I've been thinking that I haven't been doing so great in roles that I've been forced into, so I can't identify what role I'm most capable at and work on that strength. Does anyone have any suggestions on how I can figure out things like this? I don't have any friends on League, and haven't really done much aside from the occasional Bot Gank from Mid lately to help bot win their lane.
insaiyanbacca2 voteshere's what i did: i couldn't necessarily decide on what role i wanted to play or what i was good at, so i just decided to learn how to play them all and play whatever role is left. so i just basically found champs i enjoyed playing and they were pretty much spread out between all the different roles so i just played whatever role i got since i could play any of them.
Lillian Toran1 votesBut with each role comes responsibilities and strategy. I haven't figured every role out yet, but if I did go your way I might just put myself in a hole with it due to the 132 champs I have to try.
insaiyanbacca1 votesyou dont really have to try every champ, all you really need to do is see them played or look at their kit and decide whether that looks interesting to you and play it either when its on free week or when you get it.
and most roles aren't that complicated, i think the only real complicated role is jungle where you have to worry about smite buffs dragon baron ganking and scuttle crabs, etc.
for example lets say you saw lissandra played during free week(just an example) and you thought that looked fun so you looked at the kit lissandra has after the game and decided you wanted to play that you try her out in her normal positions mid and sometimes top in this case and if you dont like her look at other champs and/or roles until you find one you like or interests you. when i first started playing i personally loved the way veigar looked and played so i tried him out and liked him and hes basically one of the champs i used to learn mid, i also did a lot of volibear top and udyr jungle.
generally you learn in this game through reading(kits items guides etc) and watching others but mostly by just playing until you find something you like. and generally you can fit most champs into several different categories:pure AP, AP Poke, AP tanky, AP Utility, Tank, Bruiser, Juggernaut, fighter(personally i think bruiser and fighter are different fighter is more damage where bruiser is more tank imo), marksman, mellee adc's, AD casters, Assassins of either AP or AD variety, etc. so if you like playing one champion you may enjoy playing other champions that are similar
if you want more details on each role position or whatever i can give you more on each one
disregardable1 votesDon't worry about it. Just play who you think is fun.
Lillian Toran1 votesWell, I don't get the chance to have fun because I'm always the one shoehorned into a single role after everyone else. I haven't won a single Normal this way.
HamerDrunk1 votes[{quoted}](name=Lillian Toran,realm=NA,application-id=WEuoGbmp,discussion-id=d772McEn,comment-id=00000000,timestamp=2015-10-02T22:27:11.742+0000)
Well, I don't get the chance to have fun because I'm always the one shoehorned into a single role after everyone else. I haven't won a single Normal this way.
play teambuilder or draft matches then you can't be shoehorned then you just get picking order or whatever you want
Lillian Toran1 votesHow do you use Teambuilder? I'm not 30. Only 13.
Dediguise1 votesThat's your problem right there. Seriously don't worry about it. Play any champ anywhere. Yes you will lose games because you don't know the matchup, but you will also win games because the other team isn't prepared for that matchup. Find the champ you like to play before learning where they fit in. I know it's not what you want to hear, but honestly you won't be able to participate in the meta until you unlock your full mastery tree and have tier 3 runes.
Sìel1 votesFind champions you like, learn them. Many champions can be played in most roles.
Lillian Toran1 votesI know, but I don't even know what role every champ is supposed to be in. Again, being shoehorned into a role doesn't make it fun for me.
Sìel1 votesGo to http://www.lolking.net/guides/ They have a filter option where you can see what champions are generally seen in what role. Do keep in mind though, theres about 1 or 2 champions in some roles that aren't seen in that particular role anymore (e.g. Gankplank jungle).
Truly Prideful1 votesAt the level you're playing at now, the most important thing is to just find things you like to play. Looking at roles comes after that because then you'll have a good idea of what types of champions you prefer to play.
What have you been liking / playing so far?
Lillian Toran1 votesI have played as Soraka, Ashe, Garen, Warwick, Zilean(first time), Xin Zhao(first time). None of the champions have clicked at all(maybe Zilean? Only played him one game). The only champion I'm wanting to try is Irelia, but with being unable to win games I've been unable to gain enough IP to buy her. I figured it'd be something to try from her looks, at least.
Truly Prideful1 votesFor the IP you could do something a friend of mine did when they started. Each day when they played they started out with a co-op vs AI game with something they were looking to try out to get the guaranteed 200-250 IP. At least then they were able to quickly build up IP to pick up something new and save for runes.
Irelia can be fun and really good if you put in the time to learn how to abuse her kit. If you liked Zilean a little, you may like things like 
. They're all mages with skillshots like a Zilean Q ( Time Bomb ), they just have more than one damaging ability when compared to him. is a personal favorite of mine, definitely give him a shot if he comes up free soon.
The best advice I can give to you though is to at least give everything a shot. The worst that happens is you won't like the champion, but you will at least get a chance to understand what they do and that will help you later on. Just try to have fun while you level up to 30, don't let the sometimes angry community ruin your game.
Lillian Toran1 votesI'll try. Though, in Normals people will always blame someone in the parties I wind up with.
Truly Prideful1 votesIt happens. Just try to do what I do and focus on your own game. You can only really control how you play, so just focus on doing everything you can to play a good game. Do your best to ignore the blame game, 99% of the time the person is just salty that they misplayed and they don't want to take responsibility for it. I would offer you play with you to try to help, but I don't have any low level accounts. :(
Lillian Toran1 votesWell, I can play with you in Normals. I read on the forum archive that they did mentoring. Maybe you could be my mentor and help me figure out what I need to improve on? The issue I have is seeing what I did wrong.
Truly Prideful1 votesUnfortunately, queuing with this account in normals would probably be a horrible experience for you since we would get people that I generally get or at least other level 30's. I can try to spectate for you sometime though and see how you play. I looked at how you build and everything and you seem to be doing pretty well there already. Anything that was off was honestly not that bad, it's something you'll learn quickly if you're already building well for the most part.
Lillian Toran1 votesWell, I learned how to build from a friend(and counterbuild with Black Cleaver against tanks champs with Ashe). Still, I can't find where I'm lacking. I'm actually about to go play though.
Lillian Toran1 votesAlso I had queued with a Lv 30 before.
Lillian Toran1 votesI plan on playing Zilean in Normals when I get home to give myself a start.
ltmetal1 votesTop lane: For people who like to test themselves in 1v1s. Jungle: For people who like to scare the crap out of the enemy. Mid lane: For people who like to control the map and play high skill cap champions. Bot carry: For people who like dealing tons of damage and have a lot of trust in their team. Support: For people who care more about setting up big plays then grabbing all the glory and gold.
These are just factors that can cause you to enjoy a certain position more than others. Additionally, I offer you this list of skills that are valued in each position...
Top lane: Rewards players with good map awareness and who know how to snowball an advantage or come back from a lost lane Jungle: Rewards players who know when it's time to go in and understand positioning enough to exploit someone who positions poorly Mid lane: Rewards players who know how to use abilities in combos and land/dodge skillshots Bot carry: Rewards players who know how to last hit and stutter step/attack move/kite Support: Rewards players with good game sense and good resource management (gold, mana, consumables, etc.)
Rabid Husky1 voteseach lane is different and each role is even more so with every champion being another variable with another layer of strategy. no memes no jokes
top: if you wanna be a bit on the bulky side while still putting out decent damage mid: you are all damage sure you can get some bulk items but at the end your raw damage bot carry or adc or marksmen depending on your terminology: you are damage nothing more nothing less some have mobility others have cc others are just damage bottom line you are ment to push one way or another support: your not known for damage your ment to work with scraps of gold while being effective. carry the carry get them fed then get ready for team fighting you don't need kills to win just the satisfaction of feeding the team (this is where alot of beginning players gravitate to) jungle: this can go one of 3 ways 1 you carry the team 2 you support the team or 3 you tank up and laugh as cinderhulk makes you impossible to kill then you see like 3 people on the enemy team has bork and then cry as you try to get the teamfed
Ralanr1 votesI can't give advice on all roles, but I've learned that once you understand the mindset you can do it very well. I used be terrible with Pantheon. Then my friend told me, "focus the squishy. Like an assassin, pick one target and focus them."
Then I became decent with Pantheon. Even carried with him. It's all normals though.
Oli1 votesWhat role do you enjoy most? What playstyle matches your personality? If you're having trouble identifying your strengths or weaknesses, you can still pursue any role that you want to play. Just work at it!
But seeing as how you're still trying out champs for the first time and learning the game, I would recommend not worrying too much about specializing in a certain role just yet. I remember playing mostly Alistar until Lv. 30 in every role, not knowing what I was doing and just having fun. After I started playing ranked, specializing in a certain role felt like a more natural step to take, and I had learned enough about the game to understand my strengths and weaknesses. Hope that kinda helps.
DaProphet21 votesI'm no expert but I have found a niche in the mid lane. I recommend trying out the free champs in custom games and see if you like them. Do this before you play a bunch of normal games. Try to find champions that are flexible in multiple lanes. I also recommend watching the champion spotlights and professionals play games. Hope this helps :)