Hey guys, I play a bunch of Team Builder and it's becoming more and more apparent that Support roles are in short supply. The team builder queues are taking longer and longer.
It would be great if there was some kind of small IP boost or other bonus for players willing to take a role with a higher demand? Seems like it could encourage more people to play different roles and decrease the wait times of team builder.
Thoughts?
Ofalling11 votesAs a support main, I fully support this.
For selfish reasons.
Beyond that, I don't think it's a great idea. I think the only good way to solve it is to fix whatever underlying issue(s) with support is making people not want to play it. Which might just be bad PR 'cause... well, I love it. I find just focusing on last hitting so much boring. Harassing and warding's way more fun to me. And when you make/enable awesome things, with so much less, that feels that much more amazing.
But so to the end of 'fixing whatever underlying issue(s)...", I think a, "Why do you never/extremely rarely play support?" topic is the best way to go and hopefully Riot comes in on that.
Tuss5 votesThe annoying thing I find with "Why doesn't anyone like support?" threads is that they tend to just fill up with people saying "I actually find supporting quite enjoyable!" and similar things, or speculation on the reasons, with barely anyone who actually hates it weighing in on it.
Junkο2 votesPeople don't like playing support because most of them just want to boast their ego with a high kill count. If you play any game in low MMR, you will quickly find that if you got the kill, despite saving somebody, that somebody will yell at you "for stealing the kill". It even happens when the person wasn't able to kill them (was too far away, or never dealt dmg, etc...). And if people see they don't have 10 kills by 10 min, they will just quit the game.
And of course when you play support, you aren't supposed to get kills, only assists. Then there is the fact that you are completely dependent on that other person laning with you who could be really bad.
Knight Devout2 votesNo, people don't like support because they are team reliant, gold starved, and wherever the damage/mobility average rise up they found themselves to be moving targets for mid assassins and fighting junglers. This in turn is not uncounterable, but requires the support to be constantly wary of his low damage(if attempting to pick off a low health foe) or low survivability (when teamfight starts, they must ALWAYS be outside harm way because a midlaner/toplaner could potentially take them down if he attacks them once their spells have been used to secure the teamfight.).
This reason in particular I feel weaker and squishier than heavier, even on supports like Braum, leona, or heavy damage supports like Zyra and Vel'koz.
I'm not arguing about how effective the role is, but how fun the role is.
Sightless661 votes"Why do you never/extremely rarely play support?"
Support doesn't do as much damage or tank as much damage as other roles. It also gets fewer kills than other roles, and I don't think I've ever scored a pentakill as a support. You tend to have the least gold and exp income. I main support because I don't care about any of those things. Someone else would care about them very much.
RoyaiChaos8 votesNo because you can que up for a support in any lane so it won't work. Edit: kind of like what happened with the icons.
PL5520 votesWhen you click "Join a team" the in demand roles are shown as which role and which lane, so if this does get implemented then Riot would probably use the lane too.
Toastage2 votesYeah, would be cool if it shows the bonus IP for playing that role next to the in-demand roles. Would definitely add more of those roles in to the team builder pool.
ChargeItDownMid1 votes[deleted]
LeeDark3 votesHow does this require the leader to do anything? The "most demanded" roles is ALREADY a feature of teambuilder. When you sign up as a solo player, it tells you what most teams are looking for. If the leaders don't want what is most in demand for that spot, they don't have to do it. They can still decide they want a double assassin bot lane if they so feel like it.
It boils down to this: In demand roles being filled more often means faster queues. People like faster queues.
LeeDark8 votesThey already have the tech to show what roles are in demand, so they obviously can do it.
If you pick Talon and say you are going to support, even if you have no intention of playing it that way, then the team leader can kick you before the game starts. He knows that when he listed an opening for a support, you weren't what he had in mind. You only get the bonus IP for actually completing the game.
NinjaToad995 votesIf I play team builder it's usually as support, so I'd be fine with this for mostly selfish reasons...
Toastage3 votesHaha same. Then the one game you want to change things up a bit and play adc there's never a support. Ho hum :P
Hellioning4 votesI'd rather have longer queues than a support who has no idea what they're doing.
Course, I'm a support main, so I'm totally down with giving me stuff for doing something I would normally do.
Velivolo3 votesPLEASE. RITO PLEASE.
General Keith3 votesI like it, those who want to farm IP quick can just try Team Builder. Plus, it encourages people to become Support mains <3
Renaille3 votesBribing players to not have fun is not a good option. Most players see the traditional support role as undesirable. Want faster Queue times? Don't ask someone to forgo fun.
VeterenMantis3 votesBasically what every one else said. And what would be a fair even amount of IP with out breaking the game. As far as I am concerned a 975RP skin is worth supporting. So 4800-6300 per game? That would break every aspect of the game. It is obvious what Riot games best corse of action is. Remove the support role all together give ashe a decent escape and go AD Brusier/ADC bot lane. The kill lane would be legendary.
FantasySniper3 votesIt feels kind of exploitable because you know there are people that are going to go Rengar or Veigar support and make your life a living hell.
Besides, isn't the reward for picking a "less desirable" role in the first place a shorter queue time?
Desmond Law2 voteswe really need an IP gain boost after all the nerfs :( These random 4 win ip boosts are kinda lame. At least this one encourages teamwork
California Ice2 votesI agree, it would give more popularity to support roles/ jungle! Even though I already main support. :)
warpenguin5552 votes+1 to this, waiting on a support sucks.
DarkenedSoul4202 votesYes pleaasee, I have been saying this since day one! Because it has been a problem since teambuilder came out. Yes some people may try to abuse it like someone said, associate a lane to the role and it can't be abused as easily and wait times would definitely be reduced.
Rito pls
Calintz65652 votesThat would be a small, but meaningful enough incentive for people to play support.
Crazycatperson2 votesI think once people stop playing kalista, more supports will start showing up.
Ariel the Cruel1 votesOr at the very least, stop dodging 3/4 of the teams. (>_>) Seriously. Yolo Queue Kali scares the F out of me.
Knight Devout1 votesMost of them are nice if you speak to them. There was this one kalista i supported as Soraka. I clearly said to her I was to squishy to use the ult offensively, but she still binded me saying "at least this way you have an escape! ;) " God bless him/her.
Ariel the Cruel2 votesI call that lucky. I've gotten decent synergy with a snowballed Kali or 2. But most of them seem to treat the support like an item. Not that your standard ADC doesn't already, but it's worse with Kali.
serpensortia11 votesI'm sure if other ADC's could pick you up when they want to initiate, they would. Their kits don't let them force you to sacrifice yourself.
Apex Citavista2 votesI think that if they did that, they would have to make it lane binding. Like, if you pick a support role, but youre playing as a top laner for the ip boost, they would have to make it so that you actually go play as a support. Like that only people with a normal meta team gets the boost. meaning 1 top, 1 mid, 1 jung, and an adc/support. On top of that, only one support category could be permitted per game. If they did that, it would be viable i guess.
Junkο2 votesTeam Builder was never meant to be top/mid/jung/adc/support
It was supposed to be a place where the captain set up a laning strategy(2 jung, 1 lane or 1 top 2 mid 1 bot and jung, etc..) and then find a team for it. It was never supposed to be just another meta queue.
Spacesuit Spiff1 votesThis seems like it could be worked into a good idea.
Unrelated, but last night I queued up as botlane support and it was "very long". lolwut?
Volt Cruelerz1 votesI interpret that as "there is a shortage of hosts."
Velasan1 votesYou all realize there is already an in game team builder feature which raises your ip based on whether you are playing a role and champion you don't normally play correct?
It already would give you more points for playing a support when you normally don't, but it holds true for any other role as well.
Also people currently abuse this system to some degree by simply saying they are in a role they are not actually playing... aka a support yi who is actually jungling.
Do you really want people who have no idea how to play or support well joining a game in that role simply to get more IP per win? I've been in games with supports who aren't used to that role and I really don't want that to be a common thing. Hi there support vel'koz who only builds 1 sight stone and then all big AP items.
AdgharKH13 votesReally? Where's the source that says you get bonus IP for an unusual role/champion? All I remember seeing is that it adjusts your matchmaking for role/champion, but matchmaking is certainly not IP.
Also, who cares if they don't know how to play? People have to learn some day, some way, and Team Builder is not high-octane ranked. Give people a chance to learn, give them tips as they go, and League will be better for it. In the long run, you'd encounter fewer people who don't know how to support, because people who seek IP in Team Builder will learn things they wouldn't otherwise learn, and then take it into Ranked.
Toastage2 votesTotally agree. Also I find playing a role you're not as familiar with gives you a far faaaar better understanding of that role when other people are playing it. Really increases your team awareness in later games. I have a strong feeling that having people play support more often will make better adc's and junglers.
Velasan1 votesThe problem with this sentiment is that you are implying they want to play support instead of playing support for the IP and therefore not having fun at it or doing it badly which actually contributes to losses and no one getting extra IP at all. People should play the roles they have the most fun with.
There's also nothing showing that they would actually take it into ranked or that they would learn it correctly so that it would transfer to ranked.
An incentive to effectively play supports (because that is what we are really talking about here not just any in demand role) is that it encourages people to play for the IP and not to play to have fun. This also attracts bots that would then want to farm this IP to sell accounts.
Then teambuilder will be full of IP farmers bringing down your games.
I don't see how this is better in the long run.
RookPusher1 votesInstead of an IP boost you could just shutdown your ADC when they start getting mouthy. Or maybe not wait until bot lane is 13-2 to yell "who the **** fed?"
Just a thought.
Twilight Drizzle1 votesHow about an IP boost for Team Builder in General?
Solaxo1 votesThey will never do that because of chinese overlords
Zomboto1 votesthey would never do this because it would make it easier to buy champs, and rito wants you to have to grind forever for new champs or break down and buy RP for them so they get more $$. same reason they wont give us more refund tokens.
CoolKnightST1 votesThe main reasons why people doesn't play support & adc in teambuilder is simple:
WindScorpion1 votesBy playing support you are rewarded by not having to wait to start a game.
LordVeral1 votesi'd like to see this. FFXIV does something similar for their "daily roulettes". You queue up as a tank/healer (those are the two roles that are needed the most) and you get extra gold/xp.
For League to do it to prevent players from playing Top Support, the role NEEDS to be "Bottom Support" and of course, in teambuilder people arent going to want to play with people who are playing say "Udyr support" or even "Vayne support" etc. IT would give more incentive for supports to actually queue up, getting a small ip boost when theyre really needed
TheSeltzerBaron1 votesHey guys, I play a bunch of Team Builder and it's becoming more and more apparent that Support roles are in short supply. The team builder queues are taking longer and longer.
It would be great if there was some kind of small IP boost or other bonus for players willing to take a role with a higher demand? Seems like it could encourage more people to play different roles and decrease the wait times of team builder.
Thoughts?
My thoughts are that no amount of IP is worth the abuse you get when you play a role you're not good at. I've read guides to jungling, practiced it a bunch with different champs and even if I thought I did a passable job I still got reamed out for not being excellent. To me, solo top lane and jungle are all but impossible to play well and you get called on suckage by a factor of 10. Nothing riot ever added as an incentive to play those roles would be enough.
serpensortia11 votesJunglers get flak for everything, though. A lane goes even, they blame you for not getting them fed. Gives first blood and keeps going aggressive till they're 6 kills behind, well the jungler should be able to magically turn your lane around, no matter how much you explain that ganking now would just give a double kill.
JustBoneBrook1 voteswhy? You get already a low queue time ...