How to work with a team with no map awareness?

Nova Skye·Feb 12, 2015·1 votes·3,446 views

I've written several (hopefully) helpful posts, but I was just hit with a question I have myself.

I'm in Bronze 5, and apparently in an elo low enough to be placed with what I have to guess are just-reaching-level-30 summoners. I know, I did it too. Jumped right into ranked as soon as I hit the level with the right number of champs. Worst. Mistake. Ever.

But I digress.

What I'm finding is that, as an ADC, I am FORCED to make sure I ward (my supports won't even use a trinket, even when I ask them to). I'm not saying this is a bad thing. I have, however, been constantly berated by high level friends for forming a habit of trading Doran's Blade and a pot for Longsword and a Pink when the game starts, but I deliberately started doing this BECAUSE of ranked. I ward every time I have a ward up, and I buy them every time I back (most likely to a fault). I place them in what my diamond friends praised to be "high level" placement - they didn't even expect me to know where they should go. Meaning I'm actually not just warding, but warding right.

But that's not the worst of it.

I am playing game after game where, no matter what lane I am, and no matter how often I ward, my team will outright ignore the mini map. I'm talking about a lone support pushed up to bot tower with the enemy ADC protecting it, ignoring a mid and jungle gank coming from the river but visible around the dragon pit - and not even moving. No, the tower was not half down. No, you do no damage. You are a Singed support, there was no escaping that gank.

I have also formed the habit of pinging not once, but one time for every enemy that crosses a ward. The above situation earned two pings in the river - and I was yelled at for spamming.

So, to my fellow summoners who actually understand what I'm talking about, how on earth do you handle a team that refuses to look at the mini map? Do you quit wasting money on wards (though I use my own vision, if no one else does)? Do you continue to spam pings that will go ignored? Do you play super crazy (almost trollishly) safe because of it? Do you not say anything or do you constantly copy/paste "MAP AWARENESS, PEEPS! THAT'S WHAT THE WARD IS FOR!" into chat?

I have hit the point that I truly don't know what to do. I don't want to waste gold on something that isn't benefiting anyone but myself. I don't want a dark map. I can't ward for 5 people as the ADC, though I do try to make it close as support. This is getting so far beyond aggravating!

7 Comments

ayychuuFeb 12, 20151 votes

the best way to deal with them is communication in the most non-toxic way you can and pings and general shot calling or even map control like think ahead of them and prediction. This wasnt a problem for me when i dropped to b5 because i am a jungler main and i generally had to shot call or be aware of everyone but mainly communication is the only answer to this. glhf p.s.i climb out of b5 after i learned how to jungle

Nova SkyeFeb 12, 20151 votes

I need to learn how to jungle >_>

Problem is I do communicate, and I really really try to be as nice but assertive as possible. If I ping twice because two enemies cross a ward or because two enemies go missing from a lane, I'm yelled at for spamming. I've been told to "stfu" so many times and in every game that I'm about to just start muting all chat AND allies when the game starts.

Deep Terror NamiFeb 12, 20151 votes

You can lead a horse to water but you can't make him ward. Or however the saying goes.

You might try queuing up with a higher tier friend so you get queued with more competent groups.

FHMarshyFeb 12, 20151 votes

The best way from personal experience, I'll duo with a friend or someone i know that think on the same page as me. We would ward, gank, communicate, and/or pressure objectives. In that situation, you have at least one less person that doesn't ward.

Now, about handle people that don't have map awareness; You can't. You simply cant. But rest assured, if you gain map awareness, know the placement of wards and the positioning/timing of ganks, You will raise ranks fast. Before you know it, you will start being paired up with people around your level

AwesomeChadFeb 12, 20151 votes

Make calls. Lead your team. Instead of complaining and doing nothing when you're on the verge of losing the game, tell your teammates what to do and use pings to inform them.

Nova SkyeFeb 12, 20151 votes

This is something I do a lot. It doesn't matter, for some reason. I spent an entire match pinging and calling shots, and I am not exaggerating when I say my team would go in the opposite direction. I called group mid and they decide to go two top, one in enemy jungle, and one bot leaving me running up mid alone. I call group and mid and two of them go for baron, three for dragon at the same time (immediately after their own death's respawn, not after an ace or anything. As in we should know the enemy is up and we have no sight on them). I tell people to leave lane because a gank is coming and get a "no, I got it".

I had one game where I told my support to stay out of the jungle since he's not warding - to use the lane and minions at the very least to get around. Every time I said it, he would head to jungle, I would ping him to fall back, and he'd keep going - and get jumped by three immediately. At least he had the decency to say "my bad" but then he'd turn around and do it again.

It's really really weird. Sometimes, it's not the bad, and people will generally listen until you screw them over. But since I've been deliberately cueing alone, these are the people I get stuck with. I don't understand the adversity to shot calling. A lot of the bronze five player I'm placed with actually accuse me of trolling or of spamming or of flaming when I try and get some coordination.

Even the fed people on my team do it. A 24/2 Darius consistently went 1v4 and then yelled at us for not being there - while we were literally across the map dealing with that fifth enemy that was trying to take inhib. Every time he'd spawn he'd run staight off base. I would ping, ask him to wait, ping again, and he'd keep going. I even tried "complimenting" his mechanics and letting him know that his most kills were coming in team fights, so please wait for us so we can work together to get him more - it didn't work.