Support needs to be changed to Roam. Riot needs to finally fix this old problem.

Why the Support position in bottom lane is a problem

• All Support champions are forced to balanced around "Babysit an ADC in the bottom lane" rather than being free to be balanced around a unique strategic purpose, specific only to that particular Support champion, that they fill in a game. Supports need to be free to be balanced around global impact so that each individual Support champion can be balanced around a particular niche. For example, Soraka should offer a unique, strategic reason to pick her over any other champion in the game; every Support should offer a unique reason to pick them, specifically, over any other champion. Perhaps Soraka is the best counter in the entire game against a dedicated poke team, for example. Instead, they are gimped to fit in bottom lane, preventing them from being balanced around a more global, map-wide impact. Every Support should have a unique identity and purpose, far beyond simply "babysits bottom". Everyone in the game should care about, and be impacted by, what Support was picked - not just the people in bottom lane.

• ** Gold starved** positions suck. This game is all about income and itemization.

• Supports are not supposed to take any kills. ...However, when is the only time you get to see your portrait, big and bold, spotlighted for everyone to see? ...When you get kills. ...So, because they can't take kills, who never gets to be in the spotlight? Who never gets the thrill of a Pentakill? Who never gets to be the star? ...Support position.

• Only a tiny minority of people are masochistic enough to enjoy being forced to babysit a braindead ADC, with no thanks or gold income to show for their effort. (I'm an ADC main, and I apologize to everyone who's ever had to endure carrying my idiotic hide through the laning phase.) The majority of the player base predictably avoids it like the plague.

As a result of all of the above, we get the biggest problem of all:

• Queue times are a joke.

It would be funny, but the long-term health of the game is seriously jeopardized by the absolutely absurd wait times it takes to get into a match. You can queue up and play an entire match of many other competitive multiplayer games in the time it takes to get a single League game started. That is pathetic, and completely unnecessary. Riot evidently doesn't take this problem seriously, so we need to make some noise and demand implementation of solutions. Speaking of which...

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The Solution

Fortunately, there is a pair of long overdue changes that will fix all of these problems.

As the first change, I present to you:

(1) Roam

• Replaces the Support position in Dynamic Queue.
• Captures all of the fun parts of Support, like not having to worry about CSing and being free to focus on helping teammates win their lanes.
• Makes laning phase much more dynamic and full of possibilities to make big plays, with dramatic turnarounds and much more uncertain outcomes.
• Creates excitement and tension due to increased contention of objectives.

How does it work?

• When entering the queue, you can choose from Top, Mid, Bot, Jungle, Roam, or Fill.
• The player assigned to the Roam position will automatically start the game with a special, permanent buff that they will have for the entire match:

Buff: Roamer - This unit is free to roam the map. This unit gets a free constant income of gold per second, which will stop for 15 seconds if the Roamer kills any minions or Jungle monsters. This unit also gets constant free XP in the same way, but does not gain any XP from the death of nearby enemy minions and Jungle monsters.

• (Note: All of the current 'Support' items that give Gold/5 will be reworked to NOT give Gold/5 anymore, or they could simply be removed entirely. There must be no items that give income.)

How does that fix the problem?

• Roam is flexible. Almost any champion can be played in the Roam position, so going to this position doesn't pidgeonhole you into a small pool of champs. This makes it attractive to many potential players. The type of champ you pick to go here is a significant decision with pros and cons:

...Marksman. Having an ADC as a Roamer has the potential to pay big dividends late game with two ADCs cranking out damage instead of one, but their weaker early and mid game are open to exploitation.

...Mage. With lots of burst and crowd control, Mages are a great asset during Ganks and teamfights, but they are squishy and vulnerable when caught by themselves. Many Mages lack mobility, which is a weakness when trying to move around the map to make plays.

...Assassin. Bringing tons of Gank pressure and impressive dueling abilities, Assassins are a natural fit for Roaming. Their early and mid game pressure is top notch, but they must consolidate those early advantages into a solid lead before they are surpassed by stronger late game Roaming picks.

...Tank. Intimidating bullies that excel at securing control of objectives, locking enemies down for ganks, and shutting down enemy plays, Tanks initiate fights and interrupt unfavorable battles. Absorbing all of the damage from objectives, Tanks provide the safety their squishier teammates need to dominate, but they lack strong kill pressure offered by other choices.

...Fighter. Fighters are more or less just varying degrees of Tank and Assassin/Mage mixed together, so they offer a mixed profile of pros and cons drawn from those other types, with each particular Fighter having their own mix of Tanky/Assassin/Magey pros and cons.

...And last, but certainly not least, we have:

...Support. The ultimate force multipliers, Supports can sweep in and reinforce any failing position to avert disaster or empower allies at key moments to ensure decisive victories. The absolute, undisputed masters of Saving (see below) teammates, Supports ensure that their allies do not fail during critical moments. They are squishy, however, and their strength is also a potential weakness - they focus on amplifying the existing strengths of their teammates rather than bringing any strengths of their own to the table, which is not helpful in situations where an ally's talents are ill-suited to the task that needs to be performed.

• Roamers are not obligated to idle in bottom lane, babysitting. They are needed all over the map, intervening in critical fights and making plays to secure important objectives.

• Roamers are not obligated to abstain from taking any Kills. Roamers can only increase their income through Kills, Assists, and Saves (see below), so they are rewarded for getting into the action and making things happen. Giving an ADC Roamer as many Kills as possible helps them reach their late game much sooner.

But no one will ever pick a Support when they could have an ADC or a Mage Roamer instead.

• Supports, like all other Champions, should be chosen because of the unique benefit they bring to the team. Currently, all Supports are forced to be balanced around what they bring to the bottom lane during the early game laning phase. This limitation fundamentally impairs Riot's ability to meaningfully carve out a unique identity for each support, as every single Support in the game has the purpose of "Babysit ADC in bottom lane." They have different strengths and weaknesses against each other while doing so, but all of them serve the same basic function: protect your ADC in lane and get them farmed up. This uniformity makes it difficult to carve out unique strategic niches for each Support.

...Freed from their shackles in the bottom lane, Supports can finally be balanced around bringing something truly unique to the table. A match with Soraka should feel entirely different than a game with Nami for everyone in the game, not just the folks in bottom lane.

...Top lane should actually have a reason to care that the enemy team went Soraka over Nami.

...Soraka should be a critical pick against certain team comps/strategies, and a weak pick against others. Everyone in the game should care about what she is bringing to the table, not just the bottom laners.

...Instead of just "Heals ADC in bot lane", Soraka could be** the best** counter in the entire game to dedicated poke teams, or she could be the ultimate emergency medic to rush over and save teammates from pick comps, drastically hindering their ability to finish off one of her teammates, or she could offer any of a number of other exciting and unique strengths that makes everyone in the game care that Soraka specifically, not just any Support, was chosen.

• This is a fundamental problem with Supports that can finally be resolved once Roam is implemented and Supports are set free from the suffocating design and balance constraints of their tiny little prison in the bottom lane.

• Freed to carve out a unique strategic identity, Supports should also be free to enjoy being in the spotlight as much as their carry counterparts. Which leads to...

(2) Savior

• Currently, only Kills and Assists are rewarded with recognition.

"An Enemy has been Slain!"

"Double Kill!"

"Triple Kill!!"

"Quadra Kill!!!"

"PENTA KILL!!!!!"

...Is there any moment more exciting than that in League?

Gold and XP rain down on you, your portrait is displayed proudly for all to see. You are the star.

But what of the champions who do not exist to kill, but are nonetheless often the reason for victory?

A long, long overdue mechanic that will finally spotlight the impact of long ignored supportive plays:

• Saves - A champion earns a Save by being directly responsible for preventing the death of an allied champion. A champion is awarded a Save for performing any of the following:

• • Healing or Shielding an ally that survives otherwise lethal damage in the next few seconds. (The amount of the Heal/Shield must be directly responsible for their survival.)
• • Stunning, knocking up, silencing, slowing, etc an enemy that is actively damaging an ally, interrupting otherwise lethal DPS that would have killed your ally had it continued.
• • Granting a Move Speed boost, Teleporting, Swallowing, or otherwise moving/helping move an ally such that they escape from what would have been otherwise lethal DPS.

• A champion earns bonus Gold and XP for pulling off a Save.

• The Savior's portrait is displayed, in the same fashion as when a kill is scored, and the announcer calls out "Saved!", with the portrait of the saved ally being displayed beneath their rescuer.

• Saving multiple teammates in a short period earns escalating accolades (similar to the Double, Triple, Quadra, Penta kill progression), capping out at directly saving all 4 of your teammates from death:

• • 1 Save: "Saved!"
• • 2 Saves: "Double Savior!"
• • 3 Saves: "Triple Savior!!"
• • 4 Saves: "TEAM SAVIOR!!!"

• Similar to Killing Sprees, there are Saving Sprees:

• • A player earns a Saving Spree when they prevent the death of teammates multiple times in a row without dying themselves. The progression is similar to Killing Sprees, with increasing accolades the longer the spree continues.

Final Thoughts

Insanely long queue times might seem like a minor inconvenience (sometimes not so minor), but the consequences of allowing this to continue indefinitely can only be negative. There is nothing fun about waiting 10 minutes to get into game, often only to have someone disconnect/crash and then have to /remake so you can go sit in queue for 10 minutes again. That frustration and disappointment add up over time.

The fact that 1 of the playable positions in Dynamic Queue is so widely hated by so many players that it has an extremely disproportionate impact on matchmaking and queue times is a serious problem. It is an old problem, one that has plagued League of Legends for a very, very long time. Over the years, bottom lane Support has always been a contentious, undesired position.

This is a chronic issue. It is finally time for us all, Riot especially, to admit that the "Support position" (bottom lane, babysitting an ADC) is not good for the game. Nor is it good for actual Support champions themselves - Supports need to be free to be balanced for their global, strategic impact rather than having to be gimped to fit in the bottom lane.

The Support players among us should be valued for their strategic contributions to our team compositions, rather than simply being appreciated for being willing to take the spot that nobody else wants. They deserve better. The game deserves better.

Let's finally fix this.