Climbing the ranked ladder can be a challenging grind. Playing ranked can be a frustrating experience, but it provides a competitive playground on which you can improve yourself that you can't find in normal games. As a very competitive player, I’ve always tried to improve and become better at every game I play. These are some steps I took that everyone can take to improve and escape low elo.

Champion Pool

The most important thing to improve on is your champion pool. Being self-reliant is important in solo queue, so knowing what your champion can and can’t handle is important. Finding champions you enjoy to play is more important than how strong they are considered to be. It is sometimes forgotten, but this is a video game that is meant to be fun. If you have fun and enjoy the champions you play, grinding games and losing won't feel as strenuous. However, I do recommend you chose to play only four or less champions, two per role. The less time you spend learning and mastering these champions, the more time you can spend learning the game itself. Start by finding your favorite champion. A good strategy is to spend most of your time on this one champion, while having a backup champion that does well fighting your main. This is in case they are picked against you, as you will know how to fight your main and exploit their weaknesses. It is always good to have a backup just in case the champion you wanted to play is banned as well.

Role Selection

Picking your champions goes along with picking your role. With the season six champion select, you can specialize in just two roles. Like a broken record, I recommend picking two roles you enjoy, and sticking to them. Every role is different and comes with new matchups and difficulties. The less you have to learn the easier the game will become. Some champions are also fine to play in several roles, so there's an added bonus if you pick a versatile champion.

One Trick Pony

There are many Master and Challenger players who specialize in one champion. I firmly believe every champion is viable if the player behind them is talented. There are many OTPs (One Trick Ponies) out there who play a champion you might consider terrible, but they have mastered that champion to a point where they know exactly what they are capable of in any scenario. That is a powerful tool to have. As a OTP myself, I climbed from Gold to Diamond playing mostly Nasus. Some valuable mechanics can be learned after spending so much time on one champion. You’ll improve at CSing, especially getting CS under tower. You’ll learn lane matchups and when and who to trade damage with. Generally, your laning phase will improve dramatically, often leading to you having a lead. You can then transition this lead into the mid game and help carry your team to victory! I understand playing only one champion can be considered boring by many players. It is just one route people take to improve and I support it.

Who Should I Main?

So the time has come for you to pick your champions, but now you’re wondering, who should I main? It is an important question that shouldn’t be decided too quickly. As I said before, the most important factor is that you enjoy playing that champion. If no champions jump out at you already as being your favorite, I can still help. Try to aim for champions that are mechanically easy to play. The less time you need to focus on your mechanics, the more you can focus on what is going on around you. You won’t need to focus on doing an action; you will just do it instinctively. This means more time spent looking at your minimap and being able to adapt to the game. As an example, it is much easier to visualize a Garen combo than a Zed combo. A linear, or basic, skillset does not translate to weak. There are many champions in the game, and it takes a long time to play them all. Take your time and find what you enjoy.

Feel free to ask any questions you may have in the comments. Good luck and I hope to see you all in Diamond soon!

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