@WookieCookie/Player Support. An Actual look at what should of happened.

TL;DR:
Based on WookieCookie's statements and the Summoner's Code (which doesn't cover everything near as much as it should/could), TakeTheDraw and other people playing off-strategy should not be punished.

Failure to communicate is a blanket statement used to punish in order to enforce their viewpoint but it cuts both ways (team refusing to cooperate with new strategys). This covers up to 5 people not just the one being punished, the other 4 in each game should be banned if TakeTheDraw is as ALL of them are refusing to communicate.

The "meta" can not evolve if new strategys are punished and people fear to try new things.

The real look should be at "Why do people refuse to try new things and are close-minded when people do?" especially if it works.

The only reason he could be punished is that Riot reserves the right to do whatever they want with the account. Using excuses instead of just coming out and saying, this is what we are doing, is cloak and dagger stuff that should never happen.

Until Riot comes out and deliberately says what IS and IS NOT allowed in their Terms of Use and Summoner's Code, punishments like this should be given warnings never bans.

Summoner's can not be expected to read the forums/reddit to get understanding of what is and is not acceptable. The only thing that should be used as a guide is the Summoner's Code and Terms of Use, without updating them to reflect the current philosophy there is no ground to stand on.

Hello WookieCookie and the player support team.

I understand your stance on the Smite Nunu player but I would like you to hear me out. This will be a giant wall of text. You are warned.

You argue that TakeTheDraw refused to coordinate with his team. >Telling your team what you’re going to do and then ignoring them isn’t really working with them it’s holding them hostage. Telling your team what you want to do and actually working towards a common plan is a central part to playing any team based game.

You could also argue that the other 4 players on his team are not willing to adapt to his strategy either. You are putting all the blame for failure to communicate on one-player when in reality it is up to 5 players.

Should I be punished for 1v1'ing Baron/Elder (and getting it) when my team trying to fight a 4v5 on the other side of the map(IE not grouping? or Split Pushing to Win which happens in tons of games???)? Should I be punished for not picking a tank top lane when the team clearly wants me to play a tank? (Which I don't play? and thus trying to force me and hold me hostage to play one and do horribly?) One of my favorite picks was Twitch top into Graves top (when that was a thing) I would dumpster the lane and proceed to walk away with the rest of the game.

This player plays one/two champs and plays them well. You are saying that his team NOT wanting him to play his best champion/style is LESS detrimental to his team than playing something he's good at and succeeding with? I know there is no "real stance" on one-trick champions (though this was addressed pseudo with autofill), but it's coming down to you can't play the only champion you are good with (at your proper MMR) with-out fear of being banned. This is player support trying to force THEIR view of how the game should be played instead of letting the game evolve. (RIOT didn't ban Ziggs bot lane players because it was "successful" on top of the big streamers playing it....).

On top of that, in Diamond MMR people know who this player is (You run into the same people enough). They COULD just ban his champion if they don't want to see it.

>While pretty impressive on it’s own, we also found that nearly 50% of their games were reported by teammates as frustrating and unfun. Keep in mind, this isn’t just teammates in losing games, this is teammates across all of his games; victories included.

It should not much matter. Those players reporting him are breaking the summoner's code. While I find it frustrating if I have someone in a role they are not comfortable with or if my teammates just got outclassed I don't report them, that's not reportable. I don't report people for trying out things (whether the first or 100th time) in ranked. People say "do it in normals" or "with friends". Sure it may work at a bronze MMR but how will I ever know if it works in Diamond if I don't take it there? I adapt to the game as needed.

From the Player Support website in terms of "Reporting a Player" >Bear in mind that the reporting feature is not meant to be used as a means of retaliation against a player.

Then it comes down to 5 report reasons and 5 non-report reasons >5) DO NOT REPORT A SUMMONER FOR NOT STICKING TO THE METAGAME

Obviously he was being retaliated against. He didn't stick to the metagame, that's why he was reported.

The question is, out of those 50% of their games how many of them were the ADC? Was it the majority? Are you implying that if I'm support and my bot laner is frustrating me and making the game un-fun they should be banned? If I have a top laner or jungler that is 0/5 and making stupid engages he should be banned? I'm told I am not supposed to report players for having a bad game, it happens, but in this line, you are telling me that if someone is causing me to have an UN-FUN or FRUSTRATING experience I should report them and get them banned?

>Winning is not the end all be all of League. It actually is. You win or you lose, the game is over. From Bronze to Pro Play the only goal IS to win. If this wasn't the case you would have draws or games where no one wins or lose.

>We want players to have fun but not at the expense of teammates. Ideally this means players will coordinate among themselves in a given match and react to the unique circumstances they end up in. If a player is consistently forcing “their vision” on the rest of the team and refusing to adapt to their needs we reserve the right to intervene.

You broke out the summoner's code in that (note that at the bottom of this I get further into THAT line). You also have 4 others players (up to not always) that are refusing to coordinate/communicate with the one player (TakeTheDraw in this instance) and force "their vision" onto him. Until Riot comes out and says "This is how you will play, no experimenting or deviating" you can never use this line. You have everyone trying to force "their vision" onto people that want to play unconventionally. No punishments are on them. > players cried out how terrible the experience was for them and we intervened.

You would have to ban all of Bronze and Silver then. NO experience is fun unless you are "roflstomping" the enemy team. Just because people are crying saying "This person is not doing what I want them to do" is no reason to ban that person. You need to look and ask yourself, "Why is this person so stuck on one way of thinking and not allowing others to cultivate new ways? Maybe we should work on developing peoples mindsets so they ARE willing to adapt and learn new things."

>Q: Can I get banned for choosing a champion or strategy that is outside the current meta? A: 100% no. Choosing a champion or strategy outside of the current meta is not a factor we take into account when reviewing accounts.

He obviously was targeted because of Smite Nunu Support and is only banned for "failure to communicate" because this isn't how "the game should be played" and there had to be a reason to ban him that would justify it. Using "failure to communicate" is a blanket excuse given out because you can pseudo make it fit for him even if it applies to everyone on his team.

The Summoner's Code ( http://gameinfo.na.leagueoflegends.com/en/game-info/get-started/summoners-code/ ): I'll highlight key points, the full text is available there ^ .

1- Support Your Team. >For better or worse, our fates are intertwined with that of our teammates. Once the game gets into full swing, you have to make a choice between being a positive force for your team, or contributing to your own demise.

>Being a good team player begins at champion select. Be open minded when considering the needs of your team.

> Also, remember that you have to be there to contribute, so don't leave the game or go AFK!

>And most of all, if you're having a bad game don't take it out on your team!

So for better or worse, you are in this together. This is pretty much reading that no matter which way the champ select goes, play it out and do your best because you have to win as a team.

Being a good team player begins at champion select. Be open minded. Obviously the ones that reported him (win or lose) were NOT open minded about his pick and willing to do roll with it. (Curious to know his pick order as well, was it always the last to pick? Did his team not ever have any forewarning with his pick?)

Obviously those that reported him took it out on the team in the post-game lobby (win or lose).

So far: TakeTheDraw failed in 1/4 (Not being open-minded) of part 1 (where-as his team failed in 4/4)

2 - Drive Constructive Feedback. This is more related to Player to Riot Games rather than the game play itself and has no real relevant data. BUT I will make my voice heard as requested with this post and this sentence: If a player is attempting to win, even if it's unconventional or may cause issues with the "meta" that people believe in, there should be 0 reason to ban a player.

4 - (The BIG one) Enjoy Yourself, but not at Anyone Else's Expense >This doesn't mean that we're okay with you ruining anybody else's day.

The wording of the paragraph is towards verbal but I'll encompass it into the choosing of champions. So first off this section literally ONLY talks about verbal communication (jabs/glibs yada yada). (This should probably get updated if WookieCookie is going to try and use it in an argument like above).

But to encompass the choosing of a certain champion/playstyle rather than verbal lets go with this.

If I am a fed Zed 20/0 and just killing the entire enemy team, am I not enjoying myself at other peoples expense? Ziggs bot, while fun for that player/team was not fun for the enemy team. Varus Q's, again while fun for that player/team, it is NOT fun for the enemy.

All of these cases are enjoying yourself at someone elses expense. There is no punishment for that. There is no punishment for not ending the game and rather fountain diving or "farming" champions at a certain point. Why then could this be used in playing a champion you enjoy and are good at? There shouldn't be.

(Also on a note, typing "?" [which has became the newest style of "gg ez" BM] falls under this. You are attacking the enemy player that you just bested and making joke/light of it)

6 - Show Humility in Victory and Grace in Defeat. If they do not say GG WP at the end of the game that player isn't doing either. Nothing else to see here.