Will Burton
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221 Min read League of Legends is a team-based game with over 100 million active players taking to the Rift every month. In a game with such a large player base and an ever-growing roster of champions, it can be rather challenging to create a good team composition and play it to its strengths. With the lack of communication in champion select and solo queue in general, it can make it even harder for a set of 5 strangers to create, maintain and play as a team.
We’ve all played in and seen countless games thrown because of either team not understanding how to play their team comp correctly. This factor affects every rank in League of Legends, from the casual gamer to hardcore veterans, and we’ve even seen our hearts broken in the LCS.
By knowing the strategies and win conditions behind every team comp in the game, you will start to understand and develop a habit of knowing exactly what you need to do in every game you play. This will increase your win rate, KDA and the likelihood of coming out ahead because you will know what you need to do.
In this in-depth Mobalytics guide by PicklePants, we will discuss everything you need to know about playing as and against every team composition in the game. Utilizing their strengths while minimizing their weaknesses will allow you to get an understanding of what your teams combat goals are for each game. As teamfighting has such a high impact on the game, understanding how to teamfight effectively no matter the circumstances is a must.
In addition, we will also go over typical teamfighting aspects that you may not have understood in the past. Terms such as flanking are not as obvious as everyone may think. We will also discuss how every role should teamfight; through positioning, target focus and other handy tips, make sure you give that a read to see if you’re up to par.
As this guide is going to be our most in-depth guide to date, we’ve gone ahead and added chapters to this guide like all our previous in-depth posts to help you skip around and digest the information that is presented. If you want to check out some of our other in-depth all-in-one everything guides like our latest roaming guide, the all in vision guide or maybe even our complete wave management guide, then click here. If you have any feedback or questions, please reach out to me on Twitter!
This article is intended to be digested in segments and should not to be read in one hit! You will also find us repeating ourselves in some parts. This is due to overlaps in team compositions and teamfighting tactics. Personally, I would recommend going to the chapter you’re looking for and reading from there.
Miscommunication will bring a handicap to teamfighting and team comp execution. Unfortunately, there is no real viable way of communicating in solo queue because there is (currently) no other method to talk to your team outside of the chat and ping system. This will make it rather difficult for some of our advice to be implemented and work in solo queue. However, all of the advice will work wonders when you’re playing as a pre-made 5-stack in Clash, flex, or normals.
All of the advice does work in a real game setting. However, it is up to you as the reader to implement what we suggest and use it in game. Adaption is incredibly important in a game such as League of Legends because there is so much going on that can impair your gameplay.
Furthermore, as League of Legends is an incredibly situational game, it is rather difficult to create an in-depth guide like this. So please keep this in mind when dissecting the information and using it. For example, if your team is behind, in certain parts of this guide, you may be unable to achieve what is suggested.
When applicable we will provide alternative options to help you. We will also try our best to provide you with situational and context related advice to assist you in transferring information from this guide in actual gameplay whenever possible, which is by far one of the best ways to learn.
Finally, you may disagree with some of the champions that are suggested in this guide, which is fine. One disagreement you may have is who we suggest is in a team composition, or who counters any specific comp. At the end of the day, many things can counter a composition, and many champions work in more than one comp.
Janna is a prime example of a champion who can work in multiple compositions. So please keep that in mind when you are reading parts of this guide because there is more than one option to every situation. League of Legends is a rather dogmatic and subjective game, and we welcome any discussion that is involved in making this guide better.
Everything that you see and read in this guide is highly situational and should be used at the reader’s discretion.
League of Legends is a situational game with many different factors directly impacting how the game is played and won. One of the biggest impacts with team building and League in general is communication- or lack of, within Solo Queue.
As we all know by now, there is little to no communication in League of Legends. Without the ability to communicate via voice (with non-premades), it makes the game much harder to play, and good team compositions to be made. From the Pre-Game to teamfighting, communication has a direct impact on basically everything that surrounds the game.
With that said, you can have a slight impact on what your teammates pick in champion select, and how the game is played out by communicating.
Champion Select
You cannot force your teammates to play certain picks. In fact, it’s never really a good idea to recommend a champion unless, the player plays that champion in particular. For example, I would advise against asking your Mid laner to first time Yasuo because he would be good in the team composition. This is where you need to use your own judgement to create and empower the perfect team composition to beat the enemy.
Let’s suggest you’re the Support and the final pick for your team. If your team is lacking in one area or another, you should try to play a champion that compliments the champions who are already locked in. For example, if there is no frontline, it would be better to play a tank like Leona or Alistar rather than playing somebody with no frontline prowess. You should always look to pick someone and something that your team needs. Janna is one of my favorite champions in the game and she should be played as a utility Support. She is rather squishy and lacks any form of frontline capability. So, picking her in a team with no frontline is basically useless.
Understanding and looking at what your team has already picked is incredibly important. Before locking in your champion, make sure that you’re playing somebody that synergises well with the team. We cannot go into too much detail as of yet because we’ve only just started this guide, but it will make sense as we go on.
If you see that your team is missing certain aspects to create a half decent team comp, don’t be afraid to make suggestions. Not champion specific, but something on the lines of “we have no frontline” or “we need AP.” These are two of the more common champion types that may be forgotten about which drastically decreases the chances of winning a game.
This is one of the final direct steps where you can have an impact on what your team chooses. Once the champions are locked in, you either have to dodge, or play it through. It’s not uncommon for games to be lost in champion select: or at least, made 10x harder due to a poor composition. So making sure that you have a good team comp will give you a noticeable teamfighting advantage (if played correctly).
The Pre-Game
You can also use the Pre-Game application through either the standalone Mobalytics app or our website to have an understanding of when your team is strong and when you should group together and teamfight.
There are a lot of ways this information can be interpreted. For example, if you see that your team is not very good during the early game, you could try to extend the laning phase until you’re ready to group. Or, minimize drastic 5v5 teamfights as they may not work in your favor as the enemy is stronger. On the other hand, if your team is really good in the mid game but falls off late, you should use this knowledge to your advantage and try to end the game, or gain a noticeable lead while you’re strong so you don’t get outscaled or fall flat later on.
You can also see when each team is strong too. If you notice that you are stronger in certain parts of the game (like during the mid game), you can try to group during this time to gain the advantage and snowball or finish the game. In our above example, Zyra’s team composition is better during the mid and late game compared to the enemy’s. This means Zyra and her team should have a slight advantage in these later game teamfights.
If you want to learn and understand how powerspikes work and what makes a champion peak at a certain part of the game, then you might be interested in this guide. Here’s a quick snippet from that guide.
For each of the three phases, our tool will assign one of three colors:
As a reminder, we calculate these values according to the features of a champion’s kit such as their base stats and scaling ratios. We also take into account their ability designs and cooldown rhythms. These are guidelines, not laws – it’s important to keep in mind the context of the game.
For example, if you have a green late game and you’re against a red late game, normally you would think that you should win the 1v1. However, if you had a very poor early game and that red opponent spiked and snowballed early, you may still lose despite having the green > red advantage.
Likewise, if you’re a red champ early, that doesn’t mean that you cannot defeat a green early game. If you have the right opportunity such as an allied gank or a cocky dive by your opponent you can still find success.
Communication in Game
While in game, you will need to communicate with your team as much as possible to coordinate and play to your teams strengths. Without a dedicated infrastructure or game plan, your team composition will not be able to play to their strengths and win the game. The only way your team can do this effectively is by utilizing the chat and the ping system.
You’re probably getting bored by now, but once again- there is no way to directly communicate with your team in Solo Queue as there is no voice communication system pre-built into the game when playing with strangers. So you’re limited to how you can communicate in game.
This is where the chat and ping system will come into play. Using the ping system will allow you to coordinate attacks onto the enemy as well as identify what your intentions are. Making good use of the ping system is very important and has a rather sharp learning curve. Have you ever been in lane when your Jungler ganks- but doesn’t ping that they’re coming? It’s kinda’ like that.
Without telling your team what your intentions are, you may overextend and get caught out of position which can cost you the teamfight or an objective such as the Baron. This is why pinging what you want to do is incredibly important. Without it, your intentions may go unnoticed which can have severe consequences.
I find the best ping to use is the “on my way” ping and frequently using it to ensure that my team knows what to do and what I am going to do. Using it before you go in- not as you’re going in, will insure your team knows what’s going to happen. Doing it early enough will also allow you to back off if there is any form of miscommunication or if somebody doesn’t want to fight.
The “on my way” ping is also beneficial as it can allow you to know what your side laners, or split pushes are doing. For example, if you’re playing in a 1-3-1 comp, your split pushers can ping where they’re going while the rest of your team plays safe and disengages. There is so much information that can be passed on through pinging. It is just unfortunate that it’s not always used in the correct manner or always acted upon.
Another in game option is to use the text channel and type to your teammates. This method should only be used if you’re going to communicate useful information and useful ideas. If you intend to flame or be toxic- then there’s no point using it. In Solo Queue, it can be difficult to find a good shot caller. Many players do not like the responsibility of being a shot caller, and they will usually follow what like minded players suggest. If you’re a natural shot caller like myself, you can use this to your advantage to tell your team what to do.
For example, suggesting to fight when your team has their ultimates up is a good way of getting your team to group. If not, asking them to group is another way of utilizing the chat. Many players like to farm and forget to group, so specifically asking players to group and fight is one way of getting their attention.
There’s a lot of things you can do to communicate with your team in order to play and build a perfect team composition. We’ve already made a similar post about communication in game if you want to learn more.
There are quite a few different jobs a champion can have. Thankfully, as every teamfight is somewhat similar, it can be relatively easy to start a teamfight doing one thing, and finishing it with another. As an example, you may start a teamfight by focusing the enemy frontline, and then finish it by peeling for your carries.
Due to this situational aspect of teamfighting and League of Legends in general, we’ll go over a few different examples per champion role (or playstyle) and discuss what their goals may be during a teamfight. Keep in mind that these examples are what you may want to do. In other situations, you may be unable to do what’s suggested because of your team composition, enemy comp, team coordination and other situational aspects to the game. In addition to this, depending on the context, you may not be able to do what is suggested, or you could do something that isn’t always advised, but might work depending on the situation. Whatever is suggested in this section should be taken as guidance for better results in game.
Later on in this guide, we will go into great detail about how to teamfight as the Top, Jungler, Mid, ADC and Support, and discuss basically everything there is to do with them. This will include some of the information in this section as well as other teamfighting necessities. So make sure your read that part too!
Example Champion: Malphite
Malphite’s ultimate is crucial in teamfights because it can knock up multiple enemy champions at once.
Ahead:
When Malphite is ahead, he will be incredibly tanky. This is fantastic for his team as he can be the complete frontline in teamfights. Utilising his ultimate on the backline, or whenever the enemy is grouped together will allow Malphite to do his job effectively. After he has used his ultimate, he can either keep his focus on the enemy backline, or fall back and protect his team.
As he is a tank, sticking to the enemy frontline is a good way of soaking up damage to protect them from the enemy damage dealers.
Even:
Malphite is always good thanks to the tanky items he buys as well as his ultimate. While he will not be able to soak as much damage compared to when he’s ahead, he will still be able to do his job and do it well.
Just like in the above section, he will want to ult as many champions as possible and keep them locked down. However, as he will not be as tanky, you should look to fall back to a safer position when you’re unable to tank anymore damage.
Behind:
When Malphite is behind, he cannot do his job effectively if he is the only tank on the team. This is where he will need to basically become a secondary Support and protect his carries. Using his ultimate to solely protect his team by knocking up the enemies once grouped or whenever the carries are in danger is the go-to plan.
If he was to focus the backline when he is behind- he is basically sacrificing himself. This is not a great plan, so I would generally avoid it as you’re giving the enemy an advantage. But, if you’re engaging or surprising the enemy through flanking or ambushing, then focusing the backline or enemy carries is a must.
Example Champion: Renekton
Renekton gains bonus health and damage when his ultimate is active. This makes him really good at teamfighting.
Ahead:
When Renekton is ahead, he can be devastating to play against. This is why it’s recommended that you try to focus the squishier members on the enemy team. This is usually the backline as they will not always purchase armor to defend themselves straight away.
As Renekton will be building damage and tank, he can very well defend himself against an enemy attack. This is why it’s a good idea to try to focus the backline in teamfights.
Renekton however maybe unable to run through the enemy frontline to fight the enemy behind. this is where flanking will come in handy.
Even:
When Renekton is evenly matched or not necessarily winning, he may be unable to completely stomp the enemy backline alone. He may need to switch his focus to taking down the enemy frontline instead. Focusing the frontline allows his team to take down the frontline and then take it to the enemies backline afterwards.
When evenly matched, Renekton is not a great damage dealer nor tanky champion. This means that going into the enemies backline when even will be the wrong thing to do as you’ll be unable to deal enough damage to the backline- and not tanky enough to survive the fight. This is why it’s important to switch your focus if you’re unable to kill the enemy. But, if Renekton has the assistance from other diving or engage champions, then this shouldn’t be to much of an issue.
Behind:
When Renekton is behind, he will be unable to fight the backline on his own. This will make it rather difficult for him to survive the teamfight like previously discussed. This is why he will need to stick closely to his carries and focus whoever is on the enemy frontline. Using Renekton’s kit and crowd control, keeping whoever is coming close to your team will serve Renekton well and enable his carries to dish out damage while he protects them.
Most top lane roles like a tank or fighter- when behind will need to fall back and become a “secondary Support” and focus the frontline. This is because they are unable to survive the fight if they are to face the enemy damage dealers on their own.
Example Champion: Syndra
When set up correctly, Syndra’s ultimate can be devastating for the enemy.
Ahead:
When mages are ahead, there’s nothing really stopping them apart from their own greediness. As mages like Syndra can do a lot of burst damage, it’s better for them to focus the backline if they’re over extended. But as Syndra is quite squishy, she may unable to make it into the enemies backline. This is where you should prioritize your damage on the enemy frontline even though you could kill the enemy ADC outright.
In addition to this, Syndra is a fantastic example of a champion that can switch targets with ease. Thanks to her E, she can knockback and stun enemies who are coming towards her. This means that she can either focus the frontline/ tanks who are trying to kill her, or try and gain a sneaky Scatter the Weak (E) and blow up the enemy ADC who is stunned instead.
Of course, she would prefer to kill the enemy carry, but it may not always be possible as Syndra will be putting herself in a position where she may also get killed. So you’ll have to use your own judgement and experience to decide what to do.
Even:
Just like before, Syndra has the option to either focus the frontline, or try to destroy the backline if she gets a cheeky E off. This is the usual gameplay for Syndra and mages alike when they’re coming face to face with the enemy. As many are squishy, they cannot always focus the backline, which is why I recommend focusing the frontline in most cases unless you’re able to easily get to the enemy backline.
Behind:
When Syndra is behind, she will lack burst damage. This is why you should only really be focusing the enemy frontline rather than the backline at all. If you were to get caught out of position when using your ultimate on the ADC for example, you may throw the fight. In my opinion, when behind it’s not about carrying. It’s about enabling your team to win- even if that means taking unorthodox methods to gain a victory.
Adaption is key for any champion in League. Many champion guides and advice doesn’t cater to when players are behind and they recommend continuing to do the same thing even though you will be physically incapable off. Just remember, if you’re behind as a mage, you don’t have to burst someone down. It’s all about dealing damage to whoever you can while you can.
Example Champion: Leblanc
Leblanc gets a lot of mobility thanks to her W. This allows her to get in and out of teamfights and skirmishes.
Ahead:
Leblanc is an assassin who, once ahead- is a terror to play against. Assassins don’t usually fight 5v5 per say, they do however like to flank and deal burst damage. Because of an Assassins nature, they will look to target the squishier members of any team and try to eliminate them as quickly as possible. This will turn the tide of any fight making any continued exchange a 4v5 in the assassin’s favor.
Even:
When an assassin is even and not ahead, they should still continue to try and focus the squishier champions on the enemy team. While the exchange may be not as efficient or clear cut, your goal is still to eliminate and take care of one of the enemy carries.
However, as you’re not going to be as strong, it may be slightly more challenging to kill them. This is where having Ignite and other resources available to you will pick up the slack and allow you to still have kill pressure on the enemy.
If the enemy doesn’t have many squishy targets, then your job is to go for short trades inside of the teamfight- dealing damage and jumping onto the enemy and then Distorting back out again afterwards.
Behind:
Playing behind as an assassin is one of the worst things you can do. I would advise against falling behind if you can help it…! As you lack damage and survivability, it can be rather difficult for you to be able to deal any significant damage. Because of this, it’s better for you to focus the frontline and work with your team to take down the enemy tanks.
Unless you can get a good flank off on the enemy, or use your combos in the most efficient way- you’re going to struggle touching the enemy carries.
Example Champion: Caitlyn
Caitlyn can use her E offensively or defensively whenever she needs to. Among other things, this gives her great kiting potential.
Ahead:
When an ADC is ahead, they can play incredibly aggressive and be the super carry their team needs. Caitlyn is one of the best carries to get ahead because of her range, her passive and overall damage output. Even though she is ahead, she must continue to position next to her Support and with her teammates to ensure that she doesn’t get picked off early.
However, as she is ahead, she can play slightly more aggressive by kiting forwards rather than backwards in teamfights. For example, once the enemy has engaged, she should kite backwards and then when she is in a safer position, start kiting towards the enemy.
Even:
Caitlyn should be played the same way as if she is ahead. This is because she is an ADC after all and most ADC’s have a 1-dimensional game plan. Prioritizing the closest enemy is what she will need to do as there is no real chance that she will be able to freely damage the enemy backline.
When playing as Caitlyn, remember to kite as much as you can to give yourself the best chance to survive and deal as much damage. Sticking close to your Support: do not go to far forward unless they’re there with you.
Behind:
When Caitlyn is behind, her damage is going to suffer. It will be rather difficult for her to deal damage in teamfights because the enemy will just be able to just roll Caitlyn down. This is why you need to stay incredibly close to your Support and let them protect you. While your damage will be minimal, your damage output is still going to be needed to kill the enemy frontline.
Stick towards the backside of your team at all costs and only auto attack when you’re in range of the enemies (when they walk forward, do not walk towards the enemy). Kiting backwards rather than forwards would give Caitlyn more survivability and protection in teamfights.
Unfortunately, Caitlyn and many other ADC’s will struggle to survive in skirmishes when behind as they may not be able to survive the initial engagement from the enemy.
Example Champion: Janna
Janna’s ultimate is fantastic at healing and protecting her carries from the enemy frontline.
Ahead:
No matter what stage or strength Janna is at, she will need to protect her teammates as much as possible by using all of her abilities to keep her allies alive. Janna should be stood next to, or slightly in front of her ADC to provide them with bodily protection as well as healing and shielding.
Even though Janna is ahead and will deal damage through her abilities- you should avoid trying to be the carry. You will be too squishy to be able to do enough damage to kill anybody.. Furthermore, you should never be in the frontline as a utility Support like Janna. So, it makes sense to play the supportive role in teamfights as that is, after all, your role.
Even:
When Janna is even, she should be looking to protect her team as much as possible by keeping close to them and protecting them with her healing and shielding. When Janna is even and not ahead, your healing and shielding will be slightly reduced- however, it is still impactful.
Janna needs to be stood next to her ADC and in the backline at all times to be useful in teamfights.
Behind:
Spacing and positioning is incredibly important when Janna is behind. As Janna is always squishy even when ahead- it’s important that you watch your movements in teamfights and not position incorrectly. Doing so will open yourself up to the enemy, and you will likely get killed because of it.
Dying early in a teamfight will not only cost your life, the ADC’s life- but it might also cost the teamfight itself and potential objectives afterwards. In many cases, this can be prevented by good positioning
Example Champion: Leona
Leona’s ultimate can stun multiple enemies at once. In some cases, this can be the whole team if they’re squished together.
Ahead:
When Leona is ahead, she will be the frontliner that every team wants and needs. This is because she will be able to tank so much damage while being able to zone enemy champions.
As your team is ahead, it should be okay for Leona to stick onto the enemy carries and lock them down while her team deals damage. But, she will need to be prepared to fall back and help her ADC if the enemy has frontline champions who can get on to them easily.
Even:
When Leona and her team are even, she will have a split personality and two separate jobs to do. Leona and many other tank Supports are in a difficult situation when it comes to teamfighting and I would say that the majority of casual lower-ELO Leona players only focus on doing one of her two jobs.
The first job for Leona when even is to be the frontline for her team. Using her crowd control and tankiness- she can lock enemies in place and let her team collapse on them. The second job is to protect her carries from imminent danger. This is why when Leona is teamfighting, she needs to make sure that she goes in and then falls back to protect her carries when needed.
Failing to recognise your teams needs may cost Leona and her team mates their lives.
Behind:
When Leona is behind, she cannot be the frontline. Instead, she will have to stick close to her ADC and protect them at all costs.
Using all of your abilities and crowd control, you will focus on stopping the enemy frontline from collapsing on, and killing your teammates. Using your E as well as your Q and ultimate to protect your carries is incredibly important. Make sure the enemy cannot get through you and the frontline to get to your backline will increase your carries survivability. Which in turn, will give your team a bigger chance of winning the teamfight.
If you were to go in and be the frontline for your team alone, you will be sacrificing yourself as your teammates will be unable to help you. They will also be unable to kill the enemy, and they will fall shortly after yourself.
With this in mind, as Leona has a long ranged ultimate, she can look to hit the enemy backline with it and take them out of commission briefly, but it really depends on the situation.
Once again, I would like to say that these examples given are just theorycrafted. If you’re unsure if you can do your job correctly or do what is suggested, try to adapt your positioning and revert to protecting your carries. No matter how far behind you’re, protecting your carries is always a good thing to do as they may be able to carry you.
Now we’re getting to the part of the guide that everybody wants to know and learn, how exactly do you play as any specific team comp? First of all, we’ll need to learn what each team composition is and what it does. For us to understand that, we’ll need to learn the basics.
When we think about ‘team compositions’ in League of Legends, the first thing that comes to mind is a wombo combo team, so it’s appropriate if we start with that one.
A wombo combo team comp is a team that thrives at grouping and fighting. They will usually stick together as 5 and try to force a teamfight whenever possible. Due to the nature of a wombo combo comp, they will try to engage together and use their abilities in sync to kill and lock down as many enemies as they can. This team composition is rather similar to an AOE, or area of effect team comp which we will discuss later on.
This team comprises of champions that have crowd control or AOE abilities. One of the most popular champions in this team composition is Wukong. Wukong is a prime example, and also a very good champion in this type of team comp as his kit synergizes well with it. Utilizing his Decoy (W), Wukong can use his invisibility to try and get on to the enemy. After he has infiltrated enemy lines, he will activate his ultimate and knock up as many champions as he possibly can. His team will then use everything they have available to them to follow up and continue the fight.
When you are partaking in this type of team composition, your goal is to start a teamfight whenever your team is grouped together. This includes straight 5v5 teamfights, whenever you have the numbers advantage or in plain skirmishes around objectives like the Baron or Drake.
Due to the nature of a wombo combo team composition, you should try to keep the enemy in place for as long as possible. Layering the teams crowd control and damaging abilities one after another will keep them in place for a longer period of time. This will increase the likelihood of your team coming out ahead.
Ideally, you would like to fight in areas that are quite claustrophobic- such as inside the jungle, or around objectives in small areas. This is because the enemy will be bunched together and not be able to escape. As your team comp relies on the enemy grouping and being together- this is ideal.
The highlighted red areas represent good teamfight locations.
Here is an image of where you should prioritize fighting the enemy to come out ahead. You can make teamfights happen here by invading the enemies jungle. As this team comp is really good at fighting in general, they can actually fight anywhere, but inside the jungle is favored.
Take into account who has their ultimate up to increase your team’s ability to kill the enemy and lock them down. For example, if only one of your allies have their ultimate available, it may be difficult for your team to win the fight. However, if you all have your ultimates- then teamfighting will be much easier.
Because your team relies heavily on engaging with the enemy, make sure that you all go in at once to synchronize your damage output. If you go in with a large buffer between yourselves- it will be difficult to teamfight. Furthermore, when you’re wanting to fight the enemy, you need to make sure that you engage and go in as quickly as possible so you do not get poked down and forced back.
Example Team Composition
Many champions fit well in this type of team composition, here are some examples.
Malphite: As his ultimate is a knock-up, he can use it knock up the enemies that are grouped together. This will allow his other teammates to reposition and follow up. If the enemy are grouped rather closely, it is probable that you will hit a 5 man knock up.
Wukong: Thanks to Wukong’s ultimate, he will be able to knock up multiple enemies over a long space of time. When using his ultimate in conjunction with his W (Decoy) he can get into position and then knock up everyone.
Orianna: Orianna’s ultimate will pull any champions inside the area directly towards the ball. This will force the enemies into a small location- ideal for Malphite’s ultimate, and Sivir’s Ricochet damage. She is also able to speed up and shield allies who have her ball around them. This will work in synergy with other champions and their ultimates.
Sivir: Her ultimate is really good at starting a teamfight and following up when an enemy is locked in position. As it gives everybody a brief movement speed buff, it will allow her team to reposition and chase enemies, as well as potentially engage. Her ultimate can also give her bonus attack speed.
Rakan: His ultimate and Grand Entrance (W) combo is very good at keeping enemies locked in place. Using it in conjunction with the rest of his allies ultimates will make it very difficult for the enemy to escape.
While this team composition doesn’t seem fancy on paper, once perfected- it is very strong and hard to play against.
Tips and Tricks
In this section, we will go over some specific teamfighting tips and tricks that will help you win when playing as this team composition.
How to counter a wombo combo team composition
Now you’ve learned how to play in a wombo combo team comp, you need to know how to play against it. There were a few key factors that we repeated in this section- did you spot them? Their biggest strength can also be their biggest weakness, so make sure you use this information to beat them.
Team comps and champions who counter a wombo combo team comp are:
This team composition does exactly what it says on the tin, and arguably one of the more frustrating team compositions to play against. It revolves heavily around poking the enemy and looking to either force them to concede, back off, or die for their greediness. It is one of the easier compositions to perfect in solo queue because the enemy will find it difficult to play and communicate against. Furthermore, there are a few variations to this comp which makes it ideal for Solo Queue.
A poke comp is a team that tries to poke the enemy as much as they can prior to teamfighting. They will usually hold off from straight 5v5’s as they may lack crowd control or other factors that influence a fight. However, they more than make up for it and more in other ways like through raw damage and poke. Luckily, compared to some other team compositions, there are a few variations to the level of poke one can have. For example, it can comprise of 5 poke champions, or with 3 and still be considered a poke comp.
Usually, you’ll find that champions with lots of poke abilities fit right into this team comp. A perfect example is Ezreal. Ezreal can use his Q and W to poke the enemy. Zoe is also a fantastic champion in this team comp because of her Q. Many champions have poke abilities- so most fit right in.
Unlike some of the other team compositions, your goal is to avoid fighting with the enemy as soon as you spot them. This is because there will be no set up for your team and the enemy will be relatively healthy. Setting up a teamfight by poking is needed in this team composition because your main goal is to poke the enemy.
If you were to fight straight away, the enemy would be able to roll your team down as you will be unable to deal enough damage in one short burst. This is where delaying a teamfight and poking beforehand is needed. Try to delay the (actual) teamfight for as long as possible to increase your chances of winning said fight. Making good use of your champions kit, you’ll need to deal damage to the enemy through poke as consistently as possible before trying to overwhelm.
To win with this team composition, your team needs to avoid being caught out of position or letting the enemy engage on you. As your team may not be great at fighting in a 5v5 setting, the lack of health and lack of engage opportunity (as they would be low) from the enemy will assist you at coming out ahead. This is because the enemy will be too low to engage on your team.
This team composition relies heavily on your team being able to hit their skill shots with pinpoint accuracy and consistency. Without it, your team will struggle.
Example Team Composition
As we suggested, this team composition doesn’t require everyone to be a poke champion. For example, it may consist of a few poke champions rather than a full poke team. With that in mind, here is some examples.
Jayce: Has insane poke thanks to his empowered Q’s. He also has lots of burst damage which is really helpful in this type of composition. Additionally, he can use his E to speed up his allies so they can close the gap and engage once they’re ready.
Taliyah: Taliyah is really good in teamfights if they’re in open areas around the map compared to enclosed areas due to the “Worked Ground” placement on her Q. As a poke team comp usually moves around a lot, Taliyah is perfect in this situation.
Lux: Her consistent damage output is really strong when ahead and vital in this type of team composition. This is because she has multiple forms of poke from her Q, E and her ultimate. Her W will also come in handy because it can shield her allies which will come in handy when a teamfight occurs.
Ezreal: Ezreal has lots of poke thanks to his Q, W and R. Ezreal’s abilities (especially his Q) is on a rather short cooldown which makes his damage output consistent- that is, unless he can’t hit his skill shots.
Neeko: She has lots of poke and fighting potential thanks to her Q. She can also use her root to start the next stage of the teamfight. As her E will root enemies in place, it will allow her allies to use their abilities with pinpoint accuracy. To top that off, her E can go through minions which means the enemy will have no protection under their own tower.
This team composition will excel at poking the enemy and dishing out damage, however it lacks any form of frontline. This is where having a possible tank Jungler or Support would come in handy.
Tips and Tricks
In this section, we will go over some specific teamfighting tips and tricks that will help you win when playing as this team composition.
How to counter a poke team composition
Learning how to play as a poke team composition is one thing, but learning how to counter them is another. Here are some vital tips and tricks to use when you’re playing against a poke team composition.
Team comps and champions who counter a poke comp are:
Protecting the Carry composition is one of the more difficult compositions to perfect in Solo Queue because it relies heavily on team coordination- which is something that is not always present in game. Furthermore, it requires one person (or sometimes 2) on that team to be the true carry, which is something that some players are not fond of as everyone likes to be the carry for their team.
Anyway, let’s discuss what makes a Protect the Carry comp work.
This composition is a team that revolves around one or two players being the true carry while the rest of their team provide them with protection through frontline, healing or shielding. The carry will usually be a hyper carry- normally sitting in the bottom lane. This is because they will be ranged and also be able to dish out consistent damage in teamfights. The champion in question should be really good at teamfighting and have a strong mid to late game.
However, this team composition doesn’t always have to have their hyper carry in the bottom lane. Instead it could be a Jungler like Twitch who plays the carry role. Thanks to his kit and the bonus protection, Twitch will be an incredibly difficult champion to play against thanks to his consistent damage output which his kit provides.
You will find that in Solo Queue, this team composition is really good at protecting their carries, which makes it rather difficult to play against when they’re grouped together. This is why this team composition will tend to stick together after the laning phase has ended.
The strategy is basically the same for every teamfight in the game: protect your ADC or hyper carry at all costs. For you to do this, your team should group together and play around said player. By providing healing, shielding or protection, your job will be to keep the ADC alive for as long as possible to enable them to deal as much damage as they can.
Unfortunately, winning as this team can be quite tricky for a number of reasons. The first is that it requires the hyper carry to be ahead or at least- not behind to teamfight. This means that the hyper carry will need assistance during the early game and laning phase to get ahead.
Second of all, it requires your ADC to have good mechanics and be a reliable player. If they get caught out or make a fatal error, you may as well say goodbye to the teamfight as your team may be unable to do anything while they’re dead. Which also brings us to our next point. You have to play around them.
If the ADC is not with your team because they’re either picking up farm in a side lane recalled or are at red buff, you have to avoid fighting or letting the enemy fight you. This is because your team will be unable to come out ahead as they will lack damage.
Basically, to win as this team composition, you will need to put faith in your ADC to know how to play the role effectively. Your team will also need to do whatever they can do to protect the carry for as long as possible.
Example Team Composition
Because the hyper carry will be on the enemies most wanted list, it would be smart to have other champions on the team that can provide protection. Here’s an example team composition.
Dr Mundo: Is a strong tank that can soak a lot of damage thanks to his health regeneration and his ultimate. This will allow him to be the frontline for his team, and take the enemies damage while his team shreds them.
Warwick: Can protect his carry or potentially be the carry thanks to his E- Primal Howl and his ultimate. The crowd control provided by these abilities can provide much needed protection against the enemy frontline to keep the carry alive.
Orianna: Orianna is classed as a control mage and is perfect in this team composition. Her kit can speed up and protect her allies thanks to her W and her E, while also being able to empower the ADC. Likewise, she also has her ultimate to displace and keep her carry safe.
Twitch: The hypercarry in question. He is really good at dishing out consistent damage with his Spray and Pray (formally Rat-Ta-Tat-Tat). If he can be enabled and empowered or protected, he will be able to pop off in teamfights.
Lulu: Is one of the best Supports to pair with a hyper carry. This is because Lulu can provide healing and shielding through her abilities and items. Her ultimate is also really strong in teamfights which will definitely keep her ADC alive.
This team composition specifically will be rather frustrating and difficult to play against because of the healing, shielding and protection it can provide to its true carry. Of course, you can have more protection with a tank Jungler or a different utility based Mid laner.
Tips and Tricks
In this section, we will go over some specific teamfighting tips and tricks that will help you win when playing as this team composition.
How to counter a protect the carry team composition
Unfortunately, to counter a Protect the Carry team composition requires perfect communication and factory-like consistency to beat. Due to the protection these team compositions are granted, you need to prevent the carry from staying protected
Team comps and champions who counter a protect the carry team comp are:
Traditionally, a Pick comp is rather difficult to play against in Solo Queue because it relies on you and your teammates being able to dodge skill shots and not get caught out of position. This means that players who are over extended or isolated are easy targets that this composition can prey on. A Pick composition requires the enemy to adapt their playstyle to prevent them from being caught out of position. By sticking close together, they will limit what a Pick comp can do.
A Pick comp relies heavily on the team being able to pick champions off- before or during a teamfight. They may do so by assassinating enemies who are caught wondering the rift or they may just attack a lone ranger. However they do it, they always try to take down a member or two to win the teamfight.
More often than not, they will try to take down the biggest threat and assassinate them to make the teamfight favorable. For example, the Mid laner, Support or the ADC. Generally, they do not focus or try to catch out the frontline, as it will give the enemy a chance to enter the teamfight. For example, hooking the enemy Alistar is not a smart idea because he will be able to get a multi person knock up with a simple W+Q combo. You would be helping him out by pulling him in.
There are a few different types of champions that can pick off enemies. They may have pulls or hooks like Blitzcrank or Thresh, hard crowd control like Nautilus, and in many cases, they’re an assassin like Zed, Akali or Nocturne.
If your team benefits from picking somebody off before a teamfight who is out of position, you will need to ward around the map- specifically the river to enable you to do so. For example, an Assassin like Zed may struggle at teamfighting. However, he could wait patiently in a bush for the enemy to walk past him and then pounce on them.
However, if your team doesn’t have an assassin or somebody who can look to pick players off before a teamfight occurs, you can try to pick players off in the teamfight instead. Before fighting, there is a grace period between every fight. This is usually in the form of a standoff between both teams. If you see somebody overstaying their welcome and positioning to far forward, your team should try to execute them. This will make the following teamfight 5v4. But, make sure that your team doesn’t blow all of their abilities and ultimate’s on one person.
There are 2 variations to a pick comp and you should try to play the team composition that suits you best. If your team relies heavily on getting picks before a teamfight ensues- such as Nocturne or Zed, you should try and pick off a player beforehand. Otherwise, stick to catching enemies who are too far forward or out of position.
Example Team Composition
A Pick Comp can have champions that are great at teamfighting or ones that are not so. Either way, a Pick Comp is great at taking down enemies who are caught out of position. Here is an example team comp.
Maokai: Is a tank champion that has a root on his W. This will allow him to lock down enemies who have miss-positioned or who have been brought forward towards his team. Furthermore, his ultimate is really good at flanking and CC chaining multiple enemies which can come in handy. While it does move quite slowly, if he uses it from the side or the rear- the enemy will most likely become entangled. 
Nocturne: Can use his ultimate to take down the backline or assassinate an enemy who has mispositioned. Nocturne can cover a vast range in a short period of time which is great in a pick comp. Depending on the team composition and who the enemy has, he may be able to either 0-100 somebody like the enemy Support, Mid laner or even the ADC. In teamfights, he should look to assassinate whoever is vulnerable.
Malzahar: As his ultimate is point and click CC, he can easily keep one enemy champion locked down in a teamfight. This will allow his team to focus them and gain a free kill. Furthermore, if somebody CC locks an enemy champion who has mispositioned, Malzahar can stop them from escaping by casting his ultimate.
Ashe: Her ultimate is fabulous at stunning targets and locking them in position. If you can get a long-ranged stun, it will increase the length of time they’re stunned. This would allow her allies to follow up and hopefully kill the stunned target. Additionally, she will also have lots of consistent damage thanks to the items she will build, her Q and her overall damage.
Blitzcrank: Blitzcrank’s Rocket Grab can pick out targets to start a teamfight. His pull can be extremely useful at taking down targets assuming he can hit them. Making a clutch play by pulling in one of the squishier carries on the enemy team will make teamfighting much easier. Blitzcrank or any hook champion will need to avoid pulling in somebody who can engage as it may favor the enemy.
Tips and Tricks
In this section, we will go over some specific teamfighting tips and tricks that will help you win when playing as this team composition.
How to counter a pick composition
To counter a pick composition, you need to stop getting caught out of position in order to teamfight the enemy. As they rely on picks, doing whatever you can to keep you and your allies safe is a must. Here’s what you need to do to beat the enemy.
Team comps and champions who counter a pick comp are:
When perfected, a split push team composition can be incredibly deadly and difficult to play against. However you see it, it’s biggest strength can also be its biggest weakness- which often gets exploited by the right team composition. When playing as and against a split push comp- timing is everything.
A Split Push team composition doesn’t really want to teamfight every second of the game. Instead, they try to split up and take down towers or objectives and gain a gold advantage through good macro. This composition comes in a few variations which include 1-4-0, 0-4-1 and 1-3-1. However, in this section we will only focus on the first two. There will be another section later on discussing how to play in a 1-3-1 comp.
This team comprises of champions that are good at split pushing and are good at clearing waves. This is because they are able to push relatively fast in order to reduce or apply pressure. As the enemy may have the numbers advantage in a teamfight, having champions with good wave clear will provide your team with some protection to stop the enemy from taking down your towers.
The strategy for this type of team comp is rather simple; split up and look for clues your team will need to group closely together while 1 or 2 players split push. Usually, this will be either an assassin, a mage or a bruiser who does the split pushing as they will have wave clear and good kill potential on enemies who try to contest. You should avoid putting someone that lacks kill potential in a side lane as they will be unable to apply any pressure there. For example, a 0-4 Zed in a side lane will not have the greatest of kill power because he will not be able to assassinate the enemy. The enemy could just wave clear and make it difficult for him to apply pressure.
While they’re split pushing, the other 3 (or 4) team mates will need to play around the middle lane and try to clear waves and siege when the enemy is drawn away. From there, they can either follow the enemy or take a tower nearby.
To win as this team, you will need to rely on the other members to not over extend or get caught out of position. While 1 or 2 members of your team split push, the rest of your team should stick around the middle lane (or another lane): wave clearing and not over extending. You should be able to apply and deny pressure in the middle lane while your other laners split push and apply pressure there. Potentially, this will split the enemy up and allow you to apply pressure in 3 lanes at once.
If the enemy leaves the middle lane to stop somebody from split pushing, the grouped players will need to push the wave and apply pressure to the tower. This way, the enemy will either forfeit a side tower, forfeit the mid lane, or waste time. Your teammates in the middle lane should not really teamfight unless they are able to (such as if the enemy leaves to go to another lane) as the enemy can just turn the teamfight in their favor.
Realistically speaking, this team composition is really difficult to execute and win as in Solo Queue because it relies on communication.
Example Team Composition
As a Split push team composition doesn’t always want to split push, nor does it always want to group, you are somewhat limited into what champion characteristics your team can have. For example, you will require 1 or 2 champions that are able to split push and 3 other champions that synergise well together.
Jax: One of the best split pushers in the game thanks to his wave clear and bruiser-style gameplay. He is also one of the best duelers and split pushers in the game because of his E and W. Jax works great in this comp as he will be able to fight anybody who comes to contest his split push.
Sejuani: Sej will be the tank and the frontliner for her team. She will be the protection her team requires to survive in the middle lane while the other lanes split push. It’s advised to have a tank to be in the middle lane with the non-split pushing champions so the enemy doesn’t jump on them.
Ahri: Ahri is able to split push as she has good wave clear thanks to her Q. She can also (to some extent) assassinate enemies who try to contest her from split pushing. Ahri can play the role of split pusher or stick with her other teammates in the middle lane. In addition, her Charm (E) will allow her to try and catch enemies who have miss positioned.
Sivir: If her team is split pushing, Sivir can just play passive and clear waves in the mid lane. Thanks to her Q and W, she will have no trouble defending and preventing the enemy from taking down towers. Her ultimate can also be used to disengage and escape if the enemy tries to ambush her team.
Janna: Has the ability to disengage in case the enemy tries to engage on her team when they’re grouped as 3 or 4. She can use her Tornado (Q) to knock up and prevent the enemy from engaging, while also utilising her ultimate to knockback and stun them- delaying and unraveling their engage.
Tips and Tricks
In this section, we will go over some specific teamfighting tips and tricks that will help you win when playing as this team composition.
If you’re struggling to know when you can and can’t split push, we’ve made a separate split pushing guide in the past that can help you out.
How to counter a split push team composition
A Split push composition is a team that doesn’t always want to teamfight. Instead, they may want to disengage from the fight and just let their split pushers do the work. This is how you beat them.
Team comps and champions who counter a split push comp are:
This composition relies heavily on being able to engage on the enemy when they’re caught out of position, or when they’re over extended. This comp relies heavily on communication, and are required to have good map awareness at all times. Without good map awareness and knowing where their allies are, they might end up going in at the wrong time or going in without their teammates.
An engage composition is a team that tries to engage on the enemy as soon as they step one foot out of place. By grouping closely together, they are able to overwhelm the enemy and win teamfights by engaging.
They usually will stick together as 5 because there is safety in numbers. But also because it allows them to have a higher impact in teamfights. For example, if there is only 1 champion who can engage, they may struggle at actually fighting. Whereas if they had 3 champions that can engage, there would be no trouble as everyone can go in at the same time and use their abilities in synchronization to win the fight.
For this team to win and fight effectively, they need to be on the same page. If there is confusion among the ranks, it will be really difficult for you to come out ahead because you will lack a consistent and effective engage. For example, only half your team engaging while the rest stay passively behind. This is where communication and in game awareness comes in handy.
Communication and map awareness is so important in this team composition because you will need to see where your allies are at all times. If they’re not nearby, then you cannot and should not engage. Additionally, you will need to have good communication to interact with your team to describe your intentions. For example, saying “I’m going to engage.”
To win as this team and to increase your chances of being able to engage, you will need to engage as soon as you can, and not have a standoff with the enemy. This is because they will be able to poke you down which may force you to recall or not engage. By engaging almost immediately- you will be reducing this issue.
Example Team Composition
Engage compositions are one of the most accepting comps in the game. Many different champions work beautifully in this composition and here are just a few.
Renekton: Renekton has good follow up and is able to get into the teamfight thanks to his E. However he cannot necessarily be the engage that his team wants or needs. While he can ambush the enemy, he cannot get onto the backline by running directly at them. As Renekton will be building damage and defensive items like The Black Cleaver or Sterak’s Gage, he will be able to deal and soak damage in teamfights thanks to his ultimate, which should help his team come out ahead.
Amumu: Amumu is a tank who can be the frontline for his team. While relatively immobile, his Q will allow him to get in to enemy lines. Once there, he can follow up with his ultimate which should provide his team with enough time so they can reposition and follow up. Until the mid-to-late game, he will be rather squishy so it might be difficult for him to engage. This is where he should look to flank the enemy instead of rather than running straight at them with his Q.
Lissandra: Lissandra is a perfect example of a champion that can engage on the enemy but also protect herself. She can engage with her E, root the enemy with her W, and then intomb herself with her ultimate. Lissandra is really strong in an engage team composition because she can get in and get out relatively safely. Also, she has the follow up that her frontliners need: her E will allow her to reposition and follow up at her team’s request.
Lucian: What more is there to say about Lucian apart from him naturally being great at dealing damage and following up when his team engages thanks to his kit. His ultimate is fantastic in teamfights and will drain the enemies health bar when they’re locked in position through layered crowd control. In addition, he can also use his E to reposition and close the gap between him and the enemy. This means that Lucian will be able to consistently deal damage in teamfights- perfect in any team comp.
Alistar: Alistar is one of those champions that is really good at engaging and teamfighting. So it makes sense to include him in this team composition. Ali is really good in teamfights because he is a tank champion. His kit also compliments him greatly- allowing him to knock up multiple champions at once. A simple W+Q combo or Flash W+Q can be one way he engages. However, Ali can also make good use of Hextech-Flash and use it to flank or ambush the enemy. As you can see, he is great in this comp.
Tips and Tricks
In this section, we will go over some specific teamfighting tips and tricks that will help you win when playing as this team composition.
How to counter an engage comp
Engage comps can be difficult to play as and against in Solo Queue due to the lack of communication. However, you can potentially use this disadvantage to your advantage. Here are some other tips to beat an engage comp.
Team comps and champions who counter an engage comp are:
A Dive composition is rather difficult to play against as it leaves no place safe for your team. It’s a composition that loves to dive the enemy under tower and siege objectives. More often than not, when this team groups and threatens a tower, the enemy has to react or back off, otherwise they will get dove and killed. This comp usually has multiple tanks or Assassins so they can dive under tower. This comp is great in Solo Queue as there are a vast number of champions that can join and work well within it.
A dive comp is undoubtedly one of the better teamfighting comps in the game. The enemy will find it difficult to teamfight and play against them as there will be little to no protection provided by their towers. Because of their excellent teamfighting capability, they will always be able to pressure objectives one after another. For instance, after sieging and taking one tower, they can rotate to another objective and try to siege that tower as well- or take an alternative objective like Drake.
To get the most out of this team comp, you should always let the tanks tank the tower agro first. This is because towers reduce damage taken and deal tons of damage over time. Turrets gain 40% additional damage each time they strike a champion- which maxes out at 120% additional damage. Imagine you’re the ADC tanking the turret- you’re basically taking free damage for no reason. This will definitely cause a sway in the teamfight.
There are a few things to keep in mind when playing as this team composition. Even though you’re playing as a dive comp, you do not need to always dive the enemy- you can just siege the objective and try to take the tower. By positioning aggressively, you can threaten a tower dive and force the enemy to back away from their tower. This is true even when you do not want to dive the enemy. If they over extend and try to defend it, your team can pull the trigger and dive them. This is a really good thing to do if the enemy has multiple squishy champions.
All though diving the enemy under their tower may not always be possible by running directly at them. Instead, you may have to use the terrain to your advantage by flanking the enemy while they sit cosy under their tower.
Much like every other team composition in the game, for them to be able to win teamfights effectively, every member of the team will need to be on the same page. Otherwise, your team may dive a tower and have no follow up from the other members. As the tanks don’t deal much damage, they may get killed by going in without any follow up damage. So, it is important that you communicate, and have good map awareness so everyone is on the same page.
Example Team Composition
A Dive composition is similar to an engage composition due to the fact that they will need to engage. Here is an example team composition that is pretty good at diving the enemy.
Malphite: Is a tank champion who can become unstoppable while ulting. Having somebody who is a tank and can also engage will give the squishier champions on your team some respite as they will not take tower aggro. In addition, as Malphite’s passive gives him a shield, he will not always have to risk his health bar if he can go in with his shield up. This means he can tank for longer when needed.
Kayn: Can get over walls and dive the enemy with his E. If he is ahead and is in blue form, he will be able to one shot the squishy targets under their own tower (but he may die for it). Red Kayn on the other hand is perfect in this situation as he will be able to dive the tower and make it out alive. His kit is perfect in a dive composition.
Leblanc: Leblanc is an assassin that can deal lots of damage in an incredibly short amount of time. She is also really good at getting over walls and taking down enemies with her W. If you pick Leblanc and play to the side of a teamfight, you will be able to dive with no problems.
Xayah: Has lots of AOE damage in teamfights, especially if she builds Runaan’s Hurricane. Making good use of Xayah’s passive and her E, she can leave multiple feathers behind the enemy when she goes to trade. She can then pull them back to herself when she sees fit and hopefully root the enemy. If there are lots of feathers around- she can root multiple enemies. In addition, she also has her ultimate which is a safety net just in case things go wrong.
Alistar: Thanks to Alistar’s ultimate, he is able to dive the enemies tower and activate his ultimate to reduce incoming damage. This will allow him to tank the tower for a good portion of the teamfight. He also has crowd control on all of his other abilities, making him perfect at locking down enemies under their tower. On top of that, Alistar is also an engage champion and will not struggle at engaging when needed.
Tips and Tricks
In this section, we will go over some specific teamfighting tips and tricks that will help you win when playing as this team composition.
How to Counter
How do you prevent them? By not letting them dive of course!
Team comps and champions who counter a dive comp are:
A 1-3-1 team composition is a split push comp- similar to one we described earlier. Apart from a few key differences. This composition is basically the same and requires the team to play around objectives to open up the map and gain a lead. They rely on the enemy not being able to coordinate with one another to gain free objectives.
A 1-3-1 team composition is a variation of a split push comp. We won’t go into too much detail because we would be basically copy and pasting the information over. The only variation between this composition and a traditional split push composition is that there are only 3 champions in the middle lane, and 2 champions in the side lanes split pushing.
The main differences between a split push comp and a 1-3-1 comp is how many champions are split pushing. In some split push comps, there may only be 1 player split pushing in the top or bottom side of the map. Where as in this comp there will always be 1 player topside, 3 in the middle and 1 hugging botlane.
This comp can be rather difficult to execute in Solo Queue because it relies on impeccable map awareness and pressure to work properly. It requires the side lanes to work in conjunction with the middle lane and vise versa. For example, when the enemy backs off and rotates to a side wave, the players in the middle lane will need to communicate what’s happening and apply pressure in the mid lane.
Example Team Composition
A 1-3-1 team composition is basically the same as a Split Push composition as they both contain champions that will split push while others stay in the middle lane defending towers and avoiding skirmishes. Because of this, you will need two split pushers, somebody who can disengage and somebody with wave clear. Here’s an example team comp.
Shen: Has decent damage and wave clear if he builds Tiamat. Shen’s ultimate is what makes him perfect in a 1-3-1 comp. If he sees that his allies are struggling, he can just activate his ultimate and be there within a flash. He also has good trading potential once he has some items behind him like Tiamat, Sunfire Cape or Adaptive Helm.
Rumble: Rumble has good wave clear and kill potential when he is grouped with his team. He is able to catch out and slow enemies- which can help picking up kills with his E. Rumble also has a way of escaping with his W that can provide him with a shield and a small bonus amount of movement speed. His ultimate will also come in handy at displacing and clearing minion waves because it deals a lot of damage in a wide radius. The Equalizer (his R) can also be used to prevent the enemy from escaping or walking through parts of the lane by placing it towards their general direction.
Fizz: If Fizz is ahead, he has a lot of kill potential. This makes it rather difficult for anybody to stop him from pushing. Thanks to his ultimate, he is able to 1v1 basically anyone who comes to contest and stop him from pushing. You can use Fizz’s overall champion design to your advantage by clearing waves and dealing damage with his E. Or he escape and back away with his W. Fizz has a lot of manoeuvrability and outplay potential which will help him back away if needed.
Caitlyn: Caitlyn is rather good at sieging towers and dealing damage whenever the enemy moves to another lane. She doesn’t have the best- but far from the worse wave clear which will help you clear waves if the enemy tries to push. She also has some kill potential and can easily finish of enemies with her ultimate. Caitlyn can also use her traps to prevent the enemy from moving around parts of the map. For example, if she is sieging a tower, she can place them to the side of her team so they don’t get collapsed upon.
Karma: One of the biggest issues with split pushing and split pushing compositions is that it’s hard for the team to stay composed and not get caught out of position. Luckily, Karma can empowered her E to protect her team and get them away from the enemy. She can also use her Q to clear minion waves if the enemy looks to be trying to engage. Additionally, her W can root one enemy- which can provide her team with some bonus protection.
Tips and Tricks
In this section, we will go over some specific teamfighting tips and tricks that will help you win when playing as this team composition.
How to Counter
Playing against a 1-3-1 team composition requires a lot of communication and quick decision making. You must make sure that the players contesting the side lanes are able to 1v1 the enemy otherwise they will be over-pressured and forfeit towers. Thankfully, lack of communication and planning will work heavily in your favor.
Team comps and champions who counter a 1-3-1 team composition are:
An AOE or Area of Effect team composition is one of the best team comps to play as during the mid-game.It is also one of the easiest compositions to play in- assuming you’re fighting in a tight area of the map. Without overhyping this team any further, let’s discuss.
In an AOE team composition, you will need to group closely together to succeed and beat the enemy. You cannot split up too much because you will reduce your teams chances of winning a teamfight as everybodies damage is heavily relied upon. While this team composition is good at fighting anywhere, to have a better chance of winning a teamfight, you can fight in small areas around the map such as inside the jungle, or around objectives. This is because the enemy will be quite close together which will allow you to hit more champions with your abilities.
With that said, this team is fantastic at taking objectives and teamfighting because they have so much pressure when they are grouped together. This is why there is added emphasis on sticking nearby.
The strategy and win condition for this team comp is very straightforward. All you have to do is group together and try to fight the enemy as one. By letting your front line go in first, they can lock the enemy in position while the rest of the team repositions and starts to dish out damage.
Because this team is pretty good at teamfighting, you will need to make sure that your team is on the same page and that you have good awareness of what is happening around you. For example, if you are playing as the front line, make sure your allies are in a position to follow up and deal damage. You do not want to go in when they are not in a position to help you as you will be sacrificing yourself. Additionally, you should also have good awareness of who on your team has their ultimates available. As this team relies heavily on AOE damage, you need to make sure that your allies have their AOE abilities available to them also.
Before engaging in any teamfight, make sure you and your allies have mana available to you. If you do not have any mana, it will catastrophically reduce your chances of winning the fight as you will lack consistent damage. You should make good use of both sides blue buffs whenever possible. Make sure somebody on your team takes your blue buff and when possible try to steal and nab the enemies away from them. Having two blue buffs on your team will allow those champions to dish out consistent damage which is needed in an AOE team comp.
Example Team Composition
An AOE team composition is a team that has multiple champions with AOE (area of effect) abilities that work together in conjunction with one another to deal tons of damage to the enemy. Here are some champions that have AOE abilities and work well together.
Rumble: Rumble is a fantastic champion that is perfect in an AOE team. First off, he has an AOE Q that spits fire in front of him so when he is facing multiple champions, he will deal a lot of damage to multiple enemies at once. His ultimate is also very good in teamfights, especially if the enemy is locked in position or in a tight area. If Rumble were to use his ultimate in a choke point like the jungle or around an objective, he will be able to hit all of the enemies at once.
Amumu: Amumu’s ultimate has a rather large radius which fits snugly into an AOE team composition like this. Because it is huge, you are able to hit multiple enemies at once, which can keep them locked down while your team repositions and follows up. Amumu is also a tank so he can be the frontline for his team and protect them while they deal all the “real” damage.
Cassiopeia: Cassiopeia has 3 abilities that are AOE skill shots and one ability that is targeted. Because of this, Cassiopeia is amazing in an AOE team as she has multiple abilities that accommodate it. The main reason we’ve gone with Cassiopeia in this team comp is because of her ultimate and oh boy can it be a game changer. If Cass is able to hit multiple facing enemies with it, the teamfight is basically GG because the rest of her team can follow up while they’re turned to stone.
Jinx: Jinx’s Q can be switched between a standard auto attack to, an AOE one at the cost of attack speed and mana. With the change of her damage output, utilising her rockets will deal damage to multiple champions at once if they’re close by one another. She also will gain bonus range which means she can deal more damage further away- providing herself with some protection. In addition, many Jinx players build Runaan’s Hurricane which interacts with her Q. This means she can deal even more damage to multiple champions at once.
Brand: Brand is a champion that is notorious for AOE damage. In teamfights, he can completely melt the enemy lineup if they try to fight him. Brand’s kit and passive is very good and benefits his abilities greatly. Brand is really good in teamfights thanks to his ultimate which can bounce between nearby enemies. When they’re close together and locked down, he can easily shred through their health bars. Honestly, Brand can deal so much AOE damage if he gets the opportunity to it’s unbelievable.
Tips and Tricks
In this section, we will go over some specific teamfighting tips and tricks that will help you win when playing as this team composition.
How to Counter
Failing to recognize the win conditions of an AOE team composition can be deadly. They rely heavily around working together and fighting as one. Stop them from doing this by using these tips and tricks.
Team comps and champions who counter an AOE comp are
A counter engage team comp is a team that tries to hold off from engaging entirely because it doesn’t necessarily have the ability to do so. Instead, they try to let the enemy engage first, and think that they have the advantage. They then proceed to turn the teamfight on its axis and totally wipe the floor with the enemy.
This team composition comprises of champions that are good at fighting, but don’t necessarily have the ability to engage. This is one reason why this comp is called a counter engage comp. It will usually consist of champions that have AOE or crowd control abilities in order to do the most damage in the shortest amount of time.
To win as this team composition, your team needs to avoid being caught out of position or splitting up to much. There is definitely power in numbers, and as your team relies heavily on being grouped as 5 to deal the maximum amount of damage- splitting up will have deadly consequences.
In some ways, this team is basically the same as an engage composition apart from the fact that this team doesn’t want to (always) engage. Though they’re both similar in the way they want to stick together and fight as 5.
Note that this team can engage if they have champions who can engage and start the teamfight.
Example Team Composition
A counter engage composition is a mix of champions with AOE abilities, crowd control and self-peeling abilities like dashes or escapes. As a counter engage comp wants the enemy to engage on them, they will benefit greatly from being able to use their abilities in combination with one another. Anyway, let’s discuss an example team comp.
Illaoi: Illaoi can have a good time in teamfights if she is able to let the enemy engage once she has a few tentacles around her. Illoai gets a lot of bonus damage through hitting her E, so it is vital that she’s able to do that in order to burst the enemy down. Her ultimate is crucial in teamfights and without it- you will see a huge decrease in damage.
Kindred: Kindred is on the other side of the spectrum when it comes to teamfighting. Her ultimate will stop her allies from being destroyed as soon as the enemy engages on her team as it prevents anybody from hitting lethal.
Karthus: Is notorious in teamfights because of his damage output and his passive. Karthus can deal a lot of AOE damage in the teamfight once multiple enemies have surrounded him thanks to his E. However, he must not use his ultimate until he is in a safe position to do so or after he has died because it may get cancelled.
Xayah: One of the few AD Carries in the game with self-peel. Her ultimate will be very useful at keeping herself alive and dodging the enemies damage as she can just pop it to get away.
Zyra: Zyra’s ultimate is fantastic in close combat teamfights because it can knock multiple champions up at once. As the enemy would be engaging, they would be rather close to Zyra and her team which will make it easy for her to get multiple knock ups.
This team composition can be goodat disengaging if need be thanks to Zyra’s ult and Kindred’s ultimate. Obviously, they are also really good at teamfighting if the enemy engages on them.
Tips and Tricks
In this section, we will go over some specific teamfighting tips and tricks that will help you win when playing as this team composition.
How to counter a counter-engage comp
Unfortunately, countering this team composition can be difficult if you don’t have the right team comp. You will need to rely heavily on team coordination, skill and self discipline to not do what the enemy wants you to do.
Team comps and champions who counter a counter engage comp are:
A team without any real composition is limited in what it can do. It doesn’t always have any tanks, it doesn’t always have peel, and it cannot always fight. This is why learning to play in a team which is pretty vanilla is super important because it is something that we see often in Solo Queue.
A team with no definitive team composition is a group of champions that don’t really have any strong points and no specific strength. For example, they may not have poke or sustain. They may also lack synergy and not be able to really co-operate or interact on the same level because their champions just don’t mesh well. One of the most dominant strengths a team comp can have is the ability to dive. However, in a team composition such as this: you may not have anything that is apparent at first.
Variations of this composition are far from uncommon in Solo Queue, which can make it difficult to single out what you need to do without a reliable context. So, winning as this comp can be quite challenging because there are so many different variations to it.
Setting up ambushes is something that will always work no matter what team composition you are in. I would recommend that you look to set up an ambush when possible so you’re able to gain kills and win the following teamfight afterwards. As you may not have any specific team composition, the enemy with a clear comp can slice right through you. But this way, you may have a chance at getting kills and snowballing them into a lead.
We can’t go into too much detail about how you can teamfight as this composition because there is so much variation around it. Instead, I would recommend that you read a section later on that discusses how to play as any specific role. Knowing how to play your role effectively will allow you to naturally adapt to the context any circumstance you find yourself in.
I would highly suggest you avoid playing in a comp with no clear way of winning as you will find it is incredibly difficult to beat the enemy in teamfights when they have a half decent comp.
Example Team Composition
As suggested, this team doesn’t really have anything that is super apparent or reliable to win teamfights with. For example, it may not have many tank champions or champions who can engage. There is a huge array of champions that fit into a team composition like this in Solo Queue. This example team composition we are going to suggest is not far from a real comp seen in Solo Queue.
Sion: Is a tank champion that will be the frontline for his team. He can use his ultimate to start a teamfight and try and knock up enemies who are walking past bushes with his Q. Sion is also a very adaptive champion because he can group with his allies and teamfight where he can be the frontline or be used to peel. He can also be a split pusher if needed.
Rengar: Rengar will struggle in teamfights if he is behind because he will not be able to assassinate anyone. It’s best for him to try and avoid going in to assassinate or one shot anyone, if he is unsure he can do it as he will be sacrificing himself. This is a pretty obvious statement, yet a lot of Assassins try to make this play with poor results. But, when he is enabled and when him and his allies are on the same page- he can deal damage. His Q will help him deal damage, while his W and E will provide him with some utility.
Heimerdinger: Can be good in teamfights if he is given the time to place his turrets. In this team comp, he wouldn’t really be able to do too much if Sion tries to engage as he will be left behind. However, Heimerdinger can look to initiate a teamfight by using his ultimate and upgrading his grenades to stun and slow the enemy.
Draven: Draven is a really good ADC when ahead but he sucks at teamfighting if he doesn’t have any peel or protection. As this team doesn’t really have anything to protect him as much as he would like, you will find it is going to be difficult for him to be able to kite and pick up his axes. Mechanically demanding champions need a composition that benefits them and without it, they’re going to find it incredibly difficult to teamfight.
Lux: Is a Support that is seen quite frequently in lower ELOs. Many of the lower ELO Supports we’ll build this champion as full AP. Building AP Lux won’t really help her ADC apart from the CC and the shield she can provide. On the other hand, Lux’s kit is quite good at dealing burst damage if she is able to hit her skill shots and is able to poke before a teamfight occurs.
I know you can turn around and say “well, this team comp is so and so…” and yes, that is true to some extent. However, it is the fact that this team lacks any form of real dominant power in one aspect or another. For example, it only has one champion who can be the front line, it only has one champion who can engage, and it only has one champion that can deal consistent damage. The problem is, this composition is not far from something that many players meet in a daily basis on Summoners Rift. So, we’re not even being deliberately petty with this comp.
Tips and Tricks
In this section, we will go over some specific teamfighting tips and tricks that will help you win when playing as this team composition.
How to counter a team with no real composition
Countering this team composition is rather easy if you have a proper team composition. Here are some tips and tricks to use when you’re playing against a team with no real team composition.
Team comps and champions who counter a comp with no comp are:
If you don’t want to teamfight, poking them down will allow you to take objectives instead by forcing the enemy away from an objective.
Personally, I would advise that you avoid playing as these team compositions because they put you at a disadvantage from the beginning of the game. If you find yourself in one of these teams, be prepared to dodge the game, as you’re not going to be in for an easy ride.
In my opinion, if it’s your first dodge of the day, I would recommend that you dodge and take the minus 3LP as it will save yourself some time, stress and aggro. However, if it’s anything after the first dodge- then unfortunately, you may have to play it through. You can use our advice so you never fall into this trap again.
There are a few things you can do to avoid running into this issue:
If you’re struggling to make or find your champion pool, check out our guide on how to build one.
Team Comp 1: A full AD team.
What is the comp:
A full AD team composition is just as suggested: it’s a team with 5 champions who deal primarily AD damage. This team composition can still be considered full AD with the Support being an AP champion if they’re not a traditional damage dealer. For example, Janna, Nami, Lulu and Soraka can all deal damage- but do not do enough damage to be considered as the AP carry. This team doesn’t include mage-like Supports such as Zyra or Brand because they build AP items.
The issues with this team composition:
The biggest issue with this team composition is that the enemy can easily counter you by purchasing armour items. The enemy can just stack armour items like Ninja Tabi, Chain Vest, Dead Man’s Plate or Seeker’s Armguard and counter you directly. If the enemy are smart, they will also choose champions that directly counter a full AD team composition such as tanks who can focus heavily on armour rather than buying magic resist.
Why you should avoid playing as this comp:
You should avoid playing as this team composition because it is incredibly difficult to win teamfights with and win the game. This is because the enemy can just build armour items to protect themselves. For example, Ninja Tabi will stop a lot of your auto attack damage, which will reduce the chances of you being able to kill the enemy. As the enemy would be alive for longer, it will be really difficult for you to stay alive.
Assassins are also useless in these types of team comps because you will not be able to burst any champion down. Zed is an assassin that (to some extent) relies on the enemy being squishy in order to execute them. However, if everyone is stacking armour, it will be difficult for him to do it in a teamfight.
How to counter this comp:
Full AD team compositions are more common than many players think. Fortunately, they’re rather specific but do have room for variation. Here are 3 tips to counter them directly, make sure you utilise them well to earn that free LP.
Team Comp 2: A full AP team.
What is the comp:
A full AP team composition is a team that consists of mostly AP, if not all, AP champions. As AP champions can be played in the bottom lane alongside traditional ADC’s and melee champions, a full AP composition is far from uncommon. However, out of all of the team comps we advise against playing, this is by far the rarest because of the recent meta changes.
The issues with this team composition:
Most mages are rather squishy and easily killed in teamfights. This might make it rather difficult for your team to fight as you may get killed all at once. However, to counter this, your team will have burst damage which will help you kill the enemy. At least it would, if they were not stacking magic resist.
When you’re playing against a full AP comp, the enemy can just build magic resist or health items like Adaptive Helm or Banshee’s Veil to protect themselves. This will make it rather difficult for your team to burst anybody down.
Why you should avoid playing as this comp:
You should avoid playing as this comp because you will not be able to deal sufficient damage to the enemy in teamfights as the enemy will just stack magic resist and health. Furthermore, you will lack consistent damage in teamfights because everyone will be waiting for their next set of abilities to come up. Compared to a traditional comp with an ADC, you will specifically lack auto attack damage and miss out on the consistency that the role provides.
How to counter this comp:
When there are multiple AP champions on a team, you’ll need to make sure you don’t let the enemy bloom and be able to deal lots of damage. One way of doing this is by abusing the fact that they’re mages.
Team Comp 3: A full melee team
What is the comp:
A full melee team is a team that is comprised of melee champions filling its roster. Much like some other compositions, there sometimes can be one ranged champion in the mix- like a traditional ADC but for the most part, the rest of the team is melee.
The issues with this team composition:
The main issue with playing as this team composition is that you will be melee and unable to deal damage at range. This means that you will need to be face to face and within the enemy lines to teamfight.
Furthermore, the enemy will be able to kite away or disengage from your team- which will make it even harder for you to stick to the enemy. Combining this with immobile champions, there’s no chance of being able to get on to the enemy.
Why you should avoid playing as this comp:
You should avoid playing as this team composition because it is rather difficult to execute in a teamfight. As everyone is melee, you will struggle being able to get on- and stick to ranged champions. In higher ELO, this is going to be even more difficult because ADC’s will be able to kite you.
Additionally, this composition will struggle being able to actually engage and start the teamfight as you will not be able to just run at the enemy. This is because they will be able to poke you down and disengage.
You may also find that it is difficult to siege objectives and destroy towers too because you have to be right near the structures in order to deal damage to it. This may mean that you’re unable to siege at all or be able to whittle away at the towers when the enemy is around.
How to counter this comp:
Countering this team composition is really easy. All you need to do is play around the range advantage.
Team Comp 4: A team full of ranged champions.
What is the comp:
This team composition is not always a bad thing, but can be challenging to play as. This team comprises of 5 champions that are ranged with little to no melee damage. For example, a comp that doesn’t have any short-ranged abilities or engage potential.
The issues with this team composition:
The biggest problem with this composition is that you will most likely have no frontline in the teamfight. As you don’t have any tank champions, you will be soaking a lot more damage which can make it difficult to stay alive and come out ahead.
Furthermore, there are a limited number of ranged tanks or ranged champions that are a tank. Apart from Gnar, Lissandra and a few others, there’s not many players who can be tanky, ranged and be able to engage a teamfight.
Why you should avoid playing as this comp:
You should avoid playing as this team because you lack frontline and the ability to engage or teamfight. Because of this, the enemy could just engage on your team whenever they’re ready- and you won’t have any control over when a teamfight happens.
How to counter this comp:
Ranged team compositions are a bugger to play against because it will be difficult for you to lock them down and get in range of them. Nevertheless, make sure you go deep with your team to kill them off one by one. Furthermore, don’t let them poke you down. A ranged comp will have lots of poke potential which can make it difficult for you to fight against.
Pick range.
A range team composition we’ll always have the range advantage over melee champions. This is why you should try to pick ranged champions to play against them. This is because a ranged team can easily kite away and escape from any melee champions. For example, in a traditional teamfight, Darius will usually take down the front line, but if he is getting kited in teamfights, it will be very difficult for him to get on to somebody when they’re all ranged.
Let’s get down to business, team compositions are somewhat overrated in League of Legends because you don’t need to have a full team dedicated around a play style or team comp to win. For example, you don’t need to have all 5 champions with a knock up or AOE damage to work in an AOE or wombo combo comp.
Instead, you may only have a few champions who do that sort of thing and still be considered as a specific composition. For example, you may only have a Jungler or a Support with a knock up and still be considered as a wombo combo team. For poke comps, you don’t even have to have 5 champions that can poke: it may only be one or two champions that can poke and still be considered as a poke comp.
Many team compositions are all about individual play style and champion characteristics. Figuratively, if you were to stick a bunch of your favorite champions into a blender, you would see that they would work in basically any composition, and work in many different comps.
That’s not to say that team comps are useless or overrated and you’ve wasted your time reading everything up to here. Undoubtedly, there are some champions that favor working together and some champions that don’t like working together at all. There are also some champions that directly benefit certain comps like a Yasuo in a wombo combo team.
Instead of stressing about making the perfect team composition, worry about working as a team and having a group of champions that synchronise well with one another. This is something that should be your top priority as you don’t want to pick somebody in a comp that won’t benefit them. As an example, if Yasuo doesn’t have any teammates that can provide him with a knock up, his ultimate can be rather restricting as he has to rely heavily on his tornado to be the only way of knocking enemies up.
In short, don’t worry too much about what team comp you fit in to. Instead, focus on playing your champion in favorable situations where your champions will work in sync with one another to win the teamfight. Try to limit the situations where you’re fighting poorly or inefficiently for maximum chances of winning the game.
There are 145 different champions in League of Legends and every one of them is different from the last. You can have all the theory crafting and analysis to help you win, but there is always going to be a spanner thrown into the works. Just play to your champions strengths and win conditions while playing around your weaknesses to come out ahead.
To finish off this section, teamfighting in League of Legends is incredibly situational and there is an extreme learning curve that can only be learnt from playing the game. If you’re new to League, worry about getting the basics down before worrying about team comps.
In the top lane, there are a variety of different champions and play styles that can perform well there. This makes it hard to describe what a Top laner, or any laner in fact should do in a teamfight. We’re half way now, but are only starting what many players need to learn- which is how to teamfight as any specific role or champion type. But, the win conditions of your champion and role may differ to what is suggested, so keep this in mind.
To help you grasp what you should be doing in a teamfight, we’re going to break down your:
Additionally, we will also provide you with some general tips and tricks to help you beat the enemy as each lane/role. To help us structure this, we will discuss each role and break it down from there. This will not only help you make it clearer to read, but also easier for you to understand and incorporate it into your own gameplay.
Like suggested, there are many different champions that can be played in the top lane. From tanks to fighters and sometimes even mages, many different champion classes work well there. I recommend that you learn how every role likes to teamfight, so you’re able to know what you should be doing and what the enemy may look to be doing.
For example, if the enemy has multiple tanks, you will understand what to expect for them and what you need to do to counter them.
Fundamentals and Teamfight Objectives as a Top Laner
Because there are many different classes that can be played in the top lane, the fundamentals or teamfighting goals will change depending on which champion archetype you’re playing. Your goals may also change depending on which champion you are, and who the enemy team consists of.
We will start with tank champions as they’re one of the more common themes that are seen throughout the rankings. Tank champions are the healthier champions on your team like Malphite or Maokai. They will usually be one of the main engagement tools, if not the only engage tool to start a teamfight.
For champions who are bruisers like Renekton or Darius, your goals are somewhat similar to the other playstyles. Instead of being the frontline, you’ll always need to be towards the front of your team.
For mages or champions who deal AP like Lissandra or Rumble, the fundamentals are pretty vanilla, and you can probably guess what they’re by now.
We will say this now rather than in every section- so keep this in mind for future reference. You’ll have to adapt to every in game situation. If the enemy are ahead or you are behind; you may not be able to do what is suggested as it may work against you. Try to adapt and do whatever is needed to win the teamfight.
Where to Position as a Top laner in Teamfights
Positioning is another thing that needs constant adaption and re-adaption as the game develops. In the first few exchanges, you may find that you have no success at being in the front line. This would call for urgent movement to a more defensive position as the game develops.
Unfortunately, not every champion archetype or role has the luxury of being able to swap positions like a tank and sometimes- it’s just tough luck.
As we are going to be providing you with a plethora of images and potential positioning suggestions, we are going to clarify what they mean now before we move on. This will also save us some time repeating ourselves for every image as we go along.
Each image or teamfight is broken down into 3 layers or sections. The first section is the ‘Front Line’. The champions that are in the front line of a team composition may be either tanks, engage champions, poke champions or champions who rely on picks. Many champions can fit into this category- but it’s highly situational. The mid section is the ‘Middle/ Back Line’ of the team composition. This is where your mages can go, your poke champs can be, the ADC’s or the Supports. The final line is the ‘Back Line’ and as you would expect, it holds the carries like mages, ADC’s and Supports.
Some images will not have a ‘backline’ per say where others will. There are a few reasons with one being that the (far) backline will hold champions who have long range abilities that can be used at a distance without needing to be close.
The arrow in every image indicates where your team will be going, and where the enemy team are. However, to avoid confusion, there are no enemies in these images as it would make the images rather difficult to read and understand. But just assume that there are enemies coming from where the arrow is pointing.
Finally, you may disagree with where we have placed some champions. As you will find out, many champions can go in many different lines. We are trying to put emphasis on you doing your job correctly and not positioning too far forward or in the wrong area. If you were to do these things- IE, be in the frontline as an ADC, it will limit what you and your team can do. So what I suggest is using all of these images as a basis to improve and work on your own positioning in teamfights.
For tank champions, you need to be in the front line ahead of all of your teammates- but not too far forward where you will be over extended. You will need to be in the front line so you are able to engage and be a threat to the enemy. Positioning here will also allow you to start a teamfight as soon as you see the opportunity to do so.
If you are standing in the back line, it can be very damaging for your team. First of all, it may allow the enemy to engage on you as you will not be in a position to do anything about it. Secondly, the enemy may be able to play aggressive because they know that you are no threat and you’re not going to engage anytime soon. In League of Legends, you have to play very theoretically and be mindful with your actions. Even though you may not want to engage, you need to apply this form of mental pressure on the enemy, and make them think that you are wanting to engage.
If you are playing somebody who can engage or is a bruiser, you will also need to be positioned towards the front of your team. This is so you are able to follow up if your team goes in, and also be able to deal damage. If you are a melee champion and are positioning too far backwards, you’re not going to be able to do any damage in the teamfight. So positioning in the front is most beneficial. (As a bruiser) You don’t necessarily need to be right within the front line, but you should be in a position to follow-up when your team goes in.
For mage champions, you will need to keep a constant eye on where your team is. If they are pushing forward, you will need to make sure you stay in the middle of them. You should always be towards the back end- or in the middle of your team for maximum protection.
If you position in the front line and are not playing somebody who can engage like Lissandra, you may become an easy target for the enemy and you may die at the start of the fight. As you need to do as much damage as you can, you can’t always position aggressively. You should be in line and around the same position as your AD Carry, your Support or Mid.
When playing as a champion who needs to engage or shut somebody down, but can’t really do so because they may be behind- or even the enemy may even have disengage, you might prefer to try and flank the enemy in order to do your job properly. To do this, your team should be close together while you are off to the side of them: out of vision, and then when the enemy overextends- you pounce.
Who to Focus in Teamfights
It’s very easy to over complicate teamfighting and suggest who you should focus in every situation. Realistically, all you need to do is focus whoever you can, and do as much damage as humanly possible. With that said, there are some favorable situations that may tempt you into focusing certain champions.
For tanks, you will be in the frontline and soaking most of the enemies damage to begin with. Keeping the enemies focused on yourself will allow your allies to deal damage while you soak everything up that the enemy throws towards your team. But who do you focus? Let’s use Malphite as an example. Malphite has the option of using his ultimate to knock up multiple enemy champions if they’re grouped together. He could then potentially stick to the enemies he has knocked up as long as he has the follow up from the rest of his team.
However, it may not always be possible for him to do this; especially if he is behind, or if he doesn’t have any follow up. This is where he may want to fall back after his initial engagement with the enemy and not focus the enemy back line anymore. To some extent, like a hit and run where he gets in and then gets out again- but in this case, retreats to the mid or backline. From there, Malphite or any other tank could peel for their team by using their abilities to keep the enemy from getting onto his teammates. Your carries will get extra protection, and hopefully survive for longer and deal more damage with Malphite protecting them.
This is a win-win situation, and a good call for action for many tank champions as they will not be putting themselves in an over extended position for long. For you KDA bandits out there, you will also not die as often, and you will be playing a crucial part of providing added protection to your allies. This may be a default action if you do not have anyone else on your team who can follow up and engage with you.
On the other hand, if your team is getting engaged upon, you will have to use your ultimate this way of protecting your allies and keeping them alive. If you were to ult the backline when the enemy frontline is already on your team mates- you’re basically wasting your ultimate as they will not be able to do anything with enemy CC’d.
You have to remember what a tank does. Rarely is a tank able to shutdown the enemy back line on their own. Nobody expects Malphite of all champions to kill the enemy backhand in these crucial teamfight situations.
If you are playing somebody with kill threat like a bruiser, you could also focus the enemy back line. As long as you have teammates who can also go in. However just like a tank, it is not always possible to do this. Instead you may wish to peel for your team and focus whoever is in the frontline. In many cases, this will be the enemies engage, or somebody equal to yourself.
Depending on where the teamfight is, you will not be able to run directly into the enemy’s backline and take them down. This is especially true if the enemy are engaging on your team. When the enemy is engaging like this, you will need to focus whoever you can and deal damage to whoever is closest to you.
When playing as a mage or somebody who isn’t going to be in the frontline, you will need to focus whoever the closest enemy target is during a teamfight. Unfortunately, this may be the enemies front line or in some cases, somebody who has walked to far forward and been caught out of position by your team.
While it makes sense to want to eliminate the enemy backline first and get rid of the enemies damage dealers, in reality, it doesn’t work like that. If you were to try and focus the enemy backline as a mage without any form of engage or survivability, you may die for your greediness which will cost your team the teamfight. Only make these risky grabs for the backline if you know they’re going to work in your favor.
With that said, if your team catches somebody out, you will need to take down the member who has been caught in your trap. You will need to provide the burst damage to kill them, and make use of this potential free kill.
Who you decide to focus in teamfights is entirely situational. This made explaining who to focus really difficult. We haven’t covered every teamfight situation because it’s basically impossible. For instance, if you engage, you could focus the enemy backline, but if the enemy engages- you may have to focus the frontline. Alternatively, if your team is behind, you may need to keep your focus on the enemy frontline and protect them.
Every player will need to adapt their target focus from teamfight to teamfight: and from game to game in order to come out ahead. If you’re still struggling to understand who to focus, I recommend that you try to do your research for your favorite champion. Through looking at Mobafire guides and just playing the game more. Experience plays a huge part in teamfights.
Teamfighting Tips and Tricks for the Top Laner
We’ve discussed how you may want to approach a teamfight when playing as a Top laner, now it’s time to give you some additional tips and tricks to truly enhance your teamfighting prowess.
Whether you are a tank, a mage or even a bruiser- you may be the only member on your team who can engage. Because of the sticky situation you’re in, your best bet may be to flank the enemy. If you’re not particularly healthy or tanky like when playing as a mage or a bruiser, flanking will be your default plan of action.
If the enemy are grouping together around a specific lane, you could try to sneak your way through the jungle and collapse on them while they’re over extended. As flanking can provide the element of surprise, you can use this to your advantage to have a slight lead at the beginning of the fight.
There are many places you can flank, and many forms of flanking work wonders in Solo Queue. Some of the better areas to flank are around towers like when a team is sieging an objective. You can also use the element of surprise to your advantage around Dragons and even Barons if you’re sure they’re unwarded.
Many Top laners will take the Summoner Spell Teleport. It is one of the best, if not the best macro orientated Summoner Spell in the game. In recent times, Riot has adjusted how this Summoner Spell interacts and you can no longer cancel it once you’ve started the channel (unless the enemy cancels it). Whether you like this change or not, once you start channelling Teleport, you will always be following through with your channel.
Teamfights can break out in the blink of an eye and some fights are over in seconds. When split pushing or when you’re not with your team, always keep an eye on what is happening.
If you notice that a teamfight is looking to erupt, be prepared to use your Teleport as soon as you can. Teleport has a 4 second channel which needs to be started as soon as possible. If the teamfight has already started, you need to Teleport immediately so you can get into the action and help your team. You should avoid delaying your channel for too long as the teamfight may finish or be near the end once you get there, and teleporting in may just be giving the enemy another free kill which in turn could result in Baron being taken.
Teleporting doesn’t just have to be reactive, you can use it to take the initiative. Like suggested, you can use your Teleport to flank the enemy or get a good engage onto them from another angle. For example, if the enemy is sieging an objective, you could teleport to a nearby ward and collapse on them.
In some cases, Teleport doesn’t need to be used- like if the teamfights already over. Teleport itself provides a lot of pressure for split pushing champions like Renekton or Jax as they can apply pressure and take an objective in one place, and within 4 seconds be somewhere else on the map.
Unfortunately, we can’t really tell you how to improve on, and how to use this Summoner Spell more appropriately because experience plays a huge part in it.
No matter who you’re playing, you can always look to peel for your other team mates whenever a teamfight has begun. Peeling and keeping your other team mates safe is a smart way of playing out teamfights because it can ensure that they will stay alive for longer and deal more damage because they’re being kept alive.
Instead of losing a teamfight and giving the enemy gold, you should stop trying to be the solo carry for your team. Focus heavily on being a secondary Support. Peeling and protecting your teammates will increase the chances of your team coming out ahead as you will be protecting them.
It doesn’t really matter which role you’re playing in the top lane as every role can peel and you will naturally find yourself peeling in teamfights. Peeling may be a default strategy for champions who are behind or who do not have much kill threat like a tank. For example, a tank may want to engage on the enemy, use whatever they can on the back line, and then fall back to their baseline (back line) and peel for their team. In addition, bruisers and tanks will not always be able to deal consistent damage or be able to dive into the enemy’s backline. This is where peeling for their team mates is a good strategy to have and a good action to tank when you’re not sure if you’re able to engage or be the frontline for your team.
We get it, you don’t like having to take the back seat or be in a weak position- nobody does. Unfortunately, everybody has to pull their weight and do what is needed to win the game. If you’re playing a champion that usually builds quite offensively before investing into defensive items like Renekton or Sion, you should buy some defensive items instead of raw damage when behind.
As you’re behind, you will not be able to do what you’re usually capable of. This makes teamfighting difficult as you cannot dish out the damage you may want to. Building tank and defensive items instead of damage can be more beneficial for you and your team. For example, Renekton will usually get a few AD centric items before going more defensively. This is good because he will be able to deal damage, but also bad for him as he will not be tanky.
When a champion isn’t tanky, they can get destroyed immediately in teamfights if they are not able to kill the enemy quickly enough. However, buying defensive items can allow them to get tankier and be able to soak a little more damage. As you’re behind, you won’t be killing anyone on your own, and building damage will not help you as you won’t be able to get into a position to kill the enemy.
Like suggested above, you will need to peel for your team when you’re behind, so buying AD or AP will not really protect them as the enemy can just focus you first, and then take them down momentarily after. However, if you’re healthier and harder to kill, the champion in question can delay the enemy from switching targets which can be very beneficial for your ADC or other carry champions.
Not every champion can take the initiative and start building defensive items willy-nilly as they may have core items that need to be brought first.
Dying in a teamfight is more forgiving if your team wins the fight itself and is able to get something out of it. But you shouldn’t be looking to die in every teamfight that occurs. If you do, it’s probably because you haven’t learned the tell tale signs of teamfighting or not taking into consideration your health bar and the enemies damage.
If you’re coming close to dying in a teamfight, try to use whatever you can on the enemy and then back away so you do not die. Dying can cost you a lot in terms of gold, experience and it may allow the enemy to set up or take objectives like towers and the Dragon or Baron. So dying should be kept to a minimum.
There is a fine line between dying for the greater good and dying recklessly. Unfortunately, there is a learning curve to this, however for the most part, the best way to work on dying less is keeping an eye on your health bar and taking into account what the enemy has available, and what they can do to you. For example, if the enemy has a Pyke, he may be able to kill you earlier compared to an Ahri because of his ultimate that can instantly kill you when you’re below a certain percent of health.
Some champions are natural born split pushers. The issue with split pushing is that it can leave your team in hot water if you split push at the wrong time. Unfortunately, not everybody knows when it’s the right time to split push.
If your team is behind, you can’t really split push when the enemy are grouped together as they can easily dive and engage on your teammates. As they’re behind, there is no way they will be able to disengage or survive the initial engagement as it is 4v5. You need to be with your team otherwise you will start forfeiting objectives.
If you want to split push, make sure you keep an eye on what your team is doing and be prepared to TP at any time to go and help them.
We’ve suggested to focus the enemy backline in the section above, but we didn’t really provide you with much assistance or tell you when your main focus should be the backline and when it shouldn’t be. But don’t worry, we’ll try and be a bit more specific here…
Realistically speaking, as the game develops, you will naturally pick up on who you can and can’t focus. It’s rather complicated to say outright “focus the backline every time” without context as this isn’t always the case.
We have also suggested to focus the enemy frontline in our previous section and we didn’t give much if any additional assistance to tell you why to do that. Here’s some specifics’…
To avoid over complicating things, as a Top laner, if you’re playing as a bruiser or a mage, you’ll always be peeling for your team and focusing the enemies front line unless you have the ability to get into the enemies backline.
When a teamfight kicks off, lots of careful planning and theoretical work gets thrown out of the window. This is because every teamfight is different and every situation calls for different actions.
As there are so many different scenarios, we cannot cater to every single teamfight or tell you what it is you should be doing in every single instance- no one can. So, don’t be afraid to go against the grain or against what we or anyone else suggests in a teamfight as you never know what might happen.
There is a rather sharp learning curve in League of Legends which can only be worked on by learning on the job. You need to call from past experience and use your own perspective to focus whoever you need to: to win the fight. We could sit here and stay “always focus the front line” or we could say “always focus the back line” when in reality, it isn’t going to black or white and work as intended.
In addition to this, you will find that you will need to change your target focus as the game progresses. For example, after you have used your ultimate on one champion, you may want to try and shut down another key target afterwards. Poppy or Malphite could use their ultimate on one (or multiple champions) and then go and focus the frontline.
Adaption is crucial and you’ll need to adapt to every teamfight and focus whoever is the biggest threat to you and your teammates at any given time. It may be the front line, the enemy back line or even the Support. Just focus who you can and be prepared to change your target at any given moment.
There is a lot more to do with teamfighting as a Jungler than many players think. It is not always about making those Insec plays or montage level clips. Instead, it is all about empowering yourself and your teammates. There are a few different classes that can be played in the Jungle role, but many of them have the same principles and aims.
Fundamentals and Teamfight Objectives as a Jungler
The fundamentals can change depending on which type of Jungler or champion you’re playing and what role you’re undertaking in your team. For example, a tank Jungler like Sejuani will have a different play style compared to a champion like Evelynn who is an Assassin. To fill in the gaps when possible, we will do our best to list fundamentals that apply to each of the main roles which are: tank, assassin and fighter.
Like our previous section, we will start with tank champions as they are quite common in Solo Queue and throughout the rankings. Tanks are champions that will usually be in the frontline, and be the main source of engage for their team to start a teamfight.
For champions who are bruisers or fighters like Lee sin or Jarvan, you need to avoiding trying to be the solo carry for your team. Instead be the player that wins the fight. Here are some of your goals for a bruiser.
Assassins such as Evelynn or Shaco don’t have the best time in long drawn out teamfights where many members are surrounding one another. They will usually try to catch somebody off guard to secure the kill and start a teamfight. Whatever your intentions are, here are some of the goals for an Assassin.
Where to Position as a Jungler in Teamfights
As a Jungler and like many of the other roles, your positioning will need to be adjusted depending on which champion archetype you’re playing. For example, an assassin will position differently to a tank and a bruiser. Understanding where you need to position and adapting your positioning as the game develops is key for success and you will need to consistently adapt it throughout the game.
Tank champions will need to be towards the front of their team so they can soak damage and protect their allies. Additionally, positioning here is good as you can look to engage and collapse on the enemy with ease. If the Jungler is the only source of engage, positioning to far back will give the enemy some breathing room as they know that you’re not going to engage any time soon as you’re not in a position to do so.
Sejuani is a very good example of a tank that looks to engage to start teamfights. While her ultimate is long ranged, it can easily be dodged or misplaced. If you’re closer to the enemy, the chances of them being hit by it are higher and it will be difficult for the enemy to dodge it at point blank range.
If you’re an assassin, your positioning will be completely different to a tank depending on who you’re playing. Many jungle assassins have stealth like Twitch, Shaco or Evelynn. If you position and show yourself grouped with your team, you will be reducing your chances of dealing damage or assassinating anyone. This is why you need to be with your team, but out of sight, off to the side of your teammates.
Assassins or champions with invisibility need to use the element of surprise to their advantage, but they can’t do that if the enemy knows their exact coordinates.
Many bruisers will need to be positioned near or in the frontline so they can engage or follow up when their allies go in. For example, once the Support has engaged, the Jungler can follow up and get into the action quickly. If the Jungler is not in a position to follow up, then they may struggle getting onto an enemy target as they may be to far away to do anything to kill the wounded prey.
Once the Support has gone in, the enemy will be locked in position briefly. If you do not follow up and go in with them, the enemy may get away and be able to break free from the CC. However, if you’re there to dish out damage and layer your CC with your allies, it will be difficult for the enemy to escape. This is why positioning towards the frontside of your team is important.
Who to Focus in Teamfights
Teamfighting and suggesting who to focus is very situational and rather difficult to discuss and justify who to focus without proper context as it depends on what is happening in the game. For example, you will need to adjust your target focus depending on what position your team is in, and where the teamfight is.
If you’re playing as an assassin like Evelynn, you will rely heavily on bursting somebody down almost instantly to get in and get out of the teamfight and survive. For you to do this, you will need to focus whoever is squishy on the enemies team. An assassin should prioritize these players as they will not have defensive stats which will make it easier for you to kill them.
You do not really have a priority, as it changes from game to game and teamfight to teamfight. But as a general guide, it’s the biggest threat first like the Mid or ADC, then it goes to the Support and tanks. But in most cases, you will just try to take down somebody who is out of position and is easy to kill.
When playing as an engage champion, you should try to catch whoever is out of position and engage on them with your ultimate. But only if they’re easy to kill like one of the enemies carries or the Support. You should not waste your ultimate on the enemy tank because they will be able to escape and back away before you and your team are able to burst them down.
After you’ve started the teamfight, you will need to either stick onto the enemy who you’ve CC’d or enemies who are close by. Alternatively, if your team is not able to handle the enemy frontline, you may need to peel it back and protect them by focusing the enemy frontline instead. Like previously suggested in out Top lane section, you need to remember what a tank champion does. They are not always able to shut down the enemy backline on their own and they will often need the assistance of other champions to deal the damage while they keep them locked down. If your team is unable to deal damage to the players in the backline, then you need to reposition and change focus.
Bruisers have a few options open to them when it comes to teamfights, but it depends heavily on what your team is doing and how you’re playing the game (if you’re ahead, even or behind). If your team has other champions who can engage, then you will need to engage with them and focus whoever they’re focusing. For example, if the Support has caught out the backline, you will need to go in and focus the backline champions.
If your team doesn’t have any form of engage and it’s left up to you, you’ll probably need to focus the enemy frontline and try to kill them and protect your team. But, if you can catch out an enemy who is out of position, then you will definitely want to prioritize taking them down. Bruisers don’t have the luxury of being able to one shot or tank damage indefinitely, so you have to be somewhat picky when it comes to teamfighting so you do not get yourself killed and throw the teamfight.
Teamfighting Tips and Tricks for the Jungler
We’ve hoped you have learned some information about what your goals are in teamfights and what you should be looking to do in them. Here’s 10 additional tips and tricks to help you come out ahead as a Jungler in teamfights.
When playing as an assassin or somebody who has a lot of damage, you should try to focus the squishier members of the enemies team so you’re able to almost instantly take them down before the fight breaks out.
Your target focus will be different depending on what is happening in the game and who is vulnerable. In most case, you will either be assassinating and taking care of the enemy Mid, ADC or the Support as they are usually the easiest to kill. Your choice on who you may focus depends on who is the biggest threat to your team, who can or can’t defend themselves and who has their abilities up.
If you cannot assassinate or take down a squishy member of the team because they’re grouped closely together, you will have to play the waiting game and wait for one of them to miss position or leave the security of their team. Alternatively, you can wait for your frontline to engage and then follow them up when the teamfight occurs.
During the mid and late game, you will not always benefit from taking your own buffs. Instead of letting them sit there or letting the enemy steal them, give them to your allies.
Unless you rely on taking the blue buff to deal damage; like an AP Jungler like Eve or Taliyah, you should try and give it to somebody who needs it more like the Mid laner as they will not have to rely on mana as much during the teamfight. They will also get 10% bonus cooldown reduction which will allow them to use their abilities more frequently. Additionally, if you’re not playing somebody who needs red buff, you should give it to your ADC. That is, unless you are playing Twitch or somebody who can benefit from it.
Each buff takes 5 minutes to spawn, so you should ping and communicate with your team so they can reposition and make their way there when it’s about to spawn. If you’re losing, this may not be possible and you will need multiple team members to move to it as the enemy may be setting up a trap.
When the game starts, you may think about who you’re going to be focussing in the teamfight. While this strategy is good to begin with, it’s not going to help you as the game develops. For the most part, your target focus will change as the game develops. For example, you may focus the enemy frontline in one teamfight, but be able to take out the backline in the next. You should also be thinking about who you focus as focusing the wrong member may cost you the teamfight or get yourself killed.
Now, it sounds super obvious, and you may question why we have put this into multiple sections of this guide. The reality is, not everybody adapts who they focus at the start of a teamfight or adjust their target focus as the game (or teamfight) goes on. Many players tunnel vision or think that their job is to do XYZ. While your job may be to do something, ie focus the enemy backline- it is not always possible to achieve. Instead of trying to focus the backline in every teamfight, you’ll need to adjust your target focus to something you can do- like protecting your backline as a tank Jungler.
Note that it isn’t always as crystal clear and obvious to who you should focus and who you shouldn’t and in some cases you will just need to focus the closest enemy target. This is especially true if the enemy starts the teamfight.
This tips aimed more towards you Junglers out there who want to be the solo carry. Lose your ego and don’t cost your team the game by trying to make outrageous plays by going in 1v5 and trying to pull out the impossible. Yes i’m talking about your Lee Sin and your Twitch.
While you may think you’re the next best thing, get off your high horse and do your job in the teamfight by doing what is needed to win. This doesn’t mean trying to Flash kick the enemy into your team. This doesn’t mean sneaking up close to the enemy alone and trying to melt the enemy.
With every nice play I’ve seen, there has been countless mistakes and embarrassing plays Junglers have made when trying to make these sort of plays, and unfortunately many losses caused by these sort of mistakes.
Stick close to your team and play as 5. Only go in when your team is also able to follow up and engage with you. Do not try to make these plays when the enemy is grouped together as you will get killed and shut down instantly. You can make these plays if catch somebody off guard like when they’re alone.
It goes without saying that you should look at the map before engaging, yet so many players fall into this trap and engage without looking. Similar to driving a car into an intersection, or crossing the road, you always need to look before stepping out.
If do not see where your teammates are, you may be going into the fight alone and you will get killed for it. If your teammates are not nearby, then you cannot and should not engage. Alternatively, if your team is with you but you don’t know where the whole enemy team is, you may not be able to engage on a lonesome ranger because their team might be right around the corner. This isn’t always the case though and you should try to kill targets who have mispositioned- if you know where their team is.
When fighting around an objective like the Baron or the Dragon, make sure you keep an eye on the health bar of the monster. You need to know how much damage your Smite deals so you are prepared and ready to secure the objective if it drops below a certain amount of hit points.
As you will need to use your Smite to take the objective, you must avoid using it on any champion or on any other creature/ minion as it will not be up in time if a fight happens around an objective.
If you are the team that is trying to secure your objective when a teamfight happens, you either need to finish off the objective or disengage and fight the enemy. Unless it’s near lethal, you cannot continue taking the objective as your team will take damage from both the objective and the enemy. If you can’t kill the objective without fear of it being stolen, use what you can to delay or deny the enemy and opportunity to get into the pit.
While applicable to every lane and role, the Jungler will have the best chances of engaging a teamfight by flanking from the side rather than plain running directly at the enemy. You will not always be able to run directly at the enemy for many reasons. For example, the enemy may have a rather strong frontline which will be difficult to break through. Alternatively, they may have lots of gap closures/escape abilities which make frontal engagements difficult as they may be able to dodge the apparent skill shot. As another example, the enemy may have a very protective Support who is able to disengage and prevent you from engaging.
Whatever the reason for your unavailability to engage, you can always look to flank the enemy from the side in order to hit the enemy right where it hurts.
If you’re around an objective, you could try to flank through the river or through the jungle as it will not always be warded. You need to use the maps architecture to your advantage to make flanks work more favorably.
Quite similar to a Top laner, the Jungler can often become the front liner if there is no other champions who can accomplish or do that job. While this is directed more towards fighters or bruisers in the jungle, basically any Jungler can become the front line. However, you may not want to do this if you are an assassin, or are very far ahead.
It is recommended that you buy some defensive items to protect yourself so you can be in the front line while also being able to deal damage. An example item is Guardians Angel which will allow you to be the front line, but not always die or sacrifice yourself in the fight because of its passive.
There are many different items you can purchase to make a fighter or bruiser into a tank, if you want to learn or know what to buy, give this article a read.
On the other hand, if you are the only person who is ahead on your team, you will need to start picking up defensive items as soon as possible so you can survive and dish out damage in the teamfight. If you were to die or get caught out, your team may not be able to win the teamfight as they will lack your consistent damage output. But buying defensive items will reduce the risk of you encountering this problem.
If there is an objective coming up rather soon such as the Baron or a Dragon, make sure you do not teamfight or die in a fight as it may risk your teams chances of securing the objective. It is vital that you do not die specifically as it will make it very difficult for your team to secure or steal the objective as you will not be able to smite it.
If you are the same level as the enemy, you may have a good chance of securing the objective. But if you are dead, your chances will quickly diminish. This is why you need to make sure that you do not fight or die when a major objective is up or is coming up soon.
We have made it sound easier than it actually is, but you can prevent this by not over extending or getting caught out when a major objective is coming up.
While it is important to stay up in farm and CS, you can give it a rest in the late game when teamfights are occurring. Now I’m not suggesting that you should leave your jungle up in it’s entirety, or sit around twiddling your thumbs for 10 minutes, but what I am saying is that you need to cut back on farming, and instead look to apply pressure whenever possible.
If you are farming your own jungle, you’re not going to be applying much pressure to the enemy. However, if you are with your team and trying to start a teamfight, then you are applying some form of pressure.
If you are losing the game and are trying to get back into it, you have to be picky about when you decide to enter your jungle and take the camps. This is because the enemy may be waiting right around the corner or setting up an ambush. As you are the Jungler, this may cost the Baron or similar objective. You must stick close to your teammates in the later stages of the game as one mistake can cost you everything.
While this does apply to all roles, I find lot of Junglers will continue farming instead of grouping with their team- which leaves their team in a 4v5 situation when the enemy jumps on them. This is your teams fault, but also your fault because you are not with them when you need to be.
If you want to farm, do so while your team is not grouped. Once they have group together, you need to be there with them.
*If you’re trying to get an item, steal the enemies camps or give/get buffs, then you should be farming and taking camps. This section is highly situational and context reliant.
Learning to teamfight as a Mid laner is crucial to securing kills and staying alive for longer. While many Mid laners are different, the principle is the same for most mages. There are multiple different play styles that a Mid laner can have such as a control mage, poke or an Assassin (to name a few). We will discuss these play styles and how you should teamfight as them.
Please note that we will mostly be discussing AP champions, or champions that dominate the Middle lane. Some of this information- depending on the champion, can be flexed into the Top lane as well as the ADC role.
Fundamentals and Teamfight Objectives as a Mid Laner
The fundamentals can change depending on which type of champion you’re playing in the mid lane. For example, an Assassin like Zed will have a slightly different playstyle to a control mage like Orianna. Because there are a lot of different play styles and champions, we will do our best to list off the fundamentals that are applicable when possible.
These are some of the main goals or fundamentals you’ll need to keep in mind as a Mid laner who deals AP damage such as Ryze, Syndra, Ahri or Azir. These are also good for general mages or poke mages like Syndra or Lux, control mages like Orianna or Lissandra and anyone who’s not really an assassin.
For Assassins like Zed, Talon, Ahri or Leblanc, your fundamentals may change because you need to assassinate players and aim to burst somebody down.
Where to Position as a Mid laner in Teamfights
Traditionally, a Mid laner needs to be somewhere in the backline so they’re able to dish out damage in a teamfight. While this is still true for many champions, it is not the norm for everyone. Understanding where to position will allow you to deal more damage in teamfights and win them in succession. This is because you’ll be able to stay alive for longer because you’re not putting yourself in danger.
Depending on who you’re playing and what your role is in teamfights, you may need to position in the frontline to be able to poke or engage. Alternatively, you may need to be in the backline to dish out consistent damage. Whatever your champions play style is, you need to make sure that you adapt it into every situation to make the best of any given scenario.
For example, Lissandra is a champion that usually engages and gets in between the enemies line so she can use her W- root the enemies and then self-cast her ultimate to provide her with protection. If she were to stand in the backline, the enemy will be able to whatever they want because they know Lissandra is not in a position to engage on them.
If you’re a champion that relies on poking before a teamfight, you should position slightly more forward so you’re able to poke the enemy down and use your abilities. Throwing out your abilities prior to a teamfight occuring is one way of reducing the enemies health bars to dust. However, there are some exceptions to champions with long range poke like Jayce. Jayce can stand in either the frontline to poke or in the backline thanks to his E+Q combo. This is also true for many Mid laners who have long ranged poke like Lux, Kog’Maw, Vel’koz, Xerath or Zoe. If you decide to play in the frontline, make sure you do not go too far forward or allow the enemy to catch you out of position.
When playing as a champion that is an assassin, you may be in a different boat when it comes to teamfighting depending on who you’re playing. Champions that rely on the element of surprise to take down an enemy like Zed or Talon, may be unable to teamfight directly. Instead, they may prefer to hold off to the side of their team- out of sight and ready to pounce. They are not always able to show their positioning, or stay with their team as it reduces the element of surprise and their success rate.
An assassin like these two will lack damage if they’re not able to assassinate, or get into the enemy backline and burst somebody down. Melee assassins will really struggle at this where as ranged ones don’t always have this issue like Ahri or Leblanc. A Melee assassin be able to be in the frontline with their team as they will just got stopped almost immediately when they decide to go in by the enemy frontline. An assassin also can’t be in the backline as you will not be a threat to the enemy. Furthermore, you will have to use your gap closure to get closer to the enemy before going in, which is not ideal.
Many Assassins will hold off to the side of a teamfight and make it appear to be a 5v4. You can use this to your advantage by engaging on the enemy backline when they engage on your team.
Who to Focus in Teamfights
Target selection in a teamfight is very situational and depends on what is happening in game. For example, you will find that you often have to adjust and adapt who you focus from game to game and from fight to fight.
If you’re an Assassin like Leblanc or Zed, you will need to try and burst somebody down almost instantly for you to get in and out of the teamfight. In most cases, this will be a squishier member on the enemies team because you will not be able to kill anyone else fast enough. For example, if a Zed was to try and take down the enemy tank, he will struggle even with full armor pen and lethality. Instead, Zed would favor taking down either the Mid laner, ADC or the enemy Support as they are generally easier to kill.
Players often undervalue the Support because they “don’t really do much in a teamfight.” In fact, they are just as valuable as any other member of the team. With that in mind, don’t go focusing the Support or the player who is not a threat to your team (for example, if they’re far behind) when there are more valuable targets to kill.
Additionally, if you are somebody who deals a lot of burst damage like Syndra with her ultimate, you should prioritize hitting specific enemy champions to burst them down. For example, a Syndra ultimate launched at a squishy member of the enemy team can be borderline harassment and has little to no counter play.
If you’re a poke Mid laner with AOE abilities, there is no real target focus. Instead, you should try to deal damage to whoever, and whenever you can. We could sit here and lie to you- saying “always focus the backline” with your poke and win the fight easily. In reality, it is not always the case and not always possible. It is better for you to hit whoever you can with your poke abilities prior to a teamfight occurring so you have a slightly better chance at winning the teamfight. With that said, if you’re able to hit the enemy backline with your abilities- then go for it.
If the enemy uses the element of surprise and engages on your team, you will need to attack the closest enemy target and deal damage to them. In many cases, this will either be the Support, Top laner or Jungler.
Teamfights can get pretty messy quickly. If you’re unsure who to focus, the bottom line is basically deal damage to whoever you can in the teamfight. Slightly unprofessional, but in reality that’s how it works.
Teamfighting Tips and Tricks for the Mid Laner
Teamfighting as a Mid laner can get tricky for a number of reasons. Hopefully these tips and tricks will help you get the edge.
Whenever you are playing as a mage or anybody who deals most of their damage through AP and their abilities, you need to make sure that you buy magic penetration. Without magic penetration and magic pen items, you find it very difficult to be able to penetrate the enemies defense and deal lots of damage.
This is especially true against compositions that have a lot of tank champions or multiple engage champs as they were usually stack defensive stats like armor, health a magic resist.
There are a few different magic penetrating items you can buy. Two of the more popular ones are Void Staff which provides 40% magic penetration, or Morellonomicon which gives 15 magic penetration. These two items will help you a lot and increase your damage output in teamfights.
If you want to learn more about itemization for AP mages, you may want to read this beginners guide.
When you are playing as an AD champion such as Zed or Talon, you need to make sure that you buy armor penetration and lethality to be able to break through the enemies hit points.
As most AD champions in the mid lane are Assassins, you will need these items to help you deal burst damage and get in and out of a teamfight. Additionally, these items will help you breakthrough the armor of the enemies tanks if they get onto you. This means that you’ll be able to kill them faster in comparison.
There are a few different lethality or armor penetrating items in the game. One of the more common that is brought is Duskblade which provides a lot of damage and lethality.
If you want to learn more about itemization for AD champions or Assassins, you may want to read this beginners guide.
When you are playing as a mage, you need to make sure that you pick up the blue buff whenever possible. Blue buff will help you indefinitely in teamfights as it will allow you to use your abilities more freely and not have to worry too much about your mana pool.
In addition to this, blue buff also provides cool down reduction- so if you don’t have the max percentage of cooldown reduction already, you will be able to deal more damage to the enemy and use your abilities more frequently. As a bonus, if you are running Transcendence, you will also get additional damage if you have 40% (or 45%) already.
While easier said than done, when you are not using your abilities- make sure you start auto attacking the closest target and weave your auto attacks in between each ability use.
Mages and AP champions traditionally do not deal a lot of damage through auto attacks unless they have Lich Bane. But this damage can be very helpful in teamfights as any little bit of damage you can deal may change the outcome of a skirmish
After you have used an ability, start auto attacking the closest target until your next ability is up. Without being picky, try to avoid cancelling your auto attacks during this time for maximum damage output!
When playing as a mage, an AD Carry, a fighter or a bruiser, everybody benefits from some defense items. For mages specifically, you will need to buy items that can protect you against some of the enemies damage in teamfights. You will need to decide which defensive items you need by what the enemies biggest threat to you is.
For example, if the enemy has multiple burst or AP champions, you would benefit from a Hexdrinker when playing as Zed or Talon. If you are a mage and the biggest enemy threat is an assassin, you will want to get Zhonya’s Hourglass when playing champions like Syndra or Veigar.
There are plenty of defensive items you can buy in the game to help you. Just remember, buy the items to counter the biggest threat on the enemy team.
When playing as an assassin, it may be difficult for you to take down anybody on the enemies team when they are grouped together. This is especially true on champions who have an ability they rely on to close the gap between them and the enemy. For example, Zed W or Leblanc W. These champions rely on those abilities for extra damage and gap closure. Without them- they may be unable to deal enough damage in the initial stages of a teamfight.
When the enemy is grouped, they will find it difficult and often be incapable of running directly at the enemy and getting to the backline without having to waste their gap closure and lose a big portion of health. To counter this, Assassins should look to flank the enemy whenever possible.
Flanking will allow these champions who have a lot of burst damage to come out ahead and be able to do their job in the most efficient. They will not be putting themselves in as much danger or risk compared to running directly at the enemy and trying to get into the back line as they shouldn’t have all 5 champions facing them at once.
When playing as an assassin, you need to try to focus somebody who is rather Squishy and easy to kill. This is important for a number of reasons. The first benefit is that it allows you to get in and out quickly without having to worry too much about your health. Compared to focusing a tank, you won’t spend too much time inside the enemies line which should save you some HP.
Secondly, it will allow you to take something out the fight almost immediately leaving the rest of their teammates in an unfavorable situation. If you are able to take out one of them major damage dealers like the Mid or ADC, the enemy will lack a lot of damage. If you take out the enemy Support, the enemy will lack a lot of shielding and utility.
I always recommend that (whenever possible) you should focus the squishy enemy champions as they are easier to kill.
If you are not playing an Assassin, or somebody who can get into the enemy back line with ease, you will need to stick with your team and focus the nearest enemy champion. It’s easy to say don’t focus the tank- but in reality, you will be focusing the tank quite a bit. You need to focus the closest enemy champion to have an increased chance of surviving the teamfight. If you were to try and take down the back line as a utility mage, you will find it difficult as you will like burst damage.
To be able to burst through the enemy front lines defense, you will need to buy magic penetration. We’ve already listed some items above, so we won’t go into too much detail again, but you need magic pen.
If there are multiple enemy champions coming towards you and your teammates. For example the enemy have engaged or caught your team off guard, you need to focus the closest target who has the most kill threat on you. For example, if the enemy Mid liner and the enemy tank is coming towards you, it would be better for you to focus the Mid laner before focusing the tank. This is because they have a higher kill threat than the tank. Additionally, they will be easier to kill than a tank as they will have less health and protection.
There are many defensive items a mage or Mid laner can buy which include Zhonya’s Hourglass, Guardians Angel and Banshee’s Veil to name a few. When you have one of these items available, you can play slightly more aggressive as you have the items passive to fall back on.
For example, if you are an AD champion like Zed, Talon or Pyke, you may want to purchase Guardian Angel for added protection. When this items passive is available, you won’t die immediately in a teamfight. This will prevent you from obviously dying and costing your team the exchange..
Having these items allows you to play slightly more forgiving and a bit more aggressive – but mind you, not too aggressive as it can quickly backfire.
Now this may sound counter-intuitive to what I was suggested previously, but let me explain. For the most part you should avoid being in the front line as you are putting yourself at risk of being targeted by the enemy. This is true during teamfights, and when both teams are standing off with one another.
You will also need to not be in the front line when you are walking around the map and don’t know where the enemy is. This is because the enemy will easily be able to focus and kill you because you are in the front line.
However, if you are playing a champion who needs to poke, you need to be stood in the front line to hit your abilities and poke the enemy. When you are not using your abilities, like when they are on cool down, you need to fall back to a slightly safer position. Once your abilities are back up again, you need to reposition towards the front of your team and then use them. For poke champions, you need to rinse and repeat and keep doing this until a teamfight starts.
With that in mind, you need to really be picky about where you position and understand what your champion wants to get out of a teamfight for the best results. As a general rule, avoid being in the frontline unless you benefit from it.
The ADC or Marksman class will deal most of the consistent damage in a teamfight. Compared to a Mid laner, you will not necessarily be using your abilities to kill the enemy unless your champion is somebody who has low cooldowns and relies on them to deal damage. For example, Ezreal will use his abilities far more often than Caitlyn to poke and deal damage. Caitlyn will get most of her damage through auto attacking. This is why learning to teamfight and staying alive in a teamfight is crucial.
While many ADC’s are similar, they all have a slightly different play style and kit. So what is suggested will need to be slightly adapted depending on who you’re playing. Additionally, as there are a variety of champions that are currently being played in the ADC or marksman role, we will not be discussing all of them Instead, we will only be talking about traditional ADC’s.
Fundamentals and Teamfight Objectives as an ADC
There are a few specific ADC goals that come to mind when playing as the ADC. If you want to learn the fundamentals when playing as an AP champion in the bottom lane, then check out the Mid lane section.
Where to Position as an ADC in Teamfights
To be able to deal consistent DPS, you will need to be in a position where you’re out of range of the enemy, but close enough to be able to deal damage. For most, you will be in the backline and behind or next to your other backline champions like the Support and the Mid laner. This is a perfect place to position because you will be out of range of the enemy auto attacks as well as their CC.
Wherever you position, you need to make sure that you are relatively close to your other teammates including the Support. As one of the Supports main duties is to heal, protect and keep their ADC safe, if you’re positioning to far forward or to far backwards, then it will be difficult for them to do what is needed.
Like stated, you will need to be in a position that enables you to do what is needed of you, which is to deal damage and win the teamfight. If you position in the frontline, you may be easy pickings for the enemy who can just focus you down. However, if you’re to far back, you will be missing out on consistent damage.
There is a fine line and learning curve to positioning for every role but more so for an ADC. So make sure you practice and keep an eye on your positioning at all times.
Suggesting where to stand is really difficult because it is different in every single game, but there is great emphasis on making sure you’re in a position where you cannot be hit with enemy CC or enemy damage.
Who to Focus in Teamfights
95% of the time, you will need to focus whoever the closest enemy member is, while also making sure you’re staying safe. Keep your distance to deny them the opportunity to get onto you entirely.
In many cases, this will be the tank or the enemy bruiser- basically the enemy frontline. If the enemy deals a lot of damage or has crowd control, you will need to try and create a gap between you and the enemy. For example, if Darius were to get on to you, you will most likely get killed because he deals lots of damage. One of the biggest downfalls to Darius is that he is rather immobile which means he can be kited quite easily. You will need to kite him so you can create a gap and stay alive.
However, if you have an ability that is really strong in teamfights and allows you to make plays, for example Kai’Sa’s ultimate, Twitch’s ultimate or Vayne’s kit, you can sometimes make the risky play and change your intended focus. This is where the other 5% comes in to play. Doing this can be fine as long as you will stay alive and be able to deal damage to win the teamfight. If you’re going to die because of this- then obviously don’t do it.
Who you focus is initially situational and will change from game to game. For the most part, you need to focus the closest target(s).
Teamfighting Tips and Tricks for the ADC
Here are some additionally teamfighting tips and tricks you can take with you onto Summoners Rift!
It sounds obvious, and it kind of is. However many players make the mistake of using their ultimate in a teamfight when they are not in a safe position to do so. Some champions like Jhin or Caitlyn become immobile for quite some time while they channel and use their ultimate. During this time, you will be unable to escape or do anything if the enemy gets in front of you.
If you have an executing ultimate, or an ultimate that keeps you in place, it is better that you don’t use it during a teamfight unless you are in a safe place to do so. For example, right in the back- out of range of anyone. You can use your ultimate at the end of the fight or at the beginning in Jhins case, but you should avoid using it in the middle of a fight because you will be out of commission and not be able to auto attack or deal any damage.
If you noticed that you have your Guardian Angel up, you can to some extent play slightly more aggressive. This is because you can rely on the revive effect and its passive to save you. I wouldn’t recommend going full Rambo, but playing and positioning slightly more aggressively is more forgiving when you have Guardians Angel available to you as it will allow you to revive and get back into the teamfight quickly.
This is also true for Summoner Spells as well. If you have your Flash up, you can use it to flash forward to get kills as long as you can survive. Flash and other Summoner Spells are undoubtedly really good in teamfights because they can assist you in multiple ways.
While you do have these items or spells to protect you, it is important that you do not waste them because of your negligence.
While easier said than done, always try to keep an eye on your positioning throughout the teamfight and when roaming around the map. If you position to far forward, you will notice it immediately as the enemy will be able to focus you down and kill you.
One thing you can do is try to remember how big of a radius you can auto attack the from. Using this information and the range, when possible, you should try to keep the nearest enemy champion as far away from you while still being in auto attack range. You can see your champions auto attack range by pressing ‘A’ on your keyboard. This will provide you with a visual guide of how far your champion can auto attack from. This will at least prevent you from being auto attacked and focused down by melee champions- especially Jax and Darius.
Using this information, you should try to keep that much space between you and the enemy by kiting them in teamfights.
Throughout the game, teamfights can spring up from anywhere and in a blink of an eye. This is why you need to avoid getting caught out by being too far away- or to close to your team. For example, if you decide to walk through the river before your allies, such as rotating to an objective, you may be putting yourself in great danger where the enemy can take you off the map. The enemy may then be able to start a teamfight where you can’t participate which will come out in their favor.
We see this a lot in the later stages of the game when the enemy tries to set up and ambush to kill unsuspecting squishy members. You can prevent this by having good map awareness and understanding of where your teammates/ the enemy are at any given time.
During teamfights, a lot can happen in a very short space of time. There is so much to decipher and react to that will directly impact who comes out victorious. One way of increasing your teams chances of coming out ahead is by learning how to kite the enemy and attack while moving.
In lower ELO, you often see AD Carries standing still and just auto attacking. Depending on the situation, you may be safe to do this but for the most part, it’s a bad habit to have. This is because when you are standing still, it is rather easy for the enemy to just throw their skill shots directly at you because you are not moving. If you were to move around, it would make it more difficult for the enemy to hit you with their skill shots.
In addition, if the enemy has front line champions who can engage, standing still will allow them to easily get on to you and shut you down. Where as if you are kiting and moving around, it will be much more difficult for them to get onto you or kill you.
Depending on the situation, you may be able to kite forwards, but at the start of a teamfight you will need to kite away from the enemy. As a general rule, try to kite around the enemy so they do not deal damage to you.
So how do you actually kite?
Kiting, also known as orb walking or stutter stepping is something that cannot be picked up and learnt straight away. It has to be worked on over time, and will only be mastered after lots of dedicated practice. There are a few ways you can kite and here are two of the easier and more efficient ways of kiting.
Kiting in its simplest form is where you auto attack the enemy and then move away from them. You then auto attack them again once your next auto attack is available and then move away. Depends on how fast you auto attack and what your attack speed is, the more you will need to kite.
The first and more obvious form of kiting is where you auto attack the enemy once and walk backwards. You then repeat this over and over again whenever you’re ready to auto attack again. This is a common way of kiting but can be quite difficult to maintain and do properly as it is very easy to mess up on and miss click. If you were to miss click, you may be putting yourself in extra danger because you will not auto attack the enemy, instead you will be walking towards them.
The second method of kiting is by keybinding something called “player attack move click” in your settings tab. Binding this to a key that you can regularly press will allow you to kite much more efficiently and prevent miss clicks from happening. Pressing this button basically auto attacks the nearest target to yourself and where you click.
Let’s suggest an enemy Darius is running towards you. You need to kite him the best you can to prevent him from pulling you in and killing you. If you were to kite with the first method, you may miss click and walk towards him. However, if you use the second method, you may be able to auto attack him and create a noticeable gap between the two of you. This will make teamfighting much safer and slightly easier.
As suggested, kiting is very difficult to learn and do. Experience plays a huge part in learning how to kite efficiently, so don’t worry if you don’t master it straight away.
One of the Supports main duties is to protect their ADC and the rest of their team. However, it does take two to tango. If you notice that your Support is not there to protect you because you have either positioned too far forward, or you are not following up- it is most probably your own fault.
Keep in mind where your Support currently is at all times to increase your survivability and usefulness in teamfights. For example, if you know that your Support will not be protecting you at all times like an Alistar or Leona who start a teamfight by engaging, you will need to position safely until they are able to come and protect you. Keeping your distance between you and the enemy front line is what you would need to do in these brief moments where you are alone.
On the other hand, if your Support is somebody who is a utility Support who provides healing and shielding, you will need to play around them and keep close to them so they are able to help you. Some utility Supports are rather immobile and cannot do too much without you being close by, which makes it important that you stay in range, and stay close to them so they can use all of their abilities to protect you.
For example, Janna is a Support that doesn’t have the greatest of range- but she does have abilities that can protect you. If you position too far forward, she will not be able to follow up and help you because you’ll be putting yourself in a very dangerous position where you will get yourself and her killed.
Remember, this is also true for other roles as well as the Support. If they are not going forward, then you shouldn’t do so either.
Adaption is incredibly important in League of Legends and many games alike. If you do not adapt your item build, you will suffer at the hands of the enemy. There are many defensive items you can buy as an ADC, and we can’t discuss them all. However, we can provide you with some advice that may help you itemize better for teamfights.
If the enemy has lots of magic damage, you should pick up items that provide you with a little bit of protection. For example, you can adjust your Boots by purchasing Mercury’s Treads instead of Berserker’s Greaves. You can even buy a Hexdrinker which would provide you with an additional shield to reduce burst damage.
It’s not just magic resist you can buy though. You can also get armor items to protect you against assassins or AD champions. Like previously, you can change your Boot recommendations to buy Ninja Tabi instead. You can also buy Guardians Angel which is a favored item for many ADC’s no matter the circumstances.
There are a plethora of different items you can build on an ADC to protect yourself. Make sure you look at what the enemy has, and who is dealing the damage. You should then buy an item that will protect yourself against whatever they throw at you.
The red buff will help you prevail in teamfights because it deals extra damage and slows the enemy. This makes it perfect for ADC’s as it will provide you with a slight increase in damage and added protection with the slow. This means kitting enemies will be made easier, and you should be more of a threat to the enemy.
If the Red Brambleback is coming up rather soon, make sure you rotate to it and pick it up as soon as you can so you have it for the next teamfight. This will also prevent the enemy from stealing it.
As suggested, you’ll need to attack the closest enemy champion that is nearby. However, there are a few exceptions. For example, when taking note of your champions attack range, multiple champions can be inside of it and can be your main focus. Instead of just focusing the closest target like a tank who may not have much kill threat on you, you can adjust your focus to somebody who does.
For example, if there is an enemy tank hugging you and also a damage dealer attacking another ally close by, you could switch your focus from the low kill threat tank to the high kill threat damage dealer. This should increase the likelihood of coming out ahead because your allies will be safer, and an enemy threat would’ve been eliminated.
Most ADC’s have some form of a dash that can be used offensively as well as defensively. It can be used to close the gap between you and the enemy, or create one. Whatever its use, it plays a huge part in how an ADC teamfights.
Lucian has a really useful dash on his E. It can be used in a variety of ways, and it really enhances his kit. However, without it, he is opening himself up to a lot of potential damage. If he were to use it to move forward, he may be putting himself in an exposed position where he can be hit with enemy crowd control or other abilities. Or he may get focused by the enemy and killed. Being caught out and getting killed can seriously reduce his teams chances of coming out ahead.
This is where making smart decisions come into play. Unless you’re in a specific situation where you are trying to get away from the enemy or get closer and finish them off, try to avoid using your dashes unless you have to. For Lucian specifically, while it does give him some bonus damage (through his passive), I would recommend being picky when you use it.
Unfortunately, we have all seen and experienced Vayne or any other ADC dashing towards the enemy and getting one shot by insane… luck! So, to prevent this, be careful about which direction you choose to use your dash. As a general rule, if the enemy has crowd control or abilities that can leave you in a sticky situation, try to hold off from using your dash offensively until most of risk factors are eliminated.
Armor penetration, and lethality items are undervalued in teamfights because they will actually allow you to deal damage to the enemy frontline. If the enemy has multiple tanks or frontline champions on their team, you need to invest in some armor penetrating items.
There are a few different items available to you, however we will only discuss a few of them. The first and only advanced item on our list is an item called the Last Whisper. It gives you some AD, but it also gives you some armor penetration. The armor penetration is what we’re buying it for. I recommend getting this item as soon as the enemy starts getting beefy and hard to kill.
The next item is Mortal Reminder. It is built from a Last Whisper and an item called Executioner’s Calling. Executioner’s Calling is a must have item when you’re playing against a tank with lots of sustain or self healing. Picking up this item against a champion like Dr. Mundo, Volibear or Darius is good as it can (potentially) stop them from regenerating health quicker than you deal damage. In addition, if the enemy has lots of healing champions like Soraka, Nami, Janna or anyone that heals, this item will reduce their healing. This is because Executioner’s Calling applies Grievous Wounds on targeted champions that reduces their healing.
This item is also great against champions like Akali or Vladimir who sustain and get a lot of healing through their abilities because of the Grievous Wounds passive on Executioner’s Calling.
The final armor penetration item we’re going to discuss is Lord Dominik’s Regards which is an item that provides a healthy chunk of armor pen and some damage. If the enemy has lots of armor and defense stats but no health regeneration or sustain- then buy this item as it gives 10% more armor penetration.
Please note: There are some other unique items that provide armor penetration or lethality. However, many of them are champion specific and cannot or should not be brought on every ADC. Where as the items we’ve listed can be purchased on any AD champion.
Without buying these items, you will find it very difficult to kill the enemy frontline when they buy armor or have lots of health. It will take longer for your team to kill the enemy frontline without an armor penetrating item which may leave your frontline in a vulnerable position- alone with no follow up damage.
If you want to learn what items an ADC should buy, check out this basic itemisation guide.
Unlike some of the other roles on Summoners Rift, the Support doesn’t always play a glamorous job to win the teamfight by dealing damage. In most cases, all they do is peel, protect and do whatever they can to keep their allies alive.
There are 3 different Support archetypes that fit snugly into this role. This consists of the mage or damage dealing Support who deals lots of damage and build AP. A utility Support that focuses on providing their team with healing and shielding. And a tank or pick Support who usually engages and protects their team.
Fundamentals and Teamfight Objectives as The Support
The fundamentals change depending on which role and type of Support you’re playing as all 3 are different and are played differently. The fundamentals may also change depending on which champion you’re playing.
The best way to tackle this section is by going into detail about each role separately. So, let’s start with the fundamentals that apply across the board to all Support types.
For mage or damage dealing Supports like Brand, Vel’Koz, Zyra or Annie, the fundamentals and goals are the same as above, but in addition there are a few other goals.
For utility Supports like Janna, Karma, Nami, and Lulu, the fundamentals are the same as above, but there are a few more goals that you need to keep in mind.
For tank or pick/ engage Supports like Nautilus, Thresh, Alistar and Leona, here are some of their additional goals.
Where to Position as The Support in Teamfights
Positioning as the Support is incredibly important. If you are to misposition, you may be in an over extended position where the enemy can easily grab and kill you. If you were to die quickly in a teamfight, you will be putting your team at a severe risk of losing the teamfight as you will be unable to support them.
Positioning in a teamfight depends on which champion and role you’re playing. For example, a mage Support will usually position differently to a tank or utility Support. Because there are 3 different Support roles, we will go over each individually.
For utility Support’s you’ll need to be positioned incredibly close to your ADC and your other backline champions. This is so you are able to heal and shield them as well as protect them from the elements.
If you position too far forward and in front of your AD Carry, you may be putting yourself at risk because you will come into contact with the enemy front line. However, if you stand too far back from the AD Carry, the enemy will put all of their focus into them which may cost you the teamfight. Instead, I recommend that you stand around the ADC so you are able to protect and keep them safe. For example, adjust your positioning and fluctuate between standing right beside them and on top of them to ensure maximum protection.
For damage dealing Supports, you need to be positioned next to, or slightly in front of your carries in the backline. This is because you need to be in range to use your abilities and deal damage so your team can come out ahead.
If you are playing too far back, you may not be able to do as much damage compared to being nearer the front. As you are playing somebody who is a mage, you need to be in a position where you can constantly dish out damage which may not be possible if you are further back. This is especially true on champions like Brand who rely on their ultimate to bounce between enemies to deal even more damage. On the other hand you do not want to be too far for where you can be easy pickings for the enemy.
For Supports who are relied on to pick off members or engage to start a teamfight, you’ll need to be in a consistent position where you are able to do exactly that. For the most part, this means you will be right at the front- leading your team to victory. You need to stand here to apply some form of pressure to the enemy and look to engage whenever they miss position or group to closely together.
After you have engaged and started the teamfight, you need to make sure you go back and peel for your ADC and you are other carries. If you forget to peel, your ADC or other champions in the back lane will get run down by the enemy front liners. This is especially true if the enemy have bruisers in their front line like Darius, Renekton or Riven. However, if your team lacks any other form of frontline- then you’re going to be in a sticky situation when it comes to peeling. You have to go with your gut and stay in the frontline so the rest of your allies do not die. Keep an eye on who on the enemy team is the biggest threat and keep them away from your team.
In short, before a teamfight occurs, he will need to be in the front line. Once it is under way, you will need to fall back and protect your carries.
Knowing where to stand and position in a team that is really difficult because it is different in every single game. However, you need to make sure that you can keep yourself and your allies alive for as long as possible by positioning in a suitable area where you are not over extended and will not get killed by the enemy as soon as the teamfight starts.
Who to Focus in Teamfights
Unlike some of the roles in this guide, there isn’t always a main target for Supports to focus on. Rather than- you just need to adjust your focus to whoever’s closest to your ADC.
For utility Supports, your main focus will be on protecting your teammates and keeping them alive for as long as possible. One way you can do this is by preventing the enemy frontline from getting close to your allies. You can do this in a variety of ways but for the most part you will just be using your abilities to keep them away while buffing your AD.
Janna is a prime example of a utility Support. In teamfights, Janna will need to protect her ADC and other teammates from the enemy frontline. She can do this by using her Q to prevent them from dashing in, and she can slow them with her W. Janna will also be able to shield herself or her other allies to keep them survive for longer. Finally, she can use her ultimate to heal up or knock back the enemy frontline from getting onto her allies.
Mage Supports are in the same boat as utility Supports with the fact that they need to protect and use all of their abilities to keep the rest of their team alive. In many cases, they will be focusing the enemy frontline. However, it can be matchup dependent and it depends on who you’re playing.
Some AP mage Supports deal a lot of AOE damage like Zyra or Brand and these champions both have abilities that can peel for their team. Zyra has her E and her ultimate, while Brand can stun the enemy. You will need to try and use these crowd control abilities on the enemy frontline to stop the enemy from taking down you and the ADC.
However, you may need to save your ultimate’s and other big AOE abilities so they can deal damage to more than one champion. Brand is a prime example of a champion that relies on hitting more than one enemy with his ultimate to deal more damage. If you focus the enemy frontliner who may be on their own, you will be severely reducing your damage output. Instead, it is better for him to use his ultimate onto as many champions as possible. This is the same case for Zyra as she can knock up multiple champions.
As a general rule, it’s a good idea to protect your ADC even when you’re a mage because you can both deal damage together to kill the enemy frontline.
For engage or tank Supports, there is no real target focus at the beginning of the teamfight. However, there is some favorable picks you can try and make. For example, trying to wipe out an enemy damage dealer like the Mid or ADC first will make the teamfight favorable immediately.
After you’ve engaged and started the teamfight, you’ll obviously want to work your way back and try to peel for your ADC (when applicable) From there, you will need to use whatever you have to throw at the enemy frontline to prevent them from getting onto, and killing your backline.
For example, Alistar can use his W+Q to engage, then fall back to his ADC and fellow backline champions. Where he will then use his second round of cooldowns to keep his ADC alive.
On the other hand, if the Support is the only frontline champion in the team, you will need to keep the enemy on you for as long as possible: while doing whatever you can to keep the damage dealers safe. While it’s easy to suggest “focus the damage dealer”, it’s not always possible and in reality- it is much more difficult. So realistically, just CC and lock down whoever you can.
Remember, adaption is needed throughout each teamfight. You need to remember your role, and do whatever you can to stay alive and win the teamfight.
Teamfighting Tips and Tricks for the Support
Let’s not forget the Support. Here are some additional tips and tricks to help you beat the enemy and be the Support that everybody wants on their team.
When we suggest watching the positioning of your AD carry and fellow teammates, it is more than just looking to see where they are so you can use your abilities on them. In fact, understanding where your teammates are, and where the enemy is- is a very important mechanic and skill to learn.
However, let’s just discuss the importance of watching their positioning in a teamfight. Obviously, you need to look to see where they are so you can use your abilities and heal and shield them. You can also look to see where they have positioned. For example, if your AD Carry is positioning and moving forward- you need to match their positioning and protect them as long as you can. If you stand still, they may go out of range and be unable be protected.
Additionally, if your AD Carry goes forward but you do not, they might become an easy target for the enemy which can result in them getting killed and you losing in the team. This can be prevented by both of you going and moving together.
During the later stages of the game, you will need to stick close to your team and protect them as much as possible. So why this advice technically becomes obsolete later on, just keep a close eye on where they are and try to back them up whenever you can.
When playing as a pick or an engage/ tank champion, you need to stand in the front with your other front liners. This is because you need to be in a position where you are able to potentially fight the enemy and engage on them as soon as one of them has stepped out of position.
If you stand in the back line, the enemy will be able to miss position all they like as you are not close enough to do anything about it. In addition to this, if you are playing somebody who goes fishing and relies on hooking of pulling somebody in like Blitzcrank, standing in the back line will make it increasingly difficult to hook anyone as they will not be in range.
Standing in the front line applies a form of pressure to the enemy. and it makes them think that a teamfight can break out at any minute. A smart enemy will respect your positioning and not position too far forward, however an unfortunate one will play greedy. When they do this, it is your time to make a move and engage on them.
You can’t engage or start a teamfight if you are in the back line as a tank (unless your abilities let you) as you will not be close enough to do anything. This is why standing in the front line is important as you can at any given moment: go in. Also, as you are in the front line, you will be able to soak some damage and protect your carries whenever they dish out poke.
Your allies will also favor this positioning because it protects them and prevents the enemy from poking them down as they will have a wall in front of them. It will also allow them to poke more consistently as they will be closer to the enemy which should increase the chances of them hitting their skillshots. And finally, they won’t get taken down by Assassins running straight towards them as they will have a front line to go through first.
Unless you have to, you should priorities using your abilities such as your shield on your carries instead of yourself. This is because they will directly benefit your team in the teamfight, while also giving them some added protection. I would advise against using your shield (or other abilities) on yourself if they are something that empowers your allies. For example, Janna’s E which gives additional damage and Lulu’s W which gives MS and attack speed. This is because these abilities will come incredibly handy in the teamfight which can make all the difference.
Although there is a priority list which you are at the bottom of, if you have to use your abilities on yourself- then do it. Don’t die in vain with your ultimate up if it could have protected you. You need to remember that you are worth just as much gold as anyone else and your role is just as important as others.
I promise Mobalytics family, this is the last time we’ll be discussing flanking in this section of the guide! Supports are very good at flanking to start teamfights. This is because they can often get over walls or pull enemies from out of nowhere. This is especially true on champions who have hooks and pulls like Thresh or Nautilus. Leona is another example of a flanking champion that can be really in a teamfight if she abuses fog of war.
In most situations, the tank Support will be the person who flanks as they will usually be somebody who can engage. You don’t necessarily see a mage or a utility Support flanking because they traditionally do not start a teamfight.
Flanking is an important maneuver to perform but can be rather risky. You have to have complete coordination and communication within your team to be able to flight appropriately. In addition, you will need to make sure that the area is not warded so you do not get collapsed upon.
Finally, if you are champion that utilizes Hextech Flash like Alistar or Leona- then flanking becomes a whole lot easier.
Every Support you play will have an active in one form or another. Whether it is Redemption, Locket or Mikael’s, you need to make sure you use it in a teamfight. A cheeky Redemption when your teammates are low health will be very effective and will heal everybody inside. This small heal could mean the difference between victory and defeat.
Depending on the situation, you may want to use your actives at the start of a teamfight, for example using Locket could be good at the beginning. But you don’t necessarily want to waste them if there is no real immediate threat from the enemies side. For example, you don’t want to use your Locket as soon as Karthus ults as it has a delay and Locket may run out beforehand making it redundant.
Once again, experience plays a huge part on knowing when you should use your actives. Although, the lesson to take away is that you always need to use them whenever they are available as they can really make the difference.
It is common knowledge that you need to adapt who you protect as the teamfight goes on as people die and targets get eliminated. At the start of the fight, you need to keep your focus on protecting your carries and keeping them alive for as long as possible.
It’s very difficult to say who to protect and who to use your abilities on because it is very situational and dependent on what is happening in the game. As a general rule, you should prioritise healing your carries over the front line. However, if your carries are full health or are rather healthy with no real risk of dying anytime soon, use your shield and heals on the front line to pump them up a bit.
While low-key non-efficient, always shield whoever you can when you pick somebody off because it grants you and assist and free money.
While Exhaust is not as common as it once was, it is still fantastic in teamfights against assassins or champions who like to get in among the action. This is because Exhaust can completely exhaust and take somebody out of the teamfight and prevent a lot of their damage.
In most teamfights, you will either exhaust the champion who is the biggest threat to you and your team or who you’ve caught out of position. It is better to focus and exhaust the biggest damage dealer because it reduces their damage output and will also make it easier for your team to kill them as they will become immobile. However, if you’ve caught somebody- you may want to exhaust them to allow your team mates to close the gap and execute them.
Realistically, experience plays a huge part in knowing who to exhaust and when. It is also very context driven and is heavily dependent on what is happening in the game.
Many teamfights occur because somebody gets caught out of position which ultimatly gets abused by the enemy. You can use this fact to your advantage by trying to use your crowd control abilities as often as possible and trying to catch players off-guard. This technique is called ‘Fishing’.
Basically all Supports apart from utility Supports without crowd control can do this. For example, Blitzcrank can use his Q, Thresh can use his Q, Zyra can use her E and Nautilus can use his Q. These abilities are all long ranged and can be quite temperamental which can work in your favor.
If you are playing somebody who can go fishing, try to hook the most vulnerable target as possible and avoid hooking any tanks or anybody who can engage as you would be doing them a favor by letting them get into your team…
When the game starts going on a bit and death timers really start stacking up, you need to not ward if you are alone or do you do not know where the enemy is. Going to ward can be devastating if you get caught out when the objective is coming up soon. This is because your team will have virtually no vision around the objective and the enemy will easily be able to take it as they have the numbers advantage. Alternatively, the enemy may try to pressure towers or try to start a teamfight which will come out in their favor, unless your team can do something about it.
Avoid warding if you don’t know where the enemy is as you should not run the risk of overextending and walking into five members of the enemy team. Instead, you should only go to ward when your team are nearby and around to help you as there is safety in numbers. It is much more difficult for the enemy to kill all of you as they run the risk of being killed themselves. So they will not necessarily fight if there are multiple enemies around.
If your team is not grouping with you or helping you to go and Ward, you can’t necessarily ward: at least, it is advised not to. Instead warding deeply alone, you will have to have shallower wards.
I’m sure we have wrote “do not engage” for every major engaging role by now and for good measure. It is just as important for a tank Support, an engage Support, a tank Top laner or even an engage Mid laner to know not to engage when their teammates are not by. Avoid trying to start a teamfight when they are not with you as you will be going in 1 v 5.
Now we’ve come to the stage of the guide where we’re covered most of team compositions, but now we’re going to discuss some specific teamfighting information and methods. We’re gonna start with something simple which is flanking.
In this guide, we’ve suggested flanking the enemy quite a bit- but what exactly do we mean? Flanking the enemy is a pretty simple and basic League of Legends action. Much like flanking in the military, police force and in sports, it is where your team is in one position (or holding a position), while another member or members approach from a different angle. This is more commonly seen in teamfights that are in lane or are near a jungle entrance due to the fact that flanking members can hide and attack from the side.
There are a few main types of flanking manoeuvres in the game. The most popular and more common example is where somebody attacks from the side. Assassins like Leblanc or Zed are prime examples of good flanking champions. This is because they are sometimes unable to break through to the enemy backline if they have a strong first line of defense.
The second type of flanking maneuver is where you surround the enemy and force them into a small area with little to no escape potential. Used in WW2 to ill effect, it is a good way off collapsing on enemy targets. This is very good if you’re against a team comp with squishy or ranged champions as you can easily get to and focus the backline.
Flanking can also be achieved through using the Teleport Spell. By teleporting behind the enemy on a ward or minion, you can force the enemy to either go through you, fall back on themselves, or take a different escape route.
For example, if you’re in the bottom lane, you can Teleport behind the enemy and force them to go through their jungle to escape. This is when your team will collapse on them and a fight will ensue. This will work wonders if your team benefits from fighting in small areas like an AOE or wombo combo team composition.
Flanking can be achieved by basically any member of your team depending on the situation. In most cases, flanking will be done by an Assassin, a tank or somebody with CC. This is because they will either be able to deal damage, start a teamfight or lock somebody down which can make the skirmish a 5v4.
There are a few factors that influence your team’s ability to flank the enemy. The main problem with flanking is miscommunication. While flanking, you will need to communicate with your team so you all go in at the same time. If you go in one after another or the flanking member goes in on their own- it will be suicide.
When making plays with Teleport, or whenever you’re trying to flank- you will be over extended and potentially an easy target for the enemy. In some cases: such as if you’re going behind the enemy, they may start to focus you down and collapse on you. Going 1v5 is never a good idea, so make sure you don’t teleport or go in without your team being able to go in with you.
Ambushing the enemy is something you will need to do to start the majority of your teamfights. As suggested, you will not always be able to win a teamfight, nor will you be able to run directly at the enemy. This is where players look at ambush the enemy.
Similar to flanking, ambushing the enemy is where you hide and wait until they’ve walked past you. Once past or nearby, you should jump out of the bush and try to kill the enemy. This is a fantastic way of gaining the numbers advantage prior to a teamfight occurring.
To ambush the enemy, you need to be in a position where the enemy doesn’t expect you to be. For example, in a bush near one of their buffs, or in the river. There are a plethora of locations where you can hide out, so here’s some of our top picks. We’ve gone ahead and made a different version for each quarter of the map to make it easier to understand.
For each of the upcoming images in this section, there is a key they follow. The Yellow/Orange indicates where a bush is. You can hide in these bushes to ambush the enemy. The Blue represents an objective and where you can hide inside them. The color Red represents the use of Fog of War to ambush the enemy. Please excuse us if we miss a potential ambush position.
As you can see, you will need to be in areas that provide natural coverage. This is primarily bushes because that’s the only way you’ll not be seen around the map- if the enemy were to walk face to face with you. However, there is another way you can ambush the enemy- but it relies on your team placing vision around the objective so you can engage. The area in discussion is in the Dragon or Baron pit. Having a ward near the entrance (slightly to the bottom side of the Baron pit, and the topside of the Dragon pit), will allow you to see when the enemy face checks the objective.
Of course, this is a rather specific situation, but you get the point. Taking out an enemy before an objective comes up can allow you to take the objective uncontested. It may also mean that the enemy may avoid teamfighting. On the other hand, if they do decide to contest or try to fight you, you will have the numbers advantage. This is a perfect representation of how a player’s actions can snowball for the worse- which in this case is can cost an objective and a teamfight.
You should specifically look to try and ambush the enemy if you’re in one of these situations. Don’t worry though, ambushing and surprising the enemy is always a good idea no matter the circumstances.
To make ambushes work more consistently, make sure that you’re waiting or hiding in a bush that the enemy will most likely walk by. For the most part, during the mid to late game, this will be around their own Jungle and in the river. You should avoid trying to ambush the enemy if you don’t think they’d be on that side of the map. For example, if Baron is coming up, an ambush would be perfect around the objective. Trying to ambush the enemy in the bottom side in this situation would be pointless as no one would be there.
In addition, before waiting and wasting your time, make sure the bush is not warded. This may allow the enemy to ambush you and turn the tide of any would-be attacker. Purchase Control Wards throughout the game and make good use of your Trinket. We will go into more detail later on, but those tips will help you in the meantime.
On the flip side, if the game is equal, make sure you don’t get ambushed by avoiding these bushes in particular. If you were to get killed, it may cost you the objective or it may allow the enemy to start a teamfight. For Supports specifically, I understand that you need to ward. Avoid warding unless your team is going to protect you, or as long as it’s safe to do so. If your team will not come and help- you need to wait until it’s clear.
There are a billion different fight locations in League of Legends, and each one is different from the last. Each teamfight location is incredibly situational and in game dependent- so as you’d guess, writing this section is going to get tricky. It’s obvious that we can’t cover everything in the game because well- that’s basically impossible, and I don’t have enough time to do so…
Anyway, I’m going to list some of the more popular teamfighting locations in the game and describe how you may want to approach them. Once again, I would like to say that everything in this section will be incredibly situational which may have an impact on how you play it out. For example, if you’re ahead or behind, what towers are available, who is around, cooldowns and overall skill, luck, timing and a dozen other things will impact a teamfight. That’s not even including the champion or team comp you’re playing!
Theoretically, on paper you could teamfight in any of these locations. But something may crop up which may make your team lose the exchange. Because of this, we’re going to do our best to describe when you can and can’t fight in these situations.
Inside the jungle
Teamfighting in the enemy jungle is never really a good idea because you never know what is coming around the corner. With that said, if you’re playing in a wombo combo, AOE or a team with good synergy, then this shouldn’t be much of a problem. If your team benefits from fighting in the jungle, try to get the majority of your teamfights in these close quarter combat areas to fully enhance your team comp.
Pros:
Cons:
Around your tower
Unlike some of the other potential teamfighting locations, in the majority of cases, you will always be able to fight around your own tower. For example, when the enemy are trying to. But once again, if the enemy team comp favors diving or (for example) if they have multiple tanks or assassins, then fighting around your tower may be difficult.
Pros:
Cons:
Under the enemies tower
If your team is able to fight under the enemies tower- for example, as a dive comp, then you can always look to fight under their objective. However, if you’re playing as a team without much kill or dive potential- then obviously don’t try and fight under the enemies tower. If the enemy tower is incredibly low though, this shouldn’t be much of a problem as you can take the tower first and then potentially fight.
Pros
Cons:
Around an objective like Baron or Dragon
Trying to fight around an objective can be quite rewarding. If your team is good at stacking together and dealing damage to multiple enemies at once, like if you’re in an AOE team or a wombo combo team comp, then fighting around an objective is recommended.
However, if you’re attempting to take the objective and the enemy decides to contest it and fight you, you’ll need to either finish the objective off if it’s on low health (less than 2k) or if it’s too high- you will need back off the objective or fight the enemy.
If you’re the contesting team, you’ll need to focus the enemy down before trying to take the objective unless it’s on low health where you can potentially steal it.
In and around the river
Obviously, fighting in the river is where a good portion of teamfights will happen. This is because there are objectives nearby and it is also where lots of players tend to get caught out or killed. You can always look to fight the enemy when they’re in the river no matter what your team composition relies on.
Pros:
Cons:
In and around a lane
Fighting in lane is another choice of where to teamfight. There are multiple bushes around every lane which can allow champions to hide within. It’s pretty obvious why fighting here is good, so we won’t go into much detail.
Pros:
Cons:
Knocking at the Inhibitor
Fighting near an Inhibitor can allow your team to take the objective as well as defend it. You will always want to defend your Inhibitor if you’re able to because once it’s destroyed, it will give the enemy an opportunity to get into your base. If you’re on the offensive and trying to break into the enemy’s’ base, you may not always want to fight the enemy under their tower or near their Inhibitor because you may lose the opportunity to take it if it goes wrong.
Pros:
Cons:
Realistically, you can teamfight anywhere on the map. But you should prioritize and try to fight in areas that benefit your team while avoiding areas that put you at a disadvantage. Naturally, every game is different and the majority of fights will be in and around the middle lane. One reason for this is because players naturally group here as it’s in the middle of the map.
We’ve already briefly touched upon fighting around objectives, but there is so much more to do with it than was first shown. There are basically 5 or 6 core objectives in League of Legends with many of them being duplicate. The specific objectives we’re going to discuss are the Baron, Dragon, T1 Towers, T2 Towers and Inhibitors/Inhib Towers.
Each major objective requires proper set up and focus to be taken in the most optimal of fashions. Without clear and decisive actions, fighting or trying to take the objective will be considerably risky and may work against you. This is why learning to fight around them will increase your chances of coming out ahead.
Please note: We will go way off topic in this section because you need to know what other options are available to you rather than just fighting the enemy.
Fighting around the Baron
When taking the Baron, you have a few options on what your team can do.
When playing as the team that doesn’t start the Baron, here is what you can do to stop the opposition taking it.
Making the best of a bad situation is what you need to try and achieve to ensure the enemy doesn’t walk all over you. In this situation, doing whatever you can to prevent them gaining the advantage by delaying or stopping them from getting the Baron is a must. If you can’t, try to make them pay for taking the Baron- ie taking objectives away or killing them.
After securing the Baron
After you’ve secured the objective, you will need to back off and avoid teamfighting, especially if the enemy is trying to fight you. If you were to turn and fight after securing the Baron, you would be putting users with the buff at risk and they may potentially lose their life as well as their Baron buff. This might make securing the Baron relatively pointless because nobody (or limited members) on your team would have the buff to use.
Instead of fighting the enemy when they approach, try to peel back, and get out as quickly and as safely as you can. This is your goal in a good portion of circumstances because risking a teamfight is not a good idea after securing the Baron. This is especially true if the enemy is nearby during the mid or late game. If you’re ahead and the enemy are quite far behind, it is possible that you can turn and fight after you’ve taken the Baron. Honestly speaking, it’s really situational and in game dependent, so keep that in mind before engaging/disengaging after an objective.
If you were the team that didn’t secure the Baron, you can try to fight or pick of members of the enemy team. This is perfect for you because you may be able to reduce the enemies Baron power play by killing members with the buff. You should be okay to fight them because the enemy would’ve taken some damage in order to secure the Baron themselves- depending on the time of the game.
Fighting around the Dragon
Here are some of the options available to you when you intend to take the Dragon.
Contesting the objective is what many teams will do. While it’s possible, it’s not the only option.
Fighting around tier 1 towers
When you’re on the offence, here are 3 options available to you.
Tiet 1 towers are not always worth defending. If you lose them, the games far from over, but here’s what you can do to cling on for dear life.
Fighting around tier 2 towers
When trying to siege a tier 2 tower, this is what you can do.
As the defending team, make sure you don’t get caught out and die because it can cost you much more than your life.
Fighting around the Inhibitor and Inhibitor towers
When attempting to break open the game, make sure you do not over extend or overstay your welcome. Here are a few things you can do to maximize the chances of coming out ahead.
Defend your tower at all costs- if it’s safe to do so.
You may have noticed that we repeated ourselves quite a bit in this section. That’s because fighting around objectives is quite similar: but different depending on the objective you are trying to take. I felt that it was important to include all of these examples because each situation may require a different approach.
Remember, there are no official timers for fighting such as “try to fight at 10:55.” League is incredibly situational and these examples are just examples of potential fighting opportunities and it is up to you to make use of what is suggested.
It should be obvious, but if it isn’t, the suggestions are not the only times you can look to teamfight with the enemy. There are other times you can look to teamfight. What was suggested is a good basis to go by if you are struggling to know when you can teamfight.
In League of Legends, every champion has their own power spike. Usually it will be at a certain level, or a certain period of the game. For example, Blitzcrank is really good in the early game and at level 2. If you know when your teams power spike is, you can abuse your strengths and try to teamfight during this time.
On the other hand, if you know when the enemy is strong, you can try to avoid fighting during that time, or try to end the game before the enemy reaches their strong point. For instance, a team with multiple late-game sailing champions will be much stronger as the game goes on compared to the early or mid-game. Champions like Vayne, Nasus, Vladimir and Kog’maw are all considered strong late game champions, but ending the game or gaining a huge lead prior to the late game will make it rather difficult for them to do well and win teamfights.
Additionally, if you’re playing in a team comp that is incredibly good at teamfighting like a wombo combo or an AOE comp, you can abuse this by teamfighting whenever possible.
There are a few things you can do to learn when your champion or team is strong:
Learn how every champion works
By playing every champion, or at least understanding how every champion works, you will start to notice patterns of when champions are strong or not. The more you play, the more knowledge you will gain, for example, until you’ve played Vayne or played against her a couple dozen times, you wouldn’t realize that she is really good in the late game.
On the other hand, if you know a certain champions play style, you can use this to your advantage by forcing teamfights when you know they can’t do anything to prevent them.
Do your research
Following on from our previous point, if you do your background research on every champion, you will learn when they are strong and when they’re weak. While you do not necessarily need to go out of your way to learn the specifics, it will help you speed up the process of learning how every champion’s playstyle and how they work.
Here’s a document that lists when champions are strong and when they’re at a power spike. While not initially up to date with the latest champions, much of the information (especially levels and in game time) is still correct
Use the Pre-Game app
If you do not know when your individual champion or teams power spike is, you can use the Pre-Game app to see when your team and the enemy’s team is strong. Using this information, you can play accordingly and group when you’re strong, and play around your weaknesses. If you see that the enemy out scales you, try and teamfight/end before they get to their power spike.
Look at the enemies items
One form of power spikes in League of Legends is when you or the enemy gets an item. For example, once an ADC gets 2 or 3 items, they will be considerably stronger and hit harder. This means teamfighting when your ally has their power spike can give you a slight advantage. However, if the enemy ADC has their item spike- you may need to take a different approach to teamfighting.
Take into consideration the team comp
If the enemy is playing a team that requires certain actions in game, such as fighting in the jungler or diving under tower, you can prevent them from gaining or playing to this power spike by avoiding their traps.
For example, if the enemy is really good at fighting in the jungle, avoid fighting inside of it! This is because you will be giving the enemy a slight but noticeable advantage. This advantage can be considered a power spike because they are better in that situation or circumstance. Another example would be if the enemy is good at diving. By not letting the enemy dive your team- you will be directly countering their team’s power spike.
If you want to learn more about power spikes and what makes a certain champion reach their power spike, give this a read.
Now we’re going to discuss parts of the game where you will want to avoid teamfighting unless you have to. Even then, some of these examples are relatively easy to escape from by just peeling back and retreating.
For the most part, everything in this section is going to be directed towards one team in particular, which is either the winning or losing team. You will notice that we have also included some of the optimal teamfighting timers we suggested in a previous section. Don’t worry, we’ll discuss the differences soon.
Immediately after an objective like Baron
Here is our first example of when you should never really try to teamfight. You may see we just included this topic in a previous section. To make it clear, if you have just secured the objective, you should avoid teamfighting because you do not want to risk players losing the Baron buff. In addition, if players do teamfight and die, it will reduce your teams overall Baron power play. This means that all the time and effort put into securing the Baron, would’ve been wasted because you decided to die.
If you’re far ahead, then this shouldn’t be much of an issue. However if the game is relatively even, then it’s best to play it safe.
If the enemy is engaging on you after taking Baron (or Elder Dragon), peel back and try to get out of there as quickly and safely as you can.
When you know you’ll lose
This shouldn’t be in our guide, because it is so obvious. Yet time and time again, we see players take teamfights that aren’t going to work in their favor. Avoid teamfighting as a whole in a 5v5 setting if you know you are not strong enough to beat the enemy. For example, if the enemy has a better team composition, or if they are playing a comp that directly counter you.
Instead of fighting them, try to ambush the enemy when they are split up. You can also use some of the other examples we’ve provided previously.
When the enemy has grouped with Baron buff
When the enemy has grouped with Baron buff, they will be much stronger and be able to deal a lot of damage. Instead of declaring all out war, try to ambush and catch enemies out of position. You need to avoid fighting 5v5, because they will most likely come out ahead. However, you can fight the enemy straight after they take the Baron because they would have unspent gold. After they’ve recalled and spent their money, you will need to wait until it’s depleted.
When the enemy is stronger
If the enemy is stronger because they are either playing in a better team composition, or are playing champions that are scaling, you should try to avoid fighting in a 5v5 setting. If you decide to fight the enemy when they are stronger, it’s pretty obvious who is going to come out ahead.
Instead, try to catch the enemies out of position, while avoiding fights in circumstances that benefit them the most. For example, avoid fighting under your own tower against a good siege or dive comp, and avoid fighting in the jungle against an AOE or wombo combo team.
When you have no available ultimates
If your team has multiple champions that have execution style ultimate’s such as Syndra’s Unleashed Power, Urgot’s Fear Beyond Death or Pyke’s Death from Below- you need to avoid teamfighting while they are on cooldown. This is because you will miss out on a huge portion of damage which may make it difficult for you to kill the enemy.
This is especially true if one of their ultimates is game changing like Pyke’s who can gain a reset. It is not just execution ultimates that make the difference though. If your champion has an AOE ultimate, then you will be missing out on a lot of damage or crowd control. If you’re playing as a wombo or an AOE comp- you really need to avoid fighting during this time.
Instead, only fight when you have these game-changing ultimates available to you.
When your team is not with you
Make sure to never engage if your team is not nearby to help or follow up, as you will be putting yourself in a 1 v 5 situation which will obviously come out with the enemy team gaining the advantage.
Map awareness will come in handy when trying to teamfight, so always check the map before rushing in and using your ultimate.
If your team is not in a position to teamfight
Quite similar to our above suggestion, if your team is not in a position to help you – then you shouldn’t engage. For your allies to be in a position to teamfight, they must be healthy and have mana. If they do not have a lot of mana available to them or if they are low on health, there is no point trying to force or try to teamfight as your allies will be unable to do much.
Teamfights can be quite limiting at the best of times and making your allies teamfight with a low mana pool is really taking the biscuit. Take into account the health, mana and see if they have their ultimates up prior to starting a teamfight.
Avoid teamfighting if your allies are not in a position to teamfight. Do not force them to fight: just let them recall.
If you have a lot of unspent gold
Trying to start a teamfight while you have several thousand gold in your pocket is never a good idea. This is because you could be missing out on a lot of extra damage, a potential item, or defensive stats. Try to never accumulate a lot of gold and sit on it because you are not doing anything with your advantage. Sitting on all of this unspent gold may make the difference between winning and losing a teamfight.
Return to base whenever possible and buy your items. This means no back to back teamfights.
After an objective like a tower
If you have recently destroyed and enemies tower, it may not be the smartest idea to try and fight the enemy. This is because you are already in an over extended position which may give the enemy an opportunity to flank or try and kill you. Among other things, this is also a really greedy play to make, and it will not always work in your favor.
If the enemy is forcing a teamfight on you and you are unable to teamfight or retaliate, the best thing to do is peel back and try to escape. It is important that you do not get caught out or die because the enemy would achieve their goal which could snowball into them being able to take objectives away from your team.
However, if your team benefits from fighting after a tower, then go right ahead.
Because League is so situational, you may be able to fight in these situations. However you’ll only be able to do so in specific scenarios.
So far, we’ve discussed so much information about teamfighting in specific comps. Now we’re going to discuss some other teamfighting tips and tricks to use in Solo Queue. These tips will vary from generic teamfighting information, to in game awareness and other miscellaneous material that you probably didn’t realise should impact how you teamfight.
Always check for upcoming objectives
TLDR: If a major objective is coming up within the next minute, teamfighting will be risky.
Fighting before a major objective comes up should be done with caution. If you’re on the backfoot, it’s advised to not fight in a 5v5 setting when the enemy has the advantage. This is because the teamfight may result in the death of your teammates, which will give the enemy optimal time to take the objective without you being able to contest it.
However, depending on the team comp and who has the advantage, you can look to set up the Baron or Dragon and try to ambush the enemy. Trapping them while they walk through a warded area can bring a surprise element to teamfighting which can give you the edge. By killing some of the enemy champions- preferably the enemy Jungler, or forcing some of the enemies to recall, you will get the best chances of securing an objective after a teamfight.
It’s not always a good idea to fight before an objective. This is because you may lose the teamfight and the enemy can take the objective instead- regardless of whose ahead.
As a general rule of thumb, if the objective is coming up in less than a minute, you should avoid getting caught out or letting the enemy try to fight you. Dying when an objective is about to spawn will make it difficult for your team to gain vision and contest the objective if one or more team members are dead.
Always look at the map before engaging
TLDR: Check the map before going in to ensure your allies are with you and that you’re not walking into a trap.
Having an understanding of where all of your allies and the enemies are will directly influence the outcome of any teamfight. If you do not know where everyone is, you may be falling into some form of a trap.
Always look to see where the enemy is before going in on a lone ranger. If there are multiple enemies missing and not shown on the map, it may be because the enemy is trying to take Baron or another objective somewhere else. It could also mean that the enemy who is alone is baiting your team and waiting for their allies to flank.
On the flip side, if you are going to engage on to the enemy but notice that your allies are not with you- you’ll be over extended which will cost you your life. Before engaging, always check the map to make sure your team is there with you, and that they are in fact going to follow up.
There are so many reasons for an enemy to be missing and this is why map awareness is so crucial. If you don’t know where the enemy is- they could literally be anywhere on the map and this can cost you the teamfight. For example, underestimating how many champions are nearby may turn a 3v2 into a 3v5 in a matter of seconds.
Keep an eye on your teams and the enemy teams’ cooldowns
TLDR: If your allies do not have their ultimate’s up, it’s may be difficult to teamfight with no finishing moves.
Teamfights are often decided by which team has the most resources available to them. One of these resources includes their ultimates. When an ally is missing a damaging ultimate, it will make it difficult for them as they will not have their ultimate to fall back on for extra damage. For example, Syndra gets a lot of extra damage from her ultimate, but without it, she is going to struggle to burst down an enemy champion.
This is why you need to know who has their ultimate up and who doesn’t. If it is a game changing ultimate like Amumu’s Curse of the Sad Mummy or Katarina’s Death Lotus, you will struggle to win the teamfight. Not every champion suffers with this issue though as not every champions ultimate is always necessary to win a teamfight- for example, Thresh’s ultimate.
On the opposite hand, if you know that the enemy is missing some of their ultimates, you can look to fight them while they’re on cooldown. Knowing an enemy is defenseless and unable to deal lots of damage in return is a great way of teamfighting.
Avoid going for extended teamfights
TLDR: Going for extended trades isn’t always a good idea- unless your team comp relies on it.
Fighting for an extended period of time isn’t always a good idea because it can allow the enemy to regenerate or regain resources. And in some extreme cases, it can allow deceased enemies to get onto the battlefield. Also, it may give the enemy ample time to poke your team down and force you to back.
However, if you’re team is built around poke, you should prioritize poking the enemy for as long as you can before you fight them directly. If your team relies around engaging on the enemy, you should try to engage and fight as quickly as you can to prevent the enemy from poking your team down and forcing you to disengage
Extended teamfights can be good and bad- but it relies heavily on the comp. If you’re struggling to fight the enemy because they have lots of sustain or poke damage- look to fight and engage as quickly as you can rather than sitting back at waiting.
Take into account the location of the teamfight before fighting
TLDR: Try not to fight inside the Jungle when playing against a wombo combo, or AOE team comp as they will always come out ahead.
Before engaging or teamfighting with the enemy, always take into account where the teamfight is going to take place. In narrow areas of the map such as in the jungle, it can be really difficult to fight as a team. This is truer for some team comps more than others though. AOE or wombo combo teams thrive and benefit heavily from fighting in small areas as it ensures multiple knock-ups or stuns.
If your team has AOE abilities or damage, like Cassiopeia’s Petrifying Gaze, you can look to fight in tight areas as it’s almost guaranteed for you to hit multiple champions at once when they’re bunched together.
However, if your team cannot compete against the enemies- IE, if you struggle in tight areas, then you should avoid fighting at all costs in these narrow strips around the map. The areas that are more difficult to fight in are around the jungle and around the jungle entrances. It’s better to fight in the river or in a lane when you’re in this predicament.
Adaptation is vital
TLDR: Do whatever you need to win the teamfight.
Teamfights will often get messy and rather sloppy. One reason for this is that in Solo Queue, it is rather difficult to communicate as one. This is why adapting to your circumstances will allow you to have a higher chance of winning the teamfight.
One adaptation that you can make is through target selection. Throughout this guide, we’ve given hints and discussed what you should do, and who you should focus. In an ideal situation, you would be able to do this. However, you should use your own judgement and adapt to the situation when you need to. For example, if we’ve suggested to focus the backline- you might have to switch that up and focus a different member of the enemy team instead.
The first rule of teamfighting is that there’s no rules. It’s a no holds barred situation where anything goes. The best of the best adapt to every situation and focus whoever they need to.
You don’t always have to be the (solo) carry
TLDR: When behind, don’t try to be the carry for your team by making outrageous plays. Sit back, relax and peel for your team and let them carry you.
At the start of this guide, we discussed what some roles and champions should do when they’re ahead, even or behind. Using this information presented previously, there was a common theme between some roles which consisted of peeling for your team rather than trying to be the carry when you’re behind.
If you try to play aggressively in teamfights (by going for the backline) on your own when you’re behind, you will be killing yourself and giving the enemy free gold. This can result in your team losing the fight because of your actions. Realistically, the likelihood of you killing the enemy is rather low, so it’s better to do something that is guaranteed to work- like peeling for your team instead.
For example, if you’re a tank champion but are behind- you could use your ultimate and other CC abilities to protect your carries from the enemy frontline. Without your assistance, they might get killed easily which can lose you the teamfight.
Unfortunately, in Solo Queue we often see players trying to play super aggressive and perform outrageous maneuver when behind. Do not do this. Instead, adjust your playstyle to a more defensive and Supportive one whenever possible. If you’re playing as an ADC or Mid but are behind- it’s going to be challenging. Just remember to peel, kite and stick to your team to ensure you deal as much damage as you can.
Learn when to peel
TLDR: Whether you’re ahead or behind, you can always peel for your team.
Peeling in League of Legends can provide you and your team with more protection. This is why it is important to adapt your play style, and learn to peel for your carries. Whether you are playing as a tank or a fighter, a Jungler or a mage- you can always peel for your team mates.
At the start of this guide, we talked about how you could theoretically play when you are ahead, even or behind. There was a common theme throughout that section which consisted of peeling for your team when behind. However, you can always adapt your play style in teamfights to ensure that your team wins the skirmish.
Let’s suggest that your ADC is really strong, but also really vulnerable. For example, Kog’Maw who is a hyper carry, but also very squishy. If the enemy was to get on to him, it will be very difficult for him to survive the teamfight and dish out damage. This is where you can focus on protecting Kog’Maw at all costs. Instead of focusing some of the enemy carries, you can look to protect your teammate so they could dish out the damage and win the fight.
Realistically, you will find yourself inadvertently peeling for your team without even realizing it. I would recommend that if you are unsure of what to do, you should focus the front line and look to protect your team.
Look at how many enemies are in the area
TLDR: If the enemy has the number advantage, be picky about fighting.
Before fighting anybody, always look to see how many enemy champions are around your allies, and who on the enemy team can possibly join in the teamfight. It sounds obvious right? But players of every rank make the simple mistake of tunnel visioning and starting a fight without quite realising who is around to join in.
If you underestimate how many enemy champions are in the local area, you can be walking into a death trap- which can make your team suffer. While you could say that your team should also be on the lookout before following up, you as the leader and initial teamfighter should not have engaged in the first place.
Start building tank when behind
TLDR: If you’re behind, stop building damage and focus on defensive items instead.
Depending on your role, you can always start building tank and defensive items instead of continuing to buy AD or AP. If your team has too much damage, or is lacking a tank- I recommend that you do this after an item or two.
One example would be Renekton. He can be built as an AD champion, or as an off tanky member of the team. When he is behind, Renekton can be rather squishy which makes it difficult for him to deal and soak damage. This is because he will get killed rather quickly and before he is able to dish out and utilize his kit.
Focusing on defensive items and protecting your carries will increase your chances of winning a teamfight because not only will you survive for longer, but your carries and team mates will also be kept alive for longer too.
There are so many different things to think about when teamfighting and we’ve only discussed a few of the key elements. Remember that adapting is crucial, and you’ll need to adapt to every situation by adjusting your play style and how you play the game.
This guide’s intention was to provide you with as much teamfighting information as possible as well as assist you when you’re playing as and against any specific team composition. However, learning the basics of teamfighting isn’t always going to work in your favor if you don’t do relevant subject research.
In this section, we will share some other advice in the form of articles, videos and other resources that should provide you with extra knowledge.Taking advantage of some of this information will directly influence how you play the game.
Wave management
Wave management is crucial to teamfighting as you should always set up the waves around you prior to fighting. This is because after killing the enemy, you can quickly rotate to take an objective.
Coming out ahead in a teamfight isn’t always guaranteed. This is where having proper wave management and wave setup will work in your favor. Fights can go either way and if you were to lose a teamfight, you need to prevent the enemy from abusing the fact that some members of your team are dead. By having a lane pushed, the enemy will have to catch the wave and then push- which will reduce the number of objectives they can take as they will be unable to push as fast in comparison.
There is so much other relevant wave management information that impacts teamfights. Take a gander at our first in-depth guide to learn more.
Communication
Communication comes into play throughout the game and more so in teamfights. With poor communication, these skirmishes can turn sour pretty quickly and easily snowball out of control. This is why you need to communicate before, while and after a teamfight.
Telling your teammates to group or often disclosing some information will assist you in the teamfight. For example, many players don’t necessarily know what to do after the laning phase has ended, so a push in the right direction is always handy. Communication via the ping or chat system will assist you in teamfights as your team can pick and choose targets to collapse upon.
Understanding how to improve your communication as a whole will allow you to win teamfights and die less in the game. Here’s a separate communication guide we’ve made in the past.
Warding
Warding can make a game a hell of a lot easier and is key to every single game. By knowing where the enemy is at any given time, you will be able to coordinate attacks and engage on the enemy whenever they’re vulnerable.
Knowing that an ally is somewhere else on the map can allow you to engage and start a teamfight when you have a numbers advantage. For example, knowing that the enemy Mid laner is walking through the river may allow you to start a teamfight somewhere else on the map without fear of them joining. Another great example would be if you know a target is isolated, your team can collapse on them.
There are a plethora of warding locations that will help you win teamfights. If you’re struggling to know where to ward when playing on a specific side of the map, this guide should help you out.
Watch your replays
Watching your own replays is a great way of learning what you did wrong, and how to improve on it. For example, spotting your mistakes and looking at why you lost the teamfight. Your focus should be on what you did wrong in the fight and not your allies.
As this is a teamfighting guide; pick a replay, fast forward to when you had a 5v5 teamfight, and see what went wrong. Did you miss-position or did you get caught out? Whatever the reason for your loss, try to improve on it by focusing on not making the same mistake again in future games. For example, if you were caught out of position, make sure to stay with your team and not push too far forward.
The Pre-Game
While not strictly teamfighting related, the Pre-Game can assist you in knowing when your team is good and when it’s bad. Taking this advice on board, you will be able to play accordingly.
For example, if your team sucks during the early game, you should try to avoid teamfighting as you will be rather weak. However, if your team is really strong in the mid game, you can try to group consistently and teamfight whenever you’re able to.
With the addition of both teams power spikes (ie when they’re good), you can see when your team is stronger in certain parts of the game and try to abuse the enemy when they’re at their weakest.
The GPI – Fighting > Teamfights
If you’re looking to get specialized tips for teamfighting, then definitely have a look at the GPI, specifically the Fighting and Teamfighting section.
Many players feel that teamfights are linear and straight forward. While some can be considered easy or one sided, knowing how to come out ahead in every team composition and teamfight is a must. Often forgotten, some of the advice in the GPI system will definitely provide you with some helpful tailored advice.
Watch the LCS
While I generally advise against looking to the LCS to help you improve at League, one specific aspect of watching how pros teamfight can be rather good. Take note; they are communicating via voice and are trained to be coordinated, so you will be at a disadvantage from the get go.
For example, watching where a pro player positions in a teamfight will give you a good understanding of where you should also be positioned.
Another example would be where they teamfight. Usually, they will fight in areas that complement their team comp and minimize their time in dangerous fighting areas. A final example would be who they focus in teamfights.
There are quite a few things you can take away from pro play and use in your own gameplay. If you’re not into the LCS or Pro League, watching streamers is also a good way to go.
Now it’s time to answer some frequently asked questions that are related to teamfighting in League of Legends. I’ll do my best to answer them in the most efficient way possible and cover what you should do when something out of your control is happening.
Q: My team is not grouping
A: Remember that you have little to no control over what your allies do, so try not to overreact when they do not act how you want them too. Because of this lack of control, you’re in a sticky situation if they refuse to group. However, there are a few things you can do to entice them to group with your team.
Note that not everyone is deliberately refusing to group. Some players just don’t understand when it’s time to group, or they don’t know when they should group. Some players may also choose to not group at certain times, because they are trying to buy an item or gain enough gold.
One way of getting players to group is by pinging your teammates and requesting their assistance. Usually when somebody is pinging, players will react to it and re-position. Make good use of the ping wheel to get your team’s attention, however, do not be a jerk and spam ping.
Depending on the situation, you may be in the wrong. If you’re trying to get somebody to group with you, but they are refusing, it may be because you are requesting assistance in a poor situation. They may be in the right position after all, and it is you and the other members of your team who are in the wrong. You can always try to join the player who is split pushing or not grouping and try to siege and objective with them instead. In a worst-case scenario, you can always bring the group to somebody who isn’t grouping.
Q: I can’t get onto the backline
A: When you are unable to kill the enemy back line, you need to try to do whatever you can to deal damage in the teamfight.
Depending on which role you are playing, it may not be that big of an issue. For example, a tank champion is not expected to kill the enemy back line on their own. However, if you are playing somebody who needs to kill the back line in order to win the team and do your job, for example, an assassin, you need to change your focus to a different champion.
For example, adjusting your focus from the enemy ADC to the Support is a welcomed and favored change. I know what you are thinking “why do you want to focus the enemy Support when the ADC is worth more?” Many players seem to forget that Supports offer so much to their team like shielding, healing and damage, the Support does quite a lot in a teamfight. In addition, the Support is worth just as much gold as any champion in comparison.
If you truly cannot get on the back line at all, you can either try to apply pressure somewhere else by split pushing, or focusing the front line and playing around your team. Alternatively, put emphasis on ambushing and catching enemies out of position.
Q: We can’t kill the frontline
A: If you can’t kill the tanks on the front line, there are a few things you can do. While match up specific, if the tanks do not deal lots of damage, it might be okay to ignore them. However, if they are an off tank or juggernaut, you’re going to struggle. This is why you will need to kite backwards and try to disengage from the enemy. Creating a large gap between you and their frontline is a must. Once the enemy is on you, it can be rather difficult to get them off of you this is where creating a gap is necessary.
Make sure you purchase some healing reduction through either Morello or Executioner’s Calling so they will not be as tanky in teamfights. This can also reduce the amount of time they will be alive in the teamfight which should also make it easier for you to kill them.
If the tank is the only person who’s ahead, try to flank and get onto the back line. Taking down the damage dealers will leave the tank very vulnerable.
Q: The enemy is engaging on my team as soon as I start to split push
A: If your team is going caught out because you are not with them, this is just as much your fault as it is theirs.
Avoid leaving your team if they are: unable to fight without you, are squishy and prone to being killed or if your team are behind. I won’t go into too much detail, because I’ve already wrote a separate guide on spit pushing. But if your team is dying because you are not there, you need to be with them so they stop getting engaged upon.
My team keeps getting caught out
If your team is getting caught out consistently, it is probably because there is a lack of vision around the map. Make sure you take advantage of your Trinket, and remember to purchase Control Wards.
The fact is, your team is getting caught out because they are over extending without vision. The only way that this can be resolved is by placing vision around the map. Avoid going into darkness if you are alone, or if the enemy are in the area. Having good map awareness as well as vision coverage will tell you where the enemy is at any given time- which will definitely reduce your team’s chances of getting ambushed or caught out of position.
If somebody looks to be walking out on their own, don’t be afraid to ping them and request them to fall back. There is nothing wrong with pinging somebody to return if they are in an over extended position.
If an ally is overextending in teamfights, you need to ping them back immediately to save their life. Avoid trying to go as deep as them (depending on who you’re playing) so you do not get caught out as well.
Q: We can’t teamfight the enemy
A: A conundrum we often see and experience ourselves is the fact that is very difficult to play against certain team compositions. Naturally, some are amazing to play as and easy to play against, however, you’ll always come across a rather difficult matchup.
If you’re unable to beat the enemy due to the fact that they’re stronger or better, you have a few options open to you. We won’t get into specifics because every comp is different, but here are some tips.
Try to catch the enemies out of position by either baiting or collapsing on lonely targets. This can give you a slight gold advantage over the long run and give you a better chance of winning a teamfight.
Avoid getting caught out of position. Getting caught will reduce your chances of being able to teamfight as they will gain a kill advantage which can quickly snowball into objectives.
Disengage from any teamfight that the enemy may force. Because you will be unable to teamfight properly, you will need to disengage and not let the enemy start the teamfight. One way of doing this is by disengaging.
Q: We have an AFK
A: Playing with an AFK is never a great feeling no matter how long they’re gone for. You will need to adjust your play style and only teamfight when it will work in your favor.
There are a few different strategies to play with an AFK, and unfortunately, the only viable option is to teamfight when it will be on level or favored terms. By sticking close together, you can engage and try to teamfight when somebody is away from their team. For example, if the enemy Mid laner is somewhere else on the map, you can try to force a 4v4 fight.
Unfortunately, teamfighting with an obvious disadvantage like having less players is going to be tough no matter what. Your goal is to delay the game for as long as you can to let your AFK come back, or try to get the enemy to throw the game.
Q: The enemy is stronger
A: Playing against an enemy that is stronger is very difficult and very situation- so use whatever we suggest with a pinch of salt. For the most part, playing against a team who are ahead is very difficult because you have to play more reactive rather than proactive. For example, playing the waiting game rather than rushing could work in your favor as the enemy may throw. However, there are a few actions you can take to beat the enemy that do not rely on time.
Because you are behind, trying to fight the enemy when they’re grouped is going to result in your team getting aced. Instead, try to fight them when they have miss positioned or are lower in numbers. This is the only way that you are going to win a teamfight against a fed enemy.
It goes without saying, but keeping your carries alive for longer will allow them to deal more damage in the teamfight; which could potentially swerve it in your favor. For Top laners or tanks, instead of trying to get to the back line, peel for your team as much as you can and keep them alive for as long as possible.
We are about to wrap this piece up, and we thank every single one of you who has followed this guide through to the end. Teamfighting is a very situational, and context reliant subject to discuss.
Realistically, while there are some very obvious things you can take away from this guide to improve at teamfighting like positioning- a lot of this information and teamfighting techniques are very situational and in-game dependent. By which we mean, they would not always be applied into every game or in every scenario.
If you want to understand teamfighting in it’s entirety, you need to play the game more and start building up your experience and portfolio. Experience and knowledge play such a huge part in improving at League of Legends. You can have all the theory crafting in the world, but applying it into any given situation can be tricky. The only way you can do this is by playing the game more and learning as you go.
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