How To Get Better and Have Fun in League of Legends

As with anything in life, there is no miracle cure or secret to getting better at League of Legends. Going from beginner to expert requires dedication and a willingness to improve your game. In short, if you’re expecting a quick fix solution, sadly that’s just not happening. So, as the road to getting better seems to get longer and even more difficult, how do you actually get better at League of Legends?

The simple truth? You need to look at your weaknesses. The best players in the world all have one thing in common – they know their weaknesses, and even more importantly, they know how to improve them. Even though it seems hard to believe, the top players in Challenger all started at the bottom of the tier. It was by looking at what held them back, that made them the best. They are experts at turning their weak points into strengths – and you can too.

Improving your skills

Let’s get straight to the point: improving your skills in League of Legends means playing the game. A lot. It’s from consistent playing that you develop an understanding of how and what you should be doing. Knowing where to ward, improving map awareness, controlling the jungle, having clear communication, timing your ganks, trading and urging teamwork are just part of the skills that you need to work on.

Your game knowledge has a huge say in how you use and improve your skills, but you’ll need to focus on getting better at using those skills as well.

For you to improve, the skills you should work on should be the ones you don’t understand. Let’s say you don’t know what kiting is – look it up. Read, watch and learn about how, when and where to kite your opponents and how lead them into a gank. Never heard of ganking?  You’ll need to look that up as well. Before you know it, you’ll be familiar with a ton of new terms, tactics and skills you previously had no idea existed.

From there, the fun part begins. Bring your new arsenal of skills to the Fields of Justice to practice until they feel like second nature. This is your chance to test your skills, so don’t be afraid to throw yourself in to situations that you’d normally stay out of. The more experience you get, the better you’ll be able to control the situation.

Improving your attitude

Sometimes we make the wrong play, buy the wrong items or dive in at the wrong time – it happens to best of us. When making a mistake, big or small, it’s important that you’re open to criticism. Failing to realize that you made the wrong play keeps you from learning from your mistakes and ultimately does nothing to make you a better player.

As your rank improves, so does your teammates and opponents. Use their comments and criticisms to identify areas that you need to focus on.

Your teammates keep telling you that you suck? Ignore them, but be open to the idea that you might lack skills in certain areas that aren’t as good as they should be. You keep getting called out for having a bad build? Perhaps it really isn’t ideal for your champion. The best way to handle toxic comments is to use them as a way to learn and improving your skills. Find the truth in their feedback, negative or positive, and see if there is room for improvement.

Leave trash talking at the door and keep your mind on winning the game. It seems obvious, but you’d be surprised at how many spend more time in the chat than on their lane.

Improving your knowledge of the game

Even though it seems like a stretch, marginal gains such as expanding your knowledge of League of Legends can be the difference between winning or losing. Essentially, the idea of marginal gains is all about making small improvements that eventually add up to something bigger. One area to look at is your general knowledge of champions and their abilities. Without the proper knowledge of how the game works, chances are that your champion’s potential isn’t being maximized.

Experience and knowledge go hand in hand. The more you play, the more you’ll know how to read your opponents from simply watching them play. Predicting their tactics is an invaluable skill that can only be gained through trial and error.

Read up on cooldowns, damage output and costs of your champions to learn and master every part of their gameplay. Every champion has ability combinations for you to use to your advantage, so get intimate with every detail of their function and how they work together. Practice different combos and mechanics with your champion until you’re comfortable with all aspects of their abilities.

Keep up to date on the most popular champions and study their abilities and combos to prevent unpleasant surprises from your opponents. Knowing the ins and outs of the roster makes it easier to help teammates and allows you to exploit the weaknesses of your lane opponents. Better communication and tactics mean that your odds of winning grow exponentially, and your teammates will love you for it.

Getting familiar with the map is a great place to start when looking to counteract your opponents. Map awareness is a knowledge-based skill that allows you to calculate their movements – as you play more, you’ll be able to get a lot of information just from looking at your mini-map. Are you alone on your lane? Perhaps your opponents are getting ready to gank a team member or worse - you. Just like reading the tactics or intentions of your opponent, map awareness is largely about game sense. The only way to get it is through playing, so get to it!

A bit of encouragement

Too many of us are guilty of being harsh on ourselves and how we play. Our final piece of advice is to give yourself the recognition you deserve. Some people give up when faced with a challenge, but not you. Instead, you took the time to research and get better.

League of Legends is a complex game with a ton of things to keep in mind if you want to become a better player. Focus on your weaknesses, learn from criticisms and keep adding those marginal gains, and you’ll be reaping the rewards before you know it.