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PSA: Shove the minion wave into the enemy tower after a kill.

xxxDogmanxxx··15 votes·3,961 views

MAIN POST:

This will primarily apply to lower elo but you'd be surprised how many junglers still don't know they have to do this even in Diamond (As of last night, I'm currently D1 54 LP this season in my main account, so I literally get to play with everybody from Plat 1 to Master/lower Challenger).

This is primarily from a Solo Queue jungler's perspective, but applies to every role.

When I'm ganking, I'm not just looking to get the kill. I'm looking to deny the enemy laner as much gold and XP as I can. After a successful gank and surviving whatever follow-up from the enemy team, I will always tell (aka order) my own laner to push and help him/her shove the wave to the enemy tower. If my laner died, I will shove the wave myself even if he/she pings me a million times not to "steal" his/her CS (CS which they can't get anyway, seeing as they're dead).

This is so that the enemy tower will kill our minions and deny that CS from the enemy. The enemy might have still gotten them if we didn't push the wave. Doing this constantly in the early game will eventually get my laner ahead of the enemy laner in gold and levels, as well as priming the towers for taking with some good damage. Plus, this can free up your laner to roam also and make plays on the map.

The thing about League is that even if you're super fed, it is still gonna be difficult to carry a game if your laners are behind. So to make your job as the jungler easier, your #1 priority as the jungler is to make sure that the laners are doing what they're supposed to, winning their lanes and taking towers. In return, they will help you with taking objectives that will ensure you win the game.

EDIT - SIDE NOTE:

Similarly, if you as a laner have won your lane, always be looking for ways to extend your lead to the other lanes. If you're a top laner, shove your wave then teleport to bot lane and help them shove theirs. If you're a midlaner, roam to the side lanes and gank when your jungler can't. If you're the ADC or support, take your tower then rotate to another lane and shove the wave there too.

When all the great players say that League of Legends is a team game, they mean that every action you take should at least be geared towards helping your teammates in some capacity. I would rather go 0-0 and have three 10-5 teammates than be the 30-0 carry with three 0-5 teammates.

19 Comments

Asayake 5150glow5 votes

Yes, unless we're fearing the followup.

If I'm at two bars after a solokill and there's a fed Kha'Zix who's missing on the enemy team, I'm not staying to push it out.

xxxDogmanxxx2 votes

I already kinda covered that.

When I'm ganking, I'm not just looking to get the kill. I'm looking to deny the enemy laner as much gold and XP as I can. After a successful gank and surviving whatever follow-up from the enemy team, etc. etc.

But yes, you are right, you really should not stay in that situation.

Shuyin1782 votes

While I agree with most of what you say, at the same time pushing wave to tower is not always the best idea. If the enemy top laner has teleport available and is early enough into the game that their DTs are short, you don't want to hard push into tower because then your laner loses control of the wave and allows the enemy laner to farm safely. Another is if the enemy laner is a farm reliant champion. I'd much rather keep the wave toward my tower forcing him/her to be out of position to get their CS for easy ganks or they are forced away into their jungle taking their jungler's farm.

xxxDogmanxxx1 votes

I think you should still push it even if the enemy laner has teleport. Because even if he uses it to get to lane and somehow not miss a single CS at his tower, that still means that not only did we kill him, we also made him use his summoner spell, thereby keeping our bot lane safe from the TP.

Also, because of the timing of the minion spawn, shoving the wave into the enemy tower always ALWAYS makes the very next wave's clash bounce back into the middle of the lane. There's nothing the enemy laner can do to prevent that. From there, my laner can then decide whether to freeze it just out of our tower range or shove some more.

As a laner, keeping your wave at your tower is a seriously bad idea. First, it puts damage on your tower. Sure it puts the enemy laner overextended, but it also forces YOU to be stuck there farming under your tower, lest you miss CS and put yourself far behind. Meanwhile, the enemy will just roam since the wave is at your tower anyway. Also, you'd be a sitting duck for every jungler looking to minion crash dive you.

And another thing, if I were the laner in the situation you specified, I wouldn't go into my jungler's camps because I'd just shove the wave then counterjungle. I'm always looking for opportunities to take the enemy raptors or gromp (mid and top are my secondary roles).

SociopathFriend2 votes

Also if you're a midlaner who has shoved mid super hard- feel free to try and walk over to the raptor camp and blast the little birdies. Every bit you get is a bit the enemy jungler won't.

xxxDogmanxxx1 votes

Yep, sound advice right there!

Segius1 votes

This is obvious advice, but you would be suprised how many people dont do this

xxxDogmanxxx1 votes

Call me Captain Obvious then, because this really needed to be said.

KVbqbFsC8e1 votes

Yeah, its real fun when I'm playing Nasus against some type of lane bully who can easily zone me. Jungler ganks early picks up a kill and runs off, other guy TPs back to lane 10 seconds later and freezes.

SaltyKracka1 votes

There's obviously an exception, though.

Nasus.

Asayake 5150glow2 votes

{quoted}

There's obviously an exception, though.

Nasus.

You'd still rather push it, the wave will bounce.

SaltyKracka1 votes

Or you take the stacks while you can and freeze like your life depends on it (it does).

Nasus loves being near his tower, and wants nothing more than to avoid having to be on the enemy's side of the lane for any more than a short period of time.

ExhibitD1 votes

Though there is something to be said about Freezing a lane and being able to bully the enemy laner out of CS. I hate when i have a lane frozen just out side of my tower, forcing my lane opponent to be out of position or miss CS, and my jungler comes in and we pick up a kill and they start trying to do what you have just stated.

I am accomplishing everything you wanted to accomplish only in a different way. Im denying cs, gold, and in some cases after I've built up a big enough lead exp.

While I agree for the most part you should shove the wave into the enemy tower, there are exceptions and understanding how your laner feels most comfortable in winning their match up is important.

xxxDogmanxxx1 votes

Sorry, but I don't think you accomplish much of anything just by freezing the wave just out of range of your tower after a kill. You don't get damage into their tower. You don't deny the enemy as much CS as possible because their tower isn't killing off your minions. It doesn't free you up to roam or counterjungle. Sure it puts the enemy out of position but it also keeps you stuck in your lane, unable to help your team or extend your lead to the other lanes. That also puts the impetus on your jungler to gank again, which takes up his valuable time.

I understand that everyone has a different play style, but in Ranked, I generally dislike playing with laners who play like that because instead of extending their lead to other lanes and helping their teammates, they're content to sit in their lane shitting on their matchup. That's pretty selfish.

Kingnewgameplus1 votes

Every time I try to do this I get spam pinged so I just don't anymore. I'd rather the enemy have the 4 creeps than for my top laner to run it down.

Covert Ops Gnar1 votes

If they have a large wave, I just kite them around away from my tower so that they continue to kill my minions.

Now I have control of lane, can farm safely, and deny the enemy xp/gold. On top of that, it primes for free ganks by me.

TeCoolMage1 votes

side note: If you're the jungler, don't help take CS alongside champs like xerath, ziggs, or post-6 anivia with high mana (but you can tell them to shove if they don't). They can usually shove the lane themselves and it's a much better use of your time to just move on to the next lane, go back to farming or prepare to give them blue buff to further the lead even more.

If you're in low elo and they have TP up, freeze lane instead as low elo players have a tendency of using teleport even if you don't pressure CS. If you shove they TP to the wave and miss very little CS but people in higher elo usually shove to pressure out the TP. Freezing in lower elo gives you both the benefit of a safe lane and wasted TP most of the time as they simply see it as a convenience rather than a tool to negate gold leads.

If your laner dies and the enemy laner lives in a 2v1 somehow, please stay to shove or freeze so the gold goes somewhere and the tower doesn't take damage

Sasogwa1 votes

Mostly agree, however in the rare situation where your laner still has most of his HP bar, is not going to be behind in items if he doesn't back, and the lane is pushing towards him (granted, all of those conditions united usually just don't happen) I'd let him freeze. That'd be pretty much a free lane win. It also depends on the minute of the game tho.

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