Have 2 types of "ranked"play: 1 elo based and 1 based on the current league system

There has been a lot of gripe about the new league based ranked system with a lot of people asking for the old elo system back. That said, there are many upsides of the new system that a pure elo based system lacks.

Furthermore, there has been a steady creep towards ranked play, at least from my point of view. This has made ranked seem sorta useless.

• People play ranked on champions they've never tried before.
  

• They play with bad internet
  

• They play when they need to leave soon
  

• They play high or drunk
  

• They troll because they are You-name-it-metal 5 and don't care
  

This gets really frustrating for people who are in their promotional series, who are really trying hard to climb, or who don't like trolls. Some of us take this game rather seriously, especially ranked play. It make it that much worse when some of our teammates or the enemy players don't.

So how could you possibly fix all the gripe about ranked? -Well, I don't have all the answers, but I have a thought on the subject:

The basic premise would be to used Draft pick normals just like the old ELO system. You gain points for a win, lose them for a loss. One minor change would be that your current rating and your highest rating would both be displayed on your profile. I think this is one of people's favorite part about the league system - everyone can see your highest league ever achieved and you don't have to worry about falling back if you are on the border.

Match up the Elo ratings to the current leagues (1200 is Silver, 1500, I think, is Gold, etc).

So now, we redo the league system. Not the way you climb, but the way you get into it. Riot has said they want the promotional series to feel a bit like a tournament and have ranked be more competitive, however, it's just the "normal" play now.

So the new league system would aim to reduce the number of trolls, afkers, ragers, and people who are just not committed to winning and have it be a system that is hard to initially get into, but full of players who are actually trying hard and really want to do their best in every game.

So, how do you achieve this? - Well this is where I have some ideas, but need your help to iron out the details.

1) You still need 16 champions to play, but the caveat is that you have to "enable" a champion for league system play. This is done by playing that champion for at least 10 games in the draft (elo) mode and maintaining a 40% win rate.

• 40% so that it's not super hard - you can enable a champion without being pro on them, but you at least have to not be terrible on them. It's also more forgiving if you have a bad game with a feeder/troll/leaver/etc.
  

• 10 games ensures that you know the basics of the champion and role before trying to play it in the league system.
  

• Any champions that you currently have 10+ ranked games on with at least a 40% win rate would be automatically enabled.
  

• New champions wouldn't appear in the league system right away, and people would be guarenteed to know a little bit about them before they bring them into the game.
  

**2) **Have reports and left games disable the league system for you. Since people can still play the draft (elo) mode, make the league system exclusive. Only positive players who don't have a history of leaving games can play. There are behaviors that I am rather forgiving of in normal games, but that I don't want any where near ranked.

For example, I can understand someone getting a little upset if other people are losing really badly and seem to just be suicidal. Some people have easier tempers than others and I would forgive a bit of rage in a normal game. However, in ranked, I want to win and you don't win by yelling at your teammates. You don't win by calling people stupid. You don't win by getting mad because it only makes you play worse.

The same is true of people being upset about someone locking in for the same role they called/already picked. Or for having other things going on and needing to leave. A lot of this isn't ban worthy - it doesn't make someone toxic or a terrible person - but it doesn't belong in ranked play where every game matters to everyone in it. A loss is lower MMR, failed promotions, demotions, or just a longer, harder climb.

**3) **Make first pick based not on MMR (Elo), but on honor. Institute the MVP idea that has been thrown around a lot, and make the person who has been deemed MVP the most first pick. A lot of games are decided in champion select when you have people just instalock and not care about the rest of the team, but I have seen many first pickers who coordinate, ask about bans, try to come up with a teamcomp, advise players on potential counters, help come up with a strategy before the games starts. Just because your MMR is slightly higher does not mean you are a better teamplayer/captain type of person.

**4) **Disable duo queue for the league system.

Duo queue messes with a lot of games, but at the same time it can be great for learning. The problems for your other teammates are real though, and make the entire experience unfair.

• Teammates of duoqueue'ers are matched against better opponents, because league assumes the duo pair will play better than individuals (which is only sometimes the case, but doesn't matter if the other 3 players lose to better opponents)
  

• Duo Queue players are often on some sort of voice chat and therefore don't communicate as well with their team. I've been guilty of it. I was mid, my duo partner support. I called mia on skype, she got back but the adc didn't know and died. It was my fault. It wouldn't have happened if I were in solo queue.
  

• Duo queue players often think they have priority for certain roles (normally bot lane or X lane plus jungle) They can be nasty if they don't get the role they want, which brings me to...
  

• If one duo partner rages, you normally get one free (not a great deal in this case). A duo pair raging at one player can send them over the edge to afk/feed land. No one wants to be in a game where they have two people constantly berating them for every perceived mistake.
  

• A good duo team is unfair to the enemy team. I've been in several games where a duo jungler just owns the lane their partner is in because they can set up great ganks. This is unfair to the opposing side who doesn't have the luxury of voice chat and knowing their teammate.
  

So for this super cereal ranked system, only allow solo queue or teams of 5. Either everyone is solo and has to work together with the random teammates, or its a premade team. No one gets an advantage/loses an advantage because of duoing.

That said, it may be possible to allow any size teams in the draft (elo) mode. Though that is debatable. Maybe add an mmr range cap for duoing so you don't have the bronze/diamond duo pair.

5) Make your MMR when you first enter the league system equal to your Elo. If you switch over to elo after playing in the league system, your Elo becomes your league system MMR. So if I don't hardly play draft/elo mode but am Platinum in the league system, I would be matched with similarly skilled players if I did play in the elo system. When a new champion comes out that I want to enable, I am playing against platinum rated players. If I decide I don't want to bother with the league system but end up with a diamond MMR, I can still call myself a diamond level player. The league system is no harder/easier, just more exclusive. It is a ranked system for the best (as in nicest, most reliable, positive, helpful) players in the community and having that pretty badge that says "I'm Bronze/Silver/Gold/Platinum/Diamond" shows that you are a positive player who can play many different champions well (for your level of play).

This system still lets people who want to see their rank improve play. I think this is why so many people play ranked right now. They don't see the point of normals. They aren't in the game to improve or learn, just to play. If they can just play but afterwards get that pretty badge, all the better. They ruin games for people who want to play ranked because they think it is the serious, tournament style game mode. The Elo system would be more accessible and more forgiving for those who just want to play but also see how they are rated. People would still want to take it somewhat seriously, but it wouldn't have nearly the pressure of the current system where one loss doesn't just drop my rating, but can lose my promotion, get me demoted, etc.

Since ranked seems to be replacing normal as the "I just feel like playing today" game mode, I think it makes sense to cater to that. People like to see their progress and the elo system was great for that. Other people want to play ranked because they have an expectation that their team will try and wants to win. Unfortunately, most of my ranked games don't feel like that right now. The changes to the league system I proposed could help those more serious players out by matching them with people of a similar mindset.

So let me know your thoughts, I'll add in interesting ideas and I'm not married to this idea - so feel free to say you think it's terrible. Just offer something constructive in the process.