[Guide] How to Escape Elo Hell (Applies mostly from B5-G1)

Hey Guys, after a lot of thought, research, and experience in ranked solo que, I thought I'd post a somewhat lengthy guide on how to improve your ranked performance and increase that winrate. I'll start off with general [non elo-exclusive] information, and then a breakdown of what to do based on different roles. Any higher elo input and criticism is greatly appreciated!

My background: Played over 1,000 ranked games in season 4, this acc has fewer but been around High Gold most of my time in ranked; play all roles but best with mid and top lane.

#1: General Information in Solo Que

1. Not every game is winnable: straight and simple, you cannot win every single game, League is a team game, and as such if you do not coordinate with your team, and your team does not coordinate with you, you will have a very rough time coming out ahead. To put it in simple terms, 40% of games are almost undoubtedly going to be a victory, 40% of games you will undoubtedly lose, but that 20% is where your play MATTERS

2. Carrying a game has little to do with Kills, Gold, Experience, Creeps, or Damage done. Carrying essentially means being the deciding factor for your team, making the right calls, executing properly, and most importantly, keeping morale and hope up for your team. If you're a fed adc, be sure to give your support the credit they deserve, if a mid or top laner don't forget your jungler ganked your lane and put you ahead. Don't ever let arrogance get in the way of giving your team credit.

3. Do not play champions or roles you are not familiar with: save that stuff for normal games, I know you may want to try something new or have fun, but for the sake of other summoners who are looking to climb, you will not make friends nor see great success with this strategy.

4. Don't pick a champion just because you saw that they're a "counter" online, play what's comfortable, and play what you feel can contribute best to your team's strategy [poke, all-in, pick comps]. You only need to master a handful of champs, and know a couple for each role to succeed in Solo Que

5. DO NOT flame, troll, become toxic at your teammates, regardless of how they perform or how they act in game. You must realize that toxicity is contagious and will ultimately destroy your team's coordination and communication. If you feel the need to vent, just keep it outside of chat.

6. Learn when to take objectives, and when not to contest them. A good example of this, is say your mid laner solo kills the enemy mid laner, and your jungler gets a kill or two bot lane, thats perfect timing to take a dragon if it's up, or a turret if a wave is pushing in. Also, if you kill the enemy jungler, try to place deep wards in the enemy jungle, this will assist your team is spotting where the jungler is, making his ganks null and void.

• Always Tab to check death timers as well, if your team is low and the enemy has recently respawned, this is a dangerous opportunity unless your team can take the objective and escape with ease.

6. ALWAYS buy wards, I don't care what role you play, how good you think you are, or what sixth sense you have. The short and simple key to higher elo play [apart from mechanics] is VISION. Hands down the most important thing in this game is knowing where your opponents are and eliminating the vision they have on your team.

7. If you are being camped, have recently died, or are being shoved out of lane, the SAFEST option you have is to ping your jungler or mid laner for help, but most importantly, farm UNDER TURRET; I find that far too often in lower elos people will give up a kill in lane, and still try to 1v1 the enemy laner who has an item/gold/exp advantage. Safe is smart. [TIP] When minions are under your turret, be aware that melee minions will take two turret hits before you can successful last hit them, and ranged minions will take slightly more than 1, a good strategy is to hit the ranged minions once before turret gets to them so you can safely last hit without exhausting abilities.

8. After killing your opponent, do your best to shove the lane out, so the minions will gather under their turret, denying your enemy the farm and experience, this will help strengthen your lead and put them farther behind. *Note: * Try to never shove a lane you have kill pressure in, by freezing the wave [only hitting minions at their absolute last bit of health] you will force your enemy to enter the danger zone.

9. Be mindful of what forms of damage your team provides, as picking a team with solely Attack Damage will not be of tremendous benefit versus such champions as Malphite or Rammus, while sometimes it can work, aim for a mix of magic and physical damage.

10. Keep Track of enemy spell or summoner spell cooldowns, knowing when to engage and when to gank are essential, knowing katarina's shunpo is on cooldown, or zed's shadow has recently been used can lead to a successful gank. Also, tower diving an opponent with flash is NEVER recommended

11. Last but not least, just because some Korean Challenger did it, does not mean you can. Be mindful of your own ability, and seek to improve from EVERY game, no matter how well or poorly you did.

#2: Breakdown by Roles

** Top Lane** Your responsibility as a top laner varies by champion, but will most often be either split pushing, peeling/diving, or tanking. Be aware that top lane is the longest and most desolate lane to be in, so champions with good defenses, mobility, sustain, etc. will be of most use in this lane. Wards are a must in top lane, as early game most junglers will look to gank top, especially after taking their early buffs.

• Strong champions in for low elo in top lane: Jax, Riven, Darius, Garen, Jayce, Irelia (to snowball); if your team is in need of hard engage, Malphite, Wukong, Gnar, Shyvana and such champions can be of greater assistance; if your team is in need of a split pusher/late game gate opener: Nasus, Tryndamere
• After killing the enemy jungler or top laner, be sure to place some deep wards in the enemy jungle: good spots are the bush by red buff when playing blue side, or the blue buff when on red side, this will allow your team to expect and anticipate ganks, as well as let your jungler counterjungle
• If split pushing in top lane, be sure you're aware where at least 4 members of the enemy team are at all times, as you can be sure if no one is on the map they're coming for you, wards help here.

Mid Lane Your responsibility as a mid laner is to provide heavy damage to the enemy team, whether in the form of burst or poke. As a mid laner, you must keep in mind you are the most apt role to roam and help other lanes out, and often times you may have to leave lane to assist your jungle when he's being invaded upon. Ranged champions excel most in the mid lane due to being able to safely farm and avoid over-extension, though sneaky melees can do just as well [Zed, Talon, Fizz, Akali, etc.]. Mid lane is often the most targeted lane for junglers due to the high snowball and roaming potential the mid lane brings. For this reason, getting a pink ward and one or two green wards will be of tremendous benefit.

• Strong champions for the mid lane are: [AP] Ahri, Fizz, Katarina, Xerath, Syndra, Orianna, Akali, Leblanc, Brand, Veigar; [AD} Zed, Talon, Riven, (insert adc with escape here)
• Placing wards near the enemy blue buff can be great for catching a newly mana-imbued opponent offguard and/or stealing a blue buff
• Always be vigilant of the relative experience between you and your opponent, as often whoever hits 6 first will come out ahead
• Though unlikely and annoying, be aware that 3-man ganks can and will happen in the mid lane, try to never extend without proper knowledge and ward coverage

Jungle As a jungler, you are responsible for securing baron, dragon, ganking overextended enemies, or enemies without summoners, but most importantly, relieving the pressure your lanes are under. Whether in the form of counterjungling, counterganking, or ganking, you must assist your team [Unless you're playing Godyr or late game Yi i suppose]. You undoubtedly have the toughest job in every game, because no matter how well or poorly you do, your laners will flame or blame you, iron-skin is a must for this role.

• Strong Junglers at the moment: Warwick, Xin Zhao, Jarvan IV, Lee Sin, Vi, Nocturne, Rammus, Hecarim, Kha'Zix, Rengar [Junglers with good engage or CC can be of greatest impact to your team], look for mobility, sustain, wave-clear, CC and lock down.
• Try to be aware which lanes are favorable and unfavorable, for example: If you have a well farmed Draven on your team with adoration stacks, look to get him a kill or two in the form of a gank to help him snowball his lane; if your teammate is very low and the enemy has ultimate/summoners and is ahead, this is not a favorable gank, you might likely give up a double kill, it's best to tell them to recall and play it safe. Always try to gank for snowball lanes when possible, this will make your life much easier [Mid lane is the best for this, but top and bot can be equally rewarding]
• Be aware where enemies place wards, and ask your team if and where the enemy has warded, otherwise you'll be unsuccessful, and if the enemy support has gone into your jungle, you can be sure they've got vision on you. Sweepers and pinks help a lot here.
• ALWAYS know how much damage your smite does, if you're aware of this you should NEVER miss a smite, unless to a higher level opponent jungler.
• Based on the enemy jungler, try to anticipate their movements [or buy wards for this], for example: if up against a mana dependent jungler, they will most likely start at their Blue Buff, so around ~7:15 you can expect they will be returning to it.
• You are the default shot caller for your team, so be sure to be vocal and ping to alert your teammates to your actions, or to deter them from making risky decisions.
• Taxing a lane in the form of cs is acceptable, but be sure you don't completely ruin the movement of the minion wave. Clearing out a wave and pushing into turret is great, but if the minion wave sits right at enemy turret, you may have just screwed over your teammate.
• Patience is a virtue, when lane ganking be sure to be patient and seek the right opportunity, a rengar or lee sin in the bushes can wreck havoc on the enemy bot lane.

AD Carry/Marksman As an Attack Damage Carry, your sole role is to lay down sustained, heavy damage. This does not mean you dive into fights or solo their fed mid laner, it means you ALWAYS hit the closest target, stay at max range for effectiveness, and only dive their backline if you have 100% certainty you can escape their frontline and secure kills. As an adc, your priority in teamfights is as such: Mid laner --> Adc --> Jungler --> Top --> Support in terms of kill order. This is situational, but if you're gonna go straight Doublelift/Gosu be sure you target highest damage/burst sources first to eliminate the greatest threats.

• Strong ADCs at the moment: Jinx, Lucian, Ezreal, Vayne, Draven, Corki, Caitlyn, Kog Maw [Adcs with safety are most preferred for solo que though, so Lucian, Ezreal, Corki, Caitlyn would be best choices]
• NEVER expect your team to peel for you, just don't. For this reason, learning to kite properly, and building such items as Trinity Force, Blade of the Ruined King, and/or Zephyr can be of tremendous benefit to you. Furor enchantment on boots can also be great in the late game.
• Be sure you itemize correctly for the enemy team, 5x AD items won't save you from a fed AP mid laner, banshees and guardian angel [even randuins or blue ezreal build with iceborne] will save your life and give you some extra safety in teamfights. Lifesteal should also be prioritized after core items are built. QSS versus Warwick, Malzahar, Skarner, Zed, Fizz, etc. will save your life and leave the enemy dumbfounded.
• General Build Path: 1st IE/Botrk/Trinity 2nd: Stattik/PD [or Botrk if Trinity Rush] 3rd: Last Whisper (Seriously... build it.), if the enemy has literally no armor, then a Bloodthirster can work well
• You MUST learn the art of trading: when the enemy adc goes in for cs or their support is overextended, this is a good time to lay down some burst damage. In between cs'ing you must learn to harass the enemy, as this will allow for all-ins. Bot Lane cannot all-in at full health and expect kills, you must whittle your opponent down before your support can engage with success. Catching a warding support can also be a great free opportunity for an engage or harass.
• Be aware of enemy abilities and cooldowns. i.e. If leona just zenithed a minion or missed her target, you are safe to go HAM on her, if thresh missed hook or flay same goes, and if blitz misses hook punish that damn robot. Knowing their engage is down gives you the upper hand.
• Be smart when farming... farm under turret if behind, pushed out, or lacking ward coverage. Bot lane is a snowball waiting to happen, do your best to mitigate the strength the enemy bot lane will have in upcoming objective and team fights.

Support As a support, you are responsible for vision control, peeling/engaging depending on what your team needs, and keeping that whiny, arrogant, toxic adc safe. Do your best not to steal kills unless securing the kill is the only available option, as gold in the adc's pocket will usually be of greater benefit than yours. You are essentially the guardian of your team, you are charged with controlling vision, warding objectives, making Madlife-esque plays, but most importantly, keeping your carries safe.

• Good supports at the moment: Zyra, Leona, Thresh, Nami, Janna, Soraka, Braum; though any support can work if played properly and can provide CC, sustain, peel, or engage.
• Be sure to tell your adc when to engage and when not to, and be aware of item/level advantages, if you do not have wards in the river or bushes be sure to ping your adc back
• Please build a sightstone, it's insanely difficult to provide strong vision control without a sightstone and sweeping lense, and expect your team to flame you if you do not purchase wards (its a rough job with little recognition, but you and the jungler play the most crucial roles for your team).
• If your adc is farming safely, ahead of the enemy, or the enemy is dead/out of lane, try to roam mid lane or assist your jungler's invades, as an unaccounted for support can make some sweet plays on the enemy. It'll be sure to help tilt the enemy team
• Don't expect your adc to watch the map, keep track of summoners, or ultimates. I know it sounds like a lot, but you're essentially the team analyst, it's up to you to make good calls and engage/disengage for your adc.
• Never let your team get you down, few people in low elo ever want to support, but even if you were forced into it, embrace it. You're the team workhorse, and though it may pay minimum wage, the fruits of your labors are critical to your team's success.

#3 Breakdown By Elo

Much Shorter, but here's some general tips based on the elo you're playing in

Bronze

• Don't expect anything from your team. People have limited game knowledge at this level, so pick a champ you're comfortable with, and stomp the enemy until they tilt. Don't expect help, rotations, peel, or engage from your team. Play at all times with the mindset that you've gotta carry your team, but try not to get high and mighty about it. Regardless of the role you play, you can carry with it in Bronze elo. A great way to end games in this elo when death timers are >40s: Throw a pink in a bush near enemy jungle, sit with your team, wait for one person to get near it, engage and kill them. Push mid, win game. Honestly a bush gank in late game can straight win games.

Silver

• At this level, players have better vision and mechanics than typical bronze players; but objective control, team compositions, and capitalizing on enemy mistakes can turn the tides easily at this level. Mid and Jungle can have the greatest impact at this level for carrying a team, but good shot calling can go a long way. Remember that most teams do not know how to take advantages, or end games at this level. Use this to your advantage, catching an adc out farming or a mid laner can secure you a baron, inhibitor, or win the game.

Gold

• A bit trickier, as I've noticed with higher elo comes better game knowledge [usually, not always]. At this level, one snowballed lane can really put the hurt on your team. Mid and Jungle will be of greatest impact, though any role can carry if played well. The difference at higher elos becomes that players know how to push advantages, take objectives, rotate, and teamfight better. Throws still happen [all the time] though, so never be discouraged if your team is behind, be aware of scaling. If an enemy gets far ahead, try to coordinate a multiple person gank on that lane to keep their presence suppressed; and play to your team's strengths. If you have a strong teamfight comp, contest barons and dragons, if you have a good siege/poke comp try to push up lanes and take turrets, and if you have good split push, make sure to apply pressure around the map to help your tryndamere open the gates.

Sorry Guys I'll do my best to edit it over time, just got down as much as I could think of for now! Best of Luck and See you on the Rift!

Sincerely, Might be Gosu