How Much CS is GOOD CS?

DISCLAIMER: This data is accurate for a game lasting 70 waves which is about 35 minutes and 45 seconds.

The most reliable way to escape bronze and silver MMR is through better honing your farming skills, but we constantly ask ourselves: "Am I farming well enough?" The most common reason people don't know their performance level is based upon not knowing the number of minions that actually roll through their lanes.

There are several ways to analyze your farming capabilities: cs/minute, total cs, standing among enemy/ally summoners per game, and so on. How many of those practices are ACTUALLY efficient though? I used to game with a buddy who said he had "perfect cs" when the clock timer divided by 10 was equal or less than his cs. For instance, 27:30. 2730/10 = 273. For many mid-low level tiers that cs is remarkable. But how much cs can you potentially earn at 27:30? The answer is roughly between 331-337. 273 is about 82% of the lower range bracket there (331). That's a high C+ on the American high school grade scales. Low B- in college.

Let's ask the basic questions. 1) Do you know how many minions spawn in the first wave? 2) Do you know how many minion kills will give you enough experience to reach level 2 (often crucial in winning that first trade)? 3) Do you know how often cannon minions spawn? 4) Do you know the actual amount of cs your lane is fed? 5) Do you know the intervals at which waves spawn? 6) Are you confident that you know the best time to recall to reduce as much gold loss as possible? 7) Do you know how long it takes the wave to reach the mid point of your lane?

Hopefully I can answer as many of your questions as possible, if you have more I will answer to the best of my ability or do more testing to find the answers!

1. 1:15 - 6 (3 melee, 3 caster) / Total potential: 6
2. 1:45 - 6 / 12
3. 2:15 - 7(3 melee, 1 cannon, 3 caster) / 19
4. 2:45 - 6 / 25
5. 3:15 - 6 / 31
6. 3:45 - 7 / 38
7. 4:15 - 6 / 44
8. 4:45 - 6 / 50
9. 5:15 - 7 / 57
10. 5:45 - 6 / 63
11. 6:15 - 6 / 69
12. 6:45 - 7 / 76
13. 7:15 - 6 / 82
14. 7:45 - 6 / 88
15. 8:15 - 7 / 95
16. 8:45 - 6 / 101
17. 9:15 - 6 / 107
18. 9:45 - 7 / 114
19. 10:15 - 6 / 120
20. 10:45 - 6 / 126
21. 11:15 - 7 / 133
22. 11:45 - 6 / 139
23. 12:15 - 6 / 145
24. 12:45 - 7 / 152
25. 13:15 - 6 / 158
26. 13:45 - 6 / 164
27. 14:15 - 7 / 171
28. 14:45 - 6 / 177
29. 15:15 - 6 / 183
30. 15:45 - 7 / 190
31. 16:15 - 6 / 196
32. 16:45 - 6 / 202
33. 17:15 - 7 / 209
34. 17:45 - 6 / 215
35. 18:15 - 6 / 221
36. 18:45 - 7 / 228
37. 19:15 - 6 / 234
38. 19:45 - 6 / 240
39. 20:15 - 6 / 246
40. 20:45 - 7 / 253
41. 21:15 - 6 / 259
42. 21:45 - 7 / 266
43. 22:15 - 6 / 272
44. 22:45 - 7 / 279
45. 23:15 - 6 / 285
46. 23:45 - 7 / 292
47. 24:15 - 6 / 298
48. 24:45 - 7 / 305
49. 25:15 - 6 / 311
50. 25:45 - 7 / 318
51. 26:15 - 6 / 324
52. 26:45 - 7 / 331
53. 27:15 - 6 / 337
54. 27:45 - 7 / 344
55. 28:15 - 6 / 350
56. 28:45 - 7 / 357
57. 29:15 - 6 / 363
58. 29:45 - 7 / 370
59. 30:15 - 6 / 376
60. 30:45 - 7 / 383
61. 31:15 - 6 / 389
62. 31:45 - 7 / 396
63. 32:15 - 6 / 402
64. 32:45 - 7 / 409
65. 33:15 - 6 / 415
66. 33:45 - 7 / 422
67. 34:15 - 6 / 428
68. 34:45 - 7 / 435
69. 35:15 - 6 / 441
70. 35:45 - 7 / 448

TL;DR - Once 70 waves have passed through the Nexus (at 35 minutes, 45 seconds) you can obtain 448 farm. Is that the maximum? Not if you're a god. Is that your target each game? Goodness no. Is it, however, a good reference for potential/targeted gold income? Absolutely. So now to answer my previous questions and a few others.

1. 6 minions spawn in the first wave.

2. 7 minions (in a solo lane, sorry bot, I don't adc much, but I believe it's 9) will grant you the experience needed to reach level 2. The first death in the second wave (Assuming you were in range and had no other experience granted through lucky wards or jungle camps) will be the key moment. If your champion has a strong level 2 and you can reach 7 first, win your lane early.

3. Cannon minions spawn every 3rd wave for the first 20 minutes. At 20:15 a 6 minion wave will spawn followed by a 7 minion wave. Thus becoming a 1 - 2 pattern.

4. Your lane gets fed roughly 120ish minions per 10 minutes (the first 1:15 lull throws that off).

5. Waves spawn every 30 seconds after 1:15. If the clock ends in :15 or :45, they're coming.

6. The best time to recall is always after a cannon wave. (Ignoring lane pressure, of course). You NEVER want to back on a cannon minion wave for two reasons. Number 1 - money. Number 2 - that SIEGE minion is gonna pressure your lane in and make it very frustrating upon return to clean under tower. A phenomenon occurs in the game between 19:15 - 20:45. Three waves in a row will spawn 6 minions. This is the best time to recall if you've got cheddar in your pocket (and are still in laning phase). I call this the Devil's Lull. 6-6-6. No siege minions. You are safe to recall with little expense to you.

7. It takes the mid lane waves ~22 seconds to reach the midpoint of the lane. It takes the side lanes ~33 seconds. If you need to ask why, Pythagorean Theorem. Why does that matter? Laning phase doesn't start at 1:15, it starts at ~1:37(why mid laners DO NOT leash) or ~1:48.

8. Do you understand why Junglers tax lane? Or, are you aware that they should?

        - I'm not a jungle main, but I know when a jungler comes to your lane and leaves camps untouched, it costs them gold. Taxing is tricky, though. IF AND ONLY IF A JUNGLER DOES NOT OBTAIN THE KILL (should a kill occur) he/she has a right to tax your lane (last hitting and not influencing pressure in undesired ways, please) to make sure the gold they did not get is earned back. IF YOUR JUNGLER GETS THE KILL he didn't really help your lane AS MUCH as he could have, and should leave your farm alone. IF NO KILL OCCURS let him take one or two. Consolation prize, eh?
   

9. Do you know the "exchange rate" between minions and kills?

      - A kill is worth 300 gold. "Standardized kills" anyway. The ones without a bounty or the enemy laner foolishly feeding. Melee minions start the game worth 20g, and casters start at 17g. So about ~18g on average. About 16 creeps or about 3 waves. The numbers vary based on time in the game, bounties, feeding, which minions you kill, etc. But a kill will "excuse you" from just under 3 waves of farm. You often hear people claim they are "farming champions" when they may not be csing so well, but are murdering their enemy. That works until the kills stop being worth as much.
   

FARMING IS THE MOST GUARANTEED WAY TO OBTAIN GOLD AND AN ADVANTAGE IN LEAGUE OF LEGENDS. IF YOU DO NOT WISH TO RISK YOUR FARM FOR A POTENTIAL KILL, DON'T LET PEOPLE RAG ON YOU. ROAMING IS NOT NECESSARY. GET THAT GOLD. WERK, B*TCH.

(This post is about farming and minions, not map pressure, so don't yell at me).

I hope I have answered some long standing questions about gold income and minions. Obviously, the Platinums and the Diamonds and so on should be fully aware of what I have stated, this is for the people who want knowledge behind the game and can use that favorably in their future. Good luck and Have Fun, Summoners! :-)