The Best Way to Start With League of Legends

Beginner’s guide to League of Legends. Advice for getting started with Lol – what to do, where to start, and how to avoid beginner mistakes.

Getting started with League of Legends can be quite daunting – especially if you have no experience with strategy video games. However, there’s a wrong way and a right way to start playing LoL. The best way to start playing League of Legends depends on your pre-existing skill level, of course. Someone with experience with MOBA games can throw themselves into a normal Summoner’s Rift and do reasonably well. Someone with barely any experience with PC gaming, however, will struggle with even basic concepts like movement and last hits. Hopefully, the LoL starting tips presented below will be useful to all types of players.

What Should a Beginner Do in LoL?

Riot Games have devoted no small effort to guide LoL beginners. However, their guidelines won’t work perfectly for everyone. Here are some ways in which you can mitigate the stress of playing with and against other players.

There are several ways to practice playing League of Legends in a controlled environment. We strongly recommend doing so before jumping into normal matchmaking – let alone Ranked. The matchups you get in the game are determined by how well (or poorly) you performed so far. That’s why playing PvP unprepared can negatively impact your MMR (MatchMaking Ranking) and hinder your progress.

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    • Play Co-op vs. AI

    When you launch LoL for the first time, you won’t be able to just jump into PvP combat. This was done on purpose, to avoid newbies being completely clueless in their first match. You’ll have to fight Co-op vs. AI games until Summoner level 5.

    No matter how you look at it, though, this is a great way to get started with League of Legends. The fact that you’re playing against computer-controlled Champions means the game will be quite forgiving. More so if you’re playing using the beginner difficulty.

    The good thing about all this is that you can play around, win, or lose with no consequences. Both your Normal and Ranked MMR are completely unaffected, which means losing isn’t a problem. Also, you’re likely playing alongside other LoL newbies who don’t have a lot at stake either. No matter how lost you feel and how poorly you’re doing, at least you won’t be annoying any other players.

    Remember, if you’re not confident in your skills even after reaching level 5, you don’t have to stop playing co-op. You can use the game mode as a sort of playground until you feel ready to face other players. It’s a great way to learn about different roles, the basics of League of Legends, and see how Champions work in action.

    League of Legends co-op pits you against AI enemies but still grants Summoner XP, allowing you to progress. You can even complete missions in co-op, including the First Win of the Day.

    Lol Custom Games

    Setting up custom games can be another great tool for League of Legends beginners. Custom games allow you to set up a quick game and assign bots (computer-controlled Champions.) It has some ups and downs compared to co-op, though.

    The main advantage of Custom games is in the name – it’s completely customizable. If you’re playing only with bots, you get free reign over which LoL role and Champion you play. Not worrying about other players’ picks means that you can focus on aspects of the game you want to practice. You can also add your friends to the match if they’re willing to help you learn. They can even play against you while also focusing on helping you rather than giving their best to win.

    However, custom games do not grant any MMR changes or Summoner XP, and you can’t complete missions. On the flip side, you can leave at any time without incurring the usual penalties of leaving LoL games midway.

    League of Legends Practice Tool

    Since version 7.3, players have also had access to the LoL Practice Tool. This tool is not nearly as great for getting to know basic functions like how Champions work or player movement. However, it’s a completely safe environment to test things out. Think of it this way – if LoL was basketball, the Practice Tool allows you to just shoot some hoops. It’s still not a practice game, but it can be extremely useful.

    The Practice Tool allows you to essentially “cheat.” You can heal, increase your Champion level, add gold, and much more.

    For starters, you can get started with LoL Champions by figuring out how their abilities work. Items are also easily available for testing, and you can create a “dummy” to test out damage.

    To be frank, the Practice Tool is arguably more useful for advanced players looking to crunch numbers and optimize builds. However, it’s also a nice sandbox for those looking to get better at League of Legends.

    League of Legends Tips for Beginners

    So far, we listed game modes and tools to help guide League of Legends beginners. Now, we’ll get into some more direct tips for starting LoL:

    • • Play different Champions. It’s quite likely that you’ll eventually find a set of Champions you enjoy the most and play on the regular. However, knowing the Champions’ full skillset is absolutely essential. Not just in case you want to play them, either. You need to understand how League of Legends Champions work so you can play with or against them.
    • • Learn how to last hit in LoL. Finishing off minions is the only way to get gold for them in the game. The basic premise is simple – don’t attack until the minion is almost dead. Practice your timing until you can reliably last hit every minion.
    • • Look up guides on specific Champions. Understanding the basic gist of how all Champions work is important. However, once you find one you like, focus on learning everything about them. Look up guides, learn builds, watch pro players play them, and so on.
    • • Never stop farming. You should be trying to get more gold and XP at every second of every match. Winning a League of Legends match as a beginner is quite often a matter of efficiently farming.
    • • Learn the five roles. Top, Jungle, Mid, ADC, Support. Learn what each job entails. Then, focus on learning the one you like. The best role for League of Legends beginners is one you’re most familiar with. Besides, the basics of team play demand that you don’t drop the ball when playing a role.
    • • Don’t be too aggressive as a beginner. Stay behind your minions, don’t dive under enemy turrets while keeping your own handy. Being aggressive can be rewarding, but it’s finicky and requires advanced skills such as reading the map and predicting enemy movement. For starters, play on the safe side, and accordingly, pick League of Legends champions for beginners.

    These League of Legends beginner tips will hopefully help you start on the right foot.