You are struggling to climb the ranks of League of Legends. You have watched the pros, reviewed your VODs, and still cannot seem to find out the reason for your lack of success. The simplest things are often overlooked, and in League that is no different. It is the micro decisions you make as an individual that sets you apart from one another. Here are some of the most common mistakes you (might) be making.

Top Ten Common Low Elo Mistakes

1. Vision vs. Attention 

So many people will focus on setting up wards. That is great - vision is the greatest tool you have for winning. However, besides placing wards and clearing enemy wards, you need to utilize the vision you set up. Use your vision; constantly look at the minimap. Your wards become completely useless if you fail to watch the map. After every few CS take a look at your map - it will not hurt you at all if you are not far behind your lane opponent and if you are only farming.

2. Maining every champion

People have a tendency in lower ELO to main nearly every champion. By main, I mean they are confident in playing Volibear top for the first time because their friend said it was OP. There is a debate on whether or not it is more beneficial to be proficient in many champions or amazing in a select few. I would say for low ELO where you are unlikely to run into people more than once (who might target ban you) it is better to play a select few champions. When you add too many champions into your mix, it becomes complicated to know their matchup/counters and how to properly use them to get the most you can.

3. Over Harass

Now you are thinking... is that even a thing? Certainly the more I harass, the better. Yes and no. Harassing the opponent is good, unless it gets in the way of you farming. Too many times have I've been beaten "harass"-wise in lane but come out on top gold-wise. When harassing a lane opponent, use the following as a guide: If you are harassing and not getting a kill or forcing an enemy to back and you are missing CS as a result of it - the harassment is pointless.

4. Leveling

Too many people will ignore their lane opponent's level. It is important to be aware of both your team's levels and the opposing team's levels. There are two very early power strikes that people forget about and thus often ends up changing the game's favor: the level 2 over level 1 advantage and level 6 over level 5 advantage. Both these level changes are huge and thus if you are behind slightly, you should be careful and not engage in fights when the power spike is imminent. When behind, play safe and wait until you are on a level playing ground (no pun intended).

5. Baron/Dragon Throws

This one is a little harder to control in Solo Queue, but I have seen more Baron and Dragon throws in low ELO then anywhere else. Seriously though, take Baron and Dragon when you know it is safe to do so. Also when securing a Baron/Dragon, never put yourself in a position to get trapped in the pit. Always peel out away from it, as the damage will be very significant on you, which makes cleaning up your team all too easy for the opponents.

6. Tower Dives

They are powerful, unexpected, and oh so loved in the LCS. However, when limited to text chat they become much harder to properly pull off. Be careful on who you dive - and do not dive if you are under level 6 yourself. While it's doable, it requires more turret aggro juggling.

7. Positioning

This is probably the biggest factor in a majority of fights. Positioning is essential in both team and duo/solo fights. When reviewing past VODs look at where you tend to place yourself. Is it the most efficient? Damage dealers need to get into a position that allows them to deal the most damage to as many champions as possible, while staying alive at least until the fight is basically won. These carries should stay back (it is better to stay too far back then too forward), while tanks need to get in the middle and cause as much destruction and chaos as possible to give their carries the time needed to deal damage.

8. Sieging

Sieging is part 2 once you get baron or dragon. The idea is you are looking to further stretch your advantage, but, more importantly, you are also making use of the buff you acquired. You don't want to spend too much time on a single siege if they are able to wave clear and save the tower, so don't.

9. Tunnel Vison

This is something that is hard to give tips on how to avoid. Basically tunnel vision is focusing super hard at one thing and blocking everything else around you out. This tends to happen when you get an enemy low but they are just out of range to finish them. The standard rule is chase for 5-7 seconds. After that, if you haven't caught up, most of the time you won't be able to.

10. Group Up

I saved this for last because this is by far the biggest mistake in lower ELOs. If you get an advantage, group up and stretch the opponent thin. When you stay in your lane too long it becomes easy to pick off individuals, allowing for the comeback you dreaded but knew would happen. Win lane, lose game. If you win your lane, go to other suffering lanes. Otherwise, the previous mentioned slogan will come true for you.

Conclusion

We all make mistakes. Even some high ELO players will find themselves making the same mistakes mentioned in this article. There are also so many other mistakes we make on a game to game basis. The important part is that we learn from them. Keep calm in games, think clearly, and execute the way you see best. If you are losing lane, look to roam and gain advantages in other parts of the map. Keep vision up but also pay attention to the vision you have. Make sure you have a small pool of champions that you know like the back of your hand. Most importantly, group up. This is a team game and in the end you win/lose as a unit. So group up and win as a unit or face the sour taste of defeat.

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