become better at anything, putting yourself on a throne above everyone in your game will leave you stuck at whatever ELO you are at.   Many people believe their ELO is a lot higher that what they are at, but they are being held back because of this.  Now… I am going to have to do some bracket breakdown so bear with me,  but read your bracket and see if you followed everything needed for your ELO,  if you didn’t it may be a reason why you lose some of your games.  Looking at the mistakes you made and fixing them for future reference is the BEST way to get better at League.

 

1200 and below- This bracket is people who are…. unlucky,  jumping into ranked too soon and being dragged down,  or deluded with some sense of entitlement that “Hell” is keeping them here.

  • If you don’t belong here, Destroy!  At this ELO you can pick any kind of troll build and instantly wreck games (if you know what you’re doing!!).  Anyone claiming they don’t belong down here should be able to VERY easily get out
  • 4v5 is possible, Destroy your lane AND all the other lanes. Again this bracket is mainly just… people who are not ready for competitive play or trolls.

 

1200-1500- This bracket is filled with everyone starting ranked, people trying to go up, and people on their way down.  This is easily the hardest bracket to break out of as 95% of ranked players are here. The good the bad and everything in between. (for this bracket I will tell you how I got out of 1500 and the trick to carrying yourself out )

  • Know the enemy team.  Remember last pick is the lowest ELO player and while ELO does not fully equate to skill in this bracket, its a strong hint. What is the most common role played as last pick?  Support.  Knowing this you can call AD carry as most people believe mid/top/jungle are the best and AD carry will most likely be open. This will allow you to go bot lane and carry (hopefully) by simply outplaying the support and AD.  In a future article I will explain how to spot a weak player and how to consistently pick on them in order to snowball yourself to victory.  This was my tactic through this bracket and Graves was my most played for this period of time.  This is by no means the most effective in  terms  of winning a game it was simply mine,  If you are best at a position stick to it and consistently win your lane.
  • CS CS CS CS.  CS, or Creep Score, is the act of last hitting a minion in order to obtain gold.  This is easily the hardest skill to learn in League, as well as being the most beneficial.  20 minions will roughly equate to gold from a kill, so if you have 60 CS you essentially have 3 kills. Now in any lane (jungle included) having more or equal CS to your lane opponent is important, this means you are keeping up in gold and the only thing that will separate you is Kills/Assists.
  • There is an unspoken rule in Draft that you should know, you can call a position (mid/top/AD) but the order of the picks is the order of the picks,   if the person up top decided he wants mid,  he will take it, unless he is polite and is willing to give someone else mid. When something like this occurs, DO NOT rage at them,  remember rule 2.  Normally it is polite of lower picks to ask for a certain position.  I went about asking in a friendly manner in 1500+ “jungle moo cow please :3″  which normally people would be ok with because I was not aggressive or high and mighty about it.
  • Do not rely on anyone. Pings are necessary and you must babysit your team 100% of the time while in this bracket,  I had to warn top lane of ganks while playing bot lane multiple games, as the map awareness is non-existent in this bracket.  Always make sure whoever is with you is actually following you into a fight, quite a few people will be timid when it comes to initiating a fight so always try to make sure they know its a battle you can win before you run in headfirst.  NEVER assume mid lane will come to help you fight at blue even if his lane left and is coming to get you, this being a small example but fairly common showing of the map awareness at this bracket, you wont see that level of play until 1600+.
  • Dont yell, give advice. Saying things like “why..” or “zzz” to other players is a very easy way to get people to start throwing games, don’t act like you are above anyone either.  All it takes is a simple “Darius grab a ward so you can see Trundle coming” or ” Morgana be careful on your own, pushing too far without wards is dangerous” (remember babysit).  Insulting your team is not only a quick way to lose ELO but a quick way to wind up in the tribunal.
  • It’s hard. You cannot win them all, Some games are simply too difficult to carry, but not all of them. Playing consistently and strong every game will allow you to gain more wins than losses. Getting out of this bracket will take time and patience,  but if you belong in the higher brackets you will be able to do it. Taking breaks from time to time as well as stopping after 2 losses will allow you to keep your cool and continue to play at top performance.

 

1500-1900- Welcome to the big leagues, the top 3% of the world begins at gold rating, but you are not out of the woods yet, and while your teammates will be more reliable,  there will still be some people who are currently “misplaced”  in this ELO, and its your job to carry them! (well at least so you don’t lose)

 

  • Ask for your best, but play the rest.  Going back to our rule about asking for a position,  be polite and ask for your best position, you may or may not get it but that’s ok.  At this bracket it is important that you have extensive knowledge on all the roles in the game and can play them effectively while winning against your laning opponent. While also remembering all the rules from our previous brackets.
  • Its ok to Support.   By this time you can have a little more confidence in teammates and them having common knowledge of the game.  they will still need a small amount of babysitting,  but playing roles such as support is ok now,  as (most) people will know how to play AD carry effectively and will help you win lane. Make it your job to be the best support possible ie: buying wards, watching map, and setting up kills (<- yes supports can do this).
  • Do not try to make plays.  If you are not used to playing at a 2k level of ELO don’t try to make major plays.  More often than not over aggression will only get you killed if you don’t fully know what your doing.  Sloppy mistakes and dieing in lane will cause you to be behind, if this is the case do NOT try to make more plays in order to get ahead again, this will result in you dieing again and being even further behind.  Focus on farm and making sure you keep your cool,  getting tunnel vision and trying to get revenge will only cause you to further lose lane and possibly result in a lost game.

 

 

In Conclusion

I am by no means the “best” player in the world. I am simply here to try to help those who may be having difficulty with obtaining their true ELO.  I have spent the past 7 years teaching and am more than willing to help personally with those in the 1300-1500 bracket by playing against you and giving you advice.  Although, I can only truly help with top/mid lane, as jungle and bot lane require a bit more than a simple 1 on 1 lesson.  I am however open to spectating games and assisting those who need it with pointers on improving their gameplay.

Please feel free to add me in game: Gungho Gun Wolf,  and be sure to message me saying the lane you play and what you feel you need to improve on and I will happily help in any way I can, If you wish to simply ask a few questions feel free to add me or put them below in the comments

That is all for the first article of Solo Que and You, stay tuned as Top lane and Mid lane will be coming soon, with counter picks as well as what to ban at what ELO.