You can set yourself up for success, or failure, in League of Legends before the game even starts; Champ Select is the actual start of a match in LoL and treating it as such can give you an edge over your opponents if you play your cards right. Let’s break down the things you can do even before you jump on to the Rift to help secure you a victory!

Champion Choices

Picking a champion based on your team’s synergies and the enemy team’s playstyle can make a tremendous difference throughout your games. The obvious way to do this is to play champions that are capable of producing deadly wombo-combos when they link up, such as Malphite, Orianna, and Yasuo. However, if the enemy is playing a strong teamfighting composition, picking champions that are suitable for the 1-3-1 strategy is a great way to maintain control over the map without fear of being overwhelmed as a 5-man. An example of a 1-3-1 strategy can be seen below:

Champions that work well with this composition are Kayle, Tristana, and Tryndamere, as they have the potential to hold their own individually and siege Turrets effectively.

Picking Runes

Your Runes can (and should) change depending on the enemy team from game-to-game. Keystone Runes are based more on the style of game that you want to play, but your Secondary Runes and Shards are more important for your lane matchup. Defensive Secondary Runes, such as Perfect Timing, Nullifying Orb, and Taste of Blood can all be picked in favour of more aggressive alternatives depending on whether your lane matchup will suit you or not. For Shards, swapping between the Armor and Magic Resistance shards depending upon who you’re going to be laning against is the best way to take advantage of the small stat bonuses they yield.

Deciding on Summoner Spells

Choosing Summoner Spells based on your matchups is a great way to gain an edge coming into the game. If your team is relying on a 1-3-1 as their main win condition, as previously discussed, your solo laners should definitely take Teleport to allow for the possibility of global repositioning, and if you’re solo-laning against someone with plenty of healing, Ignite could be a strong alternative. In Support, an aggressive lane can benefit from a well-timed Ignite, where an enemy team with one hard carry can be easily disabled with a strategic Exhaust.

Now that we’ve discussed what can be done prior to the beginning of a match, let’s focus more on what you can do in-game to counter your opponent’s actions. After all, you could set yourself up to dominate a game by quizzing forums and reading article after article about which Champions are hard-counters to other Champions, but if you can’t execute a solid game plan then your 200IQ pre-game will all be for nothing.

Proactive and Reactive Counterplaying

In-game Counterplaying can be loosely categorised one of two ways: proactive, meaning that it is originating from you and the actions you take first, or reactive, which refers to the plays that you make in response to an enemy’s behaviour. Neither is better than the other, as both will have numerous applications throughout a standard game, so it’s important to understand what they mean and how to apply them in your future games. An example of proactive counterplaying is if you’re playing in Top and you see your Bot Laners getting ganked, you can Teleport into their lane to dig them out of a rough situation and turn it around for your team. Reactive Counterplaying is similar, however you’re making a decision after the opposing team takes the initiative. For example, if you see the enemy team moving towards the Dragon pit and you know you don’t have enough time to contest it, you can instead push out Top/Mid for extra turret plates and potentially even knock one down, or even move up to the Baron pit for a cheeky Rift Herald/Baron play. The below clip is from the 2019 Worlds Finals between FPX and G2, demonstrating counterplays on counterplays from both teams.

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After G2 finds a pick in the Mid Lane, a Teleport comes out from FPX into Top to try and secure a kill in retaliation onto Ezreal which is answered AGAIN by a Teleport and a roam from G2 towards Top to counter the counter... crazy stuff!

Constructing the Perfect Build

The concept of using your build to counterplay your enemies is fairly straightforward; you’ll find it easier to take down that chunky Ornn that’s built into Sunfire Cape and Dead Man’s Plate if you’re carrying a Lord Dominik’s Regards in your inventory. Establishing when to continue with your planned build and when to flex into a better choice for your specific scenario is essential and can be the difference between falling off late game and capitalising on your lead. This is where Penetration items like Void Staff and either of the Last Whisper completed items come in handy, as they aid in unleashing your arsenal on even the tankiest of enemies. In the same way, building defensively to counter your opponents’ offensive capabilities is a necessary consideration for any role. Take Supports, for example, and their choice of turning Aegis of the Legion into either a Locket of the Iron Solari or Zeke’s Convergence, depending on whether the enemy’s biggest threats are AP-based or AD-based. Being adaptable with your build is always preferable to having a rigid plan, so taking a moment to assess the situation next time you’re Recalling to shop can make a huge difference.

Laneswapping

Knowing when a laneswap would be advantageous to your game can make a huge difference and is a great way to counterplay your opponents. Laneswaps can occur for one of a few reasons:

1. The Champion matchup is too heavily favoured against your ally. This doesn’t occur very often, but lanes where the mechanics of an enemy Champion counter those of an allied Champion to such a degree where they will struggle unreasonably (such as Teemo vs. Tryndamere) are wise to swap around. Again, this is more dependent upon the individual playing the Champion than the lane itself, but moving that Tryndamere around to lane against Yasuo, for example, makes for a more even laning phase.

2. Your solo laners are struggling and feel more confident in each other's lanes. Perhaps your Mid Laner plays a whole lot of Ryze but sees the enemy team pick Ryze top before they could, your Mid Laner could swap with Top to play against a Champion that he’s more familiar with for a comfortable lane.

3. If the first tower falls in Bot Lane, ADC and Support can swap into Top Lane to continue steadily gaining XP and gold, as they’ll need it more than their solo laning allies. Since the solo-laning XP changes that have come in Preseason 2019-20, allowing your duo lane the freedom they need to get ahead in the game.

Taking this information on board as you go forward in League of Legends will allow you to take control over your games and dominate your opponents no matter how they decide to play. Counterplaying doesn’t have to be a last resort or representative of a losing mentality. It can be the formula to your success as you flex your mastery across Summoner’s Rift in future games to come.

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