Boards›Gameplay

How to Carry Your Team's Morale in Bronze and Above

Offended·4/29/2015, 8:37:59 PM·50 votes·5,022 views

I've made countless threads/posts about this, including one on how to deal with trolls. But I come across way too many people who "don't believe in tilting".

Tilting is real. If someone went up to you in real life, commented on how ugly you are, punched you, and then walked away, I guarantee you would have some emotional reaction to it. It's the same in League. Calling your teammates "shit", pointing out their mistakes, and flaming about an AFK teammate DOES severely affect your gameplay. Denying the existence of tilting is denying that your words have any emotional impact on others. (Which, in my opinion, is just an excuse to bully people for your own insecurities)

Tilting is when a player takes on an aggressive laning position, makes irrational decisions, and takes unnecessary risks. They often "all or nothing" against an enemy, dive into a 1v5 or 3v5, lose focus of objectives, and facecheck the brush. Tilting can be caused by one's own opinions of their gameplay or skills, an ally's negative comments, or a feeling of hopelessness caused by an AFK teammate.

How to avoid it:

  • People recognize when they make a mistake. The majority of people are way too hard on themselves when they do mess up. As a teammate, instead of making a negative comment or telling them to "play defensively", make a positive comment about something they are doing well at in lane, or as a jungler you can let them know you'll gank soon.
  • If a teammate is feeding, it is extremely important to react before the enemy laner snowballs. Most of the time I will see a player feed 2-3 kills before a teammate comes to help them, and it's often too late. Instead, pay extra attention to their lane and take advantage of teleport and other mobility spells to catch out the enemy, even if they only have a kill or two. When I'm spectating and someone loses lane, it's partially their fault, but also partially the teams fault for not responding. (Never, ever say this in team chat as it can lead to flaming.)
  • "gj" "nj" "np" "ty" "going b" "you're doing great" "dont worry about it" "just keep it up, you outscale ___" "we have this late game" "lets focus on objectives and towers" "lets try pushing up a lane" "care" - These are all great things to say in game. League is a game entirely dependent upon communication. Positive communication will reduce tilting & increase team's morale. Securing objectives is another great way to get off tilt.
  • If you lose the game because a teammate fed (Look at me, I went on a 6 game losing streak despite going ~24-4 every game because teammates fed) do NOT flame them. Not only will it surely affect their next game performance, but it'll also affect your own. Being a dick puts you on tilt too.
  • Watch replays of your past games. It's impossible to criticize your own mistakes while you play. Knowing that you have it recorded (ehem, LoLReplay) lets you move on in the game and stop perseverating about it.
  • Don't surrender. Don't view it even as a possibility. If you're worried about the number of games you're playing and not the QUALITY of the games you play, then you aren't going to follow the next recommendation and are surely going to be on tilt.
  • Take breaks. Whether I feel like I'm on tilt or not, every single game I win or lose, I take a 5 minute break. (Not timed, I just get up and eat something, play with my dogs, etc) This helps you decompress after your last game, process what happened in it, and prepare for the next one. (Why do you think LCS teams take breaks between games?) League is an extremely mentally demanding game, breaks are healthy. I just took the ACT yesterday, and the intermittent breaks between test sections was amazing. I got to disconnect and think about how I did from an outside perspective, assess what I should've done better (such as pacing myself differently), before resuming my next test. Every League game is a test, don't just surrender half way through with an "I can't do it!". Even finishing the test will get you a ~50%, giving up gives you a 0%.

For those of you out there who still don't believe tilting is real, I would recommend:

  1. Getting examined by a therapist, maybe you have an emotion disorder
  2. Going into a local gym and calling a body builder a wimp. I guarantee you'll get a reaction. (And maybe a black eye)

TL;DR Just because people are online doesn't mean they don't have feelings. Don't be a dick.

34 Comments

Only Play Darius4/30/2015, 4:30:35 AM9 votes

Once had a game where Gnar lost lane hard to Riven and really felt bad about it once she started roaming to other lanes, saying he fu*cked up and what not. I saw he was still building AD, told him that it isn't a good idea to continue building damage once your lane opponent is fed, and told him that Gnar makes a great tank and if he starts building Armor and HP he will have a much easier time, he took my advice.

Fifteen minutes later, Mega Gnar jumps onto the enemy team's face and helps us get a clean ace. We managed to swing the gold advantage back into our favor and proceeded to win the game. Made sure to let Gnar know that despite feeding Riven, by building tank he was able to help the team overcome her by making plays that allowed us to remove her from the picture and clean up the rest of the team, and told him we appreciated his willingness to listen to my build advice and stay focused on the game.

Some friendly advice and a little patience really goes a long way when it comes keeping your team's spirits high.

RiotMhija5/2/2015, 1:49:48 AM5 votes

So much this. When supporting I get super stressed out because I don't want to let my team down, so when I make mistakes and my ADC is like "you'll get it next time!" I get all <333333333 and like I WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN AGAIN I GOT YO BACK O_O

AdgharKH4/30/2015, 12:39:24 AM4 votes

Only 4 upvotes in 4 hours? What is this world coming to?

KGBcommunist4/30/2015, 9:19:25 PM3 votes

Played a match earlier with nasus. I gave up 2 kills to a enemy jax early game and i started to get flamed by bot lane champs. I told them im sorry and that i just needed to farm. We were loosing well into mid game but once i hit full tank we snowballed and pulled out a comeback victory. Mid lane champ was the one that told me to keep my head up and play a little more defensively. He didn't flame and gg'd me every time i made a play. His cool calm collectiveness won us the game. Those are the type of players i wont forget.

Remlap12234/30/2015, 6:58:17 PM3 votes

Easy way to do it:

Step 1: Play Gangplank Step 2: Cast E Step 3: Profit!

IcyPepper4/30/2015, 4:39:38 AM2 votes
  1. Going into a local gym and calling a body builder a wimp. I guarantee you'll get a reaction. (And maybe a black eye)

This is like a bronze player calling a gold player "shit."

Baron of Bread4/30/2015, 3:34:09 AM2 votes

I always wondered what tilting meant. Thanks for the education! +1

Mandang04/30/2015, 7:51:44 PM1 votes

There's emotional reaction, and then there's letting it affect your actions. Tilting is real, but it's not something that automatically happens if you vote to surrender or if you tell your teammate to stop getting caught.

I agree with your general message of staying positive, but you're applying the concept of 'tilting' waaaaay too widely here.

Puri Puri Taric5/1/2015, 10:20:41 PM1 votes

u cant tell people what to do if they dont agree with you . especially not on the internet.

Neamean5/2/2015, 2:24:40 AM1 votes

You forgot "its K" rather than "don't worry about it" when playing as Gangplank, it makes a world of a different cause you are getting into character.

xPotatoWhisperer5/2/2015, 8:20:22 PM1 votes

When I first started playing and I got stuck in bronze, I remembered in my promo game we won a 4v5 just because we didn't give up. Not a single surrender vote was offered, no one even asked if it was an option. The enemy team just got the point where they were toying with us, so we just played defensive and farmed. 3 barons or so later, one of the d/c's came back (lvl 9?) we asked if she would be willing to distract them. They fell for the bait and we just kept taking towers. Eventually, we gibbed one of them, won a teamfight, and pushed for victory. Best turtle game ever.

Snowball4u4/30/2015, 4:23:31 AM1 votes

How do you get to diamond?

A. Win B. 1 of the above C. All of the below D. All of the above E. Feed so your team will carry.

The correct answer was F all of the above other then the letters shown.

DeadlyDuck174/30/2015, 4:33:32 AM1 votes

I didn't read the whole post but can tell it's great stuff. Saying "good job guys" or just "nj" every now and then while avoiding anything negative will greatly boost morale and your chance of winning at all elos. I make a habit of doing that and always warding for myself and my team, people forget that this game is 5v5 and helping your team helps you too.

Ahurath4/30/2015, 6:37:53 AM1 votes

If it's one thing I've learned in playing league it's that people are very sensitive and the best thing you can do is just to don't use chat at all. Or if you have to just type stuff that the team has to do, never single out one person.

Space Bum4/30/2015, 12:53:26 PM1 votes

Maybe it's flaming but I have to ask "why?" when I see things that are completely outside of any logic.

-teammate x, with nothing to offer but damage, who is currently safe, turns around to save teammate y who is deffenetly fucked and they both die.

Tribbles Foxfolk4/30/2015, 12:53:58 PM1 votes

{quoted}

I've made countless threads/posts about this, including one on how to deal with trolls. But I come across way too many people who "don't believe in tilting".

Tilting is real. If someone went up to you in real life, commented on how ugly you are, punched you, and then walked away, I guarantee you would have some emotional reaction to it. It's the same in League. Calling your teammates "shit", pointing out their mistakes, and flaming about an AFK teammate DOES severely affect your gameplay. Denying the existence of tilting is denying that your words have any emotional impact on others. (Which, in my opinion, is just an excuse to bully people for your own insecurities)

Tilting is when a player takes on an aggressive laning position, makes irrational decisions, and takes unnecessary risks. They often "all or nothing" against an enemy, dive into a 1v5 or 3v5, lose focus of objectives, and facecheck the brush. Tilting can be caused by one's own opinions of their gameplay or skills, an ally's negative comments, or a feeling of hopelessness caused by an AFK teammate.

How to avoid it:

  • People recognize when they make a mistake. The majority of people are way too hard on themselves when they do mess up. As a teammate, instead of making a negative comment or telling them to "play defensively", make a positive comment about something they are doing well at in lane, or as a jungler you can let them know you'll gank soon.
  • If a teammate is feeding, it is extremely important to react before the enemy laner snowballs. Most of the time I will see a player feed 2-3 kills before a teammate comes to help them, and it's often too late. Instead, pay extra attention to their lane and take advantage of teleport and other mobility spells to catch out the enemy, even if they only have a kill or two. When I'm spectating and someone loses lane, it's partially their fault, but also partially the teams fault for not responding. (Never, ever say this in team chat as it can lead to flaming.)
  • "gj" "nj" "np" "ty" "going b" "you're doing great" "dont worry about it" "just keep it up, you outscale ___" "we have this late game" "lets focus on objectives and towers" "lets try pushing up a lane" "care" - These are all great things to say in game. League is a game entirely dependent upon communication. Positive communication will reduce tilting & increase team's morale. Securing objectives is another great way to get off tilt.
  • If you lose the game because a teammate fed (Look at me, I went on a 6 game losing streak despite going ~24-4 every game because teammates fed) do NOT flame them. Not only will it surely affect their next game performance, but it'll also affect your own. Being a dick puts you on tilt too.
  • Watch replays of your past games. It's impossible to criticize your own mistakes while you play. Knowing that you have it recorded (ehem, LoLReplay) lets you move on in the game and stop perseverating about it.
  • Don't surrender. Don't view it even as a possibility. If you're worried about the number of games you're playing and not the QUALITY of the games you play, then you aren't going to follow the next recommendation and are surely going to be on tilt.
  • Take breaks. Whether I feel like I'm on tilt or not, every single game I win or lose, I take a 5 minute break. (Not timed, I just get up and eat something, play with my dogs, etc) This helps you decompress after your last game, process what happened in it, and prepare for the next one. (Why do you think LCS teams take breaks between games?) League is an extremely mentally demanding game, breaks are healthy. I just took the ACT yesterday, and the intermittent breaks between test sections was amazing. I got to disconnect and think about how I did from an outside perspective, assess what I should've done better (such as pacing myself differently), before resuming my next test. Every League game is a test, don't just surrender half way through with an "I can't do it!". Even finishing the test will get you a ~50%, giving up gives you a 0%.

For those of you out there who still don't believe tilting is real, I would recommend:

  1. Getting examined by a therapist, maybe you have an emotion disorder
  2. Going into a local gym and calling a body builder a wimp. I guarantee you'll get a reaction. (And maybe a black eye)

TL;DR Just because people are online doesn't mean they don't have feelings. Don't be a dick.

While I agree 100% with this, I have to say that "don't surrender" is not always true. There are some situations you absolutely CANNOT win where the surrender button is a blessing. e.g.: Intentional feeders, down 4 towers by 15 minutes (Not always a loss, but pretty much is in most cases), duo queue bot lane that's 0/25 by 10 minutes (somehow, they always manage do this), and 2+ DC's.

Still love this post, though.

AxlStream4/30/2015, 6:44:43 PM1 votes

Lol flaming feeders will affect their next game? Good, I don't care if they feed on their next match cuz it ain't on my team.

Also not surrendering cuz quality over quantity? I earn/lose as much lp for a 20 minute game or 60 minute. I'll just be less salty about needlessly playing an extra 5+ minutes with a team I'm done with.