Many players never really focus on where they are standing in relation to their allies, their enemies and the map as a whole. To improve your positioning means to understand pressure zones, attack and skillshot range and that movement is not only about getting from x to y. Understanding and practicing both offensive and defensive movement and positioning is key in developing as a competitor in almost every competitive game.

The last few movement commands before throwing a skillshot are equally important for hitting as the angle itself. Whenever you are throwing a skillshot you are playing a mind game with your opponent. There are several possible situations: If your enemy successfully predicts your skillshot, he is going to dodge it without having to react. If you instead predict his movement, he has to react to the skillshot, diminishing his probability to dodge it. Learning how your enemy reacts to your movements is key for hitting, not only the skillshot itself. Where does he walk when you approach him directly? Where does he go when you turn? Remember his reactions and throw the shot accordingly. Also, the closer the distance, the less reaction time your enemy has. Try to move every possible inch closer before throwing your shot. Be aware of how you move before a shot and learn how your enemy reacts to you and you will increase the percentage of hits.

Make yourself less predictable or even use your apparent predictability to your advantage. Everyone who saw pro players play Thresh should know what I mean. Thresh’s hook is one of the most interesting skillshots when it comes to the concept of faking its direction. This is because Thresh is going to wind up his hook into the direction he is facing, while he throws it – even if he has to so over his back – in the direction you have chosen. Basically, the idea is to face a different direction when throwing than you actually throw your skillshot. Sadly, fast fingers are important when doing so. Most people move towards the enemy and then throw their ability in the same direction as they walked. This is easily predictable and will lead to a bunch of missed or rather easily dodged skillshots. Try walking differently and not directly towards your opponent and, even more importantly, try to face a different direction just before actually throwing. Make your enemy see you changing direction, it will confuse him and tell him that now it is completely unclear where you are going to throw your shot. Another possibility is to walk straight towards an enemy, face him and throw your skillshot while doing so, but on a different, maybe less aware opponent. By faking predictability with your movement, you can confuse enemies and create a false image security.

Yellowstar trying to surprise Nyph with a "Flash Hook". Flash is a nice tool to get your enemies on the wrong foot... though it can make you look absolutely stupid sometimes. GIF made by Majestic Poro on majesticporo.devianart.com

Having a skillshot creates a zone of pressure around your champion at all times. Based on the thoughts above, I conclude that the point, or position, from which you throw a skillshot, is equally important as the angle itself. You have to realise that there is some kind of invisible pressure zone around you. The better players get, the more aware they are going to be of that zone. It is the zone that is created by your attack or skillshot range. Champions like Blitzcrank, Lux, Caitlyn or Gnar are examples of champions with big pressure zones in- or out of lane. Whenever you are moving, this zone is moving with you. Your enemies will always try to avoid being in your pressure zone by hiding behind minions (against Blitzcrank or Thresh) or by keeping their distance. It is very important that you yourself are aware of your own pressure zone too and to play around it accordingly. Blitzcrank’s hook is an awesome ability but not so when it's on cooldown. The moment your zoning ability goes on cooldown, you lose the pressure zone, diminishing your impact and lane dominance. A good Blitzcrank knows that and sometimes doesn't throw his hook but only threatens to do so. He will move towards the enemy, place himself in an angle around the minions and then... spam laugh as his opponent flees and hands over the supremacy of the lane.

A nice hook by FluffyNutz. Notice how Thresh's model is facing the opposite direction because he hooked over his back. This is how you can make your hooks less predictable.

Being fast is not only important when dodging but also when trying to hit. Fast movement has a lot to do with unpredictability and forcing bad reactions. If you are faster than your opponent, you can not only rapidly change the angle between you, them and their allies or minions, but you can also move your pressure zone closer to them without them being able to escape fast enough. Blitzcrank’s W is a key ability of his kit for hitting his Q for that exact reason. There are two other great examples for this: Ezreal players often use their E before instantly throwing their Q, making it impossible to predict the angle of the skillshot and most often hitting at the cost of their escape spell. Summoners playing Nidalee may use their W in cougar form, transform mid-air and use their spear as soon as they land, again creating of a somewhat new angle – though more predictable and less different from the starting point than Ezreal’s E or Blitzcrank’s fast movement. This concept in mind you might also start to understand why Boots of Mobility – besides the stronger roaming and warding ability – are very useful for champions like Thresh or Blitzcrank to help them use their most important abilities. Always keep in mind how important movement and its speed are when playing, because moving correctly and moving fast may vastly improve your ability to hit abilities.

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